《Wake of the Ravager》 Chapter 1: Calvin the Almighty Calvin The Almighty cackled madly as his troops surrounded the hapless civilians, whose backs were pressed against the deadly river. A few tried to swim across, but they were torn from their feet and swiftly plunged into the white rapids, never to be seen again. ¡°You fools! Your flesh will be fuel for my army, your bones built into cages to house your next of kin until they too, are consumed! Nothing will remain to say that your people ever existed at all!¡± Cal broke into another laugh as victory loomed near. This was a great day for his army of darkness. The first step of many toward conquering the land as far as the eye could see. And once he had his way, he would build his utopia atop the ashes, creating the ideal land, where upstanding citizens could eat Crim Cookies before bed-time, and stupid girls weren¡¯t allowed, only big boobied ones who liked him a lot. Cal¡¯s army encroached, pressing closer to the cowering mass of flesh¡­ ¡°Calvin!¡± his sister¡¯s shout physically yanked him to his feet, reflexively wiping the dirt off the knees of his Sunday best. ¡°Yeah?¡± Cal shouted, orienting on the voice echoing through the shade-drenched woods. ¡°Are you playing with ants again!?¡± The voice came from the west, toward the village. Cal glanced down at the line of ants attacking the beetles he¡¯d diverted a little stream around with a stick. ¡°No!¡± ¡°Karen says to get back to the village! It¡¯s our Breaking-day, dolt!¡± Breaking-day, when all of Cal¡¯s careful plotting would come to fruition. In the country of Gadvera, a child took a major step toward becoming an adult on their Breaking day, when they would experience their first Break. The Break happened when a person experienced too much Warp at once, causing them to get sick with a fever. Warp was released when a living thing died, flowing into the air. When Cal woke up tomorrow morning he would experience one day where both his body and mind would react and grow exactly the way he wanted it to. Peasants typically used that day to expedite apprenticeships, and Cal knew Karen intended to force him to learn swordplay the entire day, so he could ¡®protect Jinnei¡¯. The girl needs a little less protecting, If you ask me. Cal had other ideas. He was going to learn magic. Those who could control the Bent to alter reality at their whim were Cal¡¯s heroes, regardless of whether they were street magicians or wizened old men in towering libraries. Karen said the magic of Surrak, the port city down the road where they went to sell wool each spring, was vile heresy. Which he found odd, because they were citizens of Gadvera, and nobody else he¡¯d spoken to seemed to have that opinion. In any case, Karen hadn¡¯t offered him an alternative, so he was going to take whatever he could get. ¡°Now!¡± Jinnei¡¯s scream echoed through the woods. By all the gods, that girl is loud. ¡°Coming!¡± Cal said, scrunching up his face and sticking out his tongue as he picked up the basket of berries and mushrooms for the party. ¡°And don¡¯t make that face!¡± Cal started, looking around the woods. There was no actual sign of Jinnei. She must still be at least a couple hundred feet out and blocked by massive trees. He shivered. ¡°The enemy has eyes everywhere,¡± he muttered to himself before hustling to the village, his calloused feet picking their way through the woods. When he finally got to the treeline, the raven-haired girl with the farmer¡¯s tan was dressed in woolen Gudveran peasant garb, her birth mother¡¯s silver necklace tucked under her shirt, with only the chain visible. She was waiting for him, hands on her hips and an angry look in her eye. She was about two inches taller than Cal too, a result of getting her growth spurt first, and refusing to give the lead back. I swear, one day I will tower over you, wretch. They¡¯d known each other since they were born, and Cal always thought it was strange how he, Karen, and Jinnei all looked different than everyone else in the village, with their strangely sun-intolerant skin and pale eyes. Karen got evasive whenever he asked, Jinnei had no idea, and the other villager didn¡¯t seem to care Cal¡¯s eyes flickered down to her budding breasts, and back up to her face. Damnation! ¡°What took you so long to gather berries?¡± she asked. Maybe she hadn¡¯t noticed his slip. ¡°What¡¯s taking you so long to fill out an A cu-¡° Cal¡¯s words were interrupted by a slap. My advantage, Her rage. Her advantage, my testicles. Incoming assault. Feral, but experienced. Cal ducked under her right hand and managed to ward off the left swing with his forearm, then Jinnei looped her hand around the back of his neck and got him in a clinch, driving the wind out of his ribs with a gentle knee to the ribcage. If it hadn¡¯t been, she probably would¡¯ve broken something. Cal staggered back, stooped over and holding up a hand in surrender while his left hand clutched his ribs. ¡°I give,¡± He said. ¡°Training with Karen was always more your thing than mine.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve got the speed for it,¡± she said, picking up his basket. ¡°If not the personality.¡± ¡°And she wants me to protect you.¡± Cal groaned as he straightened up. That was going to bruise tomorrow, no doubt about it. Cal and Jinnei scoffed as they headed back to the little sheepherding village of Deinos. **** ¡°¡­and with this sacrifice let the Warp fill these youngsters with the quickness of limb, sharpness of eye and the iron will that they need to find success in their choice of professions. Let the Break be gentle and fair. Let these children become fine Men and Women¡­¡± The village elder¡¯s voice was causing Cal¡¯s eyes to start to roll back in his head, but it seemed like this was the end of the speech. Maybe they could get on with the feast now. ¡°¡­Men and Women who fufill their duties to community and family by¡­¡± the Elder continued, droning on and on. Oh gods, just kill the griks and have done with it. Cal was fairly sure the rest of the adults in the village were thinking the same thing. Probably. Cal wasn¡¯t good at reading expressions, and was often mocked for taking people too literally. The village elder was chanting sonorously on a raised altar with no less than a dozen griks and youngsters, surrounded by anyone in the village over the age of twelve. Children weren¡¯t allowed to attend the Breaking because their young bodies had a chance of succumbing to the fever, so they were rounded up under the watchful eye of a few adults. Every Breaking Cal had ever been to had always been after the griks were killed, when they threw them on the grills and had a feast. He had had no idea the torture each generation of older kids had to go through at their first Breaking. Cal glanced to his right and saw Harram nodding off, the large, dark skinned boy just as bored as he was. Beyond him was Jinnei holding up admirably well, and Persei, a slender brown girl with a wide nose and gentle mannerisms. To his left was Baroke, a rather oversized Gudveran boy with a wide jaw, thick neck and placid eyes. The selfish oaf! How dare he not share the secret to growing so freakishly large? Cal demanded internally. He carefully kept his face neutral, since it wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d actually hogged the growth¡­and the boy could probably punch a hole through him. Beyond Baroke was a slender, muscular boy named Kort, who had defensive scars winding up his arms from where he¡¯d enthusiastically taken lessons from Karen. More power to him, I guess. Cal was not a fan of pain. Or losing. And training with Karen guaranteed plenty of both. Not that his distaste stopped her from forcing him to attend. ¡°Begin the ceremony!¡± Yes! Three of the bigger villagers stepped up, Ghol the blacksmith, Endras the farmer down the road, and Kahm the carpenter. These dark-skinned men hefted large wooden hammers with a single iron spike on them, driving the spikes through the Grik three at a time. Grik were large, insectoid, eight-legged monsters about the size of a dog. They were herbivores, docile, and stupid, and they tasted great roasted over a fire and dipped in butter. They died with a squeal, releasing their Warp into the atmosphere, where it soaked into everyone present, a subtle pressure in the air that was more implied than felt. For the adults, this much Warp in the air would do nothing to them, but for the uninitiated, like Cal and the others, it would force their body to adapt, building a reserve of Bent as it struggled to process the poisonous substance. ¡°So mote it be,¡± the elder said as the last grik was perforated. ¡°And now a moment of silence for their sacrifice, and contemplation for our youth¡¯s future. Everyone bowed their head, giving quiet thanks to the stupid bugs for their sacrifice ¨C which they probably had no concept of ¨C and thinking wholesome thoughts about what they wanted to do when they grew up. Greatest spellslinger in all the land would be an acceptable start, I think. The village elder reached up to his embroidered cap and spun it around. ¡°All right everyone, I got my ceremonial hat on backwards, it¡¯s time to fuckin¡¯ party!¡± he shouted, throwing his gnarled hands in the air, rousing the cheers of the rest of the village, who got to work dismembering the griks and getting them ready to boil. The rest of the night was par for the course. Cal had never experienced the Breaking party from the Table of Honor, but it turned out to be a lot less interesting than he¡¯d been led to believe. It was less being congratulated, encouraged, and fed, and more being interrogated by nosy neighbors. ¡°So, what do you think you¡¯ll be studying tomorrow?¡± Marshine, a dumpy, well-meaning older woman, asked him as she refilled his wine. ¡°Oh, I¡­¡± Cal glanced over at Karen. The six and a half foot tall shepherd with brilliant golden hair and a frame that supported an ungodly amount of muscle eyed him suspiciously. ¡°I¡¯m going to learn swordsmanship from Karen.¡± ¡°Oh, I suppose you¡¯ll be quite the deadly weapon by the end of the day then,¡± she said with a smile, nudging him with her soft hip before moving on to the next person¡¯s cup. Was that sarcasm? Cal couldn¡¯t tell. Eh, not important, he thought, bringing the sheep horn cup to his lips and taking a hearty swig. The conversation continued, with Cal deflecting as best he could, while the boys of the village surrounded Jinnei, congratulating her on her Breaking-day and asking her what she planned on doing with the rest of her life. Jinnei was technically exotic and lovely ¨C although Cal didn¡¯t see it ¨C and after twelve years living among the villagers of Deinos, she was still the center of attention wherever she went. She caught his eyes. Help me, she mouthed at him. Cal smiled and waved. Serves her right for getting all the attention. Not a single person of Cal¡¯s age had expressed an interest in him. Probably. It was a little hard to compete with the lumbering titan seated to his left. Jinnei shot him an angry look between people pestering her, and then pointedly ignored him for the rest of the night. In the meantime, with little else to do, Cal continued to nurse his wine, getting deeper and deeper in his cup. Can¡¯t wait for tomorrow, he thought as the world started to spin, and everything got several times funnier than it had been just an hour ago. He was actually starting to enjoy the village elder¡¯s jokes. ¡°And the hunter asks the wise man from the top of the cliff, ¡®Now what?¡¯¡± ¡°Aaahahahaha!¡± Cal¡¯s plate nearly flipped over as he slammed his cup down on the edge, spilling a bit on Baroke¡¯s elbow. ¡°Ah, sorry Baroke, you¡­ummm?¡± Baroke was face-first in his plate of grik shells. Cal leaned forward and glanced to either side, noticing that not a single one of the adolescents were still awake. They were, to a person, face down on the table, the feast continuing on without them. Oh, yeah, I forgot about that¡­ Cal¡¯s eyes rolled back in his head, and he tried to support himself with his cup hand, succeeding only in spilling wine all over the front of his shirt and pants as his face hit the pointy grick shells covered in butter. The kids that underwent the Breaking always ended up shitfaced. ****** Warp overflow detected¡­ Initializing Warp Protection System¡­ Break. Scanning subject. ERROR: Subject is [Redacted]¡­ reporting¡­ -Manual override. Authorization XN7-FIN-056. Show me what I¡¯m dealing with. Insufficient Clearance, Seek Higher Authority. ¡­ -Not enough Clearance? Do you know who I am? Seek Higher Authority. -AFK, I¡¯m gonna go talk to management. ¡­. ¡­ >>>Warning, External Access Detected<<< >>>Attempted Write permissions access<<< >>>Begin Lockout<<< ¡­ ¡­. ¡­¡­.???????£¤????¡¥ Lockout Rescinded. Adjusting framework. Installing new software. Bent Core installed. Scrubbing History. ¡­. ¡­. ¡­¡­¡­ -Yeah, that¡¯s a negative on the System Install, orders from on High. Let this one go the way of the dodo. Connection terminated. ¡­. ¡­¡­.. ¡­????? ??? ???? T? P??? ? ??§¨?? ¡°Cal, get out of bed! I¡¯m gonna work you to the bone!¡± Karen¡¯s voice shouted from outside his hut. He¡¯d been living alone since two years ago, making enough to get by doing odd jobs and fishing in the river, trying to avoid being eaten by Norlocks. To the hells with that! Cal thought, rolling over in bed, worming his way deeper under the covers and squeezing his eyes shut tight. Wait a minute. What the hell am I looking at? Body 5 Strength 4 Kinethetics 5 Endurance 4 Mind 9 Intuition 3 Stability 7 Will 8 Bent 2/7 Skills: ¡­In front of him was an array of numbers that represented ¨C ¡°Shit!¡± Cal jumped out of bed. He was seeing his Status, which meant it was Forming Day, and he didn¡¯t have a single second to waste being beaten half to death by an overenthusiastic Karen. Cal slipped into the clean clothes he¡¯d laid out for himself the day before, keeping his head down and trying not to make any unnecessary sounds. If Karen thought he was still asleep, he could probably get away without activating plan Ghol. Cal held his breath and slid his pants on silently, then his shirt, grabbing his secret stash of gold and sliding out the back window, carefully keeping himself from rubbing on anything. He was somehow being sneakier than he¡¯d ever really been before. It just seemed to come to him naturally. You have manifested Stealth Stealth has reached Level 1! Level 1: Boosts ability to remain undetected. 5% correction Remaining Warp 11/12 Oh, right. Cal slid out the window and silently dropped to his knees, ignoring the voice in his head. It was happening exactly the way the adults had said it would, so he wasn¡¯t particularly concerned. It was a bit strange, but not unexpected. Cal kept low, trying to slide through the grass behind his hut to avoid catching Karen¡¯s attention. The meaty woman was probably going to snap the lock off the front door in a few minutes to find nothing but an empty room. Take that, meathead. Cal spotted a patch of thin grass, and slid his foot into place, avoiding twigs and leaves. Stealth has reached Level 2! Level 2: 10% correction. Remaining Warp 10/12 Cal stopped, a horrible though occurring to him. What If I use up all my Warp just getting to Surrak? That would be stupid. Really, really, stupid. Cal sighed and stood up straight, abandoning his attempts at stealth. Looks like it¡¯s plan Ghol. Didn¡¯t wanna do that, but the Forming Day leaves me no choice. Cal walked out from behind his house and began walking down the road, hoping that by some miraculous twist of fate the giantess wouldn¡¯t see him walking town the long hill to the port city in the distance. The morning sun glittered off the ocean, rising as it always did, from the west. About halfway out of town, a thick hand clamped down on his shoulder. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± Karen asked. The thick jawed, bright haired woman stood nearly a foot above him and outweighed him by a substantial margin, and she were to be believed, had experienced the Break eight times. There was no chance he¡¯d get away from her. Unless¡­ ¡°There¡¯s a letter in Ghol¡¯s house that details the incident with him last winter while his wife was in town. Better find it before she does.¡± Cal said. A thick hand seized around his neck and Cal was lifted off the ground. This was not part of the plan. Suddenly Cal realized that Karen could simply search the blacksmith¡¯s house while wringing his neck like a chicken. This was poorly thought out. ¡°Where is it?¡± Jinnei¡¯s and Cal¡¯s guardian growled into his face. I think I smell blood. Cal thought as his vision tinted red. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I had someone else do it.¡± ¡°Who?¡± she demanded. ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± Cal croaked, ¡°I got everyone together and had them decide who would hide the letter while I was gone. It¡¯s possible they didn¡¯t do it at all.¡± ¡°Damn!¡± Karen said, the giant woman dropping him to the ground and running back down the path. It wouldn¡¯t take her long to find out who hid the letter, if anyone. Time to haul ass. Cal turned and ran down the dirt road at full speed, not stopping until he caught a ride with a wagon headed into the city on the main road. Your Body has reached Level 6! Remaining Warp 7/12 ¡°Damn,¡± Cal said, panting on the back of the wagon. A skill took one Warp and a Stat took three to raise, and Cal wanted to make sure he had enough to learn some magic. Cal had been to Surrak before, but rarely by himself, and that was a completely different experience. The newfound freedom and heavy purse tucked inside his coat made him feel ten feet tall, despite generally significantly shorter than the average adult. All around him, the sights, sounds and smells of the port city washed over him, a confusing jumble of stimulus that nearly made him forget his purpose. Right. let¡¯s get some samples of what this heathen magic has to offer. Cal remembered a seeing a few preforming magicians, and that seemed like a good enough place to start. He elbowed his way through the crowded streets, the sun just beginning to beat down on them from above. Unfortunately no matter how hard he looked, he didn¡¯t find the usual skinny man making toys and small animals multiply as part of his act, so Cal would have to aske around. ¡°Excuse me, could you-¡° The man next to him grumbled and kept walking. ¡°Do you-¡° Cal got elbowed aside. Undeterred, Cal continued to pester person after person until a man gave him halfhearted instructions leading him to a street on the far side of the city, north of the docks. The smell of rotting food and disease did nothing to slow him down. Now that he knew what street he was looking for, he easily got a specific address for his elusive Gadveran magician. Cal walked up to the door and began knocking on it. lightly at first, then progressively harder, until finally a shout from inside indicated that the owner was awake. Cal waited. Nothing happened. Cal started beating on the door again. ¡°What!?¡± A thin Gadveran man missing a couple teeth snarled as he yanked open the door, his breath punching Cal in the face with tangible force. ¡°Are you a magician?¡± Cal asked. The thin man looked him up and down. ¡°beat it kid.¡± He said, slamming the door on Cal¡¯s foot. OOOOOOWWWWW ¡°It¡¯s my Forming Day, and I really, really¡­wanna learn some magic.¡± Cal said. ¡°It¡¯s gonna happen, whether it be from you or the next guy. I could do this all day.¡± The thin man looked Cal over again. ¡°What¡¯s your Intuition?¡± ¡°Three.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± The man smiled. Smiling was good. ¡°How much Warp you got left?¡± ¡°Seven.¡± ¡°Money?¡± ¡°Right here!¡± Cal pulled out his bag of coins he¡¯d fastidiously saved over the last couple years, for this specific moment ¨C A thin hand reached out and snagged the bag out of Cal¡¯s hand before slamming the door on his foot again. As it turned out, he could not do it all day, reflexively yanking his aching foot out of the door a second before the thing was latched shut. ¡°Lesson one.¡± The man¡¯s muffled voice came from the other side of the door, before it once again went silent. An hour of banging on the door netted Cal nothing but bruised fists to go with his slowly swelling foot. This is not how I pictured this going. Cal glanced behind him, and noticed the shadows of the city getting long as the sun began to sink toward the city wall. It began to sink in how truly out of his element he was. Crap. Chapter 2: The kindness of Strangers Calvin was starting to get hungry, but that was of secondary, or even tertiary importance. Important thing #1: Find someone willing to teach him magic for¡­Cal reached into his pocket and pulled out the contents. Three copper coins and some lint. Important thing #2: Get home before he got robbed...more? That one was self-explanatory. And last but not least, get something to eat. Cal glanced down the stinking alleys, looking a lot more foreboding now that the sun was going down. Which direction did I come from? Curses. He¡¯d stalked up and down the alley looking for the supposed magician¡¯s house enough that he didn¡¯t quite know the direction he¡¯d come from, and all the landmarks had been covered by the foot traffic. There wasn¡¯t a lot of that now. Now he was just lost. Eh, worst case scenario, I spend a night sleeping in the gutter and find my way home in the morning. Calvin shrugged and started walking down the street, making sure to note exactly which door belonged to the thief. Calvin the almighty does not forgive easily. Steel thyself for retribution¡­someday. Calvin walked through the quickly darkening streets, the only light available coming from the roofs of the stone buildings towering above him that reflected the last little bit of the daylight. After a few minutes plodding along, he came to the conclusion that if he found the main street and followed the setting sun, he could at the very least find the East gate and therefor the road that would lead home. Cal trotted along the narrow streets, trying to find a main road that would take him in the direction of his home, and keeping his eye out for a street magician busking. Anything would be good by now. Cal was heading south, looking for the main street, when the cluster of buildings pressing in around him suddenly vanished, leaving him standing in the middle of the Wharf, the hundreds of ships and thousands of sailors busily unloading the last of their freight in the dim light, moving to take advantage of every ounce of illumination they could wring out. Surrak was the second biggest trading city in the east, moving spices and June-worm shells northwest, and shipping soft northern wheat, barley, the glorious pelts and elemental fangs of northern beasts to the southeast. Karen even had a flame-beaver tooth above her mantle, which would light any wood on fire with a touch. Cal hadn¡¯t yet scraped together enough money to afford many luxuries, and being able to light the wood stove in a matter of seconds made him green with envy. One day he would leverage his magical skills for wealth and privilege. Speaking of wealth and privilege¡­ Cal spotted a five group of velvet-swaddled westerners walking away from the docks. They were decked out in dark blue coats that must have been sweltering hot, and heavy gold chains around their necks. Gods, how much I could get for even one of those chains. Cal thought idly. He knew he wasn¡¯t going to go for it though. He wasn¡¯t that desperate, and something about these men looked¡­strange. The pale men weren¡¯t limping or hobbling, exactly. Nothing about the way they moved suggested an ailment or lack of speed, but the way they bobbed up and down as they walked made them look like they were loping through the crowd of sailors. Like animals. The sailors themselves seemed to avoid the men, keeping their heads down, shifting out of their way and avoiding eye contact. Are they from Malkenrovia? Karen always said never to speak to anyone else from there, so maybe the sailors had a similar opinion. Cal shrugged. One way to find out. Call trotted up to the foreigners and loped alongside them. They kept their eyes forward, loping along, ignoring Cal. ¡°Are you folks from Malkenrovia?¡± Cal asked. As one, the five men snapped their eyes toward him, causing a chill to go down Cal¡¯s spine. Cal stammered, ¡°Not to pry or anything, I just haven¡¯t ¨C¡± ¡°We stem from the One, and have no purpose other than His.¡± Having said that cryptic weirdness in unison, the five men faced forward and began walking again, with just a bit too much bounce in their step to be natural. ¡°¡­Huh.¡± Cal stopped and watched them lope along. Crazy foreigners. A hand seized Cal¡¯s shirt and he was dragged out of the street with a squawk. ¡°What in Praxius are you doing?¡± a young voice demanded. Cal turned around to see the speaker, a slender Gadveran girl maybe a year younger than him, with dark skin, a lovely face, and green eyes that seemed to turn yellow near the pupil, lending intensity to her stare. She is most definitely a good person, Cal could feel it in his quickened pulse and the odd tremor in his stomach. She stared at him expectantly for a moment. Cal stared back. ¡°What were you doing talking to the Malkenrovian delegates? That¡¯s dangerous you know?¡± she expanded on her question. ¡°Umm¡­I didn¡¯t know they who they were?¡± ¡°Are you slow?¡± she asked, then glanced him up and down. ¡°Or just not from around here?¡± ¡°I live just a few miles down East road, my guardian brought me here when I was a baby. I¡¯ve lived here all my life, I¡¯m from around here.¡± Cal felt the irresistible urge to impress the girl. ¡°Karen brought sheep over when she brought me and my sister over. We herd sheep. We¡¯ve got the only sheep on this side of the ocean. Well, the best ones.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± she asked, arching a brow, obviously judging him. Crap, she doesn¡¯t want to hear about sheep, she wants to hear about how awesome I¡¯m gonna be! ¡°But not forever, of course. I¡¯m gonna be the greatest Master of Bent in the land. Gonna carve my own chunk of territory out of the Wilds and be king. A Wizard-King.¡± She looked less than interested. Matter of fact she looked about ready to leave. Damn, gotta hold her attention somehow! ¡°I actually need some help! You see, it¡¯s my Forming Day, I gotta find someone willing to teach me, but it¡­hasn¡¯t gone so great, and there isn¡¯t much time left in the day.¡± She cocked her head, debating for a moment. ¡°Alright, I know someone who could help you. Follow me.¡± You have manifested Talking to Girls. Talking to Girls has reached Level 1! Level 1: Be More relaxed, perceptive and eloquent when dealing with the Fairer Sex. 5% Correction. You just had to go there, didn¡¯t you? Remaining Warp 6/12 ¡°You son of a bitch!¡± Cal shouted at the Status screen, earning a glare from the girl who¡¯d just said she would help him. It felt a bit like the time Cal almost fell out the second story window of farmer Endras¡¯s loft, making his stomach sink in sudden panic. ¡°Not you, I just got a new skill I didn¡¯t want.¡± Getting an unwanted Skill was never a good thing, since a person could only have eighteen Warped Skills in their lifetime, and Cal intended to save as many spots as he could for Magic. That and the thing seemed a little¡­smarmy. ¡°What¡¯s it called?¡± She asked. ¡°Ummmmm¡­.¡± She watched him expectantly. ¡°Talking to people.¡± Cal said. ¡°That¡¯s odd, it¡¯s usually called Etiquette, but it¡¯s not a bad skill, as non-combat ones go. Can¡¯t live without other people, so might as well be good with them. My father plans on having me learn that one too.¡± ¡°Oh, cool.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re bad at talking to people, it just means you devoted a lot of emotional effort to talking to them today.¡± She started walking, and Cal followed, listening intently. ¡°I haven¡¯t done my Breaking yet, but dad says that you can manage which skills you get, somewhat, by controlling your emotions. If you get excited or stressed while you practice one, it¡¯s more likely to pull Warp. She tapped on her chest. ¡°He says you can feel it right behind your chest, next to your heart.¡± Cal frowned. He didn¡¯t really feel anything. Could be something that took practice. Down two potential magical disciplines already, though. Cal thought sourly. Warped Skills were different than skills a person might have naturally. They imbued a supernatural enhancement to whatever the skill described. For example, a man who was amazingly talented at forging iron could produce works of art, but a man with a few levels of Smithing would find his iron staying hot longer, the smoke avoiding his lungs and eyes, in addition to his hammer landing truer, and the resulting product being stronger than it should otherwise be, as his Bent leaked out into his work. Master craftsman who were both talented and had many levels of Smithing could make things that exceeded what was strictly possible for a piece of iron. At least, that was how Karen had described it. Just because you didn¡¯t have the Skill didn¡¯t mean you couldn¡¯t be good at something, but without it, you could never be the best. Which meant that Cal would forevermore have an advantage at sneaking and¡­talking to girls. Could be worse, all things considered. Cal thought to himself as he watched the slender girl¡¯s shoulders and neck. Something tells me I might want to talk to girls at some point. ¡°Right here,¡± she said, pointing to an unadorned building with a bit of candlelight pouring out of boarded up windows. The neighborhood around it was just as grimy as the northwest had been, and Cal found himself wondering if it was an elaborate trap. Nah, she¡¯s too pretty for that. She stepped up to the door and opened it. It was unlatched, which was odd in the heart of the city, and Cal followed her through the plain wooden portal into a choked maze of books. It occurred to Cal that the windows might be boarded up to prevent prying eyes from seeing the wealth laying around the floor for the taking. Books weren¡¯t exactly cheap. Each tome here was worth a quarter of its weight in silver, and a hundredth of its weight in gold. Cal eyeballed an average height stack of books, and found it had about fifteen books from the floor. Multiply that by about¡­thirty stacks long and¡­Call glanced at the ceiling to measure how far the opposite wall was. Fifty stacks wide. Thirty by fifty by fifteen. Divide the problem by a hundred to represent its quantity in gold, and you had fifteen by fifteen. Fifteen squared was one fifty plus seventy-five, or about two hundred twenty-five book-weights worth of gold. Cal picked up an average book and hefted it. About one and a half pounds, so three hundred thirty seven point five pounds of gold? That was assuming there weren¡¯t any particularly clear spots he wasn¡¯t aware of, though, and his estimate was probably wildly inaccurate, so Cal decided to reserve that as a high estimate. Neat. Still, an insane amount of money to not lock your door on, though. Cal put the book back and followed the girl deeper into the room. The girl went over to a circular wall of books and shouted, ¡°Uncle!¡± There was a clattering of books sliding off of something, and a man just barely taller than the five-foot stack of books peered down at the two children owlishly from behind his spectacles. ¡°Who dares disturb my slumber?¡± ¡°I think you know who I am, uncle.¡± She glanced at Cal. ¡°This is my uncle Bekvah, Bekvah, this is¡­¡± ¡°Calvin.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, Calvin.¡± Bekvah said, his arm twisting over the stack of books to shake Cal¡¯s hand. ¡°What brings you and your friend here, Kala?¡± The slender girl winced at the name, glancing at Cal. ¡°Kala?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Like the daughter of the Hash¡¯Maje?¡± ¡­. Cal looked at Kala whose brows were furrowed, lips stretched tight. Cal looked at Bekvah, who blinked and glanced at Kala. ¡°Well, that¡¯s not too surprising. Every time bigwigs have a kid, the name gets super popular for a couple years.¡± Calvin shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets. ¡°Huh,¡± Bekvah grunted, sliding his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. ¡°Calvin here wants to learn magic.¡± Kala said very gently for some reason. ¡°It¡¯s his Forming day.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure that¡¯s a good idea,¡± Bekvah said, giving Cal an odd look. ¡°Why?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°What¡¯s your Intuition?¡± ¡°Three.¡± Bekvah waved at Cal as if that explained everything, which it didn¡¯t. ¡°Surely he can learn some kind of magic.¡± Kala said. ¡°Doubtful. A man¡¯s limits are fairly hard to transcend. Calvin, what¡¯s your Will?¡± ¡°Eight.¡± ¡°see, it¡¯s ¨C¡° Bekvah blinked and glanced back at Cal, adjusting his glasses. ¡°Stability?¡± ¡°seven.¡± ¡°Mind?¡± Bekvah whispered. ¡°Nine.¡± Cal said. They were staring at him now. ¡°Is that bad?¡± it was Cal¡¯s understanding that higher was better. ¡°That¡¯s¡­not bad.¡± Kala said. Maybe I should have told them my Intuition was higher? Bekvah¡¯s other hand reached over the book pile and stretched out unnaturally long to seize his shoulders, bringing him eye-to-glasses. The rest of the man¡¯s face was still hidden behind the books. ¡°You, son, are like a raw diamond with a great big flaw, but with the right effort, we can cut around it and polish you into something worthwhile.¡± ¡°Cutting¡­doesn¡¯t sound great.¡± Cal said. ¡°It¡¯s a metaphor, but don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll sort that out.¡± Suddenly the room¡­expanded. The books stayed where they were, but the room seemed to somehow¡­replicate itself beneath them, creating new floorboards out of nothing that seemed like they¡¯d always been there. Cass could never quite see where new ones were added, they always just seemed to appear out of the corner of his eye. Suddenly the densely packed books were spread out, and the tight wall of books had become distant pillars stacked around a recliner with lamp beside it. Bekvah sat down in the recliner and opened a book, titled Encyclopedia of Warped Skills. There were hundreds of common ones, and tens of thousands of more unique skills, most of them more specific variations. ¡°A man gets eighteen skills in his lifetime, you know this, yes?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And did you know that every five levels in a skill you raise a related sub-stat?¡± ¡°sure.¡± ¡°so we¡¯re going to ¨C ¡° ¡°Make sure I learn five skills that raise Intuition so that it can catch up with the rest of my Mind, seeing as you would have to have at least five of them, or else eventually you run into a bottleneck?¡± Kala frowned. ¡°This kid gets it!¡± Bekvah said with a grin. ¡°How much Warp do you have left?¡± ¡°Six.¡± Bekvah¡¯s enthusiasm flickered a bit. ¡°With nine Mind, you should have twelve Warp.¡± ¡°I used up two sneaking out of my house, three on running down the road and one more talking to Kala.¡± ¡°Sneaking, huh? That can cover a wide range. What was the name of the skill specifically?¡± ¡°Stealth.¡± ¡°Common one, let¡¯s see¡­Ah, a Kin/Int hybrid, acceptable. And your other one?¡± ¡°Talking to people.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. Probably less common, let me see, I¡¯ll check the index¡­.¡± Bekvah muttered, his finger moving down the list in the back of the book. ¡°Talking. Talking to animals, talking to carpenters, dragons, Erovores, Formans, Girls, Ilethians, Jenistaries, Ladies¡­dum, de dum¡­Ah, people.¡± He flipped the book to the right section, and began flipping through it. ¡°There¡¯s a difference between talking to girls and talking to ladies?¡± Cal asked. ¡°I would assume the benefit of the skill would be more focused on women of high standing.¡± Bekvah muttered. ¡°Ah, there, talking to people. Yep, seems like all the communication skills are intuition focused.¡± He closed the book and went back to the Common Skills page. ¡°Looks like you got lucky. We can put off raising your Mind this time ¡®round, painful as that is, and focus on getting three more Intuition based skills along with two levels of Intuition and a spare point of Warp hanging free.¡± It seemed like Bekvah¡¯s enthusiasm was returning. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see¡­¡± The bespeckled scholar¡¯s tongue began to stick out as he tore a scrap of paper out of a pad and started scrawling a hasty note on it. ¡°Kala, do these exercises with Cal.¡± He said, handing her the piece of paper and then standing, digging through piles of book and muttering to himself. ¡°You can¡¯t be serious.¡± She said, reading the paper. ¡°I am serious, now don¡¯t make me lose my concentration, I¡¯m looking for the Sense-Grafting manual. Kala glanced at her uncle then sighed and looked at Cal, glancing down at the paper then back up. ¡°Make a face like you¡¯re confused about something.¡± She said. Cal was confused. ¡°Good, now look like¡­Do I really have to do this?¡± she asked her uncle, who was burrowing into a rather large stack. ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Make a face like you¡¯ve got a crush on someone.¡± Cal wasn¡¯t exactly sure what that was supposed to look like, or even feel like. ¡°No, that¡¯s still confused¡­You¡¯re just confused, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Okay¡­try angry.¡± Calvin furrowed his brows and scowled. The exercises continued for a while, and when Calvin manifested a new skill, she switched to a different set of exercises. You have manifested Acting Acting has reached Level 1! Acting Level 1: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 5% correction. Remaining Warp 5/12 You have manifested Read Expression Read Expression has reached Level 1! Read Expression Level 1: Passive bonus to reading expressions. 5% correction. That¡¯s kinda useful, I guess. Remaining Warp 4/12 Once he picked up the two skills, Kala switched to a more general battery of exercises, getting him to tell her why jokes were funny, or figure out why a person in a story might be lying. Intuition has reached Level 4! Intuition has reached Level 5! Remaining Warp 2/12 ¡°Ah HAH!¡± her uncle said, raising a rather thin notebook above his head victoriously. ¡°And now, the final piece! One of the twelve classic Gadveran magics that relies heavily on Intuition. Sense Grafting!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Give it a look.¡± It was a rather thin manual, that described a way to remove his own senses and graft them onto another object. Hence the term Sense Grafting. ¡°How is this useful?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Aside from spying, I guess.¡± ¡°Aside from that¡­¡± Bekvah narrowed his eyes and pointed a book at Cal. Nothing happened. ¡°What is it supposed to-¡° Bekvah tilted the book sideways. Suddenly the floor tilted drastically beneath Calvin, and he leaned to one side to compensate, then somehow the floor was actually flat, but he was falling sideways, and at the same time down. Cal hit the floor with a grunt. ¡°I grafted your sense of balance to this book.¡± Bekvah said. ¡°Pretty cool, right? Imagine what would happen if I¡­¡± he lowered the book and Cal felt his stomach rise into his chest as he felt himself falling. ¡°Please, spare me that.¡± Calvin called from the floor before the wizard could spin it above his head. ¡°Unless you want to see my dinner on your books.¡± ¡°I suppose you get the idea.¡± ¡°I¡¯m in.¡± Cal said, levering himself to a seated position and opening the book, skimming through the manual a couple times to make sure he had the idea, before giving it a shot. ¡°Here¡¯s a glass eye.¡± Bekvah said helpfully as he started attempting the magic. ¡°Symbolism can help focus the mind.¡± ¡°You just had a glass eye lying around?¡± Kala asked from where she had taken a seat. Bekvah shrugged and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. ¡°You don¡¯t?¡± Cal did as the book instructed and held the glass eye overtop his left eye, focusing on forming a mental bridge between his eye and the glass eye. After a minute of concentration, Cal felt a unit of Bent escape his body, binding his eye to the glass eye, and suddenly he could see out of it. You have manifested Sense Grafting Sense Grafting has reached Level 1! Sense Grafting: remove one or more senses from one or more creatures, to apply them to one or more creatures/objects. Senses, targets, Distance, Duration, dictated by Skill Level Sense Grafting Level 1: Sight. Self-only, Touch, 5 minutes. Remaining Warp 1/12 ¡°Whoah, this is really cool!¡± Cal said, then lifted the glass eye away from his face. The view from his left eye wobbled and rose up above his head, but his right eye stayed stationary, giving him a disconcerting split in his vision that caused him to wobble. Bekvah must have noticed his discomfort. ¡°Try keeping both eyes closed.¡± Cal did so, and it was much better. ¡°Muahaha, I¡¯m seven feet tall!¡± he said, standing and holding the glass eye high above his head, looking down at the bemused Kala. ¡°There, you¡¯ve just bypassed a year of study. How would you like to spend the last of your Warp? You don¡¯t want to wake up with a tail or something, do you?¡± Bekvah asked. That was entirely possible. Cal had been warned over and over again to make sure he spent all of his Warp, or he might change into something less than human. There was also the possibility that he would wake up as something more than human, but it was a very slim chance, and he didn¡¯t feel that lucky. ¡°What about that thing you did that made the room bigger?¡± Cal asked, glancing around the room that was now roughly the size of a warehouse. ¡°Splitting? Yes, that¡¯s a good option.¡± Bekvah said. ¡°This one I can teach you rather quickly. Get a small object, that glass eye should do fine.¡± ¡°Now, imagine yourself reaching with a thread so far to the right of the object that you burst through space itself and touch its left. Now do the same on the object¡¯s left, right, top and bottom. Cal¡¯s head began to hurt as he struggled to imagine that. ¡°Then form a loop around the object and yank on it, and rather than pulling it any one direction, pull it in. Another unit of Bend left Cal, making his arms and legs feel noodly, then there was a clattering on the floor as another glass eye fell to the ground, perfectly identical to the one in his hand. You have manifested Dupdomancy Dupdomancy has reached Level 1! Dupdomany: Create copies of existing matter. Duration and mass dictated by Skill Level Level 1: 1 pound, 5 minutes. >>>Surgeon General¡¯s warning<<< DO NOT CONSUME DUPLICATED FOOD Remaining Warp 0/12 ¡°That wasn¡¯t expanding anything, though, I just copied the glass eye.¡± ¡°Just copied the Glass eye.¡± He rolled his eyes. ¡°And where did extra glass eye come from?¡± ¡°Ummmm¡­.¡± ¡°Expanding space is a more advanced form of Splitting, so just practice and you¡¯ll get the hang of it eventually.¡± Bekvah said. ¡°It¡¯s called dupdomancy on my Status though?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the official name, but it¡¯s a mouthful.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Cal said, staring at the floor for a moment. Then it hit him. ¡°I can do magic! WHOOO!¡± He stood up and did a victory dance, pulled Kala to her feet and gave her a hug. ¡°Thank you so much! Calvin the Almighty will forever be in your debt!¡± ¡°You¡¯re um¡­you¡¯re welcome,¡± she said, patting his back. ¡°Do you want to hang out again tomorrow?¡± Calvin asked, holding her at arm¡¯s length. ¡°I can¡¯t tomorrow,¡± she said, and Calvin felt something sink in his guts, like the wizard was messing with his senses again. ¡°You live in Deinos though, right?¡± she asked. ¡°With all the sheep?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Then I will visit when I can.¡± ¡°Awesome!¡± ***Later*** Calvin was walking down the empty main street, in an excellent mood, occasionally breaking out into wild fits of dancing as he navigated the dark street. Until he saw Karen standing under the windowsill of an inn near the East Gate, the light pouring down highlighting the shepherd¡¯s gargantuan muscles. Crap. By the time Calvin got back to his house, his butt was raw with belt-lashes, and large portions of his adventure in the city had been beaten out of him. Except for the girl, and the fact that he could do magic now. Muahahahah¡­.ow, laughing makes my ass hurt. How does laughing make my ass hurt!? **** ¡°So¡­nine Mind?¡± Kala, the daughter of Hash¡¯Maje Entredez asked her Uncle, the Third Prince, who liked to get away from the palace to study. ¡°That boy¡¯s got a gift for the Bent like I haven¡¯t seen before in my life. Talented people usually clock in at seven Mind at their first Breaking. Seven. It¡¯s a shame so much of his potential was burned up dealing with his abysmal Intuition.¡± ¡°I thought It was kind of cute.¡± ¡°Hah.¡± Bekvah said, going back to his recliner. He waved a hand and the building shrunk around him, burying him once again in his books. Chapter 3: 2 Years Later ***2 Years Later*** ¡°Step in closer damn it!¡± Karen said, hitting him with the middle of her wooden sword, and folding Calvin over her blade before he was launched halfway across the practice yard, limp as a boned fish. ¡°You could have been a natural at this. Could have had a Skill that would¡¯ve made you pick it up like an old habit, but now we¡¯ve gotta do things the hard way!" ¡°I regret nothing,¡± Cal wheezed dramatically into the dirt, before struggling to pick himself up and failing. ¡°Oh, Karen, don¡¯t bully him so much!¡± Kala said, watching Cal¡¯s morning lesson with a frown. Jinnei glanced over at the girl who¡¯d come to visit every couple weeks for the last two years with a raised brow. ¡°He¡¯s faking it.¡± she said, pointing at Cal. Crap. ¡°What?¡± ¡°He never stays down for longer than a couple seconds. I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s got some kind of retard pain tolerance.¡± Curses! When Cal had figured out how to bind his sense of pain to another object, he¡¯d been able to impress Karen with his ability to take a hit without giving up, but now it was biting him in the ass. A shadow loomed over Cal as Karen brought the sword down with a grunt of effort, surely intent on breaking him in half. Cal may not feel pain right now because he bound it to a pebble in his house before practice, but damage is damage. He didn¡¯t want to spend another night crying himself to sleep. The graft didn¡¯t last forever. Cal leaped up and tucked himself into a ball, rolling between Karen¡¯s gargantuan legs as her sword destroyed the practice yard, throwing up a dust cloud that blocked their vision. ¡°Oh, wow.¡± Kala said, her hands folded neatly in her lap. ¡°That¡¯s impressive.¡± ¡°Eh, he¡¯s below average compared to the rest of Karen¡¯s students.¡± Jinnei said with a shrug. ¡°Below average!?¡± Cal demanded before Karen preformed a vicious backswing. He raised his sword to block it and wound up getting his face smashed in by the flat of his own wooden blade, sending him rolling to the ground. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Probably.¡± Cal said, staring at the sky. Karen knew how to hold back enough to avoid causing major injuries. Calvin severed the connection to the stone, and his sense of pain flooded back to him. ¡°Agh, son of a bitch! There it is!¡± his ribs told him that life was meaningless, and his leaking nose said ¡®this is not the way to impress girls.¡¯ Cal limped over to the bench while Kort took his place, the svelte young man handling himself significantly better than Cal had. To her credit, Kala didn¡¯t ogle Kort¡¯s whipcord muscles while he sparred with Karen, instead choosing to pay attention to him. In the last two years, Kala had gone from charming to stunning, and only by sheer force of will and the assistance of a Warped Skill, was he able to avoid making an ass of himself. Probably. She sat with her delicate hands in her lap, watching him with a hint of amusement. Hopefully she was laughing with the severely beaten boy and not at him. ¡°I fail to see why a shepherd needs to be an excellent duelist as well,¡± she said. ¡°Karen¡¯s something of a perfectionist.¡± Calvin said, wincing as he sat down. ¡°It¡¯s strange that I¡¯ve been coming here so long, and I¡¯ve never seen her like this.¡± Kala said. ¡°Well, you¡¯ve never spent the night before. We do this every morning.¡± ¡°You get bruises all over your body and a bloody nose every morning?¡± she asked. ¡°Not every time, but usually,¡± Cal said, shrugging out of his shirt. He was finally starting to catch up with the other kids, muscle-wise, but he still had a long way to go. ¡°My body is a roadmap of pain.¡± Cal said with a sardonic grin as he revealed all his new and old bruises. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry,¡± Kala said, gasping at his bruises. His sister rolled her eyes and stood up, wandering off. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t tried to help you, you¡¯d be ¨C¡° ¡°Even worse off,¡± Cal said. ¡°Don¡¯t forget I was there by myself without any kind of plan.¡± ¡°True.¡± ¡°Besides,¡± Cal whispered. ¡°I bind my sense of pain to a rock every morning.¡± ¡°Aaaah,¡± she said, nodding with a conspiratorial smirk. Cal had the Bent for it. Will directly dictated how quickly Bent would return to a person¡¯s body, on a weekly scale. Eight Will meant eight spells a week, just enough to keep him from feeling the worst of his daily training with Karen. If Karen knew he was doing it, she didn¡¯t say anything. Needless to say, that meant he got a lot more practice at Sense-grafting than Splitting over the last couple years. A Warped Skill could advance on its own with lots of practice, but had to be manifested first. In addition, being able to practice his magic just over once a day didn¡¯t really make the skill grow by leaps and bounds. He¡¯d yet to even get a skill to level five since his Breaking. Magic was far too slow, but religious daily casting had gotten Sense-Grafting to level three, leaving Splitting at a paltry one. The other skills were awkward or inconvenient to raise. Where on earth was a shepherd in a tiny village going to practice acting, reading people¡¯s emotions, or sneaking? They were bits of daily life, though, so they had each gotten to level two, except for stealth, which was level four. Sneaking up on errant sheep, sneaking up on rabbits, sneaking up on Mrs. Marshine taking a bath with the window open again¡­There were lots of uses for preternatural stealth. After half an hour or so chatting and watching the kids of Deinos getting the stuffing beaten out of them, they all shrugged off their sore muscles and bruises, getting ready for the festival of Hash¡¯Maje Badin. Legend had it that a young boy named Badin had been chasing a sheep that had strayed away from the rest of the flock, and stumbled into an ancient ruin, where he found a magic sword that allowed him to conquer all of Gadvera and become the first Hash¡¯Maje. Regardless of whether the story was true or not, there were ruins out there with ancient relics from the former world waiting to be uncovered. Assuming you could get past all the Warped monsters and cannibals. That was besides the point. Sure you could possibly find an artifact, probably not enough to conquer the kingdom, more likely you¡¯d find something that lays infinite eggs, or makes real good toast, or a clip that changes your hair color. And you could probably make a business selling eggs and toast cheaper than anyone else, or start a fancy salon and have it made, but the chances of living through aforementioned expedition to the Wilds were slim, and how many people wanted to risk certain death to bring back a minor convenience? Adventurers were one part gambler, two parts crazy. The way the villagers of Deinos celebrated the festival was by releasing a brightly painted boar, then the youth would track it down in the woods in teams and bring it back. It was a far cry from a sheep, but a sheep didn¡¯t taste nearly as good. Boros the woodsman had released the boar into the dense forest earlier that morning, and now the time to hunt it down was approaching. ¡°So, Kala, what do you say? You and me on a team?¡± he asked, glancing over at the dark skinned beauty. ¡°Sorry,¡± she said, making the half-cupped hand of apology and wincing. ¡°I already promised I¡¯d team up with Jinnei.¡± ¡°I told you about it a month ago!¡± ¡°She asked me a week before that.¡± A motion in the distance caught Calvin¡¯s eye. Jinnei leaned over from behind the wooden beam supporting the Feast hall and gave him the finger before disappearing behind it again. Oh, so it¡¯s like that, is it? ¡°And¡­¡± Kala picked at the hem of her silk skirt. ¡°I wanna win this time?¡± Calvin sputtered. ¡°Win? I can win. I¡¯ll win right now! I¡¯ll be doing nothing but winning, like St. Charles of Sheen. Getting lost last time was a complete fluke.¡± Kala chuckled, covering her expression with her hand. ¡°I look forward to seeing that,¡± she said. I wish she wouldn¡¯t do that, Cal thought as he studied her. It was a rare moment that he caught an unguarded smile from the girl, which made them all the more precious. Cal swallowed the lump of regret and reoriented himself. Gonna get jinnei back for this, but first I¡¯ve gotta track down a partner. ¡°Well if you¡¯ll excuse me, I¡¯ve got to go find someone who¡¯ll give me an edge over the dream team. Maybe if I pick Kort you two will be distracted by abs long enough for me to win.¡± ¡°That¡­probably wouldn¡¯t work.¡± Kala said, seeming a little unsure. ¡°And he¡¯s already got a partner.¡± Cal glanced over and spotted Kort and Persei chatting it up, testing the draw on their bows. Damn! That didn¡¯t leave Cal a lot of choice, and before noon he was stuck with Baroke, who¡¯d only gotten bigger in the last two years. The boy outweighed a few fully-grown men, and his neck was as thick as Cal¡¯s waist. All according to plan. Cal thought, nearly rubbing his hands together in glee. He and Baroke got together, picked bows that fit them and made for the starting point. Baroke¡¯s bow could put an arrow through a decent sized tree. ¡°Seems like a fitting pairing,¡± Kort said with a grin when they were all finally assembled at the starting lines. ¡°Good luck.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t need luck where we¡¯re going,¡± Cal puffed out his chest and stared dramatically into the woods. A moment later Kala and Jinnei showed up. Kala had exchanged her typical silken shawl for pants and a shirt, more practical for running around in the woods. The difference between her usual look and this one had Cal craning his neck and leaning back to keep his eyes on her. He could see the curve of her hips and her arms were completely uncovered, revealing more of her soft brown skin than he¡¯d ever seen before. ¡°You¡¯re staring.¡± Baroke said. ¡°And?¡± Cal replied without looking away. ¡°And let¡¯s get our game faces on. You wanna be the kid who got lost and had to get rescued half a mile outside of town forever? I for one don¡¯t appreciate people thinking I¡¯m some kinda idiot just cuz I¡¯m stronger than them. This whole muscle and brains pairing offends me.¡± ¡°Hah,¡± Cal said, tearing his eyes off Kala. ¡°You said it.¡± he frowned. ¡°What was the plan again, boss?¡± Baroke punched him lightly on the shoulder, which caused Calvin to stagger. A minute later everyone in the village who wanted to participate was lined up, while those not participating in the hunt got ready for the feast. It seems to me like every festival involves some kind of ritualistic killing. Not that that bothers me, Cal thought. ¡°Ready?¡± the village elder asked, to which everyone nodded, settling down on the start line. The old man put his gnarled fingers in his mouth and a made a piercing whistle, signifying the start of the competition. Jinnei and Kala leapt up and began sprinting into the woods, leaving everyone else behind with their sheer speed. Kort and his girlfriend ran forward at a more leisurely pace, probably intending to find some place to be alone. The chances of them winning were slim, unless the prize was Persei getting knocked up. Most of the adults took off at a more sedate pace, not wanting to steal the teen¡¯s thunder, and realizing that the game was more of a marathon than a race. We¡¯ll see about that. Cal thought with his evilest grin as he stood up from his stooped starting position along with Baroke, watching the contestants disappear into the woods. ¡°Aren¡¯t you boys going to look for the boar?¡± the village elder asked, frowning. ¡°Damn right we are,¡± Calvin realized who he was talking to, and hastily added, ¡°Elder.¡± ¡°Baroke, hit me.¡± Calvin held out his hand. Baroke punched him in the shoulder again, nearly sending him sprawling. ¡°Very funny.¡± A second later Baroke put one of his green fletched arrows in Calvin¡¯s hand. Call harnessed the Bent and drew one of the four points he¡¯d saved for the competition to use Sense-Grafting. Suddenly, he was seeing out of the tip of the large boy¡¯s arrowhead. That thought seems phallic, somehow. ¡°Go for it.¡± Cal said, handing the teen the arrow. ¡°You see, elder, we¡¯re gonna find the boar first, and ¨C OOOAH SHIT!!¡± Cal¡¯s legs went limp as his point of view soared upward at a speed that made him distinctly uncomfortable, landing his ass in the dirt. After a good eight seconds of looking at the sky, Cal¡¯s field of view flipped, and the entire coast of Gadvera revealed itself to him. Muahahaha! The view from the top is delicious¡­I think I¡¯m gonna be sick. Cal held it in, desperately searching the landscape for any sign of the painted boar as the arrow spun lightly. It should be bright red¡­ Cal scanned the woods multiple times desperately, but he couldn¡¯t locate a single flash of red, although he spotted Jinnei and Kala, already sweeping through the forest, following the stream in an effort to locate it watering. Where, where, where¡­ Finally, Cal noticed a glimpse of red off to the side, not even in the forest at all. Call broke the connection with the arrow as it hit the ground. ¡°The boar¡¯s up at Farmer Endras¡¯s. It circled around and broke into his guar pen and is currently eating from the trough.¡± The village elder¡¯s eyebrows went up. ¡°Which one?¡± Baroke asked, glancing to the south. ¡°Left hand one.¡± ¡°from the road?¡± ¡°Yeah. About a foot left of center.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± He held out another arrow, holding it out for him. Cal touched it and connected his vision for another point of Bent. Each cast took one point, but the effect became more powerful as his skill went up. The first sense he could graft was sight, then touch and pain at level two, then hearing at level three. It was odd that the magic allowed less useful senses as the level got higher, rather than the other way around, but Cal wasn¡¯t complaining. ¡°Lemme lay down this time.¡± Cal said as Baroke drew his gargantuan bow. ¡°Called shot.¡± Baroke activated his level five ability he¡¯d gotten from Archery, actively putting a point of Bent into it. Calvin didn¡¯t think saying it out loud had any measurable effect, but they had agreed to disagree. ¡°Now boys-¡° the elder began as they aimed to the south, over the village. ¡°OOOOHH SHIIIIIT!¡± Calvin shouted as his vision was catapulted over the tops of the village huts. ¡°Called Shot, Called Shot.¡± Cal heard Baroke fire two more arrows in rapid succession, but he was too busy gripping the grass underneath his hands and gritting his teeth as he experienced flying through the air in a none-too gentle manner. Cal¡¯s view began to arc downward, and he saw the target come into sight. The boar¡¯s wiry hair was matted to its side with red paint, and it seemed to be having a grand time eating food meant for Endras¡¯s animals. Baroke¡¯s arm got the arrows there, and his Archery skill made sure it hit, guiding his hand and bending the odds in his favor. The boy¡¯s level five ability helped long shots even further, in exchange for Bent. Cal followed along with the arrow, watching the boar¡¯s skull rapidly get bigger and bigger until the fateful instant where Cal found out what boar brains looked like on the inside. Dark, since there was no light. ¡°Bleh,¡± Cal said, blinking his eye as he dismissed the bond. ¡°You hit it with the first arrow. I don¡¯t know about the rest.¡± ¡°Cool, if we¡¯re lucky, we can head over to Endras¡¯s and pick it u ¨C ow!¡± ¡°Ow, ow ow.¡± ¡°Now boys,¡± the village elder said, glancing between them as he hauled Cal up and Baroke down by their ears. The elder treated the big boy like he didn¡¯t outweigh him by at least fifty pounds. ¡°I¡¯m very impressed by your creativity in this year¡¯s Balin festival, but you are never to shoot arrows over the town again, are we clear?¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± Baroke said. ¡°But everyone¡¯s at the ¨C ow ow ow,¡± Cal groaned as the elder torqued on his ear. ¡°Are you absolutely, one hundred percent, willing to risk someone else¡¯s life, sure of that, Calvin?¡± ¡°No sir?¡± ¡°I see. So you were aware that someone might get hurt and did it anyway?¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°Well, which is it?¡± ¡°I understand that it was stupid and reckless, and won¡¯t do it again, sir.¡± Cal said with as much sincerity as he could muster. Acting has reached level 3! Huh, whaddya know? ¡°Good.¡± He said, letting the two of them go and straightening. ¡°Now take a wheelbarrow and pick it up, and I swear to the gods, if you killed one of Endras¡¯s animals, you¡¯re going to spend the rest of the summer paying for it. The two of them turned away, when the elder addressed them again. ¡°And Calvin, if you did get the boar, you and Baroke will have beat the village record, by a landslide.¡± Baroke and Calvin glanced at each other, whooped and high-fived. Baroke nearly broke Calvin¡¯s arm. ¡°But you¡¯re not to use that method again next year.¡± ¡°What, why?¡± Calvin demanded. The old man was probably superstitious about using magic or some ¨C ¡°We need the couple hours of quiet time. You kids burn off energy pissing around in the woods while we set the feast up and relax,¡± The elder deadpanned. ¡°It¡¯s more than just getting it as fast as possible. If we just wanted meat, we¡¯d have Boros slaughter the thing the day before and have done with it.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Cal said, glancing back at Baroke. ¡°Yeah, that makes sense.¡± The elder waved them off. Five minutes later, Calvin and Baroke got back with a wheelbarrow full of dead boar covered in red paint, with three arrows clustered an inch apart, fletching deep in the thick skull. The arrows were so deep the bloody tips exited the bottom of the wild pig¡¯s head. ¡°You could have been hell with a greatsword, Baroke,¡± Karen said when they got back, clapping the giant boy on the shoulder. ¡°But that wasn¡¯t a bad showing. You could really make a difference on the battlefield one day.¡± ¡°What about me?¡± Cal said, pointing at himself. ¡°I¡¯m not a fan¡­But I can see limited use in scouting applications. Try carrying floating lanterns with you,¡± she said before grabbing the five hundred pound monster and throwing it over her shoulder. Karen carried the pig over to the big hook on the side of the feast hall where she tied up its rear legs and began gutting it. ¡°Sorry, man.¡± Baroke said, patting Calvin on the shoulder. Baroke knew that Karen was the closest thing Cal had to a mother. Which is why it was so irritating they couldn¡¯t see eye-to-eye. ¡°Are you kidding? That¡¯s the first time she¡¯s actually engaged with the concept.¡± Cal said with a grin. ¡°Most of the time it¡¯s ¡®Godsdamned heresy!¡¯¡± ¡°If you say so.¡± Baroke said. The Village elder walked by and spotted the boar and shook his head with a sigh before heading up the watchtower and ringing the bell six times to signal the end of the hunt. ¡°Fastest time in history. What, under ten minutes? Cal said with a grin. ¡°Gimmie some.¡± They high fived again. When Kort and Persei got back from the woods, looking a little miffed about not getting to finish, Cal and Baroke were sitting with their feet up in hastily grabbed woven chairs facing the woods. ¡°Excuse me sire, would you care for some more of the winning team¡¯s ceremonial wine?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Why yes my good man,¡± Baroke said, lazily sloshing his cup before Cal refilled it. As the couple were coming closer the two switched roles. ¡°Excuse me sire, I couldn¡¯t help but notice how parched you look, perhaps you could use some ceremonial wine, circa thirty-two hundred and forty?¡± ¡°Mmmyeesss,¡± Cal drawled, holding his cup out with a limp wrist as Baroke filled it. ¡°A very good year.¡± Honestly the ceremonial wine wasn¡¯t that great, but drinking it in front of the rest of the village as they filtered out of the forest in ones and twos? Priceless. Kort walked up to them with a stony face. Cal was eagerly anticipating wails of frustration and the gnashing teeth of the defeated, but Kort knew him well, and he wasn¡¯t one to lose without putting up a fight. ¡°It¡¯s inspiring how well you two complement each other.¡± He said with a neutral expression as he came within earshot. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I mean, you two really did make a great team, covering each other¡¯s most glaring flaws to achieve something great. It¡¯s almost as if to say either of you on your own would have floundered in the dirt the entire time. Your success here has really proven how much-¡± ¡°Bah,¡± Baroke said, tossing the half empty cup of wine at Kort, who caught it with a grin, despite being splattered with some of its contents. He knocked back the bit that remained with a satisfied sigh. ¡°Ah¡­thanks for the drink, sire, ¡®tis a hot day.¡± He said, adopting their mannerisms. ¡°Don¡¯t make me get out of my chair.¡± Cal said mock-threateningly. ¡°Or what, you¡¯re gonna spy on my mom again?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t hear her complaining.¡± Cal said with a shrug. ¡°Dude, you¡¯re mom¡¯s a cougar.¡± Baroke said. ¡°There was this one time she caught me alone and-¡° ¡°AAAH, SHUT UP!¡± Kort said, clapping his hands over his ears and running off. ¡°Winners, Calvin and Baroke.¡± Cal said, flexing his meager biceps. ¡°Ring the funeral bell,¡± Baroke said, leaning back in his chair, bringing the bottle of wine to his lips in a meaty fist. The villagers streamed in from the forest over time, slowing to a crawl and then stopping once everyone was in. Everyone except Jinnei and Kala. Macronomicon Hope the terrifically uncreative Chapter Title didn''t turn everyone off right off the bat. Enjoy! Chapter 4: On a Cosmic Scale Baraad was bored. Being an elite bodyguard with five Breaks didn¡¯t mean every assignment was in the middle of a war-torn battlefield. Nope. Sometimes, you and your squad get assigned to secretly guard the princess from having too much fun and getting knocked up. The likelihood of anything else in the village she occasionally visited being a threat was a non-starter. Still, they took their business seriously, watching for any sign of a threat, from these villagers or anyone else. When the kids lined up at the starting line, they had already gone deep into the woods, ghosting ahead of them without a single villager seeing them move. They scoured the forest for any obvious threats, and then fell back to the Princess, forming a tight circle around her as she and her friend ran through the woods, looking for a boar Baraad already knew they wouldn¡¯t find. When Baraad saw Kala trip and cut herself on an exposed stone, he didn¡¯t intervene. Hardships built character. When he watched her chew on a mushroom that the two girls had found, snickering conspiratorially with each other, he didn¡¯t intervene. He knew the plant, and aside from mind-bending hallucinations, it was harmless. Bad trips and secrets among friends built character. When Baraad¡¯s naked wife stepped out of the woods and approached the princess, he shot her in the heart and changed his hiding spot fractions of a second before a volley of arrows riddled it with holes. Baraad and his team gave up their Stealth, fading into the visual spectrum in a tight circle around Kala. ¡°Baraad, what-¡° Kala said, dropping the mushroom. ¡°Who was tha-¡° ¡°Princess, you¡¯re under attack,¡± Baraad said, glancing back at his team. Three of them hadn¡¯t reacted fast enough to the mnemonic illusion of a loved one and hung from the trees, pierced with dozens of arrows. Damn. Down a quarter of my men before the fight even started. How the hell did they get so close to us? It was cold, but the safest place for the guards to be now was in front of the princess. If this was a kidnapping and not an assassination, then the enemy would avoid ranged attacks while they stood directly in front of her. If it was an assassination, things would get complicated. ¡°Baraad,¡± a voice called from the woods, and a heavyset swordsman with large sideburns with streaks of grey stepped out from behind a wavering curtain of light. The curtain fell further to reveal no less than twenty Gadvera Veterans, and an Ilethian Light-weaver. This was going to be a tough fight. ¡°Surrender, and be spared.¡± The man said ¡°Men such as you have their own value, after all.¡± ¡°Am I tripping already?¡± Kala said. ¡°Or is my second cousin once removed attacking us?¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t think you¡¯re tripping,¡± Jinnei said, dragging Kala behind her. ¡°You¡¯ll have to forgive me,¡± Baraad said. ¡°If I don¡¯t make this easy for you.¡± His eyes darted to Suala, who had stayed hidden. The slender woman had the greatest Stealth of all of them, and had managed to flank their formation without being spotted. She leapt on the illusionist and put a dagger through the Ilethian woman¡¯s spinal column. The magician was the greatest impediment to their fight, and with her out of the picture they stood a chance. The Light-weaver dissolved into motes of light under Suala¡¯s dagger, and before she could react, a knife held by a pale disembodied hand lodged itself into her ribcage. The Light-weaver was a trap! Not entirely unexpected, with them. It was damn brave of Suala to lure them out, and Baraad couldn¡¯t afford to let it go to waste. In a flash of motion Baraad drew two knives and threw them. ¡°Deadeye¡± Baraad named the ability aloud for the enemy¡¯s benefit, as one went toward Kala¡¯s cousin, Lumentrias, and the other went toward the illusionist. The Veterans knew the consequences for killing a royal, but they couldn¡¯t risk him having lost his mind, so they blocked the knife heading toward the middle aged man with greater alacrity than the one zipping toward empty air. A single sword tried to deflect it, and the blade slid harmlessly through, ignoring obstacles and burying itself past the handle in¡­something. The illusion flickered out, and the light-weaver appeared beside Suala, a piece of steel buried in her brain. Most illusionists neglected the Triple fake-out. Ice settled in Buraad¡¯s stomach as the Veterans reacted quickly, charging toward Baraad¡¯s injured teammate. The knife in her ribs made her a fraction of a second too slow to dodge and Suala fell to the ground, bubbling blood from a deep cut in her throat. ¡°You¡¯ve only got eight left, Baraad, be reasonable.¡± Baraad buried the white-hot rage under decades of training, and drew his sword, holding it out in front of him. He had a job to do. He flicked the switch in the handle. ***Calvin*** ¡°Where¡¯s your sister?¡± Karen asked, eyes narrowed as she glanced out into the woods. It was almost time for the feast and the two girls still hadn¡¯t come back. ¡°Probably getting eaten by a Norlock,¡± Cal said. It came across more flippant than he¡¯d intended, disguising the hint of worry in the back of his mind. ¡°Psssh,¡± Karen scoffed. ¡°She¡¯s as safe with Kala as she would be at the center of Fort Holm. They¡¯re probably just braiding each other¡¯s hair and talking about boys.¡± ¡°Is that a euphemism for something?¡± Cal asked, glancing up at her. His foster mother gave him a wide grin, her bloody hands on her hips. ¡°You¡¯re just gonna leave me hanging, huh?¡± ¡°She¡¯ll be fine, We¡¯ll save a place for ¨C ¡° A bright red light caught their attention as a firework launched itself into the sky from deep in the woods, hanging in midair. ¡°What does that-¡° Cal began to ask, but Karen was already running, disappearing into the woods that looked far more ominous now that they were lit by a strange red tint. The firework must have been magical, because it settled above the forest like a crimson sun, attracting attention for miles around. ¡°Wait there!¡± he heard Karen¡¯s voice echo back to him as the rest of the villagers gawked. Cal jumped out of his seat and started chasing her, heading toward the light at his top speed, which was admittedly much slower than Karen¡¯s. To the hells with waiting. Waiting is for plants and animals. So maybe he had a tendency to get lost in the woods. Wouldn¡¯t be hard navigating to the giant glowing ball in the sky. Cal ran for a good ten minutes, ducking under branches and hopping over bushes, reminding himself of a jackrabbit as he sailed through the woods. The extra point of Body had played its part. That and the intense training from Karen that had raised his physical sub-stats. Body and Mind dictated the maximum any sub stat could be raised to, and a sub stat could be raise through diligent training. In theory, Bekvah hadn¡¯t needed to spend Warp on Calvin¡¯s Intuition, but training it was rather difficult, requiring tense dinner parties filled with deception, veiled threats and double meanings, which wasn¡¯t exactly a staple of the podunk village of Deinos. Cal had lost himself in thought when a fist as big as his head came out of nowhere and caught his shirt, lifting him off his feet. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Karen demanded quietly. ¡°Umm¡­.¡± ¡°Shut up. You¡¯re damn lucky they¡¯re too busy to hear your crashing. In a few seconds I¡¯m going to go in there. You¡¯re going to squeeze out every ounce of stealth you can manage, and get your sister to safety if at all possible, understood? Just your sister, Kala will be fine.¡± She lifted him up to her eye level, allowing him to see six men stripping corpses and congratulating each other while shoving Jinnei and Kala to the side, shackles on their arms. Cal nodded. ¡°And I swear to all the gods if either of you dies, I¡¯ll find whichever hell you¡¯re in and murder you. I swore an oath to my best friend ¨C the woman who brought you both into this world ¨C that when I see her again, I¡¯ll be able to say the last I saw, you two you were happy and healthy. If you make me break my oath¡­¡± She held up a fist below Cal¡¯s nose. ¡°You will not be happy or healthy.¡± ¡°I get it, I get it,¡± Cal whispered. ¡°Good. Go that way.¡± She let Calvin to the ground and he began crawling through the woods, paying close attention to where he stepped, trying to ooze between the trees and shrubs that gave him cover from the clearing where the battle had occurred. In the back of his mind, he wondered what had caused all of this, but the vast majority of his focus was on being just a little quieter, just a little more out of sight. His heart slamming in his chest made it difficult to tell if he was actually being quiet or not. Avoid root. Line of sight. Quiet Grass. Crunchy leaves bad. Cal achieved a kind of flow state, taking in the Bad Guys positioning and line of sight, moving with the ebb and flow of their chatter, keeping his noise to the absolute minimum he could manage. Stealth has reached Level 5! +1 to Intuition Level 5: 25% correction. Please choose an ability from the list o??--- ¡­. Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Words began scrolling through Cal¡¯s mind so quickly that he misplaced his foot and almost fell, silently catching himself on the bark of a nearby tree. I¡¯ll deal with it later, shut up. The scrolling thankfully stopped, fading into the back of his mind. Alright, now I just gotta- Karen happened. One second the six Veterans were stacking corpses, and the next, Karen was halfway to them, a thick tree branch over her shoulder. The nearest fighter spotted Karen and chuckled, drawing his sword and settling into a stance. A tiny bit of backstory is required for the full context of what happened next. The Gadveran fighting style was about precision and skill, they prided themselves on their fast blades and deadly, precise strikes. They tended to wear light armor and rarely came within biting distance of each other. Whatever style Karen used¡­not so much. Karen screamed loud enough to draw the attention of everyone present, raising her makeshift club above her head. The Gadveran went for a precise thrust to her jugular, followed by an artful dodge. Karen caught the blade on her club, faked the man out with her footwork and pulled his blade to the side as she crashed into him with a shoulder check, delivering every ounce of her body weight and sending the lightly armored man sprawling to the ground. ¡°Wai-¡° he managed to say before the club blew his mind. She¡¯s a lot faster than in practice. Cal had the dim realization that she¡¯d been toying with him from the beginning. He also had the realization that he needed to move, now. Cal made it to the side of the clearing where Jinnei and Kala were watching the fight. When he stepped from the woods, the Warp pressed in against his skin, nearly making him take a step back. It made the amount from the Griks feel like nothing at all. Cal shook off the sensation and crept toward where Jinnei and Kala were watching the fight unfold. Kala was rocking back and forth and whispering to herself, and Jinnei was glancing between her own hand and Karen skewering a man with his own sword. ¡°Jinnei,¡± Cal whispered as he arrived beside her. ¡°Let¡¯s get you out of here.¡± He tried to tug Jinnei to a stand, but her chains seemed to be attached to both Kala¡¯s and a spike in the ground. It didn¡¯t seem like it would move anytime soon, either. He glanced around frantically and spotted a key hanging from the belt of the alarmed looking middle-aged fellow. Worth a shot. Cal reached out and copied the key, allowing the duplicate to fall into his hands. Dupdomancy has reached Level 2! Level 2: 4 pound, 10 minutes. Bent 1/7 remaining. Why is everything going up so quickly? Cal thought as he struggled to get Jinnei¡¯s hand in the right angle. Extreme stress boosts Warped Skill growth. Did the Status screen just respond? Any thoughts Calvin had about testing it were blown away as Jinnei yanked her hand away, chuckling like she was being tickled. ¡°Damn it, hold still,¡± Calvin whispered, yanking her arm back. ¡°Calvin, Calvin,¡± she said, looking at her hand. ¡°Karen is so big, and my hands are so small. Like, on a cosmic scale. I should be able to slip them right out of these manacles.¡± She yanked on the manacles again. ¡°Nope, the manacles are small too.¡± ¡°Are you high?¡± Calvin nearly shouted, but that would defeat the point so he fumed, silently turning her wrist sideways to expose the keyhole. Gods I hope this works. Cal jammed the key into the lock and twisted, the manacles sprang open, and one of Jinnei¡¯s hands were free. Yes! Thank the gods for lucky breaks. ¡°Calvin,¡± Jinnei said, finally looking away from her hands as he grabbed her other wrist. ¡°You¡¯re really ugly, bro. Like, on a cosmic scale. How come I never noticed before?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re high.¡± Cal said, freeing her other hand. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯d do it.¡± Luckily the fight was still going, and the guy with the keyring was watching, every bit as distracted as Jinnei and Kala, who had been drugged to quiescency by these villains. All Cass had to do was free Kala, and he could lead them away with no one the wiser. Cal crept forward and grabbed Kala¡¯s hand with the intention of freeing her when he noticed the bandaged cut on her hand. These people hurt Kala! I¡¯ll extract sweet vengeance from each and every one of them! I¡¯ll feed them their own families and sup on their bitter tears! Kala stopped rocking in place and glanced over at him as he jostled her arm, and they locked eyes for a moment. ¡°Kala, I¡¯m gonna get you-¡° Her eyes widened beyond what Cal had thought possible, almost bulging with fear as he mouth dropped open, teeth bared in an animalistic rictus of terror. ¡°AAAAIIIIII!¡± A primal shriek washed over Cal and Jinnei as Kala began scooting away from him as quickly as she could, only stopping when the chains connected to her wrists literally prevented her from getting any further away. Oh right, she¡¯s high too. ¡°Someone¡¯s with the princess! Kill him!¡± The heavyset fellow said, drawing his long blade and pointing at Calvin. Macronomicon Probably should have put this up yesterday, but the call of D&D after years without it is not so easily resisted. Then a guy sat down next to me and started giving me unsolicited advice on my character build, and I was like. ''Oh yeah...'' Anyway, Enjoy! Chapter 5: Listen to your Elders ¡°Calvin, take Jinnei and run, you penis wrinkle! And work on your fucking listening skills!¡± Karen berated him even as she used the opportunity to club an inattentive soldier in the head, sending him twitching to the ground. Karen had been doing well at first, but the Gadverans had gotten her style down, and she was starting to accumulate damage, sporting bloody nicks across her arms and torso, face and neck. She looked like she was having the time of her life. There were only three left, but two of them blocked Karen while the third rushed Calvin and Jinnei. Time to run. Cal turned to run, tugging Jinnei along behind him, when he was brought to a screeching halt as Jinnei stooped to pick up a fallen sword. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Karen and Cal demanded at the same time. ¡°You might have run off, but I spent my Forming Day with an actual plan.¡± The Gadveran soldier¡¯s thin blade whistled down towards her neck, and Jinnei sagged bonelessly under the strike before lunging forward, putting the man on the defensive. ¡°He¡¯s a Veteran! Get your ass out of here!¡± Karen shouted, receiving a nick on the ribs for her inattention. Cal didn¡¯t dare get any closer to the flashing of blades as Jinnei led the man around by the nose. There was no opportunity to yank her out of reach without getting someone stabbed or sliced. ¡°He¡¯s an injured, exhausted Veteran with no Bent left. Plus he keeps telling me where he¡¯s going to attack,¡± Jinnei said as she slid around one attack, and then another, whipping her blade at the man¡¯s eyes before taking a chunk out of his leading leg. Most of that statement was true. The man was bleeding, panting, sweaty, and his sword seemed to droop a little, but he was still faster and stronger than either of them. Cal didn¡¯t see the man telling her anything, either. Oh right, drugs. Cal kept watching for the moment to intervene as the blades flashed faster than he could make out. Gods damn it, just give me a chance, stumble over a root or something! Cal was still waiting for his chance when the heavyset man swept up beside Jinnei and cleaved his sword six inches through her shoulder. Cal¡¯s heart stopped in his chest. The Veteran kept going, running Jinnei through with his blade while she was held in place, before tossing her struggling body off to the side. A scream filled Cal¡¯s ears as he leapt towards the bigger man with grey hair. Karen was shouting something. Everything was red. The Veteran stepped between them with a smooth slide, a relieved smile on his face as he held his blade between himself and the unarmed boy. The blade drew a vicious cut along his left forearm as he batted it away with his left hand, flying toward the man¡¯s breast. Splitting Cal reached out with the last of his Bent and copied the man¡¯s sword, recreating the weapon in his own hand a fraction of a second before it plunged into his abdomen. His enemy gave a grunt and slapped Calvin out of the air, scowling down at the sword embedded in his stomach. ¡°Son of a bitch,¡± the Veteran said, approaching Calvin. The man showed his experience, not bothering to remove the sword, since that would most likely cause him to bleed out. Calvin blinked stars out of his eyes and leaped up, aiming for the man¡¯s wound. The veteran wasn¡¯t having it a second time, putting his sword at a relaxed, defensive posture that would impale him if he tried to force his way past it. Calvin didn¡¯t realize he was still screaming as he began mindlessly throwing dirt and rocks at the swordsman, trying to look for any weapon he could get a hold of. ¡°He kind of looks like an angry monkey throwing its own feces,¡± the heavyset man said with a chuckle, only stoking Cal¡¯s fury. ¡°Sire, perhaps you should ¨C ¡°The veteran¡¯s words were cut off as a blade went through his throat. Jinnei stood behind him, her simple farmer¡¯s clothes caked in her own blood, face promising death. The inferno inside Cal went out like a candle. ¡°Jinnei, what the ¨C ¡° ¡°dunno ¨C watch out!¡± she jumped forward and slashed at the heavyset man, pushing him away from Cal. He dealt with her easily, parrying her blade and sending back cuts almost as an afterthought. The man was easily as strong as the others, and he wasn¡¯t tired or wounded. ¡°Jinnei, get down!¡± Karen said, charging toward them the instant her last opponent fell. ¡°This has soured rather quickly,¡± The heavyset man said, blocking Karen¡¯s feral swings and forcibly resisting her battering charges designed to knock him off his feet. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose I could offer you some gold for the girl? A knighthood perhaps? No? well, far be it from me to overstay my welcome.¡± The man gradually retreated as he fought Karen, until they separated at the edge of the woods, and he began to step backwards, slowly putting distance between them. ¡°Lovely ladies, gentleman¡­Adieu.¡± He Bent his knees and began running far faster than Cal would have thought possible for a man of his size, disappearing into the woods. Karen sank to her knees, resting some of her weight on a stolen Gadveran blade. ¡°Jinnei, Cal, come here.¡± She said without raising her head. The siblings approached. ¡°Where I can see you.¡± They hesitantly stood in front of her, Cal clutching his aching, bleeding arm. Karen raised her head, and Cal could see the fires of damnation in her reddened glare. They weren¡¯t going to get out of this without some bruises. Karen loomed forward and Cal almost ducked out of the way before she swept them both up in a monster hug that nearly squeezed the air from his lungs. ¡°I thought I¡¯d lost you.¡± She pushed Jinnei back and hooked a meaty finger under the collar of Jinnei¡¯s shirt, pulling it down to expose a large pink scar running through her shoulder. She snagged the chain of Jinnei¡¯s necklace, tugging it out of her blood-drenched shirt. The softly glowing sapphire in the center of the silver was dull, and when Karen ran her thumb over the amulet, it flaked into ash in her grip. ¡°You really almost died,¡± Karen whispered. ¡°Is that why she wears that all the time?¡± Cal asked. ¡°I didn¡¯t know.¡± Jinnei shot back. ¡°Seems like favoritism, I¡¯m way more death prone.¡± ¡°Says the guy who couldn¡¯t ¨C OW OW OW!¡± ¡°YOU TWO ARE A PAIR OF DISOBEDIENT BRATS! YOU IGNORED ME MULTIPLE TIMES AND YOU BOTH ALMOST DIED!¡± Karen began screaming as she held them both by the ear in a vicious grip. ¡°Just Jinnei. I was nowhere near getting killed.¡± Cal offered helpfully. Karen cuffed him. ¡°I¡¯m going to teach you brats some proper discipline. No more playing around in the morning like we¡¯ve been doing. From now on when I say jump, you start fucking jumping until I tell you to stop!¡± That was playing around? Cal thought, the loss of blood making him woozy. ¡°Grab the princess, I¡¯ll get started with making something to bind our wounds¡± Karen said, grunting as she brought herself to her feet. ¡°These blades are worth a couple gold pieces each, so don¡¯t forget to grab them, you could start your own farm with the steel here¡­¡± She paused when she saw Calvin and Jinnei pass out from the Warp, along with the errant princess. ¡°Or I¡¯ll just do everything myself,¡± She growled. ¡°Not like it¡¯ll be much different.¡± ***Calvin*** Warp overflow detected¡­ Running Warp Protection System¡­ Break. Calvin tried to roll over, and the intense pain in his left arm brought him up short, rousing him to full wakefulness in a matter of seconds. ¡°Agh, damnit,¡± he hissed, clutching the bandaged arm. In the front of his consciousness was a block of text, persistently asking him to pick an ability or mutation. Give me a second, you damnable wretch, Cal thought, trying to sit up. ¡°Good morning,¡± a familiar voice said from the side of the bed, causing Cal to start, nearly toppling back in bed and slamming his head against the wall. A rough hand caught the back of his head and helped him sit the rest of the way up. ¡°Bekvah, what are you doing here?¡± Cal asked as the small man with the owlish glasses stepped away from him. ¡°I wished to express my gratitude for your aid in rescuing my niece.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything.¡± Cal said, his guts churning. ¡°I just stood there and watched.¡± ¡°I have it on high authority that you stabbed someone in the stomach.¡± ¡°Okay, maybe I did a little.¡± ¡°Sometimes a little makes all the difference. Kala¡¯s father would have come to thank you himself, but he¡¯s a very busy man.¡± ¡°Right¡­is her dad the Hash¡¯Maje?¡± ¡°That he is.¡± ¡°Been wondering about that for a while.¡± Calvin said, leaning back against the wall. ¡°Damn. I was hoping she was just the daughter of a rich merchant or something. Then I might have had a shot.¡± Bekvah chuckled. ¡°I see your Insight has improved. Tell me, do you still wish to be a great wizard?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Cal said. ¡°When it came down to it, I couldn¡¯t help in any meaningful way. I couldn¡¯t protect Jinnei.¡± ¡°Your sister? She seems fine.¡± Cal bit his tongue. Karen probably didn¡¯t want him talking about JInnei¡¯s necklace to anyone. Even Cal knew having an artifact capable of staving off death wasn¡¯t something to run your mouth about. ¡°Anyway, I told my brother about your desire to learn spellcraft and he gave me permission to lend you this.¡± He pulled a leather-bound book out of a back by his feet. it was dark brown with gold-leaf lettering on the front. Riddles for the Mind He opened a page, and revealed a series of math and pictographic puzzles: find the next one in order, count the number of triangles, etc. the text itself was very minimal. ¡°Why pictograms?¡± ¡°Word puzzles will sometimes spend Warp to raise Intuition or a Skill, like counting timber or something inane. Cutting all context out of the puzzles serves to only strengthen the Mind.¡± ¡°Oh, neat.¡± Cal said. ¡°You can borrow this, or¡­¡± Bekvah reached into the bag and withdrew a heavy sack about the size of Cal¡¯s two fists. Bekvah jingled it, revealing its identity as a sack of gold. ¡°Have this.¡± he said, continuing to jingle the bag ¡°Why not both?¡± Cal asked. Bekvah broke into uproarious laughter. ¡°My brother would like you,¡± He said, wiping a tear from his eye. ¡°Alas, he specifically said you can only choose one.¡± ¡°The book, obviously.¡± ¡°You sure? This is enough to buy a rather large ranch and leap your sheep herding career forward by forty years.¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sure,¡± Cal said, reaching under his bed and pulling out a primer of common skills he¡¯d bought from the local library, a fifteen-page handwritten pamplet with a couple hundred of the most common skills available to farmers everywhere. ¡°It goes well with this.¡± ¡°There¡¯s only a handful of common skills for Will and Stability, but I¡¯m going to grab them. From what I can tell, the sheer bottleneck of Bent storage and regeneration limits the amount of magics a man can master in his lifetime to about five.¡± ¡°If I were to learn nothing but spells with my Warp,¡± Cal said, holding up the pamphlet. ¡°I would only be able to practice one of them, one time per day, for fifty years, until they lay me in the grave.¡± ¡°If I pick up skills like Fishing and Public speaking, I can raise my Will without being reliant on Bent to practice. If I get my will close to fourteen, I can use two spells a day, and practice faster!¡± ¡°You could frontload your Warp into your Mind to increase the amount of Warp you receive the next breaking. Do that a couple times and you¡¯d be able to master a rather large selection of magics.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a stupid nobleman¡¯s way of doing it.¡± Karen said, entering Cal¡¯s room. ¡°No offence.¡± ¡°None taken. I understand the impracticality of it.¡± Bekvah said, glancing up at Karen towering over him. ¡°Whaddya mean?¡± ¡°You should treat every Breaking like it¡¯s your last.¡± Karen said. ¡°Most adults don¡¯t go farther than the third one. You know why?¡± ¡°Not one hundred percent, no.¡± ¡°Because it requires significantly higher concentrations of Warp each time. Up to several thousand powerful creature¡¯s worth.¡± ¡°Huh. All at the same time in the same place.¡± Cal said. He knew that Warp faded away quickly, flushed out of the body by the System. Gathering together that many live monsters and killing them all at once seemed¡­impractical. ¡°Maybe a rich man could hire a couple hundred mercenaries to round up a few thousand monsters and kill them all in the same spot, but there¡¯s a much more cost-effective way of doing it for peasants, and it¡¯s happening all the time.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Calvin asked, brightening. If he could figure out how to go through a large number of Breaks he could master the magic he already had and take on more in a short time. Bekvah frowned, seemingly displeased. ¡°Let me ask you a riddle,¡± Karen said, squatting beside the bed. What kind of creatures come together in large numbers to kill each other by the thousands?¡± ¡°Rival ant colonies?¡± Cal hazarded. ¡°Humans.¡± Bekvah sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. ¡°That¡¯s why anyone with four to six Breaks is called a Veteran, kid. Being present at a bloody battlefield is one of the only ways to Break past three. This noble prick¡¯s assertion that you could frontload your Mind and just go get a couple more Breaks is based on the fact that noble families tour bloody battlefields safe behind a wall of iron and flesh to soak up that Warp and profit off the deaths of others. No offense.¡± ¡°A little bit taken.¡± Bekvah said. ¡°For you, though,¡± Karen said, jabbing a thick finger into his chest. ¡°You¡¯d have to be in the thick of things, participating in the slaughter. And by definition, most of the participants in a slaughter get slaughtered.¡± ¡°I¡­see.¡± Cal said, frowning. He hadn¡¯t known that Breaking was so¡­bleak. ¡°My advice? Treat this like the last one you¡¯ll ever get and behave accordingly.¡± Cal frowned, considering it for a while. ¡°I still want the book.¡± ¡°Here you go.¡± Bekvah said, standing. ¡°Now, my lady, I¡¯ll be out of your way.¡± He nodded to Karen before turning and leaving Cal¡¯s meager hut. Karen took Bekvah¡¯s spot and sat down beside Cal, unwrapping his arm and looking at it. ¡°How¡¯s the tenderness? She asked, poking around his arm. ¡°Only when you hit the wound.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. Not very much visible swelling and no pus either. Excellent.¡± ¡°Do you¡­um¡­do you think I should learn the sword? Spend my Warp on it?¡± Karen wrapped his arm back up and heaved a deep sigh, rubbing the back of her neck. ¡°I wanted you to learn Swordsmanship from me because that¡¯s the only thing I can teach you. To me, every problem looks like something that could be hacked or stabbed, but I know that¡¯s not really the case.¡± She looked up at the ceiling. ¡°I¡¯ve seen wizards do some pretty terrifying things, and I just wanted to¡­¡± she reached her hands out and tightened them into fists for a moment. ¡°Not be out of my depth for once, you know?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get it,¡± Cal said. ¡°Me neither.¡± She said with a sigh. ¡°You know I was on an adventuring party with your mom?¡± She asked. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah, I did a few stints in the military, became a Legend, one of the first women in history, and eventually I got tired of killing people for a living, and I thought to myself, hey, why not be an adventurer?¡± She glanced at Cal. ¡°At that point I figured the rewards outweighed the risks.¡± ¡°I signed on with a group composed of your mom and a couple other adventurers. meatheads, the lot of ¡®em. We figured since we were hot shit on the battlefield, we¡¯d be hot shit raiding ancient cities for loot.¡± ¡°And?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Well, we were.¡± Calvin Gadsint Body: 6 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 6 Endurance: 6 Mind: 9 Intuition: 6 Stability: 7 Will: 8 Bent: 2/7 Skills: Stealth 5* Talking to Girls 2 Acting 3 Read Expression 2 Sense-Grafting 3 Dupdomancy 2 Stealth has reached level 5! Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities: Active Stealth Unseen Affinity Sneak Critical Mutations: Vein-Sight Camouflage Third Eye Touch-Grip ¡­. ¡­¡­. I¡¯m trying to listen to the story here. Macronomicon Chapter 6: Obligatory Flashback ¡°Gods I¡¯m gonna freeze my tits off out here.¡± Elaine said, tucking her voluminous cloak over her voluminous breasts as the snow kept pouring down around them, forming eddies as the wind blew through it. ¡°I can help you with that, El,¡± Gregor said with a chuckle. The man with this black hair was packing his belt full of emergency supplies, along with a couple limes. They had long since stopped teasing him about his fear of scurvy. ¡°Gee, that never gets old.¡± Elaine¡¯s voice was flat from over a year of working with the man. ¡°One of these days I wish you¡¯d be man enough risk death or dismemberment to cop a feel, then we could move on. Ya bitch.¡± Gregor¡¯s eyes narrowed a bit, but it was all well within their usual antics. ¡°How do you do it, Karen?¡± she asked, turning her attention back to the towering warrior. ¡°I¡¯ve got sheepskin lining the armor.¡± Karen said, tapping the obscenely oversized armor with her iron-clad knuckles. ¡°I¡¯m snug as a bug in a rug.¡± The large balding mercenary, Andrew, popped his head out of his tent and frowned at her. ¡°You used to have a giant suit of armor? How come I¡¯ve never seen it?¡± he asked. ¡°I sold it to buy the farm, now shut up, Calvin, I¡¯m telling the story.¡± The large balding mercenary, Andrew, popped his head out of his tent and frowned at her. ¡°Is everyone good to go?¡± ¡°Waiting on you, Drew.¡± Karen said. ¡°Well then wait no longer,¡± he said, leaving his tent fully armored. The six-foot tall man started stretching, limbering himself up in the whirling snow. ¡°Did you sleep in that?¡± Elaine asked incredulously. ¡°Nah, just leave the hinges open and roll into it in the morning. Karen, can you get my back?¡± he started cinching the straps keeping the armor tight against his front. ¡°Sure.¡± Karen walked up and cinched the straps on his back tight. Andrew preferred to have Karen do it because Elaine had never worn heavy armor in her life, and Gregor might be tempted to pull a fast one. At least, that¡¯s what he told them. Karen and Elaine suspected their leader had a soft spot for Karen but couldn¡¯t bring himself to make things unprofessional. ¡°Alright, weapons check. Fuckin¡¯ frost.¡± He said, yanking his sword out of its sheath, breaking the thin layer of frost on it that had accumulated while he slept. The other members of the party made sure their equipment was good to go, staring at the monolithic castle in the distance. ¡°I¡¯m sure I don¡¯t need to go over the plan again,¡± Drew said, marching in front of the three of them. ¡°But I¡¯m gonna do it anyway, because ya¡¯ll are idiots.¡± ¡°Suck my dick.¡± Elaine muttered. Karen was silent. She knew she didn¡¯t have the mental capacity to be witty and know exactly what the plan was, so she chose to focus on the one that offered a better chance at survival. ¡°That castle was discovered last year by a ranger who¡¯d gotten lost up in the mountains. Nobody who¡¯s tried to explore it since has come back alive. I think you all know what that means. ¡°Phat loot.¡± Gregor said, the black fur around his shoulders obscuring his smirk. ¡°That¡¯s right. This isn¡¯t some ancient village with automatic breadmakers. That right there, is a military installation. One sword that cuts anything, or a Guardian Spirit, or something of that caliber, and we are set for life.¡± ¡°Now, in the interest of living that life a good long time, we are taking this slow and painstakingly careful. Elaine, you¡¯ll be responsible for making sure our path backward is clear. I want you to wall up every door as we go, leaving only one path behind us. By all the gods, we are not getting struck from behind or splitting up by taking a wrong turn during a retreat.¡± ¡°That¡¯ll take a lot of Bent, and I only recharge two a day.¡± Elaine said. ¡°What part of painstakingly careful did you not understand?¡± Drew asked. ¡°We¡¯re gonna poke our heads in, back out, poke out heads in a little deeper, rinse and repeat. ¡°Sounds like Gregor with whisky-dick.¡± Elaine said. **** ¡°Was my mom really that foul?¡± ¡°pretty much.¡± Karen said. **** ¡°Keep five Bent handy in case of an emergency. If I had to tell you to save your vials, I¡¯d have already kicked you out. Karen and I are going to take turns acting as point, followed by Gregor, then Elaine, then whoever¡¯s not point as rearguard.¡± Karen saw Elaine run a thumb over the three vials of inky black substance on her belt, liquid Bent, in units of three. Each one had cost a couple gold pieces, the price of an entire guar or a good sword. Rich wizards. Karen thought with good humor, rolling her eyes as they assembled and marched up the hill, with her pulling the rear guard. Karen¡¯s armor was worth quite a bit more, but she¡¯d earned it. They walked up the side of the mountain, through the foot of snow, grimacing as the water melted into their armor and sapped heat, eventually making Karen¡¯s feet go numb. Karen¡¯s Endurance was such that she could go a lot longer before getting frostbite, however, so she marched on silently. The others seemed to have their own issues, but they made it to the front of the castle without complaint. It was a massive, looming thing formed of black stones the size of carriages stacked on top of each other. One might have thought the thing was made by giants, but for the tiny arrow slits and normal sized gatehouse. The black stone was coated in a thick layer of ice, making it look like flowing obsidian. The gate itself stood open, inviting them into their death. Andrew stopped in front of the gate, looking up at it with a scowl. ¡°I don¡¯t fuckin¡¯ think so. Elaine, remove the gate.¡± Andrew must have envisioned a situation where the gate closed behind them, locking them in a death-trap. It could have been what happened to the last few parties. He wasn¡¯t having any of it. the man would sooner dismantle the entire castle brick by brick than fall into a lethal trap. Elaine closed her eyes and held out her hand. The other members of the party could feel her Bent flying over their heads, causing the hair on the back of their necks stand up. The black stone groaned and peeled itself away from the ancient steel gate, releasing the heavy steel to topple to the ground, rumbling the very earth beneath them with its immense weight. A hair-raising wail filled the air, reverberating through the snow-covered mountains. ¡°Back fifty paces, Elaine, a funnel, Karen, join me at the front. Gregor, watch Elaine¡¯s back.¡± ¡°Right.¡± They accepted his orders and moved to make them so. Gregor didn¡¯t even bother to comment about how happy he would be to watch Elaine¡¯s backside. The man was professional when he was on the job. They marched backward, and Karen rejoined Drew at the front while Elaine penned them in with stone walls ten feet tall and four feet wide, buried deep into the stone. The wailing gradually grew in volume until their enemy made an appearance, they were some kind of¡­purple men with grossly exaggerated tongues emerging from their distended jaws. The thirty or so creatures rushed toward them, followed by a handful of strange crab-like creatures with brains bursting out from their carapace. The man-things charged them mindlessly, throwing up snow as they charged, blueish drool dripping from their tongues. They paid no attention to the fact that they¡¯d been penned in and funneled straight into the jaws of death. ¡°Hit!¡± Andrew shouted, and he and Karen smashed their shields into the charging creatures before hacking the stumbling bodies apart. One managed to slip through the gap and tried to put its tongue through her visor. Karen jabbed her sword through its neck and shoved it away before locking her shoulder against Andrew¡¯s again. A droplet of the creature¡¯s drool sizzled just underneath her eye, causing her eyes to tear up. She focused her mind and blinked the pain away, forcing her body to blindly match Andrew¡¯s actions as they cut down another wave of them. She felt her sword cut through something. ¡°Spit¡¯s acidic!¡± She shouted to Andrew beside her, finally regaining her sight. ¡°Don¡¯t let them touch you with the tongue!¡± Andrew relayed to everyone. ¡°Do I look like I wanted to let them touch me with that shit?¡± Elaine demanded, keeping her eyes open for a new threat. The cerebral crabs stood there and took their measure rather than rushing in, ushering dozens more Lickers through the destroyed gate. Once they seemed to like what they saw, all five crabs began to vibrate, sending an invisible pulse into the air. ¡°Agh, son of a-¡° Karen lost her speech as it felt like someone was slowly driving a rusty iron spike through each ear in time with her heartbeat. ¡°GAah!¡± She saw the Lickers crowding in around them, felt their claws scraping against her armor, and felt the sting of the occasional drop of saliva burning as it seeped between the cracks of her armor. She felt all this, but the pain kept her floored, completely unable to move. Karen knew it was just a matter of time until one of the Lickers got a lucky hit or tore off a part of her armor, and then she¡¯d be gone. What a shitty way to die. Andrew was beside her, and she could hear the sound of his groaning coming from the helm beside her as the Lickers began to pour over them, surrounding them and peeling off toward Elaine. ¡°¡­let the bargain be struck.¡± Elaine¡¯s voice carried over to Karen as she waved her hand, discarding an empty vial. In the distance, brilliant circles of light opened doors into nothingness, birthing monsterous orange-skinned devils with manes of wiry black hair and no lips. The two popped into existance beside the Cerebral crabs and fell on top of them, tearing into the exposed grey matter. In a fraction of a second, the pain went away as the crabs shrieked and scuttled away in fright. Karen stood and glanced behind her, where a third devil was warding off three lickers with its finger-length claws. Gregor sprung to his feet and took one out with a crossbow bolt, stabilizing the situation in the rear, so Karen planted her feet and once again got shoulder to shoulder with Drew, grinding through the Lickers like machines. **** ¡°The plan went off without a hitch after that, and we returned home with treasure the likes of which people hadn¡¯t seen in ages.¡± Karen said. ¡°Your sister¡¯s necklace was one of the things we got, actually.¡± ¡°So why aren¡¯t we living in a castle snorting powdered Ambrosia off the asses of maids of our preferred gender?¡± ¡°Where¡¯d you hear that?¡± Karen asked with a raised brow. ¡°Kort got it from his dad. Since my mom was foul-mouthed, I thought I¡¯d try it on.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t suit you,¡± she said, tweaking his nose. ¡°As for why, well, that¡¯s a much longer story than I¡¯m willing to go into today. Besides, if I hang around too long, you¡¯ll get a Listening to Boring Old Stories Warped Skill.¡± ¡°That is true,¡± Calvin said, nodding sagely before Karen hit his shoulder. ¡°Anyway, I just came in here to tell you that being a wizard isn¡¯t a¡­bad choice.¡± She sounded like she was forcing it out. ¡°Most skills give you a passive bonus, with one active ability every five levels, giving you a slow, steady rate of increase, but spells are kind of the opposite. You get one active ability that starts out very weak and grows exponentially as you level it, and you can use it in any situation. ¡°Your mother could use her Stone Shaping magic to make shelter, bridges, walls, ramps, wedges, furniture, and so on. The Deadly slash ability I got for my fifth rank in Swordsmanship? I can use it to slash things.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Cal said, nodding. ¡°I¡¯d like to keep pursuing magic, Karen.¡± ¡°According to the tiny owl, you¡¯re a prodigy, so keep at it, I guess,¡± Karen said, tousling his hair. ¡°I¡¯ll leave you be while you¡¯re Forming, but tomorrow your ass is mine.¡± ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± Cal said before his foster mother left. Stealth has reached level 5! Freakin¡¯ choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones, damnit. Abilities: Active Stealth Unseen Affinity Sneak Critical Mutations: Vein-Sight Camouflage Third Eye Touch-Grip ¡°All right, what do they do?¡± Calvin asked. Abilities: Active Stealth: Become invisible for 1 hour/Bent. Effect fades if you attack. Unseen affinity: Active abilities used from a hidden vantage are treated as 2 levels higher. (Trans: Spell Sneak attacks) Sneak Critical: Attacks from a hidden Vantage are significantly more lethal, automatically seeking vital spots. Mutations: Vein-Sight: When using Stealth, the Veins of living creatures glow brightly from beneath their skin. (May Cause Slight Vampirism) Camouflage: When using Stealth, the skin actively redirects light around the body, nearly disappearing. (Much less effective when wearing clothes.) Third Eye: Feel any sentient creature actively paying attention to you, and the direction they are in. Touch-Grip: At will, finger tips and toes become able stick to objects, with a force equal to your endurance squared. (May cause super-heroism.) Macronomicon Chapter 7: Dangers of Fishing As Calvin brought each of his options to the forefront of his mind, a helpful sentence described it. Calvin went through them a couple times to make sure he knew what each of them did. He slowly narrowed his selections down. Active stealth is pretty good, like a spell in and of itself, but I don¡¯t have a lot of spare Bent to go around. Unseen affinity is powerful, especially at the beginning. Sneak critical is out. I¡¯m not planning on becoming an assassin. May cause vampirism? What in the nine hells? Cal looked at the first Mutation. Does that mean these might change my body? Hmmm. Camouflage is useful if I plan on sneaking around naked like a perv twenty-four seven, which is the only way it would be more cost-effective than Active stealth. Third eye¡­that¡¯s not bad. Touch grip is interesting. I could theoretically climb walls and even ceilings with impunity, and pick pockets with a single finger. Calvin took a deep breath and began weeding them out. Don¡¯t focus on what¡¯s cool, focus on what pays the most dividends over the longest period of time. After some thinking, Calvin narrowed it down to Third eye and Unseen Affinity. After fifteen minutes of careful deliberation, he painfully chose to give up on the empowered spells from stealth. Third eye was just too handy in more circumstances. Knowing when people were looking at him meant he knew exactly when his stealth was blown, and conversely, when it wasn¡¯t. He also could notice other people in stealth easier if they were paying attention to him. He could tell when girls stared lustfully, or if someone behind him was staring, possibly allowing him to dodge backstabs. Even in a social situation, if someone was throwing too many looks at him, he would know. It¡¯s a damn shame though, I may never get my Body high enough to get another chance at that ability at tenth level. ¡°All right, I pick Third Eye.¡± User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Huh? Cal¡¯s skin started to itch, and his head started to ache, then stab with pain as the plates of his skull popped apart and began to shift. ¡°Agh!¡± Cal gave a strangled cry before everything went dark. Cal woke up still in his bed, clothes sticky with sweat. ¡°What in the hells was that?¡± he asked. ¡°Does everyone have to go through that when they mutate? Never told me.¡± Matter of fact, no one had ever told him anything about mutating, it was always abilities, abilities, every five levels in a skill. Cal reached up and touched his skull. Did it change? Are people going to start asking questions? After massaging it for a few minutes, Cal didn¡¯t notice any changes worth mentioning. His hands and skin looked the same, and he plucked a hair out. Hair color¡¯s still the same. As long as my eyeballs didn¡¯t change, I¡¯m golden. Cal didn¡¯t have all day to sit and screw around, he had twelve Warp to spend. The amount of Warp a person received each Breaking was dictated by their highest primary stat, Body or Mind, and according to Bekvah and some of the people he¡¯d asked since, twelve warp to spend was a lot. It also explained why Bekvah suggested frontloading his Warp into Mind. Spending all twelve points doing puzzles would raise his Mind to thirteen, ensuring his next Break gave him seventeen Warp, which was a truly outstanding amount. It would simultaneously raise the limit on his sub-stats greatly¡­but, he wouldn¡¯t have access to any skills to raise them until his next Break. Bekvah¡¯s method truly leaned on getting more Breaks afterward. So if the nobility basically cheats by absorbing Warp from battlefields, why can¡¯t I? A seed of an idea began to germinate as Cal opened the book of puzzles and began solving them. The first couple pages were easy, but they quickly became something that Cal had to struggle to solve. Your Mind has reached Level 10! Remaining Warp 9/12 Your Mind has reached Level 11! Remaining Warp 6/12 Your Mind has reached Level 12! Remaining Warp 3/12 Once Cal had only three Warp remaining he got out of bed, carefully trying not to devote too much effort to any one thing. He was starting to get a feel for the Warp buzzing around behind his heart, like Kala had told him. Cal decided to pick up two Will related Skills, and a Stability one, to increase his Bent recovery and Storage. Cal didn¡¯t want to be left high and dry for years if his plans didn¡¯t work out. He stepped outside into the afternoon sun and squinted against the glare. First order of business, fishing. Cal leaned over and grabbed his rod, a simple notched Lipia sapling with twelve feet of string and an iron hook on the end. Lipia was famous for its flexibility and strength, and it was commonly used to make war bows, but the farmers of Deinos, who had the stuff growing in their back yards, often made fishing poles out of them too. Cal trotted down the well-beaten dirt path to the river. The trees loomed over the well-worn groove in the ground as he walked downhill. After a couple minutes walking between splashes of sunlight, Cal made it to the village fishing hole, where the villagers liked to relax and put an extra fish or two on the table. Old man Juka was sitting on a lump of dirt overlooking the river, silently watching his wooden bobber. In Deinos, fishing was a popular pastime for the elderly, who were too frail to engage in heavy labor, but still wanted to put food on the table for their children and grandchildren. ¡°Afternoon, Calvin.¡± Juka said, glancing over. The village elder wasn¡¯t working in that capacity at the moment, so he was just Juka. Calvin felt a sensation something like an itch on his face, with the directional feeling of warm sunlight beating on his skin. This must be the Third Eye mutation. He could vaguely tell the direction the old man¡¯s gaze was coming from, but maybe with enough practice he¡¯d be able to pinpoint people with his eyes closed. Juka was a bald old man with no teeth. He was a stick thin prune of a man, but he was wise, and could still hold a fishing rod. The old man had his rod tucked in a frame, so he could let a fish wear itself out before reeling it in. He wasn¡¯t that strong, especially against some of the large fish to be had in this river. ¡°Afternoon,¡± Cal said as he did his customary check for Norlocks. The awful creatures were the apex predators of the river, and weren¡¯t above snatching things off the bank. They didn¡¯t even taste good. There were no strange eddies, or suspicious brown lumps in the water. ¡°No norlocks today, son.¡± Juka said. ¡°As Karen would say, I¡¯d rather trust my eyes than another person¡¯s word.¡± Juka chuckled. ¡°Good plan.¡± He turned back to his bobber, patiently watching it dip in the slow-moving current. ¡°What are you doing here so late?¡± Juka asked, glancing over at him. ¡°Best fishing¡¯s already done.¡± ¡°Forming Day,¡± Cal said, sitting down about twenty feet down the bank, leaning up against a fallen log he and Baroke had moved there for that purpose. ¡°Thought I¡¯d pick up fishing as a Warped Skill.¡± ¡°Ah, can¡¯t go wrong with that. My uncle got to level five, and the man never went hungry. You don¡¯t mind if I cast where you do, do yah?¡± Juka gave him a wry toothless grin. ¡°Get your own fish,¡± Cal said, digging a worm out of the soft soil and baiting his hook before relaxing back into his nook and casting his line out into the water. On a hunch, he aimed for a particularly fast moving current that eventually drew his wooden bobber into the shallows in a more natural way than simply splashing the lure into the hole. Fishing was a common Will/Sta hybrid skill. Skills that raised Stability tended to be ones that relaxed you, kept you grounded, or ensured a certain quality of life. Cooking, Cleaning, and Tool Maintenance were all good examples. Will skills required focus, determination, or patience. Examples included Babysitting, Animal Training, Hunting, etc. Since fishing was both relaxing, grounding, and requiring focus and patience, it was a hybrid skill, delivering a stat point to whichever attribute was lower every five levels. In Cal¡¯s case, it would be Stability, but that could reverse if he raised his Stability higher than his Will. He felt like it was a good choice to have a skill that could flip as necessary to help round out his attributes. After this he¡¯d grab two more Will skills, and be well on his way to being able to restore two Bent per day to fuel his magic practice. Call waited, watching his bobber intently as the brown water swirled around it, waiting for the moment to set the hook. After ten minutes, Cal replaced his worm and cast again, letting the lure flow down into the shallows on its own. After another few minutes of waiting, his bobber dipped unnaturally. Cal¡¯s heart slammed in his chest, causing him to flinch and almost tug one the line too early, but he caught himself. No, it¡¯s just testing the bait. wait until the fish swallows it. A couple seconds later the bobber dipped under the surface, more violently this time. Cal tugged the pole back to set the hook. Not too hard, or it¡¯ll snap the line or tug the hook out. Just the right amount of pressure. The hook set deep, and the fish began to swim back and forth under the surface of the water, intractably hooked. You have manifested Fishing! Fishing has reached Level 1! Level 1: Boosts effectiveness of bait and line strength. 5% correction Remaining Warp 2/12 ¡°Whoo!¡± Cal shouted as he let the fish wear itself out. Their homespun line didn¡¯t exactly have a lot of strength to it, so he had to be delicate. ¡°You seem awfully excited.¡± Juka said. ¡°I got the skill!¡± Cal said, doing his best to follow the fish¡¯s movements and keep the tension on the line steady. ¡°Oh, maybe I can bum a couple fish off of you, then.¡± The fish suddenly made an unnatural turn, snapping the line and nearly yanking the pole out of his hand. Damn, I paid a copper piece for that hook! More specifically, the hook was a copper piece that Ghol the smith would form into a hook for kids in exchange for chores. Cal recently had been bumped up to adult rates for hooks, so the loss stung. Cal felt Juka¡¯s gaze land on his face before the old man spoke. ¡°Hah, I guess I won¡¯t be bumming any fish off you today. In honor of getting the Skill though, I¡¯ll give you a small loan from my stash, with a very reasonable interest rate of one fish per day.¡± ¡°Bah, I¡¯ll be back with a couple spares tomorrow,¡± Cal said, glancing over at the old man. ¡°I could even-¡° Cal¡¯s eyes went wide as he spotted a purple, veiny lump of muscle, something like a snake with a penis¡¯s skin, sporting a mouth full of barbed teeth at the end. A norlock¡¯s tentacle. ¡°Look out!¡± Cal shouted, pointing. ¡°Eh?¡± Juka only had time to glance over before the Norlock struck, sinking barbed fangs into the old man¡¯s arm and dragging him off his hill. ¡°Motherfu-¡° Juka¡¯s words were drowned out as he landed in the water, where more tentacles writhed just below the surface. Ice went down Cal¡¯s spine. Tradition was, if you spotted a norlock, go get some friends and pelt it with arrows from a safe distance until the damned thing floated to the surface, but it had Juka, and the old man would be dead before he made it halfway back to the village. Pulling the old man out wasn¡¯t going to work, neither of them were strong enough to pull away from the thick muscles designed to pull things underwater and drown them. Not before Juka was already dead, that was. The only way Juka was getting out of this alive was if the norlock died in the next minute. Cal spotted the old man¡¯s fishing knife, a razor sharp piece of steel with a modest four inch blade. It sat unattended beside where Juka had been sitting. Just have to hope it¡¯s enough, Cal thought, running forward and snatching up the blade as he sprinted past, diving into the roiling water. Macronomicon There, a nice sprint of six total chapters today between my two series. I''m tired. (Blarg) Patreon''s 18 chapters ahead already! Chapter 8: Risky Rewards Cal hit the water hands first, hitting a coil of the Norlock¡¯s tentacle. I only have an instant before it shifts its attention to me, I have to go for it¡¯s core. Norlocks had six strong tentacles that they used to reel in their prey to a bulbous main body that they kept hidden near the riverbed. There it would extend a beak and slice it¡¯s dead prey into bite-sized pieces. The main body was where it housed all it¡¯s vital organs under a fleshy sack. Cal tugged on the tentacle wrapped around the village elder, pulling himself closer ot the creature¡¯s main body, holding the knife in front of himself. A second later he felt himself bump into soft flesh. Cal started slashing, putting every ounce of muscle into his swings, rendered slow by the water resistance. The water began to taste coppery Cal couldn¡¯t see anything. Pain shot up Cal¡¯s shoulder as one of the tentacle¡¯s mouths clamped around it. Cal kept hacking away at the main body, feeling Juka¡¯s fishing knife slash through the soft skin of the creature over and over again You have manifested Knife-Work! Knife-Work has reached Level 1! Level 1: Boosts handling and sharpness of knives, 5% correction Remaining Warp 1/12 Cal didn¡¯t have time for frustration as he continued hacking away at the creature hiding behind a veil of silt, hacking away, because his life depended on it. The pain in his shoulder throbbed as the creature tried to wrap a tentacle around him and push him away. Norlock tentacles were designed to pull things in, however, not push them away, so Cal was able to stand his ground underwater with a bit of effort and continue stabbing. Running out of breath! Cal¡¯s vision was starting to cover with sparks as he ran out of air. the Norlock didn¡¯t feel like it had gotten much weaker either. I need more air! Cal knew if he tried to swim upward, then the norlock would have him right where it wanted. There was no way to get more air¡­ What if I make some? In a desperate bid, Cal reached up with his mind and used two Bent to connect himself with the air he knew was above the water¡¯s surface. Splitting. Dupdomancy has reached Level 3! Level 3: 9 pounds, 15 minutes. Bent 3/7 remaining. He copied the air above them, and for an instant, he and the Norlock were completely surrounded by air, and in the dim light filtering down from above, Cal could make out the creature¡¯s hateful eyes glaring at him, and its other four tentacles bringing Juka closer to its beak. He had been slicing it¡¯s upper torso to ribbons, a spot closer to the beak where there was more protective skin in case a creature was still struggling. Cal sucked in a huge breath an instant before the river-water crashed down on them again in a wave that painfully slammed into him. I need to be lower, Cal thought, desperately pulling on the norlock¡¯s tentacle to get himself deeper. He oriented himself where he last saw the creature¡¯s eye and began stabbing in a wild pattern. After the fifth stab, the mouth around his shoulder jerked and let go before thrashing wildly. Cal put the knife in his mouth and blindly swam in the direction he¡¯d seen the norlock carrying Juka, feeling through the water for the feel of homespun fabric. After a few seconds, his fingertips brushed against Juka, and he grabbed the old man¡¯s clothes before pushing off the riverbed with enough force to strain his knees, old man in tow. Cal broke the surface with a gasp, and found himself holding the elder by his pants. He reoriented and yanked his head above the water. Juka gasped loudly, when his head broke the surface of the brown, silt-filled water, orienting himself in a matter of seconds, before the two of them swam at top speed toward the shore, sending up a shower of water from their soggy sleeves. Cal made it to shore first, then hauled the shaking elder up onto the shore, whereupon the two of them crawled away from the waterline as quickly as they could. Once they were far enough away, Cal dropped to the ground and groaned in pain, glancing at the shredded meat of his right shoulder. At least it balances me out, he thought. ¡°I got another skill,¡± he said, laying his head back in the dirt and trying to get his breath back. ¡°Oh yeah?¡± the village elder asked, watching the serene brown water that didn¡¯t seem to have any man-eating monsters in it at all. ¡°Saving Wrinkled Old Men?¡± ¡°Knife-Work.¡± Cal said with a grimace. He hadn¡¯t looked it up in advance, but the chances of it being Will based Skill were slim to none. Probably Kinesthetics. ¡°Well, it worked for me.¡± Juka said, snagging his fishing kit back from the bank and applying first aid to the bleeding puncture wounds in his arms and legs. ¡°I thought I was gonna spend twenty years as an elder, helping the people of the village, only to end my days as shit fertilizing the riverbed. Thanks.¡± Cal grunted. The loss of the Warp he¡¯d saved specifically for a Will skill was beginning to sink in. If he never got another Break, he¡¯d have a damned hard time raising his Will to twelve to match his Mind. I suppose it can be done. Dupdomancy is Will based, after all, so I¡¯m not completely up Shit Creek without a paddle. ¡°How can I make us even?¡± Juka asked, drawing Cal¡¯s attention to him. ¡°Can I get some sturdy lumber?¡± Cal asked, glancing over at the village elder. ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± ¡°And a shovel, saw, drill, and some nails. Enough to build a house.¡± ¡°You¡¯re really direct, kid. Most people lead with ¡®I couldn¡¯t possibly.¡¯¡± Juka said with a toothless grin. ¡°I¡¯ve got something I wanna do.¡± Cal let Juka bandage him up then went hunting with Boros, learning the Hunting Warped Skill, before Karen found out about his wounds from the elder and dragged him back to the house to recover. You have manifested Hunting! Hunting has reached Level 1! Level 1: Boosts locating and tracking prey, 5% correction Remaining Warp 0/12 2nd Break complete ******** The days flew by and eventually Cal¡¯s wounds healed, and life settled back into the sleepy routine of the village. Cal would wake up every morning, get whipped by Karen, then spend the rest of his day practicing his skills, make a bit of money working odd jobs and then spend the rest of the day working on his secret project. He stopped moving his sense of pain onto a rock to focus on Splitting, and suffered for it. Hunting has reached Level 3! Dupdomancy has reached Level 4! Fishing has reached Level 3! Knife-Work has reached Level 4! Talking to Girls has reached Level 4! Read Expression has reached level 3! Stealth has reached Level 6! Limit reached. Calvin didn¡¯t get much practice with Acting, as busy as he was running around from place to place, but he always had time to chat with Persei or Mrs. Marshine. Cal was started to get an odd reputation among the men of the village, who would look at him suspiciously as he stopped to talk with the womenfolk. It¡¯s not like I wanted a skill for it. Cass was simply interested to see if there was a useful mutation for level five, and the extra Intuition would help, of course. Once Karen found out he had a Skill with knives, she forced him to drop the sword and start learning knife tactics. Thanks to the skill, shivs, throwing knives, daggers, and kitchen knives all felt surprisingly comfortable in his hand, and did exactly what he wanted them to do. Still, knives were less than ideal in a fight, which Cal learned the hard way. Anyone who imagines an agile thief fighting a fully armored guard to a standstill with nothing but a knife is dead wrong. The blade was so short and the entire thing so light that it was damn near impossible to do anything with it. Too short to stab. Your reach was awful compared to the other guy. The knife was too light to block, it¡¯d get torn right out of your hand. Sure you can parry, but only against thrusts to the torso. Knives sucked. Knives weren¡¯t meant to fight people with. If they were, they¡¯d be swords. And forget about nimbly leaping past Karen¡¯s defenses and scoring a hit on her¡­she was faster than he was. His skill at using Third eye was coming along. As he got used to it, he could feel which part of his body they were looking at and from what direction, which helped for about twenty minutes until Karen figured it out and started faking him out with where she was looking. Cal wasn¡¯t even sure she was consciously doing it. Still, an actual fight with a stranger would only last a few seconds, definitely not long enough to intuit his ability and fake it out. The days went by, blending together almost seamlessly, until Cal got a most interesting piece of news. About this year¡¯s battle against the Ilethians. ***Calvin*** ¡°What are we doing here?¡± Baroke grunted as they carefully rolled back the piece of sod. ¡°Well, you know how we¡¯ve had a battle with the Ilethians every year for the last fifteen years, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, according to my dad, it¡¯s ¡®cuz the duplicitous bastards think we¡¯re weak enough to take our land just because trade with Malkenrovia has stagnated. Every year they try to shave off a little bit for themselves.¡± Baroke said before he began loading dirt into the cart with a shovel. Cal joined him, the two boys digging a roughly coffin-shaped hole in the ground, only about four feet deep. ¡°Well, I was in Surrak and I overheard that this year¡¯s battle is expected to take place here.¡± ¡°Here!?¡± Baroke asked, glancing around. They were standing in the middle of a large clearing, far to the northeast of Surrak. ¡°Yeah, what I heard was they like to rotate the battlefields on a twelve year schedule to make sure no animals get exposed to more than one Break in their lifetime. Turns out this place is the one they used twelve years ago, and every other major field has had a battle more recently. People put two and two together.¡± Cal glanced over his shoulder and spotted Baroke still looking around nervously. ¡°It¡¯s not for another couple days, I hear, don¡¯t get excited.¡± Cal said. ¡°If the Hash¡¯Maje finds us digging holes and planting strange objects in the battlefield, he¡¯ll hang us as spies.¡± ¡°Calm down, I¡¯m friends with his daughter. Ten years of hard labor at the worst.¡± Cal hadn¡¯t seen much from Kala since the incident. Her father must have become more protective since she¡¯d almost been kidnapped in Deinos. ¡°That doesn¡¯t make me feel better.¡± Cal¡¯s exceedingly large friend said. ¡°Just keep shoveling, and we can get through this before either of us gets hanged.¡± Cal said. ¡°You¡¯re a crazy son of a bitch.¡± Baroke said, shaking his head. Once they had a sufficient hole, they lowered Cal¡¯s secret project into it. A very sturdy wooden box with air holes drilled into it. ¡°Yeah, well, waiting around for a bunch of dead people to fall into my lap isn¡¯t exactly my style.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that exactly what you¡¯re planning on doing?¡± ¡°This is different.¡± Cal said. ¡°I¡¯m going where the dead people are.¡± ¡°Why not just join the army? I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯re actually better than the average infantryman, care of your mom.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Fuck that, they¡¯d put me on the frontlines. I mean, look at me,¡± Baroke gestured to himself. ¡°I¡¯m a golden god.¡± ¡°Bah. I want all the reward with none of the risk,¡± Cal said. ¡°Looting a battlefield seems pretty risky.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what this is¡­is it?¡± ¡°Kinda.¡± They arranged the turf so it was flat, backfilling dirt as necessary. The two of them jumped up and down on the patch of earth, but it didn¡¯t have any telltale sign of being hollow. ¡°Alright,¡± Cal said, lifting up the grass trapdoor and grabbing a waterskin from the cart filled with dirt. ¡°I¡¯ll see you in a week.¡± ¡°You¡¯re seriously doing this?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Baroke, I went around the village and asked everyone who had three breaks to share their story with me.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°It always happened unexpectedly, when their town was raided by a swarm of monsters and a bunch of people died, or when a battle spilled over into their villages, and they were forced to hide in their wine cellar. Most people have one of those events in their lifetime, but do you really think that¡¯s gonna happen anytime soon, in Deinos? ¡°Probably not.¡± Baroke said with a frown. ¡°And would you want to be a measly fifty year-old Peasant when that critical moment of your life happens, or would you rather already be a Veteran that can do something about it?¡± ¡°alright, alright, I get ya.¡± Baroke said, waving him off. ¡°Just don¡¯t get killed.¡± ¡°Tell Karen I¡¯m in Surrak for a week, Ta,¡± Cal said, saluting Baroke with the water skin and crawling into his claustrophobic little box filled with supplies. A moment later he heard his friend snort and begin carting the displaced dirt away. Leaving nothing but a empty field with some cart tracks crisscrossing it. Cal rolled over and pulled out his light source, a glowing crystal from a subterranean lizard. He used the light to begin reading a book he¡¯d saved just for this. Day one: I Should have installed a latrine hole in this fucking thing. I had to open the door to let the stink out in the evening, and the puddle almost soaked my books. Day two: managed to dig a large crack out between two slats, good enough for number one. Number two still proves challenging. Toiletries needed. Day three: Heard voices as scouts surveyed the land. Opening door no longer feasible. Plenty of dried food and water left. Day four: IT¡¯S HAPPENING! The battle is going on directly above me, I can hear the clash of steel and the screams of the dying. The Warp is growing thick. Three hours into the battle, I lost consciousness to a Break. Spent the rest of the day practicing puzzles. Your Mind has reached Level 13! Remaining Warp 13/16 Your Mind has reached Level 14! Remaining Warp 10/16 Your Mind has reached Level 15! Remaining Warp 7/16 Your Mind has reached Level 16! Remaining Warp 4/16 Your Mind has reached Level 17! Remaining Warp 1/16 Now all I gotta do is wait for a couple days for the battle to clear. Cal crossed his arms and tried to zone out, reaching a relaxed state of mind despite the puddle of blood slowly oozing into his box from the grass above him. You have manifested Meditation Meditation has reached Level 1! Level 1: Boosts ability to ignore distractions and disassociate. 5% correction. Remaining Warp 0/16 ¡­.I really hope that¡¯s a Will skill Day five: Heard looters rummaging around above me, and a few scuffles taking place. All the books I brought in with me are ruined except for Bekvah¡¯s book of puzzles. I made sure to stack that one high enough that it didn¡¯t get soaked in blood. Constant soaking has made my skin begin to slough off. Day six: water is out, and the looters have slowed down drastically, when I hear the call of the Melchia bird again, I¡¯ll know it¡¯s time to leave. ¡­.. I heard the cry of the Melchia bird signifying sundown, but when I tried to open the lid of my box, it didn¡¯t budge. Something died on top of my box. When I poke my fingers through the air holes, I feel the pebbled skin of a riding guar. There¡¯s a dead guar on top of my box. Okay, don¡¯t panic. What do I have available? A long knife for self-defense, a light source, a piss-filled waterskin, and a bunch of books. And an inordinate amount of blood and shit soaking my clothes. This plan could use some adjustment, assuming I live through this, and don¡¯t just die here, unearthed a thousand years later as a mummy, displayed in an exhibit as ¡®the stupidest man who walked the earth¡¯. Good times. Gotta go try to dig my way out of here. See you later, blood and shit-covered journal. Calvin closed his ruined notebook and tossed it aside. He was pretty sure he wouldn¡¯t forget his week in a shit-box He scrunched himself up and crawled this way and that, testing each of his air-holes to see if there was guar on all of it. Luckily, the three at the bottom left corner seemed to lack guar, so Cal grabbed his knife and got to work carving away the sturdy wood. his Knife-Work Skill made the wood peel away in large strips, but it was still going to take days to cut through the wood. It¡¯s either that or die, Cal thought, scraping away the strong door. Day seven: Mental notes. Should have brought a freaking saw. Only managed to get through one panel and I need to do at least four more. One a day isn¡¯t going to cut it. A man will die after three days without water. My emergency stash of piss got knocked over while I slept and the blood in the bottom congealed into a giant scab. Nothing left to drink now. possible fever setting in, too. ¡°I need a fucking saw.¡± Cal muttered as he shaved away at the second panel. If his knife had sawblades on the back of it, he¡¯d be out of here already. ¡°wait a minute,¡± Cal pulled the Crinka Lizard crystal out of the floor and studied his knife. Is it possible? He thought, glaring hard at the knife. He¡¯d discounted dupomancy as a viable means to escape early on, as he hadn¡¯t been able to make a strong lever to move the guar, or burst the door open with increased air pressure. He had hurt his eardrums with that, though. Cal had reached up and grabbed the air from above him in the river. Who decided where air started and stopped? Cal hadn¡¯t been thinking about it, but was air one thing or a bunch of smaller things, or¡­what? What if Cal decided he only wanted to duplicate just this much of his knife, failing to copy a section of the back of the knife in a sawblade shape? Cal closed his eyes and pictured himself encircling every part of the knife except for a razor sharp toothed section of its back. Splitting. Bent 4/7 remaining. A duplicate knife popped into existence in Cal¡¯s hand, on its back were a series of unnaturally perfect saw teeth. Dupdomancy has reached Level 5! +1 to Will Level 5: 25 pounds, 25 minutes. Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities: Multi-split Mass Split ¡­ MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! I¡¯m gonna LIVE! Cal ignored the prompt and put the blade up in the hole he¡¯d made yesterday and started sawing with a vengeance. Fifteen minutes later, Cal dragged himself up through the hole in the ground, pushing one of the dead guar¡¯s legs out of the way. The dead riding dragonkin was wrapped around his little hole, and so no one noticed him crawling out of it. He only had Bekvah¡¯s book of puzzles and his knife. His clothes he¡¯d decided to leave in the hole. They weren¡¯t gonna do anyone any good now. Cal stood and glanced around. It was still dark out, but the sunrise wasn¡¯t too far off, wisps of smoke and smoldering corpses dotted the plain where a magician had used a fire spell, or a particularly volatile chemical had combusted. Sometimes both. Time to get the hell out of here. Cal felt a familiar sensation on his left hand side. ¡°Hey, you!¡± Cal flinched, glancing to his left, where five Gadveran soldiers were glaring at him from a wagon full of abandoned arms and armor. ¡°What are you doing here, boy?¡± the lead one asked around a pipe sending out a gout of smoke. Cal had the kernel of an idea. ¡°Ummm¡­¡± What do the abilities do again? Multi-split, allows the user to duplicate several different objects simultaneously Mass-split, allows the user to create multiple copies of one object to the limits of their skill. Shaping. Allows the user to add mass to an object, increasing its size and partially modifying its shape. Mutations: Spacial aware- Yeah, that¡¯s plenty, I choose Mass Split. ¡­.Fine¡­ You have applied Mass Split to your Dupomancy. Hope it works out well for you. Oh, it will. ¡°I¡¯m talking to you, boy!¡± the soldier said, getting angry. Cal reached out and snagged the thickest chunk of smoke drifting from the pipe with two Bent, then decided to make fifty pounds of it. Mass Split Bent 2/7 remaining. The air around the soldiers was replaced with fifty pounds of hot Loralei smoke, creating a billowing cloud of burning hot smoke that encompassed all of them, reducing them to hacking coughs. Time to run. Cal turned the other direction and started running for the forest like his life depended on it, which at this point, it did. ¡°Looter! We¡¯ve got a looter!¡± one of the soldiers said between coughs, Cal heard the sounds of other soldiers picking up the cry as he put his head down and sprinted with everything he had. Then he heard the dogs baying. ***Karen*** Karen was sitting in her rocking chair, sharpening her sword, even though it didn¡¯t need it. She hadn¡¯t used it in years, so the damn thing was plenty sharp. She was nervous. Cal had never been gone longer than a couple days. After she¡¯d interrogated Baroke on the third day, he¡¯d relented and told her where Cal was when she threatened castration. By then the battle had already started, so there was no way to find him and pull him out of his stupidity. There was a damn good chance a stranger wandering the battlefield after the fact would be labelled a looter and summarily executed. She didn¡¯t know if she could live with herself if she¡¯d been responsible for giving him the notion that lead to his death. That was supposed to be a warning! Not a godsdamned incentive! He¡¯s supposed to live! Suddenly her front door slammed open with a bang, revealing Cal staggering into the doorway totally naked, covered in blood, reeking of shit, and emaciated. He clutched a book and knife to his chest in trembling hands. Karen wanted to ask if he was okay, but she narrowed her eyes instead. He needed scolding more than anything else. ¡°What have you been up to?¡± She asked, picking up her greatsword. A couple hits with the flat of the blade might straighten him out. ¡°Winning,¡± Cal said with a grin before his eyes rolled back in his head and he toppled over. ¡°Oh, damnit,¡± Karen said, tossing aside her sword and catching him before he broke his head open on the slate floor of her cottage. Now it¡¯s all over my clothes. ¡°Is that Calvin?¡± Jinnei called from her bedroom. ¡°It is. Fetch me some soap and water.¡± ¡°How much?¡± Jinnei asked, peering out from her room in her nightgown. ¡°All of it.¡± ***Calvin*** Calvin opened his eyes to the light of dawn and sat up, groaning. Oh sun, how I¡¯ve missed you. ¡°Morning.¡± Karen said from her rocking chair. Ah, crap. ¡°Have fun on your little adventure?¡± ¡°Not really, no.¡± Cal said. ¡°It was the most miserable week I¡¯ve ever experienced, bar none.¡± ¡°Well, at least you worked hard for that Break.¡± ¡°Hah, yeah.¡± ¡°I think this goes without saying, but just so we¡¯re clear, you¡¯re never to do something that stupid again, or I will beat you to within an inch of your life.¡± Cal held up his hand. ¡°I swear, I¡¯ll never do that again.¡± ¡­Without better planning. Gotta make the box a little bigger, add a place to poop, and maybe an escape tunnel or a winch to open the lid in case there¡¯s another guar on it. ¡°You added something to the end of that.¡± Karen accused. ¡°No way.¡± Cal protested. Karen cuffed him. ¡°You think you¡¯re the only one with a Skill? I¡¯ve got Read The Enemy at level ten! I can tell you¡¯re lying!¡± Calvin Gadsint Body: 6 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 6 Endurance: 6 Mind: 17 Intuition: 6 Stability: 7 Will: 9 Skills: Stealth 6 Talking to Girls 4 Acting 3 Read Expression 3 Sense-Grafting 3 Dupdomancy 5 Hunting 3 Meditation 1 Fishing 1 Knife work 4 Macronomicon Today''s chapter brought to you by teenage stupidity! Chapter 1/10 of the WotR dump! Hope you guys enjoy this story, which I put a tiny bit more effort into the backstory before I started scribbling all over everything. Here''s hoping it turns out good. Chapter 9: Mass Splitting ¡°Prepare to lose by a thousand points. Calvin Meteor Swarm!¡± Calvin shouted his special attack as he released the bowstring at the same time that he copied the arrow, aiming it at the target he and Baroke had set up in the woods. Mass Splitting Bent 6/7 remaining. He was a little too early with the spell, and the arrows rained down in front of him, all twenty-five pounds of them. Twenty-five pounds of arrows came out to¡­more than Cal cared to count. His original arrow hit the 5-point outer ring. ¡°Ack, damnit,¡± Cal said as the shower of roughly five hundred practice arrows pelted the ground in front of him. He was still getting the timing of his spellwork down. He knew it was possible for the momentum of an object to be copied, along with the temperature, so all he had to do was get the timing down and he¡¯d have a handy little missile copying ability. According to Karen, sometimes when you use two abilities together in a novel way, they got along so well that they made a baby. A new hybrid skill. Cal would have to have Archery at level five before that was a possibility, though. For now he¡¯d have to settle for simply launching a swarm of arrows. Or, trying to. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll admit it.¡± Persei said, taking a sip of her wine. ¡°That was impressive. If not in the way you hoped.¡± She and Jinnei were waiting for their turn while Cal shot the target. Baroke had already nailed the bullseye, putting their team¡¯s total score at one ¡®o five. ¡°Bah,¡± Cal said, tromping back to the bench while the girls took his spot. ¡°It¡¯s times like this I regret living in a backwater village with only two girls our age.¡± Baroke said, sipping his wine. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± Cal asked. ¡°My cousin,¡± he said, pointing at Persei. ¡°Your sister.¡± He pointed at Jinnei. ¡°What could have been a fun afternoon of drunken strip-archery is instead competitive mudslinging.¡± ¡°Huh, bummer, I don¡¯t think girls from Surrak would be interested in a three-hour cart ride to come out here and fool around, though.¡± ¡°Kala was,¡± Baroke said. ¡°Was, being the operative word.¡± Cal had spotted her walking around Surrak seemingly without a care in the world. If her father let her walk around the city unattended, surely she could come visit? Unless she didn¡¯t want to. Cal once again thought of the face she¡¯d made, the sheer unbridled terror in her eyes as she struggled against the chains to get even a little bit further away from him. I wish I knew what¡¯s driven her away. On the other hand, it wasn¡¯t like he had much of a shot with the daughter of the man who ran the country. ¡°Why the long face?¡± Persei asked, throwing an arm over his shoulder in a familiar way. He could feel the soft skin of her arm on his shoulder, and her hip pressed against him in a way that made him hyper-aware of her presence. ¡°We beating you guys too hard?¡± What the heck is Persei doing out here, anyway? Isn¡¯t she with Kort? Cal opened his mouth to ask, then his Intuition caught up with his mouth, shutting it with a clack. It hadn¡¯t been obvious to him three years ago, but now he knew that asking straight out why she wasn¡¯t with her boyfriend was not the ideal tactic. If the two of them are on the outs, then Persei is either: Cal worked through the evidence and realized it was number two. Kort had done something stupid and Persei was punishing him for it. Calvin had seen her glaring at him earlier in the day, just after she¡¯d invited him to join her family for dinner the night before. I for one am not interested in their lover¡¯s squabble. On the other hand¡­ ¡°I¡¯ve just been so burdened recently,¡± Cal said, putting emotion into it with Acting. ¡°My Calling is being decided by the elders, which is stressful. Together with with building the new house and helping Karen out with the farm¡­I¡¯ve been run ragged, and it¡¯s starting to build up.¡± Cal glanced up at the sky and heaved a sigh before looking Persei in her brown eyes. ¡°Hanging out with you helps keep me sane.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Persei blushed, and Cal spotted the opportunity to put his hand around her waist, enjoying the feel of her soft hip underneath the wool pants. ¡°I¡¯m just so pent up. I just wish I had some way to let off some steam and forget about my cares for a couple minutes.¡± Cal said wistfully. ¡°Well¡­¡± Persei started to speak when Jinnei rapping the back of his head with a practice arrow spoiled the moment. ¡°Your turn again. And quit messing with Persei,¡± she said, motioning to the target. ¡°Please,¡± Baroke said, giving Cal a raised eyebrow as the giant set his cup down and picked up his massive longbow. Baroke nocked one of the scattered arrows Cal had made and drew his bow back, aiming at the target. ¡°Penetrating Shot¡± Baroke released the arrow, and it shot forward, boring through the bullseye, the tree behind it, and a boulder behind that, sending cracks spiderwebbing outward through the stone. Baroke had just recently gotten to level ten at Archery. The giant boy loved to go outside and plink arrows into haybales for hours at a time, and his hyper-focus had paid enormous dividends. If the village was ever attacked by a Warped monster from deeper in the woods, Cal was sure an ability like that would come in handy. Cal, by contrast had spread his focus around so much that he only had two skills at level five, and all his secondary Mind stats wouldn¡¯t reach their peak for a long time. On the other hand, when they did, he would outperform Baroke in every way. Hopefully. ¡°I didn¡¯t know we were allowed to use abilities for anything other than comedic effect like Cal.¡± Jinnei said, drawing her thin sword. She waved her blade lazily and the distant target cracked, the lower half falling to the ground. Damn. Cal blinked, trying to process what had just happened. ¡°I guess that¡¯s the end of practice.¡± Persei said with a sigh. ¡°Now we gotta actually do stuff.¡± The girl disentangled herself from Calvin and stretched with a groan. ¡°Not looking forward to weeding for four hours straight.¡± They¡¯d been playing hooky with Cal while he watched Karen¡¯s sheep, and the day was beginning to stretch into afternoon. ¡°We could just shoot trees,¡± Baroke said. Of course he was up for that. ¡°Nah, I¡¯ve got stuff to get back to,¡± Jinnei said, then glanced around. ¡°And Calvin¡¯s gotta find the rest of the sheep.¡± ¡°Huh? Shit!¡± Cal glanced around and noticed that a ram and no less than three ewes had wandered away from the rest of the herd milling around behind them. They were nowhere to be seen. ¡°Son of a bitch!¡± Cal tried to locate which direction they¡¯d gone, and spotted a trampled trail of underbrush leading to the south east, toward the deep forest and the snow-capped mountains beyond. Your legs will grace my dinner table for this travesty! ¡°Take them back for me, I gotta track Roger down before they get too far away.¡± Cal settled his bow over his shoulders. Roger was the name of the errant ram that liked to run off, after a crochety old man Karen had used to know. ¡°uhuh,¡± Jinnei said, beginning the process of herding the rest of the sheep back to the village. ¡°You want some help?¡± Baroke asked, glancing toward the deep wood. ¡°Could be dangerous.¡± ¡°I think it might be even more dangerous having your loud self tromping along behind me announcing our presence to the entire forest. Don¡¯t worry, if I come across anything too big to fight, I¡¯ll break Roger¡¯s leg and run.¡± ¡°fair point. Be safe.¡± He said, before following after Jinnei. ¡°Are you really feeling that badly?¡± Persei asked once the others were out of earshot, her face radiating concern. She had a wide nose and large, full lips that complemented her dark skin. Cal had been stressed that the village elders would decide he was a waste of space and kick him out on his birthday, even though that was practically unheard of. Cal wasn¡¯t exactly the most reliable person in the village, though, and his foreign look didn¡¯t win him any points with the elders, either. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s been rough.¡± Cal said honestly. ¡°I don¡¯t know if the village is gonna decide to keep me around. My Skills aren¡¯t exactly geared towards being a productive member of society. Everyone else learned Farming, Planting, Animal Husbandry, Smithing, Carpentry, or the like. I can do tricks. I guess I kinda figured I¡¯d be conquering cities by now. ¡± Persei watched him for a moment, seemingly weighing something in her mind. ¡°Alright, sit down.¡± She finally said. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Sit.¡± She said with authority, pointing at the log. Calvin sat, his heart slamming against his ribs as Persei knelt between his legs. ¡°If you tell anyone about this, I¡¯ll hurt you.¡± She said, unbuckling his pants. ***Calvin*** Well, that was relaxing, Cal thought as he stalked through the deep woods as quietly as he could, aiming to catch up to Roger and the ewes. They¡¯d left a path through the woods that wasn¡¯t always clear, but Cal¡¯s Hunting Skill kept him following their tracks, moving the right direction. They¡¯ve only been gone an hour or two, and the damn sheep are halfway across the forsaken continent! Cal thought as he crept through the forest, whisper-quiet. Stealth came in handy when staying safe in the deep woods. A quarter mile ago, he¡¯d seen signs of the sheep getting spooked and taking off at a trot. It might take him the rest of the day to find them and bring them back. That¡¯s it. Maybe they¡¯ll make me Boros¡¯ apprentice. I¡¯ve got Stealth and Hunting, and I¡¯m not terrible with a bow. Woodsman Calvin¡­. Bleh. Wizard-king for life. Just as soon as I chase these damned sheep down. Worse comes to worst, I can join the army. Cal suddenly pictured Jinnei¡¯s invisible slash and wondered what it would be like to be on the receiving end of a skill like that. I could handle it with the right practice, he thought, ducking under a low-hanging tree as he glided through the forest. A half an hour later, Cal had finally managed to catch up with Roger. The ornery ram was eyeing him with its typical belligerent gaze, standing between him and the three ewes. All he had to do now was calmly guide Roger back to the north-west, and eventually the ram would recognize the terrain and head for the pen on their own recognizance. ¡°Alright, Roger, Git,¡± Cal said, cutting a couple saplings and using them to irritate the ram into moving away, at which point, his girls would chase after him. Call was in the process of leading Roger back to the path they¡¯d formed, when he felt a gaze on the back of his head. Cal froze, keeping his ears open. The gaze traveled down to the square of his back. Right over his heart. Cal lunged to the side and an instant later he heard a bow Twang! An arrow whistled through the underbrush and struck a tree in front of him. Cal scrambled behind a thick tree, his panic causing Roger to break into a run to the southwest. Damnit. ¡°Kort, I swear, it was her idea,¡± Cal said, glancing around the tree. ¡°And I mean, with your mom, I didn¡¯t even know what we were doing¡­the first time.¡± Rather than the slender, muscled warrior Cal was expecting, Cal spotted half a dozen savage Genosian cannibals from the snowy mountains to the southeast. The one in the lead was staring at his bow in disbelief. They had ashen grey skin and had shaved their heads bald, and were surprisingly thick and muscular, inhumanly strong. They wore tattered hides and sported horn bows strung with monster guts. Oh, thank the gods, it¡¯s just cannibals. Cal heaved a sigh of relief. Still a bit of a problem, though. ¡°Do you speak Gudveran?¡± Cal shouted in Gudveran. ¡°Markov?¡± he shouted in Karen¡¯s home tongue. ¡°Trade tongue speak?¡± he shouted in Ilethan. Those people got around. ¡°Speak trade, boy. Want meat.¡± He heard the savage respond. ¡°You take sheep, I go!¡± Cal shouted from behind his tree, pulling his knife. If these guys weren¡¯t feeling like reasonable adults, then Cal would have to make a run for it. He hastily looked around for something to copy, but his belt was filled with things like twine and tinder, a bit of food, water, and a piece of flint and steel to start fires with. I should take to carrying around a caltrop. ¡°We take you.¡± Well, there goes that idea. Cal heard crashing in the woods as one of them charged toward his tree. Cal jumped forward, staying low and keeping as much tree between himself and the rest as he could. The Genosian bared sharpened teeth as he charged forward, aiming an obsidian studded club at Cal¡¯s chest. Cal lunged forward, slipping underneath the man¡¯s swing. Cal¡¯s knife wasn¡¯t nearly long enough to reach him, but¡­ Splitting. Bent 5/7 remaining. The man¡¯s wicked obsidian club popped into Cal¡¯s hand and he whipped it upward, catching his opponent across the neck and chin, jostling his brain and tearing his throat to shreds. The grey man stumbled backwards, choking out some words as he tried to stagger away, blood drenching the hand that he¡¯d slapped over his throat. ¡°There, meat. I go now?¡± Cal said, pointing at the warrior slowly slumping to the ground before resting the bloodied obsidian-bladed club on his shoulder. Acting like you aren¡¯t about to piss yourself is the basics. The Genosians didn¡¯t look amused. The one in the lead squinted at Cal¡¯s club for a moment, then turned and called behind them. A second later, fatter Genosian emerged from the woods. This one was important. Cal could tell by the size of his bone hat. That and the other Genosians preformed a quick kneel of supplication when the big one showed up. I should take the opportunity to bolt, Cal thought, stepping backwards and fishing out his flint and steel. If he could make a wisp of smoke, he could copy enough of it to distract them and put some distance between them. ¡°In Nuak meh kora tua maje!¡± the one in the lead said, pointing at Cal. ¡°Maje?¡± The big one said, eying Cal critically. ¡°Ker Bada tur Nuak!¡± The big man rolled his eyes like a long-suffering parent and held his hand up high, palm downward. Black Bent visibly passed through his veins and exited his palm in a swirl of green mist that seemed to coalesce into the skull of a¡­small man? What in the hells am I looking at? Cal thought as the fat man repeated the process to create three identical warriors, each about as big as a nine year old, maybe ninety pounds, but fully muscled, and obviously adult. Once the green mist passed, they looked perfectly alive, and angry, snarling at him with their shark-teeth and tattooed faces. The fat man passed small clubs to each of them. ¡°Well, that¡¯s now officially the most interesting thing that¡¯s happened today.¡± Cal said, bringing the flint and steel up. Now just need a tiny bit of smoke and I can¡­wait a minute? Can I Split a spark? ¡°Kora.¡± The fat man said, waving a lazy hand at Cal. The tiny men snarled and began charging at him, moving through the underbrush like the wind. One way to find out. Gods I hope I get the timing right. Adrenalin making everything seem slow, Cal tilted the flint toward the three sprinting¡­things. Cal struck the flint with the confidence of years of practice, sending a shower of sparks outward. He desperately seized on the largest spark that was heading straight toward the three charging toward him. Mass Splitting. Bent 4/7 remaining. A small patch of forest in front of Cal exploded into flames as twenty-five pounds of white-hot steel flakes filled the air directly in front of the charging little men, setting everything on fire and melting their skin from their bodies. The little men writhed for an instant before dissolving into green vapor. On the other side of the fire, the fat Genosian shouted, his words too fast to make out, but from the way he was pointing at Cal and gesturing wildly¡­It couldn¡¯t be good. This seems like the distraction I need. Call thought, reaching out with his Bent and isolating a lick of flame before recreating it to fill the forest between them. Mass Splitting. Bent 3/7 remaining. One mote of incandescent vapor was multiplied a hundred thousand times as twenty five pounds of fire sprang into being, forming a sheet between them. The small forest fire became a huge one in an instant, the sheer heat forcing Cal to stagger backwards. Time to run. Macronomicon I got a lot of great ideas for how to use this ability, but feel free to add your two cents at the bottom, we might get some more awesome spells! 2/10 of the WotR dump. Enjoy! Chapter 10: The Raid. Calvin stopped staring at what he¡¯d done and ran, putting as much distance as he possibly could between himself and the angry Genosians. Despite the blood-curdling fear of man-eating cannibals chasing him down and making him into a sandwich, Cal¡¯s mind was abuzz with possibilities for his Splitting. What he needed to pay the most attention to was the usefulness of an object relative to its size. Maximum output with minimum weight. A spark was just a tiny, burning sliver of iron, after all, and it was currently burning down the forest behind him. What else had low mass and high effect? Calvin¡¯s mind was awash with new possibilities as he sprinted through the trees, heedless of how much noise he was making. He didn¡¯t have very long before ¨C Eyes on my back ¨C He tumbled forward and slunk low just as a slightly singed Genosian warrior flew past him, his club whistling above Cal¡¯s head. The two made eye contact for an instant as the bewildered warrior¡¯s Charge ability took him gliding past Cal and forced him to embed his weapon deep into a tree. Cal put his head down and kept running. He heard the screech of wood and glanced over his shoulder, spotting the man ripping the handle of his club free before snorting and tossing it aside, continuing the chase bare-handed. The man spent his Bent to activate another Charge, crossing the distance between them in seconds. He wasn¡¯t surprised by Cal¡¯s dodge this time, reaching out a hand and snagging his ankle, dragging the teen along for the ride. Cal was hauled through the underbrush for a good twenty feet before he slammed up against another wooden trunk. Pain exploded through Cal¡¯s head, causing his thoughts to turn foggy, and sounds to become distant. His vision was filled with bright little worms. The cannibal hauled Cal up to his feet, snarling something into his face before hauling back and punching him in the nose. Cal¡¯s tenuous grip on consciousness strained as his head was driven into the wood behind him. It was thanks to Karen¡¯s brutal training that he was able to weakly lash out with his steel knife, his limp hands unable to deliver the force necessary to disembowel the man. Instead his knife skittered along the man¡¯s hides, nicking him in a few places along his stomach. The Genosian hissed, dropping him and simultaneously knocking the knife out of Cal¡¯s hands as he staggered away. After checking the damage on his stomach, he grinned at Calvin and started following Cal¡¯s limping at a mocking walk. He sauntered towards Cal, chuckling and speaking in his bizarre language as Cal looked for anything to defend himself with, head swimming. Cal felt another¡¯s vision on him, centered on his heart. He glanced up and spotted the bald, ashen skinned bowman taking aim at Cal¡¯s chest. Cal let the strength go out of his knees, twisting and falling to the ground as quickly as he could while reaching out to the arrow. Twang! The arrow came hurtling toward him. Mass splitting. Bent 2/7 remaining. In a fraction of a second, Calvin directed half the swarm of new arrows to appear behind the archer, and the other half on a collision with the unarmed one. He didn¡¯t even know it was possible, but he¡¯d had an inkling. He could direct vaguely where the copy appeared, since when it was a tool he wanted, it appeared in his hand, and when it was an attack, it¡¯d always appeared around the enemy. This was the first time he¡¯d ever been so specific, about where he wanted the duplicates to appear, and they didn¡¯t disappoint. The archer fell forward, turned into a hedgehog by duplicates of the arrow he¡¯d fired. The unarmed one seemed to react, glancing at the sound before receiving a volley of arrows across the right side of his body. Unfortunately Cal wasn¡¯t quite fast enough to dodge the original arrow, as it seemed to bend to match him, tearing through the right side of his chest before he was able to hit the ground. Dupdomancy has reached Level 6! Level 6: 36 pounds, 30 minutes. Cal wanted to scream, but it only came out as a whimper and a bloody cough. Think it nicked my lung. Please gods, don¡¯t let me drown on my own blood. There were still at least three Genosians out there. He couldn¡¯t afford to lay around waiting for them to eat him. Cal tried to push himself to his feet, but his right arm couldn¡¯t move without mind-bending pain. ¡°UUUAGH.¡± He groaned, trying to sit up. I don¡¯t have time for this! Cal reached out with his left hand and tore a pebble out of the forest floor. Sense-Grafting. Bent 1/7 remaining. He bound his sense of pain to the rock and tossed it aside before levering himself to his feet, trying his best not to disturb his wounded lung. He was numb, now, and could only feel where the arrow was inside of him based on the pressure against his organs. Sense-Grafting has reached level 4! Sense Grafting Level 4: Sight, hearing, touch, pain, and smell. Self-only, Touch, 20 minutes. It¡¯s gonna take a lot longer than 20 minutes to get home with an arrow in me. Cal thought, setting himself to the fastest trot he could manage before the pace made him dizzy. Twenty minutes later, the pain came back with stunning intensity, and Cal missed a step, nearly falling to the ground. He gritted his teeth, leaned his left arm against a tree, and stayed upright through force of will. He only had one Bent left, and he couldn¡¯t afford to waste it on keeping himself comfortable. If more Genosians attacked, his Bent would be the only thing that could keep him alive. After another hour, Cal staggered out of the woods to the sight of smoke in the distance. The village was on fire. What, no, no, no NO! Cal broke into a sprint, heedless of the burning pain in his chest, or his useless right arm. As he approached the flaming thatched roofs, his stomach turned as he felt the Warp of the carnage wash over him. Where¡¯s Karen, Jinnei? Baroke? There were bodies in the dirt paths between the houses, mostly Genosians, but Cal spotted Kahm the carpenter¡¯s wide-eyed corpse resting against a burning hut, a bladed club buried halfway through his neck. ¡°Jinnei!¡± Cal shouted before breaking into painful, hacking coughs that brought him to his knees. There was no response. In the distance, he spotted three Genosians walking through the empty village. They perked up at his shout, loping towards him. Cal held out a trembling hand and reached into the fire with his mind, recreating more of it around the Genosians with the intention of flash-cooking them. Mass splitting. Bent 0/7 remaining. The air around them shimmered with intense heat, but the lead Genosian let out a guttural scream and the three men¡¯s skin became silvery and reflective. They left Cal¡¯s zone of boiling air none the worse for wear. Damnit. He tried to put his feet under him. He needed to lead them closer to the fire, maybe he could drag one of them into a flaming building with him. Try as he might, Cal couldn¡¯t force his legs to move, leaving him glaring powerlessly at the approaching Genosians. The one in the lead was tall and skinny, his shaved head decorated with multiple scars and tattoos, lending to his fearsome visage. He was at least as important as the fat one, because his bone hat was just as big. He approached Cal silently, walking around him and inspecting the arrow sticking out of his chest, his gaze lingering on the fletching for a moment. ¡°Where did you come from, boy?¡± he asked in Ilethan. ¡°Your¡­¡± Cal coughed up a bit of blood. ¡°Mother.¡± ¡°Hmmm.¡± ¡°KAAA!¡± a voice resounded form the forest, and Cal glanced over his shoulder, spotting the fat Genosian running toward them flanked by two warriors. His grey skin was covered in sweat as he crossed the distance between them. He pointed at Cal, and shouted, his eyes wide, teeth bared, spittle flying from his mouth. The guy was mad. Makes sense, I killed three of his men, Cal thought, numbly reaching into his pocket and grabbing the flint. It wasn¡¯t ideal, but the rock was barely sharp enough to cut, and could substitute for a knife under the right circumstances. With Knife-Work, I might be able to make it sharp enough to fight with. Cal watched the fat one yelling at the skinny one, gesticulating wildly at Cal. Skinny absorbed the yelling for a moment, then gave Cal a contemplative glance, weighing something. The skinny Genosian stepped forward and placed a possessive hand on Cal¡¯s shoulder before letting out a rumbling growl, like an animal. Cal watched every movement, debating whether or not to lash out at him, but while he had no idea what was going on between the two of them, he did know picking a fight would get him killed. Fatty was flabbergasted, his chin wobbling in disbelief for a moment before he pulled his hand up and summoned another tiny man. Skinny raised a brow and held his hand up, palm down, black Bent traced the veins of his arms before erupting from his palms as a billowing green mist that contracted into a skeleton, then sinew, flesh, and skin. The person Skinny summoned was bald like the other Genosians, but sported a big black beard with streaks of white. He was also six feet tall. Fatty staggered backwards, his expression fearful. He gave one last look at Call before biting out something that was surely hurtful in their language, turning and leaving. His miniature warrior glared up at Skinny¡¯s massive one for a moment, before snarling and following its master. The larger summon glanced at Cal and Skinny before sitting between them and the retreating fatty, his eyes trained on the group. Skinny squatted down beside Cal. ¡°You really kill three of them?¡± he asked in Ilethan with a delighted grin. ¡°You happy for that?¡± Cal asked in Ilethan. ¡°You see that one?¡± Skinny asked, pointing at one of the hundreds of Genosian corpses lying face down in the bloody muck, nearly cleaved in half. ¡°That one bred to be Incha Huala, but killed by Aiaka here. Big, strong, gold hair.¡± ¡°Karen?¡± ¡°You know?¡± ¡°My mother.¡± ¡°Ah, yes I see¡­¡± He slapped his knee and grinned. ¡°Yes, good. You make good Incha Huala for my daughter.¡± Cal lashed out, aiming for the man¡¯s jugular with his bit of sharp rock. Fuck that nonsense. I ain¡¯t nobody¡¯s Incha Huala. Whatever that means. An iron grip intercepted Cal¡¯s left hand just below the man¡¯s chin. His summon had an almost bored expression as he stopped the stone from cutting the man¡¯s neck. ¡°Very good Incha Huala.¡± Skinny¡¯s delighted grin became even wider. ¡°My name is Aoehe, The Kin¡¯Maje of the Iron-skin tribe, we will be seeing much of each other in the coming years.¡± Cal felt sweat begin to bead on his brow as the Warp in the town began to overflow inside him. his vision began to blur. Damn it all to the nine hells! Cal thought before his eyes rolled back in his head and he slumped to the ground. The last thing he heard was some faint confused babble from the men around him. Warp overflow detected¡­ Running Warp Protection System¡­ Break. Calvin Gadsint Body: 6 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 6 Endurance: 6 Mind: 17 Intuition: 6 Stability: 7 Will: 9 Bent: 2/7 Skills: Stealth 6 Talking to Girls 4 Acting 3 Reading Expressions 3 Sense-Grafting 4 Dupdomancy 6 Hunting 3 Meditation 1 Fishing 3 Knife work 4 Macronomicon Okay just a head''s up. Two things that probably aren''t going to make it into the story are: Duplicating things inside someone and making them explode. It''s just way too OP, so there is, or will be, some kind of story reason why this can''t happen, Such as creatures with Bent inside them naturally resist having shit made inside them, or something like that. I know exploding people is cool, but it''s also the end-all solution to every problem that cannot be defended against. it''s the win button, and that doesn''t make for an exciting story. Second is making extra limbs or body parts. You would have to modify the bone, muscular, nervous, and circulatory system inside you to make that work, and Splitting is strictly duplicating prexisting things. If you copied your arm, you''d get a bloody stump that would fall away from your chest and hit the ground. Gross. this doesn''t prevent duplicating whole creatures, however. You can make copies of people with Splitting, but this gives you no inherent control over them. Additionally, since they are perfect copies, a copy of the caster would be aware that they have an extremely limited life-span before they cease to exist and be plunged into sudden mental stress, a problem addressed by Mother of Learning. Stupid animals would not have this problem. hope that clears up some stuff... no exploding people! Chapter 11: Dreams. ¡°Stand back, Elaine,¡± The raven-haired newest member of their party said, his velvet cloak billowing as he stood in front of the Bent specialist. ¡°I¡¯ll not let these flame-beavers harm a single hair on your head.¡± ¡°For the last time Reginald,¡± Elaine said, bonking him on the head with Reservoir, a pitted wooden cane with a thick glass orb sloshing with black Bent at the top, ¡°Do not block my view.¡± ¡°Ah, yes,¡± he said, his shiny, undented armor chiming musically as he stood aside. He was obviously someone¡¯s pampered son. ¡°Are we really gonna keep him?¡± Karen asked Andrew over her shoulder. ¡°He¡¯s been vetted, and he works for free. I¡¯m not gonna turn down free labor.¡± Drew said, plunging his blade down into the mastiff-sized beaver with the glowing red teeth. ¡°Plus he gives good head,¡± Elaine chortled. With a flick of her wrist, a pulse of Bent traveled down her arm and into the ground, launching dozens of stone spears out of the ground, catching the last remaining Fire-beavers off guard. Gregor raised an eyebrow. ¡°My lady!¡± Reginald said, blushing. ¡°That is highly inappropriate.¡± ¡°You came to me, Reggie. If you don¡¯t like it, you can sit on it and spin.¡± Drew pulled his blade out of the monster, panting with exertion. He sent a calculating gaze at Reginald as he wiped the blood off and sheathed his weapon. ¡°Reggie.¡± ¡°My name is Reginald.¡± He said, his former timidness lost. ¡°Reggie¡¯s easier to say.¡± Drew continued, unconcerned. ¡°Reggie, we¡¯re going to have a talk about professionalism and how it relates to inter-party fraternization.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Reginald stood stock still, spine straight as an arrow. His chiseled face was a mask of stone. Drew gave Karen an exasperated glance. ¡°¡­Keep it in your pants when we¡¯re not in town, alright?¡± Drew said, visibly irritated by their newest member¡¯s seriousness. ¡°Sir!¡± ¡°Gregor, let¡¯s get the hides and teeth.¡± Drew said, aiming for the nearest beaver. Spurred on by the success and fame of their last raid, they¡¯d gone even farther afield chasing a myth of a gigantic sinkhole that had buried an entire city. Legend said it was to the west. They headed out from Kinereth in late winter, the season easing as they travelled, until everything was green and lush, and they were hundreds of miles outside the recognized borders of the country of Malkenrovia. There was no guarantee that their trip would bring them wealth, so they hunted for Warped creatures as they passed, harvesting their most valuable parts, so that no matter what, they would break even. Karen was scanning the woods for any sign of predators lured in by the smell of blood when Elaine sidled up to her. ¡°Did you hear that?¡± she asked, elbowing Karen¡¯s thick plate armor. ¡°Hear what?¡± ¡°You can jump Andrew¡¯s bones when we get back to town. He set the precedent himself.¡± ¡°And retire to become a mother of two? Raise sheep? I don¡¯t think so.¡± Elaine leaned over and slipped something small into Karen¡¯s hand. ¡°Guaranteed effective.¡± She whispered. Karen glanced down at the charm against pregnancy in her hand, thanking the gods that her helmet made it impossible to see her face. Elaine gave her a wry look and got started making the campfire. They had fire-beaver for dinner. It was gamey, but it kept them going. In the morning, they got back on their way, blazing a trail through the most hazardous, Warp-Infested deep woods known to man, and quite possibly beyond. Black-Bears and Wyrms occasionally harassed the party, and a Widowmaker tried to carry off Gregor, but the weakest among them had six Breaks, so they dealt with the challenges handily. On an evening of the fifth month since they set out, they came across a sight that chilled them to the bone. A black, glistening wall surrounded a sinkhole so vast that lake Ondaria wouldn¡¯t give it pause. Not a single mote of light could be seen reflecting from its depths. The earth simply¡­vanished into nothingness. ¡°There we have it,¡± Andrew said, motioning to the pit with bravado. ¡°Our next paycheck.¡± Karen could see the goosebumps on his arms. As they traveled closer, Warp grew thick in the air, the sensation they¡¯d long since learned to associate with death hanging heavy over them like an angry cloud. The forest around the wall was thick with overgrown foliage, living wood, and monsters they never knew existed, twisted abominations that had never before been recorded by man. A quarter mile around the wall, the lush forest came to an unnatural halt, some plants sheared off by some invisible means, giving way to a dust-filled flatland. Andrew stopped them at the edge of the forest, testing the perimeter with his sword, then his hand. They went and got a rabbit and threw it into the dust, and the creature scampered back into the woods like it had been chased by the hounds of hell. ¡°Well, whatever caused this isn¡¯t immediately lethal.¡± Drew said. ¡°I think.¡± Their leader took a deep breath and walked out into the dust, on guard for any sudden movements. Other than the Warp being slightly denser, there was no change. ¡°Alright,¡± he said, continuing to scan the horizon. ¡°Reginald and Karen, watch our backs. Elaine and Gregor, the sides. As always, the focus is on securing a safe exit strategy.¡± They fell into their roles, marching through the flattened earth, orienting themselves on a small discoloration in the massive wall. A weak point or possibly an entrance. One place was as good as any other, facing the featureless obsidian in front of them. As they grew closer, the discoloration resolved into an off-color panel with a diagonal line through it, about fifteen feet tall and twenty feet wide. Out of nowhere, a deep rumbling issued forth and seven panels opened in the dusty ground. Five strange metal men emerged from the seven holes. They were only men in the loosest sense, that they stood on two legs, and had two arms. Their joints exposed hollows filled with metal rods and colorful wires, some of which spilled out into the air, crackling with tiny bolts of lightning. They moved strangely, some motions with inhuman fluidity, and others with spastic jerkiness that nearly toppled them over. They grouped up, their weapons pointed outward. ¡°Go to the front,¡± Karen said, tapping Reginald on the shoulder. She considered leaving the rearguard to the younger man while she helped Drew, but she knew the value of sticking to her orders, and cast her gaze back, rather than look at the distracting creatures ahead of them. The creatures lurched toward them and came to a halt. The lead one jerkily raised an arm to point at them. ¡°Tressp-p-passers. T-t-t-this is a Har-r-r-r-binger Blac-c-c-k Si-i-ite. C-C-C-ivilia-a-a-ns ar-ar-are Prohi-i-i-i-Bitttted. Leave at on-n-nce.¡± ¡°Elaine.¡± Drew said. ¡°My pleasure.¡± Elaine said, pouring Bent into the earth. Five spikes of stone shot out of the ground and shattered on the creature¡¯s steel armor, not even staggering them. The metal men studied the spikes in silence for a moment, seemingly uncomprehending. ¡°I don¡¯t think it worked.¡± Reginald said. The metal men looked up at Reggie, then back down to the ground. Then back up at Reggie. ¡°At-t-ta-a-a-ack detec-c-c-ted. C-C-C-ivilia-a-a-ns regi-regi-stered as hostile. Elim-m-m-minating hostiles.¡± ¡°Damn it, Reggie!¡± As one, they lifted their arms and little metal tubes came out. Some of the tubes were warped or rusted, others leaked strange smoke. Whatever the metal men seemed to think they were doing wasn¡¯t happening, and it took them a moment to notice. ¡°Main weapons di-s-s-s-sabled, switch-ch-ch-ch-ing to CQC.¡± They charged forward with their awkward gait, raising their steel arms above their heads. ¡°Karen, we could use you now!¡± Drew shouted, and Karen left her spot at the rear to clash against the creatures up front, putting her heavy steel greatsword between the creature and herself. One blow from the inhuman things rattled her knees and drove a dent so deep into her blade as to almost render the damn thing useless. Reinforcement Bent 7/8 remaining. Karen used her heavy armor skill to raise the toughness of her equipment and shoved the creature back before bringing a feral swing down on its head. Despite her strength that could split a boulder, the sword simply deformed around the monster like she¡¯d tried to hit it with a blade made of cheese. ¡°Shove them back! I¡¯ll try to bury them!¡± Elaine shouted as a metal fist warped Karen¡¯s armor and drove her sliding backward. ¡°How ¡®bout we move back instead?¡± Karen snarled, adjusting her grip on the lump of iron in her hand and charging forward. ¡°That works too!¡± Elaine shouted, putting a palm to the ground. Karen and Drew rebounded off the metal men, but Reginald ran right through them, just as huge chunks of stone tore themselves from the earth and dropped on top of them in an effort to render them incapable of moving. ¡°Reggie, what the hell are you doing!?¡± Karen¡¯s call was lost in the wave of deafening rumbling. When the dust settled, all five metal men were shrugging off the tons of stone that Elaine had dropped on them. ¡°Cocksuckers!¡± Elaine exclaimed, furious at her finisher being resisted. ¡°Elaine, put some barriers between us, let¡¯s make it a fighting retreat.¡± Drew said. Karen glanced over her shoulder and spotted a shimmering barrier cutting off their avenue of escape, cutting off a few tree branches at the perfect edge of the dome. Karen tapped Drew on the shoulder and pointed behind them. ¡°Ah shit,¡± Andrew groaned, seeing the barrier behind them. He settled into a battle stance. ¡° Gregor, shoot their joints. The armor seems weaker there.¡± ¡°What about Reggie?¡± Elaine asked. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t have run in,¡± Gregor said, unleashing a bolt on the nearest creature¡¯s armpit. The steel arrowhead folded on the brightly colored wires. ¡°Gimmie a break.¡± Gregor growled. ¡°Talleyho!¡± Reginald shouted, rushing back into the fight with a shiny metal arm in his hand rather than his expensive blade. Whatever was causing the iron to become as soft as cheese didn¡¯t seem to effect the metal arm, and it put a heavy dent in one of the metal men¡¯s heads, causing it to stagger backward. Karen and Andrew shared a glance and sprinted forward. ¡°You two back up!¡± Drew shouted back at Elaine and Gregor, who backed off. The two heavily armored warriors shot past Reginald. ¡°I figured it out! There were seven holes and only five men, so I thought maybe-¡° They ran past Reginald, ignoring him. Karen went left and Andrew went right, trailing a couple metal men each. The first hole was empty, and the second, and the third¡­ ¡°Karen! Leg!¡± Drew shouted and tossed her a shiny metal leg. Irresistible Force Bent 6/8 remaining. Karen activated her club skill and her first strike nearly tore her opponent in half, along with the next, and the next. In a matter of seconds, they¡¯d cleaned up all the metal men, leaving nothing but strange twitching parts, oil slicks and foul, acrid smells. The shimmering barrier in the distance had yet to go away though. ¡°I guess the only way out is through,¡± Andrew said, creating a handle for his makeshift club. ¡°You¡¯re gonna carry that around?¡± Reginald asked. ¡°What, you don¡¯t think there¡¯ll be any more?¡± Karen asked as she started on number two. They all froze as a chill swept down their spines. Clunk. Hisssss. No. this isn¡¯t supposed to happen. The rectangular discoloration in the black wall opened, revealing infinite emptiness. A skull with whorling patterns etched into it faded into view flying out of the gate. it was so close, Karen could swear it was biting her already, its teeth clacking together in amusement. Uncharacteristically, Karen tried to run. She put her feet under her and turned away, but the ground slipped away underneath her No, No. Behind her, the hideous thing she¡¯d seen at the attack gained on her. Form of a man, Form of a man. The thing chasing her looked human, and at the same time she knew what it really looked like, but her eyes just couldn¡¯t bend the right way to comprehend it. She knew what it really looked like. Its finger touched the back of her neck. NO! Kala sat up, her skin sticky with sweat, sheets soaked. She reached up and rang the bell for her maid, who entered with a glass of water for her princess, who had nightmares since her cousin had killed her guards in front of her. Kala hadn¡¯t told anyone the real reason for her nightmares. Maybe I should. ¡°Where is my father?¡± ¡°He¡¯s with your uncle, princess, in the study.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Kala said as the woman helped her slip on a new gown and slippers, padding down the cavernous halls of the palace until she came to the little reading room where she could make out the golden light of a lamp keeping her father and uncle company. ¡°The whole thing?¡± She heard her father¡¯s voice ¡°Many of the people got away thanks to the golden haired freak of a Malkenrovian, but the damage to the livestock and infrastructure means the village won¡¯t be producing any tax revenue for the forseeable future. The land is still arable though.¡± Her uncle said. The two of them were hidden behind the door, speaking in hushed tones. ¡°Small blessings,¡± her father said. ¡°Iletha is convinced that this is a sign that we are weak, and damnit they¡¯re right. If they throw everything they have at us ¨C¡° Uncle Bekvah noticed her entering the door and his tone flipped completely. ¡°hey there, Kala, care to join me and your old man?¡± he gave her a trembling grin. ¡°Did something happen?¡± Kala asked, fixing them with a steady gaze. Her father glanced at her uncle. The two men shared quite the resemblance, but her father was a little heavier set with broader features. He sighed. ¡°That little village you liked to go on your days off has been pillaged by Genosian raiders.¡± Kala¡¯s heart seized. ¡°Calvin?¡± ¡°He was not among the citizens who fled to Surrak, nor among the dead. We can only assume they took him.¡± They all knew what Genosians did with the people they took. Macronomicon Chapter 12: Chained Spirit Calvin woke up with a burning substance being funneled down his throat. Then they pulled the arrow out. Had he been entirely cognizant, he might have appreciated how he was flopping like a fish, but his brain was too busy trying to hide in the corner while mommy and daddy shouted and flung tableware at each other. The burning sensation took hold of his stomach and spread tendrils through his body, questing like a blind norlock until it latched onto the arrow wound with physical force. Bent 1/7 remaining. The wound bubbled up like black pond scum, it¡¯s bleeding stopping. Bent 0/7 remaining. The black scum sloughed off of Cal¡¯s chest, leaving no wound whatsoever. ¡°How um¡­¡± Aoehe tapped the skin over his chest ¡°This good?¡± ¡°Feel,¡± Cal answered in Ilethan. ¡°How does this feel?¡± The burning licked against the scrapes and bruises across his body halfheartedly before fading away ¡°Does. This. feel.¡± Aoehe repeated slowly. ¡°Does this feel. Does this feel. How does this feel?¡± He snapped his finger and spun around, grinning at Calvin with his sharp teeth. ¡°I have Kuela. Third daughter Break yesterday. You teach Ilethan and Gudveran Skill!¡± ¡°Never a bad idea.¡± Cal said, in Gudveran. ¡°Yes.¡± In Ilethan. I can take this opportunity to get my bearings and¡­Wait, why am I chained up? Aoehe noticed Cal¡¯s gaze directed at the manacles securing his hands to the massive wooden pillar and he set down the foul smelling, bubbling concoction in his bowl to point at the manacles. ¡°From Ilethan slave ship.¡± He said, pointing. ¡°You teach with no hands, yes?¡± ¡°I suppose.¡± ¡°Melau!¡± he shouted, followed by a string of fluid words too fast for Cal to separate them. In a matter of moments, a little girl with purplish-grey skin arrived, small and lanky with big grey eyes, and black hair. She was small. Maybe ten or eleven years old. A dangerous age to be Breaking. Speaking of breaks. I have Warp. All I need now is a skill called Escaping from Genosian Cannibals. And Bent. How did that foul concoction take all of the Bent I¡¯d gotten while I was unconscious away? It seemed like it had triggered some kind of healing in exchange for Bent. Cal had never heard of something like that, but Genosians were pretty universally reviled, so there was probably plenty that they¡¯d never shared with the outside world. The Genosian father spoke to her for a moment, then the little girl turned to Cal and gave a bow, and said something. Aoehe nodded as if pleased, then left the¡­.yurt. Was it a yurt? The room was spacious and round, the walls seemed to be made of leather stretched over wood. The pillar Cal was chained to was a tree trunk that seemed to be burned off above the five foot mark. Its roots were still buried in the earth. The smoke from the lantern drifted up through a little hole in the top of the roof. The little cannibal walked up and sat in front of him, then lifted up a bone. ¡°Bone,¡± Cal said in Gadveran. She lifted up a twig. ¡°Wood.¡± To further clarify, Cal shifted his hand in the manacle and tapped the log above him with his finger. ¡°Wood.¡± He pointed with his foot at the wooden slats holding up the yurt. ¡°Wood.¡± Her eyes lit up with understanding. It only took an hour to get her the Warped Skill for both languages, ensuring she would pick them up at a prodigious pace. Once she had the second one, they began practicing conversational Gadveran. Because Cal didn¡¯t want anyone else to know what they were talking about. ¡°So the swamp beetle smells very bad.¡± Cal awkwardly pointed to his nose and wrinkled it in an exaggerated way. Acting has reached Level 4! Warp 21/22 remaining. ¡°Smells bad.¡± She said, picking up the words at lightning speed because of her Forming Day. ¡°And it sprayed all over Kort, who had to leave his clothes in the swamp and walk all the way back home naked.¡± She giggled. Who doesn¡¯t love a story where the punch-line is someone¡¯s humiliation? In this case, it had been Cal who got sprayed, but why bring that up? ¡°Then his mother made him sit outside in full view of everyone else and washed him with a stiff brush and lots of soap.¡± She continued laughing. Talking to Girls has reached Level 5! Warp 20/22 remaining. Please choose a ¨C I¡¯ll get around to it, this is important. ¡°You Gadverans are so strange.¡± ¡°We¡¯re strange? I¡¯m going to be an Incha Huala, and I don¡¯t even know what that is!¡± Cal said with a wry grin. ¡°You should! It¡¯s a great honor!¡± ¡°Well, what do they do?¡± ¡°An incha Huala fights their Maje.¡± ¡°Fights them?¡± Cal asked. ¡°You mean fights for them?¡± ¡°Yes, for. Maje bring them into world to fight for tribe.¡± She stood and made a very characteristic pose, her hand raised palm down, fingers relaxed. Just like Aoehe and fatty had done when they summoned those people. They plan on making me¡­a summon? That doesn¡¯t sound good. ¡°That¡¯s very exciting!¡± Cal said with false enthusiasm. ¡°How does one go about becoming one?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°How I be one?¡± ¡°Ah, Maje and you drink Guya. Guya do ummm¡­¡± She looked around before she leaned forward and tugged on Cal¡¯s chains. ¡°Together. Strong.¡± ¡°Many years later, when you fight at best, maje eat you, then bring back as Incha Huala for tribe. Never stop fight at best!¡± ¡°That¡¯s brilliant!¡± Cal said, icy terror running down his spine. ¡°We should totally have something like that in Gadvera!¡± By all the gods, get me out of here! ¡°Yes! Then Gadverans not be so weak.¡± She said, her chest puffed with pride. ¡°Well, that¡¯s debatable.¡± He chuckled. ¡°What¡¯s debatable?¡± ¡°Debate means word-fight. Debatable means can word-fight¡± Cal said. ¡°Why fight with words?¡± she asked, genuinely confused. ¡°So no one gets hurt.¡± ¡°See? Gadverans weak.¡± Cal laughed, shaking his head before a thought occurred to him. ¡°So how does the magic work?¡± ¡°Magic?¡± ¡°The magic to bring the Incha Huala into the world.¡± ¡°Oh, Father taught me today! I too small for Incha Huala, but learned Skill!¡± ¡°Ooh, how¡¯s it work?¡± Cal asked. ¡°look in you, carve out space for Incha huala¡­.¡± Cal nodded along, following the girl¡¯s admittedly rough instructions. You have manifested Chained Spirit. Chained Spirit has reached Level 1! Chained Spirit: Summon Chained Spirit. A taboo technique created by the Genosians. Any creature wholly consumed by the summoner may be recreated, and is bound to the user¡¯s will for the duration. Skill effects size of creature, up to its normal size. Chained Spirit Summoning level 1: 5 pound limit, 1 minute. 1 slot available. Warp 19/22 remaining. Does Incha Huala mean Chained Spirit!? Do I have to eat somebody? Damn. It would be inordinately difficult to eat all of anything that could fight, let alone a person. And it looked like he only had space for one creature, and no idea if he would be able to exchange one for another. The skill was largely useless to Cal unless he could find a way to eat all of something extremely powerful before it rotted. The limitation on the number of creatures meant that whatever he ate had to also be something that could actually help him. This must be why they use people. A trained fighter is more well rounded than say, a cougar. Sure you could make the cougar pounce on people, but the Genosian can take out the trash, wash the dishes and do the laundry too. In any case, eating somebody is right out. ¡°Too bad only we can learn. Gadveran must continue being weak, I suppose.¡± Melau said wistfully once she was done enthusiastically explaining the Skill. ¡°I suppose.¡± Cal said, not revealing that he¡¯d picked it up. He needed all the surprise he could get. ¡°You done with Skills?¡± Aoehe asked, opening the flap, his bone hat preceding him. Cal saw it in a slightly different light now. Melau stood and ran to her father, pausing to bow before tackling him with a big hug. They began to speak to each other, their flowing language going in one ear and out the other. Damnit. I didn¡¯t want to do this, but it¡¯ll be invaluable to my escape. ¡°I learn Genosian?¡± Cal asked, pointing at the two of them. Goodbye, my sweet Skill slot. I barely knew ye. ¡°Of course! It would be best if you understood my daughter, after all.¡± He tapped Melau on the shoulder and instructed her to teach Cal their language. From what Calvin could tell. She sat down in front of him and began naming objects, starting with wood. You have manifested Genosian Language. Genosian Language has reached level 1! Genosian Language level 1: Boosts acquisition, comprehension, and cultural nuance of the Genosian Language. 5% correction. Warp 18/22 remaining. Once the little grey-purple girl was gone, Cal heaved a sigh and closed his eyes. He didn¡¯t have a lot of skills he could practice without being able to move and not having any Bent, but there were a couple. He started trying to clear his mind and meditate, when the prompt came up again. Talking to Girls has reached Level 5! 25% correction. +1 to Intuition Three whole years later, it comes in handy. Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities Like a Book: Boosts comprehension of body language, to a near unnatural level. Almost mind-reading, but not really. Loyalty: Micro-changes in your behavior instills more loyalty and selflessness than it might have otherwise. Mutations One Size Fits All: I think you all know what this mutation does, you silly guys. Lady Killer: Drain Bent through physical contact. (Not Actually Lethal) Perfume : Smell better¡­duh. The Voice: Makes voice more appealing. A lot more mutations than abilities this time around, Cal thought, sorting through them. He scanned through them several times, and everything was helpful. (except One Size Fits All, which seemed like someone¡¯s idea of a joke.) His mind kept settling on Lady Killer. He was going to need lots of Bent when he made his escape. What if he dragged along Melau for the first half of it then left her for the Genosians to recover? Or perhaps he could exhaust his Bent the night before so they believed he couldn¡¯t possibly escape? As an aspiring Wizard-King, it was highly appealing to have another source of Bent. ¡°I choose Lady Killer.¡± User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Oh dang, this again. Cal¡¯s skin itched for a moment as he felt something squirming up the veins of his arms. Then everything went dark. When Cal opened his eyes again, only a few minutes had gone by. Still look the same. Are the veins in my arms a little darker? Cal hadn¡¯t deliberately inspected himself beforehand, so he wasn¡¯t sure. Cal once again closed his eyes and focused his mind on the situation he found himself in, following his options into an ever-branching tree, trying to find a solution to the puzzle he found himself in by mixing and matching his abilities, skills, and knowledge before scrambling it all up inside himself to see what would happen. ¡­.. Meditation has reached Level 4! Your Mind has reached Level 20! Will has reached Level 12! Stability has Reached Level 10! 0/22 Warp Remaining. As expected, Cal wasn¡¯t able to funnel it all into Mind, but three points was honestly better than he¡¯d been hoping, putting the limit of his mental sub-stats at twenty. After an entire evening plotting his escape, he didn¡¯t get a Skill specifically for it like he¡¯d hoped, but¡­he had interesting ideas. Calvin Gadsint Body: 6 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 6 Endurance: 6 Mind: 20 Intuition: 7 Stability: 10 Will: 12 Bent: 0/10 Skills: Stealth 6 Talking to Girls 5 Acting 4 Reading Expressions 3 Sense-Grafting 4 Dupdomancy 6 Hunting 3 Meditation 4 Chained Spirit 1 Fishing 3 Knife work 4 Genosian Language 1 Macronomicon Crap, halfway through already? Where does the time go? 5/10 of the WotR dump. Enjoy! Chapter 13: Friendly Neighborhood Cannibals ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± Karen asked, stepping out of the darkened alley just outside the temporary refugee housing. The woman was still limping from the wounds she¡¯d sustained covering the villager¡¯s retreat, but that wasn¡¯t enough to keep her from getting in Jinnei¡¯s way. Jinnei pulled back her hood and scowled at Karen. She¡¯d been hoping to slip out without her mother noticing, but that was long since passed. ¡°I¡¯m joining the recovery mission.¡± ¡°The recovery mission is a publicity stunt to prove the Gadveran military won¡¯t take this kind of thing lying down, and it¡¯s a damn stupid idea. Everyone they took was dead within a day and stored up in their icy mountain larders. It¡¯s been weeks.¡± ¡°Calvin is not dead.¡± Jinnei said, clenching her fist and glaring. She wasn¡¯t going to be the one to give up on him. She was incapable of it. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± Karen said with a shrug. ¡°What?¡± Jinnei breathed. ¡°Then why are you stopping me?¡± ¡°The two of you¡­my kids, Elaine¡¯s kids, you¡¯re special. And Fate shouts in my ear that she¡¯s got more planned for both of you than a Genosian¡¯s shit on the side of a mountain.¡± Karen held up a finger. ¡°As long as you don¡¯t jump into their mouths yourself. You¡¯re too precious to me to allow you to go off on an ill-advised political knee jerk reaction that will no doubt do more harm than good.¡± ¡°How do you even know this?¡± Jinnei asked. ¡°I¡¯ve been around the block a few times. I can tell which way the wind is blowing. Call it whatever you like, you and me are leaving Gadvera tonight.¡± Jinnei frowned, uncomprehending. ¡°Leave? All of Gadvera? We can¡¯t leave. This is our home!¡± Her anger unwound until she was shouting at her mother. ¡°Please, Jinnei. I can¡¯t let anything bad happen to you, and that¡¯s going to be very difficult a few months from now.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Karen winced. ¡°Why?¡± she demanded again. Whatever Karen was withholding from her would no doubt convince her to stay. If it would be difficult to protect me, and she wants to leave all of Gadvera¡­ ¡°You think Gadvera is going to fall.¡± Jinnei accused. ¡°From an old soldier¡¯s perspective, it doesn¡¯t look good.¡± Karen said. ¡°Then fight!¡± ¡°I¡¯m done fighting for a kingdom,¡± Karen said. ¡°I¡¯m fighting for my children.¡± ¡°To the hells with you then, I¡¯ll fight myself!¡± Jinnei shouted, moving to step past her. In a move too fast for the eyes, Karen bonked Jinnei on the head, causing her to slump forward into the large woman¡¯s waiting arms. ¡°Sorry, girl.¡± She whispered, throwing her over her shoulder and heading towards the port. The boat was waiting. ***Calvin*** Much to Calvin¡¯s consternation, they kept feeding him the vile mixture every morning. When asked if it was the Guya, they laughed and shook their heads, explaining that it was Noeula, to make him grow up big and strong. Calvin was pretty sure they knew he was a wizard, and had decided to keep his Bent to controllable levels. He usually had one back by the evening, as he was approaching two a day, but one or two spells wasn¡¯t good enough to run away with. On the fourth day, they brought him outside, into the freezing cold of the high mountains. ¡°Oh, gods!¡± Cal said, shivering as he wrapped his arms around himself. Gadveran clothes were not designed to be climbing mountains in. ¡°Hah, we share the same discomfort in your warm forests.¡± Aoehe said as he guided the manacled young man around the Iron Skin camp. It was a series of several dozen yurts placed in barren, rocky soil several hundred feet above the frost line. Stretching down below them were the slopes of the Genosian mountains, disappearing into the thick subtropical forest below them. ¡°Why d-do you live up here?¡± Cal asked, trying to keep the shiver out of his voice. ¡°Look there,¡± Aoehe said, pointing. He followed the man¡¯s gaze to a strange chitinous thing undulating between the trees. One orange-rimmed plate could roof an entire hut from Cal¡¯s village, and there were at least twenty of them¡­that he could see. The creature was enormous. ¡°That is why we live up here. Things that would make a meal of us simply do not like the cold. From here we can hunt the Warped that are not poisonous, but those are few and far between. Any crops we would plant must by necessity be in the forest, and we would lose more people than they would feed. Even then, the fruit of plants does not sit well in our stomachs. To hunt, we must make large groups, trusting in the safety in numbers to bring in enough to keep us fed. This is why we are not so picky about where our meat comes from.¡± It also helped explain the role of Maje, and their Chained Spirits. Take a hunter in the prime of his life, turn him into a Bent transaction, and he can go hunt for food for the tribe, risk-free to the summoner and the rest of the tribe. If he gets chomped on, just make another. Matter of fact, Cal thought, the fat one summoned three identical ones in succession. They were smaller, most likely because his skill wasn¡¯t as high as Aoehe¡¯s. That means a single Maje can field a fighting force equal to their Stability. But why pick me? Sure I took out three of a rival tribe, but I¡¯m fairly sure the man said the word ¡®Maje¡¯ while pointing at me. Aoehe must know I used Bent-based tricks to kill the tribesmen. Can a summoned creature use Bent? ¡°It is also why I suggest you do not run,¡± Aoehe continued, heedless of Cal¡¯s thoughts. ¡°There are miles and miles of harsh jungle filled with Warped creatures, and going into the jungle alone and unarmed would simply serve to feed the animals.¡± ¡°I see that.¡± Cal said, spotting another creature the size of a house moving through the forest. ¡°Good.¡± he patted Cal on the shoulder. ¡°Come this way, I will show you my daughter.¡± Cal glanced around at the grey men and grey-pink/purple women staring at him, and decided to ask his question anyway. Hopefully Melau had neglected to mention exactly how much she¡¯d told him about Incha Huala. ¡°So what is an Incha Huala, anyway?¡± ¡°Oh?¡± he asked, glancing over his shoulder with a grin. ¡°You express interest?¡± ¡°Thought I should know.¡± Cal said. ¡°It is something like a mate, or in ilethan¡­protector?¡± ¡°Bodyguard with benefits?¡± Cal asked. the old guy sure does know how to make it sound appealing to a foreigner. Cal would bet money he wouldn¡¯t mention the eating-you-at-your-prime part. On the bright side, that meant Calvin had a good five to ten years, assuming everything went to schedule. ¡°Hah! That is a funny way of putting it! The Guya is strong, and that often leads to mating. You will belong to each other.¡± ¡°Sounds a bit like marriage.¡± ¡°A bit. Although this function is not limited by gender, Women are rarely Incha Huala or Maje. I am unusual in that I believe the strength of the Maje¡¯s arm has no bearing on the Incha Huala, only the strength of their will. Show me a hardened warrior, victor of many battles, and I will show you one more man that cannot oppose his mother. By my logic, women make excellent Maje.¡± Moms are tough, Cal thought with a frown. His frame of reference might be a bit skewed, though. Mrs. Marshine never killed a man bare-handed. Aoehe glanced over his shoulder at Cal¡¯s expression. ¡°Does this bond offend you?¡± ¡°The alternative¡¯s getting eaten right?¡± Cal asked. Aoehe gave him a wide, shark-toothed grin by way of explanation. ¡°You¡¯re telling me my choices are being some girl¡¯s bodyguard and maybe getting some on the side, or death? I¡¯ll have to think about it.¡± ¡°Your humor is rather dry.¡± Aoehe guided Cal¡¯s manacled form past several yurts with older women and children chipping flakes of obsidian to be used in their weapons. Beyond those yurts was the obsidian-laced stone face of the mountain, that seemed to have a large opening carved out of it, leading deep into the earth. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°The freezer,¡± Aoehe said. ¡°Regardless of sunlight or season, it is always below freezing in there, so we use it to store game from our hunts.¡± He tugged on a bit of his pelts to indicate it was for storing animals, but Cal wasn¡¯t buying it. Read Expression has reached Level 4! 20% Correction. Despite his wariness, Cal let the question lie. He wasn¡¯t interested in making a scene when he was in a position where he couldn¡¯t defend himself. Cal followed Aoehe to one of the Yurts in the corner of the village, and announced their presence before opening the door and going in. Not really seeing anything else to do, Cal followed him. ¡°Ella, meet the new candidate for your Incha Huala.¡± Aoehe said, motioning to Cal. When Cal¡¯s eyes finally adjusted, he blinked a couple times to make sure what he was seeing was real. Ella was rather large, perhaps six feet tall, and wide, unlike her father. Whatever trait he¡¯d inherited from his father that made him tall and skinny had decided to preform double duty. She wasn¡¯t fat. Her waist drew in to a smooth, toned stomach, but her hips flared back out, leading into strong grey-purple thighs. Her chest was¡­also large. Her breasts strained the leather top she wore. She had a round face with delicate black brows and plump dark lips. Even tightened in concentration, they looked soft and inviting. She was sitting in front of them, wrapping leather around an extra-large, custom made club lined with razor sharp obsidian. Beside her, a pot of leather and bones was boiling down to make glue. Good thing she¡¯s a Genosian cannibal or I¡¯d be panting like a dog. ¡°You said you didn¡¯t believe strength of arm was a factor.¡± Cal whispered to Aoehe. ¡°I don¡¯t, but her size made it easier to convince others.¡± He whispered back. ¡°Aaah.¡± ¡°He looks weak.¡± Ella said, looking Calvin up and down before returning her attention to her club. ¡°Please tell me I¡¯m not babysitting him too.¡± ¡°I resemble that remark.¡± Cal said in Gadveran ¡°He killed three Seeker tribe by himself, with no weapons.¡± ¡°Technically I used their weapons.¡± Cal said. ¡°And fire.¡± ¡°See?¡± Aoehe said with a grin. ¡°Father, you aren¡¯t acting on hearsay again, are you?¡± Aoehe pouted. ¡°No, Umea just told me¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s hearsay.¡± Cal and Ella said at the same time before catching each other¡¯s gaze. Ella seemed a bit startled, and seeing the expression change on her face made Calvin¡¯s heart pound in his chest. Cal shut it down. Nope, not getting the hots for Genosian cannibals, no matter how soft they look, or cute they are when caught off guard. That is right out. ¡°See, already in sync without Goya.¡± Aoehe said, tugging Calvin back out into the chill of the mountain air. ¡°That was brief.¡± Cal said. ¡°Plenty of time later. For now, let¡¯s talk about what you¡¯ll do to earn your keep while you¡¯re here. Come.¡± He guided Cal along the row of Yurts. Crap. Even back at my own village, I had a hard time justifying my existence. ¡°Here we have tanning, knife and club-making, cooking¡­¡± ¡°Could I hunt?¡± ¡°eh?¡± Aoehe said. ¡°I mean no disrespect, but I¡¯d much rather eat something that I know where it came from.¡± Cal said. ¡°Gadverans are strange¡­¡± he pondered for a while. ¡°Yes, Incha Huala are meant to hunt as well, so we will have to test your mettle in that regard, but not until you have taken Guya with Ella. In the meantime, we will give you a sack of flour one of our¡­less intelligent warriors took as plunder.¡± ¡°Thank you for you-¡° Cal was suddenly knocked off balance as one of the wide, muscular young men, maybe a year or two older, suddenly turned and slammed into him. Cal fell to the ground with a strangled squawk. ¡°You are not worthy of Ella. The only thing a scrawny brat like you is good for is stew and glue,¡± he said, spitting a large glob of snot onto Cal¡¯s chest while the rest of the village laughed. When Cal didn¡¯t do anything, he snorted and sauntered away, his shoulders rocking back and forth like he¡¯d just¡­won something? ¡°I don¡¯t get it,¡± Cal said, wiping the phlegm off his shirt and flicking it onto the ground. ¡°The Position of Incha Huala is highly sought after, and with Ella in particular¡­the competition among men has been fierce.¡± ¡°Hah,¡± Calvin chuckled. So I guess I got seeded by the old man. ¡°So I guess I shouldn¡¯t let anyone do that to me while I¡¯m supposed to be the Incha Huala candidate?¡± ¡°With enough pressure from the village, I can be forced to choose another. If you¡¯re no longer the Incha Huala candidate, then you are food.¡± Macronomicon 6/10 of the WotR dump. Enjoy! Chapter 14: How to Win a Pissing contest. ¡°So¡­I¡¯m not a natural at social interactions. Should I humiliate him or just kill him? Where do you draw the line? I assume killing him is off the table, but if there¡¯s some kind of no-holds-barred clause on the Incha Huala agreement, I think I should know about it.¡± ¡°it¡¯d be best if you don¡¯t kill him.¡± ¡°Well that makes things harder. What¡¯s his name and which Yurt is his?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Goeha, and that one.¡± Calvin rolled his shoulders. Getting in pissing contests wasn¡¯t exactly his style, or something he was comfortable with at all, but when the alternative was death, it really put things in perspective. ¡°Hey Goeha!¡± Calvin shouted, walking over to Goeha¡¯s tent, chains tinkling against the obsidian studded ground as he walked. The young man glanced over his shoulder, then frowned as Cal undid the buttons of his fly. Calvin freed his cock and started pissing all over Goeha¡¯s yurt. Pissing contests were called pissing contests for a reason, and when unfamiliar with the culture or the context, the easiest way to bait someone was to piss on their stuff. Nobody liked that. ¡°When you fall asleep tonight, you can breathe deep and think of me, eh?¡± Calvin asked the already sprinting Goeha. Calvin was shaking the last drops off the tip when Goeha collided into him at full speed. Calvin jumped straight up, letting the chains between his manacles wrap around the young Genosian¡¯s throat. Goeha¡¯s momentum flipped Calvin over and suddenly the two of them were back to back, with Goeha¡¯s face pressed into the piss-soaked leather wall of his home. Need a better grip. While Goeha gasped with surprise and reached up to his throat, Cal slipped down and pirouetted as quickly as he could stomach, winding the chains into a tight double helix, until his wrists and Goeha¡¯s neck were both experiencing an awful amount of torque. Goeha tried to say something, but it only came out as a rasp. His grey skin turned silver as he triggered what Cal assumed was the Iron-skin tribe¡¯s proprietary Ability. It didn¡¯t help him breathe, though. ¡°So, do I have to rape him or steal his food bowl or anything culture specific? Cal asked, putting his knee on the back of the muscular young man¡¯s head as he tried to push himself up, forcing the suffocating warrior back down into the growing yellow puddle on the ground. Aoehe seemed like he was at a loss for words. ¡°Please, I want to do this right the first time.¡± ¡°Rubbing his face in your piss is pretty universal.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I thought,¡± Cal said, glancing over where Ella had exited her hut to investigate the sound of the crowd. Cal smiled and waved a tight little wave, as his wrists were bound in place. She seemed impressed. Oh man, I should humiliate people all the time. It¡¯s not that hard. ¡°I think he¡¯s dying.¡± Aoehe said, pointing to where Goeha had slumped to the ground limp, his face purple. ¡°So he is,¡± Cal said, unwinding the chains. Goeha¡¯s unconscious body gave a swift gasp and then resumed breathing normally, face down in the puddle. Finish the Job. Some part of Cal¡¯s subconscious seemed to speak to him. Since he¡¯s not going anywhere, might as well finish the job. Can¡¯t let them think I¡¯m a pushover. Whistling, Calvin retrieved a chip of sharp obsidian from a tool bench nearby and was about to start carving his name into Goeha¡¯s back when Aoehe caught his hand. ¡°I think that¡¯s enough.¡± The Maje said. ¡°Are you sure? Because I really don¡¯t want to get challenged by everyone with a hard-on for your daughter.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure. Putting scars on his back would not win you any friends here.¡± Cal glanced around at the watching tribesmen with intricate scarification and tattoos. Yeah, I guess they wouldn¡¯t like that. ¡°Alright then,¡± Cal said, tossing the obsidian flake aside and dusting off his hands before standing up. ¡°Show me where you want me to work.¡± Cal was directed to an elderly man who painstakingly tanned leathers, and left the two of them together. ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Cal said, ¡°My name¡¯s Calvin.¡± ¡°Sit there,¡± the old man grunted, pinting at a little wooden stool before handing him a bloody piece of pelt and a stone scraping tool. ¡°Start scraping.¡± Cal shrugged, sat down and started scraping. In the next six hours, Cal learned more about tanning than he¡¯d ever wanted to know. Once the work day was over, Aoehe came and brought him back to his home and secured his manacles to the tree in the center again. ¡°How long do I have to keep wearing these?¡± Cal asked, gesturing to the iron cuffs around his wrists. ¡°Until Guya ceremony. Sleep well.¡± Aoehe turned and left. To the hells with that. Cal thought. He¡¯d built up a single Bent since the sludge this morning, and he wanted to try a little trick that had been tickling the back of his mind since the first night. If he could deliberately avoid Splitting some parts of an object to make changes to it, like with the sawblade, was it not also possible to make entirely new objects as long as their entire form could fit inside the original object? Take Cal¡¯s manacles for example. They had a large flat area where they came together to form the lock. If Cal could Split only a portion of the flat area that conformed to the shape of a key, he could in essence, make a key. Cal closed his eyes and pictured a key. He didn¡¯t know exactly what it looked like, since he was unconscious when he¡¯d been captured originally, but Ithelans weren¡¯t exactly known for their complex lockwork. A simple one or two toothed key should do just fine. Cal stared at the manacle, and pictured a key with two teeth on one side and one on the other, and overlaid it on the flat spot. Right there. Splitting 0/10 Bent remaining. A two-sided key landed in Cal¡¯s palm, made from the dull iron of his restraints. I am the lord of all creation! Mauahahahah! Cal didn¡¯t celebrate aloud for obvious reasons, but it was very exciting to expand his knowledge of his own abilities. It took a lot of finagling, a sprained wrist, and nearly dropping the key several times, but after a good ten minutes, Cal opened the lock on his left hand, followed shortly by his right hand. It was a one-tooth lock, the absolute easiest to pick. Once the manacles were off his arms, Cal did the ones on his legs, and then began creeping toward the door. He heard the noise and laughter of the Genosians having their end-of day gathering, where they sat around a fire and chatted. Their night vision probably wasn¡¯t too good. Cal peeked his out the door of the yurt and didn¡¯t see or feel anyone looking his way, so he darted out and into the cold mountain air. No gazes landed on him as he slunk through the shadows. Suppressing a shiver, Cal made his way to the back of the yurts, that narrow space between the leather and the rock, working his way around to the Freezer. He wasn¡¯t trying to escape. He was looking for a way to resist the Guya. Maybe if he could find a barrel of the stuff, whatever it was, he could build up a tolerance, or something. If worse came to worst, maybe he could make some kind of tube and have the stuff pass through his jaw rather than his stomach. Cal crept into the narrow cave and was amazed by the fact that he could still see. Interspersed with the obsidian were little blinking blue lights lining one side of the ceiling, casting the freezing cold cavern in an icy color. The cold in the freezer was intense, and Cal hugged his arms around his chest as he continued through the tunnel. He would have to make this a quick trip. Without warning, the cavern opened up, revealing a wide, chamber coated in thick frost. On the left, Cal spotted the blinking blue lights, and a strange silver steel outcropping jutting from the ceiling. There was a gash in the steel and a long black tube hung out of it, dribbling a black-green fluid into a barrel placed beneath it. Curiously, Cal crept forward and sniffed it, his nose wrinkling in distaste. Noeula, or a main ingredient of it. Cal wasn¡¯t exactly enthusiastic about drinking an unidentified liquid that poured down from a mysterious object embedded in the obsidian ceiling, but he didn¡¯t exactly have a choice, and he hadn¡¯t gotten sick yet. Beside the barrel were dozens of strange centipede-like creatures on a rack, with their pincers torn off and shells stripped away. The other side of the room was dim, as all the blinking lights seemed to be on this side. But Cal could make out supplies, untanned pelts on pilfered barrels and shelves obviously made by non-Genosian carpenters. Cal snuck through the cold blue air, trying not to shiver as he investigated the darker part of the freezer. It was there that Cal found the answer to resisting the Guya. Kahm the carpenter was Bent forward, frozen into an awkward position where he¡¯d been unceremoniously dumped in the corner of the room. He sported the same neck wound he¡¯d had last Cal had seen him. The man had helped him build his hut in Deinos. Kort and Persei were laid out against the far wall, their expressions at the moment of their death frozen in place by the chilled air of the freezer. Kort was covered head to toe in wounds, as if he¡¯d taken many blows before finally bleeding out. His face was fixed in anger. Persei was naked, her left arm and a large portion of her ribcage was missing, chiseled away for Genosian cook-pots. Her expression as she was slowly carved away was one of absolute terror. Seeing his friends like that created an iron core of hatred inside him. It didn¡¯t burn, or chill. It was simply the solid, weighty determination to live long enough to escape and come back to rain down hell upon them. A more enlightened man might have thought of some way to end the cycle of violence, or teach them to grow their own sheep. Something. They would eat him. ¡°..I¡¯m saying I agree with the Maje, the outcome is all that matters. He took down Goeha handily enough.¡± A voice echoed form down the hall, causing Cal to dart behind a shelf in a panic, wincing as he pressed up against the frozen stone. ¡°All he did was jump around like a monkey. How is a skinny thing like that supposed to wrestle a Couna into submission or fire a warbow?¡± Another voice said as they emerged from the tunnel. ¡°You¡¯re just saying that because Goeha is your son,¡± The first woman accused. Two older women chatted with each other about the state of Ella¡¯s Incha Huala as they carved off more of Persei¡¯s corpse to take to the night¡¯s gathering. They didn¡¯t spot him hunkering behind a shelf. Cal closed his eyes so he didn¡¯t have to watch, but the tap, tap, tap, of the sharp obsidian chisel felt like it was forcing its way through his heart. Cal waited until they were done and emerged from behind the shelve, shivering uncontrollably now. He forced himself not to look back at Persei as he followed the two women out of the cave. It wouldn¡¯t make a difference. Cal was able to slip back into his temporary housing and relatch his manacles, cold iron settling in the core of his being. It took a long time to fall asleep that night, so when Aoehe came to wake him up in the morning, he was bleary and out of sorts. Genosian language has reached Level 2! 10% correction. ¡°What?¡± he asked, the Maje¡¯s sentence not quite registering in his mind with the voice of the System talking at him at the same time in Gadveran. ¡°You have been challenged to a duel!¡± Aoehe said, looming over him and grinning with his usual shark-toothed enthusiasm. "Five more minutes," Cal said, rolling over. Macronomicon 7/10 of the WotR dump. Enjoy! Chapter 15: how to win a race. The whole cannibal village assembled halfway around the mountain, standing in the cold wind to witness the duel, some three hundred elders, women, and children and thirty warriors. The numbers he was seeing in no way reflected the number of dead Genosians he had seen earlier in the village. There had literally been hundreds of dead men. They couldn¡¯t possibly have all come from this one village. Which meant that the attack on Deinos had been a joint effort by¡­maybe five tribes at least. Possibly ten or more. What had caused them to join hands so readily? The sentiment toward the Seeker tribe was one of disdain. Was it simply a desperate food shortage, or was it something more sinister? Cal stood wearing nothing but a leather loincloth, his entire body shivering as he faced his opponent. His opponent stood across from him, staring at him with a smug grin. His grey skin seemed to shrug off the cold as easily as a wolf¡¯s pelt. Not a single shiver crossed the rippling muscles. He sported a thick black beard and dizzying tattoos across his scalp. He must have outweighed Cal by a good fifty pounds, but he didn¡¯t look musclebound either. Long, lean muscles covered the man¡¯s wide frame, making him look perfectly suited to climbing obsidian studded mountains and balancing on thin peaks above perilous falls. Which is exactly what this challenge was. ¡°Now, the two of you will race to the peak, where the odeya awaits.¡± Aoehe explained. The odeya was a pretty necklace made from ¨C you guessed it ¨C obsidian. The entire mountain seemed to be made of the stuff. It made walking around barefoot hazardous at best. ¡°Once the competition begins, there are no rules, there is no time limit. The one who places the Odeya in my hand is the winner, and claims the right to become my daughter¡¯s Incha Huala.¡± Cal looked up the mountain slope, full of steep cliffs lined with obsidian, jagged, sharp walls, and stone spires connected to each other by wood planks, where they were supposed to run along them while balancing. A single slip would tear either of them to tiny little pieces. The best bet might be to simply let the other guy go first and hope took a tumble. Some of those planks looked like they were about to give out. Fighting each other while traversing an obstacle course greatly favored the one with more mass, muscle and better balance. Cal gave himself a two out of ten chance of not being immediately thrown off the cliff by the other man¡¯s superior strength and tumbling down the razor sharp peaks until he hit the slopes ready for the stewpot. Of course, letting the other guy go ahead of him was stupid too, as there was more than one way back down to the ground, he couldn¡¯t exactly catch him at a choke point. Wait. There¡¯s a choke point right here. Cal¡¯s heart started hammering as he realized what he had to do. He¡¯d convinced Aoehe not to feed him the Noeula this morning, and so he was sporting a single Bent The other guy¡¯s gonna use his Iron Skin as soon as he starts scaling the walls. The magic seemed to be universal for the tribe, and it also made this obstacle course significantly less deadly. For them. There was no way to win once they were up there. There was only a tiny window of opportunity for him, and if he wanted to live, he had to seize it. ¡°Kuetha, are you ready?¡± ¡°Ready.¡± His opponent said, facing toward the wall filled with sharp glass. ¡°Calvin, are you ready?¡± ¡°Ready,¡± Calvin said, facing toward the mountain. ¡°Go!¡± Splitting. 0/10 Bent remaining. Targeting a massive vein of pure volcanic glass, Calvin reproduced a simple glass knife in both hands, twisted violently and shoved one into his opponent¡¯s neck. Kuetha glanced over at Cal with a confused expression, his skin turning silvery an instant too late. His steps faltered and he reached up, his fingers brushing the glass embedded in his windpipe. Knife-Work has reached Level 5! Level 5: Boosts handling and sharpness of knives, 25% correction. Kuetha opened his mouth to speak, and blood bubbled out. He got angry, glaring and stumbling toward Cal. Cal took a powerful step forward and put everything he had into one of Karen¡¯s front kicks, pushing the two of them away from each other. Get distance and let the wound take its toll. Karen seemed to whisper in his mind. Kuetha staggered backwards, and might have caught himself, but for the weakness in his knees. He toppled backward, and struggled to put his feet under him, his breath creating a strange whistling as it passed between the knife and the rest of his throat. The cannibal almost stood up, but Cal kicked him in the face, forcing him onto his back. Once they¡¯re down, don¡¯t let up. Gasping for air despite not having done much at all, Cal picked up a big half obsidian rock, and carried it over to the wheezing man on the ground who was tugging on the blade blocking his air. While he was trying to get up, Calvin smashed his head with the rock until he stopped moving. Once that was taken care of, Cal turned to face the rest of the village. The only sound was the mountain wind blowing over them. Some seemed alarmed, others angry. Aoehe and Ella were watching without expression. ¡°Let me make something clear!¡± he shouted, riding the wave of anger and adrenaline. ¡°If you think you can challenge me to some half-assed competition without betting your life, you better fucking think again! Losing my position here means death! You are trying to kill me! And I swear to each and every one of you, there¡¯ll be no rope climbing, necklace retrieving, treasure hunting pieces of shit! Every. Single. Challenge¡­will be to the death! Because guess what? It is for me!¡± Anything to stop them from seeing how scared and disgusted he actually was. Only a small fraction of his shaking knees were from the cold. Acting has reached Level 5! Acting Level 5: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 25% correction. Cal started down the mountain, back to his nice warm yurt. ¡°The competition isn¡¯t over yet.¡± Aoehe said. Cal glanced over his shoulder at the muscular body with the smashed in head, and then at Aoehe. ¡°There¡¯s no time limit. I¡¯ll get around to it.¡± It would have been more cool and convincing had Cal not caught the tiniest waft of blood and excrement carried down from uphill. His stomach instantly rebelled, and he doubled over, spewing his breakfast all over the mountainside. Why are there even chunks? I only ate bread and water the last week? The adrenaline high left his body at the same time as his food, and he sank to his knees, shivering violently. ¡°Ella, take him back.¡± ¡°I knew I was gonna be a babysitter again,¡± she grumbled. The Genosian girl put her shoulder under his and levered him up, half-carrying him to his Yurt. ¡°I declare this challenge complete and Calvin the winner,¡± Aoehe intoned. ¡°Take Kuetha back to the freezer. Damnit.¡± On the way down, Cal had enough presence of mind to try his new ability. Lady Killer The veins in the arm that was draped over her shoulder turned black where they pressed up against her skin, and Cal felt a warm sensation begin to build between the two of them, a tantalizing sensitivity that reminded him of- Bzzt! Cal¡¯s arm suddenly tingled viciously, like it had gone dead for hours and only now was getting the blood back. Pins and needles assaulted him, and he barely managed to keep a straight face. Lady Killer is better for both parties when the target is willing. Lubricates the process, if you know what I mean. ¡­.Have some class, boy. Ella shivered a moment, frowned, glancing over at him and ran her fingers over her shoulder and back of her neck, raising them to her gaze as if expecting something to be there. ¡°Did you do something?¡± she asked. Are you telling me, that the one reason I got this mutation is meaningless, because I have to tell them about it!? I don¡¯t make the rules. Oh wait, I do. Cal put the strangely talkative System in the back of his mind for a moment and brought himself back to the present. He couldn¡¯t use the damn thing secretly, so there wasn¡¯t much point in trying to lie about it. ¡°I was trying and ability I learned a while ago.¡± ¡°What kind of ability?¡± she asked with a raised brow, her posture becoming cautious. She¡¯d seen how he¡¯d conjured obsidian knives out of nothing, like everyone else. ¡°I can borrow Bent from people, but apparently not without permission, which the damned thing didn¡¯t tell me when I got it.¡± She stared at him a moment, her lovely face backlit by Soscath, the Scowling Moon. They were so high in the air that the light of the sky was pure blue, glowing down on her hair and skin. It was a heart pounding moment. Then she smiled, and Cal remembered the Genosians were distinctly not human, looking at her triangle shaped teeth. ¡°What kind of pathetic Ability requires the enemy¡¯s permission?¡± she asked, shouldering him again. ¡°Sounds funny. Let¡¯s try it.¡± ¡°Just like that?¡± ¡°Why not? You are my Incha Huala.¡± The phrase meant more to Genosians than Cal. It seemed as if the possibility of betrayal from an Incha huala didn¡¯t even register. A cultural blind spot. ¡°I think I can walk on my own.¡± Cal said, disentangling himself from her grip, trying not to enjoy the way she felt against him. ¡°Good,¡± she said, slapping him on the back hard enough to make him stumble forward a few paces. ¡°let¡¯s walk and talk then. You can tell me where you got so good at fighting, and I¡¯ll tell you what¡¯s expected of you as my Incha Huala.¡± ¡°My mother taught me how to fight since I could walk.¡± Cal said. ¡°I never beat her.¡± ¡°Your mother taught you?¡± she asked. ¡°That is very strange.¡± ¡°She¡¯s six and a half feet tall, blonde hair, about this wide, eight Breaks, at least.¡± Cal said, gesturing. ¡°Blonde¡­Your mother was the golden haired Aiaka that killed so many?¡± ¡°What¡¯s an Aiaka?¡± ¡°A great warrior who has experienced more than six Breaks. A legend. Something nearly unheard of for us. We simply don¡¯t have enough people to engage in battles large enough to Generate that kind of Warp. Not like humans.¡± She glanced at him from the side. ¡°I see why my father chose to bring you back. A child born from an Aiaka is said to be the reincarnation of a great historical figure.¡± ¡°Actually I¡­¡± Cal was about to say something to deny being an Aiaka¡¯s kid, then realized Elaine must have had a similar number of Breaks, too. ¡°Don¡¯t think I did anything special in a previous life.¡± ¡°How would you know?¡± she asked with a chuckle as they arrived at the yurt. Cal climbed into the warm building and buried himself in the furs of his bed, shivering uncontrollably now that he was no longer walking. The side of the mountain was harsh on skinny teens in loincloths. ¡°Your turn.¡± Cal said, peeking at Ella from beneath the furs. ¡°What is expected of me?¡± The voluptuous Genosian sauntered into his yurt, sniffing the air with a curious expression before she turned her grey eyes back to Cal. ¡°Tomorrow we drink the Guya. Then we begin training your potential,¡± She said, sitting down crosslegged beside his bed. Her sheer proximity made it difficult to think, his gaze was dragged down her body against his will for a moment before he forced himself to look at her face again. Is Talking to Girls even working? How bad would this be if it wasn¡¯t? Cal thought. Yes. Bad. ¡°Still cold?¡± She asked, holding out her hand. Cal took it, and his icy fingers met smooth, warm skin that tickled the tiny hairs on the back of his hand, sending jolts of formless energy to his heart. ¡°I considered climbing into your bed to warm you up,¡± she said thoughtfully, ¡°but I don¡¯t know you that well yet, Calvin.¡± ¡°M-makes sense.¡± Cal said, shivering violently now that his body was starting to regain its heat. ¡°Try the thing.¡± She said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Try to take my Bent. You have my permission.¡± Lady Killer As the two of them watched, the veins beneath Cal¡¯s skin darkened, and then that darkness spread into his hand. He felt something resist him for a moment, before he plunged into it, shoving the soft barrier aside. An insanely pleasurable tingling spread up his arm as the black veins began to climb up the back of her hand and wrist, wrenching a stifled groan out of him as he tried not to writhe. ¡°Ngya!¡± Ella let out a girlish yelp, tugging her hand away from his. As quick as it came, the strange sensation fled, the black veins fading away in seconds. ¡°That was, um¡­¡± She panted a bit, the skin of arms covered in goosebumps as she looked at her hand, flexing it and making sure it wasn¡¯t hurt. ¡°Did you get it?¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t think it was long enough.¡± Cal said. ¡°Is it supposed to feel¡­like that?¡± ¡°Your guess is as good as mine,¡± Cal shrugged, trying not to tent his covers. He just had to think about other things to keep it under control, rather than the girl blushing and panting next to him, soft thighs pressed against the floor, large breasts heaving with every breath. That was the wrong thing to think about. A moment later, she grinned conspiratorily. ¡°Let¡¯s try that again,¡± she said, grabbing a fur and lying down beside his bed. Her leather-clad breasts deformed against the fur in front of him, pressing together and up under her weight. Over her shoulder, he could see her glorious backside rising enticingly into the air, the furs barely able to restrain her flesh. ¡°You know what, I¡¯m gonna close my eyes,¡± Cal said. ¡°I think that¡¯ll help me concentrate.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± He closed his eyes and felt her warm hand against his own. Lady Killer. Forwarned, he managed to bite back a moan of pleasure as he began draining her Bent. After a fraction of a second longer than the time before, he felt his Bent begin to refill. 1/10 Bent remaining. It works! 2/10 Bent remaining. 3/10 Bent remaining. Feels like it¡¯s speeding up¡­ ¡°Nnnokay, thas enou-,¡± she said, pulling her hand away. Cal opened an eye and glanced over. Ella was shuddering, making her generous figure wiggle in time with her movements. She raised her head to look at him, and he spotted a corner of the fur she was resting on, in her mouth, pierced by her sharp teeth. Her cheeks were full of color now, softening from grey to magenta. ¡°That was¡­interesting.¡± She said, tugging the thick leather off of her teeth. There was a bite-pattern driven straight through the thick leather, now. ¡°As your Maje, I want you to know you can come to me for assistance at any time, I¡¯m responsible for helping you reach your full potential over the next few years, after all.¡± She said, pushing herself to her feet and posing confidently, her knees trembling as she leaned against the tree trunk dominating the center of his room. ¡°Will do.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to go¡­take a nap,¡± she said, wobbling away. ¡°Do not interrupt me for at least an hour¡­but once you recover, come speak to me about your training regime.¡± Ella walked out of the yurt, and a moment later, Cal heard a strange thump and yelp outside, followed by whispered Genosian cursing a bit too fast to follow. ¡°Huh, that went well.¡± Cal muttered to himself. He didn¡¯t feel nearly as cold anymore, and the guilt and sickness from brutally murdering someone was a faint background sensation. Told you so. Who are you? Cal asked internally, bringing his thoughts to bear on the voice in his head. it didn¡¯t seem like an emotionless system, like he¡¯d been told. It seemed to have¡­quirks. Acting has reached Level 5! Acting Level 5: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 25% correction. +1 to Intuition Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities: A mile in his shoes: 1 Bent to disguise yourself as the target for an hour, including voice and tactile effects. Does not lend supernatural knowledge of the targets¡¯ mental state. Good for sleeping with other men¡¯s wives, if that¡¯s included in the mile. Infectious emoting: 2 Bent. Act out an emotional state (Anger, Calm, Sadness, Happiness, Defeatism, Courage, etc.) and watch it spread like wildfire! Good for wars, orations, In-laws and Cutesi?eras Confidence: At will, speak with such surety that people want to believe you. Even when they know they shouldn¡¯t. Causes victims to build belief and make assumptions based on your statements if they aren¡¯t paying close attention. Good for lying. At its heart, Acting is the art of lying with confidence. Mutations: Me myself, And I: design up to five alter egos. Each one may be a different race or gender, changing your body when they assume control. Pro: Can fool rigorous magical testing to determine your identity or locate you. Con: stay on good terms and ask nicely for your body back. Ironclad disguise. Possibly wake up married with kids. One of the Guys: At will, take a snapshot of every humanoid within 100 feet. Your race and gender become the average values of theirs until the ability is dismissed. Pros: Extreme duration. Con: dependent on environment. Good for hiding amongst nuns¡­or lizard-people¡­or any homogeneous group of humanoids, really. Mesmerizing Eyes: capture a target¡¯s attention for as long as eye contact is maintained, causing increased suggestibility and memory lapse. Intuition resisted by Will. Side effects may include vampirism and Dry-eye. Just gonna dodge the question, huh? Figures. Macronomicon Chapter 16: Arson and Titty Twisters ¡°..I choose One of the Guys.¡± The thought process was simple. The mutation allowed him to create a disguise quickly and easily, with no risk of losing his mind. It would be incredibly useful when it came time to escape. If they were chasing down a pale young man and saw one of their own warriors, well, they might not give him a second glance, simply a friendly nod before breaking away from each other to more efficiently chase him down. And there was a hidden meaning in the statement that it would average his features. If he could lure someone away 100 feet away from anyone else, he would be the average of a sample size of one. In essence, he could steal the identity of anyone he could isolate. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Oh, yeah, this. ¡°Gah!¡± Cal choked back a scream as his bones came apart like puzzle pieces, along with his skin, which itched so badly he felt like scraping it off. This was by far the most comprehensive mutation he¡¯d ever¡­ Everything went dark. Cal opened his eyes, and the sunlight streaming into his yurt had only moved by a few inches, no longer than ten minutes. ¡°Oh, thank the gods,¡± Cal said, sighing as he sat up. His body and skin looked identical. Knife-Work has reached Level 5! Level 5: Boosts handling and sharpness of knives, 25% correction. +1 Kinesthetics¡­ point value capped, rerouting¡­ All physical stats capped, rerouting¡­ Expanding List of Abilities¡­ Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Save it for a minute. Cal thought, shoving the list aside without paying attention to it. One of the Guys. Cal¡¯s body rippled, sending the strangest crawling sensation up his spine. He watched as the ripple crossed his arms and chest multiple times. His skin rapidly turned grey, and his bones creaked, and muscles ached as they contracted, down to slender, feminine limbs. His breasts stretched and swelled, protruding in front of him, and his cock¡­ Let¡¯s not overthink this. Cal dragged his attention away from his crotch. Cal inspected his body, that of a young female Genosian. Makes sense. The vast majority of the population of this village is women and children, so the average would be female, and young. Cal ran his tongue over his teeth and accidentally cut it against his brand-new razor-sharp teeth. Despite the pain, he found himself smiling a shark-toothed grin. Now there¡¯s a fuckin¡¯ disguise. Cal willed the changes to revert. The last thing he wanted was to get caught shapeshifting, or as a strange woman in the Incha Huala¡¯s tent. The community was small enough that he couldn¡¯t exactly disappear into the crowd. He needed to keep a tight lid on this particular ability. His bones creaked, skin gained color and unfolded, shoulders widened, teeth dulled, and hips narrowed, all in about ten seconds. The second time around was just as strange, sending shivers up his spine. He would get used to it, though, if it meant escape. If you¡¯re done playing with yourself¡­ Show me the other one. Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities: Bleeding Strike: 1 Bent. Does what it says. The bleeding will not stop without extreme interference. Penetrating Strike: 1 Bent. Softens material that comes in contact with the blade. The blade isn¡¯t tougher, everything else is softer. Edge Lord: 1 Bent. Grants a kinetic field of force that applies an edge to anything for as long as it¡¯s held in the user¡¯s hand. Sharpness dependent on Knife-work level. Anything can be a knife with the right mindset! MacGuyver: 1 Bent/8hrs Applies a malleable kinetic field to a knife that allows it to be used as virtually any hand-held tool (screwdriver, hammer, saw, socket wrench, tweezers, planer, you name it.) Invisiblade: 1 Bent. Makes a knife invisible for 1 hour. Careful you don¡¯t cut yourself with it! Mutations: Grindstone fingers: Sharpen any blade by running your fingers over the edge. Blade Body: allows one (1) knifelike object to be absorbed by the body per five (5) levels of Knife Work. Absorbed knives can partially or completely emerge from either palm, or with practice, from other parts of the body. Speed dependent on practice. May make the user slightly magnetic. Razor¡¯s Edge: User gives off a passive kinetic field that increases the durability of knives, and raises their sharpness when threatened. Cal thought about it for a while. Macguyver, whatever that meant, was very appealing to him. He could create simple tools with Splitting, but that was limited, while this particular ability seemed to promise a solution to almost any problem for the price of one Bent. On the other hand, Blade Body called to him just as strongly. The ability to stow a knife away on his person without cost in terms of Bent was very appealing. Being able to make it grow out of his skin would be very useful in combat. Again, without spending Bent. With Splitting, he could crudely mimic either ability, it was simply a choice between which one would do more work to guarantee his survival. Macguyver was a convenience, whose benefits would slowly pile up over time, however it wouldn¡¯t help in a fight, actually costing him Bent that could be used for combat. Blade Body was specifically for getting him out of a fight alive, a winning card he could keep hidden until he needed it. Wait. I could carry around an inch-thick steel plate and use Splitting to create tools from it as needed, file, saw, tweezers, pliers, etc. As long as they fit inside the plate. With a simple steel plate, Macguyver would become redundant. It would still be cheaper than Splitting for tool creation, seeing as he would need to spend Bent every time he wanted to make a new one, but Cal didn¡¯t see himself desperately needing half a dozen specialized tools in a row any time in the future. Remember to get that plate, he reminded himself. ¡°I choose Blade Body.¡± Cal said. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Cal¡¯s entire body began to tingle slightly, feeling almost like he was vibrating¡­everywhere. This isn¡¯t that bad at all. The mutation still knocked him out. When Calvin woke up, the sun had moved quite a bit further toward the east, dousing his yurt in shadow as the sun passed behind the mountain. Aoehe was sitting in the corner of the yurt, staring at him. He didn¡¯t see anything suspicious, did he? Cal thought, with a sudden burst of panic that he ruthlessly smothered, acting nonchalant. ¡°I wish you hadn¡¯t needed to do that.¡± He said with a sigh. ¡°Kuetha was a very¡­polarizing individual. Ah well, these are adult problems. I¡¯ll handle them. You simply need to worry about practice and reaching your full potential guarding my daughter.¡± Them constantly speaking about practice made Cal think about the nature of the Chained Spirit ability. The way they spoke about reaching his potential made It seemed as though the spirit couldn¡¯t improve after it was consumed, nor could it degrade. That didn¡¯t exactly scream living spirit with its own will to him, that said the ability took the creature at it was in a single moment in time ¨C presumably just before death ¨C and replicated that in a soulless entity. Cal decided to take a risk. ¡°About that¡­¡± Cal said. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°My Body stats are already the highest they can go and my fighting Skills aren¡¯t far off. I¡¯m¡­not going to get much better very quickly. The reason I¡¯ve been able to do so well against your people is a lifetime of training. Relative to other people my age, I¡¯m probably going to get worse as they grow into their heightened Body.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± Aoehe gave him a cold, calculating look. ¡°Why would you tell me this?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got a hell of a lot of progress to make with my Mind. You saw what I did to Kuetha?¡± ¡°An interesting trick. You are a Maje¡­no¡­wizard of Gadvera?¡± Ilethans called them sorcerers, Malkenrovians called them Mages, Gadverans, wizards, and Genosians, Maje. But it was all the same thing. ¡°That was the tip of the iceberg. My Mind has a lot of room to grow. I need to be allowed to regenerate my Bent and practice my spells, or I won¡¯t grow at all. I need to stop drinking the noeula and let my Bent return. I¡¯m not going to get any stronger, physically.¡± Aoehe watched him for a moment, carefully deliberating. Cal could see the thoughts bouncing around behind the man¡¯s eyes, weighing his escape against the possibility of earning a powerful wizard summon for his daughter. ¡°Thank you for telling me this. I will speak to Ella, and after tomorrow¡¯s ceremony, we will tailor a training regime to your situation.¡± Aoehe stood and nodded to Cal before leaving the room. Cal relaxed. If the Maje had been lying and was about to have him killed and stuffed in the freezer, Cal couldn¡¯t spot it. for all Cal could tell, he still honestly wanted him as Ella¡¯s Chained Spirit. Which meant either she could loan his copy Bent, or it would have the Bent he died with. In any case, he had no intention of going through with it, magical love-potion or no. After Cal recovered from the fight and the mutations, he spent four hours working with leather before he was told to go back to his yurt for the night, his chains dragging behind him. Cal waited until the noise of the village slowed to a crawl, only interrupted by the occasional wails of babies. Lying on the furs, facing the dark roof of the massive tent, he decided it was time to go. He got one Bent back every fourteen hours, so he had another, bringing him up to four once the Scowling Moon was high overhead, radiating light from its jagged mouth. Enough to do some reconnaissance. Splitting. 3/10 Bent remaining. Cal shed the manacles easily, before picking up an errant stick, about a foot and a half long with a little nub at the end. It was too small to do anything meaningful with, so no one bothered to stop him from taking it home. Sense-grafting 2/10 Bent remaining He bound his right eye to the nub at the end of the stick and crawled along the floor, holding it on top of his left eyelid to ease discomfort. Once he was at his doorway, he carefully poked the stick through his doorway, using it to peek around the corner. It¡¯s nice to have the resources to do things properly, Cal thought, spinning the stick slowly to view in all directions before he began creeping out of the yurt. Sliding through the quiet camp and using the tiny stick to peek around corners, Calvin was able to sneak all the way to Aoehe¡¯s tent, where he could just barely make out a discussion, consisting of harsh whispers. ¡°I don¡¯t understand, father, why do you wish me to shed blood to the Guya now? Should it not be during the ritual?¡± he heard Ella¡¯s voice. ¡°No blood will be shed at the ritual. It will be held privately. Here.¡± Aoehe said. Cal very carefully slid the stick into one of the tiny gaps in the leather, giving himself a view of the two figures. Ella and Aoehe stood in front of a bowl full of glowing green liquid that gave off a strange vapor that seemed¡­alive? ¡°You don¡¯t...¡± Ella said, backing away. ¡°You intend to let him drink the Guya without adding his blood.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not one of us, he only needs to serve you. Nothing more. When you are older, you may bond with a real warrior.¡± Aoehe said. ¡°I¡¯ll not participate in something so unbalanced,¡± Ella said, crossing her arms. ¡°Let our Wills decide.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t¡­¡± Aoehe clenched his fists tightly before calming himself. ¡°The boy is a Maje as well. He has a good reason to hate you, while you feel nothing strongly about him. His Mind will lash out. Best not to take that risk.¡± ¡°We will be bonded fairly or not at all.¡± Ella said, crossing her arms with all the stoic confidence of a rebellious teen. ¡°I intend to honor my role as his Maje.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I was afraid of,¡± Aoehe said, running a hand over his bald scalp and sighing. With a snarl, he brought his hand forward again, unleashing a green bolt that lit the darkened yurt as it crossed the distance between them before it slammed into Ella¡¯s chest. She stood there with her arms crossed, entirely unaffected. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, daughter, I raised you to be strong willed by necessity, but in some regards, I must be the tyrant and enforce my decisions.¡± Aoehe turned away and retrieved a knife and bowl beside the green concoction. No¡­she wasn¡¯t unaffected¡­ she couldn¡¯t move! The girl continued to stand there, her breasts heaving slightly as she struggled to breath, her eyes flickering to watch her father, who approached her with a small bowl. ¡°I would prefer you drank the Guya with him tomorrow,¡± he murmured, making a nick in her forearm that began to bleed into the bowl. ¡°Seeing as how many men we lost, we need every able body, but if you don¡¯t wish to go through with this¡­then he will fill our bellies, and together we will seek out a situation more to your liking.¡± Welp, this is some weird shit, Cal thought to himself. I need a distraction, and I need my blood in that bowl. Cal dismissed the connection to the nub and left it where it was rather than risk moving it during that intimate moment. Cal crept over to the banked fire in the center of the village and poked through the embers until he found a live one. He blew on it until it was white hot. He couldn¡¯t feel any eyes on him, so he changed into a young Gadveran woman. One of the Guys. Splitting. 2/10 Bent remaining One white hot ember became thousands, targeting a yurt that still had a light on inside. In moments, flames began to lick up the side of the leather. Took some effort. Leather¡¯s not the greatest kindling. In any case- ¡°FIIIRE!!¡± Cal shouted in a young woman¡¯s voice. It was the first time he¡¯d heard himself talk in a different form, and it almost stunned him into not moving. So squeaky! He had to move. Immediately, Cal dropped low and began scrambling toward Aoehe¡¯s hut, sliding around the side an instant before the Maje himself climbed out the doorflap, glaring at the mounting flames in the distance. ¡°Damn,¡± he muttered before running for the fire just as Cal dismissed the mutation¡¯s effects. Cal wasted no time in jumping into the tent behind him, hardly waiting for the man to leave eyeshot. Ella¡¯s eyes tracked him from where she was paralyzed, still standing with her arms crossed. Calvin winked. He picked up the Maje¡¯s knife and sliced his left palm, dribbling his own blood into the bowl, mixing with hers. In the interest of fairness¡­ ¡°See you at the ceremony. Boop.¡± Cal whispered, booping Ella on the nose and giving her paralyzed body a titty-twister on the way out. The veins in her forehead stood out as she watched him leave. I really hope she doesn¡¯t tell her dad. Probably shouldn¡¯t have done that, but it was impossible not to. Once that was taken care of, Cal hauled ass back to his yurt. The Maje was sharp and he¡¯d probably check Cal¡¯s yurt the moment the fire was under control. He had to get himself cuffed again and back in bed before that happened. Cal opened the doorflap and froze. Dang. Maybe a bit sooner than that, even. ¡°Did you know the word for ¡®arson¡¯ doesn¡¯t exist in our language?¡± Aoehe asked from a stool in the center of Cal¡¯s yurt. ¡°I did not know that,¡± Cal said as a meaty hand clamped down on his shoulder. Macronomicon 9/10 of the dump enjoy! Chapter 17: Love potion number NEIN! The Maje¡¯s Chained Spirit shoved him into the room before filling the entrance with his mass. ¡°What did you do?¡± he asked, his voice icy with restrained anger. This is where I lie, then he applies pressure, then I cave. Not my first Shliek-ride. ¡°I was going to visit Ella but she wasn¡¯t in her tent, then I heard someone scream fire, so I investigated, then headed back here.¡± ¡°And you felt the need to remove the restraints.¡± ¡°They are awfully uncomfortable.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°I made a key. It¡¯s not much of a lock.¡± The massive Genosian seized Cal by the back of the neck, wrenching a strangled cry out of him as he lifted Cal off his feet one-handed. ¡°Did you set the fire?¡± Aoehe asked. ¡°Nope.¡± Calvin was most afraid that Aoehe would see the cut in his palm, trying to turn it away from the man as naturally as possible by gripping the massive Chained Spirit¡¯s fingers with his left hand. Calvin felt the point of a blade settle on the small of his back, right behind his liver. ¡°Are you sure about that?¡± ¡°Fine, I set the damn fire.¡± ¡°Why? What were you doing?¡± he asked. ¡°Like I said ¨C¡° He felt the point jab into him a bit harder. ¡°I was looking for a way to escape.¡± He relented. ¡°Looking for supplies to steal for my trip.¡± ¡°Hum. I see.¡± Maybe I could reach into the earth and use Splitting to create a stone blade fifty feet above his head? it would take a little finesse, but gravity shoul- Calvin¡¯s thoughts were cut off when Aoehe threw his hand forward, and an identical green bolt of energy lanced forward, catching him in the chest. Cal was locked uncomfortably in place, every muscle in his body seized in place, completely unable to move, barely able to breath. ¡°We¡¯ll have to move the ceremony up to tonight. Bring him.¡± Aoehe said, marching past Cal. The six-foot Chained Spirit threw Cal over his shoulder, carrying him like a stiff board, his arms still locked in an awkward clutching posture. Move, move move! Cal demanded. Why can¡¯t I move!?¡± Answer: Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 4 minutes. Anything you can do to speed that up? Cal thought. Nope. Damnit. Aoehe¡¯s Chained Spirit hauled Cal back to his tent and leaned him up a cabinet in the middle of the room. By the time they got there, Ella was unfrozen, rubbing her right nipple and glaring at him. I didn¡¯t think my actions would have consequences! Cal thought, horrified. I didn¡¯t know you could think sarcastically. I¡¯m impressed. Who are you!? ¡°Ella, your Incha Huala here tried to escape, and lit a fire in Mayea¡¯s tent to do it.¡± ¡°Did he?¡± Ella asked, walking up to Cal and studying him with a mischievous grin. ¡­oh no. You know what they say¡­ ¡°Sounds like he needs to be punished. Boop.¡± She tapped his nose, then reached out, grabbed his nipple and twisted. AAAAAAAGH! That was way harder than mine! Cal¡¯s paralyzed body was only able to watch the girl¡¯s sharktoothed grin. Turnabout is fair play. To the nine hells with fair play! Satisfied with her work, she pulled out a bloody rag, turned it to a dry spot and quickly wiped the blood off his left palm. She winked. ¡°Yes, we¡¯re going to do the ritual now,¡± Aoehe called over his shoulder as he mixed the bowl of blood into the green brew, stirring it with a strange wooden whisk. The glowing green concoction turned a strange glowing pink with the addition of blood. ¡°Or he dies now, your choice. I can¡¯t risk a Lueaya as slippery as he obviously is running around the village any longer.¡± ¡°I think death would be letting him off too easy. I see what you meant about him being a stupid, crude, uncontrollable foreigner.¡± Ella said with a smile. ¡°Let¡¯s do it.¡± Aoehe finished mixing the brew and poured it into two separate containers, one of which had a long funnel at the end. I wonder which one¡¯s mine, Cal thought, rolling his eyes. As expected Aoehe pried open Cal¡¯s mouth, bringing the wooden funnel into his mouth. The rough grain caught against his tongue Aoehe pulled his jaw lower and mercilessly shoved the funnel into the back of his throat. He would have gagged or vomited if he could, but instead, a metallic, tangy mixture began to pour down his throat, and it was everything Cal could do not to breathe it in, clamping his windpipe shut as hard as he could. Cal tried to writhe and kick. His body started moving just a little bit when another green bolt hit him in the chest, resetting his timer. Damnit! All the fun of suffocation with none of the payoff. When Cal was starting to see stars, Aoehe withdrew the funnel, leaving a couple drops on his tongue. It was a bizarre, metallic flavor. Not just because of the blood in the mix it seemed to hold something that sizzled and moved on the tastebuds. Cal struggled to breath, his mouth feeling violated where the wood funnel had bruised his lips and throat. A stringy bit of phlegm threatened to work its way into his lungs, but he was too weak to cough. This is almost as bad as training with Karen. ¡°I¡¯ll give you two some privacy.¡± Aoehe said, leaving the tent. A small silence stretched between the two of them. ¡°You¡¯re welcome,¡± she said, cleaning up the bowls and setting them on her father¡¯s shelf, her body wiggling appealingly as she did. Welcome? I think you mean we¡¯re even, especially after that titty-twister. Not how I tallied up the points, there. You can sit on a Grensha, mysterious System voice. The mysterious System voice didn¡¯t deign to respond. So how long¡¯s this thing supposed to take? Cal thought, but the System voice didn¡¯t respond. Guess I made it mad. Or something. Watching Ella work at cleaning up the mess, he didn¡¯t feel anything in particular. A little queasy in his stomach, but that could just be a side effect of having splintery wood jammed down his throat. Maybe his Stability was too high to even be effected, if the paralysis beam was anything to go by. Then she turned around. She¡¯s so nice, Cal thought, seeing her perfect lips and delicate brows. She was willing to go against her father to give me a fair shot at the Guya bond. That was really cool of her. And wiping my hand so Aoehe didn¡¯t see that I¡¯d mixed my blood into the bowl. She basically saved my life. I could see myself working for someone like that¡­ Shit, it¡¯s already working! Cal thought with a panicked jolt of adrenaline. Ella glanced idly over at where he was leaning against the cabinet and frowned, staring. Cal saw her pupils dilate until all he could see was black. Is that happening to me!? Ella stepped closer, cleanup from the ceremony forgotten. He could feel the heat from her skin she began inspecting him, running her fingers over his cheeks and memorizing his shape. Now that she was this close, he felt as though they were two pairs of lodestone, somehow inexplicably pulled together by an invisible force. Slowly, their eyes got closer to each other as Ella Bent down, her chest heaving against his as she panted, resting her forehead against his own. Her eyes were so close that they became one. One pitch black portal into her soul. He saw a roiling tendril of pink in that black expanse, the vapor from the concoction. It reached out and latched onto another that seemed to come from his own eyes, creating a bridge between them. And then the tug-of-war started. Call didn¡¯t have any other way to describe it. For an instant, it felt as though he were being sucked out of his own body into Ella¡¯s, falling into her eyes, drawn along by that pink tendril. He fell along the bridge between them, his entire body drawn out of himself, plummeting toward her like the bottom of a well. It was going to be perfect. He could already feel himself becoming one inside her, stretching out to fill the places she lacked¡­becoming an extension¡­ A flicker of Persei¡¯s defiled corpse flashed in his mind. No! Cal pulled. With every fiber of his being, he struggled to pull backward, slowly sliding back into his body, until he was back where he started. Call didn¡¯t stop there, continuing to tug on the bond until he saw Ella¡¯s form crossing the bridge between the two of them, struggling, but unafraid. She wore a smile as if this were some friendly competition and not a life or death struggle. Is it life or death? Cal thought to himself, his temporary distraction allowing her to slip backwards. It doesn¡¯t matter. In any case, winning is always better than losing. Cal redoubled his efforts, pulling Ella towards himself. I mean, unless pulling them into you means you do what they want. Am I competing to win, or lose? Gah, it doesn¡¯t matter, I¡¯ll win against this slattern and deal with the rest later. Ella was tugged across the bridge toward him, struggling like a fish on a hook as he pulled her into himself. How about that, you- Ella, now close enough to touch inside him, gave a wicked grin and grabbed his arms before pulling backward with more force than she¡¯d mustered until that point. Cal screamed as he was dragged out of himself again, into the center of the bridge by Ella, who wasn¡¯t holding back now that she¡¯d caught ahold of him. They were falling at top speeds toward the black portal behind her, when Cal managed to regain his foothold, shoving every harsh training session, every ounce of will that had compelled him to stand back up at her in a wave of memories that made her lose her grip, allowing them to slip backward partway across the bridge. She answered back with the most horrifying memories of her childhood, the sensation of watching her pet get eaten, losing her mother. Cal fired back with a week in a blood, piss and shit filled box. She wrinkled her nose in disgust, allowing him to tug them back towards him. She responded with the emotion of killing her younger her sister to spare her the pain of Joyaga poison. The horrible feeling stunned Cal long enough to drag him dozens of feet, stopping just in front of the black portal behind her. Cal shot back with the feeling of seeing his village burning at the hands of the Genosians, but it didn¡¯t quite compare, somewhere in the back of his mind, he believed Karen and Jinnei were alive and well. Ella shrugged off the memory and continued drawing him into her, buffeting him with a thousand memories of a life of hardship. Sinking into her eyes felt good, like slipping into a warm bath. No, I need something, something deeper, something stronger, something Darker. Cal dived into himself, desperately searching for a little bit of extras juice to resist her with. Was there anything? Anything he¡¯d forgotten? Anything he¡¯d done? Cal scanned through his memories, despairing at their ho-hum sheep-filled averageness. He certainly hadn¡¯t mercy-killed his own sister. He searched and rifled through his memories faster than he thought possible, when he noticed a pattern. He was avoiding something. Every time he turned his mind in one specific direction, he would unconsciously avoid that memory. Cal turned sideways in his own mind, sidling stealthily up to the memory, whistling as he perused others. Wouldn¡¯t wanna startle it. He reached a hand up to his right while he was viewing a memory of helping Karen herd sheep when he was five. He felt something cold inside his mind. A smooth barrier that radiated ennui blocking off¡­something. I don¡¯t have time for that shit, Cal thought, sinking his dream-hand into the dream-stone and turning to face it. Pinning it down like this, he was able to see it. A thick stone wall separating himself from¡­some other part of himself. In the manner of dreams, Cal reeled his hand back and punched the wall with all his force, shattering it. He needed juice to win the tug-of-war now. The stone fell away, exposing a pitch-black emptiness beyond the limits of his soul. A thick black mist began to flow through the rent in the wall, pooling around his feet. Something tells me this was ill-advised, Cal thought, watching the mist. Something moved outside the hole in his soul. Cal took a step forward, into the emptiness. Rationally, he realized he should be closing the hole back up as quickly as he could and running the other way, but the trill of terror working it¡¯s way up the back of his neck had no effect on his feet that kept moving forward. The jagged doorway into his memories shrank behind him, a tiny pinpoint of light in an ocean of black. The air was stale, but there seemed to be motion at the corner of his eyes, but every time he looked, the nightmare creatures hungrily surrounding him seemed to meekly subside. In the center of this black expanse, was a mirror without a frame, jutting out of the black floor, facing him. In the center of the mirror, he impassively watched himself approach. This Calvin, the one in the mirror, was paler than him, longer of hair, slighter of build, and with a bit of a gut and bulging nose. He knew it was him though, from the way he stood, to the mischievous smirk he was giving him. He wore a black shirt and green pants made from the finest woven cotton Calvin had ever seen. The pants weren¡¯t even cotton. They almost looked like velvet. The black shirt had some strange blocky script between two arrows that pointed up and down. Behind the pale Calvin were racks upon racks of clothes the likes of which he¡¯d never seen before of brilliant colors and perfect craftsmanship. Even further beyond was a window whose size defied logic, stretching to the ceiling of the room the man was in. The window revealed a strange stone floor with burning glass buildings jutting out of it. It was like nowhere Calvin had ever seen. The pale Calvin raised his hand, startling Cal out of his observation. He tapped his skull and pulled out a memory, encapsulated in some kind of bubble. Calvin watched the memory pass through the mirror, floating in front of him. Pale Calvin clapped his hands over his eyes. Don¡¯t look at it. Calvin studied the opaque bubble floating in front of him. It¡¯s either that or getting eaten. He decided, reaching out and seizing the memory. Anguish, helplessness and guilt rolled off the bubble in a thick miasma as he seized it with his hand. Cal had the strange feeling this would hurt Ella, badly. ¡°You got anything that won¡¯t cause irreparable damage?¡± He asked. ¡°Giving women mental trauma is frowned upon in modern society.¡± Pale Calvin crossed his arms and scowled. ¡°I guess not.¡± Like a wooden soldier on a string, Cal was yanked backwards, out of the black room, out of his memories, and back into the bridge between him and Ella, falling from the depths of his own eyes. ¡°Sorry about this.¡± Cal muttered, pressing the sphere into the Genosian girl. She gave a quiet gasp and shivered, tears rolling down her cheeks. Cal seized the opportunity to drag her backwards, towards himself. When Cal came to his senses, his lips were occupied by Ella¡¯s, his hands occupied by her hips. They were lying on the floor, pawing each other. Ella¡¯s hair was messy, and her top was partially shoved aside, revealing one grey-purple breast and dark purple nipple. When did this happen!? Cal wasn¡¯t doing too great either, his tongue had multiple nicks from her teeth, his shirt was in tatters, there was a painful, bleeding bite mark on his shoulder, and her left hand was currently exploring his half-shed pants. More than anything though, Cal was running out of air. He drew his face away from hers and gasped for breath. The sudden noise seemed to draw her out of her drug-fueled stupor. Her eyes widened from their half-lidded state as she came to full alertness. ¡°Did I win?¡± Cal asked groggily. ¡°It wasn¡¯t about winning and losing, it was about creating a bond,¡± she said breathlessly. Her uncovered stomach against his sending shivers of delight up his spine. ¡°Knowing each other better than mere words can allow.¡± Ah so that was the point of the memory-fight. ¡°Yeah, but did I win?¡± ¡°I felt some truly painful memories inside you for an instant. I couldn¡¯t see them, but I felt them. I¡¯ve never felt anything like that. I¡¯m¡­sorry you had to go through that. You could call that a win if you wish.¡± ¡°Could you let go of my um¡­manhood?¡± Cal asked politely. She blinked and glanced down at his pants sleepily before unclenching her fingers and releasing him, leaving only one lump in his trousers. ¡°Apologies,¡± she said without a hint of shame as her faculties slowly returned to her. she tucked her chest back into her leather top and struggled to roll away from him, her limbs seemingly weak. Calvin tried to push himself up, but the floor and gravity didn¡¯t exactly mesh. Everything told him that he should be falling her direction. When he tried to stand up again, he overcompensated and toppled away from her, smashing into Aoehe¡¯s shelves. Well that can¡¯t be good. Macronomicon chapter 10/10 Got a little steamy there at the end, I guess. Chapter 18: Old Lady Killer Your mental exercise has raised your Will by one! Your mental exercise has raised your Stability by one! ¡°Lie down for awhile. It¡¯ll fade eventually.¡± Ella said, lying on her back with her fingers interlocked across her stomach, not trying to stand up. Unwilling to make a fool of himself even more, Cal flopped over onto his back, lacing his fingers over his stomach. She took a deep breath. He took a deep breath. This is really weird. Cal put his hands behind his head. She put her hands behind her head. Looks like it works both ways. Cal shoved his finger into his nose and started mining for nem. A moment later Ella followed suit. She frowned, glanced down at her own finger in her nose and then at him. Cal must not have been able to keep a straight face, because she scowled and slapped his arm. He slapped her arm back. she punched his arm. He punched hers. She jumped on him. He flipped her over. The two of them began spontaneously wrestling with each other, half serious, half playful. The girl was ¨C to his shame ¨C bigger and stronger than him, but he had more practice with actual wrestling, and compensated with speed and technique. For a moment as he was catching his breath, Cal noticed how smooth her arm was, sliding his palm across her skin. She relaxed against him. He relaxed against her. Her legs gradually spread beneath him, her hot crotch rubbing against his painfully hard cock, separated from each other by a thin layer of leather and trousers. She stared up at him invitingly, her dark lips partly open. They looked soft and warm. As one, they leaned forward with the intention of bringing their lips together. their teeth clacked painfully against each other. ¡°Ow!¡± Cal muttered, the shock breaking him out of the spell to realize that they were grinding on each other. ¡°When did this happen?¡± he asked, glancing at her thighs wrapped around his waist. Ella blinked. ¡°Umm¡­ I¡¯m not sure.¡± She answered, her legs gradually letting go of him. ¡°Not that I don¡¯t find you stunning,¡± Cal said, rolling off of her. ¡°But I want to think about things for a moment.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± she breathed, nodding and staring up at the ceiling. Okaaay, we¡¯ve got a love potion messing with our heads and if we¡¯re not careful, we¡¯ll be balls deep in a matter of minutes. But that¡¯s not what¡¯s important. What¡¯s important is how severe the damage is. Do I want to stay in this village? Of course not. Do I still want to escape? Absolutely These two statements resounded with perfect truth as Calvin thought about them. But that would mean leaving Ella behind. I can¡¯t do that, he thought, a swirl of harrowing negative emotions accompanying the idea. Crap. Cal brought up the concept of escape against the idea of staying with Ella, weighing them in his mind. Of course I want to stay with her, I¡¯m smitten. I don¡¯t think I could breathe if she didn¡¯t like me anymore. Shut up, stupid love potion. I wanna LIVE! Escape is the only way to make that happen. You didn¡¯t forget what an Incha Huala is, did you?? Boys, boys, there¡¯s a simple solution you¡¯re overlooking. Can¡¯t we just kidnap her? Cal¡¯s ego proposed a compromise That would work, yeah¡­ Cal¡¯s lizard brain agreed. Escape and the woman, no complaints at all. But what if she doesn¡¯t like us because of it? You¡¯re outvoted, love potion. Lizard brain said. It¡¯s two against one. Ego chimed in. Well, can we convince her to run away with us? That¡¯s dumb. Yeah, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s gonna work. No, no it¡¯ll work. She has to feel the same as us. I¡¯ll just¡ª He¡¯s going for the Controls! Hold him down! He¡¯s slipping! It¡¯ll be fine, just let me¡­do this! ¡°You wanna run away with me?¡± Cal blurted against his will. ¡°No.¡± Ella said. Great fucking job, love potion, now she knows we still want to escape. I¡¯m very disappointed in you. I¡¯m sure she just meant- Shut up. Calvin blinked. It looked like the damage caused by the Guya was pretty severe, judging by the way his organizing and planning skills were in a three-way battle with his survival instinct and the need to make Ella happy. All he could do for now was plan and prepare for his escape. ¡°You know the Bent borrowing thing?¡± Cal asked. ¡°You want to do it?¡± she asked eagerly. ¡°No, it¡¯s just¡­It only works with women. I was trying not to arouse suspicion. I don¡¯t want to have you come up to me with a helper only to find out it doesn¡¯t work with him.¡± ¡°Only works with women, huh?¡± she asked, giving him a narrow-eyed look. ¡°You¡¯ll have to tell me what Skill spawned such an Ability. ¡°No I won¡¯t.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s fine,¡± she said, rolling onto her back. ¡°There are very few men in the village who would be willing to give you their Bent anyway.¡± They lay there, staring at the ceiling of the yurt, the force drawing them together slowly ebbing, until it was so small as to be imperceptible. Cal shakily came to his feet, breathing a sigh of relief when he found he could stand. ¡°I¡¯m going to bed. It¡¯s very late.¡± Cal said. ¡°You could come to my bed, now that we¡¯ve drank the Guya.¡± ¡°I thought about it.¡± Cal said with a grin. ¡°But I don¡¯t know you that well yet.¡± That and he couldn¡¯t afford to let himself become more attached to her than he already was. She slapped his thigh. Cal resisted the impulse to slap her back and start another wrestling war that had a good chance of leading to coitus. ¡°I¡¯ll see you tomorrow,¡± he said, leaving the tent. Tonight he would go back to his own yurt and try to sleep it off, but he knew he would have to act totally invested in the girl in order to keep Aoehe from breathing down his spine. Sleeping alone every night after taking the Guya was a pretty good sign he¡¯d resisted it and still wanted to leave. That meant Cal was going to have to wall off a portion of his being, protecting the determination to leave from the encroachment he felt even now, filling his head with rose-colored thoughts of Ella. Once that was done, he would move in with her, get along, play, and make love, all with the intention of betraying her in the end. A sinking sensation settled in his stomach, but Calvin burned it off with anger by bringing up the memory of Persei¡¯s half-eaten corpse. I am NOT staying here. And if I have to betray the person who had to watch her own sister die with a Joyaga stinger through her chest, then so be it. ¡­Freakin¡¯ Guya. Cal was busily constructing a mental wall around his determination to leave while he walked, when he ran into Aoehe standing in front of his yurt. ¡°How did it go?¡± He asked with his usual amiable grin. ¡°Just because you¡¯re Ella¡¯s father doesn¡¯t mean I forgive you. You better watch your back.¡± He leaned forward and peered into Cal¡¯s eyes. ¡°Yes, seems like it¡¯s taken well. Off to bed with you.¡± With that, he left Cal alone, his Incha Huala eyeing Cal as they left. I could drop a thirty-six pound rock on his head right now, and no one would know¡­ Cal¡¯s fists tightened as he glared at the man¡¯s back. Not until we¡¯re ready to leave. The man deserves to die, but he¡¯s the leader of the faction that supports me being Ella¡¯s Incha Huala. If he dies, my life is most likely forfeit. ¡°Damn,¡± Calvin muttered, unclenching his hand and going into his yurt. The manacles and chains were no longer there; he had stronger ones in his head, now. Lucky for me, they don¡¯t know how slippery I am. Cal thought, methodically stopping the spread of Guya-spawned thoughts and walling them away. *** ¡°It¡¯s like I¡¯m sixteen years old again, being mounted for the first time.¡± Cal heard one of the little old ladies twitter to another, who was eyeing Cal with a predatory intensity. It made him want to draw his limbs and head into his shirt and stay there awhile, but he forced himself to send them back a grin, spurring their animated discussion even further. Put up with it, put up with it¡­ Cal thought as he started practicing his spells. Splitting, Splitting, Splitting¡­ Sense-Grafting, Sense-Grafting, Sense-Grafting¡­ The next morning Ella and Aoehe had met him outside his yurt with no less than six elderly women. Their purpose? To resupply him with Bent to allow him to practice more than he should have been able to in a single day. The average amount of Will of a little old lady was eight, or just over one Bent per little old lady per day, on average, with an average of eight Stability. The first day, he was able to split his practice, with twenty-five castings of Sense-grafting, and twenty-five castings of Splitting. Each time, he tried to challenge the limit of what he was capable of, using the spells in new and uncomfortable ways, to increase the amount each practice was worth to him. By the end of the day, Cal had gotten Sense-Grafting to level five, and chose the ability to target objects at range. He no longer needed to touch something before he grafted his senses to it, allowing a much greater range of flexibility. The time Bekvah had grafted Cal¡¯s balance to a book at range had left an impression, and Cal made that his goal for level ten. The day after that, Cal had expected to only get a couple castings in, but the number of old Genosian women interested in lending their Bent had doubled. The next day, it increased again. By the end of the first week, Cal had raised his Sense-grafting to seven, and his Splitting to eight, buoyed up by the sheer amount of Bent he was able to harness on a daily basis. There were roughly fifty old ladies, for an average of fifty-seven castings per day by the time the numbers had stabilized. It was the rough equivalent of having four hundred Will, or fifty times faster than he¡¯d been able to practice at Deinos. One week of practice outweighed an entire year by himself, easily. ¡­He could tolerate being used by old women for that. It was draining their Bent in front of Ella while they moaned in ecstasy that really got under his skin. The young Maje watched him with a smirk as the matronly Genosians gasped and shuddered. He was starting to develop something of a reputation in the Iron-Skin tribe¡­again. Married women and young girls were discouraged from associating with him, and Genosian warriors who walked by snorted and shook their heads. ¡°You can take the Bent from any part of the body, yes?¡± one woman of perhaps thirty-five asked slyly, not two feet away from Ella. She was one of the youngest women who visited; a widow. ¡°Just the hand for now, ma¡¯am,¡± Cal replied, taking her hand as she clicked her tongue in disappointment. Cal began draining her Bent, ignoring the moans and Ella¡¯s reveling in his discomfort. 3/10 Bent remaining 4/10 Bent remaining 5/10 Bent remaining 6/10 Bent remaining 7/10 Bent remaining 8/10 Bent remaining 9/10 Bent remaining ¡°That¡¯s all I have. I saved up for this, so that you could go deep.¡± she said with a conspiratorial smile. ¡°I appreciate it,¡± Cal said, nodding and ignoring the prickles on the back of his neck. ¡°I¡¯ll see you next week. ¡°I¡¯ve got nowhere to be,¡± the Genosian woman said, lying down and stretching, deliberately showing off as much of her body as she could. ¡°I¡¯ll watch you practice.¡± ¡°That¡¯s-¡° Cal was cut off by Ella. ¡°All right, you¡¯ve had your fun, shoo, shoo! Be thankful I let you visit my Incha Huala at all, Aya.¡± Ella kicked dirt at Aya, causing the woman to hiss and scuttle back like a wild animal. Aya cleared her throat, stood, and wiped dirt off her hide clothes, before throwing her nose up and walking away. ¡°Thanks for that.¡± Cal whispered as the young widow left. ¡°Can you take Bent with other parts?¡± Ella whispered into his ear, sending shivers down his spine. ¡°I think she said from other parts.¡± ¡°Bekata, beketa,¡± she said, a Genosian phrase that meant ¡®Either or, it¡¯s all the same.¡¯ ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°interesting.¡± Cal got back to practicing, earning another level of Splitting, when he came to a realization. His Will was about to bottleneck at fourteen. He needed to raise his Hunting and Meditation to compensate. Nothing I can do about it right now, Cal thought, putting his head down and getting back to work. Read Expression has reached Level 5! Read Expression Level 5: Passive bonus to reading expressions. 25% correction. +1 Intuition Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities. Poker Face: Give away little by way of facial expression. -She¡¯s got to love nobody! Open Book: Gain an intuitive understand of the relationship between two people who are looking at each other. -Lover, Stranger, friend, enemy, conspirator. The face tells all! Universal Language: Large bonus to understanding pantomime and expression regardless of species. -She never told me she was a mime! Mob Mentalist: Read the attitude of large groups of people easily. -Never get caught off guard by a mob of pitchfork wielding peasants again! Mutations: The Pheonix¡¯s (W)right eye- while making eye contact, you can discern if the target believes they are lying. Less useful on sociopaths and the misinformed. -OBJECTION! Med Tricorder: At will, determine a person¡¯s health and identify anything that might be affecting them merely by looking at their face. Includes wounds, infection, blood loss, poison, food poisoning, drugs, parasites, disease, etc. -Damnit Jim, I¡¯m a doctor not an engineer! Feel Intent: Feel the emotion behind any gaze upon you that you can perceive. -Yeah, it stacks with Third Eye ¨C The System Calvin stared up at the ceiling of Ella¡¯s yurt at the end of the day as he weighed his options. The last one was most likely unlocked by the Third Eye Mutation, and it would make Third Eye far more comprehensive. It would be nice to know if the intent behind a gaze was malicious or not. He¡¯d dodged the arrows before because they were aiming at his heart, but he couldn¡¯t rely on that. The mutation would allow significantly more nuance. ¡°I choose Feel Intent.¡± Open book and the pheonix¡¯s eye were appealing, but more useful in an investigative, mystery-solving kind of way, while Feel Intent would serve both in and out of combat. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Just like with Third Eye, Cal¡¯s skin started to itch, and his head started to ache, then stab with pain as the plates of his skull popped apart and began to shift. A moment later everything went dark. Calvin Gadsint Body: 6 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 6 Endurance: 6 Mind: 20 Intuition: 10 Stability: 11 Will: 13 Bent: 2/11 Skills: Stealth 6 Talking to Girls 5 Acting 5 Read Expressions 5 Sense-Grafting 7 Knife-Work 5 Dupdomancy 9 Hunting 4 Meditation 4 Chained Spirit 1 Fishing 3 Genosian Language 3 Macronomicon Chapter 19: Hunting Day. ¡°So you need to raise Hunting?¡± Aoehe asked, looking at Cal. All he could get from the old Maje with Feel Intent was cold calculation. ¡°Or else my magic will bottleneck.¡± Cal said. ¡°That and I could really go for some meat.¡± Aoehe raised a brow but didn¡¯t comment. ¡°All right. The village is running low. You and Ella will be escorted by Chuela.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s-¡° Aoehe raised a hand and green mist formed, creating his Chained Spirit. The big man lumbered forward, his eyes scanning the environment, he glanced back at Aoehe with a questioning look. ¡°Hunting trip. Escort my daughter, and keep an eye on her pet.¡± ¡°I resemble that remark,¡± Cal said with a scowl before Ella gave him a noogie. He couldn¡¯t exactly act like he wasn¡¯t smitten, or else the old man would probably kill him in his sleep. That and he kinda was. Cal was starting to think the old Maje had a blind spot in regards to his daughter, though, because Ella had been rather clingy, and Aoehe¡¯s eyes seemed to slide away from the two of them whenever she acted familiar. Wait, could it be a Skill of hers? Cal thought, glancing over at the towering Genosian girl. Overbearing dad? Restricted freedom? Maybe¡­ Aoehe raised his hand again, and another identical Chained Spirit stepped forward, then another, and another. Aoehe made seven more, bringing the total of hulking chaperones to eight. ¡°You have until nightfall,¡± He said, waving them out of his yurt and returning to his sewing. The eight chained spirits marched out of the tent and went around the camp gathering weapons. ¡°Are they¡­being controlled by him?¡± Cal asked as they watched the men arm themselves while exchanging conversation with the villagers. One of them was even holding up a little girl and swinging her in circles while she giggled madly. He was curious how the Chained spirits worked, having the skill. ¡°Chuela can be controlled, but when he is not, he simply does what is in his nature. It is in Chuela¡¯s nature to work for the Iron Skin tribe.¡± Humans can think, meaning you don¡¯t have to control them directly. Convenient. ¡°Who is Chuela?¡± Cal asked. ¡°He is a legendary figure. One of the founding members of the Iron Skin tribe, some hundred and sixty years ago, and its greatest warrior to date, an Eohea.¡± ¡°what¡¯s a-¡° ¡°What you call a veteran.¡± She answered before he finished. ¡°Five Breaks, from a time when war between tribes was common.¡± Five breaks, huh? That would put the man¡¯s physical strength at somewhere between bone-breaking and demigod¡­wait a minute. ¡°How¡¯s your father have him if he¡¯s a hundred and sixty years dead?¡± Cal asked. ¡°He ate the previous owner,¡± Ella said with a nonchalant shrug that raised the hair on the back of his neck. ¡°I imagine he¡¯ll will him to Melau on his deathbed.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s one way to keep the talent around,¡± Cal said with a shrug before he began preparing his own tools for hunting. Three obsidian tipped darts, a ten-foot rope studded with obsidian flake and ivory fishhooks, an obsidian knife, a hundred feet of twine, a bow and fifteen arrows, a waterskin from the ice-cold stream beside the village, and a satchel full of flatbread crackers that Cal had been subsisting off of for the last couple weeks. Damn, I need some real food. I¡¯d even eat vegetables. In a matter of minutes, they were ready to go, trotting down the mountainside with four Chuela in front of them, and four Chuela behind. I wonder what the duration is on the summon? Cal thought as they walked down the mountainside, following a well-worn path to the jungle. Had to be over twelve hours if the Maje only expected them back by nightfall. The Genosians lived a short walk from the deep forest, where Warped horrors were common, while Calvin¡¯s home town required one to walk for hours before reaching the edge of wild country. The forest opened up and swallowed them in a matter of seconds, the stunning contrast between stony mountain and sudden jungle was disconcerting. Once the canopy was above them, the eight Chained Spirits hunkered down and began creeping through the woods, so quietly it was difficult to hear them at all. Calvin and Ella followed suit. Chuela was the quietest, likely having a stealth skill and significant amounts of practice. He flowed through the forest like a ghost, his eight bodies forming a loose ring around the two of them. Cal was a little louder, just barely better than Ella, who likely didn¡¯t have a Warped Skill for it. Together, the ten of them stalked through the forest, turning left at the bottom of the mountain, heading southeast into the deep jungle. Eventually Chuela motioned for them to stop, smelling the air with a frown. He crept towards the two of them and whispered into their ears. ¡°There are fire worms nearby.¡± ¡°Whats a fire-worm?¡± Cal whispered back, earning a frustrated look from their chaperone. ¡°They are a grub that eats the Sweating Trees,¡± Ella explained. ¡°When frightened, they spit burning oil. Very dangerous.¡± ¡°¡­.Sweating trees?¡± Cal asked. Chuela ran his palm down his face in the universal sign of tired frustration. ¡°I hate teaching,¡± he said, then grabbed a nearby leaf that was slick with moisture, smearing it on his palm and holding it up for Cal¡¯s inspection. The big, bearded warrior¡¯s hand was slimy with oil. ¡°When you see these, smell for worms. They smell like tangy smoke.¡± He said, wiping his hand off on a nearby bush. A moment later, he stopped them and pointed at a tree covered in foot-long white maggots that seemed to be happily munching away at the leaves. ¡°So can we take them down from a distance?¡± Cal asked, raising his bow before he was stopped by a firm hand. ¡°When Fireworm guts meet air¡­¡± Chuela made an explosion noise and spread his hands apart. ¡°We go around.¡± When the guts meet air, huh? Cal thought, storing that little nugget of information. Something was tickling the back of his mind. An idea for a way to further advance his style of Splitting. They passed by some kind of dead rat, about three feet long with shaggy fur. Its body was swarming with large buzzing wasps busily disassembling the body. Cal¡¯s heart skipped a beat as he spotted one of the things he¡¯d been looking for. ¡°Prey of the Fever Wasps. They won¡¯t bother us while they¡¯re busy with their prey.¡± Chuela watched the corpse for a moment. ¡°The hive is that way. We go around.¡± As they passed by the corpse, Cal swiftly snatched one out of the air and stuffed it in his mouth, crunching down on the creature with his teeth and swallowing before it had an opportunity to sting him. Bleh. Entire creature eaten, would you like to assign it to a slot in the Chained Spirit ability? Yes. All Slots filled. Fever Wasp: Aggressive carnivorous flying insect with highly venomous sting. Summon 1 Fever Wasp, 1 minute. ¡°Brainless Aihue!¡± Chuela whispered, dragging him bodily away from the Fever Wasps. ¡°You¡¯re lucky they didn¡¯t massacre you. They can smell when one of their own is attacked. Get out of here.¡± ¡°Understood, I was just curious.¡± Cal said as he was dragged away by the collar of his shirt. Ella watched him with a perplexed expression, shaking her head. He could feel exasperation and concern from her gaze, not suspicion, which was good. A few minutes later the found what they were looking for, signs that a small herd of Bueya had passed by. Bueya were low to the ground, flat, fifty pound herbavores that dug shallow holes in the ground to eat the soft roots of trees and bushes. They came across the creatures rooting through the ground in stand of trees, placidly munching on roots torn out of the ground by their sharp claws. They were brown and white with wide chests and long fur. They almost looked fluffy, but that fluff served to disguise the spines on their backs. ¡°These things are faster than they look,¡± Chuela whispered, pointing to the animals nearly sixty feet away. ¡°After the first shot, they¡¯ll scatter, and we won¡¯t be able to track them down again.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you just shoot eight of them at once?¡± Calvin asked. Chuela grinned. ¡°I¡¯m just here to make sure you don¡¯t die or slip your collar, boy. Show me what Ella¡¯s pet wizard can do.¡± ¡°You¡¯re carrying them,¡± Cal whispered, unslinging his bow. The view here was bad. More than half of them were hidden by trees. He knocked one of the rough Genosian arrows and sighted on a Bueya, drew and released without too much care. Mass Splitting. 10/11 Bent Remaining. The air around the Bueya became seething with speeding arrows bouncing off of each other, pinning each and every one of them to the ground. A few of them twitched pitifully for a moment or two, before going still. ¡°Whaddya think about that-¡° Cal turned to see a fist come down on his head, hard. He hissed in pain as the warrior¡¯s knuckles sent searing pain along his skull. ¡°I think you ruined the hides and most likely punctured the musk glands, making the meat nearly inedible.¡± Chuela said. ¡°In addition to wiping out the entire herd, so there is no possibility of more Bueya being found in this area for a long time. We can¡¯t even carry it all, so we¡¯ll have to leave some here to rot. This isn¡¯t all out warfare, you child, this is hunting. Think about that while you chew on musk-flavored Bueya penis tonight.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Cal said, wincing. Bueya penis did not sound appetizing, but Chuela was right; he hadn¡¯t been thinking. The self-reflection must have triggered something, because Cal got his fifth level of Hunting right then and there. Hunting has reached Level 5! Level 5: Boosts locating and tracking prey, 25% correction +1 Will ¡°Now help me find which ones have unpunctured Musk glands,¡± Chuela said, motioning for him to follow. Please choose an Ability or mutation. Abilities: Agent of Natural Selection: Know which animals to kill and which to keep, raising the quality and health of game over time. Harvester: Hunting Bonus now also applies to butchering prey. 1 Bent: Instantly Dissassemble a creature into its useful materials. Clean kill: Applies a correction to shots fired upon prey animals, steering them toward their vitals. Camouflage: 1 Bent/6 hours. Blend in with the environment, lose your scent. Mutations: Predator¡¯s senses: Pick a sense, (Sight, Sound, Smell, Touch, Taste). That sense becomes heightened to match a predator that uses it to hunt. Blood Compass: after tasting something¡¯s blood, know its exact direction for 24 hours. Prey¡¯s Body: You run good. A substantial boost to reflexes, cardiovascular strength, lung capacity, and leg strength. Damn, those mutations look good, Cal thought to himself as Chuela watched him with irritation. I choose Harvester. Cal thought. There was a mental squiggle, and the technique for the ability lodged itself in his mind. Abilities didn¡¯t require a period of sleep to readjust the body, since they were more techniques than changes to the body itself. Oh yes, this is perfect, Cal thought, studying the details of the ability. Now I should be able to butcher those Bueya no problem¡­among other things, Cal thought, following Chuela to the clearing where the fifteen Bueya were pitifully skewered to the ground. As he approached, the smell turned awful, like some kind of burnt¡­asshole, had been tied to a string and batted around by sweaty teenagers. ¡°I¡¯ll, um¡­ I¡¯ll stay over here, and leave Calvin to his punishment,¡± Ella said, her nose wrinkling. ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡± Chuela said. Once Cal stood in the middle of the disgusting smelling mess, he dismissed the copied arrows and retried his one from the loamy earth. He¡¯d missed. ¡°Help me figure out which ones have undamaged Musk glands,¡± Chuela said, pointing around them. ¡°how am I supposed to do¡­nevermind,¡± Cal said as he watched Chuela bend over and sniff a Bueya¡¯s crotch. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve sniffed worse things, but not recently,¡± Cal said, getting on his knees and sniffing the animal¡¯s junk. Immediately he felt like some cosmic force had travelled up his nostrils, singing all the hairs on the way up before punching him in the face. Cal turned away and retched, barely keeping his lunch down as Chuela laughed. Seems like a good target, Cal thought, sneezing and coughing as he pulled out his twine. ¡°I want to try something.¡± Cal said, imagining the creature skinned, its meat cut into neat packages bound with twine, its hide removed and whole, its musk gland closed and unperforated. Cal Bent down to touch the creature. Harvester 9/11 Bent remaining. Cal felt the ball of twine shrink in his hand, and suddenly the animal was gone, replaced with scraped bone, a tidy hide wrapped around a twined together package of meat, and a pile of guts topped with two little round balls, cinched at the top with twine, sloshing full of musk. ¡°I see you took Harvester.¡± Chuela said, watching him impassively. ¡°Thought it might help.¡± ¡°It¡¯s an extravagance¡­but it¡¯s your Bent, boy. I appreciate the thought.¡± I don¡¯t know if you saw what I saw, Cal thought. The ability had repaired the hide and the scent glands, allowing him to take them whole. That was exactly what he wanted. ¡­something like a fire-worm¡¯s flammable guts, safely sealed inside its own stomach? Or the poison of a Joyaga without risking death from handling it improperly? Or a spider¡¯s web drawn straight from within its body? There¡¯s more to this ability than convenience. ¡°I can do four more, I want to save the rest for an emergency.¡± ¡°Mm,¡± Chuela nodded and pointed out four more badly mangled Bueya. ¡°Salvage those,¡± he said as five of his other copies began cutting poles to carry the meat-filled hides between them with. Cal slipped one of the scent-glands into his pocket, moving on to the four prey animals that Chuela had pointed out. 8/11 Bent remaining. 7/11 Bent remaining. 6/11 Bent remaining. 5/11 Bent remaining. Cal was packing up the last of the meat, his twine halfway gone, when he felt someone looking at him with¡­hunger? Cal glanced up and spotted Chuela very slowly reaching for his club, his eyes fixed on the canopy. The hungry gaze was coming from the canopy. Cal looked up and wished he hadn¡¯t. Bulbous, pitch black eyes of an insect whose entire head was about the size of a yurt stared back at him. Its mandibles twitched. The creature was huge and segmented, each segment the size of a building, with ten foot-long legs for days. Cal couldn¡¯t even see the end of it, since it faded off into the distance. It was the thing Aoehe had pointed out from the mountaintop. ¡°Children,¡± Chuela said, gathering Ella¡¯s attention from where she was tying the packaged meat to poles. ¡°Set the meat down and slowly walk away from it.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 20: Bad to Worse ¡°It¡¯s a Kugeya,¡± Chuela said, pointing west, toward the mountainside as his eight bodies slowly stood, their skin turning silver. ¡°You go that way, and find a place to hide. Your Father will be sending more-¡° The creature, whatever it was, had no concept of the social faux pas of interrupting a man¡¯s words, sliding sinuously between the treetops and crashing down to the ground on top of him. Calvin nearly jumped out of his skin as the creature moved like a gust of wind, burying Chuela in the ground with a single enormous talon, causing the earth to tremble. The other seven Chained spirits sprang into action, showing remarkable acrobatics for their size. Three of them used their enhanced strength to leap fifteen feet into the air and bound off of the nearby trees, aiming for the creature¡¯s back. The other four focused their fire on one of its giant black eyes, attempting to blind it. Their arrows bounced off a thick, clear layer of¡­something. Whatever kept the eye, inside the eye. One of the midair Chuela shouted something in Genosian and accelerated midair, slamming into the creature¡¯s armored antennae, causing it to flinch and shake it¡¯s head. Looks like they still have their Bent. How does that even work? Cal thought as one of the archer Chuela unleashed what was obviously a Penetrating Shot. Somehow the creature seemed to see this coming and turned it¡¯s eye aside. The arrow buried itself feather¡¯s deep into the thing¡¯s armor, causing it to hiss in pain. If they still have their Bent, is that spell creating Bent out of nothing? Or maybe Chuela recharges Bent while he¡¯s not active? But that doesn¡¯t explain how they all have it. Is it the amount he had when he died? If that¡¯s the case, it¡¯s totally breaking the rules. If there are rules. Hypothetically, were I to eat Ella (Not in the fun way), while she had maximum Bent, does that mean I could summon her for one, and drain eight or more out of her? repeat ad infinitum? Maybe it¡¯s a large pool. Maybe some of the user¡¯s will is used to refill aforementioned pool, then doled out to the summons on a case-by case. Or it could even be like insurance, a large amount of Bent contributed to by everyone who uses the chained spirit summoning, that can be drawn out as needed. In either of those cases, I could basically steal the pool right out from under them, or use the personal pool as backup Bent storage, and all I¡¯d have to do is¡­eat a girl. Hmmm¡­this line of thinking seems like it¡¯ll stay purely hypothetical. Or maybe I simply can¡¯t steal Bent from them because it¡¯s not Bent anymore, and the Abilities they use is simply an effect of the Chained Spirit spell. The only way to find out would be to¡­eat a girl¡­ Foiled again. Well, maybe if someone else¡¯s Chained Spirit was female I could see if I could- ¡°What in the name of Euaha are you doing, move!¡± Ella grabbed Cal¡¯s ragged hide shirt and yanked him out of the clearing. Oh right, giant monster. Cal stumbled a few steps, off balance because of the grey hand holding onto his collar. A moment later she let go, and he began to run in earnest, barely keeping up with Ella¡¯s swift form in front of him. Limber, Cal thought as she leaped over a stand of bushes without bothering to slow down, her hide skirt stretched tight. ¡°Where are we going?¡± Calvin yelled, following her over the bush. His jump wasn¡¯t nearly as graceful, and his hide skirt got snagged by the thorny bush. Luckily the leather was tougher than the wood. ¡°The base of the mountain has thousands of caves!¡± she yelled back at him. ¡°After it finishes Chuela and the meat, it¡¯s going to track us! We need to get into somewhere it can¡¯t follow!¡± ¡°Sounds good to me!¡± Cal said, sprinting after her at full speed. They plowed past another nest of wasps so quickly the flesh-eating insects didn¡¯t even have time to get upset, filling the air behind them with a viscious buzzing. Ella yelped and ducked underneath an innocuous looking branch, so Calvin did too. Glancing back, he spotted wings and talons unfurling from the branch as it disconnected from the tree, turning to face a slowly darkening set of eyes toward them. He could feel its hunger. Evil branch monsters. Noted. ¡°Is everything out here trying to kill us!?¡± Cal demanded as they ran. Ella glanced over her shoulder and grinned, sticking out her tongue. That¡¯s a long tongue. Cal thought, bemused as they sprinted for the base of the mountain. ¡°Right there!¡± Ella shouted, pointing at a black hollow in the side of the mountain, a few hundred yards away, surrounded by ancient trees. They had been running nearly half an hour and were beginning to flag when they heard the sound of crashing behind them. The entrance was just ahead, but Calvin glanced behind him and knew they didn¡¯t have the time to get to it. He could make out the Kugeya in the distance, gaining on them effortlessly. Damn. Cal pulled out his snare rope and carefully grabbed the end that wasn¡¯t sharp. With the desperation of the pursued, he swung it twice around his head and sent it sailing up into the treetops. Mass Splitting. Mass splitting. 3/10 Bent remaining. Dupdomancy has reached Level 10! +1 to Will Level 10: 100 pounds, 50 minutes. His snare rope that was riddled with hooks and sharp bits of obsidian was multiplied a hundredfold, spreading out among the treetops and catching on the branches and each other to create a web of rope between them and the giant¡­centipede looking thing. Cal didn¡¯t bother to see how it worked. He didn¡¯t have time for that. He turned and sprinted with everything he had, putting his head down and running. Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Multi-split- ¡°I Choose Shaping!¡± Cal shouted as he ran, branches scraping his arms and legs as he bulled through them without bothering to brush them aside. ¡­Let me finish, geez. A few seconds later the canopy¡¯s crashing redoubled as the creature hit a snag, trees folding in around it as the ropes tugged on them. Cal had originally meant to use his snag-rope with Splitting as a kind of vicious bolas, but this worked too. Cal¡¯s moment spent throwing the rope allowed Ella to get far ahead of him, and she turned around at the entrance, casting her gaze back at him. She shouted something, but Cal didn¡¯t look back. He could feel the creature¡¯s hungry gaze boring into his back. No need to look over his shoulder and possibly stumble. Full speed ahead was the only answer. Ella threw her hand forward and a green bolt of energy flew above Cal¡¯s head. An instant later, there was a rush of displaced air that brushed against his back, and the ground shook. Nope, not looking, Cal thought as he ran. If she could have paralyzed the whole thing, she would have done so earlier. She probably just weakened it enough to miss its killing lunge. Ella was standing in the entrance, and rather than mince words, slide around her, or ask her to get out of the way, he slammed into her and sent both of them rolling into the darkness of the cave. Ow, OW! Cal tumbled along, lumpy rocks bruising his delicate human body as he took his turn on the bottom of the tangled pile of limbs. Eventually they came to a stop at the bottom of a shallow depression in the floor. Cal was on his back, lying in three inches of stagnant water, but all he could feel was Ella¡¯s body pressed up against his own, pinning him to the ground. ¡°Well, that was exciting,¡± she said, throwing her forearms over him and resting her chin against his chest, making him acutely aware of where her soft breasts were squishing up against his lower belly. Just a few inches away¡­ ¡°We good?¡± Cal barely had the presence of mind to ask, lifting his head to look toward the cave entrance. What he saw was unnerving, and immediately sidelined any contemplation about the girl¡¯s proximity. The creature¡¯s enormous eye was staring right back at him, its inky black depths framed by the cave walls were the only thing he could see. ¡°It¡¯s too big to get in,¡± Ella responded. ¡°Kugeya aren¡¯t known for their digging skills, so we should be safe once it gives up on us.¡± Call was about to answer when the enormous insect reeled back and smashed the cave entrance with a force that shook the earth, causing bits of rock to shake loose from the wall, and sloshing around the stagnant water. An enormous orange insectoid leg entered the cave and thrashed around, only making it halfway to them. The thing was covered in large hairs and had two massive talons at the end. Failing to catch them, the talons dug into the solid stone of the cave, screeching when they struck a vein of obsidian. As good as it felt to have Ella on top of him, the giant insect trying to eat them killed the mood. ¡°Later?¡± Cal asked, glancing back at her face that rested inches away from his own. ¡°If you¡¯re good,¡± she replied casually, but he could feel an undercurrent of intense anticipation in her gaze. It had become rather difficult to mislead Cal since the Feel Intent mutation. ¡°Pfft, I know you want me,¡± Cal said, pushing her up and rolling out of the shallow pool of water, not enjoying the icy stream of water making its way down his spine toward his more sensitive bits. Another impact against the side of the mountain put cracks through the floor and sent Calvin back to the ground, getting his Genosian-issued leather kilt wet this time around. It bears mentioning that Genosians don¡¯t believe in underwear for men. Cal was about to break into a scathing critique of Genosian dress, but a rumbling filled the narrow cavern that didn¡¯t seem to have anything to do with the Kugeya outside. ¡°Was that-¡° The floor fell out from beneath them. Cal had the unique sensation of floating as his heartbeat pounded in his ears. Time seemed to slow down, and for an instant, he made eye contact with Ella. Aww, she¡¯s worried about me. Then cold the likes of which Cal had never experienced wrapped around him, causing him to take a startled breath. His lungs filled with water. Before he could even think of what was happening, his body tried to cough it out, filling his lungs with more water, while his body¡¯s heat was wicked away from him at an astonishing pace. I¡¯m under water, I need to swim up! The only rational thought Cal was able to have over the searing pain in his lungs and the rapidly spreading numbness in his limbs. Which way is up? In the tumultuous fall and subsequent plunge, he¡¯d gotten all turned around, and had no idea which direction was which. Just pick a direction and go for it! Cal thought, swimming forward with every ounce of power he could. He didn¡¯t know what direction the air was in, making it impossible to copy until he knew. Cal swam ask quickly as he could, his vision rapidly filling with stars as oxygen deprivation set in. An instant later, his numb fingers jolted against something hard, and then a stone outcropping slammed against his forehead. The last feeling Calvin had was the searing pain in his forehead as all his other senses went dark. Macronomicon Long story. Anyway have fun! There''s ehhh, about 12 more up on Patreon for those who can''t wait that long. Chapter 21: The Thing in the Cell ¡°Gregor¡¯s still out there,¡± Reginald whispered, leaning back from the pinhole Elaine had created in the stone. ¡°It¡¯s not Gregor.¡± Andrew said, his jaw set. ¡°Gregor is dead, and something is wearing his body like a skin-suit. Keep it straight ¨C¡° He leaned forward in the narrow confines and tapped Reginald on the skull ¨C ¡°in your head, or you¡¯ll hold back when we kill it.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s a pain in the ass,¡± Elaine said, leaning back in the tiny stone room they were resting in, hiding away from the mechanical monsters and haunted rooms. ¡°Where are we supposed to find another burglar with more than four breaks?¡± ¡°Problem for another time,¡± Andrew said. ¡°Right now, the issue is removing the field and getting the hell out of here. Elaine, if we found whatever is casting the damn thing and destroyed it, do you think you could tunnel us to the surface?¡± ¡°It¡¯d be tricky, my stone shaping magic is a lot easier with open air to move into.¡± ¡°But could you do it?¡± ¡°Not with the Bent I have. If your objective is maximum safety, we could camp out in a safe room for a week first. Then yeah, I could get us to the surface in maybe a couple days. As long as you guys aren¡¯t claustrophobic.¡± ¡°Do we have supplies for that long?¡± ¡°Shit,¡± Reginald muttered. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Gregor had the last of the water.¡± Karen perked up at that. Three days without water, that was the rule. You could stretch it out by a couple days by drinking your own piss, but it quickly turned poisonous. ¡°Out of way,¡± she whispered, tapping Reginald on the shoulder. Reginald scuttled out of the way, and Karen laboriously leaned down to the hole, her size and heavy armor at odds with the cramped space. ¡°Shit.¡± She cursed when she finally lined her eyeball up with the pinhole. Formerly Gregor had found the pack and was busily carving runes into his skin with the dead man¡¯s knife, speaking strange words that rumbled through the stone and made her stomach turn. His face bulged out in odd places, skin stretched tight over something inside him. ¡°It¡¯s doing something.¡± Karen said, glancing at Andrew. Basic etiquette for fighting dictated that they shove their metal boots up his ass before he could finish. ¡°Something not good.¡± ¡°We already lost Gregor to that thing before it had a body, what makes you think it¡¯ll stay down this time?¡± ¡°It¡¯s distracted with something.¡± Karen said. ¡°I¡¯ll cut its feet off, then we run.¡± ¡°And if it can leave for a new body at the drop of a hat?¡± Reginald said. ¡°Well then we¡¯re already screwed aren¡¯t we?¡± Karen snarled at him, her ire at the young fool rising. ¡°The rule of thumb, Reginald, is to always plan as if you¡¯re not completely screwed, because what¡¯s the alternative? Planning to be screwed?¡± Andrew said. ¡°Understood sir.¡± Reginald said, trying and failing to salute in the tiny box. ¡°Take the stick outta your ass, kid.¡± ¡°Aww, you can stick it in my ass, Reggie,¡± Elaine said, drawing the handsome nobleson into a hug, her breasts engulfing his face. ¡°You¡¯re gross,¡± Karen said. ¡°I have fun.¡± Elaine shot back, sticking her tongue out. ¡°Besides, Reggie¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve had a challenge in-¡° Andrew interrupted them by clearing his throat. ¡°The. Monster. Ten feet away. Has Priority.¡± he said, pointing with his thumb. ¡°Elaine, when I give the signal, open the door. I go out first and make a lunge for his chest. Karen, you follow behind and disable one leg.¡± ¡°Reginald.¡± Reggie said something muffled from between Elaine¡¯s mammaries. ¡°You grab Gregor¡¯s pack and keep moving to the left hand side. speed walk, not sprint. Remember getting split up is a death sentence.¡± ¡°Elaine.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Follow up behind Reggie, and pick up anything that spills from the back, especially the waterskin.¡± ¡°please, you know I¡¯m go-¡° ¡°Not a word from you,¡± Andrew said pointing at her, gritting his teeth. Elaine sent Karen a plaintive look, her lower lip jutting out. ¡°You know Elaine¡¯s good at cleaning up spills.¡± Karen said, rolling her eyes. ¡°Why do I even bother?¡± Andrew said with a sigh. ¡°Not the wording I would have used, but close.¡± Elaine said. ¡°I give it a pass.¡± ¡°It means so much to hear you say that.¡± Karen said with all the sarcasm she could muster, getting crouched and ready. Elaine let go of Reggie and settled into a stance. ¡°Ready?¡± Andrew asked. They nodded. ¡°Go.¡± At Elaine¡¯s motion, the pinhole expanded, and Andrew leapt out, clanging forward in his full armor, Karen right behind him. The runes on Gregor¡¯s corpse were starting to flicker with some kind of purple fire, the pattern shifting along his skin as though they were tiny windows to another dimension. Andrew lunged forward with his sword, and Formerly Gregor caught the blade in front of his chest with his bare hand, giving Andrew a feral smile. Karen wordlessly swept up beside him and brought her metal leg down on the creature¡¯s newly acquired fleshy one. Shattering blow 3/8 Bent Remaining. Karen didn¡¯t want to brag, but the creature¡¯s left leg dissolved under the influence of her Ability. She even got a bit of the other leg. It frowned at them and toppled sideways, releasing Andrew¡¯s blade. Reggie swept past at a power walk, carrying Gregor¡¯s backpack, followed by Elaine. Karen put her hand on Andrew¡¯s shoulder, and the two of them followed, Andrew facing backward. The creature snarled and pushed off the ground, clawing at Karen. She put her heavy forearm protectors between herself and the lunging thing. Gregor¡¯s fingertips peeled away to reveal scintillating purple claws that dug into her reinforced steel armor like a knife through cheese. Andrew caught the thing with a stab to the chest, but it didn¡¯t seem to slow it down at all, yanking on Karen¡¯s armor and nearly spinning her around. ¡°Fuckin¡¯¡± Karen snarled and punched the creature away with her other hand, caving in its chest and sending it catapulting backward, its claws tugging out of her protector with a metallic squeal. It hit the opposite wall in a tangle of limbs, tried to stand up and failed. It tried and failed again. Before it could recover, she put her hand back on Andrew¡¯s shoulder and the two of them hustled to catch up with the other two. At the end of the hall, Elaine and Reggie were standing still, staring down at something. Karen walked up beside them and cursed. The hall lead to a spiraling staircase that was partially sheared away by whatever had destroyed this place. ¡°Drew, you¡¯re gonna need eyes on this.¡± Andrew turned and squinted at the staircase. About a third of it was missing, forcing them to jump if they wanted to get down. ¡°Want me to put up a ramp? I could probably make an outcropping about a foot and a half wide to bridge all the gaps.¡± ¡°Your Bent is precious, and I don¡¯t want to make it easier for the Skinwalker to follow.¡± Andrew said, thumbing over his shoulder, pointing to where the creature in Gregor¡¯s body was clawing along the floor toward them. ¡°Can everyone make those jumps?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. My Body is ten, but my Strength is only seven.¡± Elaine. ¡°Reggie, strength.¡± ¡°Twenty-four.¡± Reggie said proudly. ¡°Karen, you take Elaine, Reggie, take her backpack.¡± ¡°Wha-but,¡± Reggie stuttered. ¡°Thirty-six,¡± Elaine said, scooping up Elaine. The mage let out a yelp and then they were jumping to the other side of the shaft, falling through empty space. Karen hit the next set of stairs with a grunt. There was a little shock to the knees, but it was tolerable. ¡°Next one,¡± Karen said. ¡°No wait, I can make a RAAAMP!¡± Elaine screamed in fright as Karen jumped down to the next set of stairs. One they got there, Karen set her down for a moment to wait for the other two. Elaine dropped to her hand and knees, shuddering, while Karen checked out their position. The spiral staircase was studded with doors, each one with a small glass panel allowing a view into the room. Karen had hoped they would lead to halls, or a spinning wheel coated in lightning obviously powering the barrier outside. Then they could smash the damn thing and be on their way. No such luck. What she saw instead was a humanoid skeleton inside what was obviously a prison cell. It had a mound of green scales around it, oddly enough. ¡°What do we got?¡± Andrew asked, landing beside her, Reginald close behind. ¡°Prison cells.¡± Karen said. ¡°Damn, okay, let¡¯s keep going down.¡± ¡°How about I make us a ramp?¡± Elaine asked. ¡°I mean, my Bent comes back pretty fast, it¡¯s no trouble at AAALL!¡± Elaine shrieked as Karen picked her up and bounded to the next staircase. Karen wouldn¡¯t admit it, but she got a tiny hint of sadistic pleasure out of scaring her friend out of her wits. She felt a little bad about it. After a handful more jumps, the stairs came back together, the large cylindrical cut in the floor ended, and they were able to walk. All of them except Elaine, whose legs gave out on multiple occasions, such that Reginald had to walk with her. When Elaine nearly fell a third time, he lent her his shoulder to lean on. When she gave Karen a smirk behind Reginald¡¯s back, Karen dismissed any remorse she had for scaring the slut. They descended the winding stairs, keeping an eye out for the Skinwalker above them. The creature stopped at the top of the stairs, looking down at them from its crawling posture, it¡¯s head barely peeking out beyond the stone lip. It snarled, but it didn¡¯t try to go down the stairs. Karen could have sworn the thing looked afraid before it turning and crawled away. They continued their path downward, Reginald watching for any movement above them while Karen redirected her gaze downward. They were approaching the bottom of the spiral staircase, the light of day from the huge rent in the facility¡¯s ceiling unable to pierce the last few dozen feet or so. Finally they arrived at the bottom, cloaked in shadow. The entrance they¡¯d come from was hundreds of feet above them, and there was still no sign of pursuit from the Skinwalker. ¡°Don¡¯t take your eyes off the stairs until I tell you,¡± Andrew said, tapping Reginald, who¡¯d begun glancing around with curiosity like the others. ¡°Just because it hasn¡¯t followed us doesn¡¯t mean it won¡¯t, and I want every precious second.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Karen glanced around the circular room, and spotted three more cell doors, and a large steel one. That looked important. She was walking to the steel door with the intention of assessing its durability when she caught something out of the corner of her eye. In one of the cells was a pale man with a mischievous look sitting cross-legged, with his eyes closed. He wore a faded orange jumpsuit with a dark numeral written on it. Eight six seven five three zero nine. Karen motioned silently to Andrew, and their leader crept closer, peering into the cell. ¡°Are you going to let me out or not?¡± he asked, his eyes still closed. ¡°How are you still alive?¡± Andrew said. ¡°And not crazy like those other things we¡¯ve seen in here?¡± ¡°Meditation has an Ability to disconnect yourself from the passing of time. Don¡¯t experience time, don¡¯t go insane.¡± The man said. ¡°As for why I¡¯m alive, well, I simply refused to die. So my question stands. Are you going to let me out or not?¡± ¡°Which way¡¯s the thing making the forcefield?¡± ¡°End of the hall, on the left.¡± He said, pointing. He finally opened his eyes. unlike what Karen was expecting, there was no glow behind his eyes, no magical sheen, or milky white pupils, he had simple brown eyes. ¡°It that¡­ knight armor? Are you guys a deadly squad of government LARPers or have I been out longer than I thought?¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± Andrew said. ¡°Elliot Spencer, System Engineer. Had a disagreement with the Harbingers about how things should be run. Didn¡¯t go well for me.¡± ¡°Please tell me you¡¯re not going to let this guy out.¡± Elaine said. ¡°He¡¯s obviously some kind of undead.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± the man snapped, meeting the mage¡¯s gaze with a stern look, his bones momentarily glowing through his skin. A moment passed and he broke into a smirk. ¡°I resemble that remark.¡± ¡°And if we don¡¯t let you out?¡± Andrew asked. ¡°That¡¯s fine. I estimate I can outlast this cell by a few thousand years. Me being free is not a matter of how, but when.¡± Andrew gave Karen a glance, and she knew what it meant. For an adventurer, Andrew was a man who hated taking chances. He was going to let the undead creature rot in there. That sat fine with Karen. ¡°Who are you guys talking to?¡± Reggie asked glancing over at them. ¡°Reggie watch the damn-¡° Splat! The skinwalker hit the floor, and Gregor¡¯s corpse splattered on the solid black stone, sending bits of him everywhere. A fraction of a second later, the swirling purple essence tore out of Gregory¡¯s chest in a burst of viscera and dived toward Andrew. Karen delivered a front kick to Andrew¡¯s armor, and propelled them both out of the way. The purple mist splashed against the black stone and recomposed itself, scanning them for weakness. ¡°Oh my. Looks like you¡¯ve got a Keraat infestation. Those things are nasty. Come from the other side of the Siphon.¡± The remarkably well preserved undead spoke as if none of it had any effect on him, sidling up to the door and watching like a spectator at a play. ¡°Say Emergency Decontamination.¡± He said, leaning on the door, watching them dodge the purple wisp of smoke. Nobody wanted to end up like Gregor. ¡°Emergency decontamination!¡± Elaine shouted. There was a whining in the floor as several columns of stone unlocked, sliding upward, revealing nozzles. A pleasant woman¡¯s voice emerged from everywhere. Please provide Identification. ¡°Say Omega protocol.¡± ¡°Omega protocol!¡± Scanning for Harbinger Personnel¡­ searching for Harbinger Transmissions¡­ Omega Protocol Accepted. Temporary Overseer Status bestowed. Please reissue Commands. ¡°Emergency Decontamination!¡± Elaine shouted again. The columns grew little metallic nozzles and shot heatless green flames at the purple mist. It sank into the floor with a death scream that grated against their very souls. ¡°Ta-da!¡± the man in the cell said with a grin and jazz hands. ¡°I know a bunch of tricks that could help you get out of here safely. For example, the way to shut down the forcefield without smashing it and sinking the whole site into the Warp, which I assume was your plan.¡± Andrew met Karen¡¯s eyes, and she could see that his opinion had changed. he now saw this...thing as an asset. **** ¡°NO!¡± Kala leapt out of her bed, every hair on her body standing straight up. Seer has reached level 3! Seer level 3: See the truth of the soul. I wish I had never eaten that mushroom, Kala thought sourly, rubbing the goosebumps on her arms. And why do I keep witnessing Karen¡¯s past? She hadn¡¯t even had a reaction to Karen, hadn¡¯t paid any attention to her. The thing inside Calvin on the other hand¡­ Her goosebumps came back. Whatever it was, she had to get it out of him. It was early morning, maybe five o¡¯clock, her bedroom curtains barely had any light shining out from beneath them. She¡¯d only gotten four hours of fitful sleep, and if she was going to make a full day of it tomorrow, she needed every hour she could get. She laid back down and tried to calm herself, tell herself that nothing could hurt her in her dreams. Just when her heartbeat was beginning to slow, a knock on the door started her out of her hazy half-dream. Of course I can¡¯t get a full night¡¯s sleep. In what world would that ever happen? Kala calmed her inner rage and put on her princess-voice. ¡°What is it?¡± she asked sweetly. ¡°Princess, I apologize for waking you, but your father urgently requires your presence. Please get dressed to travel.¡± Dressed to travel? She thought, frowning. Macronomicon Chapter 22: More in the Brochure. The next time Cal opened his eyes, all he could see was grey-purple, and all he could feel was the need to expel the water in his lungs. Before he was able to control himself, he coughed a spray of water straight into Ella¡¯s mouth, and the both of them spent the next couple minutes coughing bits of water out of their lungs. There was a warm trickle going down over his eye, and when Cal pressed a hand to it, it came back darkened with blood, looking black in the dim light. Why can I even see? Cal thought, glancing around. The same blue dots that had been embedded in the walls of the freezer were here as well, but they were embedded in regular stonework, so perfect that it had to have been man-made. Are we in a ruin? Cal thought. Is the entire mountain a ruin? Shortly after that thought, the wound in his forehead began hurting, cutting through the icy numbness. It wasn¡¯t his biggest concern. His biggest concern was the fact that he couldn¡¯t feel his limbs. Cal began to shiver violently as he glanced around the room he found himself in. They were on a stone shelf abutting a doorway, with a river to their left. The river had a strange greenish hue in the dim blue lights above them. ¡°Here,¡± Ella said, taking her knife and cutting Cal¡¯s shirt away from him. She cut a long strip and bound it around his head, cutting off the vision from his left eye in the process. ¡°I-I thought th-the g-girl is s-supposed to shred her o-own c-clothes to w-wrap the hero¡¯s wounds.¡± Calvin tried to joke as his numb arms and legs shivered violently. ¡°A-also why aren¡¯t y-you freezing?¡± ¡°The hero?¡± Ella asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°The icewater must have caused brain damage. We don¡¯t have any time to waste.¡± Without waiting for him, she shrugged off her clothes, giving him barely a moment to gawk at her luscious body in the dim blue light before she tugged off his hide kilt and drew him into a spooning hug. Her full breasts practically engulfed him, pressing softly against his back and shoulders, her smooth stomach against his back. At least, that¡¯s what he assumed was happening. ¡°Wish I c-could actually f-feel anyth-thing.¡± Calvin said, facing the river. ¡°I¡¯ll bet.¡± Ella reached up to her mouth winced as she yanked out one of her sharp teeth, a few drops of blood dripping from her mouth as she held it out in front of the two of them. ¡°What in the world are you doing?¡± Black Bent follow her veins and infused the triangular tooth. A moment later, a wave of heat washed over the two of them, radiating from her tooth, sending the first tingles of feeling along his skin. ¡°Maje must never be unarmed.¡± She said, handing him the tooth. ¡°It will grow back in a few weeks.¡± ¡°People¡¯s teeth don¡¯t just grow back.¡± Cal said. ¡°My people¡¯s do.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± The tooth radiated heat for a good hour before it began to dissipate, but by that time, Calvin was already beginning to regain some of his own body heat, and best of all, he could feel Ella pressing against him, radiating her own gentle warmth. ¡°I think I know why successful Wizard-kings use women as furniture now.¡± Calvin said. ¡°It¡¯s pretty much the best feeling ever.¡± ¡°I take it you¡¯re feeling better then?¡± she asked. ¡°Um, no, totally still numb, brrrr. You should keep holding me.¡± ¡°Oh, okay. I was only asking because my back is getting cold, and if you¡¯re warmed up we could switch places.¡± Switching places meant he would be spooning her, pressed up against her soft hips, his hands wrapped around to her¡­front. There was a ninety-five percent chance she was baiting him, and a five percent chance he¡¯d get to grab her boobs. ¡°I¡¯m almost uncomfortably warm, maybe I should take a turn on the outside?¡± Calvin said before he even finished calculating the odds. Ella chortled, standing up and tugging her clothes back on, they were half dry from the cloud of heat around the tooth. Damn. Worth a shot. Cal stood and pulled his damp hide clothes back on, shivering as they began wicking away his precious heat. It wasn¡¯t a lethal amount of chilling anymore, though. Not going through the ruin naked, no thank you. ¡°How much Bent do you have?¡± She asked. ¡°Four, I got one back while we were laying there,¡± he said. ¡°You?¡± ¡°Eight.¡± ¡°Which way did we come from?¡± Calvin asked, glancing down the stream. Ella pointed down the left hand side. ¡°In a lot of stories, there¡¯s a cave in or a long drop that makes the protagonists think they can¡¯t go back, and should instead venture into the unknown because it¡¯s somehow more doable than traversing a couple hundred feet of ice-cold stream.¡± ¡°That sounds oddly specific.¡± Ella said, frowning. ¡°Can you keep a secret?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Depends.¡± Chained Spirit 3/11 Bent Remaining Calvin held out a hand and with a tiny puff of green, a wasp rested on his hand. Cal could feel a link form between the two of them, a kind of dreamlike sense of being something else at the same time. ¡°Is that-¡° The wasp stung him, jamming its butt-needle into his palm. The only thing he could feel from the link was unbridled aggression. ¡°Ow, fuck!¡± Cal flung the wasp, which righted itself in midair and tried to come in for another sting on the fleshy prey. He clenched his aching fist and grabbed hold off the link, and forced the wasp to stop. The orange and black creature dropped out of the air like a stone, forcing Calvin to catch it as gently as he could. ¡°Having some trouble there?¡± she asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have happened to use my people¡¯s most sacred ritual to have a mindless insect as your Incha Huala, would you?¡± ¡°Is that a death sentence?¡± Cal asked, glancing over his shoulder. She didn¡¯t look like she was about to kill him, just aghast as his poor decision making skills. ¡°Just¡­really, really, dumb. How¡¯d you even learn it?¡± ¡°I saw it a bunch during my Forming Day. I figured it out.¡± ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡± She said, her arms crossed. ¡°To protect the innocent.¡± ¡°By Euaha, Melau taught it to you, didn¡¯t she? She¡¯s going to get the mother of all spankings when I get hold of her.¡± Sense-grafting 2/11 Bent remaining Suddenly, Cal¡¯s left eye was seeing everything from the wasp¡¯s point of view, where it rested on his hand. Go to the end of the hall and come back. The wasp didn¡¯t do anything. It still radiated primal aggression against all non-wasp creatures in the area. Looks like the commands have to be pretty simple. Fly that way. Cal gave it a mental nudge, and his point of view lifted off of his palm and took off down the stream. After a few seconds, he got the hang of mentally controlling the raging sting-monster, giving it a constant stream of simple orders while he nursed his swelling hand. It zoomed along above the water, eventually coming to a spot where the stream and the ceiling nearly met. Damn, not coming back that way without getting wet. Once he got to the cave-in, his hopes were crushed by the sheer amount of stone that had filled the hole in the ceiling. As it stood, Calvin didn¡¯t have any form of magic that he was able to get him back through the ice-water stream and cave-in. There was an odd prickling as the wasp reached its time limit and vanished, disconnecting his left eye and plunging it back into darkness behind the temporary bandage that left his midsection drafty. Need to raise Chained spirit, because 1 minute is unacceptable. On the other hand, the poison in my hand is gone. His hand was rapidly deflating, the ache diminishing by the second. ¡°Definitely aren¡¯t getting back that way.¡± Cal said, glancing back at the doorway in front of them. If Cal wasn¡¯t in pain and scared for his life, he would suspect trickery. ¡°Alright, come on,¡± he said, creeping through the doorway, glancing around. When he glanced over his shoulder to see if Ella was coming, she was watching him with her arms crossed. She raised an eyebrow. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going, Mr. Hypothermic Head Wound?¡± ¡°I¡¯m quieter, and lighter, and if something bad happened to you-oh my god, the Guya¡¯s still in my system.¡± Cal stepped out of the way and motioned her forward. ¡°After you, Nubile Warrior Princess.¡± Together they crept through the hall, thankful for the pale blue dots of light above them. The dark walls were covered in slime from hundreds of years of moisture, giving an almost natural appearance to the man-made hallway. The hall was big enough for both of them to walk side-by-side, armed with nothing but their knives. Cal¡¯s darts were still hanging on his kilt, thankfully, but the rest of his hunting gear had been swept downstream. Now the challenge was to find a way to the surface before they starved to death. They crept along, navigating the empty halls, and peeking in doorways that had long since rusted open. There were piles of rust and mold that looked like they had once been beds, mold where there had been cabinets and shelves. Lines of rust on the floor where coathangers had ceased to exist. Cal ducked into one of the rooms and poked through the mold with his knife. I can see it now, the mold comes to life and swallows me up. Clink! Clink? Calvin peeled a bit of mold back and levered a perfectly preserved¡­steel ball-point pen. On the side of the shiny metal was laser etched writing in a strange language he¡¯d never seen. I wonder what the street price of an heirloom pen is, he thought, tucking it in his waistband. Artifacts! This place hadn¡¯t been raided, which meant no one had been here¡­in the hundreds of year the Genosians have been living on this mountain? More likely this section of the ruin had never been explored, because it was cut off from the surface. Signs of human activity would have been a very welcome sign at this point, even if it took the form of a complete lack of valuables. Maybe there¡¯s an artifact for tunneling through solid rock. Cal thought, standing up. He rejoined Ella and continued to walk, casting his gaze this way and that, looking for a way up, anything that would lead them out of this place. The halls fell along a simple grid, and it didn¡¯t take them a long time to scan them all and reach the far wall, the only danger that presented itself in the silent blue halls was slipping hazards. At the end of the hallway along the far wall, they found a circular room filled with blinking panels along the walls and a glowing table of some kind in the center. ¡°Scanning¡­¡± ¡°Greetings, User 1-3-4-1-5-6-6-1-9-7-4.¡± A woman¡¯s voice spoke when Ella entered the room, causing her to jump in place and hold her knife up defensively. ¡°Greetings, User 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-5-6-2¡± The voice said an instant later when Cal walked in. ¡°Um, Greetings.¡± Cal said to the air. ¡°What did she just say?¡± Ella asked, eyeing the blinking panels suspiciously. She seemed a hair¡¯s breadth away from smashing everything. ¡°Greetings, called us users in Malkenrovian.¡± Cal translated. ¡°Welcome to Richie Cool¡¯s Bitchin¡¯ Recharging Station. I am currently disconnected from the Harbinger mainframe, so my resources are limited. I cannot provide up to date statistics on the state of the Warp Encroachment, Your current contribution points, or access to the Shop.¡± ¡°What did she say?¡± ¡°I understood every word, but none of it made any sense,¡± Cal said, shaking his head. ¡°It sounds like she wants to help us.¡± ¡°Can you help us get out of here?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Of course, the exit is marked on the map.¡± Suddenly the glowing blue table flared to life, and a ghostly image began to float above it. it was a simplified map of the strange halls they had been wandering for a couple hours. A red line was drawn from the circular room they were in through the doorway they had entered, and out what looked like a lobby that they hadn¡¯t even seen. ¡°Maybe she can help us get out of here,¡± Ella breathed, not understanding a word of their conversation, but spotting the map. ¡°I¡¯m asking.¡± Cal said in Genosian, then switched gears in his mind, to Karen¡¯s home tongue. ¡°That exit is blocked, do you have another way out?¡± The map expanded into a three-dimensional structure, showing a three-story building with a strange, prong-like object jutting from the top of it. ¡°Emergency exits are marked on the map.¡± Several paths and doors became highlighted in red, including a few routes that they¡¯d passed by. They¡¯d have to check them out again and see if they missed anything. ¡°Excellent, let¡¯s go check those exits out,¡± Ella said, craning her neck to peer out the door. ¡°Hold on, how often do you get to talk to a Ruin?¡± Cal asked. ¡°What is that prong looking thing?¡± Calvin asked, pointing. ¡°Docking bay is currently in use. H-tech charging stations down. Contact Richie for information on wait times. 1-541-275-5528.¡± ¡°Where are you?¡± he asked, glancing around the room. The woman hidden in the walls was making less sense than usual. ¡°Find us on the web at Nothing2Large2charge.Har.Apo.¡± Find them¡­on the web? ¡°Is there some kind of giant spider I should know about? Are you okay?¡± ¡°Massive structural damage detected, nannites and coolant leaks have reached equilibrium with production speed. Estimated repair costs, 35,000 Contribution points.¡± Is that a lot¡­a little? In either case¡­ ¡°That¡¯s¡­not really relevant to what I just said.¡± Cal said. ¡°Brochures are available at the front desk, with a helpful F.A.Q.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯m pretty sure this thing is retarded.¡± Cal said, turning away. Their time would be better served looking for those exits than talking to something that only seemed to speak in nonsensicle babble. Wait. Cal turned back. ¡°What is Warp Encroachment?¡± Rather than the woman¡¯s voice, a man¡¯s stern tone spoke to them in an overbearing, staccato rhythm as a strange symbol began to spin above the table. ¡°Son, Warp Encroachment is the plague that followed the Harbingers when they set their dirty claws on our soil! It is an evil that has poisoned the very fabric of our reality. Unlike what some of you believe, the Harbingers are not magic, they are not saviors¡­They¡¯re sniveling cowards running from a fight! Thankfully, we¡¯ve been able to reverse engineer the Harbinger¡¯s System, and create our own vastly superior one. It is the duty of every red-blooded Federation citizen to participate in the System, kill the creatures that flood through the Siphons, neutralize the Warp, and god willing, kick those filthy Harbingers off our planet. The greatest country in the galaxy is depending on you!¡± A voice started up, speaking words so fast that Cal couldn¡¯t make sense of them until the end, where he barely made out ¡®see your local recruiter¡¯. ¡°What the hell is a galaxy?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Kinda wish I had that brochure.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 23: Emergency Exit The symbol flickered off, returning to the map with the emergency exits marked. ¡°Well, lady, and possible gentleman, you¡¯ve been somewhat helpful, and extraordinarily confusing. I hope you get out of the web, or the walls, or wherever you are.¡± Cal said, glancing around. ¡°Have a nice day!¡± wall-lady said. ¡°Let¡¯s go check those emergency exits.¡± Cal said, tapping Ella on the shoulder, pulling her away from where she was playing with the glowing buttons and dials. The first marked emergency exit was a panel on the ceiling with a handle and a red border. The panel was crumpled somewhat, so they moved on, checking the rest of them. They split up and scavenged the rooms as they went. In the third room he checked, Cal uncovered a silvery orb in in a pile of molding cabinet, a bit bigger than a fist. It was about seven pounds in his hand. When he tugged on it, it gave him an odd resistance, like it was attached to a string, but there was none to be found. He ran his hand all over the perfect sphere, but there was no point at which it was attached to anything. He experimentally tugged on it, feeling the resistance lead in one specific direction. With a few scraped of his knife he uncovered another sphere. This one was smaller, but made of the same material. It was locked in place by a flimsy piece of shiny black¡­something. It wasn¡¯t wood or metal, but it was shiny, as if it had been polished. Odd, but it is a ruin. There was more to be awed at than a strange material he¡¯d never seen before. Cal tugged on the larger sphere again and saw the black material flex when he did so. Calvin braced his feet around the smaller orb and pulled the larger one, putting his back into it. Crack! The smaller orb came free, and swung at the end of the invisible chain. Strangely, Cal didn¡¯t feel it¡¯s weight moving around, which didn¡¯t make sense given he¡¯d just had to pull it out¡­Whatever, it¡¯s an artifact. It doesn¡¯t have to make sense. Cal experimented for a moment, shifting the larger sphere back and forth and allowing the smaller one to swing below it. Even when he swung the smaller one all the way around, he didn¡¯t feel any chain on his fingers or the larger sphere itself. What if I¡­ Cal grabbed the smaller sphere, which fit nicely in his hand, and let the other one fall to the bottom of its invisible two-foot range. The smaller sphere was significantly less heavy, maybe half a pound as compared to the larger one. And he couldn¡¯t feel the weight of the larger one at all. On a whim, Cal began spinning it around, marveling at the complete lack of pull from the larger sphere. It eventually got going so fast Cal was afraid he might hurt someone. The larger sphere was starting to spin so fast that he could hear it hissing through the air. And he still couldn¡¯t feel it¡¯s weight on the smaller one. Cal swung the sphere forward and hit the wall with it. The floor trembled underneath him as the larger silver sphere embedded itself in the stone wall. ¡°Whoah,¡± Ella said, standing in the doorway, arms behind her back, eyes lingering on the orbs with envy. She glanced back to him a moment later. ¡°Wanna see what I found?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Cal said. Something pinched his butt. ¡°Gah!¡± Cal spun around and assumed a battle stand, dropping the sphere and pulling his knife on the offending creature. There was nothing there. Something pinched him again. Cal stood up straight and turned, glaring at Ella, whose face was a mask of innocence. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± she asked, seemingly confused. ¡°You seem to be having trouble.¡± Okay, obviously this is her fault somehow, and related to whatever she¡¯s got behind her back. ¡°What have you got?¡± he said, putting as much menace as he could into his voice. It probably didn¡¯t sound that great coming from him. ¡°Show me what you¡¯ve got there.¡± ¡°Whaaat? I don¡¯t have anything.¡± Something invisible groped his crotch. Cal let out a growl and jumped on the girl that was nearly a foot taller than him. She yelped and held out her hands to stop him a moment too late, and he rode her glorious body to the ground, tickling her mercilessly. ¡°You think you can toy with me!?¡± he demanded as she squealed, too panicked to mount a proper defense. He went for her armpit, and when she curled around it, he aimed of other exposed parts, never stopping long enough to let her catch her breath or turn the tide. That continued for a few minutes until Ella collapsed beneath him, totally out of breath, completely defeated, and utterly gorgeous. Gods damned lack of underwear, Cal thought. We¡¯re gonna need a bigger kilt. ¡°Alright, show me what you got, and no tricks, or you¡¯ll get more of the same.¡± He said like a debt collector about to break some kneecaps. ¡°Here,¡± she said between gasps, holding up her hands. Her hands had strange, thin, fingerless gloves on them. They were dark brown, made of soft leather, with shimmering silver scrollwork along their surface. ¡°Interesting. How does it work?¡± ¡°Just wear ¡®em.¡± she said, catching her breath as she tugged the gloves off. Cal let her up and helped her to her feet before taking the gloves from her. They were bigger now that she¡¯d taken them off, looking like they would fit the hands of someone twice his size. Ella went to the silver orb lodged in the wall and pulled it out before playing with it while Cal put on the gloves. They had some kind of sticky substance that allowed the wrist bands to come apart and accommodate his hands, then the whole glove cinched down around his hands for an ultra-comfortable fit. Cal was a little concerned when a tingling began to spread up his arms, but it faded quickly. Two ghostly hands appeared in Cal¡¯s field of view, mimicking his own. When he mentally nudged them, they moved forward, back, side to side, up and down, but always copying his hand¡¯s posture and orientation relative to each other. Neat. When Cal stopped concentrating on them, the ghostly hands became dim and went limp. He took his knife out of his belt and slid it along the ground, then refocused on the hands. He mentally nudged the hands over to the knife and closed his hand. It was a little awkward, but he managed to pick the knife up. He felt the handle against his fingers, as if he were touching it himself. When he tried to will the hands upward while they were locked around the knife, they refused to move for some reason, and yet, when he raised his hand, the knife levitated off the floor, held in the phantom hand. Since he hadn¡¯t stooped to pick up the knife, he couldn¡¯t raise the knife off the floor more than a couple feet, even raising his hands above his head. Why does it work like that? It seemed like as soon as the hands were interacting with something, he could only move that object via his hand movements, and not simply nudging it around with his mind once it was in his grasp. It was an odd limitation, Maybe a safety mechanism, or the gloves couldn¡¯t provide enough power to simply whisk things around the room with impunity. Which brought up the question: How much power did these things have? ¡°Ella, can you help me test something?¡± She glanced over at him from where she was spinning the orbs like he¡¯d done a few minutes earlier. ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°Hold out your palm. I¡¯m going to press against it, you push back.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Cal put the right phantom hand up to hers and pushed, feeling her palm against his own through the glove. Her hand was pushed back for a moment before she frowned and pushed the hand back. Oddly, Cal didn¡¯t experience any pushback, just the sensation of pressure. ¡°How much force is that?¡± he asked. ¡°Not much, just under an adult with no Breaks, or a little old lady.¡± Hmmm¡­. Calvin pushed the range of the gloves out to the edge of the room, ten feet distant, and didn¡¯t experience any problems wielding the knife. The fact that they weren¡¯t particularly strong didn¡¯t bother him. They were really, really interesting. Cal poked his phantom hand with the knife, and besides a slight prick, he didn¡¯t feel anything, even when the knife began to slide through the phantom hand. Gloves for handling hazardous things at a distance, perhaps? Maybe people used them to shape softened metal by hand or unstick fishing hooks from logs on the other side of streams. ¡°I like ¡®em.¡± he said, dismissing the phantom hands. ¡°Wanna trade?¡± Ella asked, whirling the silver sphere. The pair of orbs was obviously the better weapon, but the gloves were versatile, except for the glaring colors and the nearly glowing wrist-band. The orbs probably weren¡¯t meant to be a weapon, but he could easily see the small one put on the end of a stick and used to wreck someone¡¯s face with the larger one. A chainless flail, essentially. ¡°Deal,¡± Cal said. They searched through the ruins, but didn¡¯t find anything else of note, just moldy scraps of rotten wood and rusty metal. One of the side passages had a ceiling panel that was slightly less damaged than the others, and with the gloves, Cal was able to pull the lever without having to stand on Ella¡¯s shoulders. Which is a good thing, what with the lack of underwear. At this point Cal would do nearly anything for a pair of trousers and some underwear. As he was considering the clothing situation, the panel fell open, dropping a cloud of dust and rust on top of them. A clattering split the silence as a disused ladder slid down to meet them, forcing Cal to dodge out of the way. The steel ladder hit the round, sending sound ringing through the entire floor. ¡°Were they expecting everyone to be giants?¡± he muttered to himself, brushing the dust off and trying not to cough. All they had to go on was the hope that the second or third story of this strange building lead to one of the many cave systems in the porous mountain. What the hell is a building doing inside a mountain, anyway? Cal thought as he climbed the ladder. the way up to the next floor was longer than he¡¯d expected, about fifty feet up before they broke out onto the second floor. Cal climbed out into the stale air, then turned around and gave Ella a hand stepping out of the tunnel. The Second floor was a hallway with little blue lights in the walls, just like the previous one. There were lots of doors, but many of them had obsidian spilling out from beneath them like a strangle black spill. Those doors were always impossible to open. They kept going until they found a door that would open. It led into a room with a strange, sleek, matallic chair and desk combo, unlike anything Cal had ever seen in Surrak. There was a potted plant that had fallen off the side of the desk, somehow still alive. The strange room was generally uncluttered, with a strange obsidian wall laminated with cracked glass. Wait, it¡¯s not an obsidian wall, it¡¯s a window! Cal had seen glass before, but never even considered there could be enough in one place to make an entire side of a building out of it. That was what he was seeing, though. The obsidian was pitted with large air bubbles where it pressed against the glass, but Cal didn¡¯t see any obvious way to the surface. They briefly checked the well-preserved room for anything valuable, but aside from a chair leg Ella ripped off, there wasn¡¯t anything useful. The chair leg was a metal tube, and by bracing the smaller orb against the floor and hammering the metal down around it then cinching the end, she was able to make her weapon. ¡°Eheheheheheh.¡± Ella chuckled menacingly, unaware of how silly her missing tooth made her look. She gave the chair leg a swing, and the bigger orb whipped around at breakneck speed and slammed into the wall, stopping dead once it had delivered its kinetic energy. ¡°You know, I think that was a toy.¡± Calvin said, eyeing a small metal thingamajig floating on the surface of the ancient desk. It didn¡¯t do anything but spin disks around each other in a hypnotic pattern. ¡°Not anymore,¡± She said with satisfaction, admiring her new weapon. There wasn¡¯t a dent on the silver orb. Whatever it was made of, it was a lot tougher than people. They kept walking down the hall, checking the doors, finding that none of them were unlocked and free of obsidian, save the one they¡¯d been through already. It was a few minutes later that Cal smelled something rotten. ¡°Hold up,¡± he whispered, testing the air, trying to locate the source of the smell. ¡°You smell that?¡± ¡°Smells like something died down here. And shit.¡± Ella said, frowning. ¡°I¡¯m only getting hints of it, though. ¡°Anything that was down here when this place was first¡­mountain-ized has long since stopped smelling. If we can smell something dead, that means it came down here in the last year or so, and that means-¡° ¡°A way out.¡± ¡°Assuming the tunnel is bigger than a rat or something.¡± Cal added with a shrug. ¡°best chance we¡¯ve got.¡± They followed their noses, drifting back and forth along the hall, trying to identify the source of the smell. Eventually, Cal bent down to smell at the bottom of each of the doors, until he finally caught a blast of rot in the face. Ugh, moving air currents, a great sign. He inwardly rejoiced as he worked to suppress his retching. ¡°It¡¯s here.¡± He said, pointing to one of the doors with obsidian spilling out of the bottom. There was a little less in this one, enough for air to pass through, anyway. They had tried this door earlier, but now they were determined to get through. Cal stood back as Ella swung the chair leg forward as hard as she could, grunting with effort. The orb smashed through the door with one hit, popping the ancient steel barrier off of a seal of volcanic glass. Ella tugged the mace back, and it pulled the door away from the rusted hinges, nearly toppling down on top of her. With a growl and a yank, she freed her new weapon from the door and tossed it aside. The blue light revealed a room full of rotting bones and excrement, and the stench hit him like a physical force, making Cal reel backward. There was a large tunnel through the volcanic rock leading upward at about a fifteen-degree angle. It was about four feet tall and three feet wide, and it bore the marks of being chipped away by tools. From the tunnel, high pitched shrieks of fury were taken up by dozens of voices, rising to become one ear-piercing cacophony. ¡°Looks like you¡¯ve got an Ungrin infestation,¡± Ella said, readying her weapon, her skin becoming metallic. ¡°Me?¡± Cal demanded. ¡°It¡¯s your mountain!¡± Cal held his hand out, creating another wasp and taking control of it before it could sting him. Chained spirit 1/11 Bent remaining. Chained Spirit has reached Level 2! Chained Spirit Summoning level 2: 20 pound limit, 8 minute. 0 slots available. ¡°If this doesn¡¯t work, I forgive you for pinching me.¡± Cal said. ¡°How generous,¡± She said, standing in the doorway, aiming to block it with her body. In the distance, he could see the little blue men with elongated muzzles and curved canines charging toward them, wielding stone weapons smeared with the cheapest, most effective poison known to man: Shit. Septic wounds were nothing to scoff at, and a favorite tactic of the cowardly monkey-men was to deliver a crippling wound and give it time to fester, until the prey was incapable or resisting, then coming back later. One hit was practically a death sentence if you didn¡¯t have access to potent disinfectants. Which they didn¡¯t The Ungrin were stacked two abreast, charging toward them with reckless abandon and waving their chips of sharp obsidian. ¡°Whatever you do, don¡¯t drop your Iron Skin!¡± Cal shouted. Kill them, Cal mentally instructed the wasp. It was more than eager to oblige, despite the astronomical difference in size. Once it got past Ella, he upped the stakes. Mass Splitting 0/11 Bent Remaining. Something Calvin wasn¡¯t entire conscious of, was just how many Fever Wasps comprised a pound. They were about twice the weight of a regular wasp, so one pound made about three thousand of them. Three hundred thousand angry wasps filled the air, turning the refuse room and narrow tunnel into a buzzing, claustrophobic cauldron of wasp venom. Each one of the little bastards was connected to Cal by the Chained Spirit link, buzzing against his consciousness with pure wrath as they assaulted every living thing in the room. it was everything Cal could do to steer them away from himself. He let their instincts take care of the rest. Combining the unique effects of Dupdomancy and Chained Spirit, you have created an entirely new Hybrid Skill, Calvinian Summoning! Congratulations! Reallocating Fever Wasp to Calvinian Summoning¡­ Done. Ella froze at the sight and closed her eyes against the cloud of wasps that rolled over her, trying their absolute best to maim her. They couldn¡¯t get their stingers through her silvery reinforced skin, so she was safe. The Ungrin? Not so much. They wailed and fled in front of the angry wasps, who flooded their warrens, stinging every living thing in the underground caverns until nothing moved. When the spell expired at the end of eight minutes, Cal slumped against the wall. The adrenaline had kept him going, but the tension of having to mentally force away each wasp that drew close had taken its toll. Will has reached Level 16! He sagged to the ground, inspecting the swollen corpses of the Ungrin. The results spoke for themselves. ¡°Still think a wasp was a bad choice?¡± Calvin asked. Ella cautiously opened one eye. Not seeing any wasps, she opened the other, shuddering as she wiped away the feeling of tiny feet crawling on her. ¡°Show me a wasp that can take care of a child, bind a wound, or mend a Yurt.¡± ¡°I get it.¡± ¡°Cook food, or open a simple box.¡± ¡°I get it.¡± Macronomicon Sorry for the delay, the gold prospecting and wildfires were unbelievably distracting. Gonna average 1-2 chapters a week for the forseeable future, with another possible dump...eeeeh, 2-4 months from now? Chapter 24: Tight Holes Calvinian Summoning: A Hybrid of Chained Spirit & Dupdomancy. Any creature wholly consumed may be recreated, and is bound to the user¡¯s will for the duration. Skill allows manipulation of size and quantity of summoned creature, up to a mass limit. Calvinian Summoning level 1: 5 pound limit, 1 minute. 0 slots available. Calvin mulled over that statement for a moment. Size and quantity? Is that thing saying what I think it¡¯s saying? Chained Spirit had specified a limit, being the creature¡¯s original size. This one had not. Cal had just unlocked the Shaping ability in Dupdomancy, which would allow him to control the size of a duplicated object, even scaling parts of it bigger or smaller. Did that mean his new skill had absorbed that ability as well? He pictured massive wasps the size of dogs spearing people and injecting them with enough venom to kill a Guar. That could be handy. Cal and Ella were carefully crawling through the Ungrin den, trying to be as quiet as possible. There was no guarantee that all of the vicious creatures had died before the poison in their systems ceased to exist. If that was the case, the chances that they recovered would be quite good, much like his palm, which had long since recovered from the swelling once the venom ceased to exist. It would behoove them to be quiet so they could hear if anything was sneaking up on them. Cal glanced up at Ella¡¯s rounded butt wiggling ahead of him as she crawled through the low obsidian tunnels. That¡¯s a nice view, he thought to himself. Although the chances of me paying attention to my surroundings might suffer a bit. They crawled around another knot of Ungrin corpses, backtracking as they hit another dead end. The snarl of tunnels connected to several different isolated points of the facility under the mountain, using the large amount of open space as food storage and sleeping spaces. They¡¯d also stumbled across a room with dozens of dead infant Ungrin, and he¡¯d almost felt bad for them. But the chances of one of those babies renouncing their kind¡¯s evil ways, adventuring across the surface world and righting wrongs, was slim to none, so he wasn¡¯t too bothered by it. After a good hour of navigating the crypt-like silence of the tunnels, they finally found the one that began to slope upward, leading to a small hole in the stone that led to fresh air and daylight. It was about twice the size of their heads. Ugrin could come and go at their leisure, but a full-sized teen like Cal, or an oversized one like Ella, would have a bit of trouble. Which was the point, he supposed. ¡°I¡¯ve heard if you can fit your head through something, you can fit the rest of your body through, somehow. By that measure this shouldn¡¯t be that hard.¡± Cal said, resting on his elbows in the claustrophobic tunnel and looking at the bright sliver of sunlit forest ahead of them, barely visible past Ella¡¯s rump that nearly made the entire tunnel airtight. ¡°Maybe for men,¡± Her irritated voice came back over her shoulder as she squeezed forward. The light was completely blocked off as she began climbing through the hole, and Cal waited patiently for his turn. She squirmed forward, getting a few inches forward. squirmed some more, then she went still. A few moments later her feet started pushing against the tunnel, kicking the air inches away from his face. ¡­ Cal thought he heard something. ¡°What!?¡± he shouted, hoping his voice would carry though whatever. ¡°Push!¡± Came her faint shout. Cal braced himself against the stone tunnel and grabbed her feet, pushing forward with every ounce of his strength. She shifted a fraction of an inch forward. This is gonna be a long day, he thought, pushing as hard as he could again. And I¡¯m hungry. ¡°OW!¡± he heard her faintly shout as he shoved particularly hard. ¡°Use iron skin!¡± he shouted ¡°What?¡± ¡°IRON SKIN!¡± Her feet gained an odd hardness to them, the only way Cal could tell she¡¯d used the ability in the absence of light. Her struggling redoubled now that the stone was no longer scraping her skin raw. It took an entire hour, and getting her hips through was a nightmare, but with some ingenuity, force, and a severely widened entrance, they managed to get Ella all the way through to the topside. Cal was able to follow behind her with relative ease, hardly even needing to squeeze to work his way through her gaping hole. Har har. Cal crawled out of the hole and stood, stretching his back as he breathed in the sweet air of the forest. Hours of crawling through the tunnels on his hands and knees had wreaked havoc on his back, knees and neck. ¡°Now we just have to get back to the village. It should be¡­¡± she glanced up at the mountain, gauging their position relative to its distinctive face. ¡°Tomorrow night.¡± ¡°I would be right to assume that moving around at night is dangerous?¡± Cal said. ¡°Extremely. We¡¯re going to have to find a place to camp before the sun goes down.¡± ¡°How about up the mountain?¡± Cal asked. ¡°It¡¯ll be cold, but it¡¯s better than a Kuyega eating us in our sleep, right?¡± ¡°That part of the mountain is claimed by the Seeker tribe. The forest itself is neutral ground, but above the treeline, they will attack anyone stepping foot on their territory.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your deal with the Seeker tribe, anyway?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Deal?¡± she asked. ¡°Not liking good, anger, umm¡­grudge.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Ella said, glancing around until she found a sapling she liked, tugging it out of the ground. ¡°Bad blood, many generations. They advocated the raid on your village at the Maje moot, using the Iron skin tribe as enchauala. They did not need the food, they simply wished to blunt our claws. Father cannot disobey the final vote of the moot.¡± ¡°encheuala?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Disposable. Food for lesser animals who feed greater ones.¡± ¡°Fodder,¡± Cal said in Gadveran. ¡°We lost a great many warriors. It is one reason my father kept you alive after killing three Seekers. To spit in their face.¡± She pulled out her knife and began skinning the sapling. ¡°I lost a great many friends, so whose face should I be spitting in?¡± Cal said before he thought about it. Genosian Language has reached Level 3! Ella flinched in the middle of creating thin strips of bark. ¡°Yes, that had to be the case¡­¡± She looked up at him. ¡°Hate us if you want. It makes no difference to you who instigated the raid.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to politely roll over and say, ¡®no, it¡¯s okay,¡¯ because someone else pressured your people into doing it.¡± Cal said, feeling the anger he¡¯d kept under wraps boiling to the surface. ¡°You¡¯ve got three people I knew since I was a baby collecting frost in the Freezer!¡± ¡°Would you rather they rot?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Huh, Gadverans are strange. Even under the ground they will be eaten by worms, you know?¡± ¡°Why do you have to..Agh!¡± Cal let out a frustrated groan. ¡°It doesn¡¯t just boil down to what eats them, it¡¯s about treating their bodies with respect, and giving them a proper burial with a headstone so we can visit and mourn and fucking¡­bring our grandchildren to meet our friends and tell stories about them!¡± ¡°I see,¡± she said, beginning to strip the sapling again in silence. Cal didn¡¯t really have much left to say either, so he sat down, staring down the sloped forest in silence, his stomach burning with anger and guilt for shouting at Ella. Freaking Guya. Knowing the stuff was making him infatuated helped a little bit. Cal glanced at the Genosian and then down the hill. They needed to find a decent sleeping spot, and if even one of those ungrin had been faking¡­sleeping in the tunnels would be lethal. ¡°Fires at night, safer or no?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Safer from animals, of course, but this close to the Seeker face of the mountain? It¡¯s probably an Ilethan coin toss.¡± ¡°You said the forest was neutral ground.¡± Cal said. ¡°There are only two of us.¡± She said. ¡°You are not Genosian. I am Iron Skin. It would be a simple matter to make us disappear. The neutrality of the forest is more practical for large bands of hunters, where one or two is sure to escape an attack and report the breach of conduct to their tribe.¡± Cal sat and thought about it for a couple minutes. ¡°I¡¯m making a fire.¡± Cal said, coming to his feet. ¡°Worst case scenario, I get to kill some more Seekers.¡± ¡°Do you know why they¡¯re called Seekers?¡± ¡°Because their arrows bend midflight to seek you?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I came here with an arrow to the lung, remember?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t expect them to get close, is all I wished to say.¡± Cal reached out and tweaked her nose, making her jump. From twenty feet away. ¡°I¡¯ll be right back,¡± Cal said, dropping low and beginning to sneak down the mountain with every ounce of Stealth he could muster. ¡°Where are you going?¡± She asked. ¡°I¡¯m getting some camping supplies.¡± Will of sixteen means one Bent just under every eleven hours. We spent approximately eight hours wandering the Ruin after the naked spooning, so I should have¡­three hours to go. At minimum. Not having any Bent made Cal feel defenseless and weak. Which wouldn¡¯t be the case if you¡¯d raised your Body. Karen seemed to shout in his ear. ¡°Wait.¡± Ella said, standing and offering her hand. ¡°Take one for the trip. And don¡¯t use it unless your life is in danger. You seem to be a little too happy to spend your Bent.¡± Cal glanced back at her. Could she tell how he was feeling just from watching him, or was she simply being practical? He walked back to where she stood. ¡°But what if there¡¯s a really pesky mosquito?¡± Cal asked, grasping her hand. ¡°And I need wasps to kill it?¡± Ella raised an eyebrow, clenching her jaw as Cal took one Bent from her. 1/11 Bent remaining. ¡°I only have three left,¡± she said once Cal was done. ¡°Be careful.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Cal stalked through the woods, avoiding all the dangers Chuela had warned them about, and a few he hadn¡¯t, walking carefully to avoid drawing attention as much as possible. Safest way to travel through the forest was to simply avoid being noticed by the predators. Second safest would be to burn the whole thing down. Eventually he found what he was looking for, a Sweating Tree covered in fire-worms. Sweating trees were soft-wooded plants with large leaves that oozed a semi-flammable oil. Their wood burned with a great amount of heat and smoke. Fire-worms ate the torso sized leaves that drooped off the side of the plant, big maggot-like creatures that refined the oil from the Sweating trees into a potent liquid that burst into flame on contact with the air. You did not want them to spray that stuff in your face. That liquid was exactly what Cal wanted. He squatted down and observed the fire-worms from his hiding place for a good ten minutes, learning their ways, studying their culture, so that he might better destroy them. It took him a while before he spotted the tiny spigot on their butts that would shoot the flaming liquid. Now the question was, how to kill it while keeping its body as intact as possible? Suffocation came to mind, but Cal didn¡¯t have any idea how to do that without some kind of box. He doubted it would be as simple as slapping his hand over the damn thing¡¯s mouth. The next best bet was to sever whatever passed for a spinal column by wringing its neck. Well, let¡¯s try that, then, Cal thought, focusing on the phantom hands, and bringing them into the center of his vision. Using another tree as cover, Cal floated the disembodied hands up to the fire-worm voted least likely to succeed, sitting by itself where its sudden death couldn¡¯t alarm the others. As quickly as he could, he grabbed the worm by the butt with one hand to prevent it from squirting, and twisted its head with the other. It exploded all over Cal¡¯s phantom hands, setting them on fire and dribbling burning liquid down to the forest floor. Thankfully the fire died in the wet underbrush rather than setting the Sweating Tree on fire. How are these things still alive as a species if there¡¯s every chance they could all burn to death if one of them explodes? Cal made a mental note to pull the creature farther away from the tree before killing it. Could just be because they have no predators. Most things would balk at a face full of fire. It took several tries, but Cal eventually got the hang of killing them, a simple quarter turn with the thumb pressing against the back of its neck was enough to kill it, but not enough to rupture its precious cargo. Trying to twist its entire head off like the chickens back home only resulted in sorrow. It was a skill Cal doubted anyone had ever mastered, given the inherent risk to life and limb. The gloves and the sedentary nature of the worms contributed greatly. Luckily, the creatures were dumb. If they could see a predator picking them off, they might have squirted flaming goo everywhere, but their neighbors suddenly floating into the air and exploding? Not their problem. There were hundreds on the tree, so plenty of room to experiment. once Calvin had a good dozen, and was confident that the skill had been mastered, he started working on butchering them from a distance. Their entire insides couldn¡¯t be flammable, it had to be an organ. With that in mind, Cal set out to find it, slicing the pale white grub along the stomach, using his knife from a distance of about five feet. The soft white flesh of the grub parted behind the obsidian blade, cutting like butter. Cal saw a tiny bit of clear goo bubble out of the creature, creating a tiny flaming wall along the cut. The grub exploded, sending a wash of heat across his face. Well, we weren¡¯t expecting to get it on the first try, Cal thought with a shrug. Belly, side, back. Everywhere he tried to cut it, the fire-worm burst into flames. Then an idea occurred to him. When gutting fish, you could pull the guts out along with the severed head. Cal picked up his next grub and placed it in the charred circle he¡¯d used for the first six attempts. He cut all the way around the creature¡¯s head, trying to stay as close to the front as he could. It didn¡¯t explode. ¡°Here goes,¡± he muttered to himself, his tongue unconsciously sticking out as he concentrated on manipulating the phantom hands that had saved him from crippling burns. Cal grabbed the creature at both ends and very gently pulled its head away from its body. There was a bit of a tugging sensation, and the creature¡¯s guts pulled away from its skin, revealing tiny little connected balls of clear fluid all along its insides, creating a haphazard arrangement of flaming liquid near the surface of its skin. These balls of clear fluid were connected to each other, like pearls on a string, and wound around the guts, leading toward- Cal felt a sudden release of pressure as something tore. The grub exploded. Wow, Cal thought, wiping his brow. No wonder nobody¡¯s ever bothered with these things. But we¡¯re making progress. After a few more flaming failures, Cal managed to expose the entire network of clear pearls that led down to a chamber near the creature¡¯s butt. Cal pinched the channels off with twigs and surgically removed the large chamber. Gods, this would be so much easier with Harvester. Cal couldn¡¯t afford to spend any Bent right now. Not when there was any chance he could do it manually. He needed every spell he could get to actively defend him. Miraculously, the worm didn¡¯t explode, and Cal carefully cinched its firespitting gland closed and lifted it away from the worm itself. Cal felt like he didn¡¯t even dare to breathe as he took the pale sac and set it on a carefully prepared leaf, covered in the sweating tree¡¯s signature oil. Smother the thing in oil, and it¡¯d be less likely to come into contact with oxygen. Cal wrapped the whole thing in one leaf, creating a tight package, then he scraped a bunch more oil off the non-grub covered trees, into the package, filling it with oil before he closed the last flap. ¡°Good enough,¡± Cal said with a sigh, leaning back. Wait, when did it get so dark? Ideally, he would be able to do a couple more, but the sun was flirting with the horizon, casting the entire forest in shadow. If he didn¡¯t find his way back now, there was every chance that he would not find his way back at all. Cal oriented himself on the mountain that was glowing red in the last light of the day and headed back toward Ella. He didn¡¯t want to be alone when the sun went down. Ella found him as he was heading back up the mountainside, guiding him to a sheltered little ditch beside a stream that she¡¯d discovered, where the land had sloughed away to create the ideal break to hide a fire from prying eyes. They sat around the fire and quietly told stories of their childhood. The ones the Guya hadn¡¯t offered glimpses of anyway. The happy ones. They took turns staying awake, with Cal feeding the fire during the second half, making sure it continued to produce the smoke that would keep animals from eating them in the night. He watched the dawn brighten the sky to the west, Illuminating the Genosian girl with her back to the embankment. She lay in the warmest place, between the fire and a wall of earth, protected from the occasional gust of wind that played between the trees. Her clothes were none the worse for wear after their little adventure, the hides stretched around her voluptuous frame were made to last. Her legs were sprawled out in front of her, and Cal¡¯s eyes drifted up their length, to her wide hips barely contained by a simple leather skirt. Her posture exposed the curve of her body from her generous hips, narrowing down to her athletic stomach, rising up to a wide chest that supported a pair of breasts as big as his head, pressed into the tight confines of her leather shirt. The sight of her body twisted up his insides and made his heart move in fits and starts. His eyes wandered up, tracing the smooth curve of her collarbone, all the way up her neck to her soft lips, and¡­her green-yellow eyes peering back at him. ¡°Morning.¡± He said. What are you supposed to say when you get caught ogling someone, anyway? ¡°Morning,¡± She said, sitting up and yawning. ¡°You get any actual watching done?¡± ¡°Define actual watching.¡± Cal said. ¡°Well, we¡¯re still alive, so I won¡¯t hold it against you. It is nice to feel captivating, on occasion.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­At what frequency is it nice to ¡®feel captivating¡¯?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Every couple minutes, hours, once a week?¡± ¡°Not being distracted to the point of getting killed would be a good rule of thumb.¡± She said, stretching and causing the seams on her leather top to strain to hold everything in. She took a deep breath and her cleavage rose, puffing out of her leather wraps like rising dough. Purple-grey dough that looked really soft and chewable. ¡°Okay, that one was on purpose,¡± he accused. She ignored him, crawling over to her weapon. ¡°You can take a quick nap, I¡¯ve got a few things I want to do to Crusher before we head out.¡± She sat down beside it and began wrapping the dried plant fibers around the end of her flail. ¡°With pleasure.¡± Cal said, yawning and taking off his shirt, laying it onto the warm spot she¡¯d left behind, flopping down on top of it and closing his eyes, making sure his little bomb wasn¡¯t anywhere he could crush it, or get sparks from the fire on it. Being on fire would be a terrible way to end a nap. Cal stilled himself. A few minutes later, he began breathing deeply and easily, pretending to be asleep. After a few more minutes of that, he felt Ella''s gaze roaming across his body and lingering on his bare chest appreciatively as she idly wove the plant fibers around her flail to create a simple handle. Feel Intent was still working with Third Eye. That was nice to know. Cal was tempted to poke fun at her, but he really was tired. He settled down with a smile and drifted off to the faint scent of a campfire. Once she was done, the two of them trekked through the woods, angling themselves up the slope of the mountain to stay away from the deepest parts of the forest, where the Kugeya resided. By themselves, they didn¡¯t stand much of a chance of escaping one, so it was best not to take any chances until they made it back. Speaking of making it back¡­ A big enough swarm of wasps could get him through the forest, back to Deinos, If he could make them last long enough. If the duration of the spell was anything like chained spirit, he could get a respectable number of hours at level five, along with an ability. Between the ability and the duration, he would have enough power to escape when Calvinian Summoning reached level five. Can¡¯t believe I have a branch of magic named after me. Calvin thought, shaking his head. It made sense though. Most Gadverans got eaten, and those that didn¡¯t weren¡¯t interested in learning a taboo spell like Chained Spirit. At what point would the two disciplines have mixed? That brought Cal to an excited conclusion. Were he to travel the world and learn the native magics, there was every chance he could come up with even more varieties that no one had ever heard of. One step closer to his Wizard-King goal. ¡°Wait,¡± Ella said, stopping in front of him so suddenly that he walked into her. ¡°What?¡± he asked. ¡°Fire!¡± she said, pointing at the distant village on the side of the mountain. They¡¯d long since rounded the side of the mountain and were only an hour or so away from the Iron Skin tribe. Above the minuscule yurts was a huge cloud of smoke rising above the village. She began running ahead of him, dashing through the forest and making a straight line for the well-worn path up the side of the mountain that Iron Skin hunters used, Cal following close behind. They never made it that far. Ella slid to a halt as they stumbled across a camp full of Gadveran soldiers in the middle of lunch, having cleared a huge swath of forest at the base of the hunter¡¯s path leading up to the village. They were standing around, bowls in hand, gaping at the shark-toothed girl in stunned silence. The moment didn¡¯t last forever. ¡°Another one!¡± one of the stunned soldiers shouted, dropping his bowl and reaching for his sword. Another reached for his crossbow, while the expressions of the rest of them turned ugly. There were at least a hundred of them. Ella¡¯s skin turned metallic, and she gave them a gap-toothed snarl. That¡¯s not good. Macronomicon Yeah, my chapter naming sense isn''t great sometimes. Probably should have put this chapter up yesterday, but...life is exhausting. Enjoy! Chapter 25: Now I Gotta kill this Guy Cal sprinted up behind her as she lunged forward and jumped on her, dragging her to the ground, a crossbow bolt whizzing above his head. ¡°Wait!¡± he shouted in Gadveran, standing and raising his arms, feeling the strange prickling of a hundred different gazes with a hundred different emotions, swirling with confusion and suspicion, anger, readiness to hurt. ¡°Wait! I¡¯m not Genosian, see?¡± He said, baring his teeth and pointing to them, keeping his foot firmly on Ella¡¯s silvery back. She was looking up at him with confusion and more than a little anger, but not enough to throw him off yet. ¡°We don¡¯t need to fight.¡± ¡°She¡¯s obviously Genosian.¡± Said one of the men, pointing at Ella with his crossbow. The gazes were still swirling with suspicion. ¡°She¡¯s my slave,¡± Cal gave them a baldfaced lie. ¡°I was kidnapped by the Genosians from Deinos two weeks ago! Those inbred cannibals gave me some kind of trial of manhood against their best warrior, and when I kicked him in the nuts, I got this girl as the prize.¡± The man with the crossbow lowered it a bit, and a few of the men chuckled. Cal could feel the hair-trigger intent to kill slacken. ¡°What is going on?¡± Ella asked. ¡°Silence woman, the men are speaking!¡± Cal said in Genosian. Ella raised a silver eyebrow. He was probably going to pay for that later. Speaking the cannibal¡¯s tongue didn¡¯t win him any points with the Gadverans, either. ¡°How come you speak their language?¡± one of them asked, and Cal felt the level of suspicion rise. ¡°So many people died in the village¡­My family¡­¡± Cal said, putting as much sorrow into it as he could muster. He was broken up about it, for certain, but he needed to be stage broken up about it, to the point where every single one of them could see the emotion on his face, hear it in his voice, and sympathize. ¡°When I woke up¡­I was already on my Forming day. It just happened. Helped me survive this long.¡± Acting has reached Level 6! Acting Level 6: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 30% correction. Mentioning his (allegedly) dead family made a thread of sympathy flutter through the gaze of the hundred soldiers. Cal could tangibly feel the shifting mood of the hundred people against his skin, spreading through the crowd. ¡°What in the nine hells is going on here?¡± came a booming voice from the back of the camp as a taller, middle aged Gadveran pushed his way through the crowd. He had decorative gold inlay on the shoulders of his shiny, shiny breastplate. He was fat for a Gadveran, obviously the commander of these men, from the way the tension in their gazes spiked up again. ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked. ¡°He¡¯s-¡° Fat Commander smacked the man nearest him. Cal wasn¡¯t even sure it was the guy who spoke. ¡°I asked him the question.¡± He said, fixing Cal with a hard stare. Something about the expectation and confidence in his gaze made him think he had some kind of lie-detecting Skill. Karen could do it, after all. ¡°My name¡¯s Calvin Gadsint, A Malkenrovian refugee from Deinos. I was taken by the Genosians two weeks ago. I won a barbarian duel, this girl here was bonded to me by some strange pagan ritual and refuses to leave my side. I just recently escaped, and have been trekking back.¡± All technically true, if incomplete. The secret to outwitting a good lie-detector is to not feel guilty about it, and speak in half-truths. The man¡¯s gaze was thoughtful and cold, with more than a little suspicion. ¡°I see. How exactly did you approach us from the southwest after escaping the tribe, as they are just up the mountain?¡± ¡°I actually came from that side of the mountain,¡± Cal said, pointing out the face that housed the Seeker tribe. ¡°Oh, is there another village of these savages there?¡± the Captain asked. ¡°Yes sir.¡± Cal said. He hadn¡¯t lied yet. He¡¯d come from that side of the mountain, and there was a tribe there. The ones who¡¯d organized the attack, by all accounts. Take that, you fuckers. It was always good to spread the love around. ¡°And this¡­Woman¡­She¡¯s yours?¡± the Captain asked, glancing down at Ella seething on the ground. ¡°By right of contest, I suppose,¡± Cal said with a shrug. ¡°Prove it.¡± ¡°Ummm¡­¡± Cal said. ¡°How am I supposed to do that?¡± ¡°Disarm her.¡± ¡°Ella, I¡¯m gonna let you up, and then you give me Crusher, okay?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to convince them not to kill us. And I may have led them to believe you belonged to me as a prize from some kind of rite of manhood against a Genosian warrior of your tribe.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have anything like that.¡± She said. ¡°They don¡¯t know that, and they¡¯re not gonna bother to check, either.¡± ¡°¡­¡± she glared at the Gadverans surrounding them. ¡°Okay.¡± She gritted out. Cal picked up his foot and Ella slowly got to her feet. Cal could feel the tension in the gazes directed at them spike, and a few crossbows twitched upward, matching their heightened emotions. Ella handed him her flail, its business end floating eerily a foot above the ground. ¡°That took a bit longer than I was expecting.¡± The captain said, holding out his hand for the weapon. Damn. Cal wasn¡¯t really expecting anything different, but he¡¯d been hoping the man wouldn¡¯t want to confiscate it. Of course they¡¯re gonna confiscate it. Cal thought, handing him the metal table leg with the woven fiber handle. ¡°Some kind of artifact, huh?¡± he asked. ¡°Lucky find.¡± Ella tensed up with anger as he played with the flail for a moment before putting it in his belt loop, the silver sphere bumping against his thigh. ¡°Take them to the deserter¡¯s quarters. We¡¯ll sort this out when we get back to Surrak.¡± Rough hands grabbed Cal and Ella and hauled them to the other side of the camp, where a wagon with heavy iron cages was waiting for them. In a matter of moments, Cal and Ella had been shoved into two cramped Iron cages, meant for men and women to await trial after running from battle. ¡°Is this really necessary?¡± Cal asked the captain as he got himself situated. ¡°If you¡¯re telling the truth, the other survivors of Deinos will vouch for you, and you¡¯ll be free to go, but in the mean-time, I want to keep an eye on you. Better safe than sorry, as they say.¡± His gaze drifted over to Ella, and Cal didn¡¯t have to feel his intentions to read the lust in his gaze. ¡°As for the girl, if she¡¯s actually tame, I suppose you can have her back when we get back to Surrak, with a proper brand and documentation.¡± Something tells me Ella wouldn¡¯t go for that. Still, it was a free ride back to Surrak, and all he needed to do was wait. The branding thing, they could find a way to avoid that later. ¡°Ask them what happened to the Iron Skin tribe.¡± Ella said, watching the Captain. His name was Captain Skovos, from what Cal had been able to pick up from the grunts around them. ¡°What did she say?¡± Captain Skovos asked, watching the Genosian girl. ¡°She was saying how impressive and scary you are.¡± Cal lied. The man wasn¡¯t watching him, anyway. ¡°Personally, I can¡¯t believe Gadvera organized such a large force at the drop of a hat. How¡¯s the punishment against these barbarians going? Manage to put them all in a shallow grave yet?¡± he asked. ¡°We thought we had,¡± Skovos said Idly, his eyes wandering down Ella¡¯s body in a way that made Cal frost over with anger. ¡°found a group of maybe thirty of them at the top of the hill, just outside the village. Big guys, each one a veteran. We thought that was their last stand. Turns out all of them were some kind of summon. When they died, they dissolved into green goo. I lost twelve men to them, and when we managed to take the last one down, the village was already empty, so we burned it.¡± Something was odd about Skovos, he seemed to be rocking back and forth on his heels, staring at Ella¡¯s breasts with a dumb grin until he noticed Cal staring at him. The man seemed to snap out of it, and frowned. ¡°It¡¯s not a civilian¡¯s business.¡± he said, turning around and tossing out orders. ¡°Alright you lot, there¡¯s plenty of groups of Grinnin¡¯ Apes along the side of the mountain. If this place here was anything to go by, There¡¯ll be a nice trail straight up to their doorstep. All we need do is find it. Pack up your shit and get ready to move out.¡± The men in charge of each squad began wrangling their individual groups, tossing out specific instructions. ¡°Did you do that with a Skill?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Make him stupid for a moment?¡± Ella shrugged. ¡°I did nothing. What did he say?¡± ¡°Chuela held them off long enough for your tribe to run away, then they burned the Yurts down.¡± Ella scowled. ¡°Could¡¯ve been a lot worse.¡± Cal pointed out. ¡°And I pointed them toward the Seeker tribe.¡± ¡°I suppose you did.¡± She said, leaning back in the cramped cage within arm¡¯s reach, settling her back against the bars. ¡°So what now?¡± ¡°They¡¯re gonna take us to Surrak, the remaining people of Deinos will vouch for me, I¡¯ll vouch for you, then you can go home.¡± ¡°Through the forest. By myself.¡± She said, eying him. ¡°Ummm¡­¡± Now that Cal thought about it, he¡¯d rather keep her with him if at all possible. Maybe he could bring her back home, then go back¡­no, that didn¡¯t work. Keep her in Deinos? No, that didn¡¯t work. The Guya was making his logic run in circles, like a dog chasing Its tail, refusing to allow him to contemplate being separated. ¡°I suppose I could stay with you for a while¡­¡± she admitted, making Cal¡¯s heart begin slamming in his chest. ¡°Really?¡± Life with the sensuous Genosian girl at a relaxed, non life-threatening pace sounded like his idea of heaven. Wake up next to her in his cottage in Deinos, use each other¡¯s bodies shamlessly, go about the day. Do a little fishing, a little woodwork, go home, use each other shamelessly again, go to bed. Teach her very specific Gadveran phrases and when to say them. ¡°Of course, and when your recklessness finally gets you killed, I will take you as my Incha Huala.¡± Cal frowned as she threw ice water on his lurid fantasies. Bah, we¡¯ll see about that. I¡¯m never reckless. ¡°Can Genosians eat fish?¡± Cal asked. ¡°It¡¯s meat, isn¡¯t it?¡± she asked. ¡°Eeexcellent..¡± Cal said, rubbing his hands together. Ella watched him with amusement, but her gaze kept returning to the barely visible plume of smoke they could see on the side of the mountain. **** Six hours later, the army kept tearing their way through the jungle, leaving a massive trail behind them as they angled toward the Seeker tribe, intent on exacting some form of vengeance against the grey-skinned people. From what Cal could gather by talking to the rank-and-file that would occasionally walk up to him and ask him questions, like ¡®what are Genosians like?, did they make you eat anyone?¡¯ and so on, they were mostly new recruits, people who had jumped at the opportunity to avenge themselves on the shark-toothed people. Which was extremely odd, because he didn¡¯t recognize any of them. If there had been any volunteers from Deinos, he¡¯d expect them to wave and greet Cal with amazement as soon as they recognized him. ¡°Where are all the volunteers from Deinos?¡± Cal asked the man walking next to him. ¡°There¡¯s sixteen companies scouring the mountains for Genosians,¡± The young man, maybe four years older than Cal, said. ¡°So, in the other companies, probably?¡± What kind of luck did I have to get the only one that had no one from Deinos? Cal thought as he leaned back in the cage that was slowly rolling through the forest, near the back of the line, after the soldiers had already tromped down the woods. Cal found himself somewhat grateful he didn¡¯t know anyone when an obsidian-tipped arrow caught the Gadveran walking beside him in the neck, sending him toppling to the ground, a hint of blood and confusion on his lips. The jungle came alive with Genosians. Some three hundred Seekers filled the air with arrows that shattered on the Gadveran armor. A few of them found their way into flesh, though, and Gadverans were being picked off here and there as the captain shouted for them to form a line. The only thing protecting Cal and Ella ¨C Cal glanced over, and saw that the girl was already silver, functionally immune to arrows. The only thing protecting him, was his low priority as a target, being already in a cage, and dressed like a Genosian. ¡°Form up, helmets on! Chins low!¡± Skovos shouted, using their small Gadveran shields to try and ward off the barrage of arrows. Once there was a respectable line of forty men, they charged toward the Seekers, only to have their targets fall back, and a second line of Seekers begin firing from the other side. That¡¯s unacceptable. Cal thought. Being caught by the Seeker tribe was a death sentence, so he had to change the equation here. He eyeballed his little oil-filled leaf nestled with the rest of his gear at the other end of the wagon, then the line of archers shooting into the Gadveran¡¯s backs. Mass splitting. 2/11 Bent remaining. Dupdomancy has reached Level 11! Level 11: 121 pounds, 55 minutes. Cal focused on just the liquid he knew was inside the sac, dropping about a pound of self-igniting goo on the head of each of the hundred or so archers. A lot of his shots missed their targets, dropping on their shoulders, their fronts, or hitting the ground, but enough Genosian heads caught fire that the entire line was thrown into chaos as faces literally were melted off. Cal tapped his foot on the bars of the cage, and glanced over at Ella. ¡°When have I ever been reckless?¡± He asked over the screams of the dying. With the ambush broken, Skovos¡¯s men drove off the remaining Genosians with minimal casualties. Despite Gadverans favoring light weight armor and weapons, Genosian¡¯s obsidian arrows were remarkably brittle, and only really worked on raw flesh. A single Gadveran, if they tucked up well and covered their vulnerable spots, could ignore Genosian archers. It was a good ambush, but the compatibility was bad. Under Skovos¡¯s instructions, they cleared out the dead men, tossing the Genosians into a pile and burning them, while taking the six dead Gadverans and putting them in another wagon. Ella watched the difference in treatment between the dead with interest. ¡°Kid.¡± Skovos said, once they had broken camp for the day. ¡°Sir.¡± Cal said, turning to face the captain. ¡°You¡¯ve been here a while. Any Idea what that was?¡± ¡°What what was?¡± Cal clarified. ¡°All the savages catching fire at once. That.¡± ¡°Oh, that was probably a man using fire-worm guts.¡± Cal said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a worm in this forest whose guts literally burn on contact with air.¡± ¡°Damned forsaken place. Nothing here is natural. Is there anything more you can tell me?¡± Cal decided to take a risk and tell an outright lie. ¡°There¡¯s a Fire-Worm tribe that doesn¡¯t get along very well with the Seeker tribe, so I¡¯ve heard. Melting people¡¯s faces off is their signature. They probably capitalized on the Seeker¡¯s distraction to kill some of them without any risk to themselves.¡± ¡°Are they hostile?¡± ¡°Depends on what you do.¡± Cal said with a shrug. ¡°I really don¡¯t know much. You couldn¡¯t call me an expert on Genosians after two weeks.¡± ¡°Damn.¡± Skovos¡¯s eyes wandered back towards Ella, and his expression shifted. Read Expression has reached Level 6! Read Expression Level 6: Passive bonus to reading expressions. 30% correction. Don¡¯t you fucking do it¡­. ¡°Perhaps the girl knows more.¡± He said with a grotesque smile. Guy was just looking for an excuse. Cal could read his face plain as day. Skovos barked over his shoulder. ¡°Set up camp for the night, and then deliver this one to my tent for interrogation.¡± Well, crap, Cal thought with an inward sigh, his personal icy anger mixing with the possessiveness and outrage from his Guya-tainted mind. Cal wasn¡¯t sure which part of him made the decision, but it didn¡¯t really matter. They were in agreement. Now I gotta kill Captain Skovos. Calvin Gadsint Body: 6 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 6 Endurance: 6 Mind: 20 Intuition: 10 Stability: 11 Will: 16 Bent: 2/11 Skills: Stealth 6 Talking to Girls 5 Acting 6 Read Expressions 6 Sense-Grafting 7 Knife-Work 5 Dupdomancy 11 Hunting 5 Meditation 4 Chained Spirit 2 Calvinian Summoning 1 Fishing 3 Genosian Language 3 Macronomicon Sorry it took so long. Public releases have kind of taken a back seat to life recently, but plenty of work is getting done, and those chapters will eventually see the light of day. If you''re having a good time, a rating would be tremendously helpful! Chapter 26: Captain Gadsint Okay, how do we handle this cold-blooded murder in the most reliable way? Calvin thought glancing up. He had three Bent available, since he hadn¡¯t spent the one he¡¯d gotten from Ella last night. He¡¯d gotten his second before bed, and one more late this morning. His next bent was only an hour or so away, but in a fight that wouldn¡¯t mean shit. First, to use a Bent to escape the cage. Yay or nay? If he used a Bent he could duplicate the key that was hanging on the side of the wagon. Quick, clean, and he would be on his way in exchange for a third of his fighting strength. The alternative was some kind of ploy, which was unreliable, and usually involved smacking some guard who would later recall the details of his escape. I need a set of lockpicks with blades on the back, then I could absorb them with Blade Body. Cal thought to himself. New things were always occurring to him as the situation changed. As it stood all he had was an obsidian knife, dispersed throughout his body. Maybe some kind of multi-tool? Food for thought. When he absorbed blades into his skin, it didn¡¯t rest under the surface like he¡¯d thought, but rather turned was spread out through his bloodstream. It was good that he didn¡¯t have a telltale lump under his skin, or a slightly off-balance body, but thinking of tiny obsidian flakes travelling through his blood gave him the shivers. No, it was faster, and far more reliable to simply duplicate the key and slip out in seconds while no one was looking. That gave him two Bent in case things went sour. Next he needed to- ¡°You there.¡± One of the Gadveran soldiers said as he approached with two others. ¡°Calvin.¡± ¡°Calvin. Tell your pet here to behave herself. The captain wants to speak to her.¡± ¡°The captain speaks Genosian now?¡± Cal asked. He felt the briefest flicker of repudiation for the captain¡¯s antics in his gaze, before it was locked under an ocean of duty and training. ¡°I¡¯m just following orders.¡± Good, that¡¯ll make part three much easier. ¡°What are they saying?¡± Ella said. ¡°The captain¡¯s gonna try to rape you. If I don¡¯t show up in a minute or two, feel free to bite his throat out. Don¡¯t let them know you¡¯re a Maje.¡± She raised an eyebrow. ¡°Why can¡¯t I just lead with the throat-biting and be done with it?¡± ¡°Because, I have a plan that I believe will work better.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you until the fat man¡¯s prick is out. After that, all bets are off.¡± ¡°Your faith in me knows no bounds.¡± Cal said. ¡°It really doesn¡¯t.¡± ¡°She¡¯s been warned.¡± Cal said, watching for the key. There it is. One of the three men retrieved the key from his belt and used it to open Ella¡¯s door, motioning her out. Splitting 2/11 Bent Remaining. A duplicated key appeared in the hand Cal held behind his back. ¡°Damn, this thing is itchy,¡± Cal said, shrugging off his hide shirt. Every second counts. They gave him a few strange looks, but nobody bothered him. Nudity makes people uncomfortable, even partial nudity. They pulled Ella out of her cage and escorted her out into the firelight of the camp. The sun had been dipping down the horizon, and now the only light was a few pools of orange firelight, which made this next part much easier. Cal waited until they disappeared from sight and crawled up to the lock, putting the key in and turning it. If the key didn¡¯t work, he was going to have to get real creative, and possibly wind up running away with Ella, but he didn¡¯t expect the military would put too much effort into making their cage locks works of art. His cage door unlocked with a soft metallic click. He opened it quickly to avoid screeching, then slid out feet first, landing on the ground and rolling under the wagon in one liquid move, not feeling any gazes land on him. No one had seen a thing, and he knew it. One of the guys. Cal suppressed a groan and a shiver as his bones shifted, skin stretched and darkened, becoming the countenance of a young adult male Gadveran. Cal tugged the kilt off, the last piece of incriminating evidence that marked him as anything other than a faceless Gadveran recruit. He rolled out the other side of the wagon facing the forest, grabbed the fire-worm extract and stalked toward the line of clothes drying between two tall trees. ¡°What are you doing out of uniform?¡± a surly voice demanded. He glanced over his shoulders to see one of the sergeants, a short, muscle-bound man of mixed heritage. ¡°My second pair got soiled during the fight, so my sergeant made me wash mine naked. Sir!¡± ¡°You Break today, son?¡± the man asked. Cal could feel a tiny bit of sympathy in the man¡¯s gaze. ¡°Yes sir. It was my second.¡± ¡°Old Fureth is probably just trying to get you stuck with a Streaking skill or some such. The old bat¡¯s got a cruel sense of humor. Take that pair there.¡± He pointed at a pair of conspicuously dry clothes beside the other wet ones. ¡°Beraga isn¡¯t going to need them anymore.¡± ¡°Thank you sir,¡± Cal said, whipping out a Gadveran salute to the best of his knowledge. ¡°Your salute sucks, kid. Get outta my sight.¡± The man waved Calvin off dismissively. Calvin surveyed the camp while he tugged on the shirt and pants. Security was especially strained because of the Break. Most of the new recruits were experiencing their second Break, leaving their more experienced superiors to do all the work, including standing guard. On the subject of Breaks, Cal had hardly felt a bit of Warp in the air from the six Gadveran and forty or so dead Genosians. It looked like he would have to be in a much larger battle to Break again. Come to think of it, Cal thought, tugging his pants on, I¡¯m already a 4th Break Veteran, aren¡¯t I. Weird. Calvinian Summoning. Give me a five-pound wasp. A gigantic wasp the size of a large rat emerged from Cal¡¯s hand. Cal was too hurried to be dumbfounded that the spell had worked, and instead seized control of the thing before it could try to kill him. Through the bond, he could feel¡­significantly less desire to cause him harm than he had with the Chained Spirit summoning. That made it much safer to use. Perhaps Chained Spirit saved more of the original identity than Calvinian summoning. Don¡¯t have time to study it. Sense-Grafting Cal¡¯s left eye was paired to the wasp¡¯s forehead. Sense-Grafting has reached level 8! Sense Grafting Level 8: Sight, hearing, touch, pain, smell, Taste, Balance. Self-only, 64ft range, 40 minutes. 0/11 Bent remaining. Now dressed, he swept through the camp, power walking with his eyes set straight ahead, like a man on a mission. He knew from years of experience that wandering around like you didn¡¯t have anything to do was an invitation for people to give you work, and he couldn¡¯t really afford that. Cal leaned over and grabbed a dagger from where it was resting against a sleeping man¡¯s tent as he passed, eyeballing the camp for a weak spot. There. there was a specific spot where the two Sergeants guarding it were way too far apart. Cal directed the Wasp to fly out into the forest and then circle around. Cal staggered for a moment, his mind barely able to sort out which point of view was him and which was the wasp. Cal straightened and made for captain Skovos¡¯s tent. Not feeling any gazes on him, he slipped in as silently as a ghost. ¡°Now we need to make sure you don¡¯t accidentally hurt anyone,¡± Skovos said with a leer as he forced a thick leather belt into Ella¡¯s mouth. Cal¡¯s Genosian was restrained, her arms tied behind her back with thick ropes, her clothes in tatters. Cal walked silently up behind Captain Skovos and clubbed him in the back of the head with the dagger¡¯s pommel. The captain went limp, collapsing forward into Ella¡¯s chest. At Cal¡¯s mental nudge, the wasp flew down on the opposite side of the camp landing on an unsuspecting guard and pumping him full of venom with a three-inch stinger. The young man fell to his knees and began screaming like his whole world had become fire. Which was fairly accurate. As long as the guy¡¯s heart didn¡¯t stop, he should recover when the venom disappeared in about fifteen seconds. Cries went up along the edge of the camp, and pounding feet sounded as people raised the alarm. Unfortunately most of the recruits were unconscious from their breaks. Cal made a small cut in the side of tent and peered out, spotting the guards at the poorly defended side of the camp rush toward the distraction, giving him a clear path to the forest. Cal sliced the tent the rest of the way. Now the hard part. Cal threw Captain Skovos over his shoulder, grunting at the bigger man¡¯s sheer weight. He was just barely within Cal¡¯s tolerance. From now on the plan didn¡¯t rely on cunning or misdirection, just sheer muscle and stamina That¡¯s it, I¡¯m raising my Body if I ever get another Break. Ten seems like a good number. ¡°Calvin?¡± Ella asked, spitting out the bit of leather and giving him an incredibly confused look. Cal spared her a glance and winced. She probably could have put the Captain in his place at any point in time had she used her spells, but she¡¯d waited for Calvin to arrive even as she was being restrained. Ella had a lot more faith in him than she let on. ¡°I know not of who you speak, my name is¡­Cal-veen. And I need to borrow a point of Bent.¡± He knelt down and placed his hand on her forehead. At the unmistakeably Calvin sensation, she relaxed, and allowed him to channel the substance out of her. 1/11 Bent remaining. He winked and then plunged through the gap in the tent, heading for the unguarded section of forest. Must go faster, must go faster! Cal fully expected to be stopped and killed somewhere between the tent and the woods, but somehow he managed to avoid being spotted as dozens of Gadverans gathered to fight the giant wasp, on the assumption that there must be a hive of them somewhere. The unnaturally quick, darting movements of the giant wasp nearly made Cal lose his footing several times, but he managed to right himself every time, trying to focus only on his right eye, ignoring the wasp¡¯s struggle against the guards. Cal made it to the treeline, but he didn¡¯t slow down, pushing himself to carry the heavy captain at least¡­a hundred feet away from the treeline. If each staggering step is two feet, I need fifty steps. One, two, three, Cal began to count out his paces, going as fast as he could. Once he hit fifty paces, he toppled to the ground, his lungs in searing agony, muscles turning into gelatin. He could taste blood in his mouth as he turned the captain around and started stripping the man, tugging off his vest and shirt to reveal the man¡¯s grey-haired barrel chest, covered in scars. It¡¯s not over yet. Still gotta get back. One of the guys. Cal swelled, his chest and stomach pushing outward, skin darkening even further. He could feel a tickling on his jaw as the man¡¯s beard grew out. His recruit clothes burst at the seams, unable to restrain the man¡¯s girth. In the darkness of the forest, Cal was barely able to make out the scars on his new chest, matching those of the Captain perfectly. Thank the gods I¡¯m not included in the average. Cal had been afraid of that being the case, but it wasn¡¯t a problem. ¡°..Wha..What¡¯s going on? Captain Skovos said, wincing in pain as he tried to sit up, clutching his aching scalp. ¡°Nobody fucks with my women.¡± Cal said softly. Women, plural? Someone¡¯s got their priorities straight. The last thing Captain Skovos saw was his doppleganger bringing a dagger down with a murderous expression. Thankfully Cal had the presence of mind to strip the man¡¯s upper body before he killed him, so the vest, shirt, pants and boots were entirely free of blood. Cal began dressing as fast as he could, forcing his way through the exhaustion. The key to a good trick was always speed. He needed to be back so quickly no one could imagine what had just happened. Once he was dressed, he focused on the Fire-Worm Extract. Mass splitting. 0/11 Bent remaining. The Captain¡¯s body was instantly covered in Fire-Worm extract and began to burn furiously. Now he just needed to get back to where he belonged, and everything would be ¨C ¡°Captain!¡± A squad of Gadveran came running up, carrying their weapons, attracted by the brilliant light in the middle of the dark forest. I should have thought of that. Cal began working on a lie, quick. Cal forced himself to relax. He had to adopt this man¡¯s mannerisms, and act like he belonged wherever the hell he found himself. ¡°What the hell took you so long?¡± he demanded to put them on the defensive. ¡°Captain, you¡­¡± ¡°Enough about me! I left my tent to see what the hell was going on, and what do I see? Our entire West side completely unguarded while you flail around at a damn bug.¡± ¡°Sure enough,¡± Cal said, pointing at Skovos¡¯s sizzling corpse. ¡°There were damn Grinning Apes trying to sneak up on us, one of those Fire-worm tribe I¡¯d guess. Bastard was carrying a half dozen of these.¡± Cal held up the Fire-Worm extract. ¡°And you were just gonna let them waltz right in!¡± Cal jabbed the leading soldier in the chest with his finger. ¡°They were planning on burning down the whole camp. If I ever see a gaping hole like that in our perimeter again, I¡¯ll have you nailed to a pole and used as a damn scarecrow! Maybe then you¡¯ll learn to stick to your post!¡± ¡°S-sir.¡± The soldier nodded. ¡°Go back.¡± Cal said tersely, pointing to the camp. ¡°We don¡¯t have the manpower to chase after the rest of them. Not until tomorrow, anyway.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Acting has reached Level 7! Acting Level 7: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 35% correction. Call idly itched his new beard as he studied the flaming corpse. Guess I¡¯m the captain now¡­ What the hell am I supposed to call you, Mysterious System voice? ¡­You can call me Elliot. Macronomicon Chapter 27: Leeroy Jenkins! He turned and headed back to camp, mulling over the System¡¯s name. Elliot was a person¡¯s name, not a number or some kind of inhuman call-sign or anything. It was distinctly Malkenrovian in origin as well. Like Calvin. Cal set the pondering aside and headed back to the camp, behaving as similarly to the captain as he possibly could, given his limited experience with the man. It started to be a little fun, hooking his thumbs in his belt and acting like he knew what the hell he was doing. Everything else seemed to fall into place on its own as his second in command made sure everything ran smoothly. When Cal finally got back to the captain¡¯s tent, Ella was making herself some tea with the man¡¯s teapot. ¡°What the hell are you doing? I black out and when I wake up, you¡¯re making tea?¡± Cal said in Gadveran, putting his hands on his hips in a most captain-like way. ¡°I know it¡¯s you, Calvin.¡± She said, glancing over at him. ¡°But even though I know it¡¯s you, if you try to get frisky while wearing that face, I will kick you in the balls.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± Cal sat down beside her and took the tea box out and sniffed it. ¡°How¡¯d you know it was me?¡± Even his voice had changed to match Skovos. It shouldn¡¯t be that easy. ¡°I can feel you at all times.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± Cal said, digesting that. ¡°sounds weird.¡± ¡°It is.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t feel you at all times.¡± ¡°The Guya affects everyone differently.¡± She said, looking away from him and shifting uncomfortably. Whatever track they were on, she obviously wasn¡¯t comfortable enough to talk about it yet. ¡°Why tea?¡± Cal asked, changing the subject. ¡°I¡¯ve heard about Gadverans drinking plant-water, and wondered what it would be like.¡± She said, pouring cold water filled with herbs into a cup. ¡°Well, you¡¯re doing it wrong,¡± Cal said, taking the teapot away from her. He lit a small stick from the lamp and started the fuel in the teapot¡¯s burner, then poured the contents into the filter, catching the herbs and refilling the teapot. They sat in silence, waiting for the water to boil. Once the tea was done, Cal poured them both a cup and waited for it to cool down. ¡°Bleh,¡± Ella said, grimacing as she drank it. ¡°I don¡¯t know what I was thinking, this stuff is foul. ¡°Eh, it¡¯s an acquired taste, I guess.¡± Cal finished the rest of the tea, smacking his lips and yawning. A nice warm belly made him tired, and the tea she¡¯d chosen wasn¡¯t the morning kind, so Cal found himself desperate for sleep. ¡°Captain Skovos, the boy¡¯s escaped!¡± The second-in-command said, sticking his head in the tent where Cal was dozing across the tent from Ella. He¡¯d wanted to sleep in her lap, but she¡¯d kicked him away. Cal had forgotten he was wearing someone else¡¯s face. ¡°Mmm, what?¡± he said, opening his eyes. ¡°The boy in the cage, he¡¯s escaped in the confusion.¡± ¡°Well, he¡¯s not going to get very far alone at night in the jungle. How¡¯s the kid that got stung?¡± ¡°He¡¯s recovering well, sir, the swelling went down almost immediately after the wasp disappeared.¡± ¡°Good, good¡­¡± Cal searched his memories for the guy¡¯s name. ¡°Farren, How long have we been working together?¡± ¡°About two weeks, sir?¡± Oh, excellent, he doesn¡¯t know the original captain very well. ¡°And in that time, have I ever explained myself to you?¡± ¡°Umm, from time to time. I am your second.¡± ¡°I see, I see¡­Farren, we¡¯re going back to Surrak.¡± ¡°What? But sir, that¡¯s¡­dereliction of duty.¡± ¡°I know what my duty is!¡± Cal raised his voice, just high enough to startle the second-in-command. ¡°It¡¯s to the crown, not fighting barbarians in the middle of the jungle! Miss Ella here has valuable information that will swing the war with Iletha in our favor. Do you believe that is less important than tracking down sawtoothed apes running around the forest in butt-flaps?¡± ¡°No sir.¡± Farren said, balking at Cal¡¯s stare. ¡°Tomorrow, have the Sergeants advance their squad¡¯s Skills at their discretion, but if I hear about anyone giving a recruit a useless Skill maliciously, they¡¯ll have words with me. Once everyone is past their Forming Day, pack us up and head to the road to the West, the one that stretches along the coast between Surrak and Mujenan. Once we hit it, we¡¯ll follow the road to the north and deliver her to the Hash¡¯maje.¡± ¡°I¡­Didn¡¯t know you spoke Genosian,¡± Farren said. ¡°You don¡¯t know me at all, now ¡®git.¡± ¡°Very leaderly.¡± Ella said, nodding as Farren rushed off to make the arrangements. ¡°I don¡¯t know a damn thing about being a leader. It feels like some invisible thing I can¡¯t grasp, but everyone else seems to understand it intuitively. Even when I was a kid.¡± ¡°Was a kid?¡± Ella asked with a raised brow. Cal slapped a hand on his thigh and snapped his fingers ¡°My intuition is terrible!¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what the technical term is for it, but-¡° High functioning autism. ¡°But my Intuition has been crap since I got the System, and probably before, I think. The Skills the man gave me were just patches to deal with the symptoms of having poor Intuition.¡± ¡°The man?¡± ¡°Uncle Bekvah.¡± Cal said as if that explained everything. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°By the way, sir.¡± Farren said, sticking his head back in the tent. ¡°Are you normally this intrusive?¡± Cal asked, glancing up in frustration. ¡°Yessir. Should I put the captive back in the cage for the night now?¡± ¡°Obviously not.¡± Cal said. ¡°There¡¯s already one person who broke out of those flimsy cages prowling around, why would I want to put her where he could snag her in the middle of the night? She¡¯s safest here with me.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°She¡¯s well trained, and totally docile.¡± Cal said, patting Ella on the head as she scowled at him. ¡°I think I¡¯ll take a page from the boy¡¯s book and keep her.¡± ¡°Ummm¡­okay then.¡± Farren ducked back out of the tent and the two of them laid down to sleep. A minute turned into ten, then thirty, and despite being exhausted, Cal wasn¡¯t able to find the sweet release of sleep. ¡°Ugh,¡± Cal said, trying to find a comfortable position on the captain¡¯s sheepskin covered cot. ¡°What is it?¡± she asked, propping herself up to look at him. ¡°My damn stomach¡¯s too big to lay on, and when I lay on my back, I snore so loud that it wakes me up.¡± Ella burst out laughing, quickly stifling herself because of the thin walls and turning over. He could see her shoulders continue to shake as she quietly giggled to herself. ¡°That must be terrible,¡± she said between chuckles. Cal turned over to his other side, grumbling for a while before he found a position that was comfortable, a sheepskin stuffed between his arms. ¡°To the hells with getting old,¡± Cal said moments before he fell asleep. The next morning went by without a hitch. Although his disguise made him look old, he was not, in fact, old. The discomfort of the night before had simply been a result of his new body shape. Cal got dressed and prowled around the camp, looking Captain-y in an effort to familiarize himself with the soldier¡¯s names, and how military discipline worked. His salute was supposedly terrible, so he¡¯d carefully watched the sergeants and his second address each other, carefully cataloguing the differences between a superior and subordinate. One mistake could breed suspicion. Luckily Cal knew that no one suspected him of being a teenage boy masquerading as their CO. When they looked at him, he felt a healthy dose of fear, respect, and a tiny undercurrent of disdain for his womanizing ways. At Ella¡¯s insistence, he¡¯d had her put back in the cage before they started moving, because, according to her, it would be far less suspicious. Also, she didn¡¯t want to associate that man¡¯s face with Cal at all, so she¡¯d rather avoid him if possible until they were free of the Gadveran military. The Gadveran military had a very interesting system for dealing with Breaks mid-campaign, Cal realized as he toured the campground. In order to become a Sergeant, a man had to have at least three Breaks, five years experience, and have earned the Teaching skill When the recruits gained their first, second, or third Breaks, they would become the communal property of the camp¡¯s Sergeants, who would break the recruits into groups, where some Sergeants were responsible for teaching their most appropriate Skill to anyone who needed it, and others would harry the slower, fatter, or weaker recruits into shape. In a single day, the skill, discipline and cohesion of a company could experience a substantial increase. Assuming the sergeants were doing their jobs correctly. Cal had no basis for comparison, so he simply walked around the camp, scowling disapprovingly while he learned, which seemed to put the fear of Skovos into them. Leadership seemed to be the art of allowing people to think you were better than you were, and then never disabusing them of that notion. Weird stuff. By midday, the sergeants had successfully guided the last of the younger men through their Forming Day, making sure their attributes were regulation. Cal was surprised to discover that there were guidelines in the Gadveran military about where exactly each attribute should be at each stage of a soldier¡¯s career. First Break Body should be seven, second Break should be eight, third should be ten, and so on. Mind was only required to be raised to five in the case of the severely handicapped. The amount of Warp available each break was roughly determined by a person¡¯s highest primary attribute, multiplied by one and a third, which was why Bekvah knew exactly how much Warp he should have during his first Break, half again more than other people. Farren had everyone pack up and head West while Cal looked on stoically. He felt some confusion and uncertainty in the glances sent his way, but when he puffed out his barrel chest and acted like he knew what he was doing, the gazes became reassured and they simply went back to what they were doing. Leadership is weird. I don¡¯t really get it. Once they were in town, Cal would let Ella out and the two of them would vanish, because standing around and pretending he knew what was going on was making his stomach sour. The next day was uneventful, with Cal riding beside Ella and chatting until they settled down for the night. Farren was a little surprised when Cal ate the same meals as everyone else, but Cal didn¡¯t feel anything bad from the other soldier¡¯s gazes when he did so. They seemed to think better of him for it. He made sure to stop and chat with each of the recruits, trying to memorize their names. Wasn¡¯t that what captains were supposed to do? Whenever he felt a soldier who was looking at him with particularly high repressed anger, Cal would take them aside and get to the bottom of it, usually sorting out some error that had been made in his name, or mediating differences between bunkmates. The third day travelling to the west, they came across the road and turned to the northeast. All they had to do now was march in relative safety on the well-worn roads. Midday of the fourth day, they were trudging around a gentle turn in the road when Cal spotted a half-burnt carriage in an open field above the rocky shore, surrounded by men wearing the blue and black of Iletha. The carriage had a distinctive emblem on it, but Cal didn¡¯t know one noble house from another, being a consummate hick. ¡°Farren, my eyes aren¡¯t what they used to be. Whose carriage is that?¡± he said, pointing the half-destroyed construction out. Farren glanced over, and his eyes went very wide. ¡°By all the gods, that¡¯s the Hash¡¯Maje¡¯s symbol!¡± ¡°C¡¯mon!¡± Cal shouted before rushing forward, jumping off the road and sprinting through the waist-high grass, leaving his stunned company behind. He supposed he should say something more eloquent or leader-y, but he couldn¡¯t think of anything that didn¡¯t sound forced, or way to slow. National pride wasn¡¯t really the issue here, nor civic duty. He simply owed the family a debt, and he was halfway across the field before he even considered the full ramifications of the situation he was in. The forty or so Ilethan soldiers were deep, deep behind enemy lines. There was no way that they were anything less than Veterans ¨C or better ¨C on a mission specifically to capture the leadership of Gadvera, which meant Cal had a very slim chance of making any kind of meaningful difference with the second and third Break people at his disposal, and would most likely be put down in a matter of seconds. Cal glanced behind him, and spotted the rest of the company with their swords out, waving them above their heads as they sprinted along, following him blindly towards certain death. Wonderful. Cal hauled back and tossed the Fire-Worm extract with everything he had, causing it to trace a long arc through the air. He duplicated a hundred pounds of the stuff directly on top of the Ilethans ahead of them. Mass splitting. 8/11 Bent remaining. The duplicated gunk was black and smouldered faintly, not like the glear gel he¡¯d had earlier. Rather than burn them alive, it spattered down on them, causing confusion and light burns. It oxidized. It¡¯s been five days. What did you expect? I don¡¯t know what that means! Cal thought, furiously trying to come up with a different solution to their Ilethan problem now that they were aware of their presence. Ooh, you think? The foreign thoughts in his head second-guessed him as he whipped out his flint and steel, slowing to take aim. The rest of the company continued their charge, splitting around him. One of the Ilethans, wearing thick bands of nem and a blue silk robe that marked him as a sorcerer, raised his hand and shouted a single word, causing the front wave of Gadveran soldiers to tumble forward in sleep. Cal felt like he¡¯d just worked a full day, drank a glass of warm milk, and Karen was rocking him to sleep. And something was swimming around his head and tickling the back of his throat with sleepiness. ¡°Weak Willed Gadverans!¡± the sorcerer shouted with glee as the entire company collapsed, save Calvin. That¡¯s not good, Cal thought, the realization of impending death snapping him out of his stupor. He had really hoped for some meat shields, at the very least. Cal shoved the sensation flitting around his head in his mouth and chewed it, then swallowed it. He wasn¡¯t sure if that was something he was supposed to be able to do, but it seemed to stave off the desire for sleep, and caused a tic in the sorcerer¡¯s eye. Cal struck some sparks a hundred feet away from the frowning sorcerer. Shaping. 8/11 Bent remaining. Cal missed the spark, accidentally duplicating air to little effect. The sorcerer raised his hand again, shaking his head and chuckling while blue fire coalescing around his fingers. Seems like a good time to retreat, if you ask me. I wouldn¡¯t make it halfway to the road. Nut up or shut up. Cal thought, striking the steel again. That¡¯s a very Karen thing to say. Shaping. 7/11 Bent remaining. Rather than create a field of fire, Cal used shaping to channel all the mass he could into a single white hot spark of iron, one hundred and twenty-one pounds of liquid steel, aimed straight at the sorcerer¡¯s chest. The sorcerer was tossed violently backward, instantly immolated by the molten steel. The handful of weapon-wielding ilethans that weren¡¯t busy fighting the royal guards peeled away and charged Cal, while the Royal guard members seemed to snap out of some kind of stupor with the death of the sorcerer, their blades speeding up and making the Ilethans bleed. The royal guards were Legends, moving like streaks of light and striking like thunder, while the Ilethans were trying to overwhelm them with the sheer number of Veterans. Calvin ran away as fast as he could. Better to lead these men on a merry chase than stand still and be slaughtered. He was pulling his weight simply by allowing the half-dozen remaining royal guards a chance to catch their breath. Calvinian summoning. 6/11 Bent remaining. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 2! Calvinian Summoning level 2: 20 pound limit, 4 minutes. 0 slots available. Hmm¡­ Calvinian summoning. Calvinian summoning. 4/11 Bent remaining. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 3! Calvinian Summoning level 3: 45 pound limit, 9 minutes. 0 slots available. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning 2/11 bent remaining. In a matter of seconds, Cal created thirty-six five-pound Fever wasps, filling the air with their dreadful humming. Kill them while I run away ¨C ack! Cal spotted a glint of light as one of the Ilethan Veterans waved his sword lazily, and he ducked on instinct, remembering Jinnei¡¯s Sword Skill Ability. The wasp at Cal¡¯s head-level split in half. Thirty-five giant wasps left. Spread out and kill them. Cal mentally nudged them, and the wasps went for it while Cal tried his best to stay out of range of the fighters who seemed to run a lot faster than him. A few of them taken by surprise by the wasps, but most of the swordsmen were fast enough to slash the wasps out of the sky, sending their green ooze splattering to the ground. In a matter of seconds, his wasps were dead. Stupid! They were just a bigger target! Maybe giant wasps wasn¡¯t the way to go here. Cal did a 180. He¡¯d gotten about a quarter of the dozen or so Ilethans chasing him, and from what he could see, the Royal Guard were pressing the rest of foreigners back now that they were free of the sorcerer¡¯s influence. He only needed to buy time for the situation to reverse. Sometimes that involved going an unexpected direction. Calvinian Summoning. Calvin summoned thousands upon thousands of normal sized wasps, and instructed them to cloud the air around him, blocking off sight and stinging anything that tried to get close as he charged madly toward the Ilethans. Cal saw one brace his feet on the grassy surface of the plain, and he let the strength go out of his legs, pitching himself backward just in time to miss the Charge ability that sent the ilethan streaking through the air above him. Cal then rolled to the side as quickly as he could, and the grass beside him split as invisible slashes tore through it. When he got close he dropped low and knuckle-ran through the crowd of Ilethans, scrambling, ducking and dodging as fast as his adrenalin soaked body could take him. The ilethans, for their part, were incredibly distracted by being stung, and their performance suffered significantly, making them sloppy enough for Cal to squeeze through them and leverage half the swarm against the other Ilethans. The distraction of painful venomous stingers to the eyes was the last straw, and the titanic struggle between the royal Guard and the Ilethans was over in a fraction of a second. They then rushed past Cal, angling to mop up the rest of them. Panting, Cal glanced over his shoulder, and noticed the Ilethans behind him were all being run down by the Royal Guard, their movements hampered by Fever Wasp poison. ¡°Who, or what, are you?¡± came a stern voice as sharp as a blade. A steel-haired woman was eyeing him suspiciously, hand resting on the pommel of her sword. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen magic like that.¡± ¡°Just dupdomancy,¡± Cal said. ¡°Captain Skovos, Nice to meet you.¡± ¡°You are not Captain Skovos.¡± She said, narrowing her eyes. ¡°I know captain Skovos, and more importantly, he knows me. You are not him.¡± Damn, that was a short ride. Cal thought as he smiled nervously. A sudden shriek split the air and drew their attention to where Kala had fallen on her butt, staring at him in horror. A moment later, she blushed, cleared her throat and stood, wiping the dirt and grass off her butt and giving him an elegant curtsey. ¡°Calvin, it¡¯s nice to see you again.¡± ¡­I think your other girlfriend can see me. Macronomicon Chapter 28: Catfight Averted ¡°Alright, listen up,¡± General Andra Kolein said, pacing in front of the hundred or so new recruits. ¡°Your captain didn¡¯t make it. He did however put his team in a position to win the highest honor in Gadvera. You are going to escort the royal family back to Mujenan and receive high accolades for the work you¡¯ve done here.¡± Her eyes snapped over to Farren, who had raised his hand. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Did we really do anything?¡± He said. ¡°Last thing I remember we were charging, and then I got really sleepy.¡± There was a general murmur of agreement. ¡°That was Ilethan mind magic wiping your short term memories. You fought like devils and overwhelmed them with sheer tenacity.¡± Andra said. ¡°Oh, oh. Cool.¡± Farren said, standing a little straighter. ¡°I see.¡± Calvin muttered from the repaired carriage, ¡°Stroke their egos to raise moral so that next time they may actually fight like devils.¡± Add that to the playbook. ¡°Are the chains really necessary?¡± Kala and Ella asked in two different tongues at the same time, glancing over at Cal with concern. The two girls looked at each other with suspicion. The words had been from different languages, but the tone had been identical. ¡°He impersonated an officer. At least.¡± One of the remaining royal guard, a square jawed Legend named Horas said from where he kept an eye on Calvin. ¡°I imagine the crown might forgive him given the circumstances, though.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine,¡± Cal said in Genosian and Gadveran, waving off the concern of the two girls who had begun sizing each other up like chickens stretching their necks to see who was taller. Ella definitely had the advantage in the size department, standing shoulder to shoulder with Horas. ¡°I can wait out a little discomfort if it gets me to the¡­um. Why are we not going to Surrak?¡± Horas kept his face straight, but Cal saw a twitch of repressed anger and guilt for opportunities missed. Hmm. ¡°Surrak has been taken by Iletha.¡± Kala said, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. What is so scary about looking at me? ¡°oh, damn.¡± Cal stared at the ground, mind awhirl. ¡°Are Jinnei and Karen okay?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Kala said, grasping Cal¡¯s hand, still not looking directly at him. ¡°But I do know that wherever Karen goes, Jinnei will be perfectly safe.¡± ¡°Who is this girl?¡± Ella said, cutting between the two of them, nearly shoving Kala away. That act made the royal guardsmen nearby start fingering their weapons. ¡°And why does she think she can touch you?¡± ¡°Who is this girl?¡± Kala said. ¡°And why is there a magenta band between the two of you? ¡°Ummm¡­.¡± Cal leaned back in his seat and laced his fingers around his knee as they looked at him expectantly. ¡°what color is Magenta?¡± Wow, just threw that Talking to Girls Skill right out the window. Kala paled and stepped back, attracting Ella¡¯s curiosity. ¡°What is that?¡± she said, pointing at him. ¡°What is what?¡± Cal asked innocently. ¡°That¡­thing that rose from its slumber inside you for an instant.¡± ¡°My System?¡± ¡°That was not a System! That was a gaping wound in your soul that led into the purest evil. I can practically taste it. How are you sane?¡± Tomato Tomahto. ¡°There it is again!¡± Kala said, pointing. ¡°Is she insane?¡± Ella asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± Cal responded. ¡°And she¡¯s a friend of mine from my home who seems to harbor at least a little bit of jealousy.¡± ¡°Ah, but did you ever have sex?¡± ¡°I think if we had, the people guarding her would have cut my head off.¡± ¡°Hmm,¡± Ella got a smug smile. ¡°We haven¡¯t had sex either.¡± Cal said. ¡°She doesn¡¯t know that.¡± Ella said, placing a possessive hand on Cal¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Why haven¡¯t we, by the way?¡± ¡°Humans can breed with everything, that¡¯s common knowledge. I didn¡¯t need Calvin-brats running around making my escape harder.¡± ¡°Escape!?¡± Whoops. ¡°You were planning on leaving me!?¡± she demanded, grabbing Cal by his loose-fitting Skovos shirt and hauling him up. Cal raised his shackled hands in supplication. ¡°I asked if you wanted to run away with me, you said no. What was I supposed to do?¡± ¡°Get off him!¡± Kala said, shoving Ella away with unprincess-like strength, sending Ella reeling backward. Damn, this is getting good. Came a thought from Elliot, along with crunching and chewing noises. Think they¡¯ll start tearing each other¡¯s clothes off, or is that too much to ask? Tell me you¡¯re not evil. Evil is subjective, call me self-interested. Besides, she¡¯ll get used to it. Like riding a roller coaster, eventually it¡¯ll be a turn-on. I¡¯m not one hundred percent sure what you just said, but it sounded evil. ¡°That¡¯s enough!¡± General Andra said, her voice sending an icy trill of dread through their collective spines. ¡°Take her back to the cage,¡± she said, and Horas clamped an iron hand down on Ella¡¯s shoulder, guiding her away. ¡°And you, princess, have forgotten your station and acted in the height of poor taste. Remove yourself from the boy until you come to your senses again.¡± ¡°Yes, General.¡± Kala said, staring at her feet and shuffling away, her whole body radiating shame. At least I don¡¯t have to answer any awkward questions about my relationship with them. ¡°And you¡­¡± She said, pointing at Cal. ¡°What is your relationship with those two?¡± Well, shit. ¡°Kala used to visit my village.¡± ¡°I remember. Deinos, was it?¡± Cal nodded. ¡°We were friends.¡± ¡°I can see that,¡± Andra said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She leaned forward until her faintly scarred face was inches away from his own. ¡°If we find out you¡¯ve used any kind of Skill on the princess, your head will roll.¡± Eep. ¡°What about the other one, the Genosian?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s a bit of a long story.¡± Cal said. Andra touched her sword. ¡°Which I will tell right now.¡± Cal blurted out everything that had happened to him in the last three weeks at a record-setting pace. He skimmed over a few parts, like him and Ella grinding on each other, and the part where he killed Skovos, but Andra didn¡¯t seem to care about him. ¡°I see.¡± She motioned one of the royal guard closer and whispered in his ear. The man glanced at Cal and nodded before returning to his duty. ¡°Your Genosian pet will be fine, and will continue to be fine in exchange for your good behavior.¡± ¡°Pfff, you think I care what happens to her?¡± Cal said. ¡°Jorgas, go cut off a hand.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll behave.¡± Cal said, backpedaling hard. ¡°I mean, that¡¯s not too hard to do, right? No need to get extreme.¡± ¡°Interesting¡­¡± Andra said, peering at Cal¡¯s eyes. ¡°Your pupils have dilated, boy.¡± She glanced over her shoulder. ¡°Cut off her head.¡± Every fiber of Cal¡¯s being rebelled at the idea, driving him to act, now, now NOW. Fuck that! Calvinian Summoning. 1/11 Bent Remaining. A swarm of wasps leapt out of Cal¡¯s hand, angling for the grey-haired woman, but the general lazily waved her sword, and the swarm fell out of the air in a rain of green goo. Well, that was anticlimactic. ¡°Interesting. Belay that.¡± She peered into Cal¡¯s eyes for a moment. ¡°I imagine the girl would have the same response?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± Cal gritted out, ashamed at being toyed with. He could feel her intention to exploit this particular weakness radiating through her gaze like the warmth of the sun. ¡°Then be on your best behavior, and you have nothing to worry about. What can you tell me about Noeula, the concoction that drained your Bent and healed your wound?¡± She asked. Cal frowned. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because I said so, boy.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know much of anything, just that they make a special brew out of the black stuff that drips out of the ruin in the mountain, and it heals wounds.¡± She narrowed her eyes for a moment, then pulled away from him, cold calculation on her face and in her gaze. The lady didn¡¯t feel anything other than duty and how to achieve said duty. Knowing that behind the stony mask was a stony mind was making his knees shake. She would¡¯ve killed Ella if that had been the most convenient thing to do. Well, if you married Kala, that could work in your favor. ¡°Stay quiet until we get to Mujenan. I don¡¯t want those soldiers seeing you. When we get to the city the Hash¡¯Maje will decide what to do with you.¡± She pushed him deeper into the charred carriage and closed the door on him. A couple minutes later, the carriage started wobbling, heading for the road. Cal found himself in the middle of a blackened, yet still comfortable carriage, wearing manacles, with nothing to do but wait. Hmm¡­ Cal settled against the carriages bumping wall and relaxed his body, trying to disconnect himself from the moment and ignore the distractions. He didn¡¯t have the Bent or the energy to attempt an escape, and the Royal Guard were watching him like a dangerous animal, so getting away would be many times more difficult than it had been before. The best thing he could do right now was work on his Meditation. The carriage got onto the road, the crunch of dirt added to the sounds as they came off the soft grass. He let the bobbing of the carriage, chatter of the soldiers, and the constant crunch of dirt lull him into a trance, exploring his options, and hypothesizing on his future. Cal had never been to Mujenan, but it was likely to be large, and well defended. The hope that the Hash¡¯maje would allow him his freedom would be slim after it was revealed that he¡¯d killed Captain skovos. So, most likely, he and Ella had a few weeks of interrogation to look forward to in regards to the Genosian threat, before they were both executed. Impersonating an officer alone was punishable by death. Forget about killing them. So, what do we do? Escape, or make ourselves too valuable to kill. These were the only two options Cal could see, and they were both very hazy concepts. To escape, he needed to slip out from under the watchful eye of Legends like Karen, and he hadn¡¯t the first idea of how to manage it. He could shapeshift into a young gadveran male, since that was the average, but the royal guard were a lot sharper. Perhaps an opportunity would present itself when they entered the city and he was moved from the care of the Royal Guard to the more lax prison system. The prison is more lax than the royal guard. Hah. Less challenging at least. The other option was more attractive. Running away from the Gadverans left him an enemy of the state, but if he could come up with some kind of leverage that forced them to forgive his crimes, that would work out much better in the long run. Not blackmail, but a Skill or knowledge that only he could do. Calvinian summoning came to mind. It was useful for large groups of individuals, but people with a lot of Breaks and experience most likely had counters to it. Andra being the case in point. Maybe I can request leniency in exchange for service on the battlefield? Would they even go for that, considering I can change shape, and they know it? If I were general Andra what would I do? ¡­Exploit the Guya bond, and leverage utility from me and Ella on the threat of harm to the other and promise of being reunited. Cal tapped his fingers on his knee. How can I circumvent this? Escape impractical, and likely to result in damage or death to one or both of us. ¡­Politics? I can see general Andra using me as a chess piece to quietly swing a battle in her favor or assassinate some unlucky Ilethan Noble. This is all assuming I¡¯m not executed, but the look in her eye let me know she intends to use me, and the bond between myself and Ella as ruthlessly as possible. I must establish a character, and make it more impressive than Andra¡¯s character. Only then will I have the ability to shrug off her control. It¡¯s either that or a daring escape with Ella. Meditation has reached Level 5! Level 5: Boosts ability to ignore distractions and disassociate. 25% correction. +1 Will Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Shadow boxing: Allows the user to practice any Warped Skill up to the level of Meditation, at 1/4 speed. Useful for practicing Bent dependent skills or being imprisoned with time on your hands. Disconnect: Allows the user to disconnect from their senses and the flow of time. Useful for demon summoning, battles of Will, or retaining your sanity after a thousand years in prison. ^ Editor''s choice! Sherl*ck vision: Plan your moves out in advance with a solid sense of the near future. Elementary. Mutations: Bent Regeneration: Flat 20% Boost to Bent regeneration. Useful, if boring. Eye of the tiger: Enter flow state at will. +50% combat and learning effectiveness. The inverse of a barbarian rage. May make the user overtired with extended use. ~Adriaaaan! Medi-tating: Enter a deep trance while the body repairs itself at (Meditation) times normal speed. Hiber-Nate! Cal scrolled over the choices in his mind, organizing them by effectiveness. Shadow boxing was very appealing, as it would allow him to get Chained Spirit, Fishing and Genosian Language to level five (and their first mutation) without needing a summon, a partner, or a pond to fish in. After that, though, the effectiveness would rapidly dwindle until he raised his Meditation even further. Meditating was intriguing at first, but at lower levels, it only healed at five times normal speed. It would allow him to recover from an injury in maybe three days to a week, which would be useful, but not fast enough to bounce back at the kind of speed Calvin would hope for. At higher levels, if he ever got Meditation to level 20 or 30, he could use it to recover from an injury overnight, or a matter of hours, and that would be the level of speed he wanted. Cal settled on Eye of the Tiger. He didn¡¯t know what it meant, but a flat 50% boost in performance was difficult to ignore. While the return of Shadow boxing would eventually peter out, and Medi-tation was only useful in a safe place after getting wounded, Eye of the Tiger would serve to prevent wounds from happening. The others were interesting, but situational. He was sorely tempted by the bent regeneration, but the 50% learning increase gave Calvin an idea. I choose Eye of the tiger. Bum, Bum bum Bum. Elliot started humming bars to a strange song. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. ...Did my time, took my chances? Should I ask? Cal thought a moment before he lost consciousness, feeling an odd aching in the back of his head and neck. When Calvin opened his eyes again, the carriage was still rattling down the road, the sun still pouring through the burnt holes in the ceiling. He blinked the gum out of his eyes, and spat out the taste of charcoal from where he¡¯d had his mouth open, then closed his eyes again. Eye of the tiger. Distractions seemed to not fade, but blend into a perfect, uniform background upon which he imposed his mind, a perfect dot at the center of the fabric of space. Cal started meditating, using the forced flow state to drastically speed the training of its primary skill. At level ten he would grab Shadow Boxing, and at level fifteen he would take Medi-tating, gaining each of them at the level they could be of use to him. Why settle for one thing he wanted when he could have all of them? By the point he got Meditation to fifteen, his Will would be nineteen. Then he could use Shadow Boxing to raise Chained spirit to level five, bringing his Will up to the cap. Then switch gears and focus on his Stability skills, Genosian Language and Fishing. Getting each of those to level ten would take his Stability to fifteen, allowing him to raise those skills just past fifteen, bottlenecking at seventeen Stability. Then he could use his spare time to practice Read Expressions, Talking to Girls, Acting, and Sense-grafting, bottlenecking at 14, because Stealth was already capped. 14 Int, 17 Sta, 20 Will, then I need another Break. Cal didn¡¯t know how long that would take him, but the upside was it didn¡¯t require freedom, only time. Next Break he would receive 27 Warp. That was just enough to raise his Body by four and his Mind by five, uncapping skills and allowing them to reach the next ability or mutation. If he did it perfectly. Went the distance now I¡¯m not gonna stop? Elliot¡¯s caterwauling slid around the edges of Cal¡¯s consciousness, unheeded as he sank into deep meditation. Meditation has reached Level 6! Level 6: Boosts ability to ignore distractions and disassociate. 30% correction. ¡­. A strange sound tickled the edge of Cal¡¯s little bubble of consciousness, alerting him that something was wrong. He snapped back to complete wakefulness, listening to the clamor from outside. The Gadveran soldiers were shouting to each other with nervous energy, and the Carriage was now moving roughly half again as fast as it had been originally. Cal braced himself against the seat to stand and peek out the rear window. A line of Ilethan riders were chasing after them, four abreast, several hundred deep. The door of the carriage slammed open, revealing the grey-haired general. She roughly hauled up his hands and unlocked the manacles before dragging him out into the open, the wind blowing through their hair as she held him on the edge of the door. ¡°Do your wasp trick.¡± She said, pointing at the riders. ¡°I want you to hit them when they break into a gallop to overtake us.¡± ¡°You think they won¡¯t have a sorcerer?¡± ¡°Wizards aren¡¯t exactly common in any culture.¡± She said. ¡°Now make those guars toss their riders.¡± That¡¯s odd. Cal had seen plenty of street magicians when he was twelve, although they never did much beside duplicate a few things with flourishes, make things vanish. That was real magic, right? Maybe Calvin was luckier than he thought. Calvinian Summoning. 0/11 Bent remaining. An overpowering swarm of wasps flew from his hands, then settled in the grass on either side of the road at his command. A few moments later, they leapt upon the riders, stinging their guars and causing them to go wild with fright, scattering and bucking, trying to dislodge the wasps by any means necessary, incidentally dislodging their riders, causing hundreds of men to become wounded and dozens dead, bringing the charge to a complete standstill. Andra gave a short, huffing laugh, then drew Cal back inside the carriage. ¡°You do good work, little¡­whatever the hell you are. Keep it up and you could be a captain someday.¡± ¡°I already was a captain. It was alright.¡± Cal said. ¡°That¡¯s right, you were.¡± She regarded him for a moment, a tiny flurry of emotions just barely brushing the surface, too nuanced for Cal to make heads or tails of it. ¡°Skovos was garbage, brother to the man who tried to kidnap Kala. If there¡¯s any way I can keep the responsibility for his disappearance from falling on your shoulders, I will do so.¡± Cal could tell she was being honest, but at the same time, wanted to use him toward her own ends. I hate nuance. ¡°Could I ask a favor?¡± Cal asked as Andra was about to step out. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Could you not use Ella and I as leverage against each other like I can see you planning to do? Otherwise I¡¯m afraid I might be compelled to Skovos you.¡± She stared at him for a moment, and Cal could feel the steel in her resolve as she weighed the options and did the math in her head. Cal couldn¡¯t tell what conclusion that she drew, but the surety of her decision was tinged by a tiny bit more respect for him than it had been before: He¡¯d effectively read her mind, and that was nothing to scoff at. ¡°You¡¯ve got some ungodly Intuition, kid. I¡¯ll take it under advisement. If we make a more formal arrangement, I think we could work something out.¡± She turned and left, leaving Cal alone with his thoughts again. I hope that worked. Cal returned to his meditation until the sun went down, and beyond. The art of not thinking about anything unsurprisingly wasn¡¯t very energy intensive. It was almost like taking a nap, and by the time they set up camp for the night, he had already reached level eight. Meditation has reached Level 8! Level 8: Boosts ability to ignore distractions and disassociate. 40% correction. A soft screech of charred wood brought Cal out of his trance as someone opened the door of his little moving cell. Outside, he couldn¡¯t hear anything but the crackling of flames and the wind in the leaves. The door opened to reveal Kala, not wearing a scrap of clothing, the light of the moon reflecting off the curves of her breasts, creating enticing shadows along her toned stomach. Calvin¡¯s heart began to pound in anticipation. ¡°Umm¡­Hi?¡± Her body burst into a cage-like maw of barbed fangs. Macronomicon Shameless Patreon Plug says it''s 19 chapters ahead! Enjoy! Chapter 29: Guarplay Calvin recoiled backward. ¡°Shi-¡° Splitting 0/11 Bent remaining Calvin used the single Bent he¡¯d acquired over the last twelve hours of meditating to duplicate the door to the carriage, placing it between himself and¡­whatever the hell that thing was. The monster struck like a snake, lunging forward on a black, chitinous neck that hung out of the carriage, cinching the cage of teeth down around his makeshift shield. The impact slammed him back into the far wall, the teeth quivering individually around the edges of the door, almost like fingers. ¡°Gods!¡± Cal shouted as he put his back to the far wall and attempted to shove the creature back out the door, using his legs to push it away. Hey what¡¯s going o-OH MY GOD WHAT THE HELL IS THAT? ¡°I thought you knew everything,¡± Cal said with a grunt as the monster¡¯s claws and teeth dug furrows in the charred wood of the carriage. ¡°Widowmakers!¡± came a cry as the rest of the camp burst into activity. ¡°It¡¯s a widowmaker,¡± Cal said, slowly extending his legs, putting every fiber of muscle he could into it. He¡¯d seen a dead one paraded through the village once as a child. It had looked a lot smaller when it was cold and still. Widowmakers were a very dangerous class of monster that took the form of someone you were attracted to in the night and then kidnapped you with their capturing cage before taking you back to their nest to feast. Needless to say, the naked lover bit worked better with men than women. When people simply disappeared, one out of eight times a Widowmaker was responsible for it. Often enough that there were legal ways for widows to seek government aid after these disappearances. Huh, learn something new every day. We didn¡¯t have Widowmakers back in my time. They look like, what, a Warped centipede? Snake? You know, Warped mutations don¡¯t breed true very often, so the takeaway here is that life, uh, finds a way. ¡°Kinda busy.¡± Cal grunted. Alright, I¡¯ll leave you be, but don¡¯t die. It¡¯d be a pain in the ass to start over with some other rando. ¡°Start over?¡± Calvin asked. The pressure on the door went away suddenly as the Widowmaker backed off, and it started tilting tilting forward, soon to fall and expose him to the creature. ¡°Shit!¡± Cal lunged forward and grabbed the handle of the door, hauling it back to a standing position seconds before the creature hit the thin plank of wood like a runaway guar. Calvin was catapulted backward, the door in his hand splintering as several teeth went through the thin wood. His back hit the wall, bruising every muscle he had as Calvin was propelled through the thin carriage siding, tumbling backward in the grass. Calvin instantly came to his feet and took a second to get his bearings. He wouldn¡¯t be able to walk in a few minutes most likely, but right now, he couldn¡¯t feel anything. There were four Widowmakers in the camp, including Cal¡¯s, and one flying away on insect wings, some hapless young man trapped in its cage. There was one being fended off by six recruits, one looming over a tent, as yet unchallenged, and one dead, split in half by Andra. ¡°Horas, take Lee and bring down that one,¡± she said, pointing at the one in the sky. Horas nodded and picked up a massive bow studded with carved bone before sprinting off, tapping one of the other Royal guards on the shoulder as he ran, together they set off after the thing. ¡°Mr. Gadsint, Nice to see you up and about.¡± Andra said, glancing at his carriage that was rocking back and forth as the creature tried to extricate itself with a door stuck to its face. ¡°And Alive.¡± ¡°Any Bent left?¡± Cal shook his head. ¡°I see. If you would please join the princess at the north side of the camp, the other members of the guard will look after you. Cal glanced over at Ella, who was watching the events unfold with some amusement, relatively safe inside her cage. ¡°And please, don¡¯t make my job any harder than it has to be. Horas can run faster than a guar for four days straight.¡± Andra said, giving him an appraising look. The implied message was: We will catch you if you try to run. But at least she didn¡¯t directly accuse him of considering using the distraction to break Ella out of the cage and escape into the woods. Not directly, anyway. ¡°Got it,¡± Cal said, heading over, where three of the Legends were forming a triangle around a miffed looking Kara. She was wearing skintight light armor of Slip Frog skin, her arms tucked over each other, frowning as she stared at the ground. Cal found himself wanting to get a better look at her. ¡°Something wrong?¡± Cal asked when he was let through. The guards eyed him critically, but didn¡¯t stop him. ¡°They won¡¯t let me help.¡± She said. ¡°I¡¯d appreciate it if you could convince her not to, boy.¡± One of the guards said without taking his eyes off the surroundings. Cal glanced over and spotted Andra beheading the one still stuck halfway through the carriage, while another group of recruits was gathering around the one near the tents. In a minute or two, the fight would be over. ¡°There¡¯s only two left and the entire camp is roused. I don¡¯t see much left for a princess to do.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a fifth Break Veteran,¡± Kala said, ¡°I¡¯m able to help!¡± ¡°Just because you¡¯re a Veteran, doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re a veteran,¡± Cal said, sitting next to her and receiving a foul look. ¡°I imagine that like me, few of your Skills actually pertain to fighting monsters?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got some Skills for self-defence,¡± Kala said defensively in a manner that suggested otherwise. ¡°What about the one that lets you see things?¡± ¡°I¡­can¡¯t talk about it.¡± Kala said, shifting uncomfortably. ¡°Hmmm¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re okay,¡± Kala said, uncrossing her arms to reveal her modest breasts packed into the form-fitting magical leather. ¡°I saw the widowmaker in your carriage, but they stopped me from going to help.¡± Oh, that¡¯s why she¡¯s miffed. ¡°Okay is relative,¡± Cal said, tearing his gaze off her slim waist and back up to her face. He pointed at his back with his thumb. ¡°I got pushed right through the wall. I¡¯m already starting to feel like burger. In an hour or two, I might not even be able to move.¡± They sat there in silence for a couple minutes as the last widowmakers were overwhelmed and slain. ¡°I guess¡­someone will have to take care of you while you¡¯re incapacitated.¡± Kala said, a hint of red emerging on her delicate cheeks. One of the guards rolled his eyes, and Cal could feel another staring at his back, weighing whether or not to kill him. ¡°I¡¯m used to bruises,¡± Calvin said, ¡°You can just dump me back in the carriage like a sack of flour and I¡¯ll recover in half a day or so.¡± ¡°So I was wondering,¡± Kala said, before the guards tensed up at something behind him. ¡°Calvin!¡± Ella said, waving her arm, her breasts somehow jiggling inside her leather wraps, the exaggerated, wide hips of a Genosian rolling as she approached. Crap. ¡°What is she doing here?¡± Kala asked, glowering a bit. ¡°I dunno.¡± ¡°The Andra woman sent me over here as a gesture of good faith. She said I wouldn¡¯t run away without you and vice versa, so I might as well have my freedom as long as I don¡¯t harm anyone. She also said it would be funny.¡± Cal glanced over at the General across the camp, who gave him a salute with a sardonic flourish. The woman was sadistic. That was the only explanation. ¡°So who did it look like?¡± Ella said, sitting next to him, her soft skin brushing against his arm. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The widowmaker imitates someone you¡¯re attracted to. Who was it? I promise not to get mad.¡± ¡°I plead the Bower Amendment.¡± Cal said, standing. I refuse to testify against myself, especially if said testimony will lead to violence from one or more women. ¡°Bower Amendment? What¡¯s she saying?¡± Kala asked, utterly confused. Thank the gods Kala doesn¡¯t speak Genosian. ¡°She asked who the Widowmaker looked like.¡± One of the royal guards, who apparently knew Genosian, happily chimed in, giving Cal a wink and a thumbs-up. Bastard. Kala¡¯s attention snapped into sharp focus on Cal. ¡°Who did it look like?¡± she asked, sidling up to his other side and peering at his face with an intensity that could only be derived from a Skill. Cal froze, preventing himself from looking at anyone or doing anything that might be a tell. ¡°Welp,¡± Cal said, clapping his hands together and standing up, taking a step back before addressing the air between the two girls sitting there, keeping his body language tightly under control. ¡°I would rather fight giant insect monsters than answer that question. I¡¯ll go see if there¡¯s more to be fought¡­that way.¡± Calvin started heading toward the other side of the camp. ¡°What did he say?¡± Ella asked the bilingual guard, whose stoic demeanor was starting to crack as he snickered. The rest of them weren¡¯t far behind. ¡°He bitched out and didn¡¯t answer.¡± ¡°Calvin Gadsint, you stop right there.¡± Kala said with a commanding tone that washed over him, putting a little hitch in his step. Something pressed in around him, almost physically weighing him down, like he¡¯d been plated with lead. Cal shook it off. He started running. He heard one of the Royal Guards whistle. ¡°That boy¡­has a lot of Will.¡± Cal was sprinting between tents, trying to outpace the two sets of feet he heard slapping against the packed dirt behind him, not really understanding why he was running, or what his plan was when he stopped. Some animal part of his brain had told him to escape from that situation, and so he had, but now he was running like a madman through a military camp with no idea what his next step was. He was enjoying himself, and had no idea why. There was a flash of green light and a paralyzing bolt struck him in the spine, causing him to topple forward, slamming into the packed earth of the camp, abraiding the side of his face. He could only be thankful it wasn¡¯t straight into guar dung. Cal was quickly overcoming the sudden stiffness in his muscles, since the effect was nowhere near as strong as her Aoehe¡¯s. He managed to get his arms moving again and almost placed them under himself when Ella and Kala caught up, brushing past a gathering crowd of onlookers to leap on him. Kala sat down on his lower back, her delicate rear weighing him down while Ella caught his shoulder with a vice-like grip, pinning him to the earth. ¡°Now,¡± Kala said, panting. ¡°Which of us was it?¡± ¡°What she said.¡± Ella said, not having any idea what Kala actually said. ¡°Seems a little narcissistic to assume it was one of you, doesn¡¯t it?¡± Cal said, looking over his shoulder at Ella. The angle she was leaning over him gave him an excellent vantage into the way her breasts hung low inside her leather top. ¡°It could have been the General for all you know.¡± ¡°Then why did you run?¡± Kala asked. ¡°What she said.¡± Ella repeated. Damn. Elliot, talk to me. Nuh uh, I¡¯m enjoying the show. There was more crunching and chewing noises in Cal¡¯s mind. Kala yelped and jumped off Cal, reacting to Elliot. Lady killer. Calvin began swiftly draining Ella¡¯s Bent through her palm against his shoulder. It was very easy now, she let him through her defenses practically on reflex. 1/11 Bent Remaining. ¡°That¡¯s¡­not..¡± 2/11 Bent Remaining. 3/11 Bent Remaining. 4/11 Bent Remaining. 5/11 Bent Remaining. Ella pressed her lips together and stifled a moan before slumping forward, her left breast engulfing the side of his face. Cal had just enough room to slip out from under her, scramble to his feet and keep running, brushing past the crowd of gawking onlookers. *** ¡°Should we really be letting her do that?¡± One of Andra¡¯s subordinates asked as the two girls chased Kala¡¯s strange idiot-savant wizard crush around the camp. ¡°She¡¯ll only be young once, and she needs a distraction from recent events.¡± Andra said, eyeing the road. ¡°I teach every group of bodyguards to think dynamically about the princess¡¯s well-being. What is truly a threat, and what builds character? Keep an eye on them, but don¡¯t interfere unless something truly warrants it. ¡°Ma¡¯am,¡± he said saluting before heading to higher ground to keep a better eye on them. Andra watched as Kala and the boy¡¯s pet Genosian began to use teamwork to flush him out, splitting up and guiding him to a dead end where they pounced on him, the Genosian holding him in a full nelson while Kala interrogated him, using her highly cultivated Intuition-based skills pry some kind of admission out of him. Looks like they¡¯re having fun, she thought before returning to the task of reorganizing the camp after the widowmaker debacle. Had they been sent by the Ilethans, or merely a coincidence? It didn¡¯t really matter one way or another. They had been disrupted, slowed down. The next two days she would have to have a forced march through the night to make sure the princess arrived safely at Mujenan. Soldiers with three Breaks should be able to handle it, but the ones with less might be unable to keep up. It meant a few of them, those not strong enough to make a trip like that, might be left behind to die, and she was going to be responsible for it. Never gets any easier, she thought as she got the camp in order to march at first light. ***Calvin*** ¡°It was Kala, okay?¡± Calvin admitted, his spine aching where Ella was cranking his head down. His arms flopping around uselessly. Despite his best effort, they had eventually pinned him down and forced him to confess. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen her in two years, and then I saw her again, and she looked totally different and it was hard to stop thinking about it!¡± ¡°Whoo! Boom!¡± Kala said, whooping and jumping for joy while making rude gestures for a moment before she seemed to realize what she was doing. She coughed, settled down in a demure stance and put her hand delicately in front of her victorious grin. ¡°I mean, a young man shouldn¡¯t have such thoughts about a princess of Gadvera, you rapacious animal.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll show you a rapacious animal,¡± Calvin grumbled. ¡°She seems happy,¡± Ella purred in his ear. ¡°Ummm¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Ella said, letting him out of the hold. ¡°I already knew what the answer was.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°You¡¯ve been thinking about her in a lustful way since you saw her, which means I have, too.¡± Calvin blinked. What the hell does that mean? ¡°Care to explain that?¡± Calvin asked. All he got from the Guya was a desire to please, protect and a sense of possessiveness, not some kind of uncanny mind-reading. ¡°No. But you can explain to her about our new sleeping arrangements.¡± ¡°Our sleeping arrangements?¡± ¡°General Andra was kind enough to provide the two of us with a tent.¡± Ella said, walking away. ¡°Just one?¡± Cal asked, Kala still standing next to him. Ella shot them both a wide, shark-toothed grin. ¡°What did she say?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Ummm¡­¡± Boo! Kala shrieked and stumbled away from Cal, tripping and falling flat on her pert butt. Muahaha! EVIIIL! Macronomicon Chapter 30: Princess Sandwich Macronomicon Cal was riding one of the carriage¡¯s guars as a Very Important Prisoner. Since his identity was still a secret, he was in the form of a handsome young Gadveran male who felt familiar to everyone, but no one could place. Strangely enough, when he averaged people¡¯s features, he got a very attractive face. It¡¯s said that ugly people are ugly in their own way, which meant those unique uglinesses were wiped out by other people¡¯s normal features. One person has a weird nose, but most people¡¯s noses are ok. One person has a tiny, underdeveloped chin, but most people¡¯s chins are ok. Which explained why people were currently staring at his damn-near perfect Gadveran face while he argued with Elliot. I¡¯m just saying most guys would kill for a situation like this. Elliot said as Cal watched Ella and Kala riding together¡­getting along, teaching each other the language. As a unit, they were unapproachable¡­unassailable. Ella kept ogling Kala while she wasn¡¯t looking. And Vice Versa. What is happening here? Cal thought, leaning low in his saddle and clutching his head. I know fighting because I got it pounded into me since birth, and I know thinking creatively to solve problems, but this is driving me crazy. How do I solve this? It¡¯s not a problem. Pretty sure Ella got the short end of the Guya stick, and that makes her unconsciously want what you want, and as for Kala, she¡¯s probably just curious. Encourage the curiousity¡­ But not in a creepy way. I started learning that lesson when I was your age. Took me like thirty years not to be a creep, and another thirty to learn how to encourage ladies to experiment without being a creep. Cal took his head. You were sixty years old and encouraging young women to experiment with each other? Well, I ¨C Because that sounds like the definition of a creep. You know what? Bite me. I don¡¯t have to answer to you. I¡¯m sitting here, taking time out of my busy day to toss pearls before swine because you¡¯ve got the opportunity to be the meat in a princess sandwich. Cal burst into a chuckle, drawing attention from nearby soldiers. Sounds like fun, but Ella¡¯s not a princess. Uh, her dad¡¯s the chieftan-majiggy. She qualifies. Every major girl in your life is special because her dad is important. ¡°huh.¡± I suppose you¡¯re right. Yep, you¡¯re the tropiest son of a bitch I¡¯ve ever been. You¡¯ve ever been? Been in. With. Seen. Whatever. Cal was about to pry further when he realized he could feel Kala overlooking his conversation with Elliot. Her gaze held a mixture of fear and intoxication, a sort of craving sensation. When Cal glanced up, she had already looked away and was busily suppressing a shiver from her neck to her waist. Told you she¡¯d come around. That¡¯s neuroplasticity at work right there. or maybe cognitive dissonance. I¡¯m not really sure. And let me tell you, being the meat in a lady-sandwich was maybe the third most fun I¡¯ve ever done in my life, right after naked karaoke and executing the one percent. Come to think of it, we could totally arrange a naked karaoke night with these dudes. It¡¯s a bit of a sausage fest, but you gotta start somewhere, amiright? Maybe General Andra will show us how it¡¯s done. She seems fit. Executing the one percent? Cal asked. After the Harbingers brought the Warp, it was a completely lawless era. We occasionally tried people for greed by burying them under their wealth. If they only had a million dollars or so, well, that was easy to climb out of¡­ but a billion or more? Those people never came up. Super fun. Maybe I¡¯m lacking context. You are. Cal shook his head and dismissed that train of thought. Anyway, back to your lessons in handling your harem. My what!? Elliot¡¯s voice became slow and relaxed, like he was unconcerned with anything. The first thing you gotta do is take a deep breath and let the urge to pressure them into making out with each other in the back of your truck float away with the exhale. Inhale¡­ And breathe out all the creepy thoughts. The creepy thoughts have an appropriate time and place. They can come later, not now. Inhale¡­ Exhale¡­ let the desire to steer the conversation towards sex go. You¡¯re starting to piss me off. Cal thought. Good! Anger is good. Use that to distract yourself from the creep inside while you go up there and make yourself comfortable with both of them. Step one is being truly comfortable in their presence, as in not awkward or constantly thinking about sex. I know it¡¯s a tall order, and feels counter-intuitive, but you can do it. I have confidence in us. You are the creep inside, and I¡¯m not going up there. They¡¯re doing just fine without me. Young padawan, need I remind you that Skills require stressful, exhausting practice to improve? No. So get the hell up there and level your Talking to Girls Skill by facing your fear of two attractive ones allied against you at the same time! Right now you¡¯re just wasting time riding a goddamn useless animal. Cal groaned and ran his hands down his face. When did you get so talkative? He thought, nudging the guar to catch up with the two girls. When I finally woke up the rest of the way and saw how badly you were handling yourself. ¡°How¡¯s it going?¡± Cal said as he came abreast of Ella and Kala, as calm and relaxed as he could manage. They started giggling. Giggling. At him. Nope, can¡¯t do it. Cal thought, about to let his guar fall back in the line. Get back in there, soldier! Elliot shouted in his mind. You¡¯ve gotta weather it! If it¡¯ll make you shut up. ¡°Do I have something on my face?¡± he asked. ¡°We were betting how long you would take to approach us.¡± Ella said. ¡°I won.¡± They know I like them! abort, abort! Goddamn stick with it, or I¡¯ll play dubstep in your head for a week. Cal took a deep, steadying breath. ¡°Okay¡­Umm...¡± he looked at the two of them staring at him expectantly. ¡°What did you win?¡± Ella glanced over at Kala, then back to him and shrugged. ¡°We weren¡¯t able to convey anything like stakes with our limited vocabulary, just ¡®boy come here at noon¡¯.¡± Cal glanced up at the sun overhead, and back down to Kala, who was grinning at the ¡®boy come here at noon¡¯ which Ella had spoken in Gadveran. ¡°Could you help translate?¡± She asked, leaning over to see past Ella. ¡°Learning each other¡¯s language is way harder without someone who already knows both.¡± ¡°Oh, sure.¡± ¡°Bring your guar into the middle here,¡± Kala said, pointing. ¡°So we can both see you.¡± Cal took a deep breath. Cal spent the rest of the afternoon into evening riding between the two of them, chatting with and translating for them. All the while, in the back of his head, he could feel a man giggling with a hand over his mouth. Fucking creep. It was especially irritating because the voice in his head seemed to know exactly how hyper-conscious Calvin was of the girl¡¯s bodies and exactly how badly he wanted to explore them. If the voice in his head had not already established certain behavior patterns as unacceptable, Cal might have not been conscious of them and committed the exact mistakes Elliot had claimed to have done. Which stung. The muffled giggling intensified, just quiet enough that Kara didn¡¯t seem to react to it. Talking to Girls has reached level 6! 30% correction. Talking to Girls has reached level 7! 35% correction. Eventually the stress of the situation faded away, but not before Cal got two levels in the span of four hours on the road. When Cal thought it was time to sleep, they kept marching on. Eventually, he had to give up the seat on his guar, allowing a trooper with less stamina than him to take his place on the giant lizard and catch a nap. They marched through the night, by the light of Soscath¡¯s burning scowl, trying to outpace the Ilethan pursuers. All of them made it through the night, but when Andra had them march through the next day, people started collapsing from fatigue. Cal was more exhausted than he¡¯d ever been in his life by noon, and he could see the strain on Ella and Kala¡¯s faces as they trudged along, putting one foot in front of the other. Neither he nor they had any energy to chat any more, silently facing forward as they walked together. The only reason Cal was able to keep up at all was because he¡¯d been riding the entire day before, a fact he was beginning to think was calculated by Andra. All the available guar were carrying sleeping soldiers toward the end of the second day, their heads hanging low. The Royal guardsmen had tossed one or more exhausted soldiers over their shoulders, marching along without revealing any kind of weakness, owed to their remarkable Body. As the sun was going down again and Cal was considering where he would like to be buried, a cry sounded from the front of the line. ¡°Mujenan! I see it!¡± At the cry, people¡¯s heads came up, and a tiny bit of life returned to their eyes. The end was in sight. That tiny bit of hope allowed them to gather up their last dregs of energy. They kept up the march, until Cal was at the top of the hill, looking down at the massive port city of Mujenan, biggest in Gadvera. It made Surrak look small by comparison, with towering walls that surrounded the sprawling city, and ships coming and going nonstop, even in the middle of a war. At the top of a hill in the center of the city was a palace with marble walls and brass roofs that glittered like gold in the fading light of day. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m speaking for everyone when I say that I will fall asleep the moment we step inside those gates.¡± Cal said. ¡°Look lively!¡± Andra said, walking up the line, trailing three Royal Guards, who looked perfectly chipper. ¡°We¡¯ve got to report in and stow our gear before any of you can sleep, but when that¡¯s all over, I¡¯ve got an entire barracks earmarked for tired soldiers coming in off the road. Feather beds, people! The faster you make it to the city, the sooner you sleep! Put some hustle into it!¡± They picked up their pace an almost imperceptible amount, marching slowly down the hill toward Mujenan. ¡°You,¡± She said, pointing to Cal. ¡°Uh?¡± Cal grunted, tearing his eyes off the dirt road in front of him. ¡°That one, that one, and the Princess,¡± Andra said, pointing out the three of them. Seconds later Ella and Kala were thrown over the shoulder of Andra¡¯s men. ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Ella demanded, but was too tired to protest much further. ¡°Take the Princess and the Genosian to rooms where they can sleep the trip off,¡± she said, before her eyes landed on Cal. ¡°You and me are going to pay the Hash¡¯Maje a visit.¡± Andra continued. ¡°Wha ¨C ack!¡± Horas lifted Calvin up and threw him over his shoulder, then the seven of them began screaming down the side of the mountain, faster than a guar at full gallop. Faster than he thought possible. In a matter of minutes, Cal was wobbling on his feet, his exhausted brain trying and failing to be awed by the splendor of the waiting room covered in silk tapestries and oil paintings depicting generation after generation of Hash¡¯Maje. He was simply too tired. Kala looks a lot like her grandmother. Cal thought idly, struggling to keep his eyes open. ¡°The Hash¡¯Maje will see you now.¡± Andra said as she stepped through the large set of double door made of dark, polished wood. Cal stumbled over to the door and stepped through into a cozy office with large windows overlooking the harbor far below them. The ships were nearly ghosts as the light of day faded behind the mountains. In front of that vista was a man who looked a bit like Bekvah, but broader, more intimidating. He wore full regalia like it was comfortable and kept his spine perfectly straight. ¡°You must be Calvin.¡± He said, turning to face him. ¡°I¡¯ve heard a lot about you.¡± He did the staring out the window thing before turning to see you, that raises his odds of doing an evil monologue by forty percent. He¡¯ll probably put you off balance by threatening you a bit, then give you a choice that will seem really good by comparison. ¡°Uh-huh¡­¡± Cal nearly nodded off. ¡°I mean, yes, yes sir. Sire?¡± ¡°Sir will be fine. You may sit,¡± he said, pointing at the chair in front of his desk. It looked cushy. ¡°Apologies, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯d be able to stay awake, were I to sit down.¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± he said, looking Calvin up and down. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you¡¯re alive. I¡¯m sure Kala was thrilled. I heard from Bekvah you¡¯ve got a talent for magic like he¡¯s never seen before. A savant. I heard from Kala you were the sweetest boy in Deinos, until she started having those nightmares, anyway.¡± ¡°Tha-¡° ¡°I also heard from Andra that you managed to assassinate and then assume the identity of a captain, one of my cousins, actually, for a period of no less than four days.¡± ¡°Umm¡­¡± ¡°Were that information to be made public, I would have no choice but to have you drawn and quartered for killing a member of my extended family. Do you know what being drawn and quartered is? They hang you upside down and cut you in half from your crotch to your head. All the blood rushing to your brain keeps you alive and conscious until the very end. Then they cut you in quarters and spread you across the kingdom.¡± Cal could tell by the feel of the man¡¯s gaze that he cared nothing for his cousin and simply wanted some utility out of the young wizard. Evil Speech, threats, called it. This is where he offers the carrot. ¡°But fuck Skovos. He was a waste of people¡¯s time and money. You on the other hand, you have the potential to be of value to our country. I¡¯d like to offer you the opportunity to realize that value.¡± ¡°How¡¯s that, sir?¡± cal asked. By joining the military. ¡°By joining our great nation¡¯s military and aiding in repelling the Ilethan threat. Above and beyond fulfilling your duty to your country, you¡¯ll be taken under Andra¡¯s wing, with great potential for advancement. In a few short years, you could find yourself the bearer of a noble title.¡± Wizard-King for life. Wizard-King for life. Elliot echoed. You can¡¯t just burn down a section of unclaimed land and declare yourself wizard-king, Cal realized. You actually have to have people to claim that land for you and act out your orders¡­and that means I have to make a name for myself. Ugh. ¡°I would be honored.¡± Cal said, and the Hash¡¯Maje began to sit down with a pleased expression. ¡°May I ask..¡± Cal started, hesitating as The Hash¡¯Maje looked back up at him. ¡°What will happen to my Genosian?¡± ¡°Ah yes, she¡¯ll be imprinted with your family seal and returned to you.¡± ¡°My what?¡± ¡°Direct these questions toward Andra, if you would. ¡°Yessir.¡± Cal said, giving his best salute. ¡°The salute¡¯s wrong, but I¡¯m sure Andra will straighten that out.¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said with a grin as he sat. ¡°She¡¯ll tell you the details when you¡¯re able to walk and talk tomorrow. You may leave.¡± I don¡¯t get it, how was the salute wrong? Cal pondered as he staggered out of the office and allowed himself to be guided to a nearby bed by a helpful maid. You saluted him as his superior. Elliot said. Pretty sure it¡¯s a punishable offense, but the dude was cool enough to let it slide. Oh, that. That was on purpose. That¡¯s my boy! Macronomicon Chapter 31: God Sent Karen watched as Elaine stood in front of the raised dais, trying to fix everything. Reggie stood in the corner, holding his daughter, barely a month old. The girl was already starting to regrow her tufts of black hair, while she¡¯d been bald, she¡¯d reminded Karen of a chubby Andrew. Andrew was gone. Karen blinked her tears away as she studied the marble platform inscribed with intricate spellwork, scrawled by the gods themselves. The Kingdom of Malkenrovia was at the forefront of summoning techniques, and usually a virtuous maiden would be trained from childhood to take on the role of High priestess, and perform the summoning ritual to conjure a hero from another world. She was one of them, now, taken by the creature on the other side of the door. The virginity of the High Priestess was just a formality anyway. All that was truly required was knowledge of Conjuration and lots and lots of Bent. Elaine had that in spades. In the distance, they could hear the king and his retainers scratching at the door with their bare hands, reducing their fingers to bony claws. The creature¡¯s magic had made them into animals under his control. ¡°Reggie! Come back to us!¡± came a woman¡¯s shriek from outside the summoning room. His mother. A moment later a chunk of the door was torn away, revealing bloody hands with inhuman strength. ¡°Gah!¡± Regginald shouted, setting the infant down and grabbing the statue of the First Mother, hoisting the stone representation of the goddess with all his strength. Karen rushed over, and between the two of them, they managed to carry the solid stone statue past Elaine and brace it in front of the door. Elaine seemed to perceive none of this. Her hands were pressed into the hand-shaped depressions in the dais, Bent flowing from her arms to fill the arcane script. Her mouth moved at a constant pace, whispering to some unseen thing, haggling with it in a language beyond Karen¡¯s understanding as it searched for the perfect solution to their problem. ¡°Hey there unassimilated boys and girls!¡± a jolly voice came from the other side of the door, followed shortly by a pulse of blue that seemed to burrow through the air, dissolving the door that was designed to keep a Legend at bay, and the stone statue of the first Conjurer. After a breathless moment, the blue energy faded, leaving a sizzling wall of smoke in it¡¯s wake. ¡°Fuck,¡± Karen cursed, sprinting toward the opening, followed by Reggie. The first one through was the king, an enormous man of middle age with raven black hair with streaks of black. Long ago he¡¯d been a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, wielding a war pick and shield to great effect. Now he was a mindless thrall, lunging forward with snapping jaws, no more value placed on him than any of the other of the others taken by the creature¡¯s magic. Karen cut him in half. Reggie let out a shuddering gasp as he watched his father struck down in front of him. ¡°Reggie, keep your head in ¨C ¡° Karen watched as Reginald froze, allowing his mother to tackle him to the ground, her claws peeling up bits of Reginald¡¯s armor. ¡°Head in the right place!¡± Karen shouted, taking one hand off her great sword currently fending off a courtier to draw her short blade and ram it through Donnova Entremond¡¯s temple. The queen of the country shuddered for a moment and collapsed on top of her favorite son. Karen hooked a toe under Reggie¡¯s back and flipped him to a standing position with a kick, returning her attention to the well dressed fop in front of her. Reggie stared at the Queen for a moment, then raised his sword and started chopping at the flood of meat sprinting toward them. She couldn¡¯t see his expression through his helmet, but she could hear his screams just fine. ¡°Motherfuckers! I¡¯ll kill every last one of you!¡± Reggie¡¯s voice echoed above the snarling of the possessed royal family. Karen leaned forward, using her armor and weight to shove her great sword through the courtier¡¯s unarmored flesh, the width of the blade nearly severing him in half. The man coughed, and his expression became confused. ¡°Why?¡± he asked, an instant before her iron boot shoved him off her sword. Karen wasn¡¯t a stranger to the confusion of the last seconds of life. ¡°Aaah!¡± Reginald shoved two thralls back with his shield, decapitating one and burying his sword halfway through the other. Karen calmly weighed the situation as her body went about its violent work. She could walk close to a week without tiring, or fight non-stop for an entire day, but Reginald wasn¡¯t going to last nearly as long. Through inexperience, or simply lower endurance, he would eventually fold, and then she¡¯d be surrounded. They would simply be able to stream past her while she fended off others, and tear Elaine apart. She kicked the chunks of flesh off to the right, intending to make a better chokepoint with their own dead. It definitely wouldn¡¯t work forever, but it might buy them the time they needed. ¡°Heel! Bad court, bad!¡± Elliot strode through the smoke as the remaining possessed slunk out of his way, awkwardly moving on all fours. And there he goes, putting a damper on everything. Karen thought, gritting her teeth as the creature in the shape of a man walked through the bloody hall toward them. ¡°Ah, Karen, truly a flower that bloomed in adversity. You know I-¡° Reginald screamed and charged, his enchanted blade held high. ¡°One second.¡± Black Bent travelled down Elliot¡¯s arm in the blink of an eye, creating a blue wave of force from the tips of his fingers that caught Reginald in the chest and flung him across the room, cracking the stone walls of the summoning tower. ¡°You know I have a thing for big, dangerous women?¡± Elliot continued. ¡°Dates back to middle school, when Jenny Kinsley-¡± Lightspeed Slash. 2/8 Bent Remaining. Karen¡¯s sword flickered, swinging forward at a speed that was impossible to follow. As if by magic, Elliot separated into two halves, beginning to fall toward the ground. A moment later, he flickered too, and his body was once again in one piece, continuing his grating monologue. ¡° ¨C Started wrestling with me out of the blue, and I just got the hardest boner.¡± Karen lashed out with her boot, and Elliot caught it on a blue field of force. ¡°All that being said, I can¡¯t really afford to waste a piece like you when the Harbingers are still out there, can I?¡± Karen tried to pull her foot back, but her iron boot was stuck fast to the blue section of glowing air. ¡°Let me help you with that,¡± Elliot said, reaching his other hand toward her foot. She could not let him touch her. Not if she wanted to avoid winding up like the others. With a scream, Karen hauled back and wrenched her foot out of the boot, bending the metal plating out of the way as she flung herself back, tumbling along the ground. ¡°Oh, wow.¡± Elliot said, dropping the boot to the ground with a metallic clatter. ¡°I gotta admit, that¡¯s pretty impressive, you-¡° His head snapped to the side, where Elaine was kneeling in front of the summoning circle. ¡°Hero summoning?¡± He said with a frown, glancing over the circle. ¡°Pretty late in the game, don¡¯t you think? I don¡¯t know what the hell Doug was thinking when he added this to the System. He had to bend so many rules and beg all the way up the chain of command to get this added, but the guy was a total weeb and refused to compromise.¡± ¡°Let the Deal be struck.¡± Elaine said before collapsing in front of the summoning circle. Elliot crossed his arms, watching the circle and not paying any attention to Karen as she stood up, eyeing the baby. She was only a few feet away from her, and Reginald was still alive, too. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see this savior guy,¡± Elliot said, tapping his forearm impatiently. ¡°I know for a fact Doug doesn¡¯t have permission to add Cheats, so let¡¯s see what the System thinks can beat me all by itself.¡± At first nothing happened, then a visible field of energy began to whirl around in a vortex, barely contained by the bounds of the summoning circle. ¡°Ow, ow, what the hell?¡± Elliot said as a shade of himself began to peel away from his body, tearing away from his physical form like stitches popping loose on a blanket. What¡¯s going on? Karen thought as she watched. The spell was supposed to reach out and summon a person capable of rectifying their situation, but it seemed to be¡­targeting Elliot? ¡°Oh, I get it, Hahaha!¡± he said as it separated further and further from his body, mimicking his every move. ¡°Well played, Doug, well played.¡± He began slow clapping. An instant later a brilliant circle flashed into existence beneath him, mimicking the Summoning circle just a few feet away. Elliot¡¯s shade was drawn into it, and his body collapsed like a puppet with its string cut. There was a flash of light on the dais and Karen raised her sword, ready to smite whatever was left of the creature. When the light faded away, there was nothing¡­nothing but a confused looking infant, staring at the room with bright blue eyes. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°I¡­I don¡¯t know,¡± Elaine said, picking herself up and studying the infant, her newly discovered maternal instincts urging the mage to pick up the baby. She glanced over her shoulder at the empty corpse that until then had caused them so much trouble. ¡°Ugh.¡± Reginald muttered, trying and failing to drag himself to his feet. ¡°Are we still alive?¡± ¡°Apparently.¡± Karen said. ¡°did we win?¡± Reginald asked. An animalistic howl sounded from deeper in the castle, drawing their attention. ¡°You just had to fuckin¡¯ ask that,¡± Elaine said, hustling over to her daughter and picking up the other baby before retreating to the other side of the summoning room. ¡°Without him, it¡¯s just cleanup,¡± Karen said, squaring her feet in front of the door and hefting her oversized sword. ¡°I can handle that.¡± ¡°You can kill a whole city?¡± Reginald asked incredulously. ¡°Give or take,¡± Karen said with a grin. The flood of howling people charging toward them on all fours was no less than it had been before. The entire city had practically been under the creature¡¯s control. Karen had her sword ready to tear apart as many of them as it took when something strange happened. The lead creature¡¯s body slumped to the ground, but it¡¯s shade kept flying straight ahead, through Karen¡¯s swing, through Karen¡¯s armor, and through her. A cold shiver went through her for a split second before it was gone, and the shade was flying past her. She turned her head to look despite years of training to the contrary, and saw the shade dive into Elliot¡¯s corpse, creating some kind of invisible drum-beat that shook the dust on the ground beneath him in a circle. Karen glanced back forward, and saw the next three creatures slump to the ground, their shades racing past her to dive into the corpse, creating three more drum-beats, each a little stronger than the last. He was trying to come back. ¡°Damn!¡± Karen shouted, turning and running toward the body. With five swift hacks, she¡¯d decapitated the body and torn it limb from limb before splitting the entire torso in half. The drum beats continued as the possessed humans gave their lives to the thing on the floor, making it ever more powerful. Each drum beat brought the creature¡¯s components closer to each other, sealing them back together as though they had never been apart. ¡°I can¡¯t stop it forever!¡± She might be able to kick a specific piece out of range of the creature, but the drum-beats were getting stronger, and the pull that was bringing it back together was becoming more and more irresistible. Reginald shared a look with Elaine and dragged himself to his feet. With a suicidal strength, he picked up the statue of the First Hero, and slammed it through the cracked wall, allowing the light of day to pour into the stuffy room. The statue fell hundreds of feet, shattering on the rocks below. Even further than that was the bay, where the common folk went about their fishing and trading, with no idea what was going on in their own capital. ¡°Karen!¡± ¡°You¡¯ve got a plan?¡± Karen asked, glancing over her shoulder, kicking the torso away from the rest of the body. ¡°Yeah, come here!¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Karen asked, spotting the hole in the tower wall. ¡°Can you make that jump?¡± Elaine asked, pointing to the bay hundreds of feet below them. ¡°Sure, but not carrying someone, can you make a ramp or something?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fresh out. No potions, Reservoir is empty. Can you make the jump with these?¡± she asked, holding up the two infants. Karen put it together. Elaine wasn¡¯t planning on leaving. ¡°Fine,¡± Karen said, not wasting any time unbuckling her armor as quickly as she could. it was dead weight. She¡¯d left friends behind to die before. How was this any different? ¡°But just Jinnei. I don¡¯t trust that¡­thing.¡± ¡°You have to take him,¡± Elaine said gently. ¡°He¡¯s God-sent. I know the spell summoned the person that can save us, just not¡­yet. Don¡¯t be a bitch.¡± ¡°Fine, damnit,¡± Karen said, the last of her armor clattering to the floor as the creature¡¯s eyes flickered open. ¡°I am number One, my purpose is¡­vengeance.¡± Elliot¡¯s body said, sitting up. The creature craned its neck unnaturally, studying them like an insect before clambering clumsily to its feet. Karen scooped the babies out of Elaine¡¯s arms and jumped out the window. ¡°Cradle the head!¡± was the last thing Karen heard her friend say. **** Kala woke up in the morning, and for once, she¡¯d not screamed herself awake, although her bed was drenched with sweat. She now knew she had witnessed the fall of the Malkenrovian kingdom, the time sixteen years ago when the country had replaced all of its diplomats and become a strange pit where people and information went in, but nothing came out. The rulers of Gadvera had at first assumed it was because of a coup, but Malekenrovian diplomat¡¯s strange behavior and Kala¡¯s dreams seemed to point at something much more sinister. Macronomicon Gimme a couple months to build up a decent headstart and I''ll release a flood of chapters. If you can''t wait that long, Patreon is about ~23 chapters ahead. As always, Have fun, and if you''re enjoy the story, please rate it! That keeps me going! Chapter 32: Stocking Up. Calvin stooped as he stepped into the Alchemist¡¯s shop, wrinkling his nose at the acrid fumes swirling through the tiny room. The shop¡¯s ceiling was oppressively low, and he felt like he was going to bump his head at any moment. Other than the size and the malodorous content, the shop looked like any other well-kept establishment, with racks of nonvaluable alchemical products near the door, and the more interesting or dangerous stuff within cupboards behind a locked iron grate placed solidly behind the desk and its warden. Lining the shelves were simple animal glues, skin balms, insect repellents, insect repellents that were also skin balms¡­ the list went on. Behind the counter was a creature he¡¯d never seen before. It looked like a tiny woman, almost four feet tall, with somewhat distended translucent pink flesh and skin that was shiny and stretched tight like a grape. Her rotund stomach pushed her breasts up, two big spheres that stood up against their own weight on the front of her chest, barely contained by her tiny apron over a thin shirt. Cal had heard about Jibbleya, but he¡¯d never actually seen one. Supposedly they had a resistance to harsh chemicals that might kill a human, so they naturally found themselves filling a niche as alchemists. He hadn¡¯t expected their body shape to be quite so¡­exaggerated. ¡°Welcome to B and Bee¡¯s Alchemy shop!¡± she said cheerfully in a high-pitched voice. ¡°I¡¯m Bee, can I help you find anything special?¡± she said, putting a lilt at the end of her words that would have been sickly sweet had she not been small enough to pull it off. She kind of reminded him of a talking berry. Perhaps not quite so rotund, but close. ¡°Yeah,¡± Calvin said, pulling out his wish-list and clearing his throat to hide his staring. ¡°Do you have, or can you acquire¡­unhardened spider-web protein, An exceptionally strong acid, compressed steam, refined fire-worm extract, or some other self-igniting substance, a steel plate, maybe seven inch by four by two¡­ a bottle of nothing, fine steel darts, confetti, Swamp beetle extract, soporific steam¡­ bottled light if possible, and umm¡­that¡¯s it. It¡¯d be for the best if all of those things were under extreme pressure, actually. ¡®cept for the steel plate.¡± I already told you, you can¡¯t bottle light, doofus, and even if you could, you couldn¡¯t isolate it long enough for the spell to take effect, a photon is way too fast to pin down, and even if you could do all of those things, duplicating a hundred pounds of light would literally nuke you. I don¡¯t know what a nuke is. It¡¯s bad. ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± she repeated incredulously. ¡°That¡¯s order¡¯s almost as big as you!¡± ¡°Every other alchemy shop I visited referred me to you. Seems like you¡¯re the best in town. If you can¡¯t help me then I guess I¡¯m shit outta luck.¡± Cal said, watching the woman change colors as she blushed blueish. He¡¯d been given a stipend of four Stones to buy supplies for his post as Andra¡¯s underling. That had covered the tailored uniform and basic supplies, and he¡¯d managed to have two Stones left over when he was done. Cal had taken the opportunity to seek out an alchemist that might be able to provide him with ingredients to use with Splitting to create more flexibility. Unfortunately most of the shops he¡¯d visited in Mujenan were unable to create them the way he wanted, or unwilling to sell in such small amounts. B and Bee¡¯s was referred to him as specialists able to tackle more complicated problems. ¡°I can handle almost anyone¡¯s order, but this is¡­¡± She took the list out of his hand and pouted as she looked over them. ¡°You don¡¯t have quantities written down.¡± She said, glancing up at him ¡°Generally a vial or two of each, about yay big,¡± Cal said, holding his thumb and forefinger apart. ¡°It¡¯d be nice if they were all the same size and shape, make it easier for them to fit in a travelling pouch. ¡°Uhuh,¡± she reached under the desk and pulled out a piece of charcoal and started making notes on the side of his list, quick calculations. After a minute of that, she scratched her head for a moment, then turned to the back room. ¡°Da!¡± ¡°What!?¡± came another voice from the back room. A bit older, a bit more masculine, but still high pitched compared to a normal man¡¯s voice. ¡°Come take a look at this!¡± An older Jibbleya with a greying beard and darker blue flesh came out of the back room, stripping heavy leather gloves off of work-hardened, semi transparent, slightly chubby hands. ¡°What is it?¡± he asked, taking the sheet of paper out of Bee¡¯s hand. He glanced back and forth between Cal and the paper, his brows furrowing more and more. ¡°Whaddya want with all this weird shit in¡­ half-ounce vials? Whaddya gonna do with it? prank someone? burn somebodies ear off? Get high?¡± ¡°Spells.¡± Cal said. ¡°I¡¯m a wizard.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m human.¡± Cal shrugged, unperturbed. ¡°Ah well, If I turned away every idiot that wanted to light themselves on fire, I¡¯d be out of a job,¡± he said, leaning over with the charcoal and grumbling to himself as he marked it. He crossed out the bottled light, the metal plate, the caltrop, and the soporific steam. ¡°Can¡¯t sell you drugs or poisons without a license, and the steel you¡¯re better off getting at a blacksmith¡¯s.¡± he said by way of explanation as he hunted down the list. ¡°But in the quantities you¡¯ve got written down here, I can sell you a tiny bit of God¡¯s Fire. ¡°What¡¯s God¡¯s Fire?¡± Cal asked. ¡°It¡¯s a gooey gel filled with pyreheart shavings. When a shaving makes contact with air, it bursts into flame, which then ignites the gel, which burns hot enough to slag steel. In the amounts you¡¯re asking for, it¡¯s used as a firestarter or toy.¡± Bee said helpfully, smiling up at Cal. ¡°It¡¯s real pretty in an oxygen free environment,¡± She said, playing with a strand of her hair. ¡°Ung,¡± her father grunted, marking numbers beside each of the remaining pieces. ¡°He wants them under pressure, da.¡± She said, looking at his numbers. ¡°Agh,¡± the man began grumbling as he smudged out the numbers next to each of the items and writing new ones. ¡°And they don¡¯t need a lid. Completely sealed off so they can last indefinitely¡­¡± Cal chimed in, balking at the man¡¯s glare. ¡°¡­Would be best.¡± He smudged out the new numbers and wrote new, larger ones beside them. ¡°Not only do I have to pay Isaac a visit, I gotta hire a Shaper who can do glass and steel,¡± He grumbled. ¡°Is it too difficult?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Nothing is too difficult for Borus Igglebaum. The questions is, can you pay?¡± He asked, handing the sheet back, ¡°well, that¡¯s not as bad as I thought,¡± Cal said. ¡°The price is in Quarters, son.¡± Cal¡¯s eyebrows raised. The smallest number was a two, next to the compressed steam. All told it would cost fifteen Stones to buy everything the alchemist hadn¡¯t crossed off. ¡°Why is it so expensive?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Because I¡¯ve got to take time out of two other master craftsmen¡¯s day to make a trinket.¡± ¡°For two stones, could I get the web and the god¡¯s fire?¡± Together the price the old man had calculated had been two and a half stone. Just those two would allow Cal to do things he¡¯d never been able to do before, and do them repeatedly. ¡°The prices are non-negotiable,¡± Borus said grumpily. ¡°You¡¯re visiting Isaac tomorrow, Da! You can easily add that to the docket. The only cost is the shaper! That¡¯s enough to knock half a stone off.¡± ¡°Are you on my side or his?¡± Borus asked, scowling at his daughter. ¡°Agh, fine,¡± he said, watching Cal fish the two notes out of his envelope. Cal pulled out the two notes and laid them on the table. A stone was a government backed note that guaranteed its bearer could exchange it for a very specific amount of the opalescent Nem, about a half-inch cubed. Of course Nem never came in a specific amount, and cutting it smaller to fit specific sizes wasn¡¯t a great idea, so a stone would generally net you a pebble sized rock and a bit of Nem dust. A stone. Hence the colloquial name. Nem itself was valued for its beauty, and the way it shimmered, seemingly shifting and shining without a tangible cause. A long time ago, some observant adventurers had realized the fluctuations in the shimmering responded to Warp in the air, and so there was now a small subset of people that used it as a medium to measure the Warp in the air, but most people still used it for eye-catching, expensive jewelry. ¡°Let me see that.¡± Borus said, dragging the notes along with the envelope across the table and peering down at them. ¡°This was issued by General Andra to buy necessities.¡± He peered up at Cal. ¡°Are you really some kind of wizard...Some kind of dirt-poor, implausibly young spellcaster, which I find highly unlikely, or did you lift that off a new recruit?¡± ¡°Watch,¡± Cal said, picking up one of the delicate vials off the rack in front of him with a ten dust price tag. ¡°Pretend this is the vial you¡¯re going to make for me, and this,¡± Cal picked up a smaller cork stopper and dropped it inside, rattling it around. ¡°This is the contents. With me so far?¡± ¡°Yup.¡± Shaping. 5/11 Bent Remaining. Cal reeled back the power of the spell, making a thirty pound cork stopper appear in midair, slamming down on the desk, rattling all the delicate glassware and causing the aging craftsman to nearly jump out of his skin. ¡°And this,¡± Cal said placing a possessive hand on the cork log so it didn¡¯t go anywhere. ¡°This is thirty pounds of compressed God¡¯s Fire. With me so far?¡± ¡°heh, Hah! HAHAHA!¡± Borus began chortling madly as his daughter looked on in confusion. ¡°I See! Oh, yes, I like that! I like that very much! Yessss¡­¡± Borus rubbed his palms together greedily, grinning from ear to ear. ¡°Bee, get me a commission form.¡± ¡°Sir,¡± she said, and hopped into the back. ¡°And are you working directly under the General, implausibly young wizard friend of mine?¡± That was Cal¡¯s understanding of the arrangement. ¡°Well, yes.¡± ¡°Now that I understand its purpose, you¡¯ve given me a challenge and a delight to work on. I¡¯ll send the bill to your commanding officer, now shoo.¡± ¡°But I,¡± ¡°Shoo!¡± Borus said, sliding the two stones back over to Cal before he turned and went into the back room, without giving Cal a second glance. Well, I guess that worked out okay. Cal looked down at the two stones he didn¡¯t end up spending, and finally shrugged. Looks like I¡¯ll be getting that metal plate anyway. Come to think of it, he didn¡¯t need caltrops as long as they could fit inside the plate. Come to think of it, with Shaping and Mass Splitting, the plate didn¡¯t have to be very big. He could copy a tiny caltrop out of a small plate, use shaping to bring it up to regular size and Mass Splitting to create a hundred pounds or more of them. Cal shook his head. The more he thought about it, and the more he experimented, the more depth the Skill seemed to have. Then again, it is supposed to take a long time to get to level eleven. Cal headed out the door and went to the nearby smithy, where he commissioned a cube of metal about an inch on a side, with a loop for a string. The smith raised an eyebrow but only charged him four pinches of dust. After all was said and done, Cal managed to go back to his temporary room at the barracks with a stone left over from shopping, whistling a jaunty tune. The next morning, Calvin was roused from bed by a wave of ice-cold water followed by an iron fist clamped onto his ear. Cal staggered and groaned, taken off balance by the sudden grip on his lobe. He blinked the last bits of sleep out of his eyes and was met by a furious Horas, and a stone faced General Andra. ¡°This found its way to my desk this morning. Care to explain?¡± Andra said, holding up a commission order with Borus¡¯s signature on it. ¡°Ummm.¡± ¡°You know, spending government money without authorization is a crime. The Jibbleya says I¡¯ll find it necessary, but I find myself...critical.¡± Andra said, rolling up the document. ¡°If I don¡¯t sign it, you¡¯ll be receiving a lashing. You are under military discipline now, and I would appreciate it if you didn¡¯t spend my money without my consent.¡± Macronomicon Life, ya know?( more like procrastination) In case you didn''t know, I got another series that''s about to drop a bunch of chapters over the next week. If you don''t know the one I''m talking about, skip to chapter 100 or 101, I guess, haha. Chapter 33: You’re in the army now Macronomicon They were standing in the practice yard of the castle, in the center of a flurry of activity. Young men and women of Gadveran descent were running, sparring, practicing putting on armor, and shooting at straw targets placed against the wall. ¡°I spent the entire night in a fevered state, even woke old Isaac out of his bed to finish, broke a few of the prototypes, and I owe the old bastard a new steel table, but at the end of it, I got these two to show for it.¡± Borus said as he reverently held out two dull steel vials for Andra¡¯s inspection. They were shaped like stylized bones with little bubbles in the center. One was painted red and was shiny with deep cross-hatching on the nubs on either side of the lump that presumably contained whatever the incendiary material was. The other was painted blue, with a smoother matte finish. ¡°The hell is this?¡± she asked, tapping the blue one. ¡°Slime from an ooze-weaver.¡± Andra recoiled slightly. Ooze weavers had slime that stuck around for hours, was almost impossible to clean off, and didn¡¯t dry in the air. ¡°And that one?¡± she asked, pointing at the red steel vial. ¡°Explosives.¡± ¡°You brought me a fancy fire cracker?¡± she asked, glancing over at Cal meaningfully. ¡°for forty stones?¡± ¡°Forty stones!?¡± Cal demanded. ¡°It said fifteen on my list!¡± ¡°That was your list. My list was better.¡± Borus said to Cal before glancing back up at Andra. ¡°I¡¯ve got at least a dozen more under that price, but how about I just show you what the kid can do with them?¡± ¡°Be my guest.¡± ¡°Alright boy,¡± he said, pointing at two young men in a vigorous practice match. ¡°use this one on them.¡± he handed Cal the blue one. The difference between the look and feel of the two vial, Cal assumed, was so that they were never mistaken for each other, as one was absolutely lethal and the other mildly inconvenient. ¡°You¡¯re sure this has slime in it?¡± ¡°Ninety nine percent¡­probably.¡± ¡°Use it on a target first.¡± Andra said, her voice dour. ¡°Alright, how thick is the plating?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Eighth of an inch, or thereabouts.¡± Shaping 6/11 bent remaining. Cal blindly targeted a tiny sphere inside the steel vial and pumped all one hundred and twenty-one pounds of mass into the duplicate, aiming just in front of the targets. A three-foot diameter sphere of clear fluid appeared in front of the straw men, and in the blink of an eye, it exploded outward, somehow maintaining a single umbrella shaped piece as it splattered all over the targets, and coated all the hard-packed dirt within twenty feet with a thick layer of slime. Borus squealed with delight, clapping his chuby, semi-transluscent hands together. ¡°It works, it works just like I¡¯d hoped!¡± ¡°Color me unimpressed.¡± Andra said as the practicing archers cocked their heads in confusion. One walked up to the edge of the mat of slime and started poking it with a finger, grimacing as the slime followed their finger back up. ¡°Use it on them, now,¡± Borus said, excitedly, pointing at the two men engaged in swordplay. Shaping 5/11 bent remaining. The sphere of slime exploded on the two swordfighters, who flinched backward and fell to the ground. One seemed to have difficulty breathing until he bit a hole in the slime, spitting it out and taking a shuddering breath, while the other couldn¡¯t maintain his grip on his sword, which squirted out of his fingers. When they tried to stand, their legs slipped in the newly formed muck beneath them and sent them comically careening down to the ground. This repeated itself six times, until the two jointly decided on trying to crawl out of the circle of slime, unfortunately dragging the thick slime along for the ride. There was no escape. ¡°Better,¡± Andra said, nodding with a critical frown as people began to crowd around the unfortunate men. A young woman tried to give one of them a hand up, and wound up slipping into the gunk herself, adding to the confusion. ¡°I dumped a bucket on myself once and couldn¡¯t pick myself off the floor for a good three hours. I had to crawl all the way to the river and dunk myself multiple times.¡± Borus said cheerfully. ¡°Dismiss it.¡± Cal dismissed the slime, and the gunk on the ground ceased to exist, like it¡¯d never been, allowing the two very confused soldiers to stand up, the center of a curious crowd. Huh, wasn¡¯t sure I could do that. ¡°Let¡¯s see the other one.¡± Andra said, pointing at the straw men. ¡°Ummm¡­¡± Borus said. ¡°What? The slime is interesting, but it doesn¡¯t justify paying you forty stones.¡± ¡°Well, those spheres were about four times bigger than I was expecting...¡± ¡°Something wrong?¡± She asked. ¡°Were you holding back earlier, with the cork?¡± ¡°Yeah, why?¡± Cal said. ¡°Eternus, mother of-¡° Borus raised a tightened fist and then sighed. ¡°This is why we do prototypes.¡± He turned to face Andra. ¡°I based my math on a flawed assumption. The explosive will be a bit¡­stronger than I thought.¡± ¡°stronger isn¡¯t bad. How much stronger?¡± Andra asked. ¡°You should probably command everyone to stand back.¡± Andra watched him for a second, before sucking in a tremendous breath. ¡°Form up!¡± She shouted loud enough to reverberate across the entire field. The entire contents of the practice yard made a hasty formation, their spines straight, eyes forward. ¡°Against the wall!¡± She said, pointing to the other side of the yard, away from the straw targets. After a minute, she grunted in satisfaction. ¡°Calvin, the range is yours. Impress me.¡± Damn, I hope these things are good. Shaping. 4/11 Bent remaining. A shimmering sphere manifested in between the targets before atomizing in every direction, and then, a fraction of a second later, the entire practice yard was as bright as the sun, radiating painful levels of heat from a hundred feet away. Just as fast as the light came, it was gone, and Cal was able to open his eyes. The straw men were gone, the posts holding them up were drastically reduced cinders, and, most telling, the wall behind the straw men was glowing orange where the outer layer of stone had been melted until it was shiny. ¡°That was the same as Malkenrovian Mage¡¯s Fire.¡± Andra said, her jaw slackening. ¡°That was Mage¡¯s Fire!¡± ¡°So it was,¡± Borus said with a grin. ¡°So, about that forty-stone bill?¡± Andra immediately regained her calm, narrowing her eyes at the little berry-shaped man. ¡°how many more are you making?¡± ¡°A dozen different types, at least,¡± he said. ¡°None quite as destructive as this one, but each will have its own effect. And they are reusable, of course.¡± He pointed at the steel vial in Cal¡¯s hand. ¡°As long as the boy has Bent, those vials can be used as components to create a variety of effects, endlessly.¡± ¡°Each one of those vial¡¯s interior is coated in glass and reinforced with steel, and should last years before the contents degrade. I also had this made for them.¡± It was a small leather belt with dozens of small sleeves that fit the vials perfectly. Borus slipped the blue vial into the sleeve to prove it. The little tabs on the top of the vials were there to make sure it was easy to draw them. Cal was still staring at the glassed practice yard. He glanced down at the vial in his hand. Hooollyyy shiiit. Oh, yeah, I¡¯m liking this. Let¡¯s call it Fireball for no particular reason. We can call the slime one Grease¡­for no particular reason. ¡°I can¡¯t argue with good work.¡± Andra said, reaching out and shaking Borus¡¯s hand. ¡°forty stones, twenty now to cover your costs, and twenty on delivery.¡± ¡°More than fair, general.¡± Borus said with a grin, shoving the belt into Cal¡¯s hands. ¡°Horas,¡± Andra said, pulling the Fireball out of Cal¡¯s hand and giving to her lieutenant. ¡°Take this to the academy and ask them what their excuse is for Splitters not taking part in the war. It better be a good one.¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am,¡± Horas said, taking the vial and running away at full speed. ¡°Now, let¡¯s get that payment written up,¡± Andra said, she and the little berry man turning away. ¡°What about me?¡± Cal asked. ¡°Stay here! Lance will take care of you.¡± ¡°Who the hell is ¨C¡° ¡°I¡¯m Lance.¡± A man looming over Cal¡¯s shoulder said. ¡°I run the practice yard.¡± He glanced over his shoulder at the lined up onlookers staring at Cal. ¡°Back to it!¡± he shouted, and the gawkers flinched, returning to their practice. The archers went out to a shed and dragged more stakes, hammers and straw men out to the crispy side of the yard. Cal could feel one of the guys he¡¯d slimed watching him with a fair amount of hostility, but that was fair. Cal wrapped the belt around his waist and put the blue vial near where his hand rested. ¡°You must be Andra¡¯s new pet wizard,¡± Lance said, eyeing him critically. ¡°Still got your baby fat. Ever been in the army before?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°No sir.¡± ¡°No sir.¡± ¡°Alright, let¡¯s give you the experience. Start running.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°NOW NOW NOW!¡± Lance lunged for him and Cal started running as he was unwittingly herded toward the group of jogging recruits, blending in with them for cover. Lance let off him once he was jogging with the rest of the recruits. He could already feel their curious eyes on him, prickling from every direction. At least they weren¡¯t overtly hostile. ¡°You the one that made the explosion, some kind of Malkenrovian Mage?¡± one of them asked, a short, barrel-chested young man about Cal¡¯s age. ¡°Yeah, but I¡¯m a wizard.¡± ¡°You¡¯re Malkenrovian, though.¡± another chimed in. ¡°Well, yeah.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it like being a noble?¡± A short girl with close-cropped hair asked. ¡°A wha?¡± Cal asked, craning his neck to glance over at her in confusion. ¡°Wizards are all nobles, generally. At least the ones who can do stuff like that. It¡¯s hard to raise your Mind very high when you¡¯ve gotta put food on the table.¡± ¡°That makes sense,¡± Cal said. ¡°I¡¯m more like a series of freak accidents than a noble. My mom¡¯s a shepherd.¡± That can kill people with her bare hands. Cal was starting to find that a little suspicious. The surrounding glances that he felt against his skin softened somewhat. ¡°What about your dad?¡± the barrel-chested boy asked. ¡°What dad?¡± Cal scoffed. There were plenty of decent male role models strewn around the village, but most of them were at arm¡¯s length. I can be your male role model. Shut up, you. ¡°Sprints!¡± Lance shouted, and everyone except for Cal burst into a mad dash, removing his cover and allowing Lance to hit cal across the back with a switch. Agh, son of a bitch! I¡¯m definitely not inviting this guy to my kingdom. Definitely. Over the course of the afternoon, Lance tried to break Cal, but being raised by Karen¡­he was more than prepared for grueling exercise. At the end of the day, Cal collapsed into a pile with the rest of them, drinking from wooden mugs with shaky hands. ¡°Form up!¡± Lance shouted before Cal was quite finished drinking. Cal jumped to his feet, struggling to find a place to stand. Finally they were arranged in a nice five by five square, spines straight.¡± ¡°Calvin, you¡¯re out of line!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°As the lowest rank of officer, you may be everyone else¡¯s bitch, but you still outrank the enlisted to either side of you. Come to the front, far right.¡± ¡°Well, you are a wizard.¡± A boy next to Cal said softly. ¡°Huh.¡± Calvin stepped out and placed himself at the front, rightmost position. ¡°Now, we are going to work on your salutes, with an emphasis on how to salute a superior, because for most of you, that¡¯s going to be all you do, and for some of you in particular, it could be a matter of life and death.¡± His gaze settled on Cal for a moment. Crap. ***Kala*** ¡°How about this one?¡± Kala asked, turning her scribble over and showing it to Ella. Her translator didn¡¯t need to interpret at this point, since they¡¯d been over this so many times. ¡°A bit sharper on the top,¡± Ella said. ¡°Sharper.¡± She made a triangle with her fingers. ¡°Top.¡± ¡°Ah, Kala erased the scribble and started changing it to Ella¡¯s specifications. As it turned out, Calvin Gadsint didn¡¯t have a family crest, much to the surprise of the Diviner paid to find it for them. He said it wasn¡¯t possible, that Everyone had a family crest since hundreds of years ago, but he couldn¡¯t explain why a drop of Calvin¡¯s blood gave them nothing. So Kala had stepped in and took the opportunity to design it for him. Since it was going on Ella, she got to have a say in it, and they put their heads together to create a work of art. Something simple, but elegant. They were currently sitting in the lobby of the skin-artist, a beautician who tattooed upper class citizens. They could have gone down to the Slave dealer and gotten it stamped out real quick, but it would have most likely been ugly, with messy lines. The slave dealer¡­ Kala thought guiltily as Ella excitedly watched her draw over her shoulder. ¡°Are you¡­okay with this?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Getting Cal¡¯s house symbol on you? It means he owns you.¡± Her translator dutifully interpreted her words into Genosian babble. Ella blinked at her for a moment, then laughed and blurted out a torrent of words that made the translator rock back on his heels. ¡°What¡¯d she say?¡± ¡°It was a little confusing, but it was something along the lines of, and I¡¯m paraphrasing here: It doesn¡¯t really bother me. It won¡¯t change the fact that I practically own him already, We¡¯re bonded more deeply than that, and if he dies first, it¡¯ll be a nice little reminder of my chained spirit, otherwise, his chained spirit can have his mark on it. It¡¯s a win-win.¡± ¡°Chained spirit?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Wait, practically own him already? What does that mean?¡± She bristled at the friendly girl¡¯s grin. Did she seduce him with that gorgeous body? Kala found her eyes roaming Ella¡¯s curves. I wish I could¡­ Kala shook her head, glancing at the faint pink tether pointing in the direction of the castle, where Calvin was. Stay on task, Kala thought to herself, putting her mental blinders on while her translator carried on her question. Do not be distracted by amazing boobs or the fact that Cal put on a lot of muscle since you last saw him. ¡°It¡¯s something unique to my people. I will show you what I mean when we get back to the castle,¡± Ella said with a smile. ¡°Now,¡± ¡°Where do you think the tattoo would make my Incha Huala lose the ability to speak?¡± she asked, pointing at her breastbone. ¡°Here?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t ¨C ¡± She tugged her skirt down, revealing the very top of the juicy curves of her bottom, ¡°Here, ooor¡­¡± She slid her front down until her entire lower stomach was revealed, dangerously close to exposing her womanhood. ¡°Here?¡± Kala¡¯s heart was hammering in her ears, the skin of her face burning. ¡°Uuuuhhh¡­.¡± Ella grinned. ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± she said in Gadveran. Trevor the translator spoke something harshly in Genosian, causing Ella to give a dissatisfied grunt before tugging her skirt back up. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, princess, this savage has no sense of propriety.¡± ¡°No it¡¯s fine!¡± Kala said, a little louder than she intended. By the gods, I feel like I need a drink of water, and maybe a bucket of it over my head. ¡°So, which one do you want?¡± Trevor said. ¡°Can you give me a minute to decide?¡± Kala asked, her voice a bit squeakier than normal. Macronomicon Chapter 34: Make me a Sammich ***Kala*** ¡°So the Guya, when used properly,¡± Ella said, motioning with her hands. ¡°Establishes a very strong, very stable bond, with an uenha, and a Poeor.¡± Kala glanced up at the translator, who shrugged. It seemed like the words went over his head too. She looked back down at the pink aura flickering out of her body, looking like a flame that pointed in the direction of Calvin. It was like the Genosian girl was a Calvin Compass. Ella wasn¡¯t really looking at where she was going, either, but every turn brought them closer to Cal. ¡°The Poeor wants what is best for the Uenha, and the Uenha wants what the Poeor wants. It varies a bit between individuals. This is actually a better bond then both wanting the best for each other, or wanting what the other wants, as they can lead to cross-purposes or strange emotional paradoxes. We discovered this through much experimentation with the Guya in different amounts and mixtures.¡± ¡°So which one are you?¡± Kala asked, curious. Ella blushed and glanced away. The tall Genosian¡¯s embarrassment was a lot cuter than Kala had thought possible. ¡°The Uenha,¡± She muttered quietly. ¡°Is that bad?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not a bad thing, it¡¯s just¡­¡± She raised her hands in fists before relaxing them by her side again with a sigh. ¡°Not the role I expected to take. I¡¯ve always been the one with stronger Will.¡± ¡°Does that mean you have to do what he tells you?¡± Kala asked. Slave magic existed in Gadvera, but it was for the most part crude pain or suffocation inducing enchantments that owners used to condition their property. Kala had never heard of anything as subtle as what Ella spoke of. ¡°Not even a little bit,¡± Ella said. ¡°But I want to, as long as he wants me to.¡± Ella glanced down at Kala in a way that reminded her of a hungry animal, sending a shiver of fear down her spine. Fear and the tiniest tingle of lust. ¡°I want everything he wants.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Kala said, returning her attention to the crowded street in front of them. Let¡¯s not overthink this. She¡¯s probably talking about something else. Not me. That would be¡­ Unbidden, the idea of being encapsulated between Ella¡¯s soft body, and Calvin¡¯s lean muscle came to mind, and the tingle of lust redoubled. For the briefest instant, she could imagine herself burying her face in between those soft mounds, reveling in the Genosian¡¯s silky skin while Calvin got behind her, using her distraction to ¨C ¡°Hey look at that!¡± Kala shouted to distract herself from her un-princess-like thoughts. ¡°Fried Gardor bits!¡± She pointed at the food stall on the side of the road, where the vendor hawked his product to passerby. Gardor was a large land predator that was a bit gamey, but good chopped into smaller bits, heavily seasoned and put on a stick. ¡°They smell good.¡± Ella said as they walked toward them. She stopped a few feet away and considered for a moment, seemingly consulting something. ¡°Let¡¯s get some extra, Calvin is hungry.¡± Ella said, nodding. She can tell that? Kala might have dismissed the Bond talk as the words of a savage so neck-deep in her ritual culture that she couldn¡¯t see beyond it, but¡­ Seer has reached level 5! Seer level 5: See the truth of the soul. +1 Intuition Please choose an ability from the list of compatible ones ¨C Kala took a deep breath and forced the messages away, like she¡¯d been trained. As a princess, it had been drilled into her to put the utmost consideration into her Ability choices. Definitely not something she should do on the side of a busy street, walking with her crush¡¯s beautiful¡­slave¡­thing? Honestly the dynamic of their relationship was causing her more than a little stress, and she had far too much on her mind to make a calm decision now, so she put it off for when she could get her uncle¡¯s advice. ¡°Sounds good,¡± Kala said in response to Ella¡¯s suggestion, and Trevor fished some small copper dust coins out of his bag and gave them to her. The smell of the heavily seasoned meat was started to affect Kala now, and by the time she got to the front of the line with Ella, she was starving. When she got to the front, the vendor took one look at Kala¡¯s silk clothes, then his gaze flickered over to the towering Genosian barbarian, who smiled at him with her sharp teeth. ¡°What can I get for you, mistress?¡± he said, smiling and bowing deferentially. Kala was well known, but not that well known. A vendor on the street wouldn¡¯t know her right away. The man was merely bowing to her clothes. ¡°A dozen skewers.¡± She said. ¡°Five dust, please,¡± It was a bit more than she expected, but well within their price range. She dropped the copper pieces on the table, and the man swiftly handed the skewers to Ella, who began eating them immediately. ¡°Ahh,¡± The vendor paled as the person he¡¯d assumed was a slave began eating her mistress¡¯s food. Kala enjoyed the confusion for a moment, before she ceded to her responsibility to her people. ¡°They¡¯re for her.¡± She said with a practiced, gentle, princess-like nod. ¡°I see, yes, that makes sense.¡± The vendor nodded, and returned to his business as they left. ¡°Pass me one of those,¡± Kala said once they were back in the street, and the Genosian handed one of the greasy sticks over without complaint, currently working her way through the meat at a prodigious rate with those sharp teeth. ¡°I¡¯ll never get tired of how many spices you lowlanders use,¡± Ella said, smacking her lips between shearing off pieces of tough meat with ease. It was impressive, but it didn¡¯t distract Kala from a question that had burning in her mind for a while now. ¡°Have you told Calvin all this, about the Uenha and Poeor?¡± ¡°Not exactly, no.¡± Ella said, her expression a bit guarded. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°A few years before she died, my mother told me to never let a man know exactly how much sway he has over you. She always had my father picking up shells, so I figured she probably knew what she was doing.¡± ¡°Picking up shells?¡± ¡°Obeying her every whim?¡± Ella responded. ¡°You mean wrapped around her finger?¡± ¡°Why would she wrap him around her finger? How would that even work? He¡¯d have to be tiny, and malleable, like some kind of plaything¡­Ooohhh.¡± Kala giggled as the Genosian stared into the distance, her jaw slack as she pondered the idiom, the biggest stumbling block of learning a new language. ¡°This gives me an idea,¡± Kala said after daintily chewing and swallowing her third princess-sized bite. Ella was on her fourth skewer. Kala watched the girl devour her meal enviously. Even if Kala tried, over a decade of conditioning made it literally difficult to chew more than a little at a time. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°You say there¡¯s a bond, and that Calvin¡¯s affected, but how do we test that?¡± Ella didn¡¯t know that Kala could see the bond. Matter of fact, nobody knew she could see it, and Kala didn¡¯t intend to tell anyone about it, either. If she did, it felt like she would be admitting that Ella had the advantage, somehow. Or maybe Calvin had the advantage? Kala was very confused. Still, that didn¡¯t stop Kala¡¯s urge to spawn some un-princess-like mischief using the bond. ¡°Here¡¯s how we test it¡­¡± ***Calvin*** ¡°backs straight, fists above the heart!¡± Lance shouted as they drilled their salutes for the umpteenth time today. The sun was already starting to go down, and Cal¡¯s shoulders were burning as he tried to hold the weighted wristband above his heart. This seems cruel and unusual. Cal thought. Nobody else got weighted wristbands. Nobody else disrespected the Hash¡¯Maje. Lance looked over them one more time, eyeing Calvin critically before finally nodding. He could give them a hard time for a couple hours but it would be counter-productive to take an entire group of recruits and stunt their training. ¡°Alright, put your hand¡¯s down you¡¯re done.¡± The recruits heaved a collective sigh of relief as they relaxed their postures. ¡°Done with learning your salute!¡± Lance shouted. ¡°break off into your practice groups by Skill! Recruits with Swordfighting over there! Recruits with Archery there! Stealth Skills over there with Scoutmaster Felix!¡± They stood there stunned a moment, fully expecting to go to bed after this was over and done. ¡°I didn¡¯t think I needed to remind you, but there is a war out there, recruits, and in a day, maybe two, it¡¯s going to be on our doorsteps. You are not being trained for some vague maybe-war. You¡¯re being trained for the day after tomorrow, when you¡¯ll be called on to defend the city wall. Get the lead out of your asses!¡± The recruits jumped to obey, and Cal headed toward Scoutmaster Felix, an older Gadveran man with leather-like skin and a dark brown cloak. He seemed like he could blend into the background, despite his distinctive features. Well, I do have Stealth, so I better go over there. ¡°Hold on,¡± Lance said, grabbing Cal by the back of shirt collar. ¡°Ack, what?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a special case. If what I saw was anything to go by, Andra¡¯s going to be using you as a trump card. My guess is, both you and her are gonna want you to live through more than one such event, and that¡¯s why, on behalf of the General, I¡¯m going to put you through The Gauntlet. ¡°The what?¡± ¡°What are your defensive Skills?¡± Lance asked, ignoring him. ¡°We¡¯ve got to squeeze as much improvement out of them as we can before you get put out on the front lines.¡± ¡°Umm¡­.¡± Calvin didn¡¯t exactly have defensive skills. Third Eye and Feel intent synergized to create something that could be misconstrued as one, but he didn¡¯t actually have any. ¡°Armored? Dodge?¡± Cal shook his head. ¡°Shield-work? Toughness? Meat-shield?¡± Cal shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t have any.¡± ¡°Damn,¡± Lance said, scratching the back of his head before clapping Cal on the shoulder. He felt Lance¡¯s gaze land on his stomach, filled with the intent to strike him. Sure enough, Lance¡¯s other fist swept forward, aiming to catch Cal in the stomach. Cal stepped out of the way, wrenching his shoulder out of the man¡¯s grip and allowing the burly fist to sweep through the air. ¡°Well, you¡¯ve got something.¡± Lance said, raising a brow. ¡°You didn¡¯t lie to me about having the Dodge Skill, didja?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a defensive skill.¡± Cal responded, on guard now as the master of the Yard returned to his previous calm, thoughtful stance. ¡°Well, it¡¯ll do. I don¡¯t know how you survived as long as you have, but there¡¯s some people out there that can kill someone in an instant from distances that beggar belief. Those kind of people are always held back, on the lookout for your kind of people.¡± Lance straightened Cal¡¯s uniform where it¡¯d been disheveled from dodging. ¡°My kind of people?¡± ¡°The squishy kind that can kill a lot of people at once with a single Ability.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°So we¡¯re gonna beat some defense into you. I¡¯ve been told you were raised by a Malkenrovian Frontliner. That¡¯s a good start, but now we¡¯re going to teach you how to live past the first dramatic demonstration of your power.¡± ¡°Why do I get the feeling this is going to be humiliating?¡± Cal asked as Lance¡¯s grin slowly widened. **** ¡°hit the ground harder and roll with a spring, not a flop!¡± Lance shouted, but Cal could barely hear anything over the muffling of the safety mask and his own heartbeat. He was crouched behind some haybales meant to simulate a palisade, trying to throw colored balls ¨C simulating spells ¨C at bottles ¨C simulating troops ¨C in front of him while half a dozen grinning Gadveran archers were simulating Ilethan snipers by shooting at his head every time he peered over to take a shot. ¡°Begin!¡± Cal leapt up and reoriented on the target, feeling the waiting archers catch sight of him, throwing the ball as quickly as he could. He missed. Damn. When he felt one of the archers¡¯ gaze experience the spike of surety that preceded a shot, Cal slammed himself down to the ground, rolling away with a push, bouncing off the hardpacked dirt and further away. Four blunted practice arrows hit the bale behind him as Cal jumped to his feet with another ball, ready to throw it right this time. A blunted arrow caught the center of his mask, knocking his head violently backward and toppling him over. ¡°You¡¯re dead! Reset!¡± Lance shouted, and the archers walked past Cal¡¯s ¡®corpse¡¯ to retrieve their arrows. This training doesn¡¯t seem particularly safe. Fun to watch, though. Elliot commented. Suck my dick, Cal thought, panting as he stared up at the Scowling Moon. The moon¡¯s mouth was especially bright tonight. ¡°As a wizard, you are, and always will be, a high priority target. It¡¯s one of the reasons it¡¯s so hard to get those limp-wristed academy types to do their goddamned duty. They have to duck, and that¡¯s beneath them.¡± ¡°Not you, though!¡± Lance said, hands on his hips, grinning from ear to ear. ¡°You don¡¯t have that pesky pride problem, the fear of death, or the option to refuse!¡± ¡°Well summarized.¡± Cal said. ¡°Thank you. Now! five more rounds, then we¡¯ll be done¡­¡± Cal sighed in relief. Each round was only a minute or two, so he didn¡¯t have much longer to go before ¨C ¡°Then we can start on your close combat self-preservation techniques!¡± That wretch! I¡¯ll make him lick my boots! Bwahahah, he got you again! Elliot jeered. I swear, I will find a way to hurt you, and we¡¯ll see what you have to say then. Good luck. ¡°Calvin!¡± Kala¡¯s voice pierced through Calvin¡¯s grouchiness, and shut Lance up completely. The master of the Yard turned around and immediately saluted Kala, along with the rest of the damnable archers who¡¯d been using him as a living target the last hour. ¡°What is it?¡± Calvin asked, forcing himself to his feet, every muscle aching. It wasn¡¯t like he could improve his Body without another Break, but Lance was merciless. ¡°Something¡¯s wrong with Ella!¡± True to her words, Ella was being half-carried by Trevor the translator, stumbling along. She couldn¡¯t keep it up, and toppled to the ground, gasping for air. A surge of mindless panic speared through his mind, thrashing around inside one of the partitions he¡¯d made for the Guya. It still put some quickness in his movements. ¡°What¡¯s going on? What happened?¡± he asked, his guts turning to ice. ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± Kala said, looking over Ella. ¡°I haven¡¯t had real food in days,¡± Ella said weakly. ¡°Gadveran food has been damaging my stomach¡­I need¡­meat.¡± ¡°Okay, I can get that.¡± Cal said, shooting to his feet, heedless of the pain in his legs. He needed to get some meat for Ella. He could probably grab some from the barracks kitchen, and be back in less than a minute. ¡°And¡­¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± Cal asked, turning back. ¡°Could you put it between two slices of bread?¡± Ella asked meekly, her voice faint. ¡°Got it,¡± cal nodded, heading toward the kitchen. ¡°With pickles and mayo?¡± she whispered. ¡°¡¯Course.¡± Cal began to sprint away at full speed, his feet eating up distance at an incredible pace. He felt like he was practically flying, heart pounding in his chest. Wait a minute. She can¡¯t eat bread. Cal slowed down to a trot, then came to a halt a hundred feet from the barracks door before turning to face the two girls. Ella was cackling madly, her hands wrapped over her belly as she kicked divots in the grass. Kala was covering her mouth, her eyes dancing with laughter as she giggled. Neither of them had been looking at him the entire time, and so he¡¯d bought every word without question, his judgement clouded by the Guya. This told him a couple things: The nine hells do you know? Cal demanded as he walked back. ¡°Sorry, sorry,¡± Ella said as Cal approached. ¡°The princess has a more devious mind than she lets on.¡± Cal felt a wave of relief that nothing was wrong with Ella. ¡°So you are okay then?¡± Never hurts to be totally sure. A foreign little voice whispered. She chortled for a bit longer, irritating Cal to where he thought he was going to do something less than gentlemanly, before nodding. ¡°I am fine.¡± ¡°Good, good.¡± ¡°Incha Huala, My Intuition is much better than yours, and after spending the evening with her, I think your friend here washes on both sides of the river.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I think she hunts, and sews.¡± ¡°¡­..What!?¡± Cal asked again. Genosian idioms weren¡¯t exactly his strong suit. ¡°I THINK KALA LIKES MEN AND WOMEN SEXUALLY!¡± Ella shouted. Trevor the Translator went pale and glanced at Kala. ¡°What¡¯d she say about me?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Too fast to make out, ma¡¯am.¡± Trevor said, awkwardly standing up and shuffling away. ¡°What¡¯d she say?¡± Kala asked again, turning her eyes to Calvin, her gaze burning with curiosity and strange, conflicted competitiveness for him, and towards him. It was Calvin¡¯s turn to bust out laughing, and Ella followed suit shortly after, her face crumbling like a dam under a flood, until they were howling with laughter. ¡°What is it?¡± Kala demanded. A moment later she narrowed her eyes and pulled a journal of paper out of Trevor¡¯s bag and jotted something down. ¡°When I find out what those thirteen syllables mean, you two are in trouble.¡± Calvin gasped between painful laughter, slamming his fist on the ground, tears in his eyes. ¡°Maybe¡­¡± Cal said, gasping for breath. ¡°Maybe we will be. Maybe we both will be. Ahahahaha!¡± Cal¡¯s laughter was interrupted by the Master of the Yard¡¯s iron grip hauling him and Ella to their feet. ¡°Good, looks like we¡¯ve got more volunteers for practice. Princess, since you¡¯ve got free time, come with me.¡± He nodded to Kala and proceeded to haul Cal and Ella over to the fighting rings. Macronomicon Chapter 35: On the Wall ¡°How can such a little thing hit so hard?¡± Ella said, rubbing the bruises across her body as they lay across from each other in the barracks. They had gotten a few strange looks, but after a while, the other soldiers simply dismissed Ella as a quirk of Cal being a Wizard and further evidence that he couldn¡¯t possibly as common as he professed to be. Nobles often took their servants or trusted slaves with them anywhere they went. ¡°You got in a few good hits, too. She¡¯s probably got at least six Breaks and trainers whose job is making sure she makes the most of them.¡± Cal said. Ella blinked. ¡°She¡¯s an Aiaka?¡± her jaw slowly dropped. ¡°Not what you would consider a natural one.¡± Cal said, flipping onto his back. ¡°Man-made. There¡¯s probably a guy out there whose only job it is to do the math on when exactly Kala should stop raising a single primary Attribute and start getting skills and spreading out her points. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised. Her Mind and Body are probably much higher than they should be, with only a handful of skills, While a ¡®natural¡¯ Aiaka¡¯s abilities would be more organically spread out, along with being vastly more experienced at using them in a combat situation.¡± ¡°Kala¡¯s an Aiaka¡­¡± Ella whispered, staring into the distance. Cal rolled his eyes. His body was sore from being kicked around by Kala, but he had gotten a few good hits in with the practice sword himself, enough to make her take him seriously, so he knew she wasn¡¯t nearly as good as Karen. Far stronger and faster than him, though. Ella had been learning how to use a shield. It wasn¡¯t a typical skill for Genosians or Gadverans to learn, since it wasn¡¯t good for hunting, and Gadverans didn¡¯t favor it. There was a dusty practice shield in the corner though, and after hearing Cal¡¯s stories about his Aiakan mother, she decided to try it. She took to it well, her larger frame giving her a ridiculous range of motion with the heavy wood and steel kite. She¡¯d even given Kala a bloody nose when she¡¯d used her chainless flail in a novel way, shoving the shield into Kala¡¯s personal space unexpectedly and swinging Crusher around the edge, completely unhindered by the inch and a half of wood and steel between the head and the haft of the weapon. Cal had seen Kala go down in a spray of blood, and for a second he thought he and Ella were going to be summarily executed, but General Andra had watched with satisfaction as Kala dragged herself back to her feet, and proceeded to never fall for that trick again. That was when Cal stopped holding back for fear of reprisal, but it didn¡¯t make a big difference. He¡¯d gotten in a couple hits every now and then, but he still lost more than he won through sheer difference in physical talent. By the time they had worked off their extra energy to Lance¡¯s satisfaction, all three of them were sweaty and bruised. There was still room for improvement for Cal, but it wasn¡¯t on the practice yard. Bent use was forbidden on the practice yard, because they couldn¡¯t afford for footsoldiers to wait a week to get all their Bent back if the enemy came knocking on the door the next day. That and the leadership was wary of a poorly aimed Air Blade coming out of nowhere and cutting someone¡¯s head off. That was why Cal needed to get Shadow Boxing as soon as he could. A safe way to train his skills at no cost was worth its weight in Nem. Even with the hectic life of a low-ranking new recruit, he still knew what his goals were. ¡°I¡¯m going to meditate, Pinch me if something happens,¡± Cal. ¡°Hard?¡± Ella asked. ¡°Hard.¡± ¡°You got it.¡± Cal took one last look at the timeworn wood ceiling before closing his eyes. Eye of the Tiger The constant chatter of young men and women faded away in an instant as Cal reached a dreamlike state, floating in a void of his own making. Time passed while Cal mused over recent events, using his absolute focus to practice, review his recent lessons, ranks and the names and faces of his fellow recruits. Meditation has reached Level 9 Level 9: Boosts ability to ignore distractions and disassociate. 45% correction. *** He must had fallen asleep at some point, because his eyes flashed open to the sound of shouting and running feet. ¡°Out of the bed you gringel farmers! I swear a gardor in hibernation moves faster than you!¡± Lance shouted, clapping his meaty hands together and walking from bed to bed, using his superior weight to kick new recruits unceremoniously out of bed. Gadverans didn¡¯t typically wear underwear, and Calvin saw Ella wince when one girl tumbled out of her bed in the buff and slammed straight down onto her chest. ¡°Ow,¡± She said, slipping her ravaged Gadveran clothes on. They¡¯d tried to put her in a uniform, and she¡¯d nearly bit someone¡¯s finger off until Cal had pointed out that she wasn¡¯t technically part of the army. The following several hours of pushups had changed his mind, and eventually Ella had agreed to wear them. Lance glanced over at Ella, and spotted the ragged edges where she had torn away the legs and sleeves of her uniform, to match Genosian style. Here we go, Cal thought, sliding his pants on as quickly as he could. At the very least he¡¯d like to be fully dressed when the inevitable punishment came. Lance¡¯s face crumpled into a mask of anger, but he didn¡¯t approach them, instead continuing his circuit around the barracks, putting a sense of urgency in even the groggiest members. That can¡¯t be good, Cal thought with a sinking stomach. The only reason Lance would ignore something like the destruction of a uniform would be if there was something incredibly pressing going on right now, and it would inevitably be worse for Cal than some corporal punishment. Calvin sped up. A distant, muffled explosion confirmed Cal¡¯s suspicions, rocking the entire barracks. Bits of dust fell from the thick wooden beams above them, and Cal buckled his pants faster than he ever had before, grabbing his folded shirt and tossing it over his head. Nice, your intuition has come a long way. Elliot¡¯s thoughts reverberated in his mind. What¡¯s the difference? Cal thought as he hustled out the door. What does Intuition even do? All the village elders spoke in allegory, like the difference between seeing the sun and feeling it¡¯s warmth and being sure it was there. Pfft, hahaha. Well, let me see if I can define it. ¡°Line up on the east side of the yard in front of one of the sergeants you see there, twenty deep. Move your asses!¡± Lance shouted as the recruits streamed out of the Barracks, pointing to where ten grizzled men and women were standing, waiting for their groups. This all seems highly informal. Like they¡¯re picking teams for dodgeball. Cal and Ella were about to jump into the third line, but Lance dragged him aside. ¡°Wait here, Andra¡¯s got a job picked out for you already.¡± While Cal cooled his heels and studied the rising plume of smoke above the city walls, Elliot went into detail about the attribute. Intuition and intelligence are not the same, although they are linked. A highly intelligent person can still be stupid as shit if they take everything at face value and never ask the question why. Why is the core of Intuition. Why is that guy wearing fancy shoes and shabby clothes? Why did she throw wine in your face when your friend was the one who said something mean? Why, why why. In essence, Intuition raises your critical thinking and keeps you asking the question Why. You didn¡¯t really question anything when you were younger, am I right? You don¡¯t have to remind me. In addition to the way it alters your thinking, it¡¯s also the determining factor in the power of spells that effect other Users, usually their mind. Those Ilethan fellows have high Intuition, which helps them decode your resistance faster than otherwise, which leads to more powerful illusions and mind-control, etc. Is Ella¡¯s Paralysis spell like that? And Kala¡¯s Commanding Voice. Both use Intuiton to apply their effect to you. Think of it like...you¡¯re a swimming pool, and your Stability is the size of the pool, and your Will is the filter. Cal squinted. He wasn¡¯t entire sure what a swimming pool was. Like a pool of water specifically for swimming? In Deinos, swimming was a good way of being eaten by norlocks. Could there be people who had enough time and money to dedicate entire ponds simply to swimming? Was Elliot one of them? Think of the spell as a dye. They want to turn your pool red, or blue, so they pour the dye into it. If your Stability, that is, your pool is exceptionally big, then the dye won¡¯t really do much. Too much water to dye it all. Elliot kept going without acknowledging Calvin¡¯s thoughts. Then your Will filters out the effect over time. The opposite could theoretically be true, you could have high Will and low Stability, then your pool would be dyed by other¡¯s magic easily, but clear up very quickly. Although having high attributes of each kind is recommended. You might ask why Intuition doesn¡¯t help with other spells, and that¡¯s because the nonliving universe you are interacting with doesn¡¯t have Stability or Will. It simply isn¡¯t plugged into the System, and can¡¯t resist. Anything that directly affects another User however, is going to be severely restricted. Setting them on fire doesn¡¯t count? You weren¡¯t setting them on fire, you were creating flaming material very close to them. Them burning wasn¡¯t the direct effect of the spell, it was the effect of the material created by the spell. I think I get it. Glad I could help. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Ella said as another explosion shook the ground under their feet. ¡°The Ilethans have shown up. We¡¯re at war.¡± ¡°The trade people? But they¡¯re so weak.¡± Cal cocked an eyebrow and glanced over at the well-meaning Genosian. A shadow flickered overhead. ¡°Down!¡± Lance shouted, forcing Cal to the ground with a thick arm. A barrel big enough to square dance on fell out of the sky and slammed into the barracks before the entire structure was consumed by a fiery explosion. A storm of hot dust and shrapnel washed over them, and when it passed, Cal saw Ella standing in front of him, hand covering her eyes, skin silvery and reflective. ¡°Apparently you¡¯ve never heard of siege weaponry.¡± Cal said, flicking bits of barracks off his lieutenant uniform as Ella stared at the destroyed building, reduced to flaming bits of rubble. ¡°Alas, my memories of losing my virginity will have to live on inside me, for the place itself has taken a pounding.¡± One of the more poetic grunts said, while the others chuckled. Cal could see in their eyes they were covering the fear of death with bawdy humor. Intuition¡­. Elliot whispered. Lance glanced up at the wall, where someone was signaling him with some kind of flag. Cal didn¡¯t know exactly what they were saying, but he pointed up at the wall. ¡°The general wants you up on the northeast wall.¡± He said, ¡°Get yourself and your savage some armor, then get up there. Don¡¯t make her wait.¡± Calvin could feel a bit of ire at the ¡®savage¡¯ comment, despite feeling it was objectively true. He wasn¡¯t entirely sure if it was the Guya or the last few weeks together that was triggering it, though. Rather than argue about it, he simply nodded and started running for the armory, trailing Ella behind him. Cal ran into the armory, which was a confusing mess of activity, clattering steel and cursing as men and woman strapped Gadveran light armor on. They were in such a rush that many of them were ignoring the posted rules that dictated they carry their armor to the changing area, and simply changing where they stood, clogging up the already claustrophobic room. An older man, skinny with a jutting chin and grey hairs, walked up to the two of them, giving ella a second glance before addressing Cal. ¡°Size?¡± he asked brusquely. Cal gave him his and Ella¡¯s sizes, and the man pointed out where they could find armor that would fit them. A second later the Quartermaster was demanding the size of the next person through the door, hot on Cal¡¯s heels. They bobbed and weaved through the choked hall full of half-dressed soldiers, occasionally getting slammed against racks of formed steel, but without enough time to stop and see who had done it. ¡°Here,¡± Cal said, pointing out a suit of hardened leather in Ella¡¯s size. It was the only one, seeing how few soldiers were actually her size. Cal spent a minute helping Ella put the armor on, buckling the sides and back while she got the front. He felt a bit of her softness beneath his knuckles as he worked the straps, and it might have been extremely interesting if they weren¡¯t in such a hurry. As if to emphasize Cal¡¯s thoughts, an explosion rocked the entire armory, spilling razor sharp swords on the ground and knocking several dressing people onto their asses. Cal ignored a sudden scream of pain and finished Ella¡¯s armor before moving on to his own: a simple breastplate and helmet to protect his vitals. He wanted to stay as light as he could, especially since his Strength wasn¡¯t high enough to wear tons of protective gear without being slowed to a crawl. Cal slung the spell component holster around his waist once he was done, making sure he could still draw them easily. He still only had the slime, most likely someone didn¡¯t trust him with that kind of firepower. I don¡¯t have to have them in my hand when I use Splitting, I just have to have a really precice idea of where they are in relation to me. Being in my hand helps. But maybe with practice, I could use them from something more stable than a holster, like a bracer, or embedded in a piece of armor. You could always fuse a component to a bone and hide it under your skin. That sounds painful and dangerous and stupid. Sure, with modern medicine in its current state. Back in my day people did subdermals all the time. So you agree it¡¯s stupid. Eh. Calvin and Ella hustled out of the armory, marching past the Quartermaster, who was watching an unfortunate recruit bandage his own foot where he¡¯d stepped on a fallen sword, making a little puddle of blood just at the entrance. A few uncaring feet had begun tracking the blood in and out of the building, and call steered himself around the mess. We¡¯re about to see a lot more of that, Cal thought, his heart hammering in his chest as he glanced up at the city wall looming over them. The tops of the walls to the east were just beginning to receive the light of dawn from the sun peeking above the ocean, and Cal could see a flurry of activity there. No time like the present to start working on my goal. Wizard-King Cal straightened his poorly fitted helmet and yanked the strap under his chin tight before following the stream of soldiers heading for the walls. The extra fifteen pounds of armor slowed Cal down as he raced up the steps, and he shuddered to think what would have happened if he had a full suit, reaching the top of the stairs panting with exertion. Cal made it to the top of the stairs, squinting his eyes against the sunlight reflected off the time-worn stone as the pressure of bodies around him lessened. Gadveran troops broke left and right, taking positions along to front of the walls. Cal¡¯s eyes needed a moment to adjust, viewing the army ahead of them cast in the shadow of Mujenan¡¯s walls. It was mind-bogglingly bigger than he had imagined. Row after rows of ilethan was assembled in a sea of manpower that stretched farther than the eye could see. Manpower and guarpower. Entire cavalry units riding the ornery lizards took up more space than the village of Deinos, In the distance, trebuchets taller than any structure he¡¯d ever imagined were hauling gigantic barrels full of flame forward, slinging them over hundreds of feet, arcing their payloads above their heads, destroying buildings, starting fires, and generally causing chaos. Cal had never imagined anything like it. ¡°That¡¯s a lot of Ilethan,¡± Ella said, eyes wide. General Andra was pacing back and forth behind the row of bodies, overlooking the soon-to be battlefield when she spotted Calvin approaching her. ¡°Lieutenant, nice of you to join us.¡± Cal saluted, right this time. Gotta play the game. ¡°What do you need, general?¡± He asked, mimicking his idea of a professional. He felt approval from her gaze a fraction of a second before she nodded. Apparently he¡¯d done well enough. ¡°Nothing yet. What is the maximum range on that spell of yours? Could you light up those trebuchets?¡± She asked, pointing out the massive constructions lobbing fire over their heads. In her other hand, Cal noticed her thumbing his Fireball component. Could I do that? No, the range of dupdomancy is level squared in feet, paralleling your mass limit. In your case, one hundred and twenty one feet. Those things are five hundred feet away, easy. ¡°One hundred and twenty one feet. I can¡¯t reach them, General.¡± Cal did some quick math. Although I could once Dupdomancy reaches level twenty three. Probably not gonna happen in this battle. She clicked her tongue. ¡°Guess we gotta wait for the prince.¡± She stared at the battlefield for a moment, her face grim. ¡°You see that improbably large army marching toward us?¡± she said, pointing at the ocean of shiny Ilethan helmets and indigo colored garb. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Hundred to one odds it¡¯s guar shit. The Ilethans love their illusions, and they¡¯re probably creaming in their silk robes hoping we¡¯ll use up our arrows and spells on fake troops. I¡¯ve been holding fire until we have a way to establish which units are real.¡± Cal heaved an internal sigh of relief and thanked the gods the numbers below them weren¡¯t true. Probably. ¡°I want you to use your wasps, spread them out thin among the enemy and let them do what they do best.¡± ¡°You want me to use the wasps to reveal which ones are real.¡± Cal said, nodding. ¡°Good, you follow me. Get to work.¡± Andra turned back to the archers on the wall. ¡°Get your bows up and keep your eyes sharp! If any of these blue pussies starts dancing funny, put an arrow through his eye! Save your Bent for high priority targets!¡± Cal stepped up to the parapet and held his hand out. The fact that the parapet was about the same height as the training haybales didn¡¯t escape his notice. Calvinian summoning. 8/11 Bent Remaining Black Bent traveled down the veins of his arm, then emerged from his palm in a cloud of green vapor, flickering as it constructed tiny bundles of flying pain. The Gadveran soldiers standing next to him flinched backward as horrendous swarm of over a hundred thousand Fever wasps flew out in a malicious cloud. At a mental nudge, the swarm flew down and out, spreading themselves out as thin as they could before they began mindlessly stinging anything they landed on. In a matter of seconds, well defined units of real Ilethans were flinching and slapping at the tiny insects, while their illusionary counterparts continued to march on, heedless of the bugs. ¡°AHahahah!¡± Andra cackled madly. ¡°light them up!¡± A storm of arrows descended from the either side of the general, targeting the isolated units, who broke and ran under the assault. She glanced back at Calvin with a happy grin. ¡°You should be ducking.¡± A glint of light from the sky was the only warning Cal got, prompting him to duck behind the parapet. An arrow passed through the space where his head had been. Cal rolled on reflex once he hit the ground. It had been ingrained on him through the hours and hours of drilling. Why do I have to do this when I¡¯m already behind the parapet? Cal¡¯s question was answered when a second arrow blew a white hot hole through the stone parapet, burying itself to the fletching in the top of the wall before the resulting friction made the feathers catch fire. It landed in the exact spot he¡¯d dropped to. A third arrow arced down from the sky, targeting General Andra almost as an afterthought. She seemed to see it coming, and leaned forward to put her helmet in front of it. If she dies, do I get a promotion? Probably not. Cal expected her to get brain-shot, but the arrow that bored through two feet of stone rebounded off her shiny helmet like a normal arrow. Only the small cracks under her feet where the force had been directed into the ground told a different story. Lance asking him if he¡¯d invested in any defensive skills made a lot more sense now. What should I invest in, given the opportunity? Personally, I prefer defensive skills that don¡¯t require equipment to use properly. Maybe something like Ella¡¯s iron skin, or Toughness? ¡°Look out!¡± Ella said, kicking him out of the way of a fourth arrow. The arrow blew through an archer¡¯s leg and drew a line of blood along her metallic skin before it lodged deep in the floor. ¡°What in the Abyss is the point of the parapet?¡± Cal demanded over the screaming. ¡°Cuz it doesn¡¯t seem to be doing jack shit.¡± ¡°Get Frederick out of here.¡± She snapped, and two nearby soldiers picked up their bleeding comrade, hauling him to the medic. ¡°He can¡¯t see you.¡± Andra said, turning her gaze back to Cal. ¡°That counts for something.¡± She held out a hand, and a nearby lieutenant handed her a spyglass. ¡°Now, who the hell is giving us so much trouble?¡± She muttered, as much to herself as everyone else. The General scrunched her weather-worn face up as she peered through the spyglass. ¡°Huh,¡± Andra grunted. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Figures. The Ilethans aren¡¯t known for their archery,¡± she said with a dour tone before offering him the spyglass. ¡°You¡¯re fine to stand. They¡¯re waiting for their next target.¡± Cal stood and took the spyglass. ¡°Just behind that trebuchet and to the right,¡± she said, pointing. Cal peered through the spyglass, orienting on Andra¡¯s directions. A small group of Gadveran archers with oversized bows was stationed there, wearing strange steel headbands lined with Ilethan indigo. One Gadveran in particular stood head and shoulders over his peers. ¡°Baroke,¡± Calvin whispered, studying his giant friend¡¯s blank expression. Macronomicon Been awhile. I had a doctor thing that kept me running around town for an entire week, but I am back now, taking my fiber and and ready to continue dumping on the regular. Also! someone suggested I should plug one of my lesser known webnovels, So I''m gonna do just that. Careful. it''s Y/A and from a girl''s POV. I tried to avoid romance and gender as much as possible because I suck at it, something that''s been pointed out to me many times, and I think it''s all the better for it. Enjoy! Chapter 36: Rescue Plans and Women of Negotiable Virtue ¡°You know one of them?¡± ¡°The big one.¡± Cal said, handing the spyglass back to her. Andra peered through the tube for a moment before letting out an appreciative whistle. ¡°Damn, that boy could match a Guar. Shame he¡¯s an archer.¡± ¡°He did just put a hole through solid stone.¡± ¡°You sure it was him?¡± Andra said, glancing back at Cal. ¡°He¡¯s the best archer in the village, by far. He was practically a savant with one Break. If he¡¯s had Breaks since then¡­¡± Cal shrugged. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Andra closed her spyglass and handed it to her waiting lieutenant, considering the battlefield. ¡°Are we going to go rescue him?¡± Andra blinked and looked at Cal with wide, disbelieving eyes. ¡°You mean are we going to sacrifice thousands of people trying to retrieve one of your friends?¡± ¡°When you put it like that-¡° ¡°Put Baroke out of your mind, Calvin. If he¡¯s as good as you say, the Ilethans will try to keep him in peak condition, and there¡¯s every possibility we will be able to buy him back once we kick their pasty asses out of here. The only thing you need to be concerned about is whether or not your friend is going to blow your mind with one of his arrows.¡± ¡°But-¡° Andra gave him a look that sent ice down his spine. ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± If she won¡¯t rescue him, I¡¯ll do it myself. ¡°You look like you¡¯re going to disobey.¡± She said, eyes narrowed. Damn reading Skills. ¡°No, ma¡¯am.¡± Cal said, arranging his thoughts and feelings beneath his skin. ¡°How much Bent you have left, Calvin?¡± ¡°Eight, Ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°Hmmm¡­¡± she glanced up at the distant forest that the Ilethan army was tearing apart to build siege towers. ¡°We¡¯ve got a long day ahead of us. Conserve it. Your bugs are more valuable on a cost-effect basis than anything else we could do with your abilities. That¡¯s the ugly truth. Whenever they push forward again, and they will, I want you to be able to tell us which ones are real.¡± ¡°But what if I-¡° ¡°Strategy isn¡¯t always exciting, Calvin. The more complicated the action, the more likely it is to fail. We have a big-ass wall, and we¡¯re going to bleed them for every inch. Simple. It¡¯s going to take time. The only way we could use your time more effectively is to have you kill high value targets, which would incur a much higher risk to your life. Do you want to die?¡± ¡°No, Ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°Could¡¯a fooled me. Stay on the wall, and keep the rest of your abilities under wraps until I say so. I want the Ilethans to think of you as the wasp guy. When they come up with a counter, then we can think about coming up with a different tactic for you. Don¡¯t blow your wad on the first day.¡± ¡°Yes, Ma¡¯am.¡± Calvin turned away from the scene below him, facing Ella, who was bandaging her leg. A thin line of blood was seeping through the white cloth as she wound the gauze around it. ¡°How is it?¡± he asked. ¡°Gadveran cloth is very fine,¡± Ella said, pausing to look at the gauze in her hands. ¡°It feels almost sacrilegious to use such a fine cloth to soak up blood. But it¡¯s what¡¯s expected, I suppose.¡± ¡°I meant how is your wound?¡± Cal clarified, a bit of irritation coming through his voice. ¡°it won¡¯t slow me down,¡± she said, matter-of-factly. ¡°it didn¡¯t hit any muscle or arteries, I¡¯m happy.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want you to get hurt.¡± Cal said lamely. Ella frowned. ¡°Hurt?¡± She glanced back down to her leg, and up at him. ¡°When I was eight, I split my foot in half chopping wood for my mother. That hurt.¡± ¡°I took a Kugeya claw through the liver when I was twelve, that hurt. Chuela carried me all the way home, and I almost died before they gave me Noeula.¡± ¡°Well-¡° ¡°When I was fourteen, I was shot in the lung by a Seeker tribe,¡± she said as she stood, towering over him. ¡°Like you.¡± She tousled his hair. ¡°Just a few days ago, I got a tattoo that hurt more.¡± ¡°This?¡± she pointed at her leg. ¡°This won¡¯t slow me down at all.¡± Ella picked up her shield and Crusher, hooking the flail¡¯s handle in her belt, grinning at him. From what Cal had personally witnessed from the mental tug-o-war between the two of them, Ella had indeed faced far worse than a shallow cut on her leg. He decided to drop the issue. If she wasn¡¯t upset about it, he didn¡¯t see any reason he should be. She saved his life, after all. ¡°I never saw the tattoo. Where is it?¡± Cal asked. he couldn¡¯t make out any kind of tattoo on her arms or legs, face or neck. ¡°That¡¯s up to you to find out.¡± Ella said, sticking out her long pink tongue. ¡°Well, it¡¯s definitely not on your tongue.¡± Cal rolled his eyes, his heart hammering as he briefly imagined the process of finding it. ¡°Gadveran Tattoos are much cleaner than ours, that¡¯s for sure. It¡¯s those tiny steel needles. I bet if I brought some home, they¡¯d be thrilled.¡± At the mention of her tribe, Cal¡¯s buried anger resurfaced. For her sake, he hoped they were okay. He also wanted to kill her father and every other Genosian adult male and let the rest starve to death. Feelings were funny things. Ella¡¯s brows furrowed as she looked at him. ¡°Look alive, they¡¯re getting ready for another run.¡± Andra called out to them, breaking him out of the moment. *** True to the general¡¯s word, the Ilethans pushed four more times in as many hours, cutting Cal¡¯s Bent down to half by noon, when one Bent came back. Each time, Cal was able to isolate the real ilethans, dropping behind the line of sight and avoiding the Bent-powered return fire. After they realized they couldn¡¯t pin Cal down they started adapting their tactics. Cal first noticed it around noon when a large portion of the twitching unit of several hundred soldiers simply didn¡¯t fall down when peppered with arrows. In fact, men fell in groups of five or more, falling to the ground wounded in identical ways. Andra saw it moments after Cal did, and knew what was happening. ¡°Hollow formations.¡± She growled, ordering the archers to stop. As Cal looked on in curiosity. ¡°There¡¯s only twelve men down there, and they got a few thousand arrows out of us.¡± She studied the battlefield, scanning the Ilethan troops. ¡°General!¡± came a shout from the west, drawing their attention, where a Gadveran soldier wearing the usual brown and tan armor waved at them. ¡°A force is climbing the wall, beach-side!¡± ¡°Go take care of it,¡± Andra said, nodding to Cal, ¡°These bastards like their fake-outs, so I¡¯m staying here.¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am!¡± Cal said, breaking into a sprint as he ran along the back of the wall, following the narrow footpath the soldiers were trained to keep clear as he aimed for the beach far to the northwest. After less than a minute, Cal made it to the west side of the city wall, where tan and brown uniforms were stacked four deep, pressing against something he couldn¡¯t quite make out. The average soldier was a tiny bit taller than him, blocking his view as they engaged the Ilethans in a chaotic melee. How the hell am I supposed to help when I can¡¯t see? Cal thought, his gaze blocked by Gadveran uniforms. I could use Sense grafting to get a better view, but no. I¡¯ve got to conserve Bent. ¡°I need to see what¡¯s going on!¡± Cal shouted to Ella, pointing forward. She glanced back up at the situation ahead of them, taller than the surrounding people, and able to see beyond them. ¡°There¡¯s some kind of giant wooden building making a bridge onto the wall.¡± She said, peering ahead. ¡°Siege tower.¡± Cal said. How the hell did they sneak a siege tower past us on day one? ¡°They¡¯re streaming out of it,¡± she said. ¡°We¡¯re trying to push them back, but it¡¯s not going well.¡± ¡°I need to see,¡± Cal said. ¡°Got it,¡± Ella said, kneeling down and slapping her knee. Cal stood on her knee, getting an extra couple feet of vantage as her hands stabilized his legs, preventing him from falling over. Just over the tops of the warring factions¡¯ heads, he could see the wooden tower¡¯s entrance, creating a veritable fountain of men that spilled out onto the stone wall. Calvin drew the only component he had, the slime, and focused his attention on the interior of the tower. Shaping 4/11 Bent Remaining. Slime exploded on the inside of the tower, coating the inner staircase and part of the bridge leading to the wall. The thundering sound of footsteps running up the internal staircase became thuds and shouts of men unable to keep their feet and sliding all the way down the stairs in a chaotic mess. ¡°Tremble before the Wizard-King!¡± Cal shouted. The tower was less than useless now, and would be for the next hour, since the slime wouldn¡¯t dry out or wash off until it disappeared. Plenty of time for the foot soldiers to deal with the problem. Damnation! If Andra had given me back the fireball component, I¡¯d be able to reduce this thing into ash in a matter of seconds¡­why am I falling? ¡°Ack!¡± Cal shouted as Ella¡¯s knee twisted out from under him, her hands pulling him down, slamming him to the stony floor. ¡°look out.¡± Ella said, businesslike as return fire from archers on top of the wooden tower whizzed over his head, burying themselves in the armor of the soldiers crowding in behind him. Ella¡¯s skin turned silver as she put her large kite shield over Cal¡¯s body. An arrowhead emerged three inches through her this wood shield, stopping a hair¡¯s breadth from Cal¡¯s face. Another struck Ella¡¯s head, bouncing off with the ringing of steel. ¡°Guess they¡¯re not as good as your friend.¡± She said, eyeing the arrow poking through her shield. ¡°Guess not.¡± Cal agreed as the Gadveran troops began to flow around them. The lack of pressure from deeper inside the tower allowed the Gadverans to push the enemy already on the wall back to their bridge. Once their feet touched the slime, the Ilethan formation collapsed, and they were shoved back into the tower or fell off the side, falling fifty feet to death or critical injury. ¡°They¡¯ve started hacking the bridge apart,¡± Ella said, standing and peering over the others while covering him with the shield. ¡°We¡¯re done here.¡± **** Dupdomancy has reached Level 12! Level 12: 144 pounds, 60 minutes. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 4! level 4: 64 pound limit, 16 minutes. 0 slots available. 0/11 Bent remaining. ¡°Uugh,¡± Calvin groaned as he dragged himself toward the barracks, leaning against Ella, who had arguably done more work than he had. The tension of getting shot at every time he poked his head up drained energy at a completely unreal speed. ¡°You think she¡¯s trying to stop me from rescuing Baroke? Cal asked, glancing over at Ella, who sported a couple extra scratches, her hair hanging from her heat, stringy and damp with sweat. She was still wearing her armor, with a few arrowheads dangling from the protective leather. Cal was unharmed. ¡°I don¡¯t know who this Baroke is, but it seems like Andra¡¯s making sure you don¡¯t have enough Bent to get yourself into trouble.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the impression I got too,¡± Cal said, thinking back to being ordered about the battlefield until he was completely dry. ¡°She said to come back for some vials of Bent in the morning.¡± There wasn¡¯t a barracks anymore, so soldiers were instructed to sleep in a series of buildings close to the wall that had been vacated for the use of the Gadveran military. The fact that these buildings were a short walk from the red light district seemed to raise morale, as soldiers snuck off in twos and threes to go get fleeced by the local working women. The sergeants overlooked it as long as they were back in bed by morning. As long as everyone¡¯s happy with the arrangement. Cal thought, glancing down the main street as they limped along, catching a glimpse of a dusky skinned woman chatting happily with a couple young men, leaning against one of them intimately while placing a possessive hand on the other. She wore a silk robe that was a lot fancier under the dim light of the lanterns, with some kind of wrap that pushed her breasts up, seemingly inches away from bouncing their way out of her clothes. She laughed heartily as the young men said something before one of them slid a hand over her waist, and in short order, the three of them ducked into a nearby alley. ¡°See something you like?¡± Ella asked with a raised brow, a tiny bit of ire in her voice. ¡°How much Bent do you think a prostitute has, on average?¡± Cal asked, glancing back up at her. Ella¡¯s eyes widened, and moments later the two of them took a hard right turn, following the stream of soldiers into the soft illumination of the women¡¯s lanterns. ¡°Hey, you two looking to tackle things together?¡± one of the women called out to the two of them, a young looking girl with long, slicked back hair, lovely breasts and form-fitting clothes that revealed large swaths of soft skin. ¡°I don¡¯t mind mixing it up.¡± She gave the two of them a shy grin as Cal met her gaze. All he felt from her was cold calculation and an undercurrent of malice. ¡°No thank you.¡± Cal said with a polite nod. Just like that the woman¡¯s eyes slid off of the two of them as if they¡¯d ceased to exist. ¡°Are we being picky about the walking Bent container?¡± Ella whispered as they walked past. ¡°She was mean,¡± Cal whispered back. ¡°I want someone willing to help.¡± Ella snorted. They tromped along, and Calvin looked around until he felt a gaze he liked. Sitting against the wall, of a building, smoking a bit of Thanja as she studied them curiously. Cal found a woman who met his criteria. Older, with more discretion. She had a transactional feeling to her gaze, but had people¡¯s best interests at heart. ¡°How are you two doing this fine evening?¡± She asked, knocking a bit of ash out of her pipe. ¡°You can call me Perthea, You seem like you want something special.¡± ¡°That is the case.¡± Cal said, digging into his purse and bringing out a single Stone coin. ¡°I¡¯ll give you five dust for each point of your Bent.¡± Perthea¡¯s eyebrows raised. ¡°You got some kind of mutation, boy?¡± ¡°Is that a problem?¡± Cal asked. She raked her eyes up and down Cal¡¯s body, her gaze containing a healthy amount of caution. A moment later her gaze flickered over to Ella, then back to him. ¡°Depends. If you want my Bent you¡¯ll have to take it right here, in view of everyone. Can you handle that?¡± Her caution was understandable. There was no telling with strange mutations, and Cal hadn¡¯t been particularly specific about how he took Bent. She simply didn¡¯t want to be lured into a room where he might eat her heart to gain her powers or some nonsense. Cal idly realized that walking the streets with a Genosian might give people an odd impression. ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s one Stone for each Bent.¡± ¡°That¡¯s ridiculous.¡± Cal said, eyes narrowing. ¡°I use my Bent too, young man, and it fetches a high price.¡± ¡°An eighth.¡± ¡°A Stone.¡± She said, taking another puff. A Stone was enough to buy some nice furniture, or a month¡¯s worth of food. There was no way she was earning that much money sitting on her ass and smoking. It was all the pay he had managed to scrounge together. ¡°All right, I guess we can¡¯t come to an agreement.¡± Cal said, nudging Ella and pointing at the young Gadveran woman they¡¯d left a few dozen feet back. ¡°Let¡¯s go ask her. She¡¯s cheap.¡± Cal knew this for a fact, reading it from her gaze. She also felt like a gossiping kleptomaniac, though. ¡°Half a Stone.¡± Perthea relented. ¡°One stone for four.¡± Cal said, turning back. ¡°Three. All I can spare for a pittance like that.¡± ¡°Fine¡­¡± Cal gritted out, pulling the silver Stone out of his purse and placing it in the woman¡¯s cupped palm. He¡¯d offered a fairly low price to start with, but she¡¯d ratcheted up the price from five dust to over a hundred and thirty. It was no longer cheap. She studied him with her deep brown eyes for a moment before pocketing the silver. ¡°Alright, what do I do?¡± ¡°Take my hand, and let me in.¡± She should be good at that. Elliot¡¯s words dripped with sarcasm. Perthea hesitantly gripped his hand, and a fraction of a second later, he delved into her, coaxing out her Bent. She let out a restrained gasp as Bent began flowing down her arm, sending flares of pleasure straight up their spines. The Bent began to transfer over to Cal¡¯s veins, turning them black. 1/11 Bent remaining. 2/11 Bent remaining. 3/11 Bent remaining. Cal released his grip and saw Perthea staring into space. The slender Gadveran woman was stunned. ¡°I thought it would hurt. You could do that for free.¡± She breathed. ¡°True, but I¡¯m kind of new here, and in a hurry.¡± Cal glanced around for a moment before leaning down and whispering. ¡°Would you mind putting in a word for me with your friends? I¡¯m looking to make this a regular thing, and obviously I can¡¯t pay a Stone each time.¡± She blinked a couple times, her eyes slowly refocusing on his face. ¡°Another Stone,¡± she said, holding out her hand. Cal dumped the rest of his purse into his hand, revealing a meager selection of copper dust and pinches. The largest coin he had was an Eighth. Perthea heaved a sigh, and this was where his careful selection of a good-natured whore came into play. ¡°Fine, keep your money. I¡¯ll talk to some of the girls I know. Will you be back here tomorrow night?¡± ¡°If I¡¯m not dead.¡± Cal said with a shrug. ¡°See you then, young man.¡± She said, waving him off with her long pipe, still emitting a bit of smoke from the tightly packed cherry in the center. ¡°Three Bent isn¡¯t much,¡± Ella said as they walked back to the emptied out apartments where the rest of the soldiers were crammed in like sardines. Cal looked up at the sky, the night filled with the sounds of explosions and clanging steel meant to keep the defenders awake. He needed a way to get into the Ilethan camp without being spotted, and a way to get back. A giant-wasp drawn palanquin came to mind, floating through the sky at a height undetectable to the enemy. ¡°It¡¯s not enough to do what we need to do, now yet, anyway.¡± Cal looked over at Ella. ¡°How much do you think a wasp can lift while flying, relative to its body weight?¡± ¡°I have no idea.¡± Ella shrugged ¡°Guess I better start testing it.¡± Cal said as they walked along the darkened streets. Him and Ella together was somewhere around three hundred and fifty pounds, plus Baroke, who must weight two, two fifty by himself. Add an extra hundred pounds as a safety precaution, and he needed his wasps to be able to carry seven hundred pounds to be totally confident. After a few minutes of walking, they ducked off into a secluded alley, and Cal summoned the largest wasp he could. Calvinian Summoning 2/11 Bent remaining. The wasp¡¯s body was the size of a large dog, its wings as long as a grown man. The alley was just barely big enough to run the test. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like this,¡± Ella said, peering into the creature¡¯s compound eye curiously.¡± ¡°You grew up in a forest full of giant insects.¡± ¡°And I learned to have a healthy respect for them.¡± ¡°Wanna help test its lift?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll pass, if you don¡¯t mind,¡± she said, eyeing the giant wasp. ¡°Alright,¡± Cal said, holding out his arm and instructing the wasp to lift up on it. The giant wasp leapt into the air with a horrible buzzing sound and latched onto his arm with its sharp claws, pinching his skin and nearly slicing him open before he could tell it to stop. ¡°Okay, that almost cost me my arm.¡± Cal said, wincing as he slapped a hand down on the small cut until it stopped bleeding. The only injury he¡¯d gotten that day was self-inflicted. The giant was clung to the wall of the nearby building, watching them with quivering mandibles. Cal suddenly felt like a fleshy caterpillar waiting to get eaten in the wasp¡¯s gaze. Those things are not cute. Ella raised a brow and waved her hand in a ¡®you see?¡¯ gesture. Macronomicon Back in action, and ready to start putting chapters out at a consistant speed...friggin holidays, man. You may have heard that I''m setting aside my other story to focus on this one. That means something like, 3-4 chapters a week of WotR for Royalroad, and I definitely plan on having a mass release soon, so look forward to that. Patreon is up to chapter 75, Just so you know I''m not slacking off. Enjoy! Chapter 37: The Second Wave As it turns out, Wasp behavior is rather limited. Cal thought, tapping his vial of Bent on the wall, watching it glitter in morning sun that was rising over his left shoulder. The orders a wasp could be easily expected to perform were ¡®go there¡¯ and ¡®kill¡¯. As if Ella needs a reason to be any more smug. After experimenting for a while, he¡¯d discovered their carrying capacity was a little over two thirds of their body weight. And that meant he needed a thousand pounds of wasp. Ugh, logistics. Cal did some simple math. Calvinian Summoning had increased its mass by cubing the level of the Skill thus far, so what was a good level to aim for? Ten cubed is a thousand on the nose, and a duration of one hundred minutes. Not sure I have enough time to level the Skill that high, though, what level grants five hundred pounds minimum? He did some quick math. Level eight? Damn. He had to get most of the way to level ten while dodging arrows and whatever else the Ilethans could throw at him. Any other ways to get to Baroke that don¡¯t involve being carried by flesh eating wasps? Calvin began running scenarios through his head rapidly. Stealth? Not particularly high level, lot of distance to cross on foot in both directions. Convincing Andra to mount a rescue? She struck that down before I¡¯d even thought of it. Cal¡¯s options seemed severely limited. It was boiling down to a madcap flight or simply crossing his fingers and hoping they decided to give Baroke back if they lost. Anything less than level eight at Calvinian Summoning would make the process very expensive, Bent-wise. Calvin¡¯s eyes turned back to the black Bent sloshing around inside the vial. Andra had given him three of the containers, each with three bent, along with instructions to ¡®make them last.¡¯ She knew he regained two a day, so once he¡¯d gone through eleven by the end of the day, she would assume he was out. That assumption would be wrong. Calvin slipped the expensive glass tube back in his pocket and glanced out at the Ilethan army. They hadn¡¯t gotten around to doing anything major yet. It was remarkable how much of a siege was spent simply glaring at each other. I¡¯ve got better things to be doing that staring at these assholes. Can¡¯t waste time. ¡°Shake me out of it if they start doing anything big,¡± Cal said, sliding down to rest his back against the parapet. The last thing he saw before he closed his eyes was Ella nodding. Eye of the tiger. The distractions around him faded away, and Cal floated inside his inner space, letting thoughts flow around his mental bubble. He was like that for what felt like minutes before the notification came. Meditation has reached Level 10! Level 10: Boosts ability to ignore distractions and disassociate. 50% correction. Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Shadow boxing: Allows the user to practice any Warped Skill up to the level of Meditation, at 1/4 speed. Useful for practicing Bent dependent skills or being imprisoned with time on your hands. Disconnect: Allows the user to disconnect from their senses and the flow of time. Useful for demon summoning, battles of Will, or retaining your sanity after a thousand years in prison. ^ Editor''s choice! Sherl*ck vision: Plan your moves out in advance with a solid sense of the near future. Elementary. Mutations: Bent Regeneration: applies correction % Boost to Bent regeneration. Useful, if boring. Medi-tating: Enter a deep trance while the body repairs itself at (Meditation) times normal speed. Hiber-Nate! ¡­I choose shadow boxing. Cal¡¯s mental space gained depth and clarity, and a sense of potential, like it could become anything. Experimentally, he envisioned the creek running behind his house, and found himself standing on the bank, with Juka sitting on his usual lump in the earth in amiable silence. The village elder gave Cal a nod and continued fishing. He looked down and spotted his fishing pole resting against his usual tree, ready to be put to use. It¡¯s that easy, is it? Cal was eager to put the skill to use, but he wanted to get his bearings before he got carried away. He pried his eyes open, the sound of water lapping against dirt left his ears, the sight of Juka shattered into a vista of a stone palisade, where dozens of brown and tan Gadveran soldiers were idling away. ¡°Anything happen?¡± Cal groaned as he shifted his spine against the hard rock he¡¯d been ignoring. Ella was learning to play eights from the other soldiers, their weapons close at hand as they slapped cards down at high speeds. ¡°So far, nothing at all.¡± She said, glancing over the parapet at the busy camp far below them. Cal dragged himself to his feet to get his own look. A glint of noonday sun reflected off round metal plates in the grass outside the wall. Cal hadn¡¯t taken notice of them yesterday, with the illusionary troops filling up so much of the field. ¡°What are those?¡± Cal asked aloud. A young archer who must have been two years older than Cal glanced over. ¡°What is what?¡± ¡°Those metal plates.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know what those are?¡± He asked incredulously before glancing at Cal¡¯s uniform. ¡°sir.¡± ¡°Look at my face,¡± Cal said, pointing at his eyes. ¡°Assume I¡¯m new to this.¡± ¡°Right, um, those are piles, fuck-off big steel poles put into the ground to prevent tunneling with Berengas or earth magic. They got a solid steel fence strung between them, too.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all steel?¡± Ella said, gawking over the edge of the parapet. Genosians had a healthy appreciation for the substance that was nearly mythical to them. ¡°Sixteen feet, straight into bedrock.¡± Calvin had heard that Gadvera was a rich nation offhand before, but nothing drove it home more than the tons of steel sitting there on the off-chance that the enemy would one day have a berengas wurm. Cal looked further afield, where the Ilethans were busily constructing their siege towers, pushing the forest further away from the edge of the city. ¡°Oh look, they¡¯re clearing the land for us.¡± Cal said, pointing. ¡°Think they¡¯ll be nice enough to pull up the stumps too?¡± His comment was met with a few dry chuckles. The new towers were almost complete, having gotten much taller overnight. They were busily hammering the last of the panels into place to give cover from archers. Wet wood on wet wood ensured that the creations would never last long, but they weren¡¯t planning on using them forever. Plus it made them harder to burn. Speaking of burning, Cal thought, thumbing the vial of ooze-weaver slime in his belt. It had been most of a week since he¡¯d commissioned the vials, and he still only had the one. Not that Calvin wasn¡¯t happy with it, he just wanted the rest of the tools he¡¯d paid for. Well, I guess Andra paid for it. damnation. It was about this time that a low rumbling came to Calvin¡¯s attention, prompting him to look up for the source. He couldn¡¯t make out anything in the distance Ilethan camp, but when he turned toward the city, the noise dulled. ¡°Quiet!¡± he shouted, earning indignant stares from the nearby men and women, until a moment later, another soldier cocked her head. ¡°I hear something.¡± ¡°Me too.¡± Another said. The sergeant who¡¯d been loitering nearby stood and kicked the card table off the wall, scattering the table and the cards to the city below, leaving three stunned soldier and Ella staring at empty space. ¡°Something¡¯s up. Off your asses and clear the lane!¡± the lane being the narrow two feet of space used for evacuating wounded soldiers or deploying reinforcements. They were trained not to stand on the lane unless they were moving with a purpose, but it sometimes got a little lax on a slow morning. The soldiers crowded up on the wall, shoulder to shoulder as they looked out at the Ilethan camp, the rumbling gradually growing louder. ¡°What in the name of Goluba?¡± one of the soldiers ¨C apparently a worshipper of the god of berries ¨C said, pointing at the forest far beyond the Ilethan camp. A dark line absent of trees was carving its way toward the Ilethan camp. Cal squinted, catching the moment a massive tree was pushed over. There was another glint of light form something in the forest. Some kind of metal. Did they mind-control a Kugeya and strap armor on it? Cal shivered at the thought of the nigh-indestructible killing machine getting even more armor. That didn¡¯t seem fair. The thing that emerged from the woods was decidedly not a Kugeya. It was a strange, shiny black. Twenty feet tall, fifty feet long, thirty feet wide, with what looked like a massive plow attached to the front of it. The body was blocky, with tubes sticking out here and there. It wasn¡¯t alive, Calvin was sure of that, the thing seemed to have wheels with a gigantic steel belt between them, and it didn¡¯t have any sign of awareness of it¡¯s surroundings, it simply crushed it¡¯s way through the last bits of forest before it began grinding through the center of the Ilethan camp, sending soldiers scattering this way and that. ¡°Who¡¯s our runner!?¡± Cal shouted without taking his eyes off the strange machine. ¡°Me, sir, said a wiry man about four years older than Calvin.¡± ¡°Go get the General.¡± The runner didn¡¯t even wait for Calvin to finish his sentence before sprinting down the lane toward the command center on the south side of the wall. ¡°What the hell is that?¡± Calvin muttered to himself as the strange vehicle rumbled toward them. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but every hair on my body is standing up,¡± Ella said, standing stock still. What? What¡¯s going on? Calvin¡¯s mind was filled with the sound of a strange crunching, followed by the sound of scattering beer bottles and trash. Oh, what do you know, it¡¯s a LineHog. I love those things. They¡¯re basically farm equipment. Big, heavy, can force their way through anything you needed to get forced through. I used to use them to dig people out of bunkers. Looks like they strapped a couple low-tech cannons onto the damn thing. Waste of a good spot for a fifty-cal, if you ask me. There was a flash of light and smoke from one of the tubes in the distance, and a hair-raising buzzing sound before the wall thirty feet to the right of Cal exploded into shrapnel, sending a dozen broken corpses tumbling to the ground. Dust clouded Cal¡¯s vision and forced him to cough a fine dust out of his mouth. When did I get on the ground? He thought as he levered himself to his feet. As the dust cleared, Cal got a look at the wall, where a chunk had been sheared away from it. it was just small enough to jump over, but those nearer the blast were in no shape to do so, bleeding profusely from shrapnel, missing limbs, or just from the ears, twitching in a way that was certainly not good. On the other hand, it could be considered somewhat effective. What do you say we get the fuck off the wall, buddy? ¡°Calvin!¡± he heard Ella shouting faintly. In the explosion, he¡¯d been knocked some ten feet further down the wall than before, washed away like chaff, while the heavier girl had stayed in one place. ¡°Here!¡± he shouted, waving. Ella spotted and sprinted over to him, checking his face and patting him down for blood. ¡°I¡¯m all right.¡± Cal said, levering himself up, then it occurred to him that standing up would present a bigger target for flying pieces of stone. ¡°Stay low,¡± he shouted, peering over the edge of the parapet that now felt paper-thin. Another explosion shook the wall beneath their feet, blowing another dozen men off the wall to their left, and forcing the wall to let out an awful groaning sound that sent ice all the way down Cal¡¯s spine. ¡°Fuck this, if the walls coming down, I¡¯m not doing any good up here.¡± One of the archers said before putting his bow over his shoulder and making for the stairs. He¡¯s got a point. Cal reached out and snagged the man as he ran by. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it escaped your notice, but that isn¡¯t the only thing they have. If you give up the wall, you¡¯re welcoming them into the city, which is the same as welcoming them into your sister! Stay HERE!¡± If I run away like this, how can I become a wizard-king? Oh, that¡¯s easy. Just lie your ass off. You¡¯d be amazed at how many more people rose to power through lying than through integrity. I¡¯d name names, but I¡¯m afraid I¡¯d get you viciously sued by the religions they started. Of which there are many. Cal ignored Elliot¡¯s chatter as he stared into the man¡¯s eyes until he felt a flicker of courage. The archer nodded shakily and headed back to his position. The runner came back a few seconds later, without the general. ¡°Where is she?¡± Cal demanded as a cannonball struck the lower wall, nearly shaking everyone off their feet. ¡°She said to keep holding the wall, and she¡¯ll take care of the metal monstrosity. Watch out for the trick, she said.¡± The runner continued on, stopping every hundred feet or so to pass the message to each of Andra¡¯s lieutenants. A minute later, Calvin watched the gate roll open, and Andra rode out at the head of a unit of hundreds of cavalrymen, aiming for the metal machine rolling toward the wall. That gigantic, dinged plow was starting to look a lot more fierce as it rumbled closer and closer to the brick wall. The Ilethans knew what the cavalry was aiming for, so they put a wall of bodies between the royal guard and the machine, but they charged through them effortlessly, creating a spreading wake of gore as they drove through the mass of Ilethans. Cal watched as Andra cut her way to the machine, removing the cannons with steel-rending swings of her sword. He cheered along with everyone else as she began taking apart the machine, sending up a shower of sparks as she cut her way into the massive beast. Her royal guards were holding the rabble of Ilethans away from the machine, giving her time to work. Even in the worst case, the cannons had been removed, so at least they wouldn¡¯t have to deal with ¨C Cal¡¯s thoughts were interrupted as Ella tapped him insistently on the shoulder. He turned to face the Genosian, but whatever she said was lost in the cheering. She grabbed his head and spun it around to face the opposite direction, painfully wrenching his neck. What he saw to the north made him forget about the pain. A silver creature with a teardrop body and four long, bladed legs was moving sinuously along the wall, butchering the cheering soldiers before they had a chance to mount any kind of defense. Oh, look, it¡¯s a ATHK 600, That stands for all-terrain hunter-killer six hundred, by the way. Those blades can fold back into wings and it can sustain flight indefinitely. Calvin heard a tongue click in his mind. I¡¯m still so proud of them. You made those!? Just a bit of the AI work, and the suggestion for the teardrop shape. It took the whole team to really make it come together. It was mincing soldiers at an astonishing rate as it approached them. ¡°To the left! Cal shouted with everything he had, straining his voice painfully, and kicking the men to either side of him as he drew his shortsword ¡°Swords out!¡± Andra and all the strongest fighters were preoccupied with the wall-crushing machine, and now they had to deal with this monster alone. Here¡¯s the trick. You sure we can¡¯t just bail? Macronomicon Enjoy! Happy new year! I''m getting back in the swing for another great year of Web-Noveling! Chapter 38: Terminate. Macronomicon The toe of Calvin¡¯s boot pushed against the stone, his fingers felt a brief sensation of the stonework as he clawed his way forward, moving faster than his mind could keep up with. He felt like he was watching his limbs move from a long tunnel, detatched from the image moving in front of him. Wait, why are you moving towards it!? A distant voice echoed in his ears, but he was already passing it by, mentally and physically. It wasn¡¯t about his country. It wasn¡¯t about saving the soldiers on the wall. Those things were there too, but the core of the thing that seemed to be drawing him forward was one simple concept that Cal couldn¡¯t imagine living without. Winning. Running away was losing, letting all the soldiers on the wall die was losing, dying was losing, and not killing the monster was losing, and Cal didn¡¯t want any of part of that. As he ran, he reached down for his belt, fumbling for a fraction of a second as the cube of steel on his belt wobbled a bit on the end of its chain. It killed two more men in that fraction of a second, coming five feet closer to impaling Cal¡¯s face. Calvin focused on the cube, mentally isolating a tiny, 1 inch by 1 inch cage following the contours of the cube itself. Shaping. 8/11 Bent remaining. The tiny cage had one hundred and forty-four pounds of mass injected in it, becoming three feet wide, and coming into existence around the creature, its claws sticking awkwardly out of the squares. The creature instantly began thrashing inside the cage, its claws biting into the steel and shaving off large pieces. The cage itself began tumbling forward, a rapidly disintegrating mass of iron bars rolling toward him like a runaway barrel of hot steel shavings. It wouldn¡¯t even need to break free to kill him. It was going to do that just by rolling forward, blade-arms sticking out at odd angles, ready to impale him. Cal put his left hand forward and lifted up his right foot, focusing on the steel cube in his hand. Shaping. 7/11 Bent remaining. A solid steel trident sprung into existence at an angle, dropping into his hand. It was far too heavy for use by someone with only six strength, but he didn¡¯t intend to be swinging it around. The handle manifested just above his left palm, the bottom just under his foot. Calvin put his foot down. The tumbling cage hit the oversized trident with the shriek of tortured steel, the pressure shoving him backward violently. The spiked bottom of the trident dug a furrow through the solid stone of the top of the wall. They kept sliding a few feet until the trident¡¯s bottom fell into a small crack and wedged itself deep into the stone, bringing the slide to a sudden halt. The stone cracked, the haft bent a little, then for a single instant, everything stopped. The extreme noise and flurry of motion attracted the soldier¡¯s attention away from the battle going on far below them, and they jumped in surprise and revulsion at the shiny, silver, insect-like thing and the wake of chunked soldier behind it. The monster recovered first, slamming its razor sharp legs against the bars in the exact same spot, chewing through them faster than an expert logger through a young pine. The second to breathe allowed Cal to come back to himself, and suddenly the waving claws that had seemed like they were going to eviscerate someone else were waving violently back and forth, only a couple feet away, rapidly compromising the integrity of his cage. Maybe I could use a little help. Hi, welcome back, Elliot said congenially, but Cal could sense a deep undercurrent of sarcasm. Calvin ignored him. ¡°Get off your asses and tear this thing apart!¡± He shouted to anyone listening as the slightly warped polearm bucked underneath him, cracking the stone it was embedded in further. Everyone jumped, springing into action. The smart soldiers drew back, looking for a similar polearm, or fixing their bows on the creature. The brave ones charged forward with their swords, the Gadveran blades denting against the silvery skin of the monster before they received wicked gashes on their arms and legs, forcing them to stumble back in agony. An instant later an arrow ricocheted off the creatures¡¯ single, massive black eye, whirring past Calvin¡¯s left shoulder. What in the abyss is this thing made of? Jerrytanium. Don¡¯t look at me, I didn¡¯t name it. Anyway, the chances of getting through it with regular steel are pretty slim. We didn¡¯t manage to copy the Harbinger¡¯s Supremacy Field, but I think for most purposes, this stuff worked better anyway. Ah man, the freaking supremacy field. They could simulate a living creature well enough for it to spend Bent on decreasing the effectiveness of everything else relative to itself. Their robots weren¡¯t particularly tough, or good, they just made everything else fold like a wet noodle, including high command¡¯s spines, apparently. I swear to god, when I get off this planet, I¡¯m going to shove my fist so far up- Calvin tuned the rambling out, focusing on the creature trying to squirm between two severed bars. ¡°Use your Bent!¡± Cal shouted. ¡°Penetrating Shot!¡± One of the archers cried out as he shot. It was military discipline to shout out the name of your attack, apparently, so your teammates would know when it was time to get out of the way. The arrow dented the armor near one of the joints, making the leg have an unnatural hitch in it as it scrambled out of the steel cage. In another fraction of a second, the creature wormed its way out of the cage, its side dipping the tiniest amount before it leaped straight at Calvin¡¯s face. He tried to reach for his steel cube, but his hand was too slow, the creature was too close already. Cal¡¯s life flashed in front of his eyes as the four bladed limbs began closing down around him. Most of it was him getting thrashed by Karen, and not a single one was of getting laid. What about my empire of big-boobied women that like me a lot? If I had known I was gonna die here, I would¡¯ve mounted the everloving Abyss out of¨C Ella jumped in front him, slamming into the creature and pulling its bladed legs away from him. The monster¡¯s blindingly fast legs shredded her armor, and covered her silvered body in shallow scratches. She delivered a punch laced with the strange green paralytic spell to the creature¡¯s underside, and its limbs slowed down for a brief instant, allowing her to drag it close to the edge of the wall. Interesting. I guess the spell doesn¡¯t care if the target is alive or even has nerves. I wonder if it¡¯s simply a kinetic dampener? But wouldn¡¯t that stop the heart? There were scratching noises inside Calvin¡¯s head, pen on paper. Do you have some kind of office in my head? Calvin thought as Ella let out a shout of effort and twisted, her muscles glinting in the sunlight as she shoved the creature over the parapet. It instantly retracted its bladed limbs, forming a graceful looking silver wing on its right side. The dent just above the joint of its rear left leg prevented the creature from forming a perfect wing, causing it to tumble madly in the air, until it hit the ground with an explosion of dust. ¡°You wanna take a break with me after this?¡± Calvin asked, leaning over the parapet beside Ella, eyeing the monster. ¡°What kind of break?¡± ¡°I think you know.¡± Calvin, I need you to bring up her paralysis spell in casual conversation. Oh, yeah, and it¡¯s probably not dead. I¡¯m aware. Cal focused on the single silver limb he could see sticking out of the dirt. He needed to do something while it was still. He brought the limb into his mental space and isolated a tiny, arrow shaped section of its skin. He was going to use its armor against itself. Shaping Mass splitting. 6/11 Bent Remaining. Dozens of Jerrytanium arrows appeared, leaning against the parapet in a line. Tsk. I still hate that name. Calvin picked up the one in front of him and held it out. ¡°Listen up!¡± He shouted at the top of his lungs. ¡°Grab one of these, and use every Ability you¡¯ve got to put it through that thing!¡± The sound of arrows clattering to the ground rang along the wall as the archers ditched their current arrows to picked up the heavy silver ones that had appeared in front of them, nocking them on their heavy gadveran war bows and taking careful aim. They didn¡¯t fire. Instead it seemed like they were waiting for something. By the gods, they¡¯re waiting for me. ¡°Fuck¡¯em up!¡± Cal shouted, bruising his throat as he pointed at the silver monster pulling itself out of the ground. ¡°Penetrating shot!¡± ¡°Homing Arrow!¡± ¡°Burst Fire!¡± Voices echoed along the wall to either side of him, and a volley of the creature¡¯s duplicated armor rained down on it, Enhanced with bent. The arrows homed in on it, created miniature explosions, and passed through anything that got in the arrow¡¯s way. The volley made another cloud of dust that hid the creature¡¯s profile, twenty feet wide and slowly rising up the side of the wall. Cal and the others scanned the edges of the cloud, praying that the last attack had done the creature in. Nothing moved in the slowly drifting cloud of grey, and they gradually relaxed. Cal kept his fist tight around the silver arrow in his hand, staring at the edges of the edges of the cloud. He¡¯d relax when he saw its dead body. The cloud was being drawn south by the ocean wind, if the creature was following the cloud, it would intersect ¨C Shit! The creature burst out of the top of cloud, only ten feet below them, climbing the solid stone wall with three of its bladed legs, dangling the fourth behind it. Its armor was covered in gigantic rents, revealing strange innards full of tensing tubes that looked almost like black muscles, colorful strands of brightly colored¡­yarn that made sparks, and a slowly oozing, black goop that reminded Cal of the stuff that was draining from the ceiling of the Freezer. Half a dozen arrows were sticking out of it as it raced up the side of the wall, its awkward skittering movements causing the panicked volley of arrows to miss. Aww, it¡¯s recognized you as a high value target to kill before it¡¯s destroyed. What a cutie. I¡¯d be right to assume the insides aren¡¯t as tough? That you would. ¡°Aim for the holes!¡± Cal shouted. ¡°Every day of every week!¡± One of the soldiers howled at the top of his lungs, causing the others to break into gales of laughter as the death machine approached. Fucking madness! Cal thought, readying himself. This is war. ¡°Ella, can you ¨C ¡° Cal glanced over his shoulder and stopped when he spotted her slumped over against the parapet, sweat beading on her forehead. Her Iron Skin was gone, leaving her vulnerable and unconscious on the side of the besieged wall. She was experiencing a Break. That¡¯s right, she was only a second Break. Damnit! Cal thought, hefting the silvery arrow and backing away from the wall. As the creature came over the edge of the wall, it staggered sideways as an arrow rammed itself home, through one of the gaps in its armor. The creature ignored the man who¡¯d fired it and a dozen other arrows that missed their mark. It¡¯s attention was solely focused on Calvin. ¡°Come on you piece of shit!¡± Calvin said, holding the silver arrow in front of himself. When it attacks, I¡¯ll make a Jerrytanium war-pick and put a big ass hole through it. Wait. I can do better. The adrenaline and buzzing excitement gave him a sudden idea to maximize the sheer impact, more than he could ever do with a war pick. Cal held the silver arrow by the fletching, focusing his attention on the arrowhead, singling out a tiny section of space at the very tip in the shape of another arrow, perpendicular to the arrow itself. He held the arrow high above his head, and when the creature jumped toward him, he whipped the arrowhead downward as quickly as he could, tweaking the muscles in his arm and wrist, triggering the spell mid-swing. Shaping 5/11 Bent remaining. A one hundred and forty-four pound silver arrow manifested above the creature like a bolt from Sirfren himself, Coming down at the same speed as the blurred arrowhead, punching a massive hole through the creature¡¯s back and pinning it to the stone floor in an explosion of sound and rock shards. Nicely done. When the dust faded, the creature was clawing ineffectually at the stone and the silver arrow driven through its center of mass. The creature gradually slowed, then came to a stop. Maybe I should get a wand, Cal thought as he inspected the arrow in his hand. With extra flick from his wrist, he could get the tip moving at rather high speeds. A cheer rose around them, and one particularly foolhardy soldier kicked the monster that was curled up around the giant stake. Calvin half expected it to come back to life to exact one final casualty, but the man was unharmed. ¡°Whew,¡± Cal let out a breath he didn¡¯t even know he¡¯d been holding. He idly itched his ribs, and spotted a stone shard driven through his breastplate, and a quarter inch into his skin. Cal pulled it out with a grunt of pain and studied the shard. It would have been a lot deeper without armor. A lot deeper. His arms and legs began to demand attention as minor scrapes and punctures made their presence known. ¡°Well done, lieutenant!¡± someone shouted as people began to crowd around, slapping Cal on the shoulder and back, aggravating his wounds even as they congratulated him on a job well done. ¡°Well, you can¡¯t lead from the back,¡± Cal said with a shrug, quoting Karen. That¡¯s a really short-lived ideology. It seemed to resonate with the others, though, whose enthusiasm grew even higher. Even some of the men with minor injuries joined the celebration. Cal glanced over at the line of mutilated corpses to the north and sobered immediately. ¡°Get the wounded to the medics!¡± He shouted, causing the others to flinch. ¡°I don¡¯t want anyone dying during a celebratory circle-jerk!¡± The Sergeants were the first on task and started the job wrangling the enlisted into identifying and hauling away the wounded, ending the celebration in a matter of seconds with an impressive series of curses and cuffs. The sudden activity cleared Cal¡¯s line of sight of the battlefield. Andra and her company of Veterans were surrounded by the Ilethan army, using the LineHog as a kind of mobile fort, turning the machine toward the south to prevent themselves from being totally surrounded. But, Andra¡¯s elites retreating to the south, along with the north side of the wall being exterminated, meant there was a glaring hole in the city¡¯s defences. The Ilethans weren¡¯t kind enough to leave it alone. While a third of their army harried Andra, the rest pushed a dozen siege towers toward the now-empty walls. Cal¡¯s hand Cal could only slime six of them. He patted the vial in his vest pocket. Still unbroken despite the combat. Make that nine. Maybe if I use the wasps, I can target more than one tower at a time. Damn, this is going to get rough, they only last sixteen minutes each. Damnation. I don¡¯t care, I¡¯ll send each and every one of those bastards to meet Ishra. Cal shrugged in his dust covered armor and walked along the bloody wall to go meet them. ***Kala*** Aua, means men¡­ Kala thumbed through the simple Genosian to Gadveran dictionary. And women¡­ Kala felt her face begin to heat up as she scribbled the words down. When she got to the last word, she left it untranslated, tossed the book across the room and buried her face in the pillow, screaming and kicking her feet until she felt up to the task of being dignified again. A knocking at her door brought her out of her shame-stupor. Kala lifted her head with a gasp of air and composed herself before going to open the door. Standing on the other side of the rich wood was uncle Bekvah, shifting from foot to foot nervously. ¡°Time for me to earn my keep, I guess,¡± The owlish man said with a grin behind his bottlecap spectacles, fiddling with a strange red-painted piece of steel shaped like a bone. His face was pale. ¡°I just wanted to say hi in case-¡° Kala gave her uncle a hug. ¡°Oh, Okay. I¡¯ll see you when I get back.¡± Bekvah said, patting her back. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to sound selfish but can you ¨C¡° ¡°Make sure your friends are okay? I¡¯d be happy to.¡± Kala shook her head. ¡°Erase memories?¡± Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 1/30 Chapter 39: Great, more Princesses ***Calvin*** Calvin made it three steps away from the strange creature, when a thought occurred to him. He glanced over his shoulder at the curled-up monster pinned to the stone wall like an old man¡¯s prized arc beetle. I wonder if I can use Harvester on it? I only have five Bent left, though... Calvin put his fingers into his vest pocket and yanked out the tiny vial of viscous black Bent, popping the tall cork off with his thumb. One out of eight is a better trade-off. Calvin downed the tasteless black liquid, shuddering as it seemed to move on his pallete. 6/11 Bent Remaining. 7/11 Bent Remaining. 8/11 Bent Remaining. Gods, that¡¯s going to be hard to get used to. More than just the physical repulsion of drinking Bent was the psychological damage of drinking a half of a Glimmer, or gold piece, that he¡¯d been saving for later. It was enough to feed a family for six months, and he¡¯d knocked it back in seconds. The Gadveran Royal family doled them out sparingly to assets whose Abilities could swing the direction of the battle, like Andra. And me too, I guess, Calvin thought, kneeling down beside the creature. He definitely wanted those bladed legs, and the armor, and whatever else he could get from it. He touched the cold steel of the monster, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s going to work. Elliot said, a hint of patronizing smugness in his voice. Those things aren¡¯t even alive, so why would- Calvin pushed Elliot to the back of his mind and focused on his ability, watching the Bent travel down to the tips of his fingers. Harvester 7/11 Bent remaining The pinned metal monster shimmered, and was shortly replaced by a tremendous assortment of slabs of metal, ball bearings, strange, multicolored wires and coils of copper along with strange black pieces of grainless wood covered in golden lines. Oh, OH! I GUESS THAT¡¯S THE WAY IT WORKS NOW! There was a stream of cursing and the clatter of furniture being abused in the back of Cal¡¯s mind as he overlooked the creature¡¯s remains. He had no idea what any of it did. The legs he¡¯d wanted were laid in a convenient pile, with a handle sized length of haft where they connected to the next joint. He hefted one of the leg-tips. A bit heavier than steel, about the size of a short-sword, with a bit of a hook on the end. Calvin glanced over the assortment of foreign materials. Elliot. The cursing and muttering continued. Elliot! Frick¡¯en adaptive technology ¡®nother thousand years, and it¡¯ll be like we never¡­What? I need you to tell me which of these things are useful, Calvin thought. He glanced up at the approaching Siege Towers. And I need you to do it fast, I¡¯ve only got a few minutes before they get here. If your ability did what I think it did¡­ pick up that microchip there. What¡¯s a microchip? Cal thought, his eyes scanning the undifferenciated mass. Ugh, it¡¯s the black thing with the gold bits on it. If your ability managed to take everything apart and from what I can see, wiped its settings, that right there is an undifferentiated A.I. core. It¡¯ll come in handy down the road if we don¡¯t die here. What else? Calvin thought, scanning the pile as he stuffed the black thing into his pocket. Grab one of those ball bearings, they¡¯re way better than your little cube. There¡¯s some high efficiency propulsion technology in there, some military grade TechMuscle?, a Warp Engine, some batteries that would keep a flashlight going for years, and some field generating components that you would absolutely need if you ever wanted to build your own lightsaber or personal shield. So which ones do I take? None of them! Other than the Jerrytanium ball bearing, you couldn¡¯t use any of this stuff for its intended purpose because you¡¯re a rock-chucking savage without a working screwdriver within 12.3 Lightyears! Elliot oozed with smug superiority. Where did this one come from then? Cal asked. Elliot fell into contemplative silence. That¡¯s a good question. These Ilethans are just as backwards as you. They shouldn¡¯t have been able to tell this thing to do jack shit. Cal pocketed a couple of the metal spheres. I don¡¯t plan on using these things for their intended purpose. Are any of them hazardous, explosive, poisonous? The Engine¡¯s core is highly radioactive, but nobody wins with radioactive. At least nobody with a fleshy meat-body. What¡¯s radioactive? Cal asked. Think of it like a poison kills you real slowly that lingers for generations. Not exactly what you¡¯re looking for. Is there anything useful on this thing? It¡¯s all useful. Just not to you. What about these sacks of liquid here? Cal thought, pointing to a clear pouch half the size of his fist full of black stuff. That¡¯s not Bent, right? Hell no, that¡¯s nannites. If you drank those, they¡¯d treat you like a damaged unit, in essence, try to turn you into a HK-600. That sounds cool, but they¡¯d fail by a landslide, and you wouldn¡¯t survive the process either. Fine, Cal thought, standing with his razor sharp single-bladed, hooked shortsword in hand. I don¡¯t have any more time to screw around. The siege towers were already half-way to the wall. They only had a few minutes until they were unfolding their bridges. Maybe five minutes, maybe seven. Cal kicked a wide-eyed corpse out of the corner of the parapet, and took its spot, getting parallel to the wall and pressing himself in as snugly as he could so he didn¡¯t block any foot traffic. Playing possum? A better bet would be to- Shut up a minute. Eye of the Tiger Shadow Boxing. If shadow boxing is a quarter speed, and Eye of the tiger boosts by 50%, then both together means the learning rate is 37.5%. Not too shabby. The scenery in front of Calvin warped, but not much. He was suddenly standing on the wall yesterday, overlooking yesterday¡¯s troops marching up to the wall. Call took a deep breath. Calvinian Summoning. Rather than drain Bent, the skill simply triggered and sent wasps out into the enemy, just like it had before. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­. About two minutes in, when Cal hade simulated casting the spell for roughly the hundred and fiftieth time, it leveled. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 5! level 5: 125 pound limit, 25 minutes. 0 slots available. +1 Will Nice hustle, kid. Please Choose an Ability or Mutation. Abilities: Variety is the spice of Death : 2 extra slots, +1 extra slot every 5th level, rather than 10th Atom Ant: Sacrifice Mass of summon for increase to physical attributes of summon. 1 to 1 ratio. 1 summon''s worth of mass lost empowers 1 summon with double physical attributes. (Max multiplicative power equal to Calvinian Summoning Level) Bad Penny: Summons absorb Warp from the atmosphere and may use it to split, creating more summons, up to the original limit of summons. This is typically used to maintain a healthy swarm against attrition, or regrow one from a single survivor. Chimera: The user may rearrange parts from any slotted creature onto any other slotted creature in any combination.(New slot every 10th level) Mutations: Heart of the Swarm: Your mass may be added to the effect of Calvinian Summoning. You disintegrate into the summoning, controlling the swarm from inside. If the spell expires, or the mass of living summons drops to your mass, you immediately recombine at the center of mass of the remaining summons. The Mutation was powerful and interesting, but Calvin didn¡¯t want to pass out for an undetermined amount of time. He needed something that could help him weather the attack just a couple minutes out. Calvin could, at the edge of his perception, hear the stomping of feet and clattering of arrows bouncing off the stone parapets. They were within bowshot now. Variety and Chimera were also interesting, and complemented each other, but Calvin didn¡¯t have anything to add to them right now. There were only two things that could help him in the immediate moment: Atom Ant, and Bad Penny. Atom ant was appealing, in that Cal could make a handful of wasps the size of rodents with lethal poison and bite strength that could shear through steel, but he could only make a few of them, and their normal poison was already plenty debilitating. Bad penny though¡­there was plenty of Warp in the air, and if he spread them out evenly across the battlefield, they could be a long-term hindrance, replicating any losses they took. I wish the damn thing had said how quickly the creatures would replicate themselves. There was every possibility that the rate of regeneration was so slow as to be useless. I hate it when the guide doesn¡¯t give hard data, but you¡¯re the first person to make the Ability, so the System knows as much as you do. Fine. I choose Bad Penny. At this point any regeneration was better than none. If the rate of reproduction was good, it would be an incredible asset. Cal¡¯s senses buzzed for a moment as his Skill changed, then he went right back to what he had been doing. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian Summoning¡­ Over and over again, Calvin simulated casting the spell without pause, an endless swarm erupting from his palms in his personal training scenario as the number of casts climbed into the hundreds. The explosive noise of a bridge slamming down onto the wall tore Calvin¡¯s eyes open. Damn, I was hoping to make level six. Calvin lifted his head up and surveyed the situation, looking out for anyone that might try to pick him off. The Gadveran wall was woefully undermanned, its people spread thin, only able to assemble enough to create a paltry double line of bodies at the end of each of the siege towers¡¯ bridges. One bridge was down already, unleashing a flood of Ilethan soldiers, who immediately unleashed all their Bent on attacking Abilities, forcing the defenders to exhaust their Bent simply to not be cut down like wheat. The second wave out of that gate would, without a doubt, tear through the Gadveran line. Eye of the Tiger. Calvinian summoning. 6/11 Bent Remaining. Calvin held up his palm and created a host of wasps, each weighing a quarter of a pound, with several hundred wasps worth of venom in each of their two inch long stingers. Each of the insects was about the size of his fist, making five hundred of the vicious monsters in a fraction of a second. Spread out. Kill all the blue ones. Cal gave them a mental nudge, but the Wasps hesitated, unsure of the color purple. Kill all in there. Cal thought, giving the location and impression of the inside of the siege towers. Cal spread them out very fine over the battlefield, making sure that there was no way someone or something could get all of them at once again. How the hell did Andra do that, anyway? Calvinian Summoning has reached level 6! level 6: 216 pound limit, 36 minutes. 0 slots available. There we go. Using it in a novel, considered way rather than as fast as I can will always provide more significant advances in skill. Plus it didn¡¯t have the ? penalty. Cal rubbed his palms together and pushed himself to his feet, picking up the blade lying next to him. Let¡¯s do this. ***Nadia*** ¡°What¡¯s the hold-up?¡± Princess Nadia of Iletha demanded, her maidservant cowering behind her, face in the dirt as Nadia glared down the commander of the assault. It was an understandable reaction to the arrows buzzing through the air around them. Nadia knew that their bodyguards would remove any arrow that threatened to harm them, but she was still irritated that her cowardly servant sought to use her as a human shield. I¡¯ll punish her tonight. The cretin¡¯s eyes wandered down the princess¡¯s form-fitting blue and black armor before snapping back up to her face, apparently unconcerned by the fact that she¡¯d seen him ogling her. ¡°They¡¯ve got a wizard, and he¡¯s hiding. Dug in like a Belaga wurm. It¡¯s making progress difficult.¡± ¡°How are you solving the problem? Your one job as general, is to solve problems! Not shrug and say it can¡¯t be helped!¡± ¡°The problem is these,¡± Grant said, reaching one meaty hand into his pocket and picking out an enormous wasp that had it¡¯s wings plucked from it¡¯s body. The torso squirmed and tried to shove a stinger dripping with venom into the man¡¯s hand. He pinched the stinger down with a practiced hand. ¡°By all that¡¯s sacred!¡± Nadia said, shouted, her cowering handmaiden flinching away from the enormous wasp. ¡°What the hell is that?¡± ¡°The Spotters aren¡¯t sure. Sometimes they tell me it feels like Genosian magic. There were definitely Genosian spells preformed on that wall, but sometimes they tell me it feels like Gadveran magic. ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡± Grant glanced over to his subordinate. ¡°Genosian magic feels like picking meat from your teeth, while Gadveran magic feels like iron in the sinuses.¡± The lean man said quietly. ¡°There you have it.¡± Nadia¡¯s eyebrows rose for a moment before she dismissed the Spotter. The fools were prone to instability. ¡°So what do you think it is? Are they hiring the Genosians to work against us? Some kind of secret weapon? New technique?¡± ¡°Won¡¯t know for sure until we ask them,¡± Grant said, shrugging his shoulders. ¡°Well, what are you waiting for?¡± Nadia demanded. ¡°Every moment you sit around counting your pubes, they are sending for reinforcements. The plan was to take the wall before they know what hit them, so make it happen. ¡°The wasps are slowing us down.¡± Grant said, looking up at the towers above them. every now and then a hapless soldier was shoved off the bridge, tumbling to the ground. ¡°A lot.¡± ¡°Are you really going to tell the princess of Iletha that you¡¯re being beaten by insects?¡± Grant held up his other hand and Nadia¡¯s Handmaiden flinched back in revulsion again. The arm was swollen until it was nearly immobile, his fingers were dark and the skin was tight like disgusting sausages. ¡°One sting.¡± He said cheerfully. ¡°Then don¡¯t get stung, idiot!¡± ¡°Every form of armor has a bit of skin showing, and these little buggers are making us waste Men and Bent to get rid of the them, which is exactly what that bastard wants. Somehow he¡¯s keeping a healthy supply of them no matter how many we kill. I suspect he¡¯s got some kind of gimmick.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want excuses!¡± Nadia shouted, making the Spotter reel back on his heels. ¡°I want solutions!¡± ¡°Well, I might have one, but it would require some assistance from your highness.¡± ¡°Begging me to do your job for you? Or did you just want the smug satisfaction of giving me commands?¡± ¡°Merely a request, your highness,¡± the towering general said with a shrug. ¡°But the one ultimately responsible for the success of this campaign is not me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have you know ¨C eek!¡± Nadia felt the tiniest tremble in the thick Warp around them, and the wasp in Grant¡¯s hand split, with a second peeling out of the first with no discernable loss. The new wasp oriented itself, then buzzed angrily toward the first thing it saw: Nadia. She reflexively threw her hands up, flinching away from the approaching wasp. Dear gods, not the face! When Nadia peered through her eyes again, she saw Grant¡¯s fist in front of her, leaking a green ooze between his fingers. ¡°My apologies,¡± he said, ¡°for bringing the faint of heart to a battlefield.¡± Nadia¡¯s anger burned white hot for a moment before she smothered it. At some point she knew she would have to become involved. ¡°What was your request?¡± ¡°According to the sorcerers, these wasps have very weak Mind attributes, and whatever hold the Wizard has on them is tenuous at best. Unfortunately there are far too many for our sorcerers to control efficiently, even a dozen at a time. If your highness were to lay a weak Royal Order on the entire battlefield, you could likely steal control of the entire swarm at once, and deal an amount of damage that they would be unable to recover from in a matter of seconds. The defender would most likely dismiss them soon after, but the tide would shift. Let these insects work in our favor.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do you one better,¡± Nadia said, holding up a single hand, carefully isolating the area of her spell to the North Wall. It wouldn¡¯t do to let the destruction spill into the city she was going to rule. Berserk. 25/31 Bent Remaining. A red light bloomed along the wall, and the clanging of steel intensified, joined by inhuman screams of bloodlust as the defenders, wasps, and attackers, all turned on each other with a level of violence that beggared belief. ¡°Mop up the remains with some fresh troops,¡± Nadia said sweetly, turning back toward the camp, followed closely by her bodyguards, and handmaiden. Grant watched her leave with a simmering scowl. Calvin Gadsint Body: 6 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 6 Endurance: 6 Mind: 20 Intuition: 10 Stability: 11 Will: 19 Bent: 2/11 Skills: Stealth 6 Talking to Girls 7 Acting 7 Read Expressions 6 Sense-Grafting 8 Knife-Work 5 Dupdomancy 12 Hunting 5 Meditation 10 Chained Spirit 2 Calvinian Summoning 6 Fishing 3 Genosian Language 4 Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 2/30 Chapter 40: You Jinxed It 2/11 Bent remaining. By the gods, I¡¯m actually doing it, Cal thought, overlooking the dozen siege towers and their thousands of men that had been brought to a standstill. We just might make it. In another ten minutes or so, they could expect the runners to get back with reinforcements, and everyone currently on the wall could drag themselves to their bunks and sleep for a week. You totally jinxed it. There¡¯s no such thing, Calvin thought, once again, reminding his wasps to only sting the blue men in the tall caves. As time went by Calvin was getting more and more appreciative of minions who could think and adapt on their own rather than requiring constant control. Maybe I could- ¡°Damn good work,¡± the aging sergeant said, clapping Cal on the shoulder. ¡°We¡¯re looking at another problem, though.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Cal asked, glancing over. ¡°All these boys are holding off a Break, me included.¡± He pointed at a young man snoozing tucked up against the parapet. ¡°Some more successfully than others, I might add.¡± ¡°Yeah, I feel it,¡± Cal said, noting the pressure behind his eyes. It wasn¡¯t quite enough for him, he didn¡¯t think, but the other survivors would definitely come away from today stronger than they were before. Cal looked down at the city and relief flooded his veins as he spotted a thick formation of Gadveran soldiers running down the main street to make it to the wall on time. They were just coming into view, so they had maybe seven minutes left to go until they were relieved. ¡°Just tell them to hold on another-¡° Calvin glanced back to the sergeant and saw that the man¡¯s face was a mask of rage as he sank a wickedly sharp knife through Cal¡¯s armor and into his stomach. The sensation of steel sliding through his meat raised every hair on Cal¡¯s body, followed an instant later by a staggering amount of pain. Calvin felt something, like the sensation just before you caught a cold, a tickling in the back of his throat that moved down to his stomach. An instant later, it caught fire, and his vision narrowed to the snarling sergeant in front of him. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 35 seconds. Hang in there, kid. Cal ignored the meaningless words, and let out a howl of rage as he punched the sergeant in the face, causing the man to stagger away from him, clutching his bleeding nose. Calvin reached into his pocket and gripped the inch-wide ball bearing. Sense-Grafting. 1/11 Bent With a thought, he moved his sense of touch and pain to the extremely tough ball, going blissfully numb. Sense-Grafting has reached level 9! Sense Grafting Level 9: Sight, hearing, touch, pain, smell, Taste, Balance. Self-only, 81ft range, 45 minutes. Splitting. 0/11 Bent remaining. Cal, with his grip still on the large ball bearing, used Splitting and Shaping to create a war-pick. Cal caught the silvery weapon with his free hand, and while the sergeant was pulling his hands away from his face, Calvin introduced him to the hammer¡¯s spike. In the strangest sensation Calvin had ever experienced, he felt himself propel himself through the bastard¡¯s brains. It was so unexpected that he let out a chuckle as he moved on to the next. Calvin¡¯s sense of touch was on the pick spawned from the marble. Interesting. The wall was in complete chaos, men fighting the closest person to themselves, while the wasps were swarming everywhere, biting and stinging Gadverans, Ilethans, each other, anyone who deserved it, and truly, they all did. It would be rude not to join the melee, so Calvin caught another Gadveran in the back of the head, savoring the sensation of putting himself through someone. I could get used to this, he thought as the man¡¯s opponent locked eyes with him, charging forward with a snarl. Calvin lunged forward to meet him, slamming his foot down on the other man¡¯s and pinning it in place. Calvin leaned out of the way and the Ilethan floundered with a comical expression as he toppled to the ground. Cal raised his pick up. ¡°Wai-¡° Calvin swung it down, penetrating the man¡¯s heart and lungs through the back of his ribcage, enjoying the squishy sensation the man¡¯s organs made across his skin, especially his groin. Calvin resisted the urge to spike-fuck the squirming corpse, and instead searched for more potential warm homes for his phallic weapon, the exhultation of victory running through him in shivers. I wonder if this is what fucking is like. Maybe I could use sense-grafting to be a little more specific with which areas have their sense of touch grafte- Between one blink, Cal was a homicidal killing machine who equated penetrating people with his weapon to literally fucking them, and then all of a sudden, he wasn¡¯t. ¡°What the-¡° Will has reduced the Foreign Bent to below critical levels. Welcome Back. Cal glanced at the three men he¡¯d killed in a handful of seconds. Cal¡¯s stomach wanted to flip and cover the stone with bile, but he didn¡¯t have the luxury. Another battle-crazed Gadveran emerged from the frantic melee, dragging a wounded leg behind him and fixing Calvin with a wide-eyed stare as he lunged forward. ¡°Taste me!¡± He shouted, wiping his slender sword with the blood oozing from his wound before lunging at Calvin. Despite his disgust and horror at the slaughter going on around him, Calvin¡¯s training kicked in, leaving his mind free to be repulsed while his body moved forward into the man¡¯s space. He let the blade slide against the handle of his pick, pressing forward to trap the sword between the two of them, then choked his grip on the pick and slammed the hammer back down on the man¡¯s unwounded leg. The horrifying sensation of cracking the man¡¯s bones against himself resounded through his entire body, sending shivers of revulsion through him. The Gadveran let out a pained wail as Calvin shoved him back into the dense melee, where he bumped into two Ilethans locked in a struggle to the death. They turned and slaughtered the crippled man in seconds before returning to each other. Calvin caught a second to assess the battle, scanning the chaos. This can¡¯t be natural. He now recalled seeing the System Message through the haze of bloodlust, and realized it had been a spell, like the Genosian paralysis spell. That meant someone was responsible for it. Cal walked over to the parapet, and nearly fell as his left leg was far weaker than he expected. He glanced down and spotted the gash in his left stomach, still oozing blood. His legs were fine, but Karen had told him that a wound to his core would always reduce his overall strength, since so many other things relied on it. Cal compensated, limping to the parapet and looking over the edge. He scanned the army below, his heart sinking as he spotted the rows upon rows of unaffected Ilethans charging up the siege towers. Cal glanced over his shoulder, and saw that only a fraction of the original defenders remained, and they were too busy killing each other to create any kind of formation. Cal looked back down at the Ilethan army, scanning for his target as quickly as he could. There, in the middle of the field, was a woman wearing a flamboyant suit of armor that was designed more to accent her figure than to protect it. She was walking away, a single dark dot in the middle of the flood of Ilethans. That¡¯s the one I need to kill. Cal glanced up, and his ears picked up rumbling halfway up the siege towers as thousands of perfectly fresh Ilethans clomped their way to the frontline. Well, we¡¯re fucked, better- Cal¡¯s thoughts were cut off by a harsh buzzing as a wasp landed on him and presumably stung him on the back of the neck. He swatted it away as quickly as it came. Cal couldn¡¯t feel the sting, but he started to feel a sensation of pressure. He immediately dismissed all of the berserk insects, and the odd sensation in the back of his neck stopped building as the poison ceased to exist. So the wall is screwed, and If I don¡¯t get out of here right now, then Ella will die, and that¡¯ll ruin my day. Sure wish I could summon something that was smart enough to carry me out of here on its own, Cal thought with irritation. Not that I have any Bent left. Cal started limping back to where he¡¯d left the Genosian tucked against the wall, and tried to hoist her up. On a good day, Calvin would be able to just barely lift the heavy girl over his shoulder, but in his current condition, all he could manage was dragging her unconscious body by the foot. The rumbling tone from the siege towers changed in pitch as the stomping feet got closer and closer to the top. Gotta go, gotta go¡­ Cal thought, straining to haul the Genosian across the battle-damaged wall as fast as he could. His guts twisted in impotent anger as he spotted the recruit snoozing up against the wall, mid-Break, and the handful of Genosians killing each other even as the Ilethans began to pour out of the siege towers again. Hopefully they just take him prisoner. Cal glanced toward the staircase, and realized he wasn¡¯t going to make it before the Ilethans got to him. Damn, Cal¡¯s heart pounded frantically as he considered tossing Ella over the side of the wall. Unfortunately there were no roofs below them, only the main street, where the Gadveran army was sprinting toward the stairs. They¡¯re not gonna make it. Cal had an idea as he watched the Ilethans slaughter the remaining Gadverans and turn their gaze on him, a wounded soldier dragging another away. Didn¡¯t wanna do this, but better odds than tossing her off a roof. ¡°Wake up!¡± Cal shouted, slapping Ella¡¯s face, hard. They started sprinting toward him, weapons held high. ¡°Wake up!¡± he repeated himself, doing it again. Ella gasped, her eyes snapping open and focusing on him, her brows furrowing in indignation. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re-¡° ¡°Bent,¡± Cal demanded, putting his palm out. ¡°Okay,¡± she said, putting her hand in his reflexively. Cal drained a point of Bent from her with all the speed he could muster, Causing Ella to cry out in pain from the rough treatment. 1/11 Bent remaining. Calvin released Ella¡¯s hand, his own shooting down to his belt and grabbing the ooze-weaver Slime component. All the towers were to the north, which meant if he could make the wall impassable, it would prevent them from making it to Calvin¡¯s stairs. There was another set of stairs on the north-side, but there was nothing he could do about that now. Wasps might slow them down, but oozeweaver slime would bring them to a dead halt. Shaping. Cal focused on making the resulting pressurized slime cylindrical. A long tube of compressed slime appeared above the Ilethan¡¯s heads before spreading out, coating a hundred feet of the five-foot wide wall with the unbelievably slimy material. The sprinting ilethans fell as one, while dozens were pushed off the walls by their peers, creating a veritable rain of bodies falling to the cobbled streets below them, thin streams of blood erupting from their noses and mouths as their brains were dashed on the rock. Calvin stumbled backward, his limbs trembling. He felt cold, but that could just be the numbness associated with Sense-grafting. Calvin looked at his palm, and marveled at how pale it was. Nope, definitely blood loss. He felt his limbs lose the strength to stand as he settled back against the wall, the enemy floundering in the slime a dozen feet away. Calvin began to feel the pressure behind his eyes morph into a fever. He was about to Break. Not now, damnit. ¡°Ella, we need to-¡° ¡°Buy a little time,¡± She responded, climbing to her feet and picking up a nearby weapon. There were plenty scattered around the wall. ¡°That¡¯s not what I-¡° ¡°That¡¯s what you want.¡± She said, hefting the steel in her hands before picking up a shield, too. She bent down and kissed him on the lips, folding his hand over his wound and pressing it down tight. ¡°Stay alive. I would prefer my Incha Huala a bit more mature.¡± Cal scoffed. ¡°Are you kidding? I¡¯ll live to a thousand, and summon your juicy ass whenever I want some eye candy.¡± Did I just agree to eat her? Cal thought as a shiver went down his spine. ¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± she said, tweaking his nose and standing. ¡°Bastard!¡± An Ilethan launched an Air Cutter from his belly, his eyes fixed on Calvin. Ella¡¯s skin turned silver, and she held her forearm in front of Cal¡¯s face. Calvin heard a ringing sound, and when she turned her arm to stand, he saw her leather bracer had gained a long cut down the center. Ella marched over to the edge of the slime and began methodically clubbing the struggling Ilethans, taking care not to set foot in it, or get any of it off her. Cal saw an Ilethan use Charge and the Genosian simply braced her feet, rebounding the man off her shield. Unable to catch any purchase of the slime, he tumbled down to the street below. This went on for a minute, and Calvin was starting to feel like there might be a chance for them, until a hulking man shouted, bringing the fighting to a halt. He was large, with dark hair, pale eyes and skin, and he had formation of six swords hovering around him, straight and dignified like royal attendants. The Ilethans backed out of his way, and he stopped just shy of the pile of writhing ilethans coated in gunk. He snorted in disgust and lifted a foot. A sword placed itself beneath him. He repeated this with his other foot, and was suddenly airborne. He swooped forward, flying in a diagonal arc like a frisbee, until he stood facing Ella from thin air beyond the edge of the wall. Suddenly the advantage of terrain was reversed. ¡°You must be the Genosian causing us so much trouble.¡± The man said, in rumbling Genosian. ¡°Iron skin tribe?¡± ¡°I wonder,¡± Ella said, pinching her silver skin. ¡°Or is it¡­¡± His eyes focused on Calvin, narrowing in thought. ¡°You¡­Malkenrovian, you shouldn¡¯t be here. You¡¯re both out of place on this wall. If experience has taught me anything it¡¯s to look for what¡¯s out of place. You¡¯re both going to have to come with me. If you give up now, I¡¯ll bring you back to camp without hurting you first.¡± Calvin peeled his outer hand away from his gut wound and gave the big man a pale, shaky Middle Finger. ¡°I like your style kid, but you just asked for it.¡± Ella put herself between the two of them. ¡°Wait¡­there¡¯s something more going on here, isn¡¯t there? Why protect him? Why would you even be here¡­unless¡­¡± the big man muttered to himself, thumbing his chin. ¡°Boy,¡± The big man said. ¡°You¡¯ve got an Incha Huala, don¡¯t you?¡± He pointed at Ella. ¡°And you¡¯re probably the one flooding the battlefield with those damn wasps, too.¡± Ella tensed, ready for anything, but Cal¡¯s vision was started to stutter as his eyes tried to close on their own. ¡°I thought as much. Let¡¯s go have a chat.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not going anywhere.¡± A commanding voice came from the top of the stairs, where Bekvah stood, holding a red cylinder in front of him. ¡°Could¡¯ve used that¡­hours ago.¡± Cal muttered. ¡°Sorry,¡± the thin, owlish man said apologetically. ¡°Government moves slow.¡± As Cal¡¯s eyes slid shut, he heard a rush of flame moments before Ella draped herself over him, protecting his skin from the wave of scalding heat as Bekvah unleashed the potential of the tiny cylinder in his hand. **** Nadia was settling down in camp, relaxing in her rocking chair she¡¯d had shipped all the way from home, sipping tea provided by her handmaiden while she discussed the progress of the battle with the Malkenrovian lliason. The liaison was wearing the typical, poofy velvet and gold of a Malkenrovian dignitary, but she showed no sign of human emotions, like unease, or hubris. Speaking with them was all the more disconcerting for Nadia, whose expertise was getting inside the minds of others. Malkenrovians didn¡¯t have minds, and it was terrifying. She was too well trained to show it on her face, or in her actions, though. ¡°I doubted your metal beasts at first, but they¡¯ve provided quite the golden opportunity. Please tell your king that we are most appreciative.¡± The woman who was staring unblinkingly at the battle turned her head to regard Nadia. ¡°We can see everything. The One is aware.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Nadia said, nodding. ¡°Well, all the same. We most likely won¡¯t need the remaining ones, so perhaps we can renegotiate the terms of-¡° The entire top of Mujenan¡¯s wall exploded with fire, creating a shockwave that knocked those at the bottom of the wall down, and spread out to wash over Nadia. A tiny black object was ejected from the top of the wall, sailing high into the air and trailing a thick cloud of smoke as it was catapulted toward them. The Malkenrovian stared at the object impassively, while Nadia stood out of her chair, alarmed. Her handmaiden dashed for cover, causing her to roll her eyes at the girl¡¯s cowardice. The object resolved into a man¡­a rather large one. When it became apparent the man wasn¡¯t going to land on them, Nadia sat back in her rocking chair and took a sip of her spiced tea. The man hit the ground twenty feet away from them in an explosion of dirt, leaving a furrow before he began skidding along the surface, landing just in front of the table. ¡°Commander Grant,¡± Nadia said sweetly. ¡°Back so soon?¡± ¡°Reporting for sack time,¡± Grant muttered, pulling himself out of the ground and favoring heavy burns on his left arm. His two remaining swords showed signed of warping, and his other four were melted off at the hilt. He limped over to where half a dozen card-playing soldiers were now staring at the flaming wrecks of the siege towers and swiped their booze, downing it in one gulp. ¡°The Prince has entered the battlefield,¡± Grant said, staggering away. ¡°They¡¯ve got Mage¡¯s Fire, and some Malkenrovian kid¡¯s bastardized Genosian magic to make the wasp spell somehow. Debrief me tomorrow.¡± Nadia watched Grant limp to a cot and throw himself down on it, no one bothering to interrupt him. ¡°As I was saying, your assistance is most appreciated, but we feel your metal beasts could be doing more.¡± The liaison¡¯s face twitched into a mockery of a smile, as if a puppeteer had tugged up on the corners of her mouth. ¡°Perhaps we should renegotiate our deal.¡± Nadia forced an angry sneer down, her grip on her cup tightening. ¡°I don¡¯t see any need for that.¡± She said with a pleasant smile. ¡°Bring Us the Malkenrovian, and We will reward you with the rest of Our¡­beasts, to do with as you please.¡± Nadia felt her eyebrows climb. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 3/30 Chapter 41: Your Princess is in Another Castle Macronomicon Warp overflow detected¡­ Running Warp Protection System¡­ Break. Calvin winced as he allowed the medic to bandage his torso under the watchful eye of General Andra, who¡¯d returned hours ago. The bucktoothed girl kept glancing nervously at the general every couple seconds or so, clearly uncomfortable having her work supervised by the leader of the entire army. ¡°You¡¯ve got some blank spots,¡± she said, her eyes scanning the list of Calvin¡¯s Status that he¡¯d written down for her. ¡°Missing a couple Ability slots.¡± The missing Ability slots in question were Cal¡¯s mutations. Those he wanted to keep secret at all costs. Something told him that the general would be far too interested in how that came about. I did. I told you that. ¡°A lieutenant has to have some secrets, general.¡± Calvin said with a smile. ¡°Catagorically wrong. Haris.¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am?¡± the General¡¯s aide asked. He would have been tall were he not permanently stooped over. The man¡¯s neck seemed to emerge from his body at a fixed angle. ¡°Remind me to smack Calvin for insubordination when he¡¯s fully recovered.¡± ¡°¡­.fully¡­recovered. Got it, ma¡¯am.¡± He said, jotting down a quick note. ¡°I heard from Lance that you have absolutely no defensive skills. According to your deposition this is the case.¡± ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°Mmn,¡± she grunted, flipping through her list. ¡°I¡¯m ordering you to raise your Body to ten, which is the minimum for your rank, by the way, and you are to acquire a Defensive Skill before the day is over. That should help with the odds of you making it through the month.¡± She sounded like a doctor proscribing Jeeth salts for inflammation. ¡°With this?¡± Cal motioned at his stomach wound, slowly seeping through the tight bandages. He couldn¡¯t imagine himself running or doing pushups or dodging anything without forcing his guts out the massive hole in his stomach. ¡°You got lucky, the wound is clean, and you didn¡¯t take damage to any organs, the armor stopped it from going too deep or wiggling around too bad, so you can move around a little. You¡¯re not the first person to Break with a wound, either. This is something we¡¯ve dealt with many times before. I¡¯ve got a specialist on his way. He¡¯ll make sure you meet my expectations.¡± Oh, great, Calvin thought. That makes my escape even harder. Cal was still going to rescue his friend. He hadn¡¯t forgotten about that. He was out of Bent and he was sporting a hole in his stomach, and that just meant that no one expected him to make a break for it. Couldn¡¯t hurt to raise your Body a little bit first. Won¡¯t help either. Calvin couldn¡¯t exactly exercise to raise his physical abilities before nightfall. ¡°Good work, ¡®Net.¡± Andra said, nodding to the medic and leaving. ¡°Thank you ma¡¯am, Annette said, flustered, trying to bow while the roll of gause was still attached to Cal¡¯s waist. It tugged on his side, and she froze mid-bow when Cal gave a sharp hiss of pain. ¡°Just focus on what you¡¯re doing.¡± Andra said with an amused smile before redirecting her attention to Calvin. ¡°And you¡­focus on healing up.¡± Cal gave a salute. A real one this time. Andra studied him for a moment before turning and heading back out the door. ¡°What about me?¡± Ella asked from her bed. The Genosian girl was lying face-down on her military size bed, her feet hanging off the bottom. Her back was a bloody mess of bandages where it had absorbed the heat from Bekvah¡¯s attack. If she hadn¡¯t covered Calvin, there was a good chance he¡¯d be dead¡­or at least significantly less handsome. Seeing the wounds all over her body raked his heart over hot coals. She would never be the same at this rate. The scar tissue alone would make her movements stiff and most likely cause pain for the rest of her life. ¡°You got plenty of drugs,¡± Calvin joked to hide his unease. ¡°You can barely keep your eyes open.¡± ¡°True, but I never thought Gadverans¡­wouldn¡¯t have noeula.¡± ¡°Gadverans don¡¯t have anything like that.¡± Calvin hadn¡¯t quite believed that something could heal a body in seconds. There was no magic, no ability that had that kind of power. ¡°How does it look?¡± she asked, her voice carrying a slight tremor. ¡°Not good.¡± Calvin replied as tactfully as he could without lying. An idea occurred to him. It would take a long, long time for the wound to even start healing. He just needed to grab her some Noeula too when he rescued Baroke. Lemme just add going all the way back to the burned down site of the Ironskin tribe to the shopping list. The scratching of pencil on paper echoed in his mind. ¡°Ella, is there anywhere I could get you some Noelua?¡± Other than your village. Ella¡¯s eyes gained a bit of clarity, and she took in her situation before glancing at Annette meaningfully. The medic was sitting in the corner of the room, watching the two of them idly, her eyes glancing at their bandages every now and then. ¡°Could you give us some time alone?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Sure, I hope I don¡¯t have to tell you not to engage in intercourse, though. Both of your wounds are far too severe. ¡°What¡¯d she say?¡± Cal repeated the medic¡¯s warning. ¡°Tell her that I have accepted her challenge.¡± Ella said. ¡°We accept your challenge.¡± Cal said, grinning. ¡°Seriously, don¡¯t do it,¡± The medic said, giving them one last look before she left. ¡°I¡¯m¡­I¡¯m gonna be just outside, okay?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll be quiet.¡± Calvin said with a wink. ¡°Oh, dear.¡± She said, blushing as she closed the door. ¡°Alright,¡± Cal whispered once the door was closed, painfully turning to her. ¡°What did you want to tell me?¡± ¡°I can make Noeula.¡± She whispered back. ¡°Really?¡± Really? Elliot¡¯s mind-voice sounded like it was leaning closer. ¡°Bring me the pouch of black ichor from the steel monster¡¯s parts, and a Joyaga corpse.¡± Interesting¡­. Elliot began to muse in the back of Calvin¡¯s mind. Joyaga were like small versions of the Kugeya ¨C small being relative ¨C with hundreds of legs and forelimbs that carried an absolutely lethal poison. They were almost as dangerous, but much easier to trap or outrun. I saw a bunch of them strung up in the freezer, actually. Were they ingredients for the noeula? Duh. ¡°I¡¯ll get them,¡± Calvin said, nodding. It was going to be a busy night. Ella¡¯s arm whipped out to grab him as he tried to turn away, and she let out a brief cry of pain as the skin on her back shifted, cracking. In a second, she muscled the pain down. ¡°Don¡¯t tell anyone. That is knowledge that belongs to my tribe alone. Don¡¯t. Tell. Anyone.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t tell anyone. If anyone asks, I¡¯ll stab them.¡± What about me? Do I count? Ella smiled and slowly brought her hand back, careful not to shift the skin of her back quickly. Her eyes slid closed, and she fell back asleep, lulled by the powerful drugs provided by the wealthy nation. Calvin¡¯s eyes lingered on the new patches of blood where her back had craked open just now. I¡¯m going to fix that. As Calvin made that resolution, a burly man with a large sack over his shoulder entered Calvin¡¯s room. ¡°Are you¡­Calvin?¡± he asked, consulting a sheet of paper. His burlap sack clanged to the ground with the ring of steel on steel. ¡°Yessir.¡± ¡°Good, Let¡¯s get this done. There¡¯s hundreds more wounded that need my attention today, and some of them are probably going to mutate because I had to attend to you personally.¡± *** Your Body has reached 10! 14/26 Warp remaining. ¡°It¡¯s there!¡± Calvin said, dropping the weight and sighing in relief. He had no idea how bad muscle-targeted exercises could be, but true to the man¡¯s word, it hadn¡¯t aggravated his wound, and raised his Body. Half an hour of vigorously pumping iron had left Cal¡¯s biceps, triceps, and forearms feel like they were going to burst out of his skin. The trainer had been surprised that Cal¡¯s physical abilities had been maxed out, which helped Body level without accidentally spending his Warp on Strength, Endurance or Kinesthetics. ¡°Good,¡± Matt the trainer said, his bushy beard waggling as he spoke. Now I need to teach you Toughness. This should only take a couple min ¨C¡° Matt¡¯s words were cut off by a soft, princess-like knock. ¡°May I come in?¡± Kala¡¯s voice came through the door and Matt¡¯s eyebrows rose, glancing over to Calvin meaningfully. ¡°Sure,¡± Calvin said. He was wearing pants, after all. The trainer cuffed him on the crown of his head, jostling his brain and making his wound hurt. ¡°Put a shirt on, idiot, the princess ¨C¡° The door opened, and Kala walked in, heedless of Calvin¡¯s lack of shirt. He felt a small spike of ardor from her when her gaze landed on his chest. Her eyes turned to the trainer. ¡°Have you taught him Toughness yet?¡± ¡°Just about to ma¡¯am,¡± he said, bowing low. ¡°I¡¯ll take care of it, Your work is needed more urgently in the sick ward. There are dozens of men on the verge of Mutating, so you should look to them.¡± ¡°But Andra said-¡° ¡°I will take on your responsibility,¡± Kala said with dignity. ¡°I will teach him Toughness.¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± the burly, bearded man glanced back and forth between Cal and Kala hesitantly before nodding. ¡°All right.¡± He swiftly packed up his weights and threw the sack over his shoulder before heading out, shooting them one last confused glance over his shoulder before he left. Kala watched him until she was sure he was gone, then turned back to Calvin. In an instant her straight posture and perfectly smooth movements went out the window, and she slouched with a sigh. ¡°I hate lying to people.¡± She said before glancing around. ¡°Where¡¯s Ella?¡± Calvin nodded over his shoulder. Kala walked halfway around Calvin, spotting the wounded Genosian laying on her bed, drugged into a stupor. She gasped and rushed toward her. ¡°This is horrible!¡± she said, stopping herself just shy of touching the girl¡¯s wounds. ¡°Is she going to be okay?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Cal said with every ounce of conviction he could manage. ¡°But the scars¡­¡± Even Kala could see that they would be extensive. The concern was more than cosmetic. If they were bad enough, she might never be able to move normally again. ¡°She¡¯s going to be fine. I guarantee it.¡± Cal said. Kala studied Calvin¡¯s face for a moment, contemplative. ¡°I see. I look forward to being pleasantly surprised,¡± she said, lapsing back into her princess demeanor. From her gaze, he could tell that she¡¯d slipped into that behavior because she was planning something and didn¡¯t want him to know what it was. Princess Poker Face. Huh. Kala¡¯s eyebrow twitched. Calvin dismissed it quickly. Even if she were planning something, his Feel Intent didn¡¯t tell him what it was, just that she didn¡¯t harbor any ill-will. He¡¯d have to trust that whatever she sprung on him in the future was in his best interest. ¡°I came here to visit and see how you were faring,¡± she said, moving smoothly to stand in front of his bed again, peering at his slightly seeping gauze curiously. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine, according to the medics, I got one of those million dust wounds. I¡¯ll be back up and about in no time.¡± Kala heaved a gentle sigh of relief, but her gaze kept sliding back to Ella lying on her belly, her back a bloody canvass. ¡°I was going to tease the two of you about last night, threaten to erase your memories, but¡­the situation is sobering. We really are at war, and I can¡¯t do anything to help. Too valuable they say.¡± She clenched her fists in frustration. ¡°You can help, though.¡± ¡°How¡¯s that?¡± she asked, peering up at him. ¡°A moral boosting campaign based around princess hand jobs. With your sexual orientation, you could actually handle the needs of a wide variety of ¨C ack!¡± Kala grabbed a pillow and bashed it into Calvin¡¯s face, knocking him backward. He tried to arrest his fall, but his wound screamed out in pain, forcing him to reflexively relax his stomach, allowing himself to fall backward. He slammed back onto the bed, groaning in pain as his wound screamed mindlessly. That was a bit less princess-y than I was expecting. Kala jumped onto the bed and started smothering him with the pillow, her delicate wrists like iron. ¡°You. Will. Forget. Everything!¡± She shouted, her voice barely audible past the pillow that was covering his mouth and nose. Isn¡¯t this a bad situation? Cal thought, for a brief second fearing for his life as the enraged girl ground the pillow into his face. Eventually though, the pillow was retracted to reveal a heavily blushing Kala glaring down at him. ¡°I mean, maybe we could narrow the scope of that campaign to just me and Ella ¨C mmfff!¡± The pillow was pressed over his face again, until he worried for his safety. Just when he was starting to feel lightheaded, she pulled the pillow away. ¡°Are you gonna keep talking about it?¡± she demanded, her soft dusky skin almost as red as a cherry. ¡°As long as it gets a reaction from you.¡± Cal said with a shrug. She pursed her lips in consideration. ¡°I see. I didn¡¯t want to kill you in front of Ella, but you¡¯ve forced my hand. She¡¯s the second person I¡¯ve ever been able to go shopping with without them trying to marry their son to me, or invite me to some political social event. She¡¯ll forgive me in time, I¡¯m sure.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s the first?¡± Calvin asked, frowing. ¡°Your sister.¡± ¡°Ouch.¡± Kala glanced over her shoulder to the door, where people could walk in at any time to see the princess of their country smothering a wounded man. Kala climbed off the bed and helped Calvin to sit up. She glanced around to make sure no one was there. ¡°You are the most distracting boy I¡¯ve ever met. I came here to teach you a defensive skill. If anybody asks, it¡¯s Dodge, okay? Calvin nodded. ¡°It¡¯s called Beli Ma,¡± she said conspiratorily. ¡°Belly mom?¡± Kala glared at him. ¡°Shutting up.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a Skill that¡¯s been passed down among nobility for generations, based on redirecting force. It¡¯s superior to Dodge. You can get dodge by people throwing things at you. This is way better. More suited to someone like you, who doesn¡¯t like wearing heavy armor.¡± ¡°Cool.¡± ¡°Just be quiet while I tell you how to use it.¡± she said, rolling her eyes. She stepped away from the bed and made an unprincess-like stance, her legs spread wide and her body crouched low to the earth. ¡°Watch my whole body,¡± she said. She began preforming a slow dance, moving sinuously from stance to stance. Cal couldn¡¯t see anything at first, but he eventually noticed the light around her seemed to be shimmering. ¡°That¡¯s¡­what is that?¡± ¡°Try to copy my movements. As you do, imagine the Bent moving into your hands to allow you to redirect blows around you, causing them to miss.¡± Does this ability use one Bent to counter one attack? That doesn¡¯t seem better than Dodge¡­at all. Cal continued to follow her movements, finding himself deciphering them, rapidly understanding their function, as the Warp lent him an afternoon of prodigy-level improvement. Once he had the arm movements ¨C he couldn¡¯t walk very well ¨C She began to slowly practice with him making slow punches toward him that he slowly deflected with Bent-laden palms. You have manifested Beli Ma! An ancient defensive art that was adapted to Bent use in the late Harbinger Era from an even more ancient defensive art. The Skill Allows a user to consciously warp the trajectory of any attack. At higher levels, it transitions to an unconscious aura. ^I¡¯ve seen this one before! -Elliot Beli Ma has reached Level 1! Beli Ma level 1: Redirect force. 5% correction. 13/26 Warp remaining. Kala waited patiently as he looked the skill over. ¡°Does it take Bent?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°No.¡± Kala said, shaking her head. ¡°It circulates it inside of you, so it never leaves your body, even when it redirects attacks beyond your reach.¡± ¡°How does that work?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°The entire concept of the art is based on circles,¡± She said, motioning. ¡°The Bent leaves your body, deflects the attack, then goes back to your body, in a circle.¡± ¡°What if you¡¯re empty?¡± Cal asked. ¡°I suggest not being empty, but if you¡¯re out, the Skill can still be used, just less effective than it might otherwise be.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Cal said, nodding. Only four Skill slots left, he thought, slightly miffed. Never thought I¡¯d get so little magics. ¡°You look disappointed about the secret technique I just taught you.¡± She said, her voice flat. ¡°Just thought I¡¯d get more spells than this.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve done far more than anyone ever expected you to.¡± Kala said, patting Calvin on the back. ¡° If it makes you feel any better, Andra told my father that you¡¯re highly dangerous and hiding several unknown abilities.¡± ¡°She really things I¡¯m dangerous?¡± Cal asked, hope creeping back into his voice. Yeah, it doesn¡¯t matter so much how many spells I have, it¡¯s about how much I can do with them, and how that¡¯s perceived by my enemies. That reminds me, I need to put more time into raising Sense-Grafting. ¡°Thanks Kala!¡± Cal gave the princess a hug. She stiffened against him for a moment before relaxing, her body softening against him, her arms folding around his back. After a moment, they let go, and Cal found his face inches away from hers. Everywhere their skin touched was tingling, jumpstarting his heart. The pain of his wound faded away as he looked into Kala¡¯s deep brown eyes. Calvin could feel the desire radiating from her like heat from a bonfire. ¡°You know,¡± Kala said hesitantly, ¡°I could ¨C¡° ¡°Ride him like an ornery Guar.¡± Ella groaned from her bed, watching them with an eye twinkling with mischief. Kala panicked and shoved him away from her, going over to check on Ella. ¡°Ow,¡± Cal said, staring up at the ceiling, his wound aching from the shove. ¡°Are you all right?¡± Kala asked, kneeling beside Ella. ¡°Of course. I was just thinking how uselessly soft Gadveran sheets are, when I got the opportunity to spend a few weeks face-to-face with them.¡± Ella¡¯s voice was soft as her eyes began to slide closed again. ¡°See if my tone changes.¡± Calvin rolled onto his side and carefully used his back muscles to get himself upright before grabbing his shirt and trying to put it on. Trying being the operative word, as his wound prevented him from moving the way he wanted to. He eventually got his arms into the shirt, but raising them over his head was painful. ¡°Here,¡± he heard Kala¡¯s voice through the shirt, and felt her tug it down until his head popped out. ¡°Much appreciated,¡± Calvin said, grabbing his temporary cane. ¡°I¡¯m going to go see your uncle. Did you want to come?¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ll actually stay and look after Ella for a while.¡± Kala said politely. Calvin nodded and left the room. ***Kala*** Kala watched Calvin leave the room before sitting on the bed across from the Genosian savage, who watched her with a knowing grin. ¡°What exactly is your relationship with Calvin?¡± She asked, trying not to let her eyes wander to the Genosian¡¯s generous breasts squished up beneath her chest. They were practically spilling out from beneath her. And the muscles of her long arms¡­Mmm Kala¡¯s eyes snapped back up, her spine straightened. This person is wounded. You are a princess. Maintain decorum. ¡°Wondering if there¡¯s room for you?¡± Ella asked. ¡°I didn¡¯t say that.¡± Kala retorted, wincing at how close to the mark Ella had come. ¡°I don¡¯t¡­I can¡¯t¡­¡± Kala came short of words for a time. ¡°A princess can¡¯t be seen to be engaging in a..relationship like that. I have to project an image of virtue and reserve myself for my wedding.¡± She explained that she held an important responsibility should her father ever need to secure an alliance with another country. The current state of the war made that almost inevitable. She would be shipped overseas where she would be married to a stranger and spend the rest of her life subtly shifting her husband¡¯s decisions to favor Gadvera. That was her duty. ¡°Wow,¡± Ella said, her eyes widening. ¡°Sucks to be you.¡± Kala felt the stormclouds behind her eyes as she felt her childhood friend slip farther away behind a wall of propriety. She swallowed it back. ¡°What¡¯s¡­What¡¯s it like?¡± At least she could experience some kind of vicarious closeness from Ella until she was sent away. Even if it was painful. ¡°What¡¯s what like?¡± The saw-toothed woman asked curiously, forcing Kala to spell it out. Is she doing that on purpose or does she genuinely not know? Her limited Gadveran makes these talks difficult. ¡°Being¡­together with him.¡± Ella¡¯s brows rose and a hint of a smile formed on the half of her face that wasn¡¯t mashed against a pillow. ¡°Wow, you¡¯re more of a keyoia than I thought.¡± Kala leaned forward and began to deny it vehemently. She didn¡¯t know what a keyoia was, but it was probably not great. ¡°That¡¯s not what-¡± Ella grunted in pain as she reached out with her long arms and pinched Kala¡¯s nose, making her lose her words. ¡°We haven¡¯t done anything yet, little princess, but if it¡¯s your duty to marry someone who can provide aid to your country, wouldn¡¯t it behoove you to arrange for Calvin to be such a person?¡± Kala¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°I never tought ob dat.¡± She said, the Genosian still pinching her nose. ***Calvin*** Your Mind has reached 24! 1/26 Warp remaining. ¡°Thank you. I don¡¯t know how I can repay you for this.¡± Calvin said, handing the gold-lined puzzle book back to Bekvah. The spectacled wizard lay in a lavish bed, with an aged doctor taking care of him. The prince¡¯s thin frame was covered in gauze where he¡¯d taken a deep wound in his chest and lost his right hand. Calvin had been fooling himself, thinking he was a high value target. Shortly after the prince had arrived, he¡¯d been set upon by the entire Ilethan army, who had furiously tried to see him put in a grave. ¡°Happy to help.¡± Bekvah said with a smile as he reclined against the silk-covered pillows. His hawkish nose carried indents where his spectacles should have rested, his glasses rested on the desk beside him. The grey-haired doctor was tending Bekvah¡¯s wound with such care and precision that there could only be a Skill at play. He glanced at the doctor and gave him a nod. The elderly woman understood his meaning and left the room, silently closing the door behind her. ¡°C¡¯mere.¡± He said, motioning Calvin closer with his uninjured hand. Confused, Calvin stepped closer. ¡°I never married, never really had an interest in it, but I love Kala like a daughter.¡± He said, meeting Calvin¡¯s eyes. Calvin could feel sadness and determination in his gaze. ¡°I want you to make sure she never gets taken by the Ilethans. They have spells that can wear down a person¡¯s identity and twist them into something else. If she gets captured, they¡¯ll change her into someone you won¡¯t recognize. Don¡¯t let them take her. under any circumstances. That¡¯s how you can repay me.¡± ¡°You want me to kill her?¡± Calvin asked, confused. Bekvah reached out to cuff him, and Calvin leaned out of the way. He avoided it, but the strike still hit the top of his head, somehow, sending a lancing pain through his skull. ¡°Absolutely not, boy. Just keep her out of their hands if there¡¯s absolutely any way you can do that, Understood?¡± ¡°Yessir,¡± Calvin said, rubbing the top of his head. ¡°Good. I¡¯ve got something for you.¡± He pointed to the far wall where a plain wooden box sat on the cabinet. Calvin opened the box, and saw nine steel vials, identical to his Slime vial, including the red Fireball. ¡°Those belonged to you originally anyway.¡± He said with a thin smile on his pale lips. Calvin leaned in closer, and spotted tiny script etched into the vials, along with unique colors and textures Steam. It had a matte surface with grey coloring Void. shiny and black. Web. White spiderwebs were painstakingly drawn across the surface, so he could feel them with his fingers. Lightning. Electric blue with raised jagged bolts drawn on it. Flash. A sun was depicted on the side, a brilliant ball of light. Miasma. Dark green with stylized vapors drawn on it. Cannon. It was orange and black with a raised picture of a cannon on it. It had a raised arrow pointing the direction it was meant to be faced. Poison. Purple with a raised white skull. Calvin carefully slipped them into the sleeves built into his belt, right beside his metal marble. He knew they weren¡¯t particularly dangerous, in and of themselves¡­except maybe the poison. The danger they represented in his own hands was what gave him pause. ¡°Use them wisely.¡± Bekvah said. ¡°Andra didn¡¯t think a teenager should have access to those, but lucky for you, I outrank her.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Calvin said, giving his first honest salute to the wounded wizard. ¡°No, thank you for lending them to me,¡± Bekvah said. Cal said his goodbyes, then walked out of Bakvah¡¯s room, using the cane to avoid aggravating the muscles around his wound. It was precarious, but he managed to get it done. He limped out of the palace to where the metal monster¡¯s parts had been shoved off the side of the wall in the haste to clear space, taking the sack of black fluid before turning toward the red light district. Gotta make sure not to put too much emotion into it, or else I¡¯ll get a Walking With Canes Skill. Cal was passing by the barracks on the way to his second meeting with Perthea, when a commotion from the Barracks caught his attention. ¡°Wake up, Steva! Wake up!¡± ¡°He¡¯s already started, hold him down!¡± ¡°Mutation!¡± The cries of young men and women turned Calvin¡¯s feet ¨C and cane ¨C toward the barracks. Calvin limped toward the sound, entering the barracks that housed the wounded infantry, and stopped short, stunned at what he saw. The young man who he¡¯d seen sleeping on the side of the parapet was lying in bed with his eyes closed, but he was not the picture of peace. Three other soldiers were crowding around him, busily trying to strap him down with knotted bedsheets. The soldier¡¯s jaw was clenched, his teeth creaking against each other as he shivered violently, nearly thrashing out of his bed. In front of Calvin¡¯s eyes, he saw the soldier¡¯s jaw elongate, pulling the rest of his face forward with it. For a breathless moment, the changes seemed almost natural, as if he was looking at a perfect blend of man and animal. Then the lower kept extending forward, while the rest stayed where it was, his teeth growing into a mangled mess of distorted canines that jutted out into the air. The man¡¯s bones began to creak and shift under his clothes, popping apart with a sound like they were relieving pressure from the rest of his body. His chest deformed around the restraints and incorporating them, flesh and sheets becoming one. The man¡¯s left arm dislocated and began to writhe around like it had a mind of it¡¯s own, slipping out from beneath the restraints and slapping against one of the people holding him down, causing her to stagger away before she leapt back on top of the man and forced the rapidly changing arm down onto the bed. ¡°I¡¯m calling it,¡± A grizzled veteran shouted, pulling out a knife and burying the blade in Steva¡¯s eye. The arm kept wiggling after the body went still. ¡°What happened?¡± Cal asked, attracting the attention of the woman, who cradled her swelling arm. ¡°Bad mutation,¡± She said, watching the corpse with a pained expression. ¡°Steva was hit in the head bad while he was on the wall. He had a Break and plenty of Warp to spend, but we couldn¡¯t wake him up. He had too much Warp. One or two points of Warp, and you¡¯ll probably still be a person, but Steva had fourteen. Just too much.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Cal nodded and left before he could attract any attention. He¡¯d been warned not to leave Warp unspent, but nothing drove it home more than seeing it in front of him. If that¡¯s what mutation is supposed to be like, what does that make me? A masterpiece. I¡¯m going to ignore that ominous statement and focus my attention on the rescue plan. Calvin limped out to meet Perthea. He entered the building they¡¯d agreed to meet in, and found the middle-aged whore entertaining a couple richly dressed women. ¡°Ah, there you are. We were thinking that perhaps you¡¯d been one of the unfortunate losses on the wall.¡± ¡°Terrible thing, that,¡± the Gadveran woman with a pinched face said. ¡°Just awful.¡± Calvin¡¯s skin crawled at the mannerisms of the women that spoke of overwhelming amounts of wealth. ¡°Perthea approached us with an offer we couldn¡¯t refuse,¡± the other woman said. she was slightly dumpy and missing a front tooth, a trait she concealed with a rich silk fan in front of her mouth. ¡°Helping the defense of the city in such a titillating way, I never would have imagined.¡± The other said, grinning as she looked Cal over with a predatory smile. ¡°And with a Malkenrovian boy. Exotic.¡± Let¡¯s get this over with, Calvin thought, mentally rolling up his sleeves. 3/11 Bent remaining. 4/11 Bent remaining. 5/11 Bent remaining. 6/11 Bent remaining. 7/11 Bent remaining. 8/11 Bent remaining. 9/11 Bent remaining. 10/11 Bent remaining. 11/11 Bent remaining. ¡°My merciful god.¡± The dumpy woman with the missing tooth said, shamelessly sprawling herself out on the couch and using her fan on herself in earnest. ¡°That was better than you said, Perthea. ¡°Agreed,¡± The other woman said, slumped forward in her chair. The smaller woman reached into her purse and handed Perthea two gold coins¡­half a glimmer for his services. Damn. Novelty Pseudo-sex sells, I guess. Perthea motioned to hand him half, but Calvin shook his head. ¡°Just spread the word. I¡¯ll need more tomorrow. If I¡¯m still alive, that is.¡± ¡°Well, thank you ladies. It¡¯s been an honor, but I must attend to other matters.¡± ¡°¡¯onor¡¯s mine,¡± The woman on the chair groaned, giving him a thumbs-up. Calvin limped out into the street. He glanced up at the wall, spotting significantly less density up there than the day before. It was only two o¡¯clock in the afternoon. Plenty of time before the sun went down. Now I just need to find a quiet place to meditate. Calvin paid a silver quarter for a room where nobody could interrupt him, then laid down and closed his eyes, arms folded over his chest. Eye of the Tiger Shadow boxing ¡­ ¡­. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 7! level 7: 343 pound limit, 49 minutes. 0 slots available. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 8! level 8: 512 pound limit, 64 minutes. 0 slots available. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 9! level 9: 729 pound limit, 81 minutes. 0 slots available. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 10! Shadow boxing will have no more effect until Meditation reaches a higher level. level 10: 1000 pound limit, 100 minutes. 1 slot available. +1 Will Please choose an Ability or Mutation. Calvin opened his eyes and peered at the light falling onto the floor through the window. He¡¯d spent maybe two hours, and used the spell tens of thousands of simulated times, bypassing years of waiting for Bent to recover, or bribing women to provide Bent for him. Even the quarter speed penalty was rendered meaningless. Calvin redirected his attention to the System Please choose an Ability or Mutation. Abilities: Variety is the spice of Death : 2 extra slots, +1 extra slot every 5th level, rather than 10th Atom Ant: Sacrifice Mass of summon for increase to physical attributes of summon. 1 to 1 ratio. 1 summon''s worth of mass lost empowers 1 summon with double physical attributes. (Max multiplicative power equal to Calvinian Summoning Level) Chimera: The user may rearrange parts from any slotted creature onto any other slotted creature in any combination.(New slot every 10th level) Mutations: Heart of the Swarm: Your mass may be added to the effect of Calvinian Summoning. You disintegrate into the summoning, controlling the swarm from inside. If the spell expires, or the mass of living summons drops to your mass, you immediately recombine at the center of mass of the remaining summons. I choose Heart of the Swarm. Cal thought. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Cal¡¯s body started itching, and he had to force his hands to the bed until sleep took him. When Calvin opened his eyes again, the sun was just starting to go down outside the inn¡¯s window. I¡¯ve got time, he thought, stretching an ache out of his back. ¡­ ¡­.. Chained Spirit has reached level 3! Chained Spirit level 3: 45 pound limit, 27 minutes. 1 slot available. Chained Spirit has reached level 4! Chained Spirit level 4: 80 pound limit, 64 minutes. 1 slot available. Chained Spirit has reached level 5! Chained Spirit level 5: 125 pound limit, 64 minutes. 1 slot available. +1 Will Please Choose an Ability or Mutation. Abilities: Continuity: The Chained spirit remembers time spent during each summon, is aware of what the user is aware of while it was unsummoned, and can learn or improve System and non-System Skills to the limit of Chained Spirit. Bent: The Chained Spirit gains a limited pool to draw from to fuel Abilities. The effects of the abilities are extentions of Chained Spirit and not actual Bent. Pool is 1/5th the level of Chained Spirit. Chained Minds: All active Chained Spirits and the user share senses and can communicate telepathically. Mutations: Siphon: Chained Spirit gains the Lady Killer mutation, any Bent drained is sent to the User. Voodoo U: Damage taken by caster is absorbed by Chained spirit instead. Consume: 1 Bent to consume a corpse on touch. Size limit mirrors Chained Spirit¡¯s. No more pesky things going moldy in the fridge while you¡¯re working through the leftovers. Cal read through them quickly, but decided to abstain. Each of them were incredibly useful, in context, but none helped him immediately, so it would be a bad idea to select one without a plan. Now, all I need to do is sneak out of the castle and rescue Baroke. No big deal. Calvin opened his eyes and slid out of bed. The sun was well and fully down, now. the perfect time to change into a swarm of wasps and fly behind enemy lines. Heart of the Swarm fixed his travelling problem, so all he really needed to do was carry Baroke, and if he was the one directly controlling the swarm, it would be easy to do so without harming him. And snag a deadly poisonous insect without exposing himself to harm so he could make a strange bubbling healing potion. Let¡¯s do this, he thought, putting his feet on the ground and flexing his toes in preparation. ¡°You¡¯re taking me with you.¡± ¡°Gah!¡± Calvin flinched, raising his hands in a defensive posture. Kala was sitting quietly in the corner, delicate hands folded over her lap. ¡°When did you get here?¡± Calvin demanded the dark-skinned princess. ¡°Two hours ago. You seemed busy, so I waited.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t take you. It¡¯ll be much easier if I go by myself¡­and how did you know I was leaving?¡± ¡°Ella felt that you were up to something stupid.¡± ¡°Damn,¡± Calvin muttered. ¡°I did something¡­uncharacteristic,¡± Kala said. ¡°You cannot refuse. Take me with you, or it will bring down such misery on your head that it will beggar belief.¡± She said, her voice sweet and gentle. What is it with the women in my life? Hold on, I got this, Elliot said, his voice growing closer. Booga booga! RAWR! Kala¡¯s fingers twitched, and her eyes narrowed. ¡°Tell your passenger that he¡¯ll have to do better than that.¡± Huh, damn. Guess you¡¯re on your own. Cal heard the sound of a chair scoot across floor as Elliot sat back down. ¡°I¡¯m coming with you.¡± She said again. In the distance, Cal heard a voice shout, barely audible. ¡°Someone¡¯s taken the Princess! Alarm! Alarm!¡± You have manifested Your Princess Is In Another Castle! 0/14 warp remaining. Your Princess is in Another Castle: Aids in the logistics of successfully kidnapping princesses. Also Boosts attractiveness to princesses and renders them more amenable to being whisked away. Your Princess is in Another Castle level 1: 5% Correction. 5th Break complete. There was a moment of silence before Calvin heard the sound of a wooden chair shattering and Elliot laughing maniacally. Bwaahahah! *** In the depth of the palace, Ella began to shiver, her features subtly shifting. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 4/30 Chapter 42: Just my type ¡°Alright, stand back, I¡¯ve never done this before.¡± Calvin and Kala were standing on a rooftop on the west side of town, after evading several guard patrols and finally getting a bit of breathing room. I still can¡¯t believe she¡¯s making me do this. Calvin shook his head with a sigh, and held his hand out. Calvinian summoning. Heart of the swarm. Give me a big one. 10/11 Bent remaining. Heart of the swarm didn¡¯t specifically forbid controlling one giant summon, did it? Calvin fell the strangest sensation as he was literally ejected from his body through his palm. He glanced down with the last of his fading vision and saw his legs being consumed by a swirl of green flames. His feet were already gone. I¡¯m not sure I¡¯m entirely comfortable with this. Calvin¡¯s sight was occluded by a whirl of green mist for a moment, then it went away, revealing something he¡¯d never imagined. The entire world had been split into thousands of pictures, each one at a slightly different angle, allowing him to see everything, in every direction. Behind him, in front of him, his back itself was visible, and it was¡­waspy So far so good. He directed his attention to his feet, which were giant claws slowly sinking into the wood of the roof. He experimentally flexed and unflexed each of his six legs. It was an odd feeling. Calvin had half-expected to be completely unable to process the new body, but it was strangely comfortable. The spell is probably leashing your control through the wasp¡¯s Kinesthetics. You can still hear me, right? I can still hear you, Calvin thought, trying and failing to roll his eyes. ¡°By the gods,¡± he heard Kala say. He was pretty sure it was Kala anyway. Her voice sounded weird and tinny through his antennae. He smelled her from the same place, too, which was even weirder. She smelled delicious. Hmmm¡­. Well, she normally smells delicious, but in a different way. He focused his attention on her, and went stock still. She was rather small. Calvin set one of his forelegs forward experimentally, and compared its length to hers. Everything Calvin was seeing lead him to believe that this particular body was much, much bigger than a guar. Course it is, Wasps need to be light, so your size compared to your mass is always gonna be high. My biggest questions are, how are you breathing right now, and can you fly? Calvin took some careful steps away from Kala and fluttered his new wings experimentally. He felt a bit of strain as the muscles fell into the well-worn pattern. The handful of flutters with the massive insectile wings sent dust scattering off the top of the roof and caused Kala¡¯s yellow dress to billow in the wind. Calvin put a tiny bit more effort into it, and felt his limbs leave the surface of the rooftop. Easier than I thought. He hovered in place, did some experimental back and forth, side to side, up and down, before he was satisfied that he had a grasp of the method of flight. Hmm¡­ energy must be derived from the spell itself, rather than oxygen. It makes sense, seeing as you¡¯re in a constructed body with a time limit, and all. The scratch of pencil on paper carried on in the corner of Calvin¡¯s mind. Would you mind diving under water and seeing if you need to breathe? Can¡¯t stay on this rooftop all day, Calvin thought, ignoring his passenger and landing in front of Kala, who was holding her clothes together against the gusts of wind. He reached out a forelimb and began scrawling in the solid wood. Can¡¯t speak. Ready? ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡± Kala said. Calvin carefully picked Kala up, carrying her in a cage of limbs as he lifted off the ground. With a little finagling, he was able to avoid poking her with his sharp claws and thorned limbs, taking off into the sky. ¡°Gods, son of an absent mother!¡± Kala princess-cursed as she was lifted straight into the air. she shifted a little bit, and his leg-thorns came into contact with her. ¡°Ow, you¡¯re poking me!¡± Wasp limbs weren¡¯t designed for friendly carries. He couldn¡¯t exactly put her down either, as they were approaching fifty feet above the ground already. Calvin was trying to adjust when Kala made it a moot point, seemingly without fear as she grabbed one of his thick forelimbs and swung herself up and over with incredible strength, avoiding his wings to land on his back, right between them. ¡°That¡¯s better,¡± She sighed, her legs clamping down around his sides, her dress crumpling up around her thighs. It was strangely comfortable. ¡°I¡¯ve got a Ride Skill!¡± She shouted over the thrumming of his wings as they continued their assent. ¡°Do your worst!¡± Well, she asked for it, Calvin thought. He watched his childhood friend from every angle, committing the panoramic view of her grin to memory. Once she got a good hold on him, Calvin took off, putting on real speed. Kala let out a shout of pure excitement as they shot forward while rising further and further up. The safest place for them right now was so high in the sky that no one could make them out against the backdrop of stars. Just a single wink. It only took half a minute to rise so high that the guardsmen searching the city for the princess were the size of ants. Then another fifteen seconds before they couldn¡¯t see them at all, just tiny glimmering lights form their torches. Once Calvin had achieved the height he¡¯d wanted, he pushed forward at full speed, his wings subtly altering their pattern with no more than a thought. ¡°It¡¯s Fff- darn cold up here, I should have worn riding leathers!¡± Kala said, shivering against the wind. ¡°And goggles!¡± Or not come at all. Not much I can do about that, he thought, keeping an eye on the ground sliding away beneath them. He was moving so fast that going all the way to the Iron Skin tribe for a bottle of Noeula might be an option with another cast or two. Assuming he could find them. Once they were sufficiently over the woods, far enough that he didn¡¯t forsee the Ilethan army hearing the hum of his approach, Calvin descended to the forest floor. As seamless as the takeoff and flying had been, the landing was an entirely different story. As a one thousand one hundred and fifty pound animal the length of two guar nose to tail, finding a place to land was a challenge. Calvin descended and put his legs down on the highest tree in the canopy, only to have the whole thing tilt wildly beneath his massive weight, careening him off to the side. Agh, crap! He thought, nearly flipping over backwards as Kala grabbed his fuzzy carapace and leaning in close, squeezing her eyes shut. His wings began to shred themselves against the treetops, and the roots of the tree he landed on started to creak out of the ground. Calvin realized that it was a good time to leave. Calvin dismissed the spell, his scattered vision returning to his typical two-eyed one as he reconstituted in the center of mass of his wasp swarm of one in a cloud of glowing green mist. Interestingly enough, the center of mass of his wasp swarm was directly between Kala¡¯s legs, and the two of them dropped out of the air, her thighs locked tight around his midsection. Cal reached out for a branch, and the wound in his abdomen sent a jolt of pain through him, causing him to miss his grip. Ah, damn, I forgot about that. An hour as an unwounded bug made him forget a few basic facts. Calvin grunted in pain as Kala caught a branch, arresting their fall some twenty feet above the forest floor. ¡°One second,¡± she said, shifting his limp body into her other arm rather than between her legs. Calvin threw an arm over her shoulder as she lowered both of them to the ground by digging her fingers and toes into the jungle tree¡¯s thick bark. ¡°Here we are.¡± Kala said, gently setting the two of them on the ground. ¡°My thanks,¡± Calvin said, picking a branch off the ground and using it as a cane. Look at it this way, now we know that your clothes don¡¯t disappear when you use Heart of the Swarm, Elliot said. That was a possibility!? Calvin thought, glancing down at his clothes and belt, still with him, thankfully. In his belt was the clear sack of black ooze. Doi. First thing¡¯s first, the Noeula. ¡°I need to look for something before we go rescue Baroke.¡± Calvin said. ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯re doing?¡± Kala asked. ¡°You didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me.¡± She shrugged. ¡°What are you looking for?¡± ¡°I could tell you, but then I¡¯d have to stab you,¡± Calvin said, holding up his hand as Kala gave him a cute scowl. Calvinian summoning. Heart of the swarm. 9/11 Bent Remaining. Calvin once again dissolved into the air, but this time his perception was much more¡­ spread out, like he¡¯d become some kind of cloud of awareness, aware of the way everything looked and smelled and tasted within an ever-expanding radius reaching thousands of feet out. He could move around inside it too¡­kind of shift where he wanted to be more present, and the swarms moved to make it so. He wasn¡¯t seeing out of the eyes of all of them at once as it was seamlessly stitched together into a seamless whole. A hundred thousand palm sized wasps went searching in every direction for the deadly insect on his shopping list, relying on their sense of sight and smell. Joyaga were more active at night, and it was common practice to hunt them during the day while they slept, but for Calvin, the night was the only shot he was going to get. That and the Joyaga wouldn¡¯t be able to resist going after a wasp or two. In no less than fifteen minutes, one of the wasps on the edge of his senses was ambushed, it¡¯s vision snuffed out with a tiny prick of pain at the edge of his consciousness. I can feel them. Interesting. Calvin directed the nearby parts of the swarm to home in on the destroyed wasp, and sure enough, a Joyaga was cleaning its poisonous forelimbs above a wasp dissolving into green goop. The giant centipede matched the ones he saw in the freezer perfectly. At Calvin¡¯s nudge, the swarm nearest it surrounded the Joyaga. The creature seemed almost affronted at being attacked, since its lethal venom usually kept other creatures at bay. After being roused into anger, it fought valiantly, killing five or ten of Calvin¡¯s large wasps by poisoning them and crushing them. It wasn¡¯t enough. In short order, the Joyaga was dead, and Calvin had their scent. The swarm dispersed and in about an hour, found six other of the many-legged creatures by narrowing in on their smell and forcing them out of hiding before piling on them and biting them to death. Calvin didn¡¯t want to mix the wasp poison into whatever Ella was planning on cooking up. About that, I have an idea what the recipe is, Elliot said. Really? I¡¯ll bet you that the Joyaga venom¡¯s molecules interacts with the Nannites in a way that makes them de-specialized. Wipes their programming. Once they¡¯ve been de-specialized, a person can drink them, and the nannites think to themselves, ¡®hey, this is the kind of body we¡¯re supposed to repair,¡¯ and then they go to work. A healing potion. Hah. So we could make it? Calvin thought, his mind turning to his stomach wound. Definitely not. There¡¯s probably a catalyst or trick that we¡¯re not aware of. A specific temperature, a certain amount of salt¡­what have you. Trying to drink it without doing that step would be a very bad idea, tantamount to drinking two poisons at the same time, rather than the Noeula. Damn. Calvin¡¯s swarm gathered around the seven Joyaga and hauled them to Kala, who was sitting on a fallen log, waiting patiently with perfect posture. Calvin took the opportunity to study her in more depth while she sat there, the curve of her neck, her delicate shoulder, her slim waist¡­ ¡°I can see you, you know,¡± She said, above the buzzing of wasps bringing their prey back, causing Calvin to direct his attention towards her face, using the wasp¡¯s eyes to study her. She met his gaze. What the hell? Calvin paid more attention to her from some of the wasps on her other side, and she shifted her gaze to look directly at him again, pinning him down with her eyes. This is weird. Pretty sure that¡¯s not normal. Calvin dumped the corpses in one spot before he created a thick circle of wasps a hundred feet wide, with the eye just beside Kala. He dismissed the spell. Calvin opened his eyes, staggered at how little he could perceive with just the two. He glanced over, and sure enough, he was standing beside Kala. That told him that if he needed to escape, he could separate his wasps into groups and head every direction, creating some excellent shenanigans. Reminds me of Dracula, except with bats and rats, it¡¯s wasps. Who¡¯s Dracula? Don¡¯t worry about it, you didn¡¯t take the other Abilities, so you should be fine¡­probably. Calvin shook off the comment and stuffed the dead Joyaga in a sack, especially careful not to touch them directly. He didn¡¯t want to end everything here from a moment of carelessness. ¡°So, how are you, the princess of Gadvera, going to help me sneak into the enemy camp?¡± Calvin asked, cinching the leather sack full of highly poisonous corpses closed. ¡°Baroke will be on the north side of the camp, in with the conscripts,¡± she said with complete certainty. ¡°In a slightly charred tent with a blue saddle beside it.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. Was she just bullshitting him, or did she know something about how Ilethan camps were put together? Even if she knew that, the details were far too specific. Kala shrugged his question off, idly popping a mushroom into her mouth. Her eyes were black as night, pupils dilated completely. ¡°I have my ways. Now go get your friend, you adorable walking abomination. I¡¯ll be just fine here, I¡¯ll catch up once my teeth have grown enough for me to walk along them without slipping.¡± Well, she¡¯s high as balls. ¡°And tell you¡­your friend he doesn¡¯t scare me anymore.¡± Kala said leaning drunkenly as she pointed at Calvin. ¡°He can¡¯t, anymore. He-he¡¯s the reason for all this, you know, you¡¯re¡­ he¡¯s a¡­sky-man that didn¡¯t play nice with the toybox, made all the other sky-men get in their glass bottles and fly away...wounded Soscath. I¡¯m just going to lay down.¡± Totally out of her gourd. We should ignore everything she says and make sure to grab some water from the Ilethan camp. She¡¯s going to need to rehydrate. Okay, Sky-man. You don¡¯t believe her inane mushroom ramblings, do you? Lemme see, Calvin thought as he carefully tucked the limp Kala in a nook beside the bag of Joyaga. Nothing would come near their smell. She can literally see you. She knows exactly where Baroke is, Alledgedly. And she can see my focus when I¡¯m dissolved into the swarm. At this point I¡¯ll give her the benefit of the doubt. Hearsay, sheer unbridled hearsay. Calvin chuckled to himself as he took off his Gadveran clothes. Part two of the plan was somewhat familiar. Once Calvin got within spitting distance of the north side of the camp, he could make out the men on watch, backlit by they fires behind them. He crouched low. One of the Guys. Calvin¡¯s body shifted, crackling and popping under his skin as his body rearranged itself. In seconds, his skin paled, his jaw and forehead shifted subtly to reflect the most common Ilthan facial features, and he gained two inches of painful height in his legs and torso. Must suck to be below average. Elliot said with a hint of smugness. I¡¯m still growing, Calvin thought, creeping forward, doing his damndest to remain silent as the watchmen stared out into the darkness he dwelt in. After a long while watching and waiting, there was a commotion off to the side, something to do with soup. Calvin walked straight through the hole in the guard, his stomach clenching as he integrated with the rest of the camp. Just another Ilethan in his underwear with a stomach wound, nothing to see here. ¡°Hey!¡± Crap. ¡°Yes?¡± Calvin said in his best Ilethan accent. ¡°Why --- you ------- ------- -------- Clothes?¡± A young man asked. the Ilethan was standing with a hand cocked on his hip, watching him curiously. Calvin didn¡¯t need to understand all the words to get what he was saying. ¡°Sergeant.¡± Calvin said. Being harassed by upper management seemed to be a universal truth. ¡°ah, - --- ----- ---¡° the man gave him a friendly smile and pointed to the west. ¡°Thank you.¡± Calvin guessed, then kept on going, until he found an empty tent with some pants inside it. He snagged the pants and put them on as quickly as he could, but left his bandaged wound highly visible. It would prevent people from asking him to do things. On the way past a mess table, he saw an empty box, unattended. He picked it up, closed it and carried it along, just a wounded courier forced to do legwork by his sadistic superior. Calvin scoured the north, the people gradually growing less Ilethan, until he found the tent he was looking for, a small white tent that seemed to have temporarily caught fire once. There was a damaged blue guar saddle in the middle of being polished in front of it, and most tellingly, giant brown feet sticking out of the bottom of the tent. She got lucky. Calvin bent low and swept the tentflap out of the way, his eyes straining in the dark to make out his friend. ¡°Baroke? Baroke, is that you?¡± A light snore was cut short with a rumbling snort and the large Gadveran sat up, his face coming into the light. It was Baroke, but there was a solid steel band around the crown of his head, and he was giving Calvin a furious glare. ¡°No,¡± he said. ¡°I don¡¯t want any more of your tricks. Just leave me be.¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to get you out,¡± Calvin whispered, beckoning. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get outta here.¡± Baroke lunged forward, leaping out of his bedroll, his massive hands clamping around Calvin¡¯s neck. ¡°You think this is funny!?¡± he demanded, throttling Calvin. ¡°It¡¯s meee.¡± Calvin croaked, undoing his mutation. His breath barely passed through his windpipe as Baroke shook him like a rag doll, his eyes brimming with tears. In a matter of seconds Calvin went back to his original look as he was shaken back and forth. Baroke stopped for a second, allowing blood to flow back to Calvin¡¯s head as he took a deep breath. ¡°No, you¡¯re not Calvin. This is another trick to get in my head!¡± He started throttling Calvin again, and they were right back to where they started. ¡°You¡¯re¡­the¡­brains¡­¡± Calvin gasped, poking Baroke. ¡°I¡¯m¡­the¡­brawn.¡± He pointed to himself with a shaking finger as he felt his eyes bulging in his skull. ¡°What in the abyss?¡± Baroke dropped Calvin in place and scuttled away from him, studying him like a poisonous snake. ¡°Abyss? Is it really you? It can¡¯t be you.¡± Baroke picked up a nearby rock, hefting it over his head. ¡°No, it can¡¯t be.¡± ¡°It¡¯s me,¡± Calvin said between coughs, holding up his hand. ¡°We beat the village record by a landslide.¡± Baroke dropped the rock before seizing calvin¡¯s shoulders and studying him. ¡°How are you still alive? How did you get here? Did they capture you too? Why did you look like a Ilethan. Wait. It must be a trick!¡± He went back for his rock. ¡°Stop trying to brain me!¡± Calvin shouted, slapping Baroke across the cheek. Of course, it nearly hurt Calvin more than his massive friend. ¡°I want to get you out of here. Let¡¯s go.¡± Baroke set his rock aside and gave Calvin an appraising stare. ¡°I can¡¯t. this,¡± he tapped the band on his skull. Calvin could make out a tiny bit of crusted blood under the iron circlet. ¡°It wont let me leave, and when Master Reilly uses it, I become a puppet. Even if you dragged me out of here, he could use me to kill you and send my ass tromping back. You get out of here if you can¡­if you really are Calvin.¡± ¡°Well shit, let¡¯s take it off, then!¡± Calvin said, reaching for the band. ¡°It won¡¯t come off!¡± Baroke said, batting Calvin¡¯s hands away from his head. ¡°Unless the control ring is turned off, The spikes don¡¯t come out.¡± Calvin leaned back, considering. ¡°Who¡¯s got the control ring? This Reilly guy?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Baroke said, nodding. ¡°He¡¯s got mine and others.¡± Idea. ¡°Baroke, you gather up everyone on Reilly¡¯s leash and pick a good spot to make a run to the east, into the forest. I¡¯m going to go cause a little chaos. Should help you escape.¡± ¡°That sounds stupid.¡± ¡°Nah, I thrive on chaos.¡± Calvin said One of the guys. Baroke stared as Calvin¡¯s guise shifted again. A bit darker skinned because he was on the conscript side of the camp, but it would have to do. ¡°What the hell are you?¡± Baroke breathed, staring at his rippling bones and muscles. I¡¯m bat man. Shaddap. ¡°Rude. I¡¯m the guy saving your ass, which means you¡¯ll owe me throughout the known universe until the end of time.¡± ¡°Well, you sound like Calvin,¡± Baroke said, getting up. ¡°I¡¯ll do it, but don¡¯t take forever.¡± Cal gave him a grin and stepped outside, limping his way back toward the main camp. ¡°Where Reilly?¡± Calvin asked the nearest guy with rank, clutching his empty box like it had all the most important secrets in the world. Acting has reached Level 8! Acting Level 8: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 40% correction. The ilethan glanced at him, raised a brow, and pointed. ¡°Nadia and ----- --- are --- --- --¡° ¡°Thank you,¡± Calvin said with a nod, continuing on his way. ***Nadia*** ¡°And I¡¯m saying that your program to use talented Gadverans just isn¡¯t paying dividends, Reilly.¡± Nadia said. ¡°Not a single confirmed kill from your entire division.¡± ¡°They¡¯ve had hundreds of confirmed kills, the greying man said with a snarl. ¡°Almost ten per man. A damn sight better than your foot soldiers.¡± ¡°Let me rephrase that.¡± Nadia said, rolling her eyes. ¡°They haven¡¯t had a single confirmed kill of anyone important, which is what I was promised. Why am I not getting what I was promised, Reilly?¡± ¡°There have only been two targets of interest thus far, milady. Give them time.¡± ¡°Give them food, more like. They are eating our soldier¡¯s food, and contributing very little.¡± Reilly clenched his ring-studded fists, covered with the control bands to dozen men. They called him the Puppeteer for a reason. Many people were afraid of the dark robed, gaunt man, but he leaned far too heavily on his toys, and was barely passable as a sorcerer. Suddenly the command tent opened, revealing a young man with a box and bandages along his stomach. Rather well-toned stomach, I might add. Nadia thought appreciatively. He looked mixed-blooded, but the hint of Gadveran added a bit of exoticness to his perfect features. Mmnn. How long¡¯s it been? I might have to command him to stick around after the old fart is gone. ¡°Reilly?¡± the young man asked. ¡°What do you want?¡± Reilly demanded, turning to face him. ¡°For you.¡± The young man held out the box, and Reilly took it, opening the wood slats to reveal¡­nothing. ¡°What is the-¡° The old man¡¯s indignant question was interrupted by a dagger plunging down into his eye. Reilly hadn¡¯t even begun to fall when the assassin¡¯s eyes turned to her. There was a tiny hint of enjoyment lurking in there somewhere that send a shiver down her spine. All thoughts of enjoying herself lost, Nadia drew her shortsword as her handmaiden ducked under the bed. She¡¯d dealt with assassins before. The assassin moved on to her smoothly despite his limp, swinging the dagger toward her core with the expressionlessness of utter concentration. He stepped inside her range in a fraction of a second, showing all the hallmarks of a highly trained fighter, preventing her from getting a full swing on him. Suddenly the two of them were face-to-face, the sadistic enjoyment lurking deep in those eyes giving her a rush of excitement. ¡°Your army?¡± he asked, his voice a whisper. ¡°Mine.¡± She snarled back. ¡°Good.¡± He made to break her nose with his forehead, a decidedly non-Ilethan move, and she slid around his strike, dragging her sword across his stomach, aiming to disembowel him, a move that had been drilled into her since childhood. He followed her blade with his own, twisted with her, staying close enough for their skin to touch, to feel his breath on her cheek, like they were dancing. Nadia could tell he was weaker than her, and he was wounded. He might be good at fighting, but he was at a tremendous disadvantage against a noblewoman with Eight Breaks. She aimed a swift punch at his wounded side, which had just been cleared by following her lead. Her fist erupted in pain, and she forgot herself for a fraction of a second to look at it. His wounded waist had literally sprouted a blade that split her fist in half. When she looked up, the man¡¯s blade was already flashing downward, that expressionlessness still hiding his delight. ¡°Wai-¡° The knife bit deep into her neck, and as she raised her hands, it pulled back out and sank into her eye. Everything went white. .. ¡­. Calvin heaved a sigh, holding his aching stomach with a groan as he limped over to the black-robed man, pulling each ring off his finger one by one and flipping the tiny metallic switches, presumably releasing Baroke and others. His veins sang with the adrenaline of victory, turning his arms and legs trembly. It was starting to get easier. Killing, that was. There was a primal exultation in complete power over the enemy that he hadn¡¯t gotten anywhere else. Hopefully sex is better. It¡¯s better. Calvin glanced back at the young woman wearing the tight Ilethan leathers that accented her femininity. He couldn¡¯t let the commander of the army get a shot off on him. She was stronger and faster than him, but a teeny bit clumsy and inexperienced in a life or death fight. I¡¯m not really, either. More than her, now. Cal finished with the man¡¯s rings and picked up his stick before heading out of the tent. Calvin held his hand out. Now to make some chaos. Calvinian Summoning. ***Nadia*** Nadia climbed out from under the bed, surveying the damage: Her Mind-Slaved handmaiden was dead, the commander of the special unit was gone, and if her ears didn¡¯t betray her, the entire camp was filled with wasps. The coldness, the brutality of that young man¡­ He¡¯s just my type! She clapped her hands together in excitement. ***Calvin*** Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 2! Your Princess is in Another Castle level 2: 10% Correction. What in the Abyss triggered that? Calvin thought as he walked unharmed through the cloud of insects, dodging flailing ilethans. You got me, man. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 5/30 Chapter 43: Promises Grant started awake to the sound of screams and the buzzing of insects, that he¡¯d recently come to associate with being on or near the wall. Horrible pain, like being stabbed, lanced through his exposed skin as a wasp stung him. ¡°Fu-¡° he rolled off the cot, the thing creaking from his enormous weight, grabbing his spare sword from beneath the bed. Blade came up in his hand, separating from the sheath in a smooth movement that sent the sheath flying off into the chaos. And it was chaos. Men were running everywhere, over fires, through tents, into each other as they swatted at the evil creatures bedeviling them. For every man there were a hundred wasps choking the air. The boy. Omni-slash. 5/15 bent remaining. For the blink of an eye, Grant¡¯s blade resembled a kaleidoscope, its blood-steel edge refracted in a thousand thousand different directions. Every wasp he could see dropped to the ground as the force of his swing was divided among all of them. Normally the skill wasn¡¯t particularly useful except for fighting large groups of scrubs. That seemed to apply in this case, though. The problem was, there were plenty of wasps out of his field of view who simply moved to fill the empty cone from behind tents, chairs, people, cookpots. He¡¯d accomplished very little in the grand scheme of things. Cookpots! Grant leapt into the outdoor mess, trailing thousands of wasps, located the box full of cutlery beside the mess and tossed them into the air. Blade Dancer 4/15 Bent Remaining. The fifty or so dull steak-knives stopped falling in midair as though they¡¯d been seized by an invisible hand, then they began to chew up the wasps mercilessly, swatting the creatures out of the air and bisecting them by the thousands. Grant became the sole bastion of safety as the blades created a growing wasp-free dome. He turned toward Nadia¡¯s tent, running into a stunningly handsome young man with a stomach wound, who seemed to be relieved to be out of the constant buzzing. ¡°You alright?¡± He nodded, clutching his wound. ¡°Need rest,¡± he said. That¡¯s an odd accent, must be from Western Iletha. They do tend to be prettier over there. ¡°Don¡¯t we all,¡± Grant scoffed. ¡°Do me a favor and keep your eyes open for a Malkenrovian sorcerer summoning wasps, he¡¯s got a stomach wound exactly like yours. If you see anything make a really distinctive sound so I can find you over all the screaming.¡± The young man blinked like he hadn¡¯t quite caught what Grant was saying. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Grant gave him a thumbs up and kept going. ***Calvin*** What do you suppose he wanted? Couldn¡¯t quite make it out. I¡¯m not exactly fluent, you know. Calvin put his head down and made for the forest. He didn¡¯t have time to stop. You should have used Heart of the Swarm and sent half of your wasps out double distance past Kala, then dismissed it. Could¡¯ve gotten you there fast, with minimal blood loss. ¡°But then the swarm would be gone.¡± Calvin said, listening to the screams around him. ¡°And then they¡¯ll be on our asses. Need to maintain the distraction as long as possible for us to get away.¡± Point. But keep it in mind. You¡¯re not exactly making good time. Calvin glanced around. It was true. Since the fight with the leather-woman, he¡¯d slowed down even more, and the seeping in his bandages was getting pretty intense. Fair enough. Calvinian summoning Heart of the swarm. 7/11 Bent Remaining. Calvin created a swarm and thankfully the two registered as separate entities in his mind. He was getting detailed audio-visual and positioning information from only the swarm he¡¯d just created while the first one was more of a vague feeling. In order to confuse pursuit, Calvin split the swarm of nearly two million wasps into two halves, and a smaller targeting group of a dozen. The two larger groups left the camp to the north northeast, and South southeast, while the targeting group went straight east, toward Kala, skimming above the trees. Because the two larger groups were identical in mass (or close to it) their north-south direction would balance each other out and leave only the easterly direction they were travelling, allowing him to apparate directly on top of her. Well not directly on top of her. I don¡¯t think she¡¯d mind. The targeting group found Kala and the escapees, and using those dozen wasps as a point of reference, the two larger swarms arranged themselves relative to them. Just a bit further south¡­there we go. Calvin dismissed the swarm he was part of, and appeared out of nowhere, six inches off the ground in a implosion of green mist, directly in front of Baroke. ¡°Gods!¡± Baroke shouted, flinching backward, his deep voice turning rather shrill. His friend¡¯s terror made him want to mess with him a bit. ¡°I am the end and the beginning!¡± Calvin shrieked at full volume, his voice cracking. ¡°Worship me or-¡° A meaty fist slammed into Cal¡¯s face. ¡°What the fuck?¡± Calvin said, holding his bleeding nose and oozing side. In hindsight maybe that hadn¡¯t been his best idea. ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me you could do that!¡± Baroke shouted, his fists held up. ¡°I can do that!¡± ¡°Well, now I know that.¡± Baroke slowly lowered his fists, studying Calvin suspiciously. ¡°What was the deal with that anyway?¡± ¡°A master wizard doesn¡¯t reveal his secrets so easily,¡± Calvin said, posturing. The effect might have been lessened somewhat by his dripping nose. ¡°My muscular buttocks. You probably can¡¯t wait to brag about it.¡± Calvin closed his mouth. He was right about to brag about creating an entirely new style of magic. On second thought, maybe I won¡¯t do that. ¡°Who is this?¡± a young Gadveran woman said, approaching them. There were ten other men and women who¡¯d fled into the woods, and they all watched Calvin like he might burst into wasps at any moment, which was a somewhat valid concern. The girl who was approaching, though, she was looking at him with carefully concealed disdain, without an ounce of gratefulness or fear. Her emotions were like a person studying an extremely valuable lump of stone. She had typical Gadveran hair and eyes, and was a little on the homely side. Nothing particularly stood out about her except for the emotions he could feel from her gaze. ¡°This is Calvin,¡± Baroke said, glancing at the rest of the survivors as he pointed a thumb at Cal. ¡°He¡¯s the one who took out Reilly.¡± Baroke tapped the skin beside one of the clotted holes on his head. Yikes. The girl¡¯s emotions were cast into the turmoil of confusion, manifesting as the tiniest frown as she looked at his face. Her gaze flitted down to his bandage, then back up to his face, understanding dawning. In an instant, her emotion of treating him like valuable property was undercut and then overwhelmed by intense desire and gleeful amusement. All the while nothing showed on her face. ¡°Nice to meet you Calvin,¡± She said, holding a thin hand out. ¡°Right.¡± Calvin said, glancing down at her hand for some kind of trick. ¡°One second.¡± He turned away from her offered hand and walked over to where Kala was snoozing against the tree, shaking her awake. ¡°Nn, what? What¡¯s going on?¡± Kala snorted awake and gave a delicate yawn. ¡°Did you get him?¡± ¡°You doing okay, Nala? You weren¡¯t feeling so good when I left.¡± He bent low and put a hand on her forehead before he whispered. ¡°Does anything look out of place to you?¡± Kala glanced over at the other people standing behind him. ¡°Aside from the Ilethan girl in leather?¡± She whispered back before she raised her voice. ¡°I¡¯m fine, just needed to sleep it off a little.¡± ¡°Good,¡± Calvin said, donning his belt and standing before he turned back to the spy. Gotta make sure we don¡¯t kill the wrong person. ¡°Sorry, that was rude of me,¡± he said, holding out his hand for the shake. ¡°I just wanted to check on my girlfriend, make sure she was okay.¡± Calvin felt a flare of jealousy radiate off of the Gadveran girl like heat from the sun. He caught her hand and pulled her close. Her eyes went wide. Blade Body. Calvin ejected his new blade from the skin of his palm, settling it into his hand as he brought the knife down on the girl¡¯s neck. She stumbled back, spurting blood from the enormous gash on her neck. There was no surprise or fear in her gaze, only amusement. ¡°What the fuck, what the fuck Calvin?¡± Baroke shouted. Calvin felt the pair of eyes that had been watching him detach from the stumbling girl and slowly circle around him as Baroke shook him, demanding and explanation. Calvin ignored him, paying close attention to her gaze. A moment later, he felt a spike of emotion that spoke of catching him for herself. ¡°Calvin, she¡¯s right the-¡° Cal ducked, and a silvery collar rebounded against Baroke¡¯s chest. ¡°Oh,¡± Kala seemed confused at Cal¡¯s ability to dodge the unseen. It was the inverse. He could dodge as long as he was seen. ¡°What in the abyss?¡± Baroke muttered as Calvin spun away from him, holding his side. Calvin isolated a dart shaped section of his knife and flicked it in the direction of the gaze. Mass Splitting Shaping. 6/11 ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Baroke said, glancing down at the wounded Gadveran girl, who dissolved like a mirage, shrinking, warping and fading. A storm of steel darts shot out in the direction of the spy, who gave a girlish yelp of surprise, followed by a clanging chime-like sound, as if a silver bell had been used to deflect a bunch of iron spikes. ¡°How do you even know where I am?¡± The girl demanded, sliding into view, light lapping against her skin like the water¡¯s edge. She had light skin, black hair, and distinctly Ilethan features. ¡°It¡¯s the smell,¡± Calvin said. Karen rule # 19, if you can spread misinformation and trash talk at the same time, do it. He felt a wave of humiliation from her followed by a strange excitement as she took on a fighting stance. Is it just me, or is that the same girl you killed, like, fifteen minutes ago? That seems to be the case. What is she, a Draculina? Probably just a trick. She let out a growl and charged toward him, slipping into the edges of the light lapping at her sides and once again vanishing from sight. Kind of a one trick pony. Calvin tried to spin out of the way of another attack, but his wound slowed him down, and the girl ¨C Nadia, that¡¯s whose tent it was ¨C caught him on the side of the cheek with her short blade, slicing into his face. An instant later, a boot caught Calvin¡¯s stomach, and his entire world devolved into blinding pain, forcing him to curl up on the ground, focusing only on breathing. Nadia slipped back out of her illusion and cocked her head at him as he stumbled away, her gaze laced with disappointment. ¡°You can see me coming, but you can¡¯t dodge? I¡¯ll have to have you trained better.¡± There was a hint of boredom in her gaze as she rapidly lost interest. ¡°Do you not see the stomach wound?¡± Calvin demanded, his voice hoarse. ¡°Excuses.¡± She reached into a pocket and pulled out another silvery circle. ¡°Now, be a good boy and hold still. I¡¯d hate to mar your face any more than I already have.¡± She was leaning down and reaching her hand out to his neck, when a giant fist closed down around her own. Nadia glanced down at it with a frown. She tugged, achieving nothing, to her bemusement. Baroke was strong. ¡°Now, little lady, I¡¯m not inclined to hit a woman,¡± Baroke said gently. ¡°But if you don¡¯t leave I might-¡° ¡°Fuck off,¡± She said meeting his eyes. ¡°Okay.¡± Baroke stood up and began walking into the man-eating forest. Damnit, Baroke, you weak-willed fool! With a glance, Calvin confirmed that the rest of the escapees had turned away and wandered into the dark forest, with the exception of Kala. ¡°So you¡¯re the bug boy, huh? I didn¡¯t expect you to be. Remarkable, really. You¡¯ll have to demonstrate how that works¡­¡± She tapped her chin. ¡°Come to think of it, you were on the wall when I cast Berserk, weren¡¯t you? What kind of bloodlust did you manifest? Some people get so terrified they strike out at anything, some people see their worst enemy in every face, some go mad. It was fun, I bet, if that hint of enjoyment was anything to go by. What happened when you went Berserk?¡± Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 16 seconds. ¡°I fucked people¡¯s meat holes with my war-pick.¡± Calvin gritted through his teeth. ¡°Oh my, how titillating. The berserk spell doesn¡¯t make something from nothing, you know. We¡¯re going to be best friends, you and I,¡± She said, smiling down at him. Strangely, all of her previous excitement began to dim, and she was practically bored. ¡°I¡¯m going to dress you up, train you to do tricks, take you to parties, and have you kill the odd political rival.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s what you want,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°I think you want to be hurt and humiliated, forced to do things degrading and depraved by someone with complete power over you.¡± Cal could tell by the renewed spike of emotions that he¡¯d guessed right. ¡°You were interested in me because you thought I could provide that, right?¡± Read Expressions has reached level 7! Read Expression Level 7: 35% correction. Talking to Girls has reached level 8! 40% Correction Your Princess Is in another castle has reached level 3! 15% correction. ^ Damn, you hit the mark with that one. She stared at him for a timeless moment, her emotions raging inside her. They went every direction at once, bouncing around between horrified and happy, angry, sad and frustrated. Slowly, ever so slowly, they were reigned in and aligned in one direction. A cold, merciless direction. ¡°Ah well.¡± She shrugged. ¡°Even if that were true, which it¡¯s definitely not, you¡¯re not strong enough to do it.¡± She reached toward his neck with the silver collar. ¡°What about her?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at Kala. A tree branch shattered against Nadia¡¯s head, sending the crazy girl spinning off to the side. Calvin held up a hand and Kala helped him to his feet as he kept pressure on the wound. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I attract princesses like flies to shit.¡± Kala glanced at him with a raised brow. ¡°So I¡¯m a fly now?¡± ¡°If it helps, I¡¯m the shit in that metaphor.¡± ¡°A little bit.¡± ¡°Damn you,¡± Nadia screamed as she leapt to her feet, her face red. ¡°kneel!¡± Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 15 seconds. Calvin¡¯s legs went out from under him as his body lost the ability to not kneel. Kala crossed her arms, still standing. For the first time since she¡¯d arrived, Nadia looked directly at Kala. ¡°Who the Abyss are you?¡± I¡¯m bat- Please, stop doing that joke. I don¡¯t even know what you¡¯re talking about. ¡°His girlfriend.¡± Kala said with a hint of a smile. I never said that. You totally did. I also addressed her by a false name, which made it obvious that it was under pretences. I was concealing her identity. It was a cover! Girls will take what they can get sometimes. Bah. ¡°You¡¯re obviously not one of those cattle,¡± she said, thumbing toward the dark forest where Baroke had disappeared. A slow smile spread on her face. ¡°Maybe you¡¯re worth bringing in myself.¡± ¡°Not gonna happen. Your tricks are pointless against me.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see about tha-¡° Kala picked up a small rock and flicked it out to the right, and the Nadia standing directly in front of them vanished, while one off to the right let out a girlish yelp and rubbed her forehead. ¡°He might be able to smell you, but I can see you.¡± Calvin groaned and rose to his feet as the restriction wore off, consumed by his Willpower. ¡°Kneel!¡± Nadia shouted again. Ohgodsdamnitalltotheabyss Calvin¡¯s legs went out from under him again. Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 13 seconds. What¡¯s with the reduced time? Practice. ¡°Come on, then,¡± Kala said, delicately motioning Nadia forward. ¡°If you want my lover, you¡¯re going to have to try a little harder than that.¡± Nadia narrowed her eyes and took a deep breath, stepping backwards. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll play that game with you. I think we¡¯ll play a different one instead. Let¡¯s see how you like fighting your own.¡± Bent traveled through the veins in her face in a pulse of black. Suddenly Calvin heard crashing as the nine escapees rushed into the clearing from the woods, their eyes bulging with rage and terror. Seems like a good opportunity. Calvin reached down to his belt and grabbed the vial of uncured spider-silk. Mass Shaping. Web. 5/11 Bent remaining. Calvin doled out his hundred and forty-four pounds of spiderwebs between the nine men and women rushing toward him in thin sheets. The sheets puffed up in the low-pressure environment, expanding outward rapidly and forming strands as they coagulated in an instant. Each person ran head-first into a net stronger than steel and designed to tire a prey out by having the smallest amount of give. One by one, they collapsed to the ground, wiggling in a tight cocoon. ¡°What the-¡° Nadia¡¯s smug expression slid off her face. ¡°You can¡¯t do that!¡± Her sadistic anticipation of watching friends fight each other to the death sputtered out into disbelief. ¡°Says who?¡± Calvin said, picking himself off his knees. ¡°Kneel!¡± Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 10 seconds. Really? Calvin thought as he was forced to the ground again. She glanced at Kala, watching her impassively. ¡°Fine.¡± She walked over to the big web where Baroke was wrapped up, hefting her sword. ¡°If you don¡¯t want-¡° Before she could finish her sentence, Kala lunged forward, crossing the distance between them in the blink of an eye. Nadia reflexively put her blade between the two of them, but Kala slapped it out of the way with her hand and delivered a close-range punch to the Ilethan¡¯s side, sending her tumbling backward. Nadia¡¯s feet and fingers caught the soft floor of the jungle, and she dug furrows through the earth as she slid. ¡°You shit-colored bitch!¡± she shouted, her expression one of pure rage. ¡°Nobody messes with my friends, especially not pathetic Ilethans that can¡¯t do anything real.¡± Kala said, her words carefully enunciated and princess-like. Her tone was light and gentle, but the meaning was cutting. Nadia let out a growl and shouted, waving a hand forward. A blast of light seared Calvin and Kala¡¯s eyes, and Kala was forced to cover them. Calvin couldn¡¯t see what happened, but there was feminine growling, the impact sound of a couple punches, and the tearing of clothes. Once Calvin blinked the spots out of his eyes, he saw the two princesses rolling on the ground, locked in a slugmatch, and it was anyone¡¯s game. Kala had a black eye and a bleeding nose, the strap of her reserved dress was ripped, while Nadia had a split lip and a crazed look in her eye as she tried to penetrate Kala¡¯s body with a spear hand. Never thought I¡¯d see a princess cat-fight. Thank you for this. Nadia stuck with her hand, and Kala knocked it aside with her palm. The Ilthan¡¯s fingers tore through a thick tree-root like wet paper. Maybe a little more serious than that. You think? Calvin reached down and grabbed a component. Neither of them were paying attention to him, and for once, calvin was absolutely sure where the Ilethan was. Miasma. 4/11 Bent remaining. Hopefully Kala finds it in her heart to forgive me. Calvin manifested a sphere of the most noxious chemicals known to Gadverans. The primary ingredient was Swamp Beetle musk, which lingered for weeks, and triggered a violent gag reflex. Mixed in was a little pure fire-oil to blind the eyes and irritate the lungs, together with a strong alcohol catalyst that made it sublimate at extreme speeds. A green sphere of the awful substance manifested between the two of them and exploded. The effect was instantaneous. Kala and Nadia broke away from each other, retching and weeping and screaming, unable to see or breath properly. Calvin pulled out his knife and flicked it downward. Mass Shaping. Four steel spikes dropped from the sky and pinned Nadia¡¯s arms and legs to the ground, drawing out a wrenching scream. Calvin dismissed the Miasma as he walked toward her, and Kala gasped with relief, finally able to catch her breath and stop retching as the irritants disappeared. Nadia¡¯s head swiveled toward him, fear finally showing itself in her eyes. ¡°Go-¡° Calvin lunged forward and jammed the back of his knife into her mouth, effectively gagging her. He straddled her back and took his bloody hand away from his wound to grab the other side of his knife, using the cold steel like a guar¡¯s bit and hauling her head back to look at him. ¡°Now, I¡¯m normally a very relaxed man,¡± Calvin said, his vision getting a bit blurry from blood-loss. ¡°But I couldn¡¯t help but notice you were about to try to use one of my friends as a hostage. That upsets me.¡± He hauled back further on her head, making clicking noises as the steel slid against her teeth, forcing her neck up at an awkward angle as she struggled to pull the iron spikes out of the ground. ¡°You may ask yourself how upset. Let me illuminate you with an anecdote and a promise. My mother always told me to tell the truth, my entire life. Do you know why she did that?¡± Calvin wasn¡¯t sure if Nadia was shaking her head or shivering in pain, but he decided to keep going anyway. ¡°So my enemies believe me when I tell them what I¡¯m going to do to them. It seemed silly at the time, but I¡¯m beginning to see the merits. Now the promise. Calvin leaned closer, whispering in her ear. ¡°If you ever fuck with one of my friends again, I¡¯m going to kill you. You might think it ends with that. No. After I kill you, I¡¯m going to eat you, then treat you to a private hell as my personal possession, and when I¡¯ve had my fun, I¡¯m going to bequeath your luscious teen body to Genosian cannibals until the end of fucking time.¡± ¡°Do you understand?¡± She looked at him out of the corner of her eye and nodded, and Calvin was almost driven back by the wave of desire radiating from her gaze. That did not have the desired effect. Speak for yourself. A familiar, gravelly voice interrupted their moment together. ¡°Step away from the princess.¡± Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 6/30 Chapter 44: Maximum Capacity ¡°Can I help you with something?¡± Calvin asked, looking up at the sword¡­flyer guy. The fool seeks to beg for the princess back, Little does he know-oh shit! Calvin¡¯s monologue was interrupted by dozens of pieces of cutlery flashing out of the sky and clamping down around his own and tearing it out of his hands and Nadia¡¯s mouth. ¡°Grant!¡± Nadia said, a strange tone of frustration in her voice. Like someone who¡¯d been interrupted at the best part. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s obvious, princess, while I may find you disgusting personally, it is my duty to make sure you¡¯re unharmed. That and I don¡¯t wanna get executed for losing you.¡± Nadia blew a raspberry as a dozen steak knives swooped down, aimed at Calvin¡¯s vital¡¯s, forcing him to fully unseat himself from the girl rather than get punctured in the heart, lungs, liver, spine, eyeball, and femoral artery. Calvin¡¯s imagined dive and roll to the side was brought to a screeching halt by his stomach wound, and he wound up face down in the soft soil, groaning in pain. ¡°It¡¯s good to meet you again, young man. Imagine my surprise when you show up the same day you were injured. Cunning or sheer teenage stupidity? I suppose the next few seconds will answer that question. ¡°Okay, Cannon.¡± ¡°what?¡± Calvin rolled over with the miniature cannon pointed perpendicular to Grant. Shaping. 3/11 Bent. Calvin created a hundred and forty-four pound copy of the entire vial except for the cap at the end, just to the right of the man frowning at him. With the cap removed, a thin tube of vacuum in the primer chamber was rapidly filled by air, making contact with the oxygen sensitive primer, which ignited the devil dust, which exploded, sending a four-pound steel ball hurtling at the side of Grant¡¯s face as the hundred and forty pound casing jerked backward slightly. At normal size it would be a child¡¯s toy; a firecracker. Now it was a deadly weapon. The enemy¡¯s head jerked to the side and somehow Grant was able to interpose his butter knives between himself and the oncoming missile, reducing a large portion of his blades to twisted wrecks that wobbled a moment before dropping out of the air. Grant was thoroughly staggered by the sudden attack, reeling to the side as if he¡¯d experienced a bit of the force himself. Waiting for them to recover is the gentlemanly thing to do. Karen¡¯s voice echoed in his mind. It¡¯s stupid. Never do it. Calvin dropped the cannon and slipped the Lightning component out of his belt in one move feeling the raised lightning bolt on the side of the vial without taking his eyes off. Shaping. 2/11 bent remaining. A cylinder of tightly compressed ivory-colored dust appeared above Grant before exploding in every direction, creating a magnificent pillar of vision obscuring white. It was made out of dust carefully harvested from dead sandshrews, fuzzy little critters that lived in the Nebian desert. Their skin gave off a dust that somehow spawned lightning, which they then stored and used to dissuade predators. It¡¯s static electricity. Doi. A second later, a bolt of lightning arced through the cloud of dust, nearly blinding calvin, forcing him to squint his eyes. Grant however, was mostly fine, having jumped out of the cloud at the earliest opportunity. Only his right foot had taken any damage from the web of lightning crashing through the cloud. Lightning continued to fly down to the ground, burning up the dust as it travelled through, rapidly reducing in power while Grant limped off to the side. Let¡¯s keep in mind that the lightning takes a half second to fire the first bolt, allowing someone fast to get out of the way. Noted. Grant gave him a look from the corner of his eye, and dozens of knifes came lancing down toward him. Calvin reached for- ¡°Freeze.¡± Nadia¡¯s voice locked him in place. Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 8 seconds. Damnedable woman, when I build my empire I¡¯ll dress you in the most humiliating of garb and parade you around for all to see! I¡¯ll use you as furniture! She¡¯d probably be into it. Treat her with respect, then? Calvin thought as the cascade of knives shot toward his vitals. A shapely brown leg peeking through a torn yellow dress appeared in front of Cal¡¯s face as Kala leapt in front of him. It was hard to make out what she did through her tattered dress, but he caught a glimpse of her palm waving through open air, creating a wobbly area of displaced air. When the knives impacted against it, their trajectory was altered to follow the path of her hand, swirling off to the side, and burying themselves in the earth to either side of them. ¡°Hmm, who are you?¡± the huge man grunted as his knives pulled themselves out of the ground and shook the dirt off. He sized up Kala, his face betraying no emotion. He drew a single magnificent sword and took a step forward. ¡°Calvin, what are we-¡° ¡°Cover your eyes.¡± Calvin gritted out as the paralysis wore off. First priority: Raising my stability so this never happens again. Calvin drew Flash. Shaping. 1/11 Bent Remaining. Calvin aimed right in front of Grant¡¯s eyes. If this didn¡¯t burn his eyes out of his sockets, who knew what would. Dupdomancy has reached Level 13! Level 11: 169 pounds, 65 minutes. An explosion unlike anything Calvin had ever heard shot through his chest cavity, more felt than heard as a white light drowned out any other source of illumination in the dim forest, blinding everyone present. A moment later, the world was black, and Calvin couldn¡¯t hear anything except for a high pitched whine in his ears. Would have been nice to know it makes noise, too, Calvin thought as blood tickled his earlobes. He was blind and deaf, and he was the farthest away from the explosion. You know who isn¡¯t blind and deaf? My wasps. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the swarm. 0/11 bent remaining. Calvin faded into the swarm, his damaged senses replaced by those of a hundred dog-sized wasps. It was a gamble, but Calvin wanted them to be big enough to move Kala if she was in trouble. He spotted Grant stumbling toward Nadia, who was groaning in pain, while Kala was backing away, trying to blink the spots out of her eyes, her arms raised defensively. Grant stumbled forward, and caught himself on the iron spike holding Nadia to the ground. Calvin sent a wasp in toward the large man¡¯s back. Without any noticeable reaction, a steak knife cut through the air with a hum and bisected the wasp, tweaking Calvin¡¯s senses with a moment of pain before the wasp dissolved into green mist. His defense is a pain. Calvin didn¡¯t want to waste all his wasps trying to sting the man. Even though a twelve pound wasp¡¯s sting was more than enough to kill a man, Calvin didn¡¯t want to spend his limit of ninety wasps trying to get through. Once he¡¯d had over a million, ninety felt like just a handful. Calvin was primed to intervene when Grant blindly pulled the iron spikes out of the ground, dragging cries of pain out of the leather-clad princess. He shoved dozens of knives beneath him and his charge and wordlessly flew into the air, carried aloft by the blades. He¡¯s running away. Probably a good decision, all things considered. He doesn¡¯t know your tank is empty. He¡¯s not using quite so many knives anymore. I¡¯m going to end this here. To the abyss with forewarned enemies coming back to haunt me, Calvin thought, sending a good twenty wasps to surround the man, aiming to mob him from every angle at the same time. A silver letter opener with a fancy monogram etched into the blade flashed out of the man¡¯s vest pocket, bisecting every single wasp in the blink of an eye as they buzzed toward him. As if that had spent the last of the blade¡¯s energy, it dropped to the ground among the green goo. Grant looked like he didn¡¯t even notice, eyes closed, ears bleeding as he rose above the canopy and headed in the general direction of the camp, too far away to pursue in a matter of seconds. I think it¡¯s time for us to make ourselves scarce too. Those wretches will definitely send backup. Agreed. Calvin dismissed the spell and reappeared beside Kala, whose ears were conspicuously not bleeding. She was still blinking, her eyes tearing up, but she seemed to be able to see him, looking directly at him. Her lips were moving, but Calvin couldn¡¯t hear a word of it. his vision had mostly returned, the light had been baffled somewhat by her dress, but his ears were severely damaged. ¡°I need to borrow Bent!¡± Calvin shouted, holding his hand over his stomach, lightheaded from blood loss. He didn¡¯t have time to faint, though. He had to get them out of there. She said something. Calvin repeated himself. She said something else. Oh, to the abyss with it, he thought, reaching out and pulling Kala in close. Her eyes went wide as his lips pressed against hers. I¡¯ve been wanting to do this for years. She stiffened for a moment as she felt him pushing against her defenses, pressing against the core of her being. A moment later she relaxed her body and let him inside, her jaw slackening as he ¨C metaphorically ¨C plunged her depths, his senses warm inside her as he teased out her internal Bent reserve and guided it to the surface. The kiss may not have been the best choice, though. Kala responded more enthusiastically than he¡¯d expected from the demure princess. Kala shuddered against him as her jaw went slack, tongue prying open his lips and dancing against his own. Her hips began to twitch unconsciously. 1/11 Bent remaining. 2/11 Bent remaining. 3/11 Bent remaining. 4/11 Bent remaining. 5/11 Bent remaining. 6/11 Bent remaining. All right, that¡¯s all I need, Calvin thought, pushing away, pulling himself out of her as he pulled his head back and took a breath. Inches in front of him Kala gave a gasp as she breathed in, her eyes foggy. A hand wrapped around the back of his head, and Cal was drawn back into the kiss, his senses drawn back to the warm core that hosted her Bent. 7/11 Bent remaining. Umm. I¡¯m done, Kala, that¡¯s all I need¡­Cal thought as he tried and failed to pull out. The defenses that kept him out before were holding him inside, now. Can she do that? Apparently. Kala¡¯s other hand pressed against the small of his back with insistent pressure, pushing him against her like she was desperate for every inch of contact she could possibly manage. 8/11 Bent remaining. Her soft breasts conformed to his body and she shuddered as her thigh left the confines of her dress, smooth skin sliding against his pants. Her hips began to slowly grind back and forth, spreading warmth against his front as his body responded in turn. 9/11 bent remaining. I think she¡¯s humping your leg, dude. Ah, to the Abyss with it. We¡¯re having fun, Cal thought as he threw himself back into the kiss, enjoying the way her tongue danced across his own. 10/11 Bent remaining. 11/11 Bent remaining. User is at maximum capacity, Lady Killer has no effect. User is at maximum capacity, Lady Killer has no effect. User is at maximum capacity, Lady Killer has no effect. 12/11 Bent remaining. Warning, overexposure to Bent has raised body toxicity by 9%! In an instant, Calvin went from lightheaded from blood loss, to lightheaded, dizzy, a little nauseous, and experiencing a burning sensation in his veins. That¡¯s where I draw the line, Calvin thought, reaching a shaky hand up to Kala¡¯s forehead and attempting to push her away. His trembling palm landed on her warm forehead and tried to push her off, but he couldn¡¯t muster any strength, and she shrugged it off, possibly thinking it was a caress. 13/11 Bent remaining. Warning, overexposure to Bent has raised body toxicity by 18%! Calvin couldn¡¯t feel his feet, his head was swimming, vision tunneling. He felt like he was going to pass out any second. Going higher was something he couldn¡¯t afford to do. Sorry about this, Calvin thought, allowing his trembling hand to slip down Kala¡¯s forehead before he poked her in the eye. Kala gasped and reflexively let go of him, flinching away from the finger in her eye. Unfortunately, she was the only thing holding him up at that point, and he fell backwards into the soft earth of the jungle, staring up at the canopy. He saw her lean over him and say something, her brows furrowed in concern. Cal pointed to the blood dripping out of his ears. ¡°Too much Bent. Not good for me,¡± he said, hoping she could hear him as his heartbeat sent Bent through his overtaxed veins, causing his whole body to ache. At this point it was just gravy. Calvin painfully turned his head to inspect the web-wrapped Gadverans. The sacks they were in would last another fifty minutes unless he dismissed it. Perfect packaging to be carried by his wasps. His gaze flicked over to where Baroke had squirmed around to look at the two of them, his one exposed eye having long since lost it¡¯s bloodlust. His friend¡¯s meaty forearm was highlighted against the thick webbing where his fist barely jutted out of the white constriction. His thumb was up, and there was a hint of humor glittering in his eye. Calvin gave him the finger. Web 12/11 Bent Remaining. Instantly the burning in Calvin¡¯s veins began to recede. Calvin put another layer on top of each of the Gadverans, getting them ready for easy transport. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the Swarm 6/11 Bent remaining. Calvin poured six Bent into creating ten five hundred pound wasps, who could easily lift the silk-wrapped passengers, along with one eleven-hundred pound riding wasp to carry Kala. Calvin slid into the large wasps and began picking up his charges, immediately clearer of mind in their unwounded bodies. Time to go. He bent down in front of Kala with the largest wasp, and she hopped on its back, her legs soft against its sensitive fuzz. The sensation was directly transmitted to Calvin¡¯s mind as he set them to work, and he struggled not to let her notice what he was paying the most attention to. If she noticed his mind kept wandering to the wasp between her legs, she didn¡¯t say anything, slumping against the wasp in exhaustion. Calvin¡¯s giant wasps worked together to knock down trees until there was a clear space to launch, then they took to the sky. *** With a quiet rush of air, Calvin appeared in his room in the palace, staggered over to his bed and wrapped his covers over himself. All concern about the Princess¡¯s apparent kidnapping and its outcome were dismissed in favor of bundling himself up like a caterpillar and passing out. I¡¯ll deal with it tomorrow. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 7/30 Chapter 45: Recovery Nadia lay in bed staring at the embroidered ceiling. Nadia was a cripple. She couldn¡¯t move her hands and her legs were practically worthless. Grant said her legs would likely recover, but her hands would never be the same. The enormity of what the bastard had done to her was starting to sink in. She was done. Finished. Her political career was finished. The cardinal sin in politics was to appear weak, and being rendered a cripple unable to hold a sword certainly covered that. She began thrashing in place, her mind overwhelmed with a wordless howl. I¡¯ll kill him! I¡¯ll kill him, but not before I torture him¡­I¡¯ll shove flesh eating beetles up his ass and humiliate him by dragging him naked through the streets of Eshtha, cut his nipples off, tar and feather him, then light him on Fire! Nadia tried to clench her fists, but they didn¡¯t respond. ¡°Gah!¡± Her eyes hurt and her pillow was getting wet now, for some odd reason. Great, there¡¯s a leak in my tent. I¡¯ve really hit rock bottom. It made her eyes hurt more. ¡°So princess,¡± Grant said entering the tent. ¡°Those wasps really did a number on our organization and morale, it¡¯ll be a day before we¡¯re ready to go fight again.¡± Grant looked up and his expression became a bit smug as he saw her face. That made her eyes hurt more. She didn¡¯t like it. ¡°Day? DAY!? To recover from bug bites!?¡± Nadia demanded. ¡°A couple hundred died in the confusion, actually. Part of me can¡¯t help but think that this level of response may be attributed to a certain person using Berserk, which is a forbidden spell for a reason.¡± Grant said. ¡°Since it has a tendency to bring out the worst in people.¡± ¡°What will miss aspire to now? Queen of the bedsheets?¡± Royal Order. 22/35 Bent remaining. ¡°Grant?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± he asked with his smug smile and unbroken nose. ¡°Punch yourself in the face as hard as you can.¡± He twitched, his muscles clenching. Grant¡¯s hand curled into a fist and hurtled up toward his face for an instant before he caught it with his other hand, muscles slowly relaxing. ¡°Nice try, miss.¡± ¡°Please.¡± 21/35 Bent Remaining. Grant gave a friendly grin as the spell disarmed his defenses and invaded his mind, reorienting his perceptions to make the task seem less horrible, and her seem more reasonable and deserving of acquiescence. ¡°Oh, all right,¡± he said with a smile. He punched himself in the face, hard, staggering backward with a stunned expression on his face. ¡°How did you ¨C¡° ¡°Get out of my tent. Take your day to recover. But be aware that I can just as easily have you end your own life. Question my decisions if you wish, but if I ever hear you mock me again, you¡¯ll cut out your own tongue.¡± Grant reddened, his hand inching toward his new sword for an instant before he too a deep, calming breath. He knew he was out of line, there. ¡°As you command, your highness.¡± The large man bowed and left the large tent, leaving Nadia to continue staring at the ceiling, her thoughts inevitably turning back toward the wretch who¡¯d done this to her. She would visit every indignity on him a thousandfold, if she could just walk. Every indignity on him¡­and his friends. The violent reaction toward her intention to use the large one as a hostage didn¡¯t escape her notice. The sheer anger in his eyes...seen over her shoulder as he mounted her like an animal, pulling her neck painfully back while she was utterly helpless and in pain. A warmth began to gather between her legs, and she looked down at it accusingly. Being helpless to do anything about it just made it worse. Her hand twitched feebly. And now I can¡¯t even masturbate! I¡¯ll kill him! ¡°Hard day?¡± The Malkenrovian delegate said with mock sympathy as it entered the the tent. Ostensibly it was female, but there was no way she was calling it a she. She implied some level of autonomy, and it was just a puppet, not a woman. ¡°Do my guards just let anyone in now?¡± Nadia asked, irritated at the interruption from chewing on her grudges. ¡°Yes. Yes, We imagine they do now,¡± It said, staring at her like a spider. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°We smelled the scent of the Originator. We smelled Elliot. Where has he gone?¡± Her lips split back from her teeth in a horrifying facsimile of a smile. ¡°We wish to know. The One wishes to know.¡± ¡°Elliot?¡± Nadia asked with a frown. That¡¯s odd. The walking tree introduced him as Calvin. ¡°He¡¯s in Mujenan,¡± She said, thinking fast. ¡°Really? We think this is terribly convenient for you.¡± ¡°He was here, then he left, you said so yourself,¡± Nadia reasoned. ¡°Mujenan is the only place he could¡¯ve gone. Help me crack it open, and you¡¯ll have this Elliot you seek.¡± It studied her for a moment. ¡°Yes. We will provide, but this is something that cannot be left in the hands of another.¡± Without warning the creature lunged across the tent, drawing its hand back and striking down at her chest in the blink of an eye. Nadia¡¯s arms raised to stop it, but her hand simply folded out of the way. Strange black snakes tore out of the creature¡¯s palm and buried themselves in her flesh, sending a paralyzing pain through her lungs as they began to curl around her major organs. In a panic, Nadia did the only thing she could think of. Royal Order. 20/35 Bent Remaining. ¡°Stop.¡± The creature ignored her whispered command, driving the snakes deeper into her chest, filling them with freezing cold. ¡°Please.¡± A few bubbles of blood escaped her lips as the snakes drove air out of her lungs, and in moments, her vision went white. ***Calvin*** Calvin was floating face up in the ocean, eyes closed against the noon-day sun, perfectly relaxed, perfectly at peace. Warm sun, warm water. I don¡¯t think anything could ruin this. The sun darkened, and Calvin peered through his eye to see a giant looming over the ocean, between him and the sun. That¡¯s weird. I guess I spoke too soon. ¡°Kinda looks like Kala, actually.¡± A voice from his right said. Calvin glanced over and spotted the man behind the mirror, still wearing his strange clothes, floating in the water beside him. ¡°Elliot?¡± ¡°That¡¯s me.¡± ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°Pssh,¡± Elliot scoffed. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me, it¡¯s your near death experience.¡± ¡°My what?¡± Another shadow moved over the sun, before the sun itself unhinged and fell aside to allow a giant black tube to come down from the sky, shrinking as it forced itself into his mouth. Calvin tried to raise his hands and push it out of the way, but realized he couldn¡¯t move his arms. ¡°Here we go.¡± Elliot said, flipping over, and Calvin had just enough time to notice the man was lying on some kind of brightly colored sled on the water, before he felt a tremendous heat build inside him, choking him. On the horizon, the ocean began to roil before it suddenly heaved, creating a gigantic wave that towered over the two of them. ¡°Whooo!¡± Elliot shouted as the wave came crashing down. The last thing Calvin saw was the man climbing up on his sled and somehow standing on it before a rush of water slammed into his face. *** Calvin¡¯s eyes flew open, his pupils aching at the bright light above him, only mitigated by Kala and Ella standing over his bed. His face had droplets of something on it, his throat was sore, and he was colder than he¡¯d ever been in his life. ¡°Oh, thank the gods,¡± Kala said, sweat dripping off of her as she collapsed backwards onto the wooden floor. ¡°Calvin?¡± Ella said, peering into his eyes. ¡°how are you feeling?¡± ¡°Not great.¡± Calvin said hoarsely. If he didn¡¯t know better he would have sworn someone had just used a wooden dildo on his throat. ¡°Where were you born?¡± ¡°Deinos.¡± ¡°fifteen plus twenty-one.¡± ¡°Thirty-six, why?¡± ¡°Checking for soul damage.¡± Ella said, her big fingers his eyelids back. ¡°That¡¯s a possibility?¡± Kala asked, becoming alert. ¡°When warriors are brought back from the brink of death with Noeula, sometimes they lose bits of themselves along the way. Calvin seems okay, though.¡± It¡¯s brain damage from oxygen deprivation, not soul damage, you savages. ¡°Brink of death?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°You went to bed with an unbandaged, aggravated wound and nearly exsanguinated in your sleep.¡± Kala said. ¡°Ex-what?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Bled dry,¡± Ella said. ¡°Lucky for you, I felt you stop breathing, and we had enough Noeula left to patch you up.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you want me as a Chained Spirit?¡± Calvin eyed her suspiciously. ¡°Seems counter-productive to let me live.¡± ¡°Pssh,¡± She waved a hand. ¡°That would be petty, and you grow much faster as a living man than as a Chained Spirit.¡± She leaned close, her breasts encompassing his cold, weak arm as she spoke beside him. ¡°Besides, I want to see you with a beard.¡± ¡°Me too,¡± Calvin and Kala said at the same time, before glancing at each other. ¡°Hey Calvin, guess what-¡° Baroke stopped just inside the door, holding a loaf of bread and a full pot of soup as he eyed the three of them. ¡°Was I interrupting something? I could come back later, with all this delicious soup.¡± The smell wafted over to Cal and his stomach made its presence known with an angry growl. ¡°Nope, I¡¯m starving,¡± Calvin said, reaching his arms toward the pot of steaming sustenance and making the ¡®gimmie¡¯ motion. ¡°Right, sit up, buddy. Your arms are probably too weak, so let your good friend Baroke feed you.¡± ¡°To the Abyss with that.¡± Calvin said, reaching toward the pot. ¡°Now now,¡± Baroke said, easily pushing Calvin¡¯s weak hands back down to the bed. ¡°Don¡¯t overtax yourself.¡± The towering mass of muscle took a seat on a stool in front of him and began blowing on a spoonful of soup as he watched Calvin with an amused smirk. No matter how many eye-daggers Calvin shot at him, the musclebound idiot didn¡¯t relent and hand off the food to someone Calvin actually wanted before shoving the spoonful of Baroke-breath soup into his mouth. ¡°I¡¯m covered in sweat,¡± Kala said, pinching her dress between her fingertips. ¡°I need a bath and a change of clothes,¡± She retreated from the room. Nooo, don¡¯t leave me with this bastard! ¡°Good to see you¡¯ll make it, Incha Huala, you¡¯ve got a good friend.¡± She gave him a Genosian sign of encouragement and walked out of the room, abandoning him to his plight. ¡°Way to kill the moment.¡± Calvin said between spoonfulls of soup. ¡°What are friends for?¡± Baroke said. ¡°Remind me why I saved you from the Ilethans again?¡± ¡°You did what now?¡± Andra asked as she entered the room. ¡°Encouraged him to escape his¡­trauma. With my prayers.¡± ¡°Uh huh,¡± She glanced at the blood-soaked bindings around his stomach and back up to his face. ¡°You didn¡¯t go anywhere last night did you?¡± ¡°How could I?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at his now healed wound. Luckily she couldn¡¯t see that through the bloody bandages. Not technically a lie, but close. ¡°There was a kerfluffle with the princess leaving some kind of kidnapper¡¯s note and running off the entire night. Know anything about that?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know about it, no.¡± Certainly didn¡¯t know about the note. ¡°She claimed she did it to get out of her responsibilities for a night, but behavior like that is deeply uncharacteristic. Any ideas?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just as surprised as you are.¡± Andra¡¯s eyes narrowed, glancing him over. ¡°Unhelpful. Good work on the wall the day before. You¡¯re officially a veteran. Once your wound is sufficiently healed in a couple weeks, you¡¯ll be back to defending the wall.¡± A shudder went down Calvin¡¯s spine, and Andra smiled at his expression. ¡°Any idiot can run into battle once believing he¡¯s invincible. The second time, that takes guts.¡± She turned to leave and glanced at Baroke, as if seeing him for the first time. ¡°Stand up.¡± Baroke lifted a brow and stood up, towering over her. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Baroke.¡± ¡°Baroke, do you use a sword?¡± ¡°Bow.¡± ¡°Ah, shame,¡± She eyed him up and down. ¡°And, are you good with it?¡± ¡°Level sixteen.¡± ¡°You got a bow?¡± ¡°Lost it in Surrak.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your draw?¡± ¡°Six hundred pounds.¡± A wicked smile spread over the general¡¯s face, and she clapped him on the shoulder. ¡°Well, Baroke, give the quartermaster your name this evening, and he¡¯ll have something good for you. Also you¡¯re drafted.¡± Baroke¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°But-¡° The general was already gone, her cloak billowing in the doorway as she turned the corner. ¡°Can she do that?¡± He asked, looking at Calvin. ¡°Probably. Guess you were right about them wanting your magnificent body,¡± Calvin said, feeling a smug grin blooming on his face. ¡°Careful,¡± Baroke warned, raising the steaming pot. ¡°If you don¡¯t want this soup in your lap. I¡¯m still not entirely sure this isn¡¯t another Ilethan mind trick to get me to shoot people.¡± Baroke sat back down and fed Calvin until they were both sick of it, then he left Calvin to his own devices. Ella was off somewhere, and Kala didn¡¯t come back, so he had nothing to do but twiddle his thumbs. A week or two, huh? Calvin wasn¡¯t exactly chomping at the bit to get back out there where people were trying to kill him. He needed a better defence, and he had a damn good idea where to start. Calvin closed his eyes and folded his arms over his stomach. Eye of the tiger Shadow Boxing. Calvin stepped outside his house into the cold morning air of Deinos and took a deep breath, missing the unique smell of the village beside the muddy river. Karen was standing in the middle of the practice yard, her massive biceps coiling and uncoiling as she stretched out for the morning practice. ¡°¡¯bout time,¡± his adoptive mother said, motioning for him to join her. Calvin did his stretches and the two of them faced off. Karen slid forward into his space, intending to knock him off balance, not even bothering to use her sword. Calvin focused on his new defensive skill, trying to redirect her bull rush. Beli Ma It amounted to almost nothing. Her shoulder slammed into his unprepared face, and he was thrown violently to the ground, bleeding from his nose in his own imagination. ¡°Huh,¡± Karen said, frowning down at him rather than pulverizing him with a follow-up. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°I was trying to slide it to the side.¡± Cal said. ¡°Interesting,¡± she said, giving him a suspicious look. ¡°I didn¡¯t teach you that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying something new.¡± ¡°Your funeral kid, get up.¡± Calvin climbed to his feet and readied his stance. He needed to incorporate his two main ways of defending himself: manifesting blades through his skin where people were striking, and deflecting attacks, until they became one cohesive whole. Karen thrusted forward with her sword, and Calvin adopted the Beli Ma stance, dragging his palm in front of the wooden sword, which was thrown off target enough to jab him in the shoulder instead of the heart. Karen followed through with an elbow strike to his chest designed to make him wish he was dead, using the opening provided by his hand sweeping to the side. Calvin didn¡¯t have enough control over it, and he didn¡¯t need to be overly concerned with the safety of his imaginary sparring partner, so he pushed his one absorbed knife out of his chest in the path of her elbow. After that, things didn¡¯t go quite as planned. The elbow redirected mid-strike to catch him in the jaw, causing his consciousness to turn fuzzy as Karen rode him to the ground. Catching him in a submission position before they hit the earth. ¡°Alright you little shit, where¡¯s Calvin?¡± His adoptive mother said, her face red with anger as her huge hands cinched down around his neck, making his spine creak. ¡°You obviously think I¡¯m an idiot, using Beli Ma and Whatever that other thing was. Who do you work for? The Buleyan council? The Hash¡¯Maje? Elliot? Hmm?¡± ¡°IIII MEEAIOOO!¡± Calvin gurgled, trying to speak through the chokehold. ¡°What?¡± she said, relaxing her grip. ¡°It¡¯s meditation!¡± Calvin said with a gasp of air. This shadowboxing is going poorly. That¡¯s what happens when you Shadowbox way above your level. She grabbed the blade sticking out of Calvin¡¯s chest and yanked it painfully out of his skin, before holding it up to his mouth. ¡°What the hell does ¡®it¡¯s meditation¡¯ mean?¡± she asked, glaring down at him. ¡°Answer my questions or I remove your tongue.¡± Over the next fifteen minutes, through a great deal of discomfort and clarifications, Calvin managed to explain that he was indeed Calvin, and that she was a figment of his imagination in the construct of Shadow Boxing. When she finally believed him, Calvin expected her to have a nervous breakdown from the existential dread of ceasing to exist when he opened his eyes again, but as usual, she was thinking something totally meat-headed. She tapped the knife against her knuckles, pondering. ¡°So what you¡¯re telling me is¡­Because this is all in your head¡­I don¡¯t have to pull my punches anymore?¡± ¡°¡­I guess not?¡± Calvin hazarded. I can¡¯t get hurt with Shadow Boxing, could I? Of course not. Probably. Maybe? ¡°I¡¯ll go get my real sword.¡± She said with a wide grin, heading for her house. ¡°Crap.¡± Calvin muttered as he watched the giant warrior skip away in delight. ¡­ ¡­.. Beli Ma has reached level 3! Beli Ma level 1: Redirect force. 15% correction. Calvin gasped as his eyes shot open, raising his shaking limbs up to his eyes. ¡°Oh, thank the gods, they¡¯re still there.¡± He allowed his weak arms to flop back to the bed. Maybe spar with someone easier, like Kort or Jinnei? Elliot suggested. Not if I want to be as good as I can be. Wait¡­how did Karen know your name? Probably some other Elliot. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 8/30 Chapter 46: Knick-Knack Meditation has reached Level 12! Level 12: Boosts ability to ignore distractions and disassociate. 60% correction. Extensive training has increased Kinesthetics. +1 Kinesthetics Extensive training has increased Endurance. +1 Endurance Extensive training has increased Strength. +1 Strength. Come on! You can do it! just imagine Kala and Ella in negligees! Three more pushups and they¡¯ll take them off! A hundred more and they¡¯ll start making out! A thousand more and ¨C ¡°Fuuuck¡­Yooouuu!¡± Cal groaned as he did another pushup, keeping his body held flat with his toes on the wall, his stomach and chest burning with effort as he did the last core exercise of the day. Oh, looks like I miscounted, you finished like, a minute ago. Calvin hit the floor hard and groaned, reduced to a puddle on the floor by the burning that went all the way around his torso back, sides, shoulders, stomach and chest. When I agreed to help motivate you out of concern for your well-being and definitely not utter boredom, I didn¡¯t think I would get so much sass. He would never understand meat-heads like Karen and Jinnei who enjoyed exercise, but he understood intellectually that raising his physical abilities would increase his survivability in the long run, and not dying was one of Calvin¡¯s favorite past-times. Eight days had gone by since he¡¯d been wounded, and sooner or later, Andra was going to put him back up on the wall. He needed to be ready by then. Calvin dragged himself to his feet, glancing around the room. It was comfortable, if sparse, an odd mismatch of silk sheets and a complete lack of furniture beyond a simple cabinet for his clothes. He dunked a cloth into the basin in the bathroom and wiped the sweat off before dressing to go out. Ella was out with Kala, probably devising some way to bedevil him. They get along suspiciously well. You sure your girlfriends aren¡¯t making out with each other behind your back? That would be awesome. I fail to see the problem there, Calvin thought, grabbing his cane and heading for the door. The door opened before his knuckles could brush against the handle, revealing Andra in all her steel-clad glory. ¡°How¡¯s the recovery?¡± She asked, looking him up and down. ¡°Coming along,¡± Calvin said. Andra kicked the cane out from under him and eyed his response time as he caught himself. He was a little slow because of his burning core, but Andra seemed satisfied. ¡°Looks like you¡¯re in good enough shape. Report to the wall tomorrow morning for duty.¡± Just as quickly as she showed up, she turned and vanished, on her way to accost someone else. ¡°Damn.¡± Calvin was not looking forward to going back up on that wall. No matter how quiet it had been since his unfortunate turn on the damaged stone, he couldn¡¯t help shake the feeling that as soon as he set foot on it again, he¡¯d get caught up in another bloody conflict. Calvin fake limped all the way out of his side wing of the palace and into the stream of citizenry walking back and forth through the street. The usual horde of pedestrians had thinned out since the Ilethan navy had arrived four days ago, choking the port city¡¯s flow of fish and trade. The ilethan army had established a makeshift wall surrounding their own, preventing messages or supplies from coming or going. The people who remained on the street looked haunted and hungry, while the others shuttered their windows like ships trying to weather a storm. It was a real siege, now. Calvin walked half an hour to the alley where he¡¯d stashed the dismantled corpse of the metal creature. In the confusion of the day, he was one of the few people who remembered the damn thing existed. Most of the others were dead or severely wounded. The blade that Calvin had been storing in his body was a simple steel knife he¡¯d bought from a local blacksmith, but that wasn¡¯t quite enough to serve as reliable armor, especially when people had Skills and Abilities that allowed them to punch through steel like paper. Upgrading his skills and equipment was a must, but the monster¡¯s hooked leg was too large for the Blade Body mutation to absorb, which is why Calvin had planned on having a blacksmith work the Jerrytanium into a blade. That had gone poorly. During the forging process, the heat had burned up some of the elements in the metal, poisoning the smith, ruining the man¡¯s forge, and winding up with a lump of normal iron. When Calvin had shown up the next day, the man had tried to have him arrested, and it had been a real challenge to calm him down. So, the material can¡¯t be worked like iron, Calvin thought to himself, hefting the tiny diamond he¡¯d purchased from a jeweler. The thing was small, and cloudy, so he¡¯d been able to get it at a good price. The look of disgust on the woman¡¯s face when you asked for the cheapest diamond in the store was priceless. All he needed to do was use Shaping to create a stamp and press out of Jerrytanium, load several thousand pounds on top of it to forcibly stamp out a rough blade shape, then grind the profile into shape with a diamond file. The diamond was a little small to casually make things out of, and if he had the opportunity, he¡¯d like to get a bigger one to hang on his belt beside his Jerrytanium marble. Calvin had already tried removing the hook at the end of the blade with a normal whetstone and got nowhere, so he knew he needed to go harder. ¡°All right,¡± Calvin said as he turned into the shady alley where he¡¯d secreted his pile of materials. ¡°Jerry-tanium processing attempt number f-¡° Cal stopped in stunned silence, staring at the tiny metal¡­people? Their arms and legs were composed of two metal rods on joints, their feet were spring steel and their hands were large claws spilling over with odd-shaped tools. Their bodies were unique. Some of them had shiny rounded bodies, their centers looking very similar to the Bent Engine that Elliot had mentioned, while others thrummed in place, covered in soot and putting out little puffs of smoke over their shoulder. They were odd looking creatures, and they were swarming over his haul of precious materials. As a matter of fact, two of them were carrying one of his Jerrytanium legs toward a hole in the nearby building, looking for all the world like successful lumberjacks moving timber. ¡°Hey! That¡¯s mine!¡± Calvin shouted, waving his arms and running toward them. The little monsters scattered in seconds, some of them curling into balls and rolling while others flew away, trailing little smoke lines behind them. One seemed to turn into a crab and walk up the side of a building, hiding in the rafters. Calvin ran up to where they¡¯d dropped his loot and inspected it. Nothing was damaged, but nearly everything was gone. The armor plating, the colored wired, the Bent Engine, nearly all of it. It seemed like the blade was among the less desireable scavenging materials. I guess it makes sense that if there are metal monsters, there would be metal scavengers too, Calvin thought, picking up his blade and putting it over his shoulder. Damn. Damn, damn. Now he only had the one longsword-sized blade left, and the marble in his pocket. unit has property dispute? ¡°What?¡± Calvin oriented on the odd buzzing sound coming from his left. In the hole, a single glass lens on the end of a brass tube seemed to¡­look at him. ¡°What did you just say?¡± unit has property dispute? The words were all garbled up, and calvin couldn¡¯t quite make them out. There were parts he almost recognized, but for the most part it was gibberish. Maybe they could understand him? ¡°I stored this monster here, it was mine. This,¡± Calvin said, holding out the blade, ¡°This is mine.¡± This street is a recognized neutral zone, and penis-bearing flesh unit has no claim of ownership. Please put down the weapon. ¡°I understood maybe a quarter of that,¡± Calvin said. Your inefficient meat-brain is no excuse for being an idiot. Please put down the weapon. ¡°Put down the weapon?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. That¡¯s what it sounded like it said, anyway. he glanced at the razor sharp blade in his hand, and saw opportunity. I think he called you an idiot. ¡°Okay, I¡¯m going to put down the weapon,¡± Calvin said, slowly lowering the blade to the ground. ¡°I¡¯d like to talk to you, is that okay?¡± The penis-bearing flesh unit has proven to be amenable, so we will hear out it?s mewling, however the salvage has already gone toward the creation of more knick-knacks, and its return is therefore non-negotiable. The metal creature stepped out of the hole, its eye retracting into its head as it stood in front of him, arms crossed. The¡­penis-bearing flesh unit? Calvin thought as he tried to decipher their speech. It was coming a little easier now, but the way they spoke made it difficult. Elliot started chortling in earnest. ¡°Your people stol ¨C took ¨C those legs,¡± calvin said, pointing at the remaining scythe-like silver blade. ¡°Does that mean that you know how to work the metal?¡± Ah, I see what you¡¯re getting at. The creature¡¯s lenses flicked down to the blade then back up to Calvin. The penis-bearing flesh unit wishes to barter for services? ¡°Could you stop calling me ¡®The penis-bearing flesh unit¡¯?¡± Calvin said. ¡°My name is Calvin¡­ and yes, I would like to barter for services.¡± *** ¡°Stand back, Cal-VIN unit,¡± the Knick-knack said, motioning to Calvin. ¡°Your fleshy human eyeballs are weak to sparks.¡± ^ Translated from Knick-Knack. One of the little metal creatures took Calvin¡¯s stencil for a knife and laid it down on top of the blade. With a flick of its wrist, a strangely glowing arc of light popped out and traced the stencil, creating a tidal wave of sparks as it followed the outline with inhuman speed and accuracy. Calvin squinted his eyes and covered his face from the sudden eruption of light and heat, waiting for the creature to finish. In a matter of minutes, the form was cut out, then sharpened, and Calvin had his first Jerrytanium knife. It was a silvery thing, one solid piece of incredibly tough metal that had been cut, grinded and polished in the amount of time it took to get a suitable bribe for the little creatures. ¡°There,¡± Calvin said pulling the payment out of it¡¯s bag. ¡°One jar of Blueroot sap.¡± Blueroot sap was a resinous substance that came from a dark blue tuber. It dried hard but flexible and and was often used as a roofing sealant. Sometimes as syrup. ¡°Why do you want something like that, anyway?¡± He asked as the Knick-Knack¡¯s leader took the thick blue sludge out of his hand and opened the jar, rubbing a bit between it¡¯s steel wrench-like fingers. It seemed pleased at the sticky ropes of blue gunk. ¡°Cured Blueroot makes an excellent insulator, but it is far too rare and expensive to acquire in large quantities. How did a meat creature like yourself manage to acquire this much in one trip?¡± ¡°Ummm¡­¡± Calvin don¡¯t ¨C ¡°They¡¯re selling it down at the shipyard for cheap. Stuff¡¯s got nowhere to go because of the, so the merchants are trying to offload anything they can before it spoils.¡± The Knick-Knack¡¯s fingers opened in surprise, dropping the jar to the ground, where it chipped before another of the tiny creatures picked up the jar. The creature began to let out a strange wail, as if their voices were fluctuating to fast to be perceived, then, as suddenly as they had begun, they stopped. ¡°Thank you for the information, here are your knives.¡± Three of the metal creatures, one shiny and smooth, one trembling with some kind of internal purr, and a third with strange geodesic shapes painted on armor plates, approached Calvin with the three knives. We could have gotten so much more out of them. We got goodwill. They¡¯re machines. I don¡¯t think goodwill is a factor. At least they¡¯ll factor that I¡¯m trustworthy, and be more inclined to work with me again. Fair point. Calvin absorbed the first knife with Blade Body, replacing his old one, then tucked the next two in his belt. When he got Knife Work to level ten, he would be able to absorb a second. ¡°We¡¯re going to go capitalize on your human fascination with hurting each other and causing misery. It has been profitable working with you, meatbag.¡± ¡°Likewise, scrapheap,¡± Calvin said, and saw the aperture of the creature¡¯s eye twitch. ¡°Do you have a place in town I can find you for more trade, or are grimy, stinking alleys your natural habitat?¡± ¡°1337 Speech Road. We own that location.¡± Elliot gave a chuckle at that, but Calvin had no idea why. Calvin and the tiny swarm of metal gremlins went their separate ways at the end of the alley, and Calvin paused to watch them roll/fly/crawl down the cobbled streets. The people on the street never gave them more than a second glance. Calvin had never been in a city this large, and non-humans still gave him a bit of shock every time he saw them, but judging by the way others reacted, they were nothing too out of the ordinary. What would be completely out of the ordinary, I wonder? Did you notice? Yeah, Cal finished Elliot¡¯s thought. They run in a swarm. Well, you gonna kill one or what? I¡¯ll think about it. The fact that they¡¯re sapient makes the summoning a poor fit. If they are still cogent enough to work a spanner when they¡¯re summoned ¨C which is what we want ¨C they should be able to disobey me. Also, moral implications. Bah, moral implications. Trust me, they don¡¯t care one way or the other. They¡¯re machines. Do you think I made AI with the desire to continue living and multiply? Hell no, that would be the end of mankind. Besides, one of those sumbitches with a multitool would be a hell of a good swiss army summon. What¡¯s a swiss army summon? Calvin asked. You¡¯re focusing on the wrong thing here. Alright, then tell me how I¡¯m supposed to eat thirty pounds of metal and a bent Engine, which, according to you, Has material that is toxic to life as we know it. Grab Consume. That¡¯s in the Chained Spirit Skill. Would it even work with Calvinian Summoning? Of course it would. It doesn¡¯t say consume and add to Chained spirits slots. It only says consume. The wording suggests that it could be triggered at any time, even with full slots, and would effectively give you all the benefits of consuming a creature, thereby triggering the Calvinian summoning request to add the creature to a slot. You¡¯ve put a lot of thought into this. Calvin thought. If I¡¯m gonna be backseat driving for the rest of your life, I might as well be engaged. Huh, Calvin thought glancing toward the Knick-Knacks, who were already long gone. Alright, not gonna do it until you¡¯ve got a good way of negotiating one of them to serve me faithfully in death, forever. Calvin turned and headed for a couple blocks over, where there was still a spark of life on the streets, and he could get himself a carpe while planning his last day before they put him back up on the wall. He needed to increase his survivability. Calvin sat down with an overpriced cup the blood-red juice while he mentally brought up his Skills. Skills: Stealth 6 Talking to Girls 8 Acting 8 Read Expressions 7 Sense-Grafting 8 Knife-Work 5 Dupdomancy 13 Hunting 5 Meditation 11 Chained Spirit 5 Calvinian Summoning 10 Your Princess is in Another Castle 3 Fishing 3 Genosian Language 4 Beli Ma 3 Calvin drummed his fingers on the cup as he thought. He already knew for a fact what was in each of the Skills at five or above. Prey¡¯s Body from the Hunting Kill would be good for keeping him alive, but he¡¯d have to gain five levels of Hunting in one day. Hunting was much slower to level on account of it¡¯s tedious nature, not to mention the experience penalty form Shadowboxing. He could select a Chained spirit mutation and continue leveling the skill, but without an actual summon, it didn¡¯t give him any inherent boost to his defences. Beli Ma had only leveled twice in a week, so Calvin didn¡¯t expect he¡¯d be getting himself to level five in one day. Use Shadow boxing to train Your Princess is in another Castle to find out what the abilities do? Calvin chuckled to himself, picturing breaking into Kala¡¯s bedroom and then running off with her over his shoulder. She might even help if he explained it was for science. Then he frowned, looking at Genosian language. It was almost level five. Cal took a sip of the bitter juice. It tasted like it was starting to go off, picking up a coppery tang that made it taste like blood. Combined with the appearance, it wasn¡¯t a great feeling. I¡¯ll never understand how you savages can drink that. Elliot made retching noises in Calvin¡¯s head. How about I Shadowbox Fishing and Genosian Language to level five? He thought, I don¡¯t see why not. Calvin left the shop and found a quiet place to meditate. In his dream, he taught a gaggle of Genosian children how to fish, so they didn¡¯t have to be gods-damned cannibals. Fishing has reached Level 4! Level 4: Boosts effectiveness of bait and line strength. 20% correction Genosian Language has reached level 5! Genosian Language level 5: Boosts acquisition, comprehension, and cultural nuance of the Genosian Language. 25% correction. +1 Stability! Please choose an ability or mutation. Abilities: Language barrier: User may coach their thoughts in Genosian or any other language they are fluent in, typically whichever is more poorly understood by the enemy, making Mind reading/controlling magic significantly less effective unless they are fluent in all languages the user is. Exotic accent: The user may flawlessly adopt a Genosian accent which lends an air of exotic mystery. Applies the Genosian Language correction to the user''s attractiveness to women. ^Triggered by Talking to Girls Private Conversation: 1 bent: the user and the target may freely speak in a manner that conveys a great deal of meaning while seeming innocuous to observers. ^Practical. I like it. Mutations: The Genosian tongue: User''s tongue becomes long and prehensile, without affecting the user''s speech. Used for speaking Genosian more clearly. ^Sure, THAT''S what you''d use it for. Have I told you the story about the fugly guy who got all the babes in the bar? He just kept licking his eyebrows. The gift of Tongues: Pay one Bent and consume the tongue of a fluent language speaker to gain fluency in that language. Permanently. ^Well, that''s pretty Genosian for you. Tribal Dentistry: The user''s teeth become stronger and any teeth the user loses will regrow over the course of two weeks. ^ Good skill for retirement. Gumming food is annoying. Full-On Genosian mouth: Combines the effect of The Genosian Tongue and Tribal Dentistry, in addition to changing the user''s teeth to more closely resemble those of the Genosians ^Yeah, but why? Calvin scrolled through them. I choose Consume and The Gift of tongues. Wait why- User will be rendered unconscious while Mutations are taking place. Calvin felt his organs begin painfully shifting inside himself, making room for¡­something, moments before he lost consciousness. When Calvin opened his eyes again it was early evening. Why those two? Elliot asked. ¡°Because sooner or later, I¡¯m going to have to eat a dragon with steel plates for scales or something, and I¡¯d rather not have to do that manually, and second,¡± Calvin reviewed the choices again. ¡°If I get eight or more fluent languages, then Language Barrier should be very difficult to get through for an Ilethan mind-mage. As it stands right now, though, I only speak Genosian and Gadveran fluently. Among the Ilethans, that probably isn¡¯t particularly uncommon. They trade with the Genosians, after all. I speak a bit of Malkenrovian and Ilethan too, but the ability specified fluency. Consuming people¡¯s tongues enables fluency.¡± Still, you¡¯re gonna have to wait until Genosian language hits level ten, and you don¡¯t exactly have a lot of people to practice on. ¡°I¡¯ll figure something out,¡± Calvin said, closing his eyes again and dropping into a dream of the spawning season of Deinos, when there were so many fish that the shallows turned red with the shape of them. All it took was a bundle of eggs, and the fish would snatch them up, trying to carry their young upstream. It was a cruel ploy, but undeniably effective. Calvin was casually hauling in his twentieth imaginary Klum under the envious gaze of the rest of the villagers of Deinos, when the entire riverbank bucked violently, shaking Calvin to his core. ¡°What the-¡° Something punched Calvin in the nose, and when he opened his eyes, he was face-down, kissing the wooden floor of the Inn he¡¯d come to meditate away from the distractions of the palace. Namely Kala, Ella, and the snoopy general. Calvin pushed himself up and tried to stand, but his legs were tangled in the sheets. Matter of fact, the bed itself was toppled over, leaning partly on him. The room¡¯s lamp had shattered on the ground, and in an instant, half of the room was on fire, blocking his way to the front door. The rumbling of falling buildings and the shrill screams of women ¨C and possibly men ¨C echoed through the slatted window. Something¡¯s wrong. Calvin was deciding whether to spit at the fire and create one hundred sixty-nine pounds of drool to smother the flame for a quick escape down the stairs, or to break through the window and aim for the outside, bypassing whatever hazards were in the oddly listing building. While he was thinking, the world made his choice for him. The slatted windows burst open, and one of Elliot¡¯s hunter-Killers landed in the room, it¡¯s razor sharp limbs sinking into the floor. It inspected Calvin for a moment, it¡¯s blunt head cocked slightly to the side as it¡¯s unnatural eyes focused and unfocused on him. ***Kala*** ¡°So, what are we doing here?¡± The towering Genosian girl asked as they entered the musty bookstore. The owner, an ancient Malkenrovian man with a shock of white hair and a glass eye watched the sharp-toothed girl suspiciously. ¡°We are exploring.¡± Kala said, inhaling the nostalgic scent.. ¡°Is that what that was?¡± Ella asked, pointing a thumb at the attendants hauling a cart full of pots and pans, flour, chamberpots and other sundries. All things she planned on giving to the poor once their little shopping spree was over¡­ except for a bolt of dark blue velvet that would look great on the Genosian¡¯s grey-purple skin. The thought of having the tall girl model for her sent a little thrill through her body, causing her heart to slam against her ribcage and stomach to flutter for an instant before she calmed herself. ¡°That was a little bit of exploring, but we wandered around buying things at random mostly to reassure everyone that I¡¯m still alive, and that everything¡¯s normal. To be seen being a princess, you know?¡± She directed her attention to Ud, the man pulling the wagon. ¡°Could you take all of that to the slums?¡± She lowered her voice. ¡°Except the velvet.¡± One of the attendants pulled the cloth aside while Ud went his own way. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Ella responded to her question. ¡°I never had to prove that I still existed.¡± ¡°Politics become increasingly odd as they scale up.¡± Kala said. ¡°People are ignorant and rumors travel fast. The day after I disappeared, everyone thought I was dead or captured. Only by making a big production of simply existing, will the rumors be quenched.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± Ella said, poking a bookshelf. ¡°That¡¯s annoying.¡± ¡°Right!¡± Kala said, bringing herself back on task. ¡°That¡¯s not what I wanted to talk about anyway.¡± She stepped up beside Ella and briefly noticed her body heat before grabbing one of the tomes. ¡°This,¡± She said, pointing to it, ¡°is a book.¡± ¡°I know what a book is.¡± Ella said with a hint of ire. ¡°They tell you how to do things. Father has one on traps and hunting. I learned how to make snares from the pictures.¡± Did she not know how to read? This might be harder than Kala had thought. It made sense, but illiteracy was¡­unusual for a Gadveran. So unusual that she hadn¡¯t even considered it. ¡°Well, books are also for stories.¡± Kala said. ¡°For example, one of my favorites,¡± she reached out and grabbed the well-used book from its familiar slot. ¡°Clan of the Cave Gardor, where a noble woman is exiled to the wilderness to die by her family for a crime she didn¡¯t commit, then she¡¯s rescued by a clan of cave-dwelling savages. To get revenge, she¡¯s forced to rise through the ranks of these well-muscled, lusty men and women using the only currency she has: her body.¡± Kala¡¯s body warmed a bit as she recalled all the specific needs that the numerous cave people had, and how much Evelyn found herself enjoying giving them what they wanted. Then she realized Ella was watching her with a frown. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Why would they rescue her? if she was a soft noblewoman, she would have been more of a hindrance than anything else, and surely she¡¯d be delicious.¡± Kala blinked. ¡°because otherwise the story would end there.¡± ¡°Ah. True. But why hard labor? If she was one of your noblewoman, her interpersonal and language Skills should have been relatively high. They could have used her to negotiate trade deals with foreigners that would have more than paid for her keep.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t hard labor per se, They were isolationist, and-¡° ¡°Then why didn¡¯t they eat her?¡± ¡°because she was pretty and-¡° ¡°Well, that doesn¡¯t make a lot of sense.¡± ¡°Because the book is about sex! Okay!?¡± Kala said a bit louder than she had intended. ¡°Lots and lots of sex! That¡¯s what the story¡¯s about. It¡¯s a fantasy about a woman getting passed around by cave people, and logic kind of messes that up!¡± The owner of the library gave her a raised eyebrow and her attendants pretended not to notice. ¡°Oh.¡± Ella glanced down at the cover contemplatively. ¡°Can you read some?¡± ***Later*** ¡°Grog made the mating sign, one brutish hand clasped around the other, but this time, he was facing Evelyn, expectation glittering in his cruel eyes.¡± Kala looked over, enjoying the girl¡¯s horrified expression. ¡°Enquacha!¡± ¡°No, he can¡¯t do that! She was claimed by Bar¨¦d in front of the whole tribe!¡± Ella shouted, lunging out of her comfy recliner to shake Kala¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Grog¡¯s a total aneuhenaha!¡± ¡°Le-e-e-t me-e-e F-in-ish.¡± Kala said, her voice trembling as the bigger girl jostled her. ¡°This better turn out okay for Evelyn,¡± Ella said, putting a threatening finger under Kala¡¯s nose. ¡°Noted,¡± Kala said, returning to the book. Maybe I¡¯ll skip chapter fourteen. ¡°Grog advanced on her, pinning Evelyn¡¯s hands to the cold stone floor, assaulting her nose with his barbaric musk. She could feel the blood rushing to Grog¡¯s loins as they pressed insistently against the thin piece of silk that lay between them, her last reminder of the life she¡¯d had before this horrible place.¡± Ella kicked Kala¡¯s seat. ¡°I¡¯m getting there,¡± Kala said with a scowl. Kala skipped past a bit of the more graphicly descriptive paragraphs and got to the rescue so the impatient Genosian would stop kicking her chair. ¡°At the final moment, Bared appeared at the entrance to Grog¡¯s smoke-cave, his muscles glistening from exertion. At the sight of Grog atop his mate, he let out a thunderous-¡° The sound of a distant explosion slammed through the library seconds before the entire shop seemingly hopped in place, sending the two of them up into the air, then down again in a pile of books. The lanterns that had been lit to read into the night had smashed down around them, lighting the library on fire. The owner was struggling weakly under a shelf, blood pulsing from a wound on his scalp. ¡°What was that?¡± Kala breathed, flexing her lip where the book had slammed into it. ¡°Nothing good.¡± Ella said, coming to her feet, skin turning silver. ¡°Calvin.¡± Ella said, turning toward the Northeast. ¡°Mr. Grosh first.¡± Kala said, heaving the shelf off the old man with one hand and sliding him out with the other. ¡°My store ¨C¡° ¡°Mr. Grosh?¡± Kala said sweetly in her princess-voice, kneeling to make eye contact with the dazed man. ¡°As your princess I am ordering you to go to the castle, because your store is fucked, and if you don¡¯t get moving right now, you¡¯re going to be burned alive or cut down by Ilethans. Do you understand?¡± He nodded and climbed to his feet, holding one hand to his head as he stumbled out into the quickly filling streets, turning toward the west. ¡°Now Calvin?¡± ¡°Now.¡± Kala said, glancing at the link in Ella¡¯s aura that gave Calvin¡¯s direction. ¡°He¡¯s that wa-¡° Ella was already running past Kala¡¯s dazed retainers, giving Kala no choice but to put her head down and sprint after the Genosian. Kala wasn¡¯t worried though, she knew where she was going. I wish I had one of those Guya links, then I could find him whenever I... Ah, damn, we left the velvet in the fire. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 9/30 Chapter 47: Paddywack *** Calvin¡¯s breath caught in his lungs. He knew what was going to happen next: the creature would rush toward him with unnatural smoothness, and its razor sharp legs would reduce him to quivering chunks of bloody meat. The sheer panicked adrenaline saw him fumbling into his belt, drawing the Jerrytanium knife and flicking it forward faster than he could think. Shaping. 10/12 Bent Remaining. ¡°You-¡° A man¡¯s gravelly voice oozed out of the metallic beast an instant before a massive trident of Jerrytanium formed from the tip of Calvin¡¯s knife caught the Hunter-Killer and pinned it to the wall. Calvin scrambled to his feet and dodged around the flailing limbs whizzing through the air as the creature tried to unpin itself from the wall. He ducked to the side and grabbed his component belt before jumping out the window the monster had just come from. Calvin burst through the shattered slats, his heart slamming against his chest, too in the moment to feel the wood scrape against his skin as he came out of the third story window. The entire Inn was at a slant, and Calvin found himself sliding down the painted wooden surface rather than falling straight down to the ground. A second later he pushed off the wood and landed on the ground, casting his gaze around for any sign of what had happened. The buildings around him were demolished, like a toddler had gotten tired of playing with its blocks and upended his entire construction. The street was choked with civilians, men and women, both wounded and unwounded, were panicking on the street. Cries of desperation and pain filled the air, but the herd mentality seemed to lead them in the appropriate direction: Away from the wall. The Inn Calvin had been staying in was a block away from the wall. Uncomfortably closed for some, but cheap. To the left, the buildings closer to the wall were nothing but rubble, and¡­Calvin noticed that a huge chunk of the night sky was dark, something gigantic was blocking out the stars. From that direction, more Hunter-Killers were crawling over theruined buildings, swarming toward Calvin and the rest of the civilians. A man threw a torch at one of the creatures, who dodged it easily, but the burning piece of wood and cloth sailed far past it, bathing a small fraction of the towering thing in illumination. Far above him, Calvin saw metal plates the size of bathtubs that seemed to slowly move, as if whatever was beneath them was breathing. Then the torch went out. Calvin decided it was time to get out of here. Shrieks rose as the metallic creature began to tear through the crowd. I need to save as many people as possible. Oh, come on, don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re ¨C And use them to buy time. Fair enough. Calvinian summoning. Heart of the Swarm. 9/12 Bent remaining. Calvin split the swarm into two groups, the escape group of some five hundred pounds, roughly triple his body weight, went three different directions: east, southeast, and northeast. If any of them were destroyed, it would shift the location he reappeared farther away from whatever killed them. The other half, the amount of wasps he¡¯d been able to summon at level eight, spread out among the killing machines, their only purpose to land on the creature¡¯s eyeballs and cloud their vision. Calvin watched in amazement as his awareness ballooned outward, encompassing the entire block, and rapidly stretching even further outward as approximately two million wasps choked the air around the Ilethan creatures flooding into the city. Off the top of my head? A lot. The wasps couldn¡¯t do anything more than cover the creature¡¯s eyes, as their stingers simply clinked against glass and steel, their poison completely ineffective. It was enough though. People, when faced with death, can find a respectable amount of hustle, and the civilians fled toward the castle while the metal creatures killed Calvin¡¯s swarm by the thousands, crushing them off of their eyes, slicing them out of the air. Out of curiosity, Calvin pushed his swarm of wasps over toward the giant¡­thing, that dominated the next street over. He couldn¡¯t see particularly well in the dark, but the sensitive feet and millions of contact points allowed him to make out something big and cylindrical, covered in armored plates that doubled as feet. Feels like the descriptions I¡¯ve heard of a Berengas wurm, but it¡¯s metal? That would make plowing through solid steel more viable. I actually don¡¯t know that kind of ¡®bot. Maybe they mutated one? Calvin didn¡¯t know enough to weigh in on that, and his focus was stolen by something off to the side. Grant and Nadia were walking down the street, just one block over from where Calvin had been, protected by a barrier of whirling knives. It looked like the massive sword weilder had adapted to Calvin¡¯s swarms, and replaced his steak knives with actual daggers. He looked grim as he walked beside Nadia, the two of them flanked by six of the Hunter-killers. Nadia, on the other hand, looked terrible. Her face was sunken and grey, wearing the same clothes as¡­Dear Elani, eight days ago? Calvin, like a typical boy, was unopposed to wearing the same shirt for a few weeks at a time if it was still clean, but Nadia¡¯s armor was torn and crusted with her own blood, in such a state that even he thought it was out of the ordinary. The black eye she¡¯d gotten from Kala hadn¡¯t healed either, instead it was an ugly purple with greenish tinge at the edges, fresh as the day she¡¯d gotten it. Something is very wrong here. Why? Calvin¡¯s Intuition struggled to put the facts together and form a conclusion out of what he had available, but in the end, failed to come up with anything useful, other than a strange foreboding. Calvin sent a probe in, a few thousand wasps as a hello, but they didn¡¯t make it past the large man¡¯s whizzing barrier of knives. Need to Get Atom ant sooner or later to let my wasps compete with things like that. At level fifteen, he would be able to sacrifice fifteen times the wasps mass to make it fifteen times stronger. For a little wasp that might not mean much, but scale it up to the size of a small dog, and then you had something dangerous. Assuming I ever get there, Calvin thought as he guided his escape groups away from the fighting. At the rate you¡¯re getting into life or death situations¡­yeah, I think you¡¯ll get there. At Elliot¡¯s words Nadia¡¯s head whipped up and she studied the wasp swarm hovering around their dome of safety. She inhaled deeply through her nosem and let out a shuddering sigh, as if tasting the air on the way back out, too. Well, that¡¯s creepy, but at least she¡¯d not using her damn mind magic¡­Why isn¡¯t she using her mind magic? An entire week had gone by, so there was no reason for the Ilethan sorceress not to have restored most if not all of her Bent. Is she saving it for me or something? That doesn¡¯t make a lot of sense. She demonstrated more than enough Bent to overwhelm me casually, she didn¡¯t seem the type to skimp on it, and yet she¡¯s just walking beside Grant¡­sniffing for things. Calvin watched with a thousand eyes in the growing light of the city-wide fire as Nadia took a sharp left turn angling toward Calvin¡¯s inn. She stopped right where he¡¯d been standing when he¡¯d used Heart of the Swarm, and began testing the air with her nose and tongue in a way that seemd to genuinely make Grant uncomfortable, the big man shifting away from the grey princess. The front line had long since moved forward, so there was no one else there to witness the strange sight of a pallid princess climbing the side of an inn, pausing at the broken shutters to sniff the wood, her strangely dark tongue flicking out like a snake¡¯s to test the splintered wooden frame. Hey I think she just- ¡°Divination¡­¡± She frowned, seemingly unhappy with the result of the spell, just as Calvin felt an itch on the back of his imaginary neck, like some fuzzy something was watching each of his wasp bodies, and he could make out its malignant gaze boring into their backs. She reached out with a finger and slid it across the sharp edges of the shattered wood slats, the very tip coming back with a bit of red. Is that my- ¡°Spell Purge.¡± **** Calvin¡¯s eyes flew open, six feet above the cobbled stone streets, arms and legs flailing as he slammed into the ground halfway between his three escape swarms and his delaying swarm. When the time was right, he¡¯d planned on having the delaying swarm cease to exist by biting off each other¡¯s heads, canceling out their mass and allowing him to reappear much further away, but he hadn¡¯t had time to do that. He landed right on the front lines, not nearly as close to the castle as he¡¯d wanted to be, among the mass of panicked gadveran civilians running for the safety of the palace. Calvin forced himself to his feet and joined them before he was trampled to death. Not a hundred percent sure the castle is a safe place to be at this point, buddy. What, would you prefer I go to the docks and board a ship, with that fleet out there? Then at least your opponents would be human, am I right? Calvin weighed the situation. From what he¡¯d seen in the air, Fires were engulfing the entire city. The infrastructure, and therefore the city¡¯s ability to sustain a war, was going up in smoke as he stood there thinking about it. Even if they pushed the invasion out again, they had a gaping hole in their wall, and nowhere for people to eat, sleep or cook food. The palace was designed to be easily defended, but against that enormous metal wurm? Cal saw it as a matter of time before the entire structure was torn down. We¡¯re screwed. Calvin changed direction, turning toward the north and muscling his way through the crowd of civilians that was carrying him westward like a white-water river, aiming for the docks. The port was guarded by twin towers that stood on either side of the bay, with defensive trebuchets ready to rain fiery death on any ship that got too close. The Ilethan fleet prowled just outside the trebuchet¡¯s range, circling like vultures. Once they saw the fire spreading in the city, they would be sure to seize the opportunity. Calvin burst out of the crowd of bodies on a small off-road that led a winding route to the docks, only used by the men and women who lived and worked in that neighborhood. Calvin took his first step down the street and froze. I need people. Escaping by himself was pointless. He needed people to be a wizard-king, and if he lost Baroke, Kala, and Ella after all the loss he¡¯d experienced the last few months, well, his Intuition told him it would cause a wound that he¡¯d have a hard time recovering from. For the sake of my girlfriends, my future, and my sanity, let¡¯s be heroic, Calvin thought, turning back toward the stream of Gadverans. Ah, selfish altruism. Calvin raised his hands and a two thousand giant wasps burst out, each the size of his fist, spreading out over the burning city. Heart of the Swarm. Suddenly bursting into giant wasps wasn¡¯t the best way to keep people calm, and more than a few people screamed at the sight of him, trying to force their way deeper into the crowd, but larger eyes had longer vision, so he did what he had to do. Calvin spread out, covering half the city in a quick sweep with the larger wasps, moving as fast as he could without losing detail. I just realized you¡¯d be really good at Amber Alerts. In just a minute or two, he made out Baroke¡¯s heavily muscled frame standing out among the civilians. To his credit, the boy about Calvin¡¯s age was ushering people twice his age toward the castle without any seeming panic. His yellow and brown livery must have given him some sense of responsibility, despite only being in the army a week Baroke looked up as the buzzing around him got stronger, tensed to fight. Did I show him my wasps? I don¡¯t think I did. ¡°Baroke!¡± Calvin said, appearing at the center of the wasps as he dismissed the spell. The heavy hitter gave an awkward squawk and a reflexive punch, but this time Calvin was ready, and simply leaned out of the way. ¡°Don¡¯t do that!¡± he shouted. ¡°Baroke, let¡¯s help people get the fuck outta here! It¡¯s not looking good!¡± ¡°I gotta make sure everyone gets into the palace!¡± ¡°The palace is a fucking deathtrap with that thing back there!¡± Calvin said, pointing. ¡°What thing?¡± Baroke shouted over the screams of the people and the roar of the fire. ¡°Yeah, what thing?¡± Andra said, seemingly melting out of the crowd of people. ¡°Dear Kvothe!¡± Calvin shouted, flinching away from his commanding officer. ¡°Calvin, Baroke.¡± The steel-haired woman said, eyeing the two of them. ¡°Good to see you¡¯re alive. What thing?¡± The crowd seemed to flow around the woman¡¯s steel-clad body like a river around a boulder. ¡°Some kind of metal Berengas wurm!¡± Calvin said. ¡°I was near the wall when it came through! The Palace isn¡¯t going to hold up to that!¡± ¡°You¡¯d be surprised what the palace can hold up to. Metal Berangas wurm huh?¡± Andra mused for a moment. ¡°We¡¯ve got a better chance of cutting through the fleet outsi-¡° A metal palm snapped out and caught Calvin across the face, before seizing his shoulders. Andra looked him in the eye. ¡°That¡¯s planning for failure, Calvin. Even dumber than regular planning. Take a deep breath, get your shit together, and get ready to fight to win. Now, did you see any Royals guarding the wurm?¡± Calvin had gotten a good look at the wurm and its surroundings as a massive swarm of wasps. He shook his head. ¡°There¡¯s only two people that could be considered that, one girl in black, name of Nadia, one in blue, she called Grant. They aren¡¯t guarding it, they¡¯re coming after me.¡± ¡°You?¡± Andra frowned. ¡°Are you sure?¡± Calvin thought back to the princess¡¯s bruise-colored tongue delicately tasting him from the piece of wood. ¡°Pretty damn sure,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I know of her. When did you find the time to make the girl your mortal enemy?¡± ¡°Umm¡­.¡± ¡°And here I thought you snuck off that night for some show and tell with Kala,¡± Andra rolled her eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t think one smack was enough for you.¡± She refocused on the two of them, her expression hard. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve got a job for the two of you ¨C ¡° Kala and Ella came out of an alley and arrived beside Calvin, panting. ¡°What did I miss?¡± Ella asked, crossing her arms. ¡°Are you all right?¡± Kala asked, checking Calvin for wounds. ¡°You were bouncing all over the city, we thought you might be in trouble.¡± ¡°She thought you might be in trouble.¡± Ella said, crossing her arms. ¡°-Four of you.¡± ¡°Me too?¡± Kala asked curiously, probably expecting to have to fight to stay with the rest of them. ¡°Defending cities while they¡¯re on fire builds character.¡± Andra said with a cold smile. ¡°And if you die, I¡¯ll feign ignorance to your father.¡± ¡°We never saw each other,¡± Kala said, and Andra made a wordless gesture of agreement. The general pointed at a tower far to the south, on the other side of the city. ¡°That¡¯s the Academy right there, Bekvah¡¯s Alma Mater. It¡¯s got a fuck-off big machine that controls the weather. Go there, find out why the nerds aren¡¯t making it rain, fix it, and don¡¯t die while you¡¯re doing it.¡± What¡¯s thirteen pounds squared in gallons of saltwater? Not enough to put out a city. Fair enough. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 10/30 Chapter 48: Classic Party Composition Cool, we¡¯ve got the classic party composition, thief, ranger, wizard, and heavy. ¡­ who¡¯s the thief? Calvin thought as they sprinted through the streets, the heat of the flames searing against their skin from every direction. Time was running out. You, obviously. Well then who¡¯s the wizard? Kala. That doesn¡¯t make sense, I¡¯m way more of a wizard, Calvin thought as he came to a halt at a corner and used his look-stick to stealthily peek around it. There was a HK on top of the nearby burning building, completely heedless of the flames, watching for any sign of movement. Um, excuse me, can your eyes pierce the veil? I didn¡¯t think so. ¡°Up on top of the next building,¡± Calvin whispered back to the rest of the group, pointing up at it through the corner of the abandoned general store. Baroke nodded and put one of Calvin¡¯s arrows to his bowstring, switching places with him. ¡°What¡¯s he saying?¡± Kala whispered when Calvin shifted closer to her. She¡¯d been watching his ongoing conversation with Elliot for a while. Calvin looked Kala in her soft brown eyes. ¡°Believe me when I tell you, It¡¯s not important.¡± Baroke flipped around the corner and snapped off a shot with the monstrous bow the general had given him, and they were rewarded by a crunching noise and the shrieking of metal. Baroke glanced quickly at the other rooftops and then motioned for them to keep going. As one, the four of them continued down the street toward the south side of the city, aiming for the distant tower that could supposedly fix their fire problem. Calvin brought himself to the front again as they ran. He was the smallest, quietest one among them, so he¡¯d be the least likely to attract attention, and maybe that would let him spot the HKs or Ilethans first. The streets were abandoned after the initial rush, and now the only company they had as they ran through the empty storefronts was corpses and monsters. They made it to the next major crossroads, and Calvin got his breathing under control as he held out the look-stick and surveyed both directions. Nothing. He peered around the corner in both directions to make sure. The rooftops and streets themselves were empty, save for the corpses of those who hadn¡¯t been able to flee fast enough. Calvin saw a young mother and her baby who¡¯d been pinned down by rubble then finished off by HKs, and it made his stomach want to flip. ¡°Come on,¡± he whispered, waving to the rest of them as he forced the bile down. ¡°looks clear.¡± They began to follow when a HK burst through burning fences on either side of the road behind them, leaping toward Kala and Baroke in a single smooth movement. Baroke flinched backward with a squawk, holding his bow between himself and the approaching monster. The giant boy wasn¡¯t the best up close. ¡°Stop.¡± Kala said, halting the one coming after her in its tracks. Did she ever have an ability like that? Calvin recalled her doing the same thing to him while they were travelling. Maybe it¡¯s a princess thing. Meanwhile, Ella rushed past Baroke, grabbed the handle of a door that was partially off its hinges and tore the entire thing away, twisting around to bring the door between herself and the monster like a shield. In a fraction of a second, the door turned silvery, gaining the same coloration as Ella¡¯s skin, just before she slammed into the creature, driving it into the ground. It was harder than the street itself, so the creature¡¯s razor-bladed limbs were pressed deep into the cobblestone, pinning it temporarily in place. ¡°Baroke, could you-¡° Kala began, stepping back from her frozen opponent. With the hissing of displaced air, a solid metal arrow plowed through the single lens at the front of the creature¡¯s body. It gave a few odd twitches and sank downward as its limbs lost strength. A fraction of a second later, Baroke shot another arrow through the eye of Ella¡¯s opponent, killing it instantly. It was much more Bent efficient for all parties involved for Calvin to spend one Bent on making Baroke a couple dozen arrows capable of penetrating the monsters without assistance than it was to leave everyone to their own devices. It gave Baroke a big head though. ¡°How about that?¡± Baroke said with a grin, easily spinning the heavy bow back and forth in his grip. ¡°That¡¯s three to one so far. I hear you had a real hard time with these things, but I¡¯m just not seeing it.¡± ¡°Oh, so you don¡¯t need my arrows?¡± Calvin asked. Baroke stopped spinning the bow. ¡°I never said that.¡± ¡°Good, now thank Ella for saving your ass.¡± ¡°Thank you ma¡¯m.¡± Baroke said obligingly. ¡°You should put on some fat.¡± Ella said, appraising Baroke. ¡°Too much muscle is bland.¡± Baroke paled. ¡°No scaring my friends!¡± Calvin said, tossing a pebble at her. ¡°If there¡¯s nothing more here, let¡¯s keep moving. We¡¯re nowhere near where we need to be, and Baroke¡¯s arrows only have another half hour before they disappear.¡± Calvin led the way as they resumed their sprint down the empty streets. ¡°How did you do that door trick? It was impressive.¡± Kala asked while they were running, the tower of the Academy looming over them. ¡°I got Shield Work, Heavy Armor, and Meat Shield when Calvin and I were up on the wall,¡± Ella said with a shrug. ¡°Probably the only reason I¡¯m still alive.¡± Calvin nearly missed a step. She got three defensive skills in a matter of minutes, and I¡¯m stuck with next to none? That¡¯s not including her Iron Skin! Says the guy who can turn into wasps to escape. ¡°So you used the door as a shield? How did it turn shiny like that?¡± Ella flashed her a bright smile. ¡°Somehow Heavy armor and Shield Work pair well with Iron Skin. The Skill reinforces my armor and makes my skin smooth as polished steel.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Kala asked, and Calvin could hear the interest in her voice. ¡°You should feel it sometime.¡± Calvin shot a glare over his shoulder at Ella, who shrugged. ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± Calvin said, glancing up at the tower ahead of them before fixing them with a stern glare. ¡°Raise your hand if you¡¯re ready to stop flirting.¡± He raised his hand, followed by Baroke, and reluctantly, Ellan and Kala. ¡°Good,¡± Calvin said, dropping low and creeping forward. ¡°Mm, it¡¯s so hot when he takes charge like that.¡± Someone whispered, too quiet to determine who it was. ¡°The view when he¡¯s crouched, amazing.¡± Another whisper. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and spotted Kala and Ella with grim faces, weapons at the ready. The perfect picture of innocence. Baroke¡¯s head was in his hand. He could feel the inappropriate playfulness from their gaze, a mindset they had both latched onto, playing off each other to mask their fear of death. There are several options here, I¡¯m going to choose the one that owns the situation rather than start a silly fight. ¡°No one told you to stop complementing me.¡± Calvin said, glancing between them and noting a twitch in Ella¡¯s mouth as she struggled to keep a straight face. Kala was better. He turned back and ignored the whispered commentary about his form as he sank down on all fours and made for the entrance to the Academy¡¯s plaza. Stealth has reached Level 7! Level 7: 35% correction. Told ya you were the thief. Calvin ignored the level and the snarky comment, and silently crawled along the side before peering around the edge of the building with his look-stick. The extra point of view was easier to process now, and Calvin had gotten the hang of shoving it into a pocket where it couldn¡¯t see anything when it wasn¡¯t in use. He peered around the corner, and his heart sank. There were four of the HKs patrolling the plaza outside the academy. One of them was perched atop a fancifully robed corpse slumped halfway into the central fountain, while the other three moved back and forth across the grounds, their single glass eye panning back and forth for anything out of the ordinary. There were minced bodies of Gadveran wizards strewn across the cobblestones, identifiable by their fancy robes and the way some of them seemed aloof, even in death. A metal monster¡¯s gaze passed over his little stick, lingered for a fraction of a second that seemed to stretch out forever, then dismissed it moving on with its patrol. Calvin spotted two Ilethan soldiers minding the HKs, who were engaged in a distant conversation. Sense-Grafting. 7/12 Bent Remaining. Sense-Grafting has reached level 9! Sense Grafting Level 9: Sight, hearing, touch, pain, smell, Taste, Balance. Self-only, 81ft range, 45 minutes. Calvin chose a point on the right-hand soldier¡¯s armor and connected it to his sense of hearing. He had a rough grasp of the Ilethan language, but still missed a few words. ¡°I mean, I¡¯d have fucked her, don¡¯t ~ ~ wrong ¨C ¡° Calvin rolled his eyes. ¡°But that was ~¡­¡± Calvin saw the speaker motion to the four HKs. ¡°All this. Now she ~ like death, and she smells like my Nana¡¯s ~. You¡¯ve met my Nana, right?¡± Sometimes you just waste Bent and don¡¯t get anything in return. Calvin was hoping for some hint along the lines of how many people were inside, or whether they knew about and had disabled the supposed weather machine. Instead he got idle marry, fuck, kill, gossip. Welcome to the wonderful world of spying on people. It¡¯s a quantity over quality kinda deal. Cal sighed dismissed the spell before motioning the others closer. ¡°Four of them, and two Ilethan soldiers,¡± he whispered as they crouched close, keeping his attention split between them and the HK¡¯s around the corner. ¡°where are they?¡± Baroke asked quietly. ¡°The soldiers and one HK are near the fountain, while the other three are patrolling the edges of the Plaza.¡± Calvin said. ¡°that¡¯s enough of them that the chances of something going wrong are pretty good.¡± Baroke said. ¡°You got a plan?¡± ¡°When have I ever not had a plan?¡± Calvin demanded. Insolent fool. See If I make you the royal sharpshooter now. Ah, who was he kidding? Calvin was still going to allow him to be the royal sharpshooter. If he apologized. ¡°I¡¯ll disable as many as I can, then run back down the road. Ella will stand about thirty feet back with her door and knock one of the ones that follow me down, Baroke will kill one as it comes in, while Kala will stop the other long enough to let Baroke put it down. ¡°You realize if any one of us misses their shot, or they don¡¯t move the way you want them to, one of us is going to be facing two or more of those things?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°You ladies can handle two monsters at once, right?¡± Calvin asked with a smirk. Two could play at their game. ¡°Uncouth.¡± Kala crossed her arms, subtly raising her breasts. ¡°We thought better of you, Calvin,¡± Ella said, shrugging her shoulders as she hefted her wooden door. ¡°Boo.¡± Baroke joined in the lynching. Apparently not. ¡°Hypocrites, all of you.¡± Calvin gave a harsh whisper. ¡°But yes,¡± Ella said, glancing at her smaller, darker companion. ¡°We can.¡± ¡°Alright, then get in position.¡± Calvin motioned for them to fall back. They quickly fell back, Kala and Ella forming a wall, while Baroke slung his bow over his shoulder and hauled himself up onto a single-story building, Stupidly large muscles flexing as he went. The extra height gave him a clear view of the road over their heads. Here goes nothing. Calvin considered trying to keep the men in the plaza alive for interrogation, but after a moment realized it would be pointless. Keeping them alive just gave them opportunities to outsmart them and inflict harm, take a hostage or call for help. If they did interrogate them, they would then have to kill them in cold blood while they were begging them not to. That was something Calvin would rather avoid. He reached into his belt and pulled out the Fireball component, identifying it by its scratchy texture. Calvin double checked with his eyes, then focused on the tiny little sealed vial. Calvin was about to use the whole spell on the one HK when he realized that Dupdomancy had leveled up twice since he¡¯d last used it. The explosion would be a lot stronger than last time, possibly enough for multiple HKs. Mass Shaping. 6/12 Bent Remaining. Calvin combined the effects of Mass Splitting and Shaping to split the spell, targeting a point directly above the HK, allocating fifty pounds of the spell¡¯s potential. He didn¡¯t know how much heat it could take, so he wanted to be sure it got plenty. The humans were a lower priority, with nineteen pounds, as the average tolerance for being burned alive was low, he put one between the two of them. That left a hundred pounds, and Calvin targeted two of the remaining HKs with fifty pounds each. The shimmering spheres appeared above the three HKs, and directly between the chatting men. The plaza burst into pure heat with four concussive blasts. The chatting men were instantly immolated, collapsing to the ground, while the HKs stumbled out of the circles of glowing orange cobblestone, their armor similarly orange. Oh, crap. Calvin¡¯s heart hammered in his chest as he pictured an orange hot monster rushing at Kala or Ella, made even more dangerous by the spell he¡¯d cast on it. that could cause problems. A second later, his fears were put to rest as wisps of smoke rose from the creature¡¯s armor, and they came to a halt mid-stride. They were still standing, but they were either dead, or their melted armor had rendered them immobile. It was a moot point. One left, he thought, scrambling to his feet as the last one began to sprint toward him, its claws making strange crumbling noises as they cut through the cobblestone behind him. Calvin didn¡¯t know what gave him away, perhaps some kind of Bent Sense that let them track the origin of the spell? In any case, the plan was still a go as he scrambled back toward Ella, sprinting with everything he had. He put his head down and sprinted when he heard an arrow buzz past his ear, followed by a squeal of tearing metal. ¡°Keep going!¡± Ella shouted, stepping forward as he slipped past her. Once Cal was behind his meat-shield, he took a moment to turn around. Baroke had missed, his arrow lodged in the upper plate armor above the creature¡¯s eye. Likely because the monster had more time to dodge than others did. Ella gave a grunt and smashed down on the creature with the door, before Kala politely stepped in with her scavenged longsword and skewered the creature through the eye, the weakest point of its body. ¡°Where¡¯s the rest of them?¡± Baroke asked, peering down the street. ¡°That¡¯s four for me now,¡± Calvin said, polishing his fingernails on his vest. ¡°Bah,¡± Baroke grumbled as he jumped down to the street, absorbing the shock with minimal effort. Calvin scanned the plaza and the academy. The looming stone structure built around the tower had weathered the initial earthquake well, without any lighting up the inside of the building. Matter of fact, there was nothing lighting up the building at all. Each window was dark and forbidding, lending it an abandoned appearance. Calvin glanced down to the slaughtered wizards and back up at the Academy. ¡°What do you think are the odds there¡¯s anyone alive left in there?¡± He asked. Slim. ¡°Not great.¡± Kala said. ¡°Terrible.¡± Baroke said. At least there¡¯s no swarm of Hks flooding out, Calvin thought as he squared his shoulders and approached the academy. He couldn¡¯t drag his feet when he knew Nadia nd Grant were chasing him somehow. He recalled the way she tasted the air for him, and a shiver went down his spine as he approached the door. ¡°Hold on,¡± Ella said, gently moving him aside as he reached for the door. ¡°If there¡¯s anyone in here, they¡¯re waiting in ambush, and I¡¯m the one least likely to be brutally slaughtered.¡± She leaned back and kicked the large double doors open, spilling light onto a macabre scene, dozens of men and women slaughtered where they stood, each wearing the different robes of one of the academy¡¯s twelve areas of study. Calvin scanned the darkness, expecting a trap, but Ella strode in and knelt down, frowning at the bodies. She tapped a finger against the congealed blood and tasted it. ¡°These bodies have been here since this morning.¡± Ella knew her dead bodies. Genosians were more than familiar with the states of decomposition. Which meant¡­these people were dead before the wurm plowed through the city wall. ¡°Something stinks.¡± ¡°People shit themselves when they die,¡± Ella said with a shrug. ¡°That too, but I meant the fact that these people were dead before the attack,¡± Kala clarified. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not good at idioms yet.¡± ¡°Right. There was probably some kind of horrible plot, but we¡¯re not here to figure out what happened, we¡¯re here to put out the city that is currently on fire.¡± Calvin said, heading for the reception desk, trying not to look at the faces of the dead. Calvin hopped over the bloody desk and began rifling through the information until he found a helpful pamphlet, giving them a rough map of the college itself. ¡°Right there, Weather studies and manipulation.¡± Calvin said, pointing at the tower. ¡°Of course it¡¯s the tower,¡± Baroke groaned. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with the tower?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Nothing, I just don¡¯t¡­like heights, particularly.¡± ¡°I just saw you jump off a roof.¡± ¡°That¡¯s different,¡± Baroke said. ¡°One story, easy jump, easy landing. You¡¯re talking something like a hundred feet up, surrounded by a stone prison, ready to get blown over by the wind any given second. Who knows how much structural damage the earthquake did?¡± Calvin took a deep breath and looked back down at the map. ¡°How about the second floor here?¡± Calvin asked, pointing to a spot that had a great view of both the tower and the plaza. ¡°Think you could watch our backs?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not saying I can¡¯t do it, I just don¡¯t like-¡° ¡°It¡¯s fine. Having someone watch our backs is just as valuable. Give a cry if you see anyone coming, and If it¡¯s that Nadia bitch, don¡¯t engage, alright? She¡¯s bad news.¡± Baroke took another look at the map, weighing the options in his head. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll watch your backs, no problem.¡± He glanced up at the staircase. ¡°Wish me luck.¡± Calvin was fully aware that if Baroke came across a HK by himself, he was in serious danger, and if he met two, he was likely to be killed. ¡°I can come with you,¡± Kala offered, also aware of the risk. ¡°Nah, I got this,¡± Baroke said before turning to Calvin and tossing all his metallic arrows onto the floor with a ringing clatter. They were minutes from vanishing. ¡°Top me off, would you?¡± Mass Shaping. 5/12 Bent Remaining. Calvin grabbed the little ball bearing and created two dozen Jerrytanium arrows, that popped into existence in the archer¡¯s quiver. ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡± Calvin handed him one of his knives. ¡°In case we¡¯re gone longer than an hour.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Baroke said, saluting with the knife and heading up the west-leading staircase. Calvin, Kala and Ella broke for the east staircase, leading toward the tower. The hallways were silent, the stone so thick that the tumultuous noise from outside couldn¡¯t be heard as they crept along, listening for the distinctive sound of razor sharp legs on stone. They made it to the tower without incident, passing by empty classrooms draped in shadow, the only sound in their ears their own breathing and heartbeat. At the first gaping window in the enormous tower, Calvin glanced out, and spotted the muscle bound archer waving to them from a small second story window. He let out an inward sigh of relief at seeing his friend alive and well. The tower was comprised of ten floors, each one having something to do with the study or magical control of the weather. Calvin saw a couple interesting machines, and what looked like a living storm in a terrarium, but there was nothing that he would describe as Fuck-Off big. As they continued upward, Calvin got a bad feeling that whatever they were looking for was probably going to be on the top floor. They finally made it to the top, and only Kala seemed to be unaffected by the ten flights of stairs, leading the way with a perky sway that made Calvin and his Genosian glance at each other. Above them, the staircase flickered with the light of the burning city, and Calvin could hear the noise of the blaze starting to come back, along with the sound of tools striking steel and strange high-pitched whines. Something was alive up there. ¡°Hold on,¡± Calvin whispered, setting a hand on Kala¡¯s shoulder and reaching into his pocket for his Look-Stick, holding the item he¡¯d slaved his left eye¡¯s vision to over their heads. What came into view was what Calvin would describe as a ¡®fuck-off big¡¯ machine, easily the size of a house on its own, the thing was a crazy assortment of metal pipes spinning past each other at dizzying speeds around a core of crackling blue energy contained inside a cracked gemstone the size of Calvin¡¯s hut. That wasn¡¯t all, though. the machine was being worked on by at least a dozen Knick-knacks, swarming the machine under the supervision of a stately man wearing the long flowing robes of the academy, his shoulders studded with indications of which courses he¡¯d taken. It was all in the brochure. Is he trying to fix the thing? Calvin thought. ¡°There¡¯s a dozen little creatures and a man, they probably aren¡¯t hostile.¡± Calvin took his Fireball component out and held it in his hand, ready to douse them with¡­The machine. With a quick switch he pulled out the Web and Miasma between two knuckles. Those wouldn¡¯t damage the machine. ¡°Probably.¡± Kala went out first followed by Calvin and Ella, so as not to startle the man. ¡°Princess!¡± the black-haired man said, falling to one knee. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Kala asked, frowning. ¡°Your highness, Lumentrias brought in a dozen metallic monsters we¡¯ve never seen before.¡± The man¡¯s fist¡¯s shook as he clenched them. ¡°He said they were for study by the Beast-Singers, but they cut their way out of their steel cages in seconds. When we tried to flee we were cut down.¡± ¡°Lumentrias.¡± Kala said, her face contorting with an instant of un-princess like rage before she schooled it back to neutrality. ¡°Why are you still here?¡± She asked. ¡°I hid.¡± The man said, tears rolling down his cheeks. ¡°I..removed myself from the minds of people who trusted me and hid in a cabinet while everyone around me was being slaughtered. After everyone was dead, Lumentrias sent someone to destroy the Fairweather and left.¡± ¡°Who are these?¡± Kala asked, pointing at the small metal creatures crawling over the giant machine, patching the steel construction with a speed that boggled the mind. ¡°The Knick-Knacks were flying by, and thought the Fairweather was salvage¡­ I offered them a substantial payment if they could fix it instead.¡± The wizard held his palms up helplessly. ¡°My specialization is memory, I know very little about weather magic.¡± Your meat-bag machines are crude at best, the weather unit at The Forge is far more complicated. This is scribbling of a nascent Builder at best. ¡°What?¡± Kala asked. ¡°I think they can handle it.¡± Calvin said, eyeing the creature who¡¯d spoke. Its flat head nodded once before a tiny¡­fan? Deployed from its head. The fan lifted it up into the air and it¡¯s arm whirled, unfolding into a strange device that began using a bright light to cut around a massive rent in one of the copper pipes. Off to the side, an antlike series of Knick-knacks were handing a curved section of copper along themselves, without slowing their work. The copper hadn¡¯t even cooled from it¡¯s orange-hot temperature when the little creature tossed the damaged section aside and placed the patch in. It fit perfectly. Damn. I know right? that¡¯s why I like robots, and by extention, the undead. Hard workers, no pesky unions. Calvin heard a long whistle coming from the courtyard, and his heart began hammering in his chest. He ran to the edge of the tower and looked over the bannister. Tiny figures wearing blue and black were streaming into the Academy plaza, lead by a girl in black leather. I warned her. Calvin thought, his eye narrowing as he slid the nonlethal spell components back into his belt. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 11/30 Chapter 49: Give the dog a Bone That¡¯s a lot of Ilethans, Ilethans with lungs. Calvin considered as he watched them march toward the Academy. There wasn¡¯t enough heat in fireball to immolate them all at once, but disable or slow them down? He could do that. He flipped out the poison component and concentrated on the plaza and the iron-shod vial in his hand. Luckily, the tower was only thirteen stories high, putting the plaza just barely inside his reach. Shaping. 4/12 Bent remaining. He mentally reached out as far as he could with the spell, feeling it bump up against the limits of its range, just at the edge of the plaza, right in front of the academy¡¯s doors. Calvin concentrated on a narrow line of the poison in the vial and funneled the entire mass of the shaping into it. A wall of grey-yellow steam exploded in front of the academy as they approached, catching dozens of the Ilethan soldiers in the face. The soldiers scattered in every direction before slumping to the ground, one by one. The steam hung low to the ground like a mist and began to roll down the steps of the academy, washing over the approaching soldiers, who suffered the same fate as the ones in front of them. In a matter of seconds, the rest of the Ilethans pulled back to the streets, unwilling to enter the mist-shrouded plaza filled with the bodies of their cohorts. Remind me not to piss off Borus Igglebaum We can call that one Cloudkill. No particular reason. Calvin ignored Elliot and kept his eyes on Grant and Nadia, who¡¯d been in the thick of the initial blast. Grant had fallen to one knee, retching as the fog passed by him, but Nadia stood stock still, her head tilting to the side and up, looking up at the tower. She¡­didn¡¯t breathe any of it? Maybe I can prevent them from climbing the tower with- Calvin¡¯s thoughts were cut short when swords flashed out of Grant¡¯s many sheaths and slid underneath Nadia and the giant, lifting them away from the fog, and up into the air. ¡°Get away from the Fairweather!¡± Calvin hissed. If he managed to downplay the importance of¡­the giant glowing machine they were crowded around¡­who am I kidding? ¡°We¡¯ve got company coming up from outside!¡± Calvin pulled out the fireball component. Now that there was just the two of them, they would be easy to put down with an explosion of heat¡­hopefully. Shaping. 3/12 Bent Remaining. In the instant before the shimmering sphere of volatile chemicals exploded, Nadia held up a hand and his spell unraveled into Bent that funneled into her fingertips. Well, that¡¯s no good, Calvin thought as his absorbed blade came partway out of his palm an instant before he yanked it backward, focusing on a trident shape cut out of the blade. Shaping. 2/12 Bent remaining. Calvin created the trident as close to inside her as he could, travelling at the speed of his arm, aimed at the small of her back. There would be no time to react. The silvery metal took the leather-bound princess square in the back, jutting six inches out past her ribcage. Yeah! Calvin thought, pumping a fist. Nadia¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change as her hand glowed pale blue and she lopped off the blade sticking out of her front before yanking it out, continuing her approach on the wheezing Grant¡¯s swords. That dampened my enthusiasm. What¡¯s the deal with that wretch? Calvin thought scanning the rest of the plaza and the rooftops. Was Nadia using some kind of meat-puppet dressed up as her? After the first time he¡¯d killed her he wasn¡¯t so sure. He couldn¡¯t make anything out, and he might not until¡­ ¡°Kala, can you tell me if that¡¯s an illusion or not?¡± Kala leaned over the edge, along with Ella. Kala¡¯s expression went unnaturally blank as she looked at the approaching woman. ¡°Nope. That is not Nadia. Incidentally, we¡¯re probably going to die, because whatever¡¯s in there is cold vengeance made flesh.¡± She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. ¡°It¡¯s been fun.¡± About to die? Not if I dead them first. Calvin let the blade sink back into his hand, thumbing his components. Which one would rid him of the raven-haired headache? Kala¡¯s warning was cryptic, at best. Maybe Nadia used some kind of self-hypnosis mind magic or something to increase her pain tolerance? She didn¡¯t seem bothered by the length of steel through her chest. Or the holes in her arms and legs. ¡°Likewise,¡± Cal muttered, motioning for them to back away from the parapets. They stood back as the leather clad girl and the heaving giant made it to the top of the parapet. The swords were shaking like a spoon in a geriatric¡¯s hand as not-Nadia stepped off them and onto the tower. Grant collapsed to the ground behind her, shaking in a similar manner as he retched, his stomach thankfully empty. Rather than her attention turning to the machine with Knick-Knacks crawling over it, her gaze locked on Calvin. The intent from the gaze felt like Nadia wanted to eat him so he could tell her what to do? That¡¯s fuckin¡¯ weird. Calvin put his fingers on the cannon component, while his left hand sought out the spare knife tucked in his belt. Nadia knew about the spare under his skin, but that was no reason to lead with it. Whatever happened next, it would be fast and bloody. ¡°Origin, One receives you.¡± Calvin felt a tugging sensation as his eyes rolled back in his head, and everything went black. **** Cal¡¯s eyes flew open, showing him nothing but stone. He took what felt like a long-awaited gasp of air as he slapped his hands on the ground and levered himself up. What happened? He felt a gaze on the back of his skull, radiating murderous intent. He lunged to the side as a black¡­tube hit the ground, piercing the air where his head had been only an instant before. The tube sank into the stone, pulsing like a living thing. Calvin glanced up and saw Nadia glaring at him, the strange black tube withdrawing into the sleeve of her blood-crusted leather sleeves. That¡¯s, ummm¡­ Calvin took a quick glance away from his opponent to figure out what was going on. Ella was embedded in the Fairweather machine, steam rising from her body. She was covered in cuts, and her skin was a dark silver-red. Kala seemed to be unconscious, panting desperately as she stared up into the sky. The Knick-knacks were scattered across the roof, unmoving. Grant was pulling himself to his feet, taking ragged breaths and spitting out phlegm. Okay, I can¡¯t have been out more than six to eleven seconds. Grant is still recovering, no one was Coup-de-grace¡¯d ¡°Wretched creation, We will not suffer an accident like you to live.¡± ¡°Is that the royal We?¡± Calvin asked, edging further away. ¡°We will prove to Origin his mistake. You are an ill-conceived, poorly trained meat puppet made by a failing System with no purpose other than to house His Greatness while We prepare the world for His coming. Your usefulness has already run its course.¡± Oh snap, are you gonna let her talk to you like that? Is she talking about you? Calvin thought as he felt another attack coming, flexing his knees for a quick dive. Nadia lashed her arm forward, creating a spray of blue fire just as Calvin jumped forward. It was counter intuitive, but trained into his very bones by Karen. Moving into an enemy¡¯s personal space was always better than moving out. The blue fire let off a nauseating energy that warped his senses and seemed to give Calvin¡¯s skin a mind of its own as a bit of it caught his shoulder. After he slid under the attack, his shoulder skin was suffering a deep existential crisis and wanted nothing more than to crawl off of him and rejoin the rest of The One. Okay, that¡¯s fucking terrifying, Calvin thought as the tiny muscles on the outside of his shoulder rythmically twitched by themselves. He didn¡¯t have time to be terrified, because Nadia was close enough to kiss. This time, though, she wasn¡¯t nearly as kissable. Up close and intimately personal, Calvin could see her eyes were clouded, her lips grey, mouth exuding the stench of ¨C Am I fighting a corpse? ¨C Calvin ducked low and drew his knife across her, right hip to left rib. Calvin¡¯s wrist wasn¡¯t strong enough to pull the knife through the armor. DING DING DING! What do we have for him, Johnny? Well, then what Abyssal creature am I currently dancing with? Calvin thought, ducking a clumsy backhand while sliding a foot forward to keep himself close enough to smell dinner. Good question, inn¡¯it? Why is it after me!? Cal thought, catching a kidney with a two-handed stab, barely managing to pierce the armor. Another good question. Nadia ¨C Not Nadia. ¨C The creature let out a frustrated screech at being unable to catch him and an invisible sphere expanded outward from it. The wall of force picked him up and sent him hurtling backward, slamming into the parapet. Calvin couldn¡¯t breathe, his world narrowed down to a bright point filled with stars. He could barely see, and his lungs were seized with pain, his spine bent so far it felt like it would snap in half. The black tubes emerged from Nadia¡¯s wrists again, And Calvin was able to slump out of the way barely in time as they dug into the stone behind him. He groaned and strained his arms rolling himself out of the way, still having difficulty breathing as another relentless strike came down. He was at the wrong distance now, she could take him to pound town with impunity. Here¡¯s another good question. Why aren¡¯t you afraid? Calvin thought as he eyed Ella. The Genosian was conscious, picking her way out of the wrecked machine. Kala also seemed to be recovering from¡­whatever was happening to her, her eyes slowly regaining focus. Why would you ask that? When the Hunter-Killers first arrived, you wanted to cut and run, now you¡¯re just amused by the whole situation. Calvin ducked a strike and scrambled backward, minding his feet and trying to draw her line of sight away from the girls. Would you be particularly scared if your Chauffer-bot showed to pick you up? That¡¯s my ride home. Calvin got the impression that Elliot was pointing at the princess, or more likely, whatever was inside her. I did you a solid though, slugger, I told One that he had to beat you in a fair fight to prove he¡¯s better than my most recent project. Calvin shoved the ground out from under him, hopping over another strike from those strange black tubes, before kicking off the parapet, getting more distance. Level with me, Calvin thought, backing away from the creature stalking him. What do you want from me? and none of your guarshit. Elliot¡¯s voice turned distant. Let¡¯s put it this way. There are certain people I want revenge on. If you pursue your goal to become a Wizard-King, you will without a doubt come into conflict with these people. I do not need to steer you towards this end, it will happen on its own. You were born a weapon. If you are able to destroy One, then certainly you would be a better choice to be the vessel of my retribution. I will not question your methods as long as they prove superior to One. I¡¯ll even help you with all the knowledge and skill at my disposal. As long as I continue to pursue my goal, Calvin thought, backing away. Precisely. Fair enough. Kala was right, Elliot was evil, but it didn¡¯t seem like he¡¯d stab Calvin in the back as long as Cal made sure there was no way for the rat to jump ship, which meant destroying his Chauffer. Whatever the hell that is. I like the way you think. Not-Nadia lunged forward and Calvin ducked the first strike, but the follow-up claw caught him in the shoulder and drove him to the side, collapsing to the parapet floor some twelve feet distant from the big general gasping for air. Calvin tried to fling himself away, but his arm didn¡¯t want to move, creating a half-assed flop. Adrenaline began to sing in his veins as he realized he was unable to move. Or maybe you¡¯re not as fit as I thought. Shit, I¡¯ve only got two Bent left! Whatever it was had been able to suck in a fireball in the blink of an eye, and somehow end his Heart of the Swarm ability. Calvin¡¯s style thus far was focused on creating tangible objects to affect real change. That was powerful, but also easy to see. What can I copy? Air, blade, myself? No, I¡¯m wounded, the copy would be wounded too. ¡°Get away from my Poeor!¡± Ella rammed into the creature with a flying tackle, her skin shining ruddy silver in the firelight as the two of them toppled to the ground. She got into the mount position and began laying brutal punches into the thing¡¯s face. I think Ella¡¯s over a hundred and sixty-nine pounds. Otherwise, I¡¯d copy the shit out of her. Shame. ¡°Same shit,¡± Grant let out a retching cough, ¡°different day, huh, kid?¡± the massive sword dancer was leaning on the parapet and tottering toward Calvin. ¡°Does your country know their princess is dead?¡± Calvin returned his question. The creature that looked like a princess Gave an inhuman screech and black tubes erupted from its chest, emphasizing Calvin¡¯s point. ¡°Huh,¡± Grant grunted, frowning. The tubes slammed into Ella¡¯s red-silver skin and jettisoned her off it and high into the the air, her flailing body drawing a perfect arc¡­ Off the building! In a panic, Calvin reached his good hand into his belt, crossing his mental fingers it would work like he wanted it to as his real fingers touched the shiny smooth texture of the Void. Once Calvin knew exactly where it was in relation to himself, he cast the spell. If this doesn¡¯t work, I¡¯m going to have to use a Web and Ella will be out of play. Shaping. 1/12 Bent remaining. Calvin aimed the Void between Ella and the tower, copying the nothing inside and overlaying it on the area. Calvin dumped the whole energy of the spell into the casting, which was a mistake. For an instant, there was no more sound. Calvin¡¯s ears popped, and his sinuses seemed to swell, along with his eyeballs and tongue. Am I about to explode? Calvin thought as the air was drawn out of his lungs in a silent scream. The air hit, slamming into everyone present like an angry Karen. The sudden rush of wind picked him up and slammed him back to the ground like it held a grudge. Grant was battered to his knees. Ella was snatched out of the midair by the wind refilling the area and thrown the other direction, back toward the tower. She tumbled across the stone, her skin sending up sparks as it dug into the solid rooftop. Not-Nadia climbed to its feet and stalked towards him, beyond words. Calvin was trying to get his legs under him when Kala entered the fray, her palms glowing with a brilliant light. Wherever her palms went, the black snakes seemed to retreat, weakening the creature. Kala slipped around it¡¯s clumsy strikes and harried it for a good eight seconds, long enough for Calvin to bring his legs up under himself. Then she messed up. Kala¡¯s foot slipped on the round portion of a Knick-knack¡¯s arm, and she began falling, with only enough time to protect her face with her arms. There was a small explosion and Kala tumbled away, her dress shredding against the stone floor. ¡°Now!¡± Not-Nadia said, immediately whirling to face him. ¡°You, DIE!¡± Calvin tried to lean out of the way again, but the strange black tube went out to either side, wrapping around his neck with brutal force and slamming him up against the parapet, his back creaking as he was forced partially over it. Not-Nadia leaned over him, a crazed look in its dead eyes, and a feral grin. Fssshhht! Fssshhht! Fssshhht! A metal arrow brushed against the hair on Calvin¡¯s scalp as it buried itself in one of Not-Nadia¡¯s eyes, and another two through went her forehead, sending her reeling backward, drawing Calvin with it, away from the parapet. Calvin heard a faint whoop from Baroke as his royal sniper celebrated his victory. Perhaps a bit premature, but he can¡¯t see what I see. Not-Nadia was expressionless now, as more and more black tubes emerged from its body, regarding him like snakes considering the best time to strike. They didn¡¯t have eyes, but that didn¡¯t stop Calvin from having the sensation that they could see him. he felt their gaze, and it felt cold, hungry and vicious. Blade Body. Calvin jutted a knife out of his neck, severing the tube around his throat and collapsing to the ground an instant before the black snakes could hit him. The writhing mass regarded him with fury, looming over him before he could get away. Well, I guess this is it, unless you can pull a miracle with that last Bent. Calvin¡¯s mind was a blur of activity, but no course of action seemed like it would solve all of his problems, maybe buy him a few seconds. Damnation. Calvin readied a Fireball. If he could cast it while it was killing him, it might be distracted enough to not block ¨C A blade came down from above and bisected Not-Nadia from head to crotch, then across the waist. It began to tilt toward Calvin¡¯s prone form when Grant stepped forward and pushed it back, where it fell into four halves, like a butchered animal. The big man regarded Calvin with cold calculation for a moment. ¡°I would like to defect.¡± Grant said, before spitting out some more poison. ¡°Consider yourself under my command, then.¡± Calvin rasped, using his good arm to drag himself up, watching the corpse for signs of movement. The black tubes became shiny, then in a matter of seconds, they collapsed into a smelly goop, then evaporated at a speed that beggared belief, leaving behind only the quartered corpse of a beautiful girl riddled with wounds. Are you thinking what I¡¯m thinking? Elliot said with an audible grin ¡°I¡¯m thinking I need to make it rain.¡± Calvin muttered, limping past Nadia¡¯s corpse. The Fairweather machine had taken even more damage in the fight, with cracks running through the power source, and some of its pieces missing entirely. I guess not. Below them, the city was still ablaze, lighting the clouds above them with an eerie light and filling the air with smoke. Occasionally Calvin got the smell of roasting human, and his stomach threatened to rebel. You wanna help, Pick out a good Knick-Knack for me, Calvin thought, surveying the destruction atop the tower. Ah, now we¡¯re on the same page. To your left, little further..there, you¡¯re looking at him. Calvin¡¯s gaze landed on a knick-knack that was relatively whole, with a humanoid body, shinier than most of the others. It had a cube-like, blocky head full of glass lenses on top of a Bent engine, with big yellow bands of steel around its arms hiding a dozen tools. That one¡¯s your best bet. You still got the chip I told you to save? Yeah. Use your knife to pry open the panel on top of its head. Calvin did so, exposing a confusing mess of strange parts that had no place on a living creature. See that thing that looks like your chip? Very gently pry it out. Calvin followed Elliot¡¯s instructions and swapped out the two chips, pressed a little red button with the tip of his knife, and replaced the panel. Will this work? That wasn¡¯t originally a part of his body. Don¡¯t think about it too hard. The System should recognize it as original, seeing as it¡¯s a ¡®bot, and you pressed the reset button. Calvin placed a hand on the Knick-Knack. Consume. 0/12 Bent remaining. Excellent, Elliot said. The chip got taken too. A success. Calvin felt an instant of discomfort as the creature disappeared, then the feeling vanished, and a prompt showed up. Entire creature eaten, would you like to assign it to a slot? Yes. Please choose a Skill slot to assign this creature to, or refuse to resume normal biological function. (Warning, thirty pounds of steel will cause severe internal damage.) I Choose Calvinian Summoning, Calvin thought. All Calvinian Summoning Slots filled. Fever Wasp: Aggressive carnivorous flying insect with highly venomous sting. Fields industries Micro Construction Bot (Modified): one of the Tech-races formerly enslaved by humans, Knick-Knacks live underground. They are merchantile, peaceful masters of mining and metallurgy. Did I just enslave this thing? The Harbingers thought so, and they¡¯re the ones writing history. I mean, we designed them so they were cool with having owners and the only thing they wanted to do was their job. That¡¯s not slavery in my book. I¡¯ll think about it later. ¡°Kala,¡± Calvin said, limping over to the groaning girl, not letting Grant completely out of his sight. ¡°are you all right?¡± ¡°We¡¯re still alive?¡± She asked, staring at the sky. ¡°We are. Are you good?¡± ¡°Just sore,¡± she said, groaning as she sat up. ¡°I¡¯m gonna bruise bad tomorrow.¡± Calvin helped her to her feet, and together they approached where Ella was pushing herself to her feet. ¡°What now?¡± she asked, glancing around the mess. ¡°We can¡¯t fix your Gadveran machine.¡± ¡°Not necessarily,¡± Calvin said, holding out his hand. ¡°I think I can do it, but I¡¯m going to need some Bent.¡± Kala slapped her hand down into Calvin¡¯s before Ella could react. The vigorous movement caused her damaged yellow dress to give up, falling halfway down her breast before she caught it with her other hand, giving a squeak. ¡°I-I¡¯ve got plenty to spare.¡± She stammered as Ella raised a brow. Talk about positive reinforcement. ¡­. 10/12 Bent remaining. ¡°Okay, that¡¯s plenty,¡± Cal said, letting go of Kala. The princess swooned, falling backward into Ella¡¯s arms. Calvin was a bit worried at first until he saw her nestle deeper into the Genosian¡¯s cleavage and let out a contented sigh. It was on purpose. Ella gave him a look that said ¡®what do I do with this?¡¯ Calvin shrugged and got to work. Calvinian Summoning. 9/12 Bent Remaining. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 11! level 11: 1331 pound limit, 121 minutes. 0 slots available. Calvin summoned as many as he could without changing their size, creating nearly forty identical knick-knacks. Keep your finger on the unsummon button in case they¡¯re less than stable, Elliot warned. The knick-knacks stood there, staring at him passively. Fix the machine, Cal thought, pointing at the Fairweather. With unnerving synchronization, the Knick Knacks turned to study the thing he pointed at. They stared for a moment, before they exploded into action, resuming the job that they had left off, reassembling the towering copper and steel machine with alarming speed. That was easier than I thought it¡¯d be. Course it was, I opened up your System and used your connection via Calvinian summoning to input the factory code printed on the back of the chip and registered you as the owner. I don¡¯t understand half of what you just said, Calvin thought as he watched the Knick-Knacks work. Calvinian summoning. 8/12 Bent remaining. Calvin summoned another thirty-nine, and hit the law of diminishing returns as the metal creatures began to crowd each other out somewhat. After about twenty minutes, the knick-knacks finished the repair, and the machine began emitting a hum that they could feel in the floor. On the panel in front of the machine were several esoteric symbols beside sliding knobs. Calvin couldn¡¯t read most of them, but the one for moisture was a fairly obvious teardrop, and Calvin cranked it all the way up. The sound of thunder echoed above their heads as the clouds grew thick and laden with moisture. In minutes, the sky began to unleash a flood of rain, drenching them along with the rest of the city. Calvin looked over the side of the tower and watched as the fires began to struggle, slowly retreating from the monsoon. They headed back inside the tower to get away from the rain, checking the state of the fires every half hour for the rest of the night, until morning came. With the sun rising above the ocean to the west, they turned off the rain and marveled at the sight. In the morning light, they could make out the corpse of the massive steel worm, crushing half a dozen buildings. The Ilethan army was a disorganized mess, milling around outside the wall as a barrier of Gadveran soldiers held the gap. Calvin even made out some Stoneshapers slowly wrenching stone out of the bedrock to fill in the gaping hole. Calvin knew for a fact that their leadership was dead or defected. The Ilethans were going to lose. ¡°Sweet mother Elani, we¡¯re gonna live!¡± he exclaimed. Kala¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°This calls for celebration!¡± she said with a faux barbaric grunt. The slender, brown skinned princess clasped her left palm over her fist with a grunt. ¡°Enquacha!¡± Ella bust into a full-blown laugh, doubling over and slapping her knee. ¡°What?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Enquacha!¡± Ella shouted too, slapping her fist into her palm as she scowled at him ferociously. ¡°What in Vashiel¡¯s sweaty asscrack are you guys on about?¡± Calvin asked, backing away as they began to shamble toward him. ¡°Enquacha!¡± They grunted. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 12/30 Chapter 50: Is this Hell? ***Nadia*** ¡°Stop!¡± Nadia gave a ragged scream, her arms lashing up at the monster looming over her. Grant caught her strike with a practiced hand. ¡°Princess, it¡¯s me. You¡¯re fine now, I drove the delegate off.¡± Nadia blinked. The monster looming over her wasn¡¯t some horrifying monstrosity, it was the disgusting monstrosity. Grant was sporting a black eye, and seemed a bit tense as Nadia looked at him. Less respectful tension, and more tension like watching a wild animal that might bite at any second. Interesting. The room she was in¡­ Marble, red Gadveran silk drapes. Large open window, damaged. Full lamps. The Gadveran Palace? ¡°Did we win?¡± Nadia asked, doing a self-check. There was no more pain in her arms and legs, and¡­ Those black snaked must have made it six inches into my chest. There¡¯s no way I could be feeling this good. And she did feel good. She felt like it was the morning of the best day of her life. Her whole body sang with energy, and she wasn¡¯t hungry, sleepy, short of breath, needing to pee, itchy, or any of the dozens of minor annoyances that are indicative of being alive. So I¡¯m trapped in an illusion, then? Is the creature some kind of Mnemonic sorcerer too? ¡°Yeah, we won,¡± Grant said, and Nadia could tell he was lying. That¡¯s interesting. I wouldn¡¯t be able to tell he was lying if this was a Mnemonic illusion, unless they¡¯re using Grant as a red herring. ¡°Thank the gods,¡± Nadia sighed, relaxing back into bed as she started figuring out her escape plan. Grant seemed to relax a bit, standing away from the bed. Okay, obviously this scrub can¡¯t read my thoughts, so I¡¯ve got a shot. I need to break out of the illusion then use a Royal order to¡­ Nadia¡¯s last memory was the Royal order not working so great because of her collapsing lungs. She needed something with more heft to it. Unless you¡¯re dead already. A tiny voice whispered in the back of her mind, but she shook it away. Always plan as if you¡¯re alive. What¡¯s the point of doing otherwise? Nadia thought for a second. She would trigger Crystalline Mind to break the illusion, then use Invade Mind. It would give her a shot at lobotomizing the creature and possibly jumping ship if her body was beyond saving. Might lose my body-hopping virginity younger than I expected. Ilethan royalty didn¡¯t do it often, as it rarely worked. The current record for successful transfers was twice, but she didn¡¯t really have much of a choice. This was her only shot of living through this encounter. Nadia took a deep, steadying breath, readying herself to return to the horrifying reality of the monster invading her chest with its black tubes. Let¡¯s see how you like getting invaded, Cuntbag. Nadia closed her eyes and reached for her Bent. Crystalline Mind *ERROR* Chained Spirit is a Bent construct, incapable of processing Bent. Nadia frowned. What in the Abyss did that mean? Break Control. *ERROR* Chained Spirit is a Bent construct, incapable of processing Bent. Nadia leapt out of bed, the heavy wood creaking under her legs as she caught Grant in the throat with a sucker-punch before swinging around onto his back, putting an arm around his beefy neck. ¡°What is a Chained Spirit?¡± She demanded, giving Grant¡¯s neck an encouraging squeeze. ¡°What really happened? Don¡¯t you fucking lie to me.¡± ¡°Cal-vin..¡± Grant croaked. ¡°What?¡± Nadia demanded, hearing the name of her sworn enemy. The door creaked open and the young man came in. ¡°Well, crap, we got so much further that time,¡± He said as he entered the room, casually eating a pastry. ¡°This is what you get for thinking with your dick,¡± A massive Genosian girl said, following him in, studying Nadia with a disapproving scowl. ¡°Always choose an ally as a Chained Spirit, for the control over them is¡­limited.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t thinking with my dick, Ella. She¡¯s got valuable information on the Ilethan Royal family, and she¡¯s an eighth Break Legend. If we can find a way to get past all this¡­¡± He motioned to Nadia with his jelly-filled roll. ¡°She¡¯ll be incredibly useful.¡± ¡°What do you think keeps tipping her off?¡± Calvin said, taking another bite of his pastry, giving Nadia an insolent look. ¡°The last thing she remembers is getting killed,¡± said a third¡­Nadia¡¯s eyes narrowed as she saw her dusky-skinned counterpart, who had the audacity to take the boy away from her, claiming him as her own. ¡°She¡¯ll be impossible to work with as long as she keeps starting from that point.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°Remember that promise about tormenting you for the rest of my life?¡± Calvin asked. A horrifying, sinking sensation began to build in her stomach. Keeps tipping her off? They¡¯ve been doing this to me for a while, and I don¡¯t remember any of it. ¡°Can¡¯t¡­.breathe.¡± Grant wheezed as Nadia¡¯s arm tightened around the general¡¯s neck. In a desperate bid to escape, Nadia shoved Grant toward the other three and made a dash for the window, jumping through the shattered hole in the glass. ¡°Aaand there she goes again,¡± she heard Calvin¡¯s voice fade into the background of street noises as she hurtled toward the palace courtyard. Nadia hit the ground in a crouch, surrounded by glass and a couple shreds of Gadveran silk. That wasn¡¯t me, I jumped through the hole in the window. I didn¡¯t touch anything on the way out. Her heart began to hammer as her mind shrieked in panic when she realized that her feet had come down in divots in the stone that had been there before she jumped, fitting into them perfectly, as though she¡¯d jumped down from that great height¡­more than once. No, no no no no no. Nadia leapt to her feet and sprinted full speed toward the palace gate, ignoring the footsteps in front of her that mirrored her panicked pace. No, it¡¯s a trick. I¡¯m going to jump over this wall, and disappear into the crowd. I¡¯ll find my way out of the city and re-connect with the Ilethan forces, then- Nadia # 36 ceased to exist. ***Nadia*** ¡°Stop!¡± Nadia gave a ragged scream, her arms lashing up at the monster looming over her. Grant caught her strike with a practiced hand. ¡°Princess, it¡¯s me. You¡¯re fine now, I drove the delegate off.¡± Nadia blinked. The monster looming over her wasn¡¯t some horrifying monstrosity, it was the disgusting monstrosity. Grant was sporting a black eye and a bruised neck, and he seemed a bit tense as Nadia looked at him. Less respectful tension, and more tension like watching a wild animal that might bite at any second. Interesting¡­ ***Calvin*** ¡°Well, that was a failure,¡± Calvin said, finishing the last of his jelly roll as Nadia number thirty-seven jumped out the window. He glanced over at Grant who was coming to his feet, rubbing his bruised head. He dismissed the summon. ¡°Looks like I¡¯m going to have to raise Chained Spirit to level ten and grab Continuity before we have any shot at a meaningful dialogue.¡± Nadia was just too savvy and wild to pin down in one try, and somehow she was clued in that something was wrong no matter how much care they took to keep her calm. ¡°That was an option?¡± Grant asked. ¡°Yep, get ready for the next one, we¡¯ll start it in the dungeon.¡± ¡°Why? You already know she¡¯s not going to remember anything.¡± The big man demanded, scowling at him. ¡°Because, we are working out a map for the first encounter she does remember, and we are going to rehearse it until you dream about it. We¡¯re only going to get one shot. Come on, lieutenant, the dungeons await.¡± ¡°Andra¡¯s got a sick sense of humor, making that conscription official,¡± Grant growled, stalking after him. ¡°You know I outranked you in the Ilethan army, right?¡± ¡°Is that any way to speak to your C.O.?¡± ¡°I could kill you in the blink of an eye.¡± Calvin shrugged, glancing around the room, and ran a thumb over the row of vials hanging on his belt. ¡°I mean, so could I, but you don¡¯t see me bringing it up.¡± ¡°I¡¯m three times your age! I¡¯ve been leading men since before you were ¨C¡° ¡°Shhhh, shhhhh.¡± Calvin hushed the blustering man. ¡°That experience makes you very valuable, but not so valuable that I won¡¯t turn you into a meat-puppet like your princess.¡± That shut the Ilethan general up. The man didn¡¯t know that Calvin was out of slots for Chained Spirit, and Calvin didn¡¯t intend to inform him of that. ¡°You kill me, Andra kills you. You don¡¯t work with me, you get the Nadia treatment. Learn to work within your new reality, a¡¯right? This isn¡¯t a permanent arrangement. After I¡¯ve learned everything I need to know from you, I¡¯ll send you to Andra with a letter of recommendation, and you can be a general again. Call it¡­five years.¡± ¡°You¡¯re no boy, you¡¯re an abomination.¡± Grant said, glaring down at him. ¡°So I¡¯ve been told,¡± Calvin said, rolling his eyes. if he had to worry about everyone who thought he wasn¡¯t acting like a normal teen, he¡¯d never become a Wizard-King. ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ve got enough Bent to go three more rounds.¡± With spare for another five spells if someone tries to kill me. Calvin turned away and headed for the dungeons, deep in his thoughts. He needed Nadia working on his side as soon as possible. Having a disposable soldier that strong would be supremely helpful, not to mention her intimate knowledge of the enemy country. Calvin had gotten a field promotion since he put out the fire engulfing entire city ¨C with some embellishing storytelling from Kala ¨C preventing millions of Stones in damages and making him the youngest Captain to ever exist in the Gadveran army. That girl¡¯s trying to pull a full-on Griffith with you. Just make sure you wait to tell her dad about last week until his deathbed, M¡¯kay? What he don¡¯t know won¡¯t get you executed. Calvin continued his train of thought, ignoring the monster spouting the obvious coupled with nonsense-phrases in his head. People were starting to pay attention to him, and he needed to maintain that if he wanted to be a household name. Hypothetically, if someone said, ¡®Calvin, that kid no one heard of from Deinos is going off into the wilds to carve out a kingdom¡¯, how many people would follow? If someone instead said, ¡®Calvin, the youngest general in the history of Gadvera and savior of its people, is going off into the wilds to carve out a kingdom¡¯¡­ that would field an entirely different response. The next step was taking back Surrak, the port city some hundred miles distant that Calvin had grown up beside¡­but how? The Ilethan army had finally gotten its feet under it and limped back to Surrak to reorganize, but the damage to Mujenan was far too severe to organize a unit of guar to ride them down. That and the Ilethan fleet was still being a bitch, cutting off food and trade from Gadvera¡¯s trading partners. Can¡¯t take Surrak back if everyone¡¯s starving. A tapping in the hall caught his attention, and Calvin spotted a runner aiming for him. runners were eleven to twelve-year-old nobles-sons, whose duty was to get experience with military process before they joined it themselves. A process Calvin had unfortunately skipped, and now he was playing catchup. Also they spied for their families a little bit. But everyone knew that. ¡°Captain Gadsint,¡± the Gadveran boy wearing the brown and yellow livery said, giving him a snappy salute. ¡°Andra¡¯s got orders for you, report to her office.¡± Calvin glanced at the kid, then Grant, Ella and Kala, who¡¯d been following him. ¡°Well, I guess you two have the rest of the day off. Make sure to pack your bags,¡± Calvin said, eyeing the Genosian and the Ilethan. ¡°Could you tell Baroke to unbury himself from his groupies and do the same?¡± Ella and grant glanced at each other. ¡°Not it,¡± Ella said in Gadveran before ambling toward her bedroom, where her suit of armor was waiting. The nomad had plenty to back up, the captured general on the other hand¡­ ¡°I¡¯ll grab the damn boy,¡± Grant grumbled, heading down the opposite hall. As it turned out, when Baroke had gone west, he¡¯d gone through the women¡¯s dorms, running across several young women at the academy who¡¯d hidden during the slaughter, and rescuing each of them from certain death. It was kind of funny seeing it from the outside. ¡°Good luck,¡± Kala said, kissing him on the cheek in front of the gaping runner. ¡°I¡¯ll be making an appearance with the reconstruction team for the rest of the day.¡± Kala princess-walked away, tiny steps that seemed to float her sashaying hips down the hall. So is she still a virgin, or not? I don¡¯t know, I was blindfolded. Shame, but I understand the need for plausible deniability. Once everyone was gone, Calvin knelt down to eye level with the runner. ¡°Keep your mouth shut about that, okay?¡± ¡°Everyone knows the princess has a crush on you, sir,¡± The runner said, handing him the letter of summons. The little shit had the audacity to roll his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s hardly newsworthy.¡± ¡°Better not be,¡± Calvin said, dismissing him and tearing the letter open. Like he¡¯d said it was a summons to Andra¡¯s office. Calvin followed the twists and turns of the palace until he made it to Andra¡¯s office, where the grey haired woman was writing and signing letters at an astonishing pace, creating a clutter of paperwork that spilled over the map of Gadvera on her desk. ¡°Calvin, sit down.¡± Andra said, eying him without stopping her pen. ¡°What do you need, General?¡± ¡°I need security, Captain.¡± Calvin didn¡¯t know how to respond to that. She noticed his hesitation and set her pen down in the inkwell, moving aside the letters to reveal the map. ¡°There¡¯s Surrak, and there¡¯s Mujenan, and between them are a hundred miles of undefended road big enough for an army. We can¡¯t haphazardly launch an all-out assault on Surrak, that¡¯ll take more time and manpower than we can muster right now, but we can¡¯t let that go unanswered, either.¡± She pointed to a narrow point in the road, three quarters of the way to Surrak, where the road was sandwiched between the side of a mountain and a sheer cliff to the coast. ¡°Build fortifications right here,¡± she said, tapping on it with a callused finger. ¡°It will become a staging area from which to launch a retaking of Surrak. Our advantage is a shorter supply chain. Let¡¯s make the most of it. I want lodgings for ten thousand men, a wall at least fifteen feet high, and if you¡¯ve got spare time, hunt for game in the forest and ship excess back to Mujenan. We need everything we can get. ¡°How many people do I get?¡± Calvin asked, tallying the astonishing amount of manpower the task would require. ¡°A company.¡± She said with a hint of a smile. ¡°That¡¯s¡­not a lot of men.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve received a complaint from the Knick-knacks that trade with us,¡± Andra said. ¡°One of their number who was supposed to have died attempting to repair the Fairweather, well, its body was never recovered. I mollified them by giving them salvage rights to a dozen of those silver monsters, no questions asked.¡± ¡°Well, I ¨C¡° ¡°How did the Fairweather get fixed anyway?¡± Calvin kept his mouth shut. Freaking nosy general was giving him the job with less people than he needed because she knew he carried extra manpower with him wherever he went. ¡°And now, Captain, I¡¯m passing the savings on to you.¡± She pulled out a letter, signed it with a flourish, folded it, dripped wax on it, stamped it with the thick gold ring on her finger, then slid it across the oak table, in front of Calvin. Calvin eyed it for a moment. ¡°I¡¯ve got one request.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Andra asked with a raised brow. ¡°I¡¯m gonna need to commission a bunch of whores.¡± Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 13/30 Chapter 51: how many Man-hours in a Woman? ¡°Alright, time to meet my new command,¡± Calvin said, straightening his jacket before heading out to take a look at the unit that had been assigned to him. ¡°Look, Calvin, you¡¯re what, fourteen?¡± Grant asked. ¡°Sixteen.¡± Calvin said, scowling. ¡°Damn near seventeen.¡± ¡°Age is going to be the biggest defining factor of your career. You are, way, way too young to be a captain. You¡¯re going to get zero respect, and that¡¯s a fact. How you handle that is going to determine whether or not you¡¯re cut out for this.¡± Calvin stopped and faced the black-haired general. ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°If you get mad at someone for slacking, you¡¯re throwing a tantrum.¡± He said, poking Calvin¡¯s chest. ¡°If I get mad at someone for slacking, I¡¯m enforcing discipline. Because I¡¯m a grizzled veteran, and you¡¯re a teen.¡± ¡°That¡­sucks,¡± Calvin said, seeing where he was coming from. Calvin¡¯s voice did get a little shrill when he screamed. Hopefully that would work itself out as he aged. ¡°Until you¡¯ve got respect, don¡¯t show a glimmer of anger. The best thing you can do for yourself is be all business, all the time. Any childishness you display will be an excuse to say ¡®I knew he was just a brat¡¯.¡± ¡°Right. Any other tips?¡± ¡°As the commanding officer, You¡¯re the example that all your soldiers will be unconsciously held to. Work harder, they¡¯ll work harder, bathe, and they¡¯ll bathe.¡± ¡°Bathe?¡± ¡°God help you if you don¡¯t.¡± Grant said. ¡°Okay, don¡¯t act like a kid, don¡¯t get angry, and don¡¯t drop the soap.¡± Calvin said, heading toward the door to the courtyard. Grant caught his shoulder again. ¡°And for Vashiels sake, don¡¯t let anyone see you cry. That happens, you¡¯re fucking done.¡± ¡°I imagine the only time I¡¯m allowed to cry is a single regulation sized tear of pride as I overlook a beautiful sunrise vista of my troops overrunning the enemy position?¡± ¡°Now you¡¯re getting it,¡± Grant said, clapping him on the shoulder. Calvin shook his head as he entered the courtyard, seeing his company in formation, all two hundred of them, standing at attention in the afternoon sun. As he walked along the side, he saw them sneaking glances at him from the corner of their eye. Calvin skipped the wooden staircase and jumped straight onto the platform overlooking them. Calvin turned and gasped. ¡°It¡¯s perfect,¡± he whispered, his eyes stinging. Two hundred extremely young recruits were interspersed with about a dozen grim-faced veterans to keep them in line. Their uniforms were messy, some of them hadn¡¯t combed their hair, or buttoned their vests up. A few were missing weapons, while one idiot was wearing his helmet in formation. Calvin was pretty sure one of them was naked. Salty tears began rolling down Calvin¡¯s cheeks as a cackle built in his chest. ¡°Hah. Ha. Ha. Hahahahahahahaha! Glorious!¡± Calvin bellowed with laughter, his eyes clouded by tears. So many lives at my beck and call. Whispers began circulating through the company, and Calvin made a couple of them out, even through his own manic laughter. ¡°..that the Wasp?¡± ¡°Motherfucker¡¯s crazy.¡± Out of the corner of his eye, Calvin spotted Grant slap his hand over his face. Calvin¡¯s mad chuckles slowly came to a stop, and he wiped tears out of his eyes just as the skinny lieutenant approached. What was his name again? lieutenant Vukya, that¡¯s right. ¡°Captain, this is the newly formed 1st Mujenan Volunteers.¡± Vukya said, motioning to them with a wince. As volunteers, they weren¡¯t affiliated with any nobles, instead the crown had provided them with the minimal training and equipment in their haste to rebuild the ranks after the devastating attack that tore through the city walls. Nominally, their loyalty was to the crown, but Calvin was their commander, and with enough time, he could make them his own. Newly formed is right, but if Grant is to be believed, having them closer to my age should make it a little easier to get respect. A little. ¡°Good afternoon!¡± Calvin said, scanning the crowd. He spotted Baroke poking out, standing head and shoulders taller than the other archers. Ella was standing among the heavies, shoulder-to-shoulder with the most brutish young men Mujenan could put forward. Kala was up on top of the wall overlooking the formation, Calvin caught her wave. A half dozen silly proclamations ran through Calvin¡¯s mind and were dismissed in a fraction of a second, and he began chanting Grant¡¯s advice to keep himself focused. Business, business, business¡­ ¡°My name is Calvin Gadsint, I will be your commanding officer for the foreseeable future. You all volunteered because you felt the need to do something for your city and your country. I¡¯m sure most of you spent your first Break on Baking, or Cobbling, or Smithing, planning a long and boring career, making enough to get by, marrying that pudgy girl with the wide hips next door. You know the one. All the while never expecting the war to break into your life and take from you. But it did.¡± ¡°There isn¡¯t a person here who hasn¡¯t lost something to these limp-wristed Ilethans,¡± Calvin said, scanning the faces. The emotions he was receiving from the assembly were changing from confusion and ridicule to sullen anger. ¡°I imagine a few of you are interested in waging some kind of personal vendetta.¡± Calvin said, scanning the crowd and picking out the gazes most filled with anger. ¡°But let me tell you now that we¡¯ve got no room for that shit. You are each now a cog in the machine that will crush Iletha flat like some kind of¡­ Iletha flattening machine.¡± Smooth. ¡°You do your part, Ilethans die. Every brick you lay, every uniform you patch, every pound of wheat you haul down the road, That¡¯s an arrow in the eye of one of those blue-eyed cunts, a knife in their spleen. Everyone¡¯s got a job, and everyone¡¯s gotta do it. An army ain¡¯t gonna eat hopes and dreams, it ain¡¯t gonna sleep out in a jungle filled with mosquitos and Widowmakers.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t going to be a Sunday picnic, either. We¡¯re going out there to establish a foothold. We¡¯re the foot steady on the ground, so the other foot can kick those pasty rags right in their ball-less crotches.¡± The young men burst into chuckles, and Calvin waited for it to slow. ¡°Do your job, stay alert, and we¡¯ll be responsible for so much pain and misery in those duplicitous belles that they¡¯ll be pissing their pants at the mention of our coming.¡± Calvin turned to Vukya and lowered his voice. ¡°You got the destination?¡± The lieutenant nodded, a tiny length of curly hair bobbing on his forehead. ¡°I could stand here all day, but time¡¯s valuable, and I¡¯m sure you¡¯re all anxious to make shit happen. Lieutenant Vukya, take them out.¡± Vukya began barking orders rapid fire, as sergeants split men off into groups, getting wagons ready to go while others began loading their gear into them. ¡°Kinda brief,¡± Grant said, scratching his chin as he approached, ¡°But not bad.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Calvin said, rubbing his hands together as he watched his minions prepare to depart. ¡°It doesn¡¯t come naturally.¡± ¡°You better make them think it does,¡± Grant said. ¡°Like it or not, every commander of men develops a mythos. They become larger than life. That can work for you or against you.¡± ¡°That sounds exhausting.¡± Calvin said as he watched the young men within a year of his own age scrambling to obey the commands of their Sergeants. ¡°You get used to it. Now, while they¡¯re busy, let me give you the run down on what actually wins wars.¡± **** Food and Hygiene. If you think it¡¯s easy to feed a hundred men, think again. If you make men march in wet shoes for two weeks, and get surprised that their feet are rotting off, you deserve to lose. Moving food, calculating rations, clean clothes, clean bodies, good medicine. All of this is what wins a war. Calvin tapped his pen against the corner of the paper, making an ink splotch. So, by forfeiting any kind of salary, I was able to bribe eight whores, with Perthea¡¯s help. They joined the camp followers, ostensibly as seamstresses and cooks. The whores have an average of¡­ 14 Will. That means two castings of Calvinian summoning per woman, per day. The summon lasts two hours, the Knick knack weighs thirty-five pounds, meaning thirty-eight summons per cast. So all told that¡¯s¡­ two times eight times two times thirty-eight. My investment in those women bought me¡­ Calvin scratched out some multiplication. 1216 Knick-Knack hours per day, plus the chores done by the women themselves. With that we can aim for a fort approximately¡­ Calvin blinked and set down his pen when he realized he was missing some numbers. Namely the conversion rate between man-hours and Knick-Knack hours, and the total amount of man-hours it took to build a fortress big enough to host an army of ten thousand. Lot more math than I thought, going in. That¡¯s life for you. Calvin took his notebook and stepped out of his tent, in search of numbers. They had just arrived at the chokepoint after three boring days of travel, and calvin¡¯s tent was the first one down. The rest of the company was busily getting themselves set up. ¡°Sir?¡± Lieutenant Vukya said, hopping up from polishing one of Calvin¡¯s shoes. Calvin stood on his tiptoes to look at the distant mountain, then back to the ¡°We have engineers, right?¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± ¡°Trained ones, literate ones?¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± ¡°Bring them to me, I need to start planning the fort. Then I want you to stop the men who are setting up. Break them up into teams of five for latrine digging, logging, and setting up camp, but don¡¯t let them start yet. Tell me when they¡¯re assembled and ready to start. ¡°But they¡¯re already started, why do we need to¡­¡± He trailed off as Calvin looked at him. ¡°I need numbers.¡± ¡°but if we don¡¯t get tents up in time¡­¡± ¡°Assure them the camp will be ready before nightfall. I know what I¡¯m doing.¡± ¡°Yes sir,¡± Vukya said, the slender officer saluted before hustling off. Calvin walked through the camp, painfully aware of how little he knew about the common footsoldier¡¯s troubles. He got outside the bustle of two hundred men and forty women, and glanced around. He saw where the mountain naturally sloped close to the road, maybe an eighth of a mile into the jungle. Off to the side was a sheer cliff that led out to the ocean. Can¡¯t have ten thousand men shitting in holes, Calvin thought as he eyed the cliff. Wouldn¡¯t be too hard to dig a shaft that sends sewage into the ocean. He glanced up at the snow-capped mountain, miles distant. Need water, too, and a lot of meat. I wonder if I¡¯ll have enough spare Knick-Knacks to build an aqueduct. Gotta make sure it¡¯s protected, though. Can¡¯t have people shitting in it and poisoning everyone. ¡°Wasp, sir!¡± a young man about two years older than Calvin said, dragging him out of his thoughts about poop. ¡°What did you call me?¡± The man flinched. ¡°That¡¯s what they call you in Mujenan. The Wasp that saved the city?¡± He had a snarl of teeth, and stains on his uniform from messy eating. Slender though. ¡°Huh,¡± Calvin glanced down at the man¡¯s uniform. Green sash. Green sash means engineer, Calvin thought, having been given a handy guide by Andra. He needed to study it more. ¡°Whats your name?¡± ¡°Gulad, sir,¡± Gulad held out a hand, and Calvin shook it, not really sure what was happening as the man began to spill his guts. ¡°The story about how you singlehandedly defeated the Ilethan royals, their troops, and hundreds of those metal monsters, all while guiding the citizens to safety with your wasps, Well, I couldn¡¯t not join up. I had a Break that night and knew it was my chance, so I volunteered immediately. Most of the rest of us are the same.¡± Calvin blinked. The truth had been stretched nearly to the breaking point. While he did some of those things, he certainly didn¡¯t do them singlehandedly, and not at the same time. Is this what Grant was talking about with a mythos? ¡°I was originally a mason, had the Carpentry and Bricklaying Skills, so they trained me in Engineering. Now I¡¯ve got Logistics, Architecture, and Squad Leadership. I¡¯m gonna be the best damn engineer they¡¯ve ever seen.¡± ¡°Good because I need a castle.¡± Calvin said. ¡°What?¡± Now it was Gulad¡¯s turn to blink. ¡°Give me the estimate of how many man-hours it would take to build a thirty foot tall, five foot wide wall, from the cliff to the mountain, along with a castle and barracks that could comfortably house fifteen thousand soldiers.¡± Calvin glanced off to the cliff. ¡°And we¡¯re gonna need shit-pipes.¡± ¡°Umm, sir, that¡¯s¡­We don¡¯t have enough men to do something like that, not even close. It takes thousands of people years to build something like that. We¡¯ve got two hundred.¡± ¡°And even less time to do it in,¡± Calvin said, eying him. ¡°I¡¯ve got a plan, but I need to know exactly what the required amount of work is. Can you get that for me?¡± ¡°Sir!¡± Gulad saluted and ran off to get Calvin his numbers. A moment later Vukya arrived, motioning to the camp, where forty squads of five men were assembled, waiting for instruction. ¡°They¡¯re ready to go,¡± Vukya said. ¡°Excellent.¡± Calvin walked up to the camp and mounted a Guar so that everyone could see him. ¡°We¡¯re going to have a little race. Can you get camp set up faster than my Knick-Knacks?¡± Calvinian summoning¡­ 7/12 Bent Remaining. Calvin summoned five groups of Knick-Knacks, coming just shy of the original two hundred recruits. ¡°Each team will be competing against a similar number of my summons, doing as much work as you can over the next two hours. The three teams that gets their jobs done fastest get tomorrow off!¡± Calvin mentally instructed the Knick-Knacks as the soldiers cheered, and the metal creatures broke off into units of five, matching themselves up with the human soldiers. Calvin leaned down to Vukya and spoke quietly, ¡°Have the sergeants record the time difference between their recruits and the summons.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s get this camp set up!¡± Calvin shouted. *** It went about how Calvin thought it would. The Knick-Knacks stomped the soldiers after a couple minutes to learn what their task entailed. Once the two hours was over, Calvin had over thirty sets of numbers from the sergeants, and he sat down to do the math. Calvin averaged the time for every human crew, then averaged the time for every Knick-Knack crew. Once he had the average, he compared the two. Knick-knack hours were worth one point four man hours. Double that. make it an even three times. Why? Your soldier were racing. They were working as fast as they could, especially toward the end there, they skipped steps and cut corners to win. Take a quick look outside, and you¡¯ll see the tents put up by humans have rips and sagging parts. The latrine¡¯s sides aren¡¯t even. Everything the Knick-Knacks did is immaculate. Moreover, since your men were racing for that prize, the only speed they can go from this point is slower. Your summons don¡¯t get tired, they don¡¯t get sick, or bored, or hungry, they don¡¯t need to shit, but people do. The knick-knacks weren¡¯t racing, were they? No, they were not. Calvin bumped his estimate of Knick-knack hours conversion to an even three times human speed. So those eight whores represent¡­ Calvin did a little multiplication, his pen scratching against the paper in the light of the lamp. 3648 man hours per day, or the work equivalent of¡­ Elliot beat some kind of drum. Three hundred and four men working twelve hour shifts. ¡­.shit. Even with the two hundred men he had, that was still low. I need more women. Gotta be careful with those whores, man. There was a captain a long time ago whose name literally came to mean whores, because he had so many. Hate to see that happen to you. ¡°Captain,¡± Gulad said, barging in on Calvin¡¯s thoughts. ¡°I¡¯ve got a man-hour estimate. We can make the housing out of wood, that¡¯ll make things go faster, and we¡¯ve got all the ingredients we need for the wall, between the mountain, forest, cliff, and the ocean.¡± ¡°Hit me,¡± calvin said, spinning the pen on his finger. ¡°So a conservative estimate is twenty two million, three hundred and twenty-six thousand and eighty. Man-hours. Sir.¡± Calvin¡¯s pen fell out of his hand. ¡°Thank you, Gulad, that¡¯s exactly what I needed,¡± Calvin said, screaming on the inside. Calvin didn¡¯t have to write anything down to tell he was going to be here for years. Does Andra see me as a cheap source of labor? In the end, Calvin shrugged it off. It was what he would do to himself, were he in charge. Well, time to do the math¡­ Oh, would you look at that, just shy of ten years. Plenty of time for us to get to know each other. Calvin tapped his pen on the paper. Obviously something needed to change. Even if he press-ganged the remaining thirty-two women into providing Bent, he¡¯d still be here two years. No, what about raising the Skill? The effect of Calvinian Summoning increased at a staggering rate. One more level would add¡­ another eleven Knick-Knacks, with twenty-three extra minutes for all of them. A huge boost in speed. Calvin bent low over the paper, crunching numbers and shutting out distractions as a manic grin started to slowly take over his expression. Gulad backed out of the tent slowly, leaving the captain to his piece of paper. ¡°I¡¯ve got it!¡± Calvin said, underlining the last set of numbers twice. ¡°All I have to do is get Calvinian Summoning up to level twenty and convince all the camp followers to give me their Bent and we¡¯ll be out of here in a little over a month.¡± All you have to do, huh? ¡°It¡¯s either that or going on raids to get female POWs.¡± Calvin said, crossing his arms as he looked at the hard numbers. I fail to see how THAT could go poorly. Sarcasm rolled off of Elliot¡¯s words. No shit, so I¡¯ve taken the morally and politically more viable option of simply asking for assistance from the female workforce. That¡¯s gonna be a problem too, Calvin. Word¡¯s gonna spread, and they¡¯ve got husbands, lovers, etc. People will start gunning for you if you get a reputation. ¡°They¡¯re the most cost effective solution, damnit!¡± Calvin said, throwing up his hands in frustration. ¡°Why do I have to worry about the damn politics of it!?¡± Because, like Grant said, you¡¯ll develop a mythos. And at the rate you¡¯re going it¡¯s going to seem like you like women a bit more than you should. People are gonna second guess what you¡¯re doing with them, no matter how you try to spin it. especially since you gotta do it personally. Wait a minute, ¡°Wait a minute,¡± Calvin and Elliot said at the same time. ¡°Bring up the list of Chained spi-¡° Already on it. Continuity: The Chained spirit remembers time spent during each summon, is aware of what the user is aware of while it was unsummoned, and can learn or improve System and non-System Skills to the limit of Chained Spirit. Bent: The Chained Spirit gains a limited pool to draw from to fuel Abilities. The effects of the abilities are extentions of Chained Spirit and not actual Bent. Pool is 1/5th the level of Chained Spirit. Chained Minds: All active Chained Spirits and the user share senses and can communicate telepathically. Mutations: Siphon: Chained Spirit gains the Lady Killer mutation, any Bent drained is sent to the User. Voodoo U: Damage taken by caster is absorbed by Chained spirit instead. Consume: 1 Bent to consume a corpse on touch. Size limit mirrors Chained Spirit¡¯s. No more pesky things going moldy in the fridge while you¡¯re working through the leftovers. ¡°There! Siphon!¡± Calvin said, jumping out of his chair. If he could send Nadia to gather Bent, he could distance himself from the scheme. There was also the option of using One of the Guys to disguise himself, but if he got caught it would be even worse than doing it above the table. A buffer between you and the inevitable rumors of impropriety. ¡°Indeed, but¡­¡± Calvin scowled. He couldn¡¯t get the ability until level fifteen, after Continuity, and he still had to break Nadia¡¯s will. That was a long way off. ¡°Ah what the hell, I¡¯m gonna be here for a while. Plenty of time to raise my Skills.¡± Calvin needed to raise Fishing and Bali Ma as well, to see if they had any Abilities that could help him. Fishing was damn close to leveling. What about Your Princess is in Another Castle? Elliot pointed out. ¡°It feels weird practicing kidnapping princesses in Shadowboxing. Like, really weird.¡± Suck it up. ¡°Fine,¡± Calvin said with a scowl, flipping his number-filled sheet of paper over and beginning a bullet-pointed list of his goals. ¡°I¡¯m starting to accept we¡¯re going to be here a while,¡± Calvin said aloud as more and more tasks began to bubble up. He was way behind on his development. ¡°Good,¡± Grant said, barging into Calvin¡¯s tent. ¡°Because before we can even start your fortress, we¡¯ve got to set up basic security.¡± ¡°Can anyone just come and go at any time?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°You didn¡¯t assign guards.¡± Grant thumbed over his shoulder. ¡°another thing that needs to be addressed. You¡¯re holed up in your tent, so the men think it¡¯s time to relax. You need to make a show of working hard if you want them to do the same.¡± ¡°When am I supposed to meditate?¡± Calvin wondered aloud. ¡°When you¡¯re dead, let¡¯s go.¡± Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 14/30 Chapter 52: On the Job ***Surrak*** 2 weeks after retreat from Mujenan. Brendan Moore scratched the scabbed over scalp wound on the side of his head, looking over his damage reports with a scowl. I need to find someone else to take responsibility for this. Unfortunately he was the highest officer left after the disappearance of the general and the princess, and dead people were tricky to assign blame to. Seems like Grant¡¯s the only shot I¡¯ve got. There¡¯s been no sign of recovering his body, nor have the Gadverans paraded it around the city walls. The general¡¯s body was most likely caught in a burning building and rendered unrecognizable, but this presented an opportunity to change the narrative. General, Grant¡­Defected¡­during the¡­incursion¡­ Brendan¡¯s tongue popped out the side of his mouth as he colorfully placed the blame for the campaign¡¯s miserable outcome squarely at the feet of its highest ranked officer, who wasn¡¯t around to contest the charges. Killed¡­Princess¡­Nadia¡­ Brendan paused a moment and scratched out ¡®killed¡¯, replacing it with ¡®subdued¡¯. More difficult to accuse him of lying if she showed up alive one day. The gods knew those Royals were hard to perish. There was a rapping at the door to the governor¡¯s office. ¡°Sir, a report!¡± ¡°Come in,¡± Brendan intoned, sliding another paper over his draft. Some people could read faster than he¡¯d like. ¡°The first shipment to Malkenrovia has left the port, carrying three thousand units. By your order, we¡¯ve withheld every citizen successfully granted a Support Skill. By our count, there were six hundred and twelve reserved, or a sixth of the original amount processed. We estimate another fifteen thousand civilians remain in the city, including the ones that may be hiding. And so we can expect approximately two thousand more support units. Brendan grunted acknowledgement. ¡®Support Unit¡¯ was a fancy name for a person raped during a Break until they got a Skill for it, or sometimes having their Bent forcibly drawn out of them until they similarly got a Skill that made it even easier. Often both. The System gave them those skills to protect their minds and bodies from the damage, but those Skills changed them permanently. Made them docile. Easy to control. Support Units kept the Ilethan army running smoothly. ¡°Sir, do we actually have to pay Malkenrovia? The princess is gone, and ¨C.¡± Brendan glanced up at the lieutenant. ¡°Did you see the wurm big enough to collapse a city wall?¡± ¡°No sir.¡± ¡°Did you see the bladed monsters with skin stronger than steel that tore men in half with their limbs?¡± ¡°No sir.¡± ¡°Of course you didn¡¯t, because if you had, you wouldn¡¯t consider uttering those words, now get the fuck out of here.¡± ¡°One more thing,¡± the young man said, fishing through his pockets to draw out a scrap of paper. ¡°Scouts report the Gadveran army has sent a company to fortify Lunder Pass to serve as a foothold in retaking Surrak.¡± ¡°That¡¯s nice, what kind of fortifications, wood stakes, ditches and palisades?¡± ¡°Yes, and¡­a stone fortress?¡± Brendan blinked, coming to his feet. ¡°A what!?¡± ¡°The scout reported the unmistakable foundation of a fortress has been laid down amid the temporary fortifications, and is currently being filled by a troop of several hundred Knick-Knacks working at a, and I¡¯m quoting here, ¡®prodigious rate¡¯. ¡°Knick-Knacks!¡± Brendan growled. No one had ever seen more than a dozen or so in one place before, and they purported to be neutral. ¡°Send someone to catch some in town. I want answers. In the meantime, how many men do we have available?¡± ¡°We could spare maybe two thousand. Any more would leave us weak.¡± ¡°Organize a group of fifty Veteran scouts to blind their eyes and ears, then follow them up with five thousand men.¡± ¡°But ¨C¡° ¡°We¡¯ll take over the fortifications for ourselves. Their foothold will become ours. You don¡¯t win a war by waiting for the enemy to finish whatever they¡¯re doing.¡± ¡°Sir,¡± The lieutenant said, saluting and turning away. ¡°And send in a support unit,¡± Brendan added as an afterthought. ¡°I¡¯m feeling tired.¡± A minute later a dark Genosian girl stood in front of him, shivering, and Bredan set aside his work for a minute or two. ****Calvin**** Talking to girls has reached level 9! Acting has reached level 9! Meditation has reached level 13! Calvinian Summoning has reached level 13! Shadow boxing will have no more effect until Meditation reaches a higher level. Chained Spirit had reached Level 6! ¡­. Chained Spirit had reached Level 10! +1 Will Please choose¡­ I choose Continuity. ¡­.. Chained Spirit had reached Level 13! Shadow boxing will have no more effect until Meditation reaches a higher level. Sense Grafting has reached level 10! +1 Intuition Please choose an ability or Mutation. Offensive Grafting: Sense grafting can now be used on targets other than the caster. Unwilling targets will resist. Success and duration is determined by Intuition. Omniscient Grafting: The User can now graft senses without losing their own, as well as create and process multiple inputs simultaneously. Synesthesia: Bundle two or more senses together. Taste colors, see smells, etc. Extremely debilitating condition, but allows the user to process a particular input using more areas of the brain, allowing a more comprehensive understanding of the medium. ^For example, seeing and hearing music, allowing you to make music that looks and sounds good, with a depth that normal people will be amazed by. A mile in their shoes: User copies any number of senses from a target onto themselves, allowing them to experience what the target is experiencing. ^Really, really good for sex, kid. I highly recommend. Desensitize: reduce chosen sense from mild weakening to complete deprivation. ^Also good for sex, if you know how to use it, amiright? Mutations: Gaze into the Abyss: See from the perspective of any creature observing the User. May cause headaches without Omniscient Grafting ^unlocked by Third Eye and Feel Intent Compensation: Sacrifice a sense at will to boost another drastically. Reversable. 7th,8th,9th Sense: 1 Bent: User may consume a creature and either improve an existing sense or add one that the user previously did not have, dependent on the creature''s senses. One slot per five levels of Sense-Grafting ^Unlocked by Consume and Gift of Tongues That¡¯s a lot more than last time I looked at it, Calvin thought as he reviewed the choices, old and new. They were interesting, to be sure, but Offensive Grafting and Omnescient grafting were necessary to round out the skill as a whole. He could worry about getting special stuff afterward. Hold on a minute. Elliot interjected This isn¡¯t about the sex one is it? You wound me, sir. Elliot said. Nah, I was eyeballing that last one. What about it? There are tons of animals out there with better senses than ours. And tons more that have senses we simply don¡¯t. I can name a couple off the top of my head. Sharks have an electricity sense so acute they can feel living things with their skin. Got that one off Shark Week. I wonder why that¡¯s still a thing. The Ogre-Faced spider can see really fuckin¡¯ good in the dark. What do you think about putting the normal spell progression on hold and eat say¡­an owl and a bat? You can forget about people sneaking up on you then. You mean a Turka? Calvin asked The hell¡¯s a Turka? Cal considered it. Level twenty wasn¡¯t terribly far away as long as he could get his meditation skill up to match. That pushed the development back by a few levels, but Meditation would eventually reach that point. In the meantime, it would help his defense if he could literally see things coming. ¡­I choose 7th,8th,9th Sense: User will be rendered Unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Calvin body tingled for a moment before he passed out on his cot, waking up half an hour later. Remind me to go hunting. Calvin thought as he folded his arms back over his chest and got back to work with Shadow Boxing. You got it boss. ¡­. Sense Grafting has reached level 11! Shadow boxing will have no more effect until Intuition reaches a higher level. Sense Grafting level 11: Sight, hearing, touch, pain, smell, Taste, Balance. Self-only, 121ft range, 55 minutes. Well, on to something else, I guess. ¡­. Kala and Calvin were walking down the street in the dark of the night. Colorful lanterns were strung up all over the street, bathing the beautiful girl on his arm in soft green light. She leaned her shoulder against his as they walked to their date: A night out on the town at the festival, just the two of them. Time to make my move. ¡°Oh, crap,¡± Calvin said, grabbing his pocket. ¡°I don¡¯t have any cash. Think we could stop by my place first?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Kala said, with a princess-like aloof shrug. ¡°Wait a minute,¡± she said, her gaze landing on his. She narrowed her eyes. ¡°You were trying to take me to an undisclosed second location weren¡¯t you?¡± You¡¯re blown. ¡°No, I just ¨C¡° ¡°You¡¯re practicing your princess kidnapping Skill right now aren¡¯t you!?¡± She said, accusingly, poking him in the ribs. ¡°I should have never told you about that.¡± Calvin said, shoulders slumping. ¡°Wait a minute It¡¯s not festival season, is it?¡± she said, glancing up at the lanterns. Under her scrutiny, the festival lanterns faded out of existance, causing her eyes to widen. ¡°Holy Elani, we¡¯re in your Shadow Boxing Ability right now. None of this is real!¡± She looked down at herself. ¡°I¡¯m not real either¡­¡± Kala was thoughtful for a moment, but quickly recovered, looking back up at him with mischief blooming on her face. ¡°But, I can¡¯t just let you kidnap me,¡± she said, tapping her lips in thought, a slow smile building. Here we go again. ¡°You know what the first thought I had when I heard about that shadowboxing skill?¡± Kala asked, peering over at him like a hungry cat. ¡°Enlighten me.¡± Kala grabbed his vest and pulled him into a dark alley, pushing him up against a wall. She leaned forward, her cheek brushing against his as she whispered, ¡°No consequences.¡± Calvin bit down a yelp as Kala¡¯s fingers invaded his pants. ¡°You realize you¡¯re not going to remember any of this, but I will? That¡¯s a consequence.¡± he said, keeping his voice steady as possible. ¡°Shut up and let me enjoy myself,¡± Kala said, peering down with a grin as she unlaced his breeches. ¡°And then after that, we can get drunk and tip over vendor stalls.¡± Calvin shrugged. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll have to take one for the team.¡± ¡­ ¡­.. Your Princess is in another castle has reached level 4! Level 4: 20% Correction. Calvin opened his eyes with a gasp. Does it bother you that your crush is obviously deeply repressed? ¡°Hell no, did that seem uncomfortable to you?¡± Fair enough. The tent flap flew open and Grant poked his head in. ¡°Wakey wakey, Captain, we¡¯re in need of some of your brilliant leadership skills.¡± He glanced down at the tent in Calvin¡¯s covers. ¡°Might wanna tuck that in before you come out, though.¡± ¡°This is one hundred percent Princess Kala¡¯s fault.¡± ¡°Sure it is.¡± The big soldier said with a smirk. ¡°Fuck off, I¡¯m getting dressed.¡± Cal started crawling to his dresser when he ran up against a warm body, stopping him in his tracks and forcing him to clear his bleary eyes. Ella¡¯s face was inches away from his, turned toward him and drooling into the pillow beside his. When did she get there? Calvin crawled over Ella¡¯s prone form to get to his clothes cabinet. Captains couldn¡¯t just toss their clothes on the ground like a normal person, apparently. ¡°You a need little extra time? Ten minutes or so?¡± ¡°I will make you shovel shit.¡± Calvin threatened. ¡°Daylight.¡± Grant said. ¡°Huh?¡± Calvin glanced over at the general as the man pried the tent flap open just a bit more, blinding Calvin with the glare of the morning sun. ¡°Son of a bitch!¡± Ella groaned and turned away from the source of light, eyes still closed. Calvin blinked the spots out of his eyes and slid on his pants, followed by his uniform, taking pains to make sure it was as straight as he could manage by himself. ¡°Alright, what did you interrupt my morning meditation for?¡± Calvin demanded as he left the tent, joining Grant in the muddy path that had been stomped into the earth between the tents. ¡°A matter of utmost importance, Captain. This way.¡± Calvin followed Grant through the busy camp, which had quickly become the center of a rash of earth works stretching all the way to the mountain. Hastily constructed palisades at the top of shallow ditches covered either the north and the south, warding against an attack from the front and the back. Tree stumps were still being pulled out, but enough trees had been cut down that Calvin had a perfectly clear view of the distant mountain they were meant to connect to. The bald patch of forest was about a quarter mile long, and a hundred yards wide. Even now, Calvin could see young men pulling stumps out of the ground in the morning light. They looked up and waved as they saw his bright uniform walking through the tents. They weren¡¯t even supposed to get to work yet. Brown-nosers¡­feels good. Grant stopped in front of Vukya, who was addressing two young men. He motioned to the knot of people and withdrew. ¡°Something wrong?¡± ¡°Captain!¡± Vukya said, jumping a little as he noticed Calvin approach. ¡°How did you¡­nevermind. These two have a dispute over oil.¡± ¡°Oil.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Keba stole my oil! He took it and just slathers it everywhere like a numbnuts. He¡¯s wasting it, and we¡¯re going to be out in a week.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a lying sack of shit, Carl, You know you need to make a smooth even coat to resist the weather!¡± That¡¯s it? Calvin was sorely tempted to let Vukya handle it, but he¡¯d already stepped in it. Calvin cast a glance over for Grant, but the Ilethan man had long since disappeared. Damn. Calvin thought on his feet. The problem was gear-maintenance related, something Calvin had little experience with. It stood to reason the solution would be gear-maintenance related. ¡°Get Sergeant Fleck to test these men on their gear maintenance, whosoever fails is Fleck¡¯s bitch for the week.¡± Sergeant Fleck was the dour quartermaster. Working for him was reported to be unpleasant. From the barely restrained fury the old man had when he regarded Calvin, he could tell the man resented a captain so much younger than him, and possibly let that out on people of similar age. Hopefully giving the old man extra work wouldn¡¯t set him off. The man on the left ¨C Carl ¨C paled, and Calvin could tell he was going to fail that test. All in a day¡¯s work. Calvin excused himself and went to visit Gulad. The green-sashed Engineer was walking among the stacked lumber, making notes as he went. ¡°How goes it?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Not great, sir, most of the wood, especially the trees of sizeable heft, have¡­¡± He picked up a stick and poked it into a hole in the wood Calvin hadn¡¯t noticed before. He pulled it out with a trail of slime following it. ¡°That¡¯s problematic.¡± ¡°Yessir. We¡¯re still going at a speed that boggles the mind, but we¡¯re going to feel the loss of nearly¡­¡± he consulted his notes. ¡°Sixty seven percent of the large lumber.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll just have to eat that loss in time,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Make sure the rotten wood is separated and burned, and¡­see if our scouts can find a place with better wood. Could be we¡¯re just in a particularly bad spot.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Gulad gave him a serious salute that was at odds with the man¡¯s protruding teeth. Ah well, we don¡¯t get to choose our faces. Calvin conferred with Gulad on what he wanted accomplished with the day¡¯s work for a couple hours before summoning the Knick-Knacks and setting them to task. Eventually, Calvin saw shadows disappear as the sun crept directly above them. Ah, my favorite part of being a captain¡­ Forcing people to obey my weird rules. More than anything else, to make his plans come to fruition as fast as possible, Calvin needed plenty of time to meditate. That was hard to come by, sneaking in a little before bed or in the morning before Grant woke him up, so Calvin had come up with a solution. An hour of exercise at noon, then lunch, then an hour-long nap. For everyone. People, especially the veterans, thought it was weird at first, but it had come straight from the captain. Surprisingly, it hadn¡¯t significantly impacted their performance, as the extra energy somewhat offset the loss of time. And it gave Calvin an hour a day to practice Meditation. Calvin went to the mess, joining a stream of hungry men heading that direction. They parted for him as he stepped up on the rough-hewn stage built for talent shows, announcements, floggings, and in this case, leading exercises. ¡°All right, y¡¯all know the rules. Form up, give yourselves plenty of room. You wanna eat, you gotta earn it with me.¡± Calvin dropped down and started doing pushups, noting the shift in the air as every single person in the field dropped to the ground with him, following Karen¡¯s exercises regimen. I could get used to this, Calvin thought as he huffed through the workout. Extensive training has increased Kinesthetics. +1 Kinesthetics Extensive training has increased Endurance. +1 Endurance Extensive training has increased Strength. +1 Strength. Once everyone was done, Calvin sat down in the comfiest chair in the camp and closed his eyes, picturing the muddy river outside Deinos. ¡­. Fishing has reached Level 5! +1 Stability Fishing level 5: line strength and Bait effectiveness. 25% Please choose and ability or Mutation. We''re Gonna Need a Bigger Pond: Spend one Bent while casting to connect one body of water to any other body of water while fishing. Maximum size fish restricted by the opening of the original body of water. ^MAXIMUM SIZE IMPOSED: USE AT SEA DISABLED AFTER THE SUMMONING OF LAVASH THE WORLD DRINKER. Sea of Calm: Meditate while fishing. While fishing, the levels of Meditation and Fishing stack, applying to both their effects and abilities. for example, if fishing is 5 and Meditation is 15, while fishing, both skills will be treated as 20. User can Shadowbox between catches. ^Can''t be cheesed by fishing in Shabowboxing, you Munchkin, it''s already good enough. Calvinian Fishing: Creatures may be summoned with a hook and intangible line attached to them, allowing the user to mentally reel in fish. ^Fish with magic! Master-Baiter: Any bait you place shares the fishing skill''s correction to it''s attractiveness. This works with any kind of bait, not just fishing lures. ^this bonus applies to anything the user considers bait, against any creature potentially baited by it. Shiny coins to bait beggars, a bar of soap in the middle of the jungle to lure a princess...use your imagination. Mutations: Polarized Eyes: Apply the Fishing correction to see clearly through the glare of water. ^Sometimes works on light-based illusions. Sonar: Allows the user to use high frequency noises to map out areas and detect creatures under the water. May cause Were-dolphin-ism ^eek eek! Expert Sturgeon: Eating fish applies the Fishing Skill''s correction to the body''s natural immunity/healing. Lasts 8 hours, requiring three meals with fish a day for full effect. That¡¯s interesting.. Calvin thought as he reviewed the choices for Fishing. Some of them were damn good. If he took Sea of Calm, he could practice Bent skills as long as his line was in the water, up to level eighteen. The ocean was at the bottom of a huge cliff currently, so that was a little inconvenient. Inconvenient but powerful¡­ Wait, if I took Bigger Pond, couldn¡¯t I¡­ With Bigger Pond, the text of the ability said any body of water. So, if he took Bigger Pond and Sea of Calm, he could get some hair and a shiny lure, dip it into a cup full of water, and he¡¯d be fishing, no matter where on Marconen he was, stacking the levels of Fishing and Meditation on top of each other. Interesting¡­. It also synergized well with Medi-tate and Expert Sturgeon. One other thing¡­ Calvin reviewed Master-Baiter. Applies to any bait for any purpose? That was undeniably powerful, and Calvin wanted it. It would be excellent for distractions and ambushes. If the bait could work on humans like Elliot was suggesting, it was impossible to pass up. Let¡¯s see. 5th level, Master-Baiter. 10th level, Bigger Pond. 15th level, Sea of Calm? Calvin wasn¡¯t one hundred percent sure that he would be able to get to level fifteen quickly. The skill didn¡¯t level as quickly as spells, because it¡¯s very nature was slow and patient. The only reason he was going so fast with the spells was because he could cast them with no spent effort in Shadow Boxing. Fishing was much, much slower. ¡­in all probability, Meditation would level up high enough to support his needs for now, and getting Bigger Pond at level ten would help him level Fishing faster. Even if he missed out on raising his spells through the roof with Shadow Boxing augmented by Sea of Calm, Sea of calm was still useful, allowing the Medi-tate Ability that he would get at Meditation level 15 to operate at an outrageous speed. I choose Master-Baiter. Elliot snickered in the back of his head. Eat a dick. We should get back to practicing kidnapping Kala. That and Beli Ma. You need as many options as you can get when you go up against One again. I swear, this time I¡¯m not gonna let her go crazy. Just a quick kidnapping. Over and done. Keep telling yourself that. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 15/30! Halfway! Chapter 53: Cruel and Unusual Karen swept down with her massive claymore with bloodshot eyes, intent on splitting Calvin in half. Calvin waved his hand in front of the blade, trailing a bit of nearly invisible Bent through the air. The sword caught in the trail and was tugged off course, following his circulating Bent as it tried to return to his hand. Karen grunted, and a minor tremor went through the ground as the sword sped up drastically. Oh, cra- Karen¡¯s sword sheared through Calvin¡¯s hand like there was nothing there, obliterating his palm and sending fingers flying across the practice yard. ¡°Damn!¡± Baroke shouted, chuckling while eating cured Nakya. The rest of the village was watching, cheering Calvin on as he stumbled away, clutching his ruined hand as it gushed blood into his palm. Beli Ma has reached Level ¨C Karen interrupted the System with another cleaving strike. Calvin tried to Use Beli Ma with his left hand to direct Karen¡¯s strike down, but the delicate circulation of Bent was ruined, and the sword caught him in the ribs, severed his arm, spine, and every major organ before erupting out his other side. Calvin toppled to the ground in two pieces, pain staining every fiber of his being. A moment later he reset himself, standing in front of Karen, flexing phantom pain out of his fingers. ¡°How do people train Beli Ma without losing fingers?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Slowly.¡± Karen said, rushing toward him. ¡°Hold on!¡± Calvin shouted, blocking her strike with a knife erupting from his forearm. The sheer force of the strike blew him away. Calvin tumbled three times before hitting his head against the nearby hut, making cracks on its dried mud exterior. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I leveled,¡± Calvin gasped. Beli Ma has reached Level 5! Level 5: 25% Correction. +1 Stability Please choose an ability or mutation. The Iroh Special: Learn from the best. Spend 1 Bent to redirect an Ability you are the target of and can respond to. You choose new targets for the Ability. If used on a lightning based Ability redirect it for free and instead Bent is used to amplify the redirected Ability. Rooted Lotus Style: Double Beli Ma Correction by standing still. With Interest: Add (correction) force of deflected attacks to counter-attacks. can be used with thrown weapons, if one is on-hand, but primarily used for Melee. ^ This number can go higher than 100% Mutations: Dragon clutches Pearl: Absorb (Correction*1) of a successfully deflected Ability''s Bent cost. limited to original Bent cost. *From Lady Killer mutation. Slippery When Wet: Able to excrete a slippery substance through your pores to make it more difficult for others to grapple or hold you. Can be directed with practice. ^Never need lube again! I thought there¡¯d be more. There are, but they¡¯re locked. Calvin rested against the wall of the hut, running his finger over the dent in the knife emerging from his forearm. Dragon Clutches Pearl was appealing, but its effect was directly related to the level of Beli Ma. Getting it now, it was underwhelming, and wouldn¡¯t do a lot. He could always pick it up later when the amount of Bent it stole for him was higher. Right now¡­what had the greatest effect... Calvin passed over Slippery, and Rooted Lotus. The first seemed like a joke and the other required him to stand still and take the punishment, it also improved with Beli Ma, so would be better later in his Skill development. Calvin Compared the Iroh Special, and With Interest. Similar abilities, but for the price of 1 bent, he was basically guaranteeing a nullification of the enemy¡¯s ability while putting them on the back foot, returning it back to them. With Interest didn¡¯t help you deflect things at all, just adding a little extra punch to counter-attacks. I choose the Iroh Special. Calvin thought. ¡°Alright, I picked it,¡± Calvin said, standing as the knowledge of the ability flooded his mind. It was kind of like Beli Ma, he needed to make a cloud of Bent in front of his palm that would be expended to absorb and replicate an attack, allowing him to choose a new target. ¡°Oh yeah, what¡¯s it do?¡± Karen asked, resting her sword on her shoulder. Calvin gave her the description, word for word, and she got a thoughtful look. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s practice that now. We need something you can see¡­¡± She glanced over at Baroke. ¡°Baroke, get your bow.¡± ¡°Awesome.¡± The muscular archer jumped out of his seat and ran to get his gear. **** Calvin stood at the end of Mujenan¡¯s firing range he¡¯d conjured with Shadow Boxing, hands held ready. At the other end were Karen and Baroke. The tall young man had his oversized bow and an arrow nocked. ¡°You ready?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Ready!¡± Calvin shouted, fully intending to redirect the arrow toward Karen. A little arrow to the face¡¯ll show her what it feels like. ¡°Pay close attention, Calvin!¡± Karen said. ¡°This Ability¡¯s only as good as you are!¡± ¡°Got it!¡± Baroke pulled back the arrow: ¡°Penetrating shot.¡± He released, and the arrow hissed through the air, almost faster than Calvin could process. Calvin whipped up his hand and activated the Ability, feeling the Bent flood out of his palm into a cloud of potential in front of him, ready to be triggered. The arrow sailed through the cloud, and Calvin had an instant of surprise before the iron tip bored through his palm, then his shoulder, pinning the two together, and slamming him up against the backdrop behind him. Baroke slung his bow over his shoulder, and he and Calvin¡¯s foster mother walked over to him, grinning. ¡°Ow..I can¡¯t move.¡± Calvin said, trying to pry the arrow out with his left hand. Any understanding that he didn¡¯t have the strength to pull the wooden shaft out was overridden by the pain rampaging through his thoughts. ¡°I told you to pay attention.¡± Karen said, her thumbs in her belt loop. ¡°But..¡± ¡°Baroke, did you put any Bent into that attack?¡± ¡°Naw, that was just a regular arrow.¡± Baroke said with a shit-eating grin. ¡°But you said¡­¡± ¡°Said what? Penetrating Shot?¡± He flicked the feathers sticking out of Calvin¡¯s palm, causing an explosion of pain. ¡°Looks like it penetrated pretty good to me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s important that I point out the weaknesses in your abilities before an enemy does it for you,¡± Karen said. ¡°Bent-Less attacks are going to sail right through that Ability. Only use it if you¡¯re absolutely sure the attack is using Bent. Look for glowing, independent movement, a shimmering trail, anything unnatural. Never Assume.¡± ¡°You¡­are¡­a¡­demon,¡± Calvin said, shuddering as his lung bumped up against the arrow-shaft. ¡°I¡¯m a concerned mother.¡± Karen said. ¡°Now reset yourself, you¡¯ve still gotta get some practice with that new Ability.¡± Oh right, I can do that. Sometimes Calvin thought Karen was simply training him to ignore pain. ¡­ Beli Ma has reached level 6! Knife-Work has reached level 7! Read Expressions has reached level 8! Calvin opened his eyes as his Company¡¯s Nap Time came to an end, dictated by the sun that was slowly dipping beneath the parasol Calvin had set down, shining him directly in the eyes. How was school today? Karen sucks. D¡¯Aww. How does she know all those things? Calvin asked. I don¡¯t know those things. Shadow Boxing isn¡¯t drawing from your memory of her, it¡¯s drawing from the System¡¯s memory of her. That¡¯s why it¡¯s so much more effective than pretending to fight her, via mundane shadow-boxing. So the people in my shadow boxing¡­know things I don¡¯t know? Spot on. That sound deliciously exploitable. True. The skin on Calvin¡¯s neck, arms, and side of his face felt someone big approach from behind. They felt male, which ruled out Ella. An instant later, he felt the man¡¯s gaze land on him, bearing a distinct lack of friendship or respect. Grant, then. ¡°You ready to get to work, Grant?¡± Calvin said as he blinked the sunspots out of his eyes and stood. ¡°Taming the glib, so to speak?¡± Grant¡¯s voice asked from behind him. ¡°Pretty much.¡± Okay, I¡¯ll admit the Turka was a good choice. They don¡¯t have eyes, so something must have been going on there, Calvin thought. He¡¯d hunted down and eaten one of the blind predators only a few days ago, and Calvin was starting to be able to process the foreign sensations with ever-increasing accuracy. His newly sensitive skin allowed him to tell the distance, size, hardness, and vague direction of everything that moved around him. With the Third Eye mutation and Feel Intent, if someone was looking at him, it was even more accurate. Just a lot to get used to. Calvin walked over to the recently finished pillory made of solid Steel, where Nadia hung at an awkward angle, glaring at him in defiance, her hands balled into fists beside her head. Her face was covered in scraped and bruises where soldiers idly threw rocks and animal dung at her. ¡°Hi.¡± Calvin said in Ilethan, pulling up a stool to sit in front of her. ¡°Feeling any more broken than yesterday?¡± Chained Spirit at level 13 lasted just over a day and a half. ¡°Eat a dick.¡± ¡°What was that you told Grant?¡± Calvin asked, pointing to the towering general. ¡°That she¡¯d come back and flay you alive and all of Mujenan.¡± Grant supplied. Calvin gasped in faux horror. ¡°That includes some of my best friends.¡± Calvin said, pressing a hand to his chest. ¡°And what did I tell you I would do if you did that?¡± ¡°But I didn¡¯t!¡± Nadia protested. ¡°Shut up. We both know you have no respect for anyone other than yourself. You¡¯d do it in a heartbeat. Besides, the game has changed already. Princess Nadia is dead. You¡¯re not her. You¡¯re a Bent construct. An extension of my will that I can summon and unsummon at a whim.¡± Calvin ran a finger over the scab on his arm where she¡¯d managed to inflict damage before he unsummoned her on their re-introduction. ¡°Let me out of here, and I¡¯ll show you how much of an extention of your will I am.¡± ¡°By doing what? Killing me?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°You know you would cease to exist, right? never to be summoned again. Killing me is as good as killing yourself, now.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t believe you,¡± Nadia said, shivering in the pillory. Calvin tried to nudge his summon¡¯s behavior mentally, but the titanic wall she¡¯d put up inside her own mind made the wasp¡¯s violent urges seem tame by comparison. The girl¡¯s mind was a fortress. ¡°Hmm¡­ maybe you need a demonstration.¡± Calvin said, standing. ¡°Grant, your sword.¡± Grant unsheathed his heavy shortsword, more like a cleaver than a short-sword, but it was exactly what Calvin needed. He palmed the blade and handed it to Calvin handle-first. ¡°What, you gonna cut me, you sick fuck?¡± she asked disdainfully. ¡°In a manner of speaking.¡± Calvin said, taking a few experimental swipes with the blade. Nadia¡¯s gaze locked on to Grant. ¡°You¡¯re going to suffer for this, traitor. We¡¯ll bind your soul to the Throne and watch you go mad.¡± ¡°I was already assured of that punishment as soon as I allowed the Malkenrovian delegate to kill you,¡± Grant said with a shrug. ¡°This is my best option.¡± ¡°I AM NOT DEAD!¡± Nadia¡¯s voice rang out through the camp, making Calvin¡¯s ears hurt a little with how powerful her voice was. ¡°Let me out of this illusion! I AM NOT DEAD!¡± ¡°Alley-oop.¡± Chained Spirit. 8/14 Bent Remaining. Calvin held his free palm down, and summoned another Nadia, black Bent flooding down his veins and out his skin. She appeared on her knees, facing the pillory. The green smoke swirled into a skeleton, then cloaked it in flesh, revealing the girls¡¯ nude form for an instant before the last of the green smoke curled into her tight black clothes. Gotta figure out how Chained Spirit includes clothes. Probably the Harbinger¡¯s PG-13 Filter. What? I¡¯m just kidding, I¡¯ll do some research. ¡°What the ¨C¡° Kneeling Nadia started to speak. Calvin brought the oversized short sword down, cleaving the new summon¡¯s head from its neck. Pillory Nadia watched in horror as her own corpse slumped over with an astonished expression before it collapsed into slime that evaporated into whirling green smoke. ¡°So, did you get a moment of being in two places at once?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Or just the memory of it? Or neither? Still trying to figure out how Continuity works.¡± ¡°I AM STILL ALIVE!¡± Nadia began chanting ad naseum. ¡°Let¡¯s try it again, then.¡± Calvin said with a shrug, holding out his palm. ¡°No, No NO!¡± Ignoring Nadia¡¯s protests, he used Chained Spirit again. Chained Spirit. 7/14 Bent remaining. Nadia appeared kneeling in front of him, and Calvin took another swipe at her neck. Nadia rolled out of the way with a shout, turning around at a speed Calvin couldn¡¯t quite follow and leaping on him, knocking him to the ground. The Pilloried Nadia cackled as her copy wrestled the blade out of Calvin¡¯s hand, raising it to end his life. Calvin forcefully ended the summon. The Nadia on top of him burst into green smoke, dropping the heavy shortsword. Calvin managed to reach up and grab the blade out of the air, pinched between his thumb and fingers, before it fell into his chest. Heart slamming in his chest, Calvin stood, trying to appear as casual as possible. He was playing with fire, here. ¡°Almost made it.¡± Calvin said with a smile he didn¡¯t feel. ¡°Looks like Continuity works. How do you feel about seeing yourself summoned and unsummoned at will? You know if I had this much control over you with mind magic, you wouldn¡¯t be anywhere near this lucid. Accept your situation.¡± Nadia was shivering violently in the pillory. ¡°Im not dead, not dead, notdead, notdead, notdeadnotdeadnotdead¡­.¡± ¡°Mmmm,¡± Calvin hummed, handing Grant his sword back. ¡°I guess this is gonna take a couple more days. Maybe longer since the dead girl doesn¡¯t need to eat or sleep. You haven¡¯t gotten hungry yet, have you?¡± ¡°No, no nononono.¡± She breathed through clenched teeth, her spit flying as she chanted, shaking like a leaf. Pain or Humiliation?¡± ¡°What?¡± Nadia gasped. ¡°Would you rather I summon a swarm of wasps to sting every inch of your naked body, or simply give the soldiers free reign to humiliate and dehumanize you in any way they see fit?¡± ¡°Go ahead. I can tolerate rape.¡± ¡°I was thinking something more along the lines of tying you up, tossing you in the latrine and poking you with sticks until you pass out¡­over, and over, but hey, whatever works for you¡­¡± Calvin glanced over at Grant. ¡°Wasps too?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see why not.¡± Grant shrugged. ¡°Gotta start somewhere.¡± ¡°Congratulations, Princess Nadia, you¡¯ve been promoted to my personal torture doll/ toilet. If nothing else, you¡¯ll give us a lot of solid information on how much an Ilethan noble can take before they lose their mind.¡± Calvin felt something crack in her gaze, and the connection via Chained spirit registered it too, a tiny little chink in her mental armor. Calvin didn¡¯t start exploiting it immediately, instead he slowly applied his will to widening it, so gradually as to be imperceptible. ¡°No.¡± she said lifelessly, her hair hanging over her eyes as she stared at him. ¡°No what?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do...that. Please.¡± ¡°Ah, the magic word.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I¡¯ll make you a deal, then.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Kiss my feet.¡± Calvin glanced down at his shoes. ¡°They¡¯re pretty clean. Carl took care of them this morning. Shiny even.¡± Nadia glared at him, her emotions raging between shame and some kind of perverse enjoyment. ¡°¡­okay.¡± ¡°Grant, if you would.¡± Grant stepped up to her, and unlocked the pillory, keeping a hand on his pommel, to prevent her from trying to steal his blade. Nadia slumped out of the restraints, rubbing her wrists as she glared at Calvin, her Intent waffling between trying to shiv him, and acquiescence. I wonder which one she¡¯ll pick, Calvin thought, a hairs breadth from unsummoning her if she tried to kill him. Nadia shakily dropped down on her knees and pressed her mouth to the top of his shoe. Your Princess is In another Castle has reached Level 5! Level 5: 25% Correction! +1 Stability Please Choose an ability or Mutation. The information began unfolding across Calvin¡¯s consciousness, but he caught a intrigued murmur from Elliot that drew his attention away. That¡¯s weird. What is? She still counts as a princess. Calvin unsummoned the Nadia crying into his shoe and re-summoned her, standing in front of him. She looked slightly confused. 6/15 Bent remaining. ¡°Well done, I was going to offer a bath, but I figured a resummon would work just as well. For the next day you¡¯ve got a reprieve from the pillory, and that reprieve can continue on good behavior.¡± ¡°Let me warn you though,¡± Calvin said, leaning close. ¡°If you act up in any way, you¡¯re going back to the pillory, and by all the gods, if you hurt or kill someone in a misguided attempt to escape, this world will become your personal Abyss. I will break you until you¡¯d do anything to make it stop, then I¡¯ll summon more of you and have you hurt each other creatively. Clear?¡± This was the moment all his cruelty was for. Calvin really didn''t want to spend all his time torturing a teenage girl, and for that, he needed her to believe him wholeheartedly. She was too mentally tough to budge if she thought he wasn''t willing to do exactly what he said, which is why he executed her in front of herself, to shock her mind. If he couldn''t get her to cooperate with him, worst case scenario, he was out of luck and would simply never summon her again, rather than make good on his grandiose promises of torture. It just wasn''t cost-effective, and it wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d enjoy. She hesitated a moment, then nodded, her gaze radiating a bizarre fascination with him that sent shivers up his spine. ¡°Go take a bath if you want, eat something if you can, Sleep if you want to. You don¡¯t need to do any of those things, being dead, but I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll make you feel better. Grant, don¡¯t let her out of your sight.¡± Nadia walked away, her whole body trembling as Grant escorted her. Let¡¯s see¡­ show me the options Stockholm Syndrome: YPiiAC correction now also applies to the emotional bonding of captive princesses with the User, as well as the resulting allegiance. ^Yeah, it''s a real thing. Damn ugly IRL, tho. Safe and Sound: YPiiAC correction now also applies damage reduction to princesses allied with you or in your custody. No distance limitations. Complete damage negation not possible. Formula: (Damage) / (1+Correction) I.E. at 100% correction, princesses take 50% damage. Diminishing rate of return. ^ did you know aging is a form of damage to your DNA? Food for thought if you want your princesses well-preserved, kid. Save the Last Dance: 4 Bent to begin a dance with a princess that cannot be interrupted. As long as both participants continue to dance, they are immune to physical attacks, physical restrictions, Bent abilities, mental manipulation, etc. ^ Good for moonwalking out of trouble. True Love''s Kiss: 2 Bent, heals a princess of any curses, poisons, or afflictions, including foreign Bent, restores condition and heals similar to a week''s bed rest, potentially sealing otherwise lethal wounds. Consumes princess'' remaining Bent, but restores User''s Bent at level/10 efficiency. Mutations: Bloodline: Consume Princess blood to potentially gain access to Skills and Abilities unique to their bloodline. Itty Bitty slight tiny chance of causing True Ancestor Vampirism Wolf in Sheep¡¯s Clothing: User is able to adopt a role that make them appear to belong in a given setting, and behave in a way that draws no attention as they aim for the princess... From Acting, Talking to Girls and One of the Guys The Bowser: Each time the User successfully kidnaps a princess, they receive a permanent +2 to their Body. (retroactive) Once per princess. ^Current bonus +6 to Body ¡­ ¡­. Give me The Bowser. As tempting as Stockholm syndrome was, it didn¡¯t really help anything, just sped up his progress with Nadia without providing any tangible benefits. Safe and sound and Last Dance were interesting, but a little too specific to be of use to him at all times. The Bowser boosted his Body capacity drastically, which in turn boosted the maximum capacity of all his physical attributes and skills. It was practically worth six Warp for each princess he kidnapped, permanently, and it easily offset his over-specialization in Mind. Plus, there¡¯s more princesses being born all the time out there. Two Body for each sounds good to me. No one says I gotta keep them forever, just kidnap them one time. Oh my god you chose Bowser! AHAHAHAHAH! User will be rendered unconscious while the mutation is taking place. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 16/30 Chapter 54: Ambitions ¡°This tech, It¡¯s a black box, sir.¡± Elliot said, standing stiffly at attention beside the rest of the Engineers as Admiral George Greyson paced back and forth, eyeing them with irritation. ¡°We don¡¯t know what¡¯s going to come out the other side. Doug made a function that calls for souls and it worked.¡± ¡°So, souls are real, tell me something I don¡¯t know.¡± Elliot and Doug shared glances. ¡°We can ask for these changes, but we¡¯re not changing the System itself,¡± Elliot said. ¡°Rather than that, it would be better to modify our infrastru-¡° The admiral¡¯s fist came down on the table, sending Doug¡¯s My Little Pony pen clattering off the edge. ¡°No!¡± he shouted, redfaced. ¡°We are not bending over backwards, changing everything we know, because some aliens a long-ass time ago thought interdimensional mining was a good idea!¡± ¡°But sir, do we have any other way of processing Warp?¡± One of the engineers in the back queried. Gordy, Elliot thought his name was. ¡°That¡¯s not your job!¡± Admiral Greyson said, pointing. ¡°We have other people working on that. Your job is to figure out how to make the System work for us, and how to police it! A teenager learned how to talk to Higgs Drives with his fucking mind. We gave him a lucrative job in the diagnostics and repair division, but it could have just as easily been a domestic terrorist. Do you have any idea how much damage a sabotaged Higgs drive can do?¡± Nobody answered the rhetorical question, because each and every one of them knew the answer. Every single child grew up with the story of the day humans lost their homeworld. From Solar all the way to the backworld of Marconen, that was the single defining feature of every culture. ¡°I want to be able to control the Break, I want to be able to control who gets what Skill, otherwise we have complete anarchy. One kid gets the Leadership skill and all of a sudden he¡¯s a cult leader. I¡¯m hearing tell of abilities that let people control other¡¯s minds.¡± Oh, no, powerful people controlling other people¡¯s minds, that¡¯s never happened before. The horror, the horror. Elliot thought sarcastically, keeping a carefully neutral face as the admiral continued his tirade. ¡°I trust people as far as I can throw them, and a fucking godlike AI giving others supernatural powers doesn¡¯t help matters much.¡± ¡°Get it. Under. Control.¡± He tapped the desk to punctuate his words before storming out of the Think Tank, a literal silo where they shoved all the eggheads before the Harbingers arrived. ¡°So I¡¯m working on becoming a wizard,¡± Elliot said, dismissing the admiral and getting back to what they were talking about before he interrupted. If something like getting cussed out bothered them, they wouldn¡¯t be in the Navy. ¡°From what I¡¯ve seen, Bent is processed Warp, like ancient gasoline vs. crude oil. And in my analogy, they are both energy sources. The System has made us living oil-spill cleaners. Simply by breathing, we¡¯re cleaning Warp out of the environment and replacing it with Bent.¡± ¡°We know this. Whaddya got?¡± ¡°Check this out.¡± Manifestation. 4/5 Bent Remaining A stone statue of Admiral Greyson puffed into existence on the table in a pop of displaced air. ¡°What the hell?¡± Doug asked, peering down at the statuette. The caricaturized Admiral had a finger held up with flaring nostrils as he cussed them out. ¡°The System can use Abilities to make physical alterations and additions to the world at large, using Bent as the power source. I found a way to turn that into a Skill. For lack of a better word, I give you magic.¡± ¡°You could call it a Neuro System Interface Spontaneous Mass Generator.¡± Gordy said. ¡°Or a System Pursuant Enforced Lingering Logarithm.¡± Another chimed in. ¡°That made no sense.¡± ¡°But it spelled Spell.¡± ¡°Dork.¡± ¡°Anyway!¡± Elliot said, clapping his hands together to get their attention. ¡°If we can figure out how to do it, it¡¯ll only be a few days before people are paying bills with System-generated wealth, and you can throw the economy out the window.¡± The others blinked. ¡°That means¡­¡± Doug nodded along, waiting for him to finish. ¡°Shit¡¯s about to get real weird, real fast.¡± Gordy finally filled in for Doug. ¡°Exactly. It¡¯s this sort of thing that has the Admiral on edge. It¡¯s this sort of thing that will make the Diocese very nervous.¡± ¡°How nervous?¡± Doug asked. ¡°Martial law. Come down from their crystal towers to control the situation levels of nervous.¡± ¡°All the more reason to get the work done.¡± Gordy said, rubbing his hands together, to a scattered assent from the rest of the crowd. Catching the attention of one of the Immortal Diocese was never a good thing. Keep your head down and do your job was the motto. Elliot leaned under the table and flicked on Jammer, an AI brain-box that fed all recording devices plausible, non-punishable conversation based on what it¡¯d already heard. ¡°Not necessarily,¡± Elliot said loudly, drawing their questioning gaze toward him. ¡°As project leader I¡¯ve been able to glean information about the progress of the other teams under more direct supervision. We are ahead of them in every respect.¡± ¡°Ahead of them? but we haven¡¯t done much.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve made more progress toward a solution than any of the other teams,¡± Elliot said, channeling Bent through his finger manually to interact with the statuette. The Admiral began dancing a jaunty jig, his little stone feet clattering on the table in front of the awestruck team. ¡°How are you doing that?¡± Doug asked quietly. ¡°I dunno.¡± Elliot said with a shrug. ¡°It just kinda came to me. Didn¡¯t even use a Skill.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not like anything we¡¯ve heard of. Only Harbingers can use Bent without a Skill.¡± ¡°Not true, there was a kid on the Jupiter ring who pulled it off. Now me.¡± Elliot said, allowing the statue to freeze and withdrawing his Bent, watching with fascination as the shimmering air turned into black as it entered his bloodsteam, coloring the veins of his arm. ¡°Listen.¡± Elliot said, looking at each member of his team, one at a time. ¡°If the admiral and the Diocese have their way, Skills, Warp and Bent are going to be highly controlled and restricted. Like any other form of power, it¡¯s going to want to accumulate at the top, in the hands of a few individuals.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And they¡¯ll be gods among men.¡± Elliot said. ¡°Right now, the only thing different between us and a Diocese is a hell of a lot of cybernetic upgrades and functional immortality. They¡¯re still fallible, they don¡¯t have magic powers, they can¡¯t flay people with their minds, and yet they¡¯re treated like the ground they walk on is holy.¡± ¡°I heard about a Diocese with an implant that let her flay people with her mind.¡± Gordy chimed in, earning a glare. ¡°Do you want your kids to be stuck with a Skill called Obedience, or Humility, assigned to them when they enter middle school?¡± Elliot asked, changing tactics. ¡°One that gradually nudges them toward becoming more and more content and accepting of their place in the world? This shit goes both ways.¡± ¡°Are you suggesting that we¡­ disobey the admiral and the Diocese?¡± ¡°We aren¡¯t disobeying anyone, yet.¡± Elliot said, sitting down. ¡°They don¡¯t know what¡¯s possible with the System, so we¡¯re going to ¡®Get It Under Control¡¯, just like he asked. And we¡¯re going to make sure it sticks.¡± ¡°What are you thinking?¡± Doug asked, sitting down beside him. One by one the engineers sat down at the conference table, leaning in conspiratorily. They were with him. ¡°Right now people think the System is assigning people Skills at random. I¡¯ve discovered that¡¯s not true. It¡¯s oversensitive. Our minds are like bulls in a china shop compared to the Harbingers, and we trigger Skill acquisition without even trying. All we have to do is perfect a simple overlay that dampens the connection between the human and the System, so they have to invest time and energy into learning the Skill.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what the Admiral wanted. People could still acquire dangerous Skills. Easier than before, actually.¡± Doug interjected. ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Elliot said, looking around the table. ¡°But let me be perfectly clear when I say this: I will never put the decision for who gets what Skill in the hands of anyone. Ever. Skills can fundamentally change who you are, and giving up control over them is the fastest way for us to lose any remaining freedom we have.¡± ¡°Kevin, did the Diocese who tore up your neighborhood for a pleasure district need magic powers to make that happen?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°And Devon, how did it feel to find out your daughter spent thirty-five years in prison for getting raped by a Diocese when we came out of FTL?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it.¡± the programmer crossed his arms, expression stony. ¡°No shit.¡± Elliot said. ¡°They don¡¯t need our help. If anything, it¡¯s our obligation to level the playing field, so I¡¯m going to make our little addition to the System, and It¡¯s going to put Skills in the hands of the people who need them.¡± There were general murmurs of assent. ¡°But, assuming you pull this off, won¡¯t they just control skills at the User end, rather than the System end? Require people to Break at specific times, learn Specific skills?¡± a blonde haired engineer in the back asked. ¡°It¡¯s a hell of a lot easier to dodge bureaucratic red tape than it is to dodge the System. If the System itself becomes a tool for government control, it will become a dystopian nightmare.¡± More nods. ¡°So let¡¯s make sure what we create is as egalitarian as it possibly can be, like the ideals the greatest countries of the old world were founded on.¡± Before they ultimately imploded. And let¡¯s make sure that everyone else is slightly less equal than me, Elliot thought as he watched his engineers break into excited brainstorming. He was already planning on putting restrictions and slowdowns on skill acquisition and leveling for everyone. Everyone except the Administrators. Every society stratified itself, sooner or later, and when it did, Elliot was going to be on the top. Elliot pushed himself out of his chair and went to the window, staring up at the world of Marconen, looming above their little lunar mining platform. Everything the light touches will be yours, he thought, grinning. *** Kala¡¯s eyes drifted open, revealing the orange curtains of her room above her. By her bed was a shallow gold dish full of cubed mushrooms. Show me the rest of it, Kala thought, pulling a single cube out and popping it in her mouth, wincing as she held the acrid hallucinogen under her tongue. I need to understand more about the enemy that lives inside Calvin, so I can save him from it. Seer has reached Level 9! One more level and I can be with him in his dreams¡­I wonder what he dreams about? Kala felt a smile slowly spread across her face as her vision grew dizzy. If I had my way it would be about me. *** Calvin stood in front of a jeering crowd in the center of the capital, but they weren¡¯t jeering at him. They were jeering at the former Hash¡¯Maje held to the chopping block by several strong hands. ¡°Were you honestly going to give me a noble title?¡± Calvin asked, his foot on the lever preventing the guillotine from falling. ¡°And remember, this is for posterity. It hardly matters now.¡± Kala¡¯s father wept, his tears falling into the basket filled with his court¡¯s heads, a single drop landing on his daughter¡¯s cheek. Kala¡¯s eyes were glassy and grey as they stared back up at him. ¡°Giving you a title wasn¡¯t an option when I said that.¡± he said between sobs. ¡°Any land I gave you had to come from somewhere, and would weaken my holdings.¡± ¡°Could¡¯ve just given me a plot of unclaimed land. There¡¯s plenty to the west.¡± ¡°There wouldn¡¯t have been enough manpower. I can¡¯t afford to lose any strength, not when Lumentrias is aiming for the throne. And If I gave you a title, I give you a vote. Many of the nobility wouldn¡¯t have agreed to it, and their discontent would have spurred the moderates to flee the Royal party.¡± ¡°Ah, so If I had killed your cousin and the Loyalists, there would have been enough room for me?¡± ¡°What? No, you can¡¯t run a government like that. It would be complete anarchy. You¡¯d have to discredit them first...¡± The Hash¡¯Maje¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°Wait a moment, why are you asking me so many questions¡­¡± He glanced around, presumably spotting multiple copies of identical peasants jeering at his execution. ¡°This¡­This isn¡¯t real. You¡¯re pumping me for information!¡± ¡°He gets it,¡± Calvin said, taking his foot off the lever. With a sick thunk, the blade cut off the head of the Hash¡¯maje, and with a blink of his eyes, Calvin reset the Shadow-Boxing, with himself and Kala¡¯s father in the sitting room, having a bit of beer in the afternoon. ¡°So, what¡¯s it like, Being Hash¡¯maje?¡± Calvin asked, taking a sip from the foamy cup. ¡°Any advice for when I take over?¡± ¡°Insolence.¡± the Hash¡¯maje said, throwing a coaster at Calvin¡¯s head with a chuckle. ¡°You really wanna know?¡± he asked, peering over at Calvin, a shiny blush on the older gadveran¡¯s cheeks as the alcohol caught up to him. ¡°Sure.¡± The Calvin leaned back as the Hash¡¯Maje griped about politics, and inadvertently gave Calvin a few names that could stand to be removed to make some room for the up-and-coming captain. This skill is scary mean. Elliot said, making an exaggerated shuddering noise in the back of his mind. You remind me of me. We¡¯re just getting to the good part. The only thing that was unaltered for Calvin¡¯s Shadow Boxing was the Hash¡¯Maje himself. Everything else was a fiction, a hypothetical practice situation where he practiced dragging information out of the aging ruler. The best part was that the information he got was valid, as good as if it had come from the mouth of the man himself. A detonation rocked the palace, knocking the beer out of Calvin¡¯s hand. ¡°What in the abyss?¡± The sound of sprinting footsteps came from the hall, and Calvin and his liege put their hands on their weapons. A second later, a familiar runner swung around the doorframe, using his grip to halt his forward momentum. ¡°Sire, Iletha has returned with an even greater monster than before, they¡¯re prying open the gates of the Palace!¡± ¡°Fuck,¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said, tossing aside his beer stein. ¡°I was hoping it wouldn¡¯t come to this¡­¡± He glanced at Calvin, weighing his choices. ¡°Report to the temporary Barracks on the first floor.¡± ¡°Sir,¡± Calvin Said, standing up and saluting. ¡°I see you got better at the salute.¡± The Hash¡¯Maje nodded approvingly, his face grim. Sense Grafting. Calvin copied his vision onto the Hash¡¯Maje¡¯s crown, along with his hearing. Calvin turned and ran out the door, swinging an extreme right turn and immediately ducking into a room and hiding under the bed. Calvin closed his eyes and watched the show. ¡°How!?¡± Kala¡¯s father muttered to himself, exiting the room and glancing both ways to make sure he wasn¡¯t being followed. The Hash¡¯Maje made a beeline for a nondescript bedroom at the end of the hall, kicking the paneling on the bottom of the wall, hard. The panel of wood broke inward, separating from the rest of the wall as a thin layer of mortar broke away. There was a clunk, and a corner of the room swung open. I like where this is going, Elliot thought. Me too. Kala¡¯s father ran down the stairs, eventually dropping down into some kind of armory. There was a plain sword that oozed malice, a suit of armor seemingly made from glass, and at the back of the wall, there was a pair of bracers made of a solid piece of opalescent stone. Mnematite! Elliot shouted, making Calvin wince. Nem? Calvin thought as the Hash¡¯Maje began putting the bracers over his forearms. It looked like the bracers were made from pure money. The currency of GAdvera was based on that stone. Calvin¡¯s entire village wasn¡¯t worth that much. Why are you so excited? Calvin asked. Mnematite is the only known material sensitive to Warp, and it doesn¡¯t just stop there. Bracers like the old man¡¯s create a resonance when Bent flows past them. We experimented with it back in the day, before Soscath caught fire, anyway. What does that mean? Basically, they give you a rebate. Put ten Bent past them, they generate a field that attracts and condenses four Warp into Bent. Something like that could Make ten Bent last¡­ about eighteen uses. What if I just circulate it with Beli Ma? Nah, wouldn¡¯t work. It¡¯s Bent altering reality that causes the reaction. Well, we learned some useful stuff. How about we call it good? Sure. Calvin ended the Shadow Boxing, opening his eyes to the glare of the afternoon sun bouncing off the manicured grass. A little Knick-knack was walking in front of him, using a whirling blade to trim the green blades with inhuman precision. Seems like being a captain is a lot easier than I thought. They almost had enough cement to start laying the foundation. Balud¡¯s estimates could suck it. ¡°Captain!¡± an older man¡¯s voice said, approaching him from the side. A sergeant then. ¡°Eh?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at him. The sergeant seemed a lot more urgent than usual. Alarm bells began clanging across the camp. What the hell? ¡°Scouts haven¡¯t been coming back from patrol since yesterday and we¡¯re under attack.¡± As if to emphasize the man¡¯s point, an arrow hissed out of the air and sank into the perfectly manicured grass between the two of them. Baroke was on patrol yesterday. ¡°Why didn¡¯t I hear about this yesterday?¡± Calvin asked, jumping out of his chair, heart hammering in his chest. ¡°I thought¡­I thought you had. Sir.¡± ¡°Obviously not.¡± Calvin said, his stomach boiling with cold anger. Who the fuck thought it was a good idea not to report that? The only thing Calvin could imagine was that the stigma of age that Grant had warned him about had finally snuck up and bit him on the ass. Scouts didn¡¯t return, some sergeant felt he could handle it better than the teenage captain, didn¡¯t bother to tell anyone before he wasted time sending another group out after the first. Cut to today. Calvin felt an arrow sail down toward his head, and he held up his hand, putting up a weave of Bent, tugging the arrow off course without taking his eyes off the sergeant. It buried itself an inch from his foot. ¡°Get ready to fight.¡± ¡°There¡¯s something else. There¡¯s a good five thousand men marching on us down the road. They outnumber us twenty-five to one.¡± ¡°Well then we¡¯ll have to get creative.¡± Calvin snarled. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 17/30 Chapter 55: Keep it Simple, Stupid ¡°Baroke, you¡¯re on patrol. Keep your eyes open for Gub, he probably snuck off to drink. If you see him, give him a good thrashing.¡± ¡°Not gonna do that, sir, but I¡¯ll bring him back.¡± Sergeant Urth grunted, his fat cheeks jiggling as he studied Baroke with his recessed eyes. ¡°You¡¯d think a boy of your size wouldn¡¯t be a pussy.¡± ¡°Whatever you say, sir,¡± Baroke said, rolling his eyes before tuning the sergeant¡¯s yelling out. The man was at the bottom of the barrel. How he managed to get the job of managing the scout detail was anyone¡¯s guess, but it probably involved underhanded dealings. Urth didn¡¯t look like he could fit between two generously spaced trees, let alone creep stealthily through the woods. Supposedly the man was a hell of a ranger back in the day, but the sources were suspect, as the rumor could be traced back to Urth himself. A relentless braggart and stone-thrower, the only way to deal with the man was to not engage with him, which Baroke was demonstrating as the stream of profanity washed over him. I¡¯ll bet Calvin doesn¡¯t have to put up with this shit, Baroke thought, retreating to his own inner world, eyes going glassy as the sergeant began shouting at him. All things considered it was nowhere near as bad as being a Ilethan sorceror¡¯s playtoy. A shudder rocked Baroke¡¯s body as the invasive thought that maybe, just maybe, the Ilethans had broken his mind and he was actually hunting his own countrymen returned for the two hundred and eighteenth time. Gods, no. Anything but that. Urth seemed to think that Baroke¡¯s sudden shiver was some kind of aquiescence, bringing his tirade to a halt. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Urth said, nodding with his hands on his hips, visibly delighted by Baroke¡¯s discomfort. ¡°Now get out there and do your job, scout.¡± Baroke nodded and left the tent, coming face to face with the second-best archer in the company. Well, face-to face was a bit of a mislead, as she came up to Baroke¡¯s belly. The girl was under five feet tall, standing there with her scarred arms crossed and flexing, glaring up at him. She had dark skin and close-cropped hair. The only sign that she was a woman was her lovely face and plump lips. Everything else was a walking knot of muscle. ¡°So,¡± Maya said as Baroke left the tent. ¡°Something tells me you¡¯re going to need the help of the best archer in the Wasps.¡± ¡°The Wasps? Is that what we¡¯re calling ourselves now?¡± Baroke asked, picking up his heavy spring-steel recurve bow and checking it for sabotage. He wouldn¡¯t put it past her. A second later the rest of her statement sank in. ¡°The best archer? Excuse me?¡± ¡°We both know that first shot was bullshit.¡± ¡°Not my fault you didn¡¯t study your trick shots well enough,¡± Baroke said, grinning as they walked. After identifying her as his rival during the qualifier, he may have sacrificed a shot to cause a tree to crush her target during the finals. The Wasps had a Play-It-as-it-Lies policy. She sported a similar ¨C albeit tiny ¨C steel bow slung over her shoulder, similarly painted brown. Their arrows rustled at their sides as they walked. Baroke never expected to be a scout or go on patrols, so he was woefully unprepared, crashing through the underbrush while Maya seemed to ooze through it for all the noise she was making. The Ilethans forced skills on him that boosted the lethality of his arrows, like Sense Weakness, Force Amplification, and Trajectory. Maya, on the other hand, had followed the well-balanced route of a Scout, having learned from her grandfather, a retiree three towns away from Deinos. She had things like Woodcraft and Stealth in addition to Archery, and she treated him like a bumbling child in the woods. ¡°Watch your head,¡± She whispered as they entered the jungle and Baroke had to duck low to keep under the low hanging branches. Being six foot seven was less of an advantage in the woods. ¡°Watch your ass.¡± Baroke shot back as she sailed ahead of him, gliding through the dark jungle with ease. They spent the next couple hours patrolling in a wide arc around the camp in relative silence, focusing on the forested half, because patrolling thin air was unproductive. The whole time, they didn¡¯t spot any sign of Gub. After a quick lunch, the two of them got back to trekking through the wilds. ¡°Lindersalv.¡± Maya called, pointing at a tree over a hundred yards distant. ¡°Good eating.¡± ¡°On that branch?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°It is that branch.¡± She replied with a scowl. ¡°How do you not know these things?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a long story.¡± Baroke said, raising his bow and sending a casual shot through the predator pretending to be wood, pinning it to the tree for them to grab on their way back. ¡°That¡¯s twelve shots for twelve. We¡¯re never gonna settle this with such easy targets.¡± ¡°Did you want me to make you do a handstand as well?¡± she asked, her brows raised. ¡°I could do that. I practiced shooting with my feet for a while.¡± Baroke said. ¡°You¡¯re ridiculous.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°My grandfather said showboats like you tend to flame out early in their careers.¡± ¡°Hah! Shows what your grandfather knows!¡± Baroke said. ¡°I was drafted. No career here! Once this war is over, I¡¯m going to go back to my village and make a career of making pottery and knocking up my wife.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­but you¡¯re so¡­¡± Maya choked back whatever she had been about to say, casting furtive glances up at him. ¡°Archery was always a hobby. I love shooting, but I hate killing. Thanks to my time with the Ilethans, I¡¯ve lost my taste for it, completely.¡± ¡°I see.¡± She fell silent and stared at the ground for a moment. ¡°Wait, there¡¯s something here.¡± She knelt down and brushed aside a bit of moss covering a bit of wineskin. ¡°Gub¡¯s?¡± she asked, glancing up at him. That wasn¡¯t right. Gub was a drinker, yes, but he¡¯d been found clinging to the top of a tree with nothing but his wineskin more than once. He¡¯d never dropped it, as a point of personal pride. Baroke hefted his bow as a horrible suspicion settled in his stomach. ¡°I think we shou ¨C¡° His words were cut off by a hiss that made his legs reflexively buckle, saving his life. The arrow caught Baroke in the upper shoulder rather than his heart or lung. Baroke fell to the ground and snapped off a return shot, instinctively following the trajectory of the arrow in his shoulder. The length of wood in the meat of his arm snapped like a dry twig as he flexed, and Baroke¡¯s mind idly added that to the list of things to brag about to Calvin as his survival instinct took over every other part of his body. There was a cry of pain in the distance as Baroke¡¯s arrow found its mark, and the peaceful forest suddenly became a flurry of arrows. Baroke sprinted for a tree, huddling behind it. He waited a half second, then threw his feet out from under himself and slammed to the ground. A Penetrating Shot tore through the thick trunk of his jungle cover, flying over his head. Predictable. ¡°Why are they only shooting at you?¡± Maya said indignantly from her own cover. The tiny woman easily hiding behind a stump that wouldn¡¯t conceal Baroke¡¯s manhood. ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask them?¡± Baroke hissed, holding a hand over the blood pumping out of his shoulder. ¡°Maybe I will.¡± She grabbed three arrows in a quick-shooter draw and leaned around the corner of her stump, sending three arrows arcing up the hill, one after the other in the space of a breath. They¡¯ve got the high ground, Baroke thought, peering out to witness her three arrows strike home, nailing two Ilethans to the ground. There¡¯s a miss, Baroke thought as the third scout threw himself to the ground, dodging her arrow before he started sprinting up the hill, weaving between the trees. Can¡¯t let him get away. Baroke drew himself to his feet and reached for his quiver, to discover that the arrows had been spilled on the ground. By the time he¡¯d knelt and grabbed an arrow, Baroke was only able to catch a glimpse of the man¡¯s head disappearing as he ran down the other side of the hill. ¡°What?¡± Maya hissed as she spotted his expression, laying flat behind her cover, ready to bounce away like a bunny if she needed to. The thought of Maya as an armed hare appealed to Baroke somewhat. ¡°Missed one,¡± Baroke said, standing at his full height, ignoring the stabbing pain in his shoulder, and the branches waving about near his eyes. He pictured the trajectory of the fleeing man, overlaying his image on the hill in front of him, stumbling along down the other side as fast as he could. Everything else faded out of existence. Force Amplification. Penetrating shot. Called Shot. Assassinate. 8/12 Bent Remaining. The arrow leapt away like it had been whipped into action by the gods themselves, melting a hole straight through the hill without slowing. Earth and stone became meaningless, and the bit of metal sailed through until it found its home on the other side of the hill. Baroke got a brief glimpse of a bit of muted cloth with white feathers sticking out of it through the glowing hole in the earth before it fell out of view. I hope that was an Ilethan and not another illusion, Baroke thought for the two hundred and nineteenth time, his stomach twisting as he grinned at Maya to cover his discomfort. ¡°Who¡¯s the best archer?¡± He asked. She peeked out from behind her cover, eyes widening momentarily at the glassed hole in the ground. ¡°We need to get out of here.¡± They heard a cry for assistance in Ilethan, picked up by more voices around them in nearly every direction, including in the direction of the camp. They were grossly outnumbered. ¡°Shit, follow me,¡± She said, hopping up with all the bounce of a small creature and sprinting toward the mountainside to the northeast, the only direction the voices hadn¡¯t come from. Toward the deep jungle. Maya might be able to handle the predators that dwelled in the deep, but Baroke was as good as dead at this point. On the other hand, he¡¯d rather die than get another control crown placed on his head, and this seemed like an excellent way to accomplish that. ¡°Aye aye dangerbunny,¡± Baroke said, his shoulder rapidly growing numb as the adrenaline faded. He fell in behind her, running as fast as he could. The loss of feeling spread from his shoulder to his left arm, and Baroke realized he¡¯d been poisoned. ¡°Hey, Maba,¡± he called, his tongue rapidly losing the ability to form words. ¡°Maba!¡± ¡°Shhhh,¡± she whispered, glaring back at him. ¡°They don¡¯t know exactly where we are, so keep your mouth¡­shut?¡± Baroke toppled to the ground, the strength leaving his body along with all sensations. He felt like he was floating on a cloud. ¡°Kii Maa.¡± He said, trying to tell her to put him out of his misery. ¡°Gods damnit, you¡¯re a fucking burden if I¡¯ve ever seen one.¡± Rather than do as he asked, she grabbed his wrist and yanked him up onto her shoulders with one good pull, folding his body over hers. She twisted and began sprinting toward the deep jungle, away from their pursuers. Baroke¡¯s eyes slid shut and he dreamt of flying. *** Arrows arced down from the distant treeline, where at least twenty archers in browns and greens rained volley after volley at them. The fortifications were a series of crude wooden palisades with eight foot walls and trenches bisecting the road, forming a solid line of defense. Unfortunately, the barracks had been low priority, and steel-tipped arrows tore through the camp¡¯s tents, providing a rude wake-up call for more than one napping soldier. Calvin felt like he¡¯d been doused in ice. What do I need to do? Send men up to meet the archers? No, they¡¯ll get torn to shreds, and there¡¯s another five thousand on the way, ready to crush us. Fortifications were made with the express purpose of allowing a smaller force to repel a larger one with minimal casualties, but two hundred fending off five thousand after being ambushed wasn¡¯t good odds. The only upside was that the treeline had been pushed so far back that the arrows were highly inaccurate. People were still getting hit, though, as a pained cry rudely cut through his thoughts. Calvin couldn¡¯t leave the fortifications himself, and he couldn¡¯t send anybody up there without them dying. His gaze darted down to the Knick knack mowing the arrow-strewn lawn in front of him, heedless of the danger and singleminded in its purpose. Arrow would bounce right off of that. might even draw their Bent out trying to kill them. Calvin sent a mental order to all the Knick-knacks to charge up into the jungle and use their little arm-circular-saws to tear the enemy archers limb from limb. A red light buzzed in the back of Calvin¡¯s head, making his eyes shake. Fields industries Micro Construction Bots are hardcoded with up to date OSHA Safety protocols. Please assign another course of events. They¡¯re pacifists?? Calvin thought. That would have been good to know. The thought occurred to wonder whether they were able to create traps or not. Calvin immediately changed tactics. Charge up into the jungle with your saws out and buzzing, run around really fast. It would take minutes for the enemy to realize they were harmless. Minutes! ¡°Everyone!¡± Calvin shouted at the top of his lungs, facing the maelstrom of the camp. ¡°Grab your gear and get behind the palisades!¡± The arrows were coming from the north-east, and the temporary wooden wall faced north, it would provide enough cover for them to figure out something to do. Calvin briefly considered waiting behind the wall and waving to his troops to join him. That doesn¡¯t seem very leaderlike. Calvin gritted his teeth and ran out into the camp, his body buzzing with adrenaline while some two hundred Knick-knacks charged the jungle. Out of the corner of his eye, Calvin breathed a sigh of relief as he spotted the arrows arc low, glancing off the distractions, their saws making terrifying high pitched whines. He charged up to the nearest tent, where Balud was tugging a shirt on, the snaggle-toothed engineer pale with worry. ¡°Put your clothes on behind the wall,¡± Calvin pointed at the palisade before leaning down and scooped up the man¡¯s clothes and weapons before shoving them into his arms. Balud nodded and ran for the wall, dropping a sock from his elbow as he went. ¡°What are we doing sir?¡± A young man Calvin didn¡¯t recognize asked. ¡°Gather behind the wall!¡± ¡°Are we taking the fight to them?¡± Another asked. ¡°To the wall!¡± Calvin pointed. They nodded and ran two different directions. One toward the wall, and one toward the south. This is chaos. Calvin spotted sergeant Fleck ducked behind a wagon in the center of the camp, stuffing his pipe with a bit of weed. The wispy haired man was an island of drug-addled calm in the midst of a sea of screaming and running young men. Calvin began running, keeping his eyes on the old man, dodging around men half a foot taller than him running at full speed in every direction, shouting at each other, getting dressed, looking around for something to fight, and all manner of havoc. A shoulder check from someone near a hundred pounds heavier than Calvin sent him sprawling to the ground for a half-second, his arms bouncing him off the ground and back on his feet before he¡¯d fully processed what had knocked him down. ¡°Fleck!¡± Calvin shouted over the din as he approached, getting the man¡¯s attention, along with his withering scowl. ¡°Well, captain, what¡¯ll it be?¡± ¡°Big fuckin¡¯ flag!¡± Calvin shouted. The old man swung around the edge of the wagon and tugged a pole out of the back before placing a possessive hand on it. ¡°I think this is what you¡¯re looking for.¡± Calvin yanked the pole the rest of the way out of the wagon, unveiling a fifteen foot tall pole with a massive silk banner stretched tight at the end of it. This¡¯ll do. ¡°Carl!¡± Calvin shouted, his gaze landing on the quartermaster¡¯s current helper, who looked up at him from beneath the wagon. ¡°Take this to that wall ¨C look at it!¡± Calvin grabbed Carl¡¯s face and directed it toward the wall he wanted everyone behind. ¡°Take the flag there and wave the shit out of it, alright?¡± Carl nodded. ¡°Good, move!¡± Carl grabbed the pole, grunted as he lifted it up, capitalizing on the temporary lull in the assault to sprint toward the wall, the banner flapping in the wind behind him. Calvin could see the difference. The men¡¯s gaze followed the flag. It was visible from every angle, and they followed it, charging along with Carl, who was screaming in equal parts bravery and terror as arrows fell from the sky around him. The man with the flag is always a juicy target. The chaotic mess began slowly shifting toward the wall as they congealed around the flag like some kind of slow-moving sap or ooze. Like a living thing, they began to self-regulate as sergeants took command of different sections of the wall, laying out orders. It moved and lived on its own, but it was incredibly difficult to change an army¡¯s momentum, and Calvin was the one who¡¯d made it happen. Those minutes of distraction saved a lot of lives. Calvin felt like he was on the very edge of understanding something deeper about leadership, when a hand clapped down on his shoulder. He glanced over and saw Ella and Grant, looking at him expectantly. ¡°Ella, how would you like to break some spines?¡± ¡°I would love to,¡± She said with a shark-toothed grin. ¡°Get your armor on. When you¡¯re ready, I¡¯ll send you into the woods with a wasp escort, and you¡¯ll take out some of those archers.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± She ducked away, running toward their tent. ¡°Grant, any ideas?¡± ¡°Best bet?¡± Grant asked. ¡°Bloody their nose a little bit, then brief your sergeants and organize a controlled retreat.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°Eight-foot wooden walls ain¡¯t gonna stop five grand, especially with people out of commission already.¡± He glanced over at the wall, then back to Calvin. ¡°It¡¯s a well-known fact that the more complicated the plan or unexpected the situation, the more likely things are to devolve into a total rout.¡± He held up a thumb and forefinger. ¡°You were this close to a complete clusterfuck. If you hadn¡¯t used that flag, a third would be huddled behind our rear wall, a third out front, and the rest would be running away. You have to keep your plans simple, or well-rehearsed.¡± Ah yes, Sun Tzu. What? Ancient general from a long time ago. forgive me if I paraphrase. ¡®if you wish to feign chaos, you must be highly organized, if you wish to feign weakness, you must be very strong.¡¯ The Abyss does that mean? At its core it suggests that armies have a tendency to be chaotic messes that could break and run at the drop of a hat. If you want to pull off a cunning ploy, you have to be highly organized, or else it will fizzle out and result in a rout as the idiots get confused about the slightest hitch in the plan. Since we don¡¯t have the luxury of spending months drilling special maneuvers into your men¡¯s heads, we should instead turn to the simplicity of Alexander the Great for inspiration. Hammer and Anvil. ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°You see, people are stupid, and in big groups, they ¨C ¡° ¡°Wasn¡¯t talking to you.¡± Calvin said, staring at the distant jungle birthing arrows. Soon they would figure out that the Knick-knacks were harmless, and then the lull in the attack would be gone. Hammer and Anvil is the simple concept of taking a slow-moving unit like infantry, in this case them, to lock the enemy in combat. The anvil. Meanwhile a fast-moving unit comes up behind the enemy and smashes them. The hammer. Us. Super simple, undeniably effective. Sounds fun. Calvin felt his face crack into a smile. ¡°Captain, what do you want us to do?¡± Lieutenant Vukya asked, having spotted Calvin by the Quartermaster¡¯s wagon. The slender Gadveran was limping as he approached, a wooden shaft broken off in his leg. ¡°Hold the palisade,¡± Calvin said, glancing at Grant. ¡°I¡¯m going to smash them from behind. Grant, grab yourself some swords and follow me.¡± Grant gave him a calculating look, then broke into a sly smile, arming himself from the spare swords in the wagon. ¡°Sir.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go pick up some Bent.¡± Calvin broke into a sprint, aiming for the back of the camp, where his hired Bent Suppliers were. *** ¡°Good morning,¡± Calvin said, smiling at the eight women marching down the road. He didn¡¯t really blame them, all things considered. Behind him, arrows buried themselves in the thick wood of the palisades, and the Ilethan army marched ever closer, in a line two hundred and fifty men wide and twenty feet deep, aiming to overwhelm the temporary wall with sheer numbers. ¡°Morning captain.¡± Perthea said, the other women in a chevron behind her as Calvin approached. ¡°Before you¡¯re off,¡± Calvin said, holding out a hand. ¡°Bent please. I¡¯ll have nothing more to say to you. You can come back with the next shipment of supplies if we¡¯re still here.¡± ¡°We ain¡¯t got much,¡± Perthea said with a scowl. Calvin estimated only about one or two per woman. ¡°It¡¯s kind of an emergency.¡± ¡°Fair enough, let¡¯s not spend all day talking about it, we¡¯ve got places to be.¡± 15/15 Bent remaining. Calvinian summoning 14/15 Bent remaining. 15/15 Bent remaining. ¡­. Calvin took a point or two from each of them and turned them into a massive swarm of five pound wasps to harry the enemy at the front, reinforcing the strength of the palisade just as the line of Ilethans reached the front. Calvin sent one swarm to accompany Ella into the jungle where she began destroying the archers, one at a time, then he ran toward the cliff to the west, trailing Grant behind him. ¡°You can still fly on your swords, right?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Of course.¡± Grant said, as if he was insulted Calvin even needed to ask. ¡°Let¡¯s hit these fuckers in their blind spot.¡± Calvin shot him a grin before leaping off the edge of the cliff south of the palisade. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the Swarm. 14/15 Bent Remaining. The wind whipped through Calvin¡¯s hair as he fell through the air, his stomach rising into his chest as the pull of gravity began drawing him toward the rocks below. A moment later he evaporated in a cloud of green smoke, replaced by fifteen hundred pounds of massive man-killing wasps Calvin¡¯s new instincts kicked in and his flight stabilized as he controlled his swarm of one. With his nearly three-hundred and sixty degree vision, he saw Grant leap off the cliff face after him, swords under his feet. The two of them swung low, dropping out of sight of everyone: The camp followers, the First Volunteer Company of Mujenan, and most importantly, the five thousand Ilethans and their scouts. There would be no warning. Wizard King for life. Wizard King for life. Calvin Gadsint Body: 16 Strength: 8 Kinesthetics: 8 Endurance: 8 Mind: 24 Intuition: 11 Stability: 15 Will: 22 Bent: 2/15 Skills: Stealth 7 Talking to Girls 9 Acting 9 Read Expressions 8 Sense-Grafting 13 Knife-Work 7 Dupdomancy 13 Hunting 5 Meditation 13 Chained Spirit 13 Calvinian Summoning 13 Your Princess is in Another Castle 5 Fishing 5 Genosian Language 5 Beli Ma 6 Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 18/30 Chapter 56: Surviving First contact Brendan Moore rode his guar in the rear of the line as the palisade came into view. On top of the grazing lizard, he was able to spot a peculiar dark cloud in front of the temporary fortification. The cloud seemed to hold its own against the wind from the ocean to the west. ¡°Hold up.¡± ¡°HOLD UP!¡± his lieutenant bawled. Brendan rubbed his ringing ear while the cry was taken up by the sergeants and the five thousand men ground to a halt. He pulled a spyglass out of his saddle and eyed the distant walls. The dark cloud seemed to be comprised of millions of flying insects. Brendan had heard the stories from the frontlines. A Gadveran wizard had figured out a cost-effective spell for summoning and controlling wasps, unleashing them on the battlefield to devastating effect. They called the faceless wizard responsible The Wasp. Go figure. Until this point, summoning had been limited to the very few remaining Malkenrovian mages that still wandered free, able to summon demons from the other side of the Warp. Brendan recalled a battle some ten years ago, where a mercenary mage had unleashed half a dozen demons on the battlefield and watched them tear through the Ilethan line like wet paper, flooding the battlefield with Warp. These were obviously not demons, but just as obviously not natural¡­ The Crown would pay well for the secret behind these. ¡°Get me Charlotte, and ready the sin-eaters.¡± ¡°Ready The Sin-Eaters!¡± his lieutenant shouted before scurrying off to get his contingency plan. Didn¡¯t think I¡¯d be using these so soon. Ah well, I suppose it¡¯s good to test it sooner rather than later. Sin-Eaters were a special kind of Support unit that required a rather complicated process to bring about, and were therefore rather rare, except in a recently conquered city like Surrak. Their duty was to take damage meant for their charge. One could spot beautiful Sin-Eaters in flowing robes accompanying greying aristocrats in the capitol, always ready to save the life of their owner. It was a very respected, influential position. Out here, thought, they weren¡¯t quite as pretty, or respected. A chain-led troupe of some hundred male and female Gadverans connected via chains linking their collars stepped forward. Under his gaze, the hundred Gadverans ate the blood of some five Ilethans each, some more reluctantly than others. Brendan folded his arms over his saddlehorn while watching one of the mud-skinned women turn her face this way and that like a petulant child trying to avoid their most hated food. In the end the administering Veteran simply rubbed his blood on the inside of her gums, to Brendan¡¯s amusement. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with. What do you want?¡± Brendan glanced over his shoulder and spotted a young blonde woman of maybe twenty years. She had a slim figure and a face that the uninitiated might call ¡®cute¡¯. She was wearing long white robes and blue wrist-wrappings that marked her as a sorceress. She scowled up at him, as if he were personally responsible for her current situation. Which is true, Brendan admitted. ¡°Please, a little decorum in front of the soldiers, Charlotte.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t try to sugar-coat it, this whole ill-conceived campaign to Surrak was to disrespect me. Call me by my title, or you can kiss your sorceress,¡± ¨C She kissed her fingers and tapped them on her butt ¨C ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°I¡¯m your superior officer.¡± ¡°Tell that to your mom.¡± Brendan sighed and massaged his temples. ¡°Aunt Charlotte, Those ¨C ¡° ¡°Great Aunt, and a please couldn¡¯t hurt.¡± The leather of his saddlehorn creaked under Brendan¡¯s grip. ¡°Great aunt Charlotte, would you please find a way to rid us of that swarm of wasps?¡± ¡°Wasps, what wasps?¡± Charlotte demanded. ¡°It takes about a hundred stings to kill a man in his second Break, five for a Veteran.¡± Brendan pointed emphatically at the cloud covering the wall in front of them. ¡°That is a lot more than five hundred wasps.¡± ¡°Hold your guars,¡± the crone muttered, taking Brendan¡¯s spyglass without permission and peering through it. ¡°Eyesight isn¡¯t so good these days.¡± She was constantly complaining about her age, but she looked the same as she did when Brendan was a boy. Even then she was hiding her age. Brendan looked down at the young woman beneath him, studyin her features untouched by time. Illusion, Mind-slave, or did my Great Aunt find the key to eternal youth and refuse to share it with anyone like the callous bitch she is? ¡°Oh dear, oh, my.¡± She collapsed the spyglass and fed it through one of his guar¡¯s buckles. Brendan yanked it out of there and put it back in its case as she addressed him. ¡°I see why you wrote me.¡± ¡°There¡¯s been ¨C¡° ¡°You wouldn¡¯t believe how delighted I was,¡± She cut him off, throwing a dramatic hand over her face. ¡°There I was, faced with another tedious evening at the theater, my noble form stricken down with ennui, slipping into an eternal malaise that I feared I may never recover from, when Gerald ¨C my Machengan butler slash fuckbuddy ¨C came to me with a letter from my dearest, darlingest great nephew.¡± ¡°Yes, I realize ¨C ¡° ¡°I thought, what a wonderful blessing, My nephew that I haven¡¯t seen hide nor hair of for the past fifteen years, has suddenly thought of me. Surely it¡¯s because of how much he misses me and not because I teach at the D.I.¡± She gasped, touching a trembling hand to her lips. Brendan watched silently, fighting back a yawn. She glanced up at him, and he simply tapped his fingers on the saddlehorn, waiting for her to finish. ¡°But alas, you only needed me for a professional matter, me, who shared a womb with your grandmother, who helped babysit you when you were an itty bitty little thing, running around with shit trailing behind you.¡± She put a hand on her cheek. ¡°So adorable.¡± Brendan kept waiting, depriving her of opportunities to upstage him like a farmer deprives a virulent weed of water and sunlight. She kept glancing up at him, waiting for him to speak, until after a good two minutes, she finally lost her patience. ¡°Alright, what did you want?¡± ¡°Done?¡± ¡°Consider it postponed.¡± She said. ¡°That,¡± he pointed, ¡°Was done by a Gadveran Wizard we¡¯ve taken to calling the Wasp. Care to guess why?¡± ¡°I feel like leaning into that statement in either direction is a waste of my valuable breath.¡± Charlotte said. ¡°Right. I need ¨C¡° ¡°You would appreciate. Don¡¯t confuse wants for needs, Brendan.¡± ¡°I would appreciate it if you could neutralize their wizard and his wasps for me, and thereby save many of my valuable Sin-Eaters for resale, along with the soldier they¡¯re meant to protect. From what we can see, that camp can only hold about two hundred men. Without the insects, they¡¯ll be easy prey.¡± ¡°On one condition,¡± she said archly. ¡°We¡¯re doing conditions, now?¡± Brendan asked. ¡°I will be taking this¡­Wasp back to the Den for study. I want credit for the spell when I pry it out of the old mud-skin¡¯s brain. Nothing gets me hard like slapping a new spell-cock all over Michelan¡¯s face.¡± Brendan eyed his great aunt, whose speech seemed to waffle between faux elegant and dockside whore. ¡°Right, that was never in question. You¡¯ll have custody.¡± ¡°Oh, goody,¡± the blonde woman said, clapping her hands like a child. She snagged his spyglass again and peered at the shifting mass of insects blocking their attack. ¡°Hmmm. How close together do you think each individual bug is?¡± she asked. ¡°Pretty close, from what I can see.¡± Brendan said. ¡°Excellent.¡± She closed the spyglass and put it in the wrong spot again. ¡°A large Transference Spell with Norrick¡¯s Chain manually attached should do exactly what we need.¡± ¡°What do you need?¡± Brendan asked. His follow up question died on his lips as Charlotte dropped to the ground and began contorting her body at awkward angles, her hands digging into the ground. ¡°Gotta limber up,¡± she said by way of explanation, twisting her arm around her shoulder. ¡°Helps me focus, especially if I have to do a spell manually.¡± ¡°What do you need?¡± he repeated himself. ¡°About fifty gallons of lamp oil.¡± She said. ¡°You can have a quart.¡± His great Aunt gave him a calculating look. ¡°I suppose I can add Riehart¡¯s Mod to Norrick¡¯s Chain to increase the efficiency. It¡¯s not going to be easy.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what that means.¡± ¡°It means have your men start moving. I¡¯ll take care of your bug problem.¡± After a minute, Charlotte stood and received a quart of oil in a leather skin from Brendan¡¯s lieutenant, along with a torch. ¡°Ready them for a charge.¡± ¡°Form a line!¡± the lieutenant shouted at the top of his lungs, the long train of soldiers arranging themselves into a long line, ready to overwhelm the defenders. At the very front were five hundred shock-troops, Veterans whose wounds would be taken by the Sin-eaters until they no longer drew breath, allowing them to overwhelm the pathetic Gadveran picket with contemptuous ease. The mud-skinned cowards cowered behind their wall, pinned down by constant fire from the jungle. A bit of movement caught his eyes, and Brendon tugged the spyglass out of his guar¡¯s reigns with a growl, inspecting the distant field. The grass is so well trimmed, he thought idly as he scanned for the movement he¡¯d seen. Finally he spotted a single figure sprinting toward his scouts, sunlight glinting off their heavy steel armor. Unusual choice for a Gadveran. Brendan wasn¡¯t sure, but the individual looked particularly big as well, at least six feet tall. The individual was flanked by a cloud of insects. Looks like they¡¯re trying to put a stop to the archers. I¡¯m more concerned about the mindless insects than the fighter. Brendan¡¯s eyebrows rose when he spotted nearly a dozen arrows ricochet off the charging warrior¡¯s armor and shield without so much as making a dent. Some of them had to have been using Penetrating Shot. There couldn¡¯t have been a better time to do it. Either someone drew out all their Bent or that is a Legend. We¡¯ll have to be careful of the jungle on our left. In the meantime, we need to move before they completely remove the threat. ¡°March, shields up.¡± The lieutenant relayed his orders, and the line began to advance, wary of traps. It would be foolish to assume there were only He glanced over at his aunt. ¡°Charlotte, if you would.¡± ¡°Aunt charlotte, if you would,¡± she said, dumping the oil onto the ground, eyeballing the cloud of wasps in front of them. ¡°Riiight¡­there.¡± She threw down the torch, and the ground in front of her burst into flame as the oil began to burn greedily. ¡°Transference.¡± The slender blonde woman pointed a single immaculate fingernail at the dark fog of wasps. The fire in front of her went dead, disappearing like it¡¯d never been. A single wasp in the cloud of millions burst into flame, then went cold before invisible energy arced to three of its nearby kin, causing each of those to burst into momentary flame before going cold, leaving nothing but a rapidly dissolving corpse falling through the air. The view from Brendan¡¯s guar was spectacular, as a rapidly expanding ripple of fire shot through the dark cloud, spreading to the cloud of wasps that followed behind the Gadveran heavy, drastically reducing the threat to their scouts as they were burnt to ash. ¡°Thank you, Great Aunt Charlotte.¡± ¡°Anything for my cute grand-nephew.¡± She said with a smile. The first dozen or so veterans stepped on false floors that gave way at their weight, spilling forward into a spike-choked trench that lined the bottom of the palisades. The trench drastically increased the effective height of the wooden wall by an extra six feet. A veteran could jump eight feet to mount a palisade, easy, but fourteen feet through downward facing spikes? That was asking too much. ¡°Earthworks.¡± Brendan said with a scowl as he watched the Gadverans duck out of cover at the top of the palisades and fire down at the men rolling through the trenches. ¡°It¡¯s never easy. Turtle up and have our third, eighth and thirteenth squads cut paths through the spikes. Divide their attention with our superior numbers.¡± His lieutenant carried the orders out as the heavily armored Gadveran disappeared into the treeline with his scouts. ¡°What¡¯s that sound?¡± Charlotte asked, glancing around. ¡°You. Speaking.¡± The old woman pinched his leg, hard. ¡°I don¡¯t spend all my time with a young man shouting into my ears¡­well, sometimes I do, but not like you. My hearing is impeccable, and I could swear I ¨C ¡° ¡°No, I hear it too.¡± Brendan said, his head raising. It was a deep, grating hum that was slowly getting louder, coming from ¨C ¡°Damn it to the Abyss.¡± A swarm of fist-sized wasps with enough venom to kill a veteran in a single sting swept up, appearing from behind the sheer cliff face they had simply taken for granted. The wasps spread out, distancing themselves from each other by several feet as they barreled toward the rear of their line faster than a guar at full gallop. The wasp¡¯s controller had obviously learned to keep them away from each other. After one spell. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think Norrick¡¯s Chain is going to work again, Sweetie.¡± She suddenly tugged on his sleeve. ¡°Oh, there¡¯s general Grant. He¡¯s so handsome. Over here!¡± She waved her hand, making little hops as the large general with the salt and pepper hair emerged from the cliffside, standing on a pair of blades. ¡°It¡¯s never easy.¡± Brendan muttered, unsheathing his sword. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 19/30 Chapter 57: Number Seven will Surprise You! ¡°Damnit, turn around!¡± Calvin heard the leader shout from the back of his guar as Calvin¡¯s swarm of fist sized wasps split around him, angling for the back of the man¡¯s army. Gotta stay spread out and let bad Penny do the work for me, Calvin thought, avoiding the commander and heading for the troops themselves, slamming into their helmets and jabbing inch-long stingers into their faces. Calvin worked the cold math as he went. About fifteen percent of his stingers landed, taking roughly two hundred people out of the fight. In exchange he¡¯d lost a little over twenty percent of his initial swarm from Veteran¡¯s enhanced reflexes. One more push, and he¡¯d be near fifty percent swarm attrition. Hold off until the deaths filled the air with Warp, use Bad Penny to restore the numbers and then push again. Cal¡¯s swarm pushed deeper into the Ilethan formation, skipping a few places in line and aiming for the middle of the group, where he could sow the most confusion. In the meantime, his nearby wasps listened to the conversation between Grant and the fish-lipped commander of the Ilethan army. ¡°Grant. I¡¯ve already told the crown about your treachery.¡± Grant chuckled, gliding to a halt in front of the young woman and middle aged commander. ¡°Brendan. You should have thought I was dead. You must have some kind prophetic vision, or¡­¡± ¡°Someone had to take the blame for Mujenan,¡± Brendan said with a shrug. ¡°I¡¯m just¡­kind of proud that my scapegoat turned out to be the right one.¡± ¡°The story¡¯s a little more complicated than that.¡± Grant said. ¡°The Malkenrovian delegate killed princess Nadia.¡± ¡°Really? She¡¯s dead?¡± Brendan asked incredulously. ¡°She¡¯s far more valuable alive.¡± ¡°She¡¯s mostly dead. The situation is¡­complicated, but she¡¯s dead enough that she¡¯s out of consideration for marriage or succession, but not out of consideration for spilling state secrets.¡± ¡°That makes no sense.¡± Brendan said, shaking his head. ¡°Hi, General.¡± The blonde woman said, giving Grant a coy smile. ¡°What¡¯s the deal with the one controlling these wasps?¡± Brendan asked, leaning on his saddlehorn as he looked down at Grant. ¡°Is it your new boss? Bit of a coward if he¡¯s unwilling to show himself.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Grant frowned as he glanced at the blonde. ¡°Well, we should get started with the fighting thing. Can¡¯t let my new boss think I¡¯m a slacker.¡± Too late, Calvin thought as he watched them chat while the battle turned into chaos. Grant¡¯s blades began to pull themselves out of their sheathes. ¡°Transference.¡± The blonde woman said, pointing at Grant, putting her other hand on the ground beneath her. Grant let out a shuddering gasp and toppled backward, stiff as a board. ¡°There, now his core body temperature is the same as the dirt,¡± She said, carefully wiping her hand off with a handkerchief. ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡± ¡°Seems like a bad idea for you attack us alone,¡± Brendan said, his dark leather armor writhing over his skin like a living thing, slowly growing to cover any exposed skin. ¡°Well, you know how it goes.¡± Grant gasped, shivering. ¡°New commander, thinks he¡¯s invincible.¡± ¡°Anything you want written on your tombstone?¡± Brendan asked, guiding his guar closer as the sorceress turned her attention toward the wasps. ¡°Yeah, a list of your relatives who¡¯ve sucked my cock.¡± Grant said, shivering violently. ¡°Number seven will surprise you.¡± ¡°Alright, you¡¯re dead.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather you didn¡¯t, sweetums,¡± the blonde said, drawing Calvin¡¯s attention to her. Sweetums? ¡°He¡¯ll take a few minutes to recover from that. In that time it would be easy to truss him up good enough to take home. The Crown will want to debrief him, and then you have your scapegoat, don¡¯t you? The bigger problem is these wasps.¡± She glanced back at the orderly line that was falling apart under the influence of lethal stings dispersed through their ranks. ¡°I don¡¯t understand why you¡¯re just letting them sting your men, seems like a bad idea, all things considered.¡± She watched a man fall to the ground, his entire head swelling to the size of a melon, froth dribbling from his mouth as he died. ¡°My plan to stop them was you, Charlotte,¡± Brendan said with a hard edge. ¡°Fine, fine, don¡¯t get upset, it¡¯s unbecoming of an officer.¡± ¡°I suppose if I didn¡¯t, you¡¯d accuse me of being too passive.¡± ¡°Nonsense,¡± she said, eyeing Calvin¡¯s swarm, unaware of Calvin eyeing her back. ¡°These wasps, they can¡¯t have strong Minds. I¡¯ll hit the battlefield with a Lesser Torpor, and that should be plenty to knock out the insects while the soldiers stay relatively unaffected.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to tell me what you¡¯re doing,¡± Brendan said, climbing off his guar. ¡°Just do it.¡± ¡°So impatient. This isn¡¯t my specialty, you know.¡± ¡°What is your specialty again?¡± ¡°Shush, I have to concentrate,¡± she said, the veins of her arms filling with Bent. Calvin watched the Bent rush out of her fingers, dissipating into an invisible cloud that settled over the entire battlefield. Calvin had to make some assumptions there, seeing as it was invisible. Charlotte¡¯s brows furrowed as something clicked, changing the fundamental nature of the Bent spread thin across the battlefield. Calvin felt the urge to yawn, but it passed as soon as he felt it. Your Stability has shrugged off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 2 seconds. Let¡¯s keep their ignorance going as long as we can, Calvin thought, moving forward with his wasps, targeting the next row of soldiers, while about two hundred of his wasps began pulling back, aiming to bring his center of mass closer to Grant and company. ¡°Huh,¡± Charlotte said, lowering her arms. ¡°Huh what?¡± Brendan asked. ¡°The wasps seem to be sentient. At least enough to shrug off the effects of Lesser Torpor. Fascinating.¡± ¡°It not fascinating, it¡¯s killing our men left and right.¡± ¡°Your men, nephew.¡± Brendan loomed over the slowly recovering Grant, his blade unsheathed, point hovering over the big man¡¯s chest. ¡°Tell me where The Wasp is and how to get rid of his pestilence.¡± Grant chuckled weakly, his face slowly regaining its color. ¡°He¡¯s kind of spread out right now, and if I knew how to get rid of them I wouldn¡¯t be talking to you right now, would I?¡± Calvin sent a wasp each after Brendan and the blond sorceress. Brendan responded with a casual backhand with his sword that split the wasp in two, while the other wasp rebounded off some kind of invisible protection surrounding her. Interesting. That will make her hard to get the drop on. Calvin pulled his wasps back and surveyed the battlefield. The rear and middle ranks were in disarray, while the front ranks continued to push up against the wooden wall, their momentum carrying them forward, heedless of the chaos behind them. It was a mess. About five hundred men were stiff and unmoving, trampled beneath their fellow soldier¡¯s feet, while Calvin¡¯s initial swarm was beginning to rebuild itself. The swarm in front of the wall had been nearly killed off entirely, but three wasps had survived through sheer luck, and Calvin had instructed them to hide in the slats of the palisade to soak up the Warp and reproduce their swarm. It might take a while. Three, six, twelve, twenty-four, it¡¯ll take a lot of generations to make a comeback, but it¡¯s better than squandering them. In the meantime, the two hundred men on the wall were pushing against the intruders with the long spears laid out against the wall, desperation written across their faces. ¡°I¡¯ve got it,¡± the sorceress said, reaching out to the wasp hovering around her invisible barrier. Calvin tried to pull it away, but a force snaked around the fist-sized wasp and reeled it into her hand, holding it still. ¡°I¡¯ll use Voodoo. It should affect all the targets that way.¡± Well, now I need to change the circumstances. Calvin put his repositioning wasps in full gear and shifted the rest of the swarm toward the rear of the line as he watched the sorceress¡¯s moves through the captured wasp. She reached into her dress and retrieved a slim silver knife as Bent wound itself around the wasp. In the instant before she struck, Calvin could feel the invisible bands preventing the one in her hand from moving spread to all the others in some kind of sympathetic response. No time left. Calvin dismissed his swarm, reappearing directly behind Brendan in a burst of green flame. He was a couple inches off, but it was good enough. Brendan went for a similar backhand as he had before, and Calvin ducked beneath it, a knife emerging from his hand and slamming through the living armor into Brendan¡¯s kidney. Brendan gasped in pain and whipped around with significantly more energy than before. Calvin tried to pull the knife out, but the strange moving armor clamped down on the jerrytanium blade and wrenched it painfully out of his skin as the commander moved. Calvin kicked himself away, pulled out his spare knife and drew it into his body as Brendan gasped, looking down at the blade jutting from his midsection. ¡°Oh my,¡± Charlotte said, ducking down and pointing a finger at him as she reached for the ground. ¡°transf- Calvin raced her, putting his fingers on his Fireball component fractions of a second before she touched the well-manicured grass. Shaping 13/15 Bent Remaining. Calvin aimed slightly behind her and to her left, to allow Brendan to shield him from as much of the bloom of heat as possible. In a flicker too fast to see, the sorceress¡¯s pointing finger changed to an open palm tilted upward. Something caught Calvin¡¯s trajectory and forced it upward. Calvin¡¯s spell fractured, manifesting thousands of tiny flares of light in the sky as they ignited on contact with oxygen, so small that the heat surrounding them kept them aloft. All three of them winced as the heat bore down from above, shielding their faces from above. Brendan recovered first, his fluctuating armor shrugging off most of the heat. ¡°You little shit,¡± he growled, marching forward. The sorceress recovered a moment later, pointing her long nail at Calvin. This isn¡¯t looking super great. Elliot commented, eating what sounded like an apple. No shit. Meat shield. Sounds good. Calvin scrambled forward, sliding awkwardly through the grass, covering his face, arms and shins in grass stains, his spine straining as he ducked beneath the commander¡¯s swing. Calvin leapt to his feet, his face inches away from the commander¡¯s. It¡¯s not close combat unless your nipples are touching, one of Karen¡¯s anecdotes came to mind unbidden as Calvin slapped his left palm across the man¡¯s helmet, blocking his vision. Through the man¡¯s armpit, he could make out the sorceress holstering her finger, scowling. ¡°Get out of the way dear, you¡¯re making this more difficult.¡± ¡°Gah, you little ¨C ¡° Brendan¡¯s word were cut off by an animalistic shriek of pain as Calvin kneed him in the side, right where his knife was still held in place by the man¡¯s armor. Brendan fell to the ground, just as Calvin had hoped, but he hadn¡¯t expected his palm and knee to get stuck to the armor, dragging him along for the ride. ¡°Gah!¡± Calvin wrenched with everything he had before the bond got any worse, tearing a fair amount of skin off his palm, and losing his entire pant leg. At least it¡¯s not my dominant hand, he thought, curling his left hand into a fist to slow down the bleeding. He¡¯d felt worse pain in Shadow Boxing. That armor made things difficult. Is it an artifact or a skill, I wonder? Duck. Elliot warned. ¡°Transference.¡± Calvin threw himself down behind the supine form of the sorceress¡¯s nephew, picking up a fistful of dirt. ¡°Now, boy, you¡¯re very brave, but that¡¯s not going to ¨C Calvin jumped up and pitched the dirt at her with everything he had, forcing her to flinch while the dirt bounced of her invisible shield. Calvin searched his belt for the smooth matte sensation of the Steam Component. Shaping 12/15 Bent remaining. Calvin detonated it beneath himself, not giving the blonde woman a chance to interfere with the spell¡¯s trajectory. He needed something to cloud sight. An actual cloud would do. He created a wide circle of liquid steam beneath him, which immediately exploded into a thick cloud of white that billowed outward in every direction, completely severing line of sight. Hopefully that will prevent her from targeting me with that spell, Calvin thought, dropping low and scrambling over to where he remembered Grant being, frost from the rapid expansion crumbling away from him. I didn¡¯t know it would do that, It¡¯s supposed to be hot steam. Calvin thought as he crunched through the frosted grass. It cooled in the vial. Rapid decompression creates a heat vacuum, basically. The tiny amount of heat that remained in your little vial was suddenly spread out over a large area, displacing other heat. Science is cool. Calvin was able to see the sword dancer when he was about three feet away, close enough to touch the man. ¡°Man, you folded like a chump. How are you feeling?¡± he asked as the ambient temperature of the grass slowly melted the thin layer of frost. ¡°Colder than a witch¡¯s tit.¡± Grant said, shivering. Oh, hey, that¡¯s still a saying. Neat. ¡°I want to keep pushing them, but I¡¯m gonna need you to be able to stand.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Gimmie a minute.¡± Grant slowly unfolded his arms and tried to put them under himself, seemingly as weak as a newborn. ¡°What the hell is taking you so long? You should have gotten rid of her Bent by now.¡± ¡°The effect is instantaneous,¡± Grant grunted as Calvin helped him to his feet. ¡°Her Bent is long gone.¡± Um, yeah, I forgot about your medieval education. There¡¯s a little something called core body temperature, and if you change it by even a couple degrees, it can get pretty debilitating. If she actually made him the same temperature as the ground, it should have killed him. His Endurance and Stability probably played a part in preventing that. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t have a minute,¡± Calvin said, hauling Grant away as fast as he could. ¡°Less than that.¡± the woman¡¯s voice came from the left, and an instant later, the cloud of steam was blown away with a gust of wind emanating from the sorceress¡¯s arms. ¡°How are you doing all that?¡± Calvin asked, preparing his Bent. ¡°Practice, young man, don¡¯t reach for your belt,¡± She said, pointing at him from less than ten feet away, black Bent thrumming in her outstretched arm. Calvin had his knife emerge from the skin of his foot, nestling the handle between his toes as he raised his hands in surrender, showing her his Bent-free wrists. ¡°Agh, damn boy, I¡¯ll sand off all your skin and replace it with salt before making you dig your own grave.¡± Brendan muttered as he stood up, favoring his left side, Calvin¡¯s knife still sticking out of his side. The armor must be holding it in place to prevent bleeding. In front of Calvin¡¯s eyes, his knife rode a swell of leathers, deposited in the grass with a hiss of pain before the strange armor clamped down around the wound. ¡°I see you weren¡¯t classically trained, Wasp,¡± Charlotte said, holding her hand to Brendan¡¯s chest to stop him from moving toward Calvin. ¡°I never really called myself that. Seems a little on the nose.¡± Calvin said, hands in the air, Grant¡¯s heaving breath above his head. ¡°Right. How would you like an apprenticeship from me, in exchange for your Spell? There¡¯s a lot that can be done without Skills. You¡¯re not a Gadveran, after all. With my sponsorship, you¡¯d receive a warm welcome at the Den of Iniquity.¡± ¡°I think I know everything I need.¡± Calvin said, tightening his toe¡¯s grip on the blade. ¡°You don¡¯t even know a simple Dispersal.¡± She scoffed. ¡°You threw dirt at me. like a monkey.¡± Rather than respond, Calvin flung his right foot forward and released the knife, sending it flying toward the sorceress. Like a monkey. She flinched away from the blade long enough for Calvin to spin around, bringing Grant between him and the woman. ¡°Transference!¡± ¡°Bastard,¡± Grant moaned as he went cold and slumped to the ground, But Calvin was too busy summoning a pet to ward off the fearsome leather creature barreling toward him. Chained spirit. 11/15 Bent remaining. Nadia manifested in front of him, facing the charging commander. Calvin wished he could have seen either of their expressions as he put a grimy foot on Nadia¡¯s lower back and shoved her headlong into the charging commander¡¯s path. The two of them went down in a tangle of limbs as Calvin sidestepped. ¡°Keep each other busy.¡± Calvin muttered, eyes on the sorceress raising a hand toward him. She paused for a moment, her face paling as she spotted the Ilethan princess on the ground. ¡°Is that¡­¡± ¡°A distraction?¡± Calvin said, raising his left hand to create a shimmering stream of Bent in front of himself, splitting into a Y shape, while his other sought out his belt. What¡¯s going to take this woman out of the fight? She flinched when things went for her eyes, which belied a lack of experience at fighting, but she was also better at magic than he was, able to adapt to Calvin¡¯s tactics rather quickly. Gotta be a limit to her shielding¡­ Eye strain? Calvin¡¯s fingers grabbed the Flash Component as Charlotte¡¯s gaze snapped back to him. She wordlessly cast a spell, and Calvin felt a disruption in his Beli Ma before his shoulder went numb. Flash. 10/15 Bent remaining. Calvin closed his eyes and turned his head as the explosive detonated between the two of them, but his eyes still went black from the sudden light. Blind, he charged forward and felt his discarded blade touch his foot moments before he tackled someone about the same size as him, that was to say, small and bony. The sorceress. They fell into the damp grass, and Calvin pulled the knife from his foot into his hand and plunged it toward the body beneath him with every ounce of power he could manage. The knife met resistance, like it had been caught in a spiderweb, unable to push any further. It wasn¡¯t the sensation of flesh and bone, it was the constant even resistance of magic. Calvin threw his shoulder into it, and he felt the knife part flesh for an instant before his entire body went numb, causing him to gasp as his blood turned to ice pumping through his veins. He¡¯d never experienced anything like that. Even when he fell in the water inside the mountain, the cold had come from outside. This felt like it was radiating from inside him. the deepest bone chilling cold he¡¯d ever experienced. Calvin¡¯s limbs went limp against this will, and his knife slipped from his fingers. Shit! Not quite enough, buddy. Calvin felt his body being pushed away, and was able to blink the stars out of his eyes just enough to see Charlotte coming to a stand in front of him, holding a well-manicured hand over a small well of blood on her chest. She looked furious. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 20/30 Chapter 58: Stalemate ¡°You son of a-¡° Black Bent filled her wrists as she pointed a clawed hand at him, waiting to be unleashed. She stopped herself, taking a deep, steadying breath, her free hand stemming the bleeding of the small puncture wound on her chest. ¡°Listen young man, if you keep fighting tooth and nail like this, I¡¯m going to be left with no recourse but to kill you. You don¡¯t want that, right?¡± Calvin couldn¡¯t help letting out a chuckle. Captured again? This was beginning to become the story of his life. Well, not if he could help it this time. It was around this point when the rear guard finally showed up, tilting things even further in her favor. The last couple lines of men had split away from assaulting the wall and gathered around them, some five hundred men. He barely felt rough hands bring him to a stand, bringing him eye level with the sorceress. ¡°Take that belt off him,¡± She said, pointing to the sheathed components that lined his waist. Immediately, more hands came down and unbuckled the belt, allowing his belt to fall to the ground. Someone with a death wish kicked his component belt across the carefully manicured grass. Calvin felt naked without the spells. ¡°Let him go!¡± came a voice to their left, drawing their attention to a furious looking Nadia, holding Calvin¡¯s extra knife to the man¡¯s neck. ¡°What are you that looks like the princess?¡± Charlotte asked, raising a golden brow. ¡°I am the princess, obviously, Now, get away from him or lose your nephew, Charlotte Moore.¡± That gave the sorceress pause. ¡°You know who I am?¡± ¡°Professor of the Den, failed actress with extreme narcissistic tendencies. I know you.¡± She said, glowering at her. ¡°Well, there¡¯s really only one way I can respond to that.¡± Charlotte said with a hint of a smile before her face went cold. ¡°Release my nephew, or lose your summoner, Incha Huala.¡± She turned back to Calvin, her brows furrowing as she studied his face closely. ¡°That would kill you both, wouldn¡¯t it?¡± She looked Calvin up and down as he dangled between two soldier¡¯s grips. ¡°You don¡¯t look Genosian, but you¡¯ve got one of their spells. The green smoke when you summon the princess skeleton-first is hard to miss.¡± She cocked her head. ¡°Does that have something to do with your wasps?¡± She grinned. ¡°It must.¡± ¡°Release him, or I¡¯ll tell everyone your real age, crone.¡± Nadia said. Charlotte froze, the smile on her face still plastered there. Bit by bit it broke away, revealing a stony ire. ¡°Whatever are you talking about my dear?¡± she asked sweetly, turning to face Nadia. ¡°Your real form, your age¡­I¡¯ll even give them your Leash.¡± ¡°I got rid of my Leash years ago, silly girl,¡± Charlotte said. ¡°Are you sure about that?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°Are you sure the Crown doesn¡¯t have one squirreled away somewhere in the back of your mind. A vapid, hedonistic narcissist couldn¡¯t possibly have a few dark corners in her mind she¡¯d be unwilling to face, could she?¡± ¡°Use it, then.¡± Charlotte said, raising her chin. ¡°Prove you are who you say you are.¡± ¡°As I am now, I can¡¯t, but I can spread it¡¯s name on the wind, and one dark night one of your rivals at the Den will use it against you.¡± ¡°Crazy bitch,¡± Brendan muttered. Calvin wasn¡¯t quite sure who he was talking to. ¡°We¡¯re about to tear down that flimsy wall, Spare yourself an ignoble death and release me.¡± ¡°A little late for that,¡± Nadia snarled, jabbing the blade harder into Brendan¡¯s throat, treating the living armor like it wasn¡¯t even there. Speaking of the wall, Calvin thought, directing his attention to where the remains of his first swarm were replenishing themselves with the battlefield¡¯s Warp. 1536¡­.3076¡­. The swarm had doubled once every minute or so, which was a pretty damn good speed. Still not enough to do anything with. He needed half a million or more of the little bastards. Doubling every minute¡­ about eight minutes. And that was only if he didn¡¯t suffer any attrition at all between now and then. Calvin looked over his shoulder at the wall. The Ilethans were forcing their way up the side, using debris and the crush of bodies to force their way up the side of the wall. The defenders were engaging in pitched combat, trying to drive them off the wall with their spears. The situation was desperate. As he looked back, Calvin saw one of the spear wielders get yanked off the wall, falling down into the trench with the invaders. I don¡¯t know if they¡¯ve got eight minutes left. Calvin refocused his attention on Nadia, and was struck by a sudden realization. She¡¯s the bait. Master Baiter. ¡°H-How a-about we l-look at this f-from another angle,¡± Calvin shivered as he spoke, firmly planting the image of Nadia as Charlotte¡¯s Bait. ¡°She¡¯s o-obviously g-got I-information you want. State secrets, Other Leashes, whatever the hell those are. Trade my freedom for that.¡± Talking to girls has reached Level 10! +1 Intuition ¡°That is an interesting idea.¡± Charlotte said, glancing at Nadia. Distract her. Calvin gave Nadia a strong nudge, which did nothing to the girl¡¯s monolithic mental barriers, but he saw something change in her demeanor. Maybe it¡¯s just me. Read Expressions Has reached level 9! Nope. Please choose ¨C Later. Wow, hostage situations are great for social Skills. I¡¯m writing this down. It stands to reason with the stress response reaction with Skill advancement. ¡°But why should I settle for one bit of juicy gossip when I could have the whole thing?¡± she asked, turning back to Calvin. ¡°Why do you think I¡¯m here, in this body?¡± Nadia asked, her gaze flicking to Calvin with a hint of reproach. ¡°I¡¯ll give you Professor Charles¡¯ Leash. Take the deal now, or find yourself working with a sadistic monster.¡± Hey, don¡¯t look at me, I didn¡¯t kill you. I just wounded you badly enough that something else was able to kill you. And I¡¯m not a sadistic monster, you¡¯re just a willful Brat! ¡°Give me the Leash first, and I¡¯ll have them release him¡­.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a ridiculous deal. Why would I give you anything when you could so easily betray me. I¡¯ll need a little assurance that your word is good. ¡°My word depends on yours,¡± Charlotte said, stepping closer to Nadia. ¡°You could easily be bluffing.¡± ¡°Two pieces then, one before, one after.¡± Nadia said, glaring at Charlotte past Brendan¡¯s helmet. ¡°You¡¯ll put him somewhere he can recover and escape.¡± ¡°On my honor,¡± Charlotte said. Nadia scoffed. ¡°Come closer if you don¡¯t want to have to wipe the knowledge from the mind of every grunt in the Ilthan Army.¡± Nadia said, ¡°Not close enough to get stabbed, surely.¡± Charlotte said with a wry grin. ¡°That depends on how brave you¡¯re feeling.¡± ¡°Nephew.¡± ¡°What?¡± Brendan asked, his tone exasperated. ¡°Secure her blade.¡± Brendan¡¯s arms rose up and his hands locked themselves around Nadia¡¯s wrists, making it difficult for her to lash out. Brendan moaned in discomfort. ¡°I think we can do business now,¡± She said, squatting close by and giving Nadia a cheerful smile. Looks like you¡¯re a Master Baiter already. You handled that situation magnificently, firm under pressure, navigating your way to the climax with ease. Yeah, I get it, it¡¯s a play on jerking off. Calvin thought, irate. Shut up, I¡¯ve gotta focus. Appreciate me! Nadia sent Calvin lightning-quick frown, unnoticed by the Sorceress leaning closer. Charlotte bent her ear down toward the raven-haired princess, and Calvin made his move. His body was chilled to the bone and incapable of moving, but that didn¡¯t mean his summons were. Time to hit the escape button. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the Swarm. 9/15 Bent remaining. ***Nadia*** Nadia watched as Calvin burst into green fire, instantly becoming a swarm of wasps that exploded in every direction, quickly gaining as much distance from each other as possible. ¡°You little ¨C¡° Charlotte said, glancing over at the knot of men in the center of the newly created swarm. I would rather be enslaved by this impressionable boy than suffer a thousand torments at the hands of the Ilethan Nobility. Nadia had begun to come to terms with no longer being a living being, and from an objective standpoint, she knew that Calvin¡¯s fate was intrinsically tied to hers. If he was captured by Charlotte, he would become one of her toys, and by extension, she would, too. Unacceptable. The idea that the person who beat her could be beat by anyone else rankled her deeply. It picked away at her self-worth, in a twisted way. Nadia¡¯s hands were clamped down, but her teeth were free. Nadia lunged forward while Charlotte was distracted, her flesh pushing through the woman¡¯s shield just enough to bite down on the sorceress¡¯s ear. ¡°Ah!¡± Charlotte gave a yelp and tumbled sideways in a heap atop Nadia and Brendan, giving Calvin the time he needed to get distance between himself and the sorceress. Charlotte let out a feminine scream of anger and pain and tore her face away from Nadia¡¯s jaws, slapping a hand over her partially torn away ear. ¡°You bitch!¡± Nadia spat out the chunk of flesh and stuck out her bloody tongue, sharp and taunting before executing Brendan. She was stronger than Brendan, and her wrists slowly moved against his will, burying the knife deeper into the clinging armor, until Charlotte threw a hand out, Bent wrapping around Nadia¡¯s wrists like several inches of solid steel, stopping her just before the dagger reached the man¡¯s jugular. Brendan was hyperventilating, panting in fear and pain as Charlotte forced Nadia¡¯s hands to pull away from his neck. Excellent, stay distracted as long as possible. Nadia¡¯s fun was cut short when the blade of a nearby soldier penetrated her spine, glancing off Brendan¡¯s helmet. Her arms and legs went numb, and Brendan thrashed out of her grip, heaving himself to his feet, gasping pitifully as he clamped his Living Armor over his neck to stem the bleeding. ¡°To be continued, I suppose,¡± Nadia said, throwing the two of them her best smile. As her vision faded, she heard a series of explosions in the distance. ¡°Damn it!¡± Charlotte shrieked. Nadia found herself watching everything through the window of Calvin¡¯s eyes again. He sat on the wall, carried by a giant Knick-Knack. His attention was on the belt of components resting on his stomach that he¡¯d managed to sneak away with, the Fireball specifically. ¡°Probably should have done this first,¡± she heard him mutter to himself, before shifting his gaze up to the battlefield. Everywhere he looked bloomed with Mage¡¯s Fire, drawing a flaming streak across the front of the Ilethan line, immolating thousands of soldiers in instants before Charlotte was able to disrupt his casting with a Dispersal. Nadia hadn¡¯t seen wholesale destruction like that before, and she felt herself smiling at the possibilities. Hey. A voice spoke in the back of her mind, and Nadia found she could direct her attention away from what Calvin was doing. She had never thought of doing so before. She was in a tiny black room, barren of all furnishing with the small exception of a metal box with a strange metal grate on the front of it, set into the wall. Testing Port 20299378. You hear me? testing, testing¡­ The voice emanated from the box, and it sounded familiar. ¡°Who are you?¡± Nadia said, turning to face the box completely, her consciousness separating from spectating the battle, making the window into the real world go dim and muffled. Port 20299378 is live and Connected with Chained Spirit. Let¡¯s write that down. Since you¡¯re not buzzing at me, or speaking Knick-Knack, I¡¯ll assume you¡¯re Nadia. Nadia, my name Is Elliot. ¡°You were the voice I heard right before he escaped. Appreciate me, right?¡± You heard that, huh? Man, after all these years, the System still surprises me. Anyway, I just wanted to say hi to a fellow passenger of the S.S. Gadsint, and offer my help with whatever you need to help you get used to your new life. The air around Nadia shimmered and a plush couch appeared in front of the window into the real world, along with a shelf full of beautiful glass bottles. I didn¡¯t know what you might like, so I arranged for you to have a bit of everything. There¡¯s something living in the boy¡¯s head, and it¡¯s trying to butter me up with presents. She had to find out what it wanted, then find out whether or not she wanted that too. Nadia had nothing to gain by refusing the gifts, not in her current situation. Lets see what this Elliot¡¯s angle is, Nadia thought, taking a pink glass bottle off the shelf and spinning the recliner to face the metal box before sitting down. ¡°So Elliot, what¡¯s your story?¡± she asked as the explosions of battle gently shook her cell. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 21/30 Chapter 59: Strategy Vs. Tactics Calvin reincorporated behind the wall, the terrible cold returning along with his body as he fell to his knees, shivering. Damn, this could have been over already if I¡¯d gotten rid of their commander. No time for getting his body temperature back. He needed get up and get moving. Hope I don¡¯t lose Grant. A little. Losing the old soldier stung more in the sense that it was a loss of a capable teacher rather than any emotional attachment. The man¡¯s attitude certainly didn¡¯t win him any friends, but the way he poked at Calvin¡¯s weaknesses as a leader was helpful, if annoying. Calvinian Summoning. 8/15 Bent Remaining. A ten-foot tall Knick-knack appeared beside Calvin and picked him up like a doll before heading for the wall. The palisade creaked as the knick-knack climbed the stairs carrying Calvin. Up on the wall, defenders were stretched out, further a body length away from each other, gritting their teeth in fear and anger as they thrusted makeshift spears down at the attackers. Carl, the footsoldier who couldn¡¯t take care of his gear properly seemed to have found his purpose in life, waving the Gadveran flag with a manic look on his face. The whites around his eyes showed all the way around as he swung the pole madly back and forth, keeping the rallying flag snapping with a professional crack, even as arrows whizzed down around him. Calvin¡¯s chair carried him up onto the wall, and he winced. The view from on top of the wall was even worse than he¡¯d thought. it was one thing to casually assess the amount of time the wall had before it was destroyed, and another to live it. One of Calvin¡¯s men glanced back when he heard the squeaking of the wall, and flinched before tapping the shoulder of the man next to him. One by one, they stopped what they were doing, and Calvin felt the full force of their expectations fall on his shoulders. He could feel a sliver of hope in their gazes, and he knew it was his duty to make it a reality. ¡°Let me buy you some more time,¡± Calvin shuddered the words out. He maneuvered the knick-knack close to the wall and concentrated on his Fireball component. Shaping. 6/15 Bent remaining Calvin spent two Bent to draw a thin line of God¡¯s Fire across the entirety of the Ilethan line, immolating the first two rows of the unfortunate soldiers in a devastating wave of brilliant fire. Calvin watched as it carved a path of white-hot energy through the dense crowd. What happens to me when someone else drops an undefendable attack on me? If anything, recent events informed Calvin that he needed to work on his defense. Calvin could feel the Warp against his skin as it rose out of the charred corpses like invisible steam. Some of my guys are going to Break from this¡­most of them, in fact. Calvin cast a glance over the hundred and eighty remaining soldiers, who were tucked behind the palisade, catching their breath as the pressure was temporarily lifted. If they all had the Break at once, they would be in serious trouble. Should I have the Veterans pull us back to the next wall? Calvin thought, eyeing the wall on the other side of the camp. It was about half as strong as the one facing the Ilethans, and pointed the wrong direction. As it turned out, though, Calvin didn¡¯t need to plan for the Breaks, The battlefield was complete chaos, Some of the Ilethans were still charging forward, others falling back from the horrifying deaths they¡¯d seen in front of them. The ones in the back were terrified that the wasps might return, looking every direction for stingers that might drop them like so many other swollen corpses, while men retreating from the front tripped over them, adding to the confusion. One more should do it. Mass shaping. 4/15 Bent remaining. Calvin spent another two Bent in an attempt to sow the battlefield with dozens of minor explosions, but he felt his Bent being pushed up, scattering the spell harmlessly up into the air. In the distance, he could make out the woman in white robes pointing at him. Guess she¡¯s back in the fight. ¡°You¡¯re back!¡± Lieutenant Vukya said, running up to Calvin. ¡°I am. Thanks for holding things together. What do you think the ¨C one second ¨C ¡° Calvin felt an arrow whizzing toward his face, and he put the Knick-knack¡¯s steel fist between himself and the missile. The Bent-charged arrow bored halfway through the creature¡¯s hand before it stopped in front of Calvin¡¯s face. No quip? Elliot was being strangely quiet. ¡°What do you think the chances are of the Ilethans retreating?¡± Calvin asked, finishing his question once the giant Knick-Knack had moved him out of the sight of archers. ¡°Normally, I would say good, People tend to retreat when a significant number of them are killed, but with Ilethans¡­¡± The straight-laced lieutenant frowned. ¡°Instructor Grolsh taught me that either Ilethan morale breaks far earlier than others, or it doesn¡¯t break at all until you take out the Sorcerer keeping them going, or aforementioned sorcerer decides to pull back.¡± ¡°That¡¯s tricky,¡± Calvin said between shivered, before hoisting himself up to take a quick look at the battlefield. He spotted Charlotte standing beside a line of perhaps a hundred Gadverans, facing their direction. The distant sorceress pointed a finger, and Calvin¡¯s skin prickled as he felt Bent move, even from this distance. I wonder how much Bent she used just now, and how much she has left? Calvin himself didn¡¯t have much to spare anymore. The line of Gadveran prisoners burst into flames that towered above them, looking like a hundred candlewicks at this distance. What in the Abyss!? Calvin¡¯s gut sank as the front line of charred corpses jerked awake, leaping to their feet and roaring like animals as the burnt flesh flaked away. The thousand men leapt forward, scrabbling to climb the wall and grabbing at the defender¡¯s spear, reinvigorated to a level that Calvin didn¡¯t think was possible. ¡°This could be a problem,¡± Calvin said, his knick-knack setting him down against palisade. ¡°What should we do?¡± Vukya asked, looking at him expectantly. What should we do against weird resurrecting troops who seem to be berserk? Nothing is ever easy. ¡°They¡¯re not thinking clearly,¡± Calvin said, pointing at the seemingly rabid men, speaking with more confidence than he felt. ¡°Put them down like animals, and I¡¯ll see to stopping their friends from carving a path for them.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Calvin had basically just told him to keep doing what he was doing, but Vukya seemed to get something out of it that Calvin didn¡¯t quite understand, turning around and bellowing orders to that effect. The wasps hadn¡¯t had quite as long to recuperate as Calvin wanted, only totaling around a hundred and eighty thousand, but for the purpose of slowing down the enemy, it was perfect. The palisades exploded with buzzing as the wasps crawled out of every crevice and took flight, spreading over the battlefield evenly, one wasp every few feet. It wasn¡¯t enough to kill, but to the men who¡¯d seen their friends die, it was enough to cause a panicked meltdown. As he¡¯d expected, the enthusiastic former corpses ignored the wasps entirely, but their more rational friends behind him slowed down, pushed back by the wave of summons regenerated by the Bad Penny Ability. The only rule he gave the wasps was to stay away from Charlotte. The Voodoo skill seemed like she could use it to spread damage out to his entire swarm, spending only a single Bent to counter his spell and put them on the back foot. Calvin preferred to have the advantage in a Bent trade, since he was still relatively poor in Stability. Calvin looked behind himself. He couldn¡¯t cast spells into the Ilethan lines without Charlotte interfering, but he could cast spells where she couldn¡¯t see. He glanced at the foundations they¡¯d just finished excavating. The Ilethans couldn¡¯t hold this place¡­ not if Calvin took down the fortifications. If Calvin left right now, they would be sitting on a barren road with their thumbs up their asses, with nothing to show for it. A seed of an idea began to form, and it was cemented when he saw the temporary wall begin to buckle under the pressure of the Ilethan host, leaning precariously, the soldiers atop it heedless in their frenzy of stabbing. That wall wasn¡¯t going to last. Charlotte and her nephew were leading from the back, and Calvin was about to show them why that was a bad idea. ¡°Vukya, grab Carl there,¡± Calvin pointed at the man wildly swinging his flag, ¡°And pull people behind the second wall. Make sure it¡¯s as calm as you can make it.¡± Vukya nodded, and seized the Flag-Man by the shoulder, interrupting his furious swinging. ¡°Second wall!¡± he shouted, steering Carl through the foundation pits of Calvin¡¯s wall, toward the south-facing barricade. Calvin took a deep breath and hoisted himself down off the massive Knick-Knack, his legs wobbling under him for a moment. ¡°Second Wall!¡± Calvin shouted, grabbing a young man by the shoulder and pointing at the flag. He was in some kind of battle-induced fugue state, stabbing down into the writhing mass of Ilethans with a blood-flecked scowl. The soldier seemed to be gone for a second before he blinked, nodded, and simply jumped off the back of the wall and ran to catch up. A few people followed him, but many were too entrenched in what they were doing to pay any attention to their surroundings. Getting their attention was Calvin¡¯s responsibility. ¡°Second Wall!¡± Calvin said shaking another man out of his stupor, then another and another. The trickle of men jumping off the wall turned into a flood as more and more of them realized they were leaving through the confusing din of combat. Ilethans were starting to replace Gadverans atop the wall, shouting victoriously. Make a hole, Calvin thought as he jumped off the wall, joining the stream of Gadverans running for their lives. The massive Knick-knack walked up to the wall and spread it open, like a man opening the curtains in the morning, the ten foot wall crumpled aside in front of the overwhelming power of the creature, creating a massive, ten foot breach in the wall. The Ilethans were more than happy to flood through. ***Brendan*** Brendan scowled as he watched the salvaged veterans claw their way up the wall, replacing the Gadverans, who beat a hasty retreat. I paid too much for this. Far too much, but if I can just hold these walls until the reinforcements arrive, I¡¯ll go down in history as the man who made taking Mujenan possible. Well, maybe not possible, but certainly easier. Once they¡¯d taken the camp, they¡¯d fix and improve the defenses. Four thousand men defending this place would make it impossible for the Gadveran army to take it back. Not with their limited remaining troops reserved to fend off the Ilethan Navy. We¡¯re going to win this, Brendan thought as he kicked his guar into action, moving down the field toward the wall, still several hundred yards distant. Then something happened that Brendan wasn¡¯t expecting. The massive steel creature he¡¯d seen carrying that damned wizard peeled the wall open before sprinting away, repeating the process at every major knot of soldiers pushing forward. Suddenly Brendan¡¯s men were flooding through the wall. It was an obvious trap, but armies had momentum, and it wasn¡¯t possible to stop them on a deshka. ¡°No, NO!¡± Brendan shouted, drawing his horn and sounding a retreat. He didn¡¯t have time to trust a messenger to relay his words. As he watched, hundreds of his men were spilling through, filling the space between the two walls. ¡°What is it, sweety?¡± he heard Charlotte call from behind him as he desperately blew his horn, commanding them to stop. He was too late. A tremendous flash of light along with a concussive blast of sound washed over him. The walls burst into flame, as well as every soldier who¡¯d mindlessly jumped at the opportunity to breach the wall. The remaining men recoiled from the burning wall, screaming as the heat blistered their skin. ¡°oooh, that¡¯s what.¡± Charlotte said. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you stop him?¡± He demanded, looking back at his aunt. ¡°Couldn¡¯t see it,¡± she said with a shrug. ¡°I¡¯ve got limits, believe it or not.¡± ¡°Damn!¡± When the fire cleared, there was only a tangled, useless mess left where the wall had been, but that was the least of the damage. Wagons of mortar and stone had been hastily tipped over the cliff and spilled into the ocean below, while an enormous stockpile of wood was still burning furiously. The second wall had been destroyed as well, affording them no protection from Gadvera. Aside from the foundations that had been dug, they had paid over a thousand lives to conquer nothing but a patch of burned earth. War is a grim business. If I gave up just because things looked hard, I would be the greatest fool. All I have to do is hold on until reinforcements arrive. ¡°Set the men to restoring the palisades, dig earthworks facing Mujenan.¡± He glanced at the bound and gagged former General, deprived of all his swords. The big man glared at him furiously. ¡°Send that back to Surrak, along with a request for supplies and civilian engineers,¡± Brendan said, surveying the carefully manicured grass. There was an abundance of labor to be had in the conquered city. ¡°We¡¯ve got work to do.¡± ***Grant*** Grant was leaning against the wall of the wagon, peering out to see the road disappearing under the wheels, pondering his situation. A fate worse than death awaited him at the end of his journey, when the Elphias, the Crown, would tear his mind out of his body and bind it to The Throne for all time. Like hell I¡¯m going to spend eternity getting sat on by assholes, Grant thought to himself, as he tested his chains again. He was practically mummified beneath the sheer quantity of chain. The biggest problem is how to off myself before I get there. It has to be in Surrak at the latest, or else they¡¯ll just assign a Sin-Eater to me when I arrive, and bye-bye suicide attempt. Grant cocked his head. I hear in an eastern country they used to bite their own tongues off and bleed to death that way¡­That doesn¡¯t sound particularly effective. The tongue heals faster than any other part of the body. Maybe they have a problem with infection. Grant honestly didn¡¯t think he could bleed out through something as small as his tongue, but who knew he¡¯d seen people¡¯s hands cut off, and that was something else. We¡¯ll call biting off my own tongue plan B. With any luck I¡¯ll be able to nick some silverware, jam it into my eye. Grant was drawn away from his musing by raised voices and the honks of startled Guar. He raised his eyes and saw several logs laid out in front of the road in extremely rough, four foot walls, just high enough to make it a hindrance to attackers. Behind the wall were dozens of stone-faced young men with bows seemingly scavenged from Ilethan archers. ¡°Welcome to Captain Gadsint¡¯s secondary fort.¡± A familiar voice called from the wall, where the teen stood with his foot up on the wall in an arrogant posture. A moment later, there was a creak of falling timber as two trees fell behind the wagons full of prisoners and wounded men. Grant chuckled through the gag, slowly giving way to a full-throated laugh. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 22/30 Chapter 60: Becoming the Villain ¡°Take a moment to look at things from my perspective,¡± Calvin said, wiping the globule Diane had spat on his cheek. ¡°Never.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got¡­eh, forty or so prisoners while behind enemy lines, and I can¡¯t risk letting them go until the Ilethans ¨C that¡¯s you ¨C are already aware of my presence. Calvin was giving the speech to their newest female POW, a tough-as-nails wagon driver responsible for delivering goods from Surrak to Brendan. His speech had evolved slowly over time from ¡®do the right thing¡¯ to a thinly veiled threat. Sometimes people had to be made aware of the realities of life. ¡°Now, forty men, we¡¯re not quite numerous enough to put them to work effectively without some fool getting the idea to rise up against us with their tools, seeing as we¡¯re not too many more than them. So. We keep them chained up.¡± ¡°Bastard.¡± ¡°Right. So the next thing I want you to consider is food. I have a responsibility to feed every single one of my men, but do I have a responsibility to feed them?¡± Calvin thumbed over his shoulder at the corral of men chained to posts under a long roof. ¡°The Aices Dictum decrees that each prisoner of war shall be ¨C¡° Calvin interrupted her with a slap. ¡°I watched your people light a hundred of mine on fire. They looked like candle wicks half a mile out. I felt the Berserk spell, which on later inquiry, is apparently a war crime. I still dream about it, actually. Don¡¯t you dare quote me a bullshit law you¡¯ve no intention of honoring.¡± The middle-aged woman looked stunned that someone young enough to be her son had slapped her. Which hopefully meant he¡¯d broken her out of her loop. ¡°Now, forty men eat a lot of food, and I¡¯ll have to make adjustments in order to feed them. It will take extra manpower to make sure everyone gets fed. It takes extra manpower to watch them. In short, they are less valuable to me alive than dead, including your husband over there.Hi Tom.¡± Calvin waved at the distant Ilethan lug glaring him down from the longhouse prison. ¡°No.¡± She shook her head, eyes brimming with tears. ¡°Yep, My best bet is to kill them. That¡¯s just the bitter truth of it¡­Unless you change the game.¡± She gave him a confused look. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°If you make keeping forty men alive and well more valuable to me than the drain they pose on my resources, then logic simply dictates that I keep them alive, and that includes Tom. And trust me, keeping them alive is within your power.¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± she demanded, slowly deflating. ¡­ 13/15 Bent Remaining ¡°Well, now I feel like the slimiest scumbag ever to walk the earth,¡± Calvin said, wiping imaginary slime off himself as he left the women¡¯s longhouse. The noise of the camp drowned out his self-recrimination. ¡°Where¡¯d you learn to speak Ilethan so good? um, I mean well.¡± Gulad asked, the snaggletoothed engineer dusting off his hands as he shifted from one woodworking project to the next. ¡°I ate a dead guy¡¯s tongue,¡± Calvin said, idly glancing past him to the chicken coop the man somehow had time to set up. The new base was partway set up, but not nearly as strong as he wanted it for when the Ilethans came. They had no idea when the Ilethans would catch wind of them blocking their supplies. It would only be a day or two more at the most. ¡°I¡­see. Well, good job with that, captain.¡± Gulad said, nodding, his expression paling somewhat as he left. ¡°Take these with you,¡± Calvin said, burning through half his cajoled Bent to give the engineer another unit of several hundred Knick-knacks. He saved the rest of the it for when the ilethans inevitably tried to push through them again. 7/15 Bent remaining I traded him over a thousand for fourteen men last time. I wonder if He¡¯ll be willing to make that deal again. I wonder if I¡¯ll be willing to make that deal again. Calvin stomped over to his hidden chair where he could be not-captain and slumped into it, his pinky fingers shaking as he held his face in his hands. Please choose an ability or mutation- I¡¯m busy damn it! Doesn¡¯t look like it to me. Calvin sucked in a long breath and slowly let it out, cutting through the anxiety with a mental knife. Fine. Let¡¯s see them. Abilities: Like a Book: Boosts comprehension of body language, to a near unnatural level. Almost mind-reading, but not really. Loyalty: Talking to Girls Correction now applies to the growth of loyalty and selflessness in women. Not a Metaphor: Pay 1 Bent to temporarily turn a willing woman into a powerful weapon. That weapon''s shape, attributes and effects are based on the woman''s personality, abilities and skills. lasts (Skill) hours, dismissable by either party. Dream a Little Dream of Me: 1 Bent, User can share dreams and other mental spaces with a willing woman for the next 24 hours. Mutations: One Size Fits All: I think you all know what this mutation does, you silly guys. Perfume : Smell better¡­duh. The Voice: Makes voice more appealing. Pillow Talk: After a long, soothing conversation where both the user and the other party share their emotions, the other party¡¯s Bent regeneration is multiplied by (TtG) for (TtG) hours. Twilight Effect: Increase the Talking to Girls correction by a cumulative 5% for each mutation User has. Side effect: paler and sparkles. May cause vampirism. There¡¯s more than last time, Calvin thought as he reviewed them, paying close attention to the new ones. More Abilities become available as other Skills and Abilities become available. Believe it or not, there were quite a few more skills under this tab that I had to block because they were extremely inappropriate. More inappropriate than One size Fits all? Indeed. It surprised me too. Cal grunted and scanned through the skills, disregarding the Twilight Effect, despite being an objectively powerful passive. He didn¡¯t intend to become something different. Loyalty seemed helpful. It was less restrictive and more widely applicable than Stockholm Syndrom. ¡°Can you read me Stockholm Syndrome? Calvin asked. On it. Stockholm Syndrome: YPiiAC correction now also applies to the emotional bonding of captive princesses with the User, as well as the resulting allegiance. If anything, Loyalty would work far better in the long run, for, and even after taming Nadia, since it could be used on non-captive, non-princesses. On the other hand¡­ Calvin revisited Pillow Talk. The name made him cringe, and the requirements to use it weren¡¯t much better. Pillow Talk: After a long, soothing conversation where both the user and the other party share their emotions, the other party¡¯s Bent regeneration is multiplied by (TtG) for (TtG) hours. Icky. I have to share my feelings? I hate sharing my feelings¡­on the other hand¡­ Calvin did some quick mental math. Bent regen is weekly, so¡­ 7*24=168 hours in a week. At level ten, the rate of Bent regeneration would be ten times for ten hours, or one hundred hours worth in ten hours. Two thirds of a week in one day at his current level of Talking to girls. At level 13, he¡¯d reach 169 hours in 13... meaning each heart-to-heart he had with a girl would allow him to harvest a full week¡¯s worth of Bent from them¡­at a rate of once per day. It¡¯s hard to have more than one or two heart-to-hearts a week, at most. You just run out of feelings to bare. And don¡¯t use the word Harvest in her company. She¡¯ll definitely take offence to it. Fair enough. Want a little advice? Sure. Pick up Loyalty then Pillow Talk, If you still want it by then. But I need as much Bent as I can get to finish this fort. The only person that Ability is going to work on is Ella, besides, this fort is a temporary thing. You¡¯re just setting up a wall you don¡¯t plan to hold anyway. You know what you do plan to hold onto? Your princesses. If you get Pillow Talk and don¡¯t tell your girlfriends the reason for it, it¡¯ll alienate them indefinitely. Even if you do tell them, it¡¯ll make them feel like tools, which is¡­not ideal either. On the other hand, grab Loyalty, let them stew in it¡¯s effect for a few months, however long it takes to get to level 15, then bring up the subject of Pillow Talk, and they¡¯ll fall over themselves asking you to take it so they can help you more. Calvin sat there and digested that for a moment. You sound kind of evil, you know? Age and evil go hand in hand. Either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain. And I am very old. You know what else goes with age? Experience. Pick loyalty and I know it¡¯ll pay dividends the rest of your life. The kind of dividends that don¡¯t have numbers. Calvin thought about it for a solid ten minutes. I choose Loyalty. Calvin¡¯s awareness expanded as the System subtley altered his synapses, making connections between behavior and thoughts that he had never put together before. So many things suddenly made sense. He felt like a fog had been lifted from his mind. Matter of fact¡­ This works for men, too, doesn¡¯t it? Calvin thought. Bingo! The Ability might be geared more precisely for women, but there¡¯s a ton of overlap in what makes men and women tick, despite what they might have you think. Who¡¯s they? The People who wrote Men are From Mars, Women are from Venus. ¡°Whatever,¡± Calvin said, not interested in tugging on that thread. He held out his hand, palm down. Chained Spirit. 6/15 Bent remaining. He watched as black Bent traced his veins before erupting from his palm in a cloud of green smoke that quickly began assembling a skeleton. In the blink of an eye, Nadia was gasping in front of him, on her knees in front of his chair. It wasn¡¯t really Calvin¡¯s intention to summon her kneeling, he just had to have her head in his palm as he summoned her, and he was sitting down¡­so it kind of turned out that way. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± she asked. ¡°Why did you pull me out?¡± ¡°You did a good job with Brendan. Thank you. Now go help clean logs.¡± Calvin said, gently eroding away at the crack he¡¯d made in her mental defences as he spoke. She sneered at him. ¡°You want me to do menial work like some kind of Support Unit?¡± ¡°Or nothing at all.¡± Calvin said, brows raised. She glanced over her shoulder, to where several shirtless young Gadveran men were stripping branches and bark away from logs, their muscles rippling in the afternoon sun. She gave a dainty sniff and shrugged. ¡°Fine. They seem like they¡¯re in dire need of leadership anyway.¡± She stood, cast Calvin a quick glance, her emotions swirling between angry and contemplative before she turned away and joined the workers. What was that for? A reward for doing well the day before yesterday. A reward? More work? The ability to move with her own body, speak with her own mouth. The ability to¡­ Calvin glanced over, where Nadia tapped one of the workers on the shoulder and took the tool out of the man¡¯s hands when he looked over at her. She bent over and began demonstrating the proper way to plane wood. She failed miserably, but she held the poor men¡¯s attention with the black leather stretched tight over her slender body. The ability to interact with the real world. I see. ¡°Speaking of which, it¡¯s time for me to get back to the real world as well,¡± Calvin said, pushing himself out of his hidden slouch-chair. The camp was a frenzy of motion as the Knick-Knacks dug earthworks across the road, slinging up dirt faster than a human could ever hope. Teams of a dozen moved stripped logs from the yard to the wall one at a time, where the largest one Calvin had summoned buried them deep in the earth one at a time before binding them together. The fort designed to choke Brendan off from his reinforcements was coming along, much faster than the one before, because no preparations for a permanent structure were necessary. ¡°I dub thee, Fort Choke. May our enemies choke on it.¡± Calvin said, nodding sagely. ¡°Movement in the Forest!¡± one of the lookouts screamed, his bell shattering Calvin¡¯s exhaustion laced complacency, causing his nerves to turn into ice water, and kicking him directly in the heart. Calvin sprinted for the lookout tower, a simple two story construction with little in the way of cover that overlooked the road and jungle beside them. He clomped up the steps, already making plans for how best to make them pay for their impromptu fort. ¡°Where?¡± he demanded, at the top of the stairs. ¡°Over there, sir,¡± the Gadveran said, handing Calvin the spyglass. ¡°Just on our side of that hill, coming down the side.¡± He pointed. Calvin lined the spyglass with the man¡¯s directions and began scanning the slightly deforested mountainside. After a moment, he spotted a strange sight. A big man leaning on the shoulders of a rather small woman. The two of them were wearing steel bows, and¡­Calvin recognized them. ¡°Guar!¡± Calvin shouted, with only enough presence of mind to hand the spyglass back to the lookout. He swept back down the stairs like a gust of wind, barely touching them until he hit the ground running, aiming for the stable which included the few Guar they¡¯d had remaining after the attack, along with the ones confiscated from Brendan¡¯s resupply caravan. ¡°Get three Guar ready!¡± Calvin shouted ¡°There¡¯s two of our people on the hill, and they need a ride!¡± The old man in charge of the Guar paused where he was working a file over the herbivorous reptile¡¯s nails to glance at Calvin. He gave Calvin a deeply intense scowl for a moment, before nodding, turning to retrieve them. Calvin twitched anxiously as he waited for the man to come back with the guar. Baroke is alive! Thank the gods, but he doesn¡¯t look good. I have to get him back as soon as possible. There¡¯s every chance that the enemy is bearing down behind them as we speak. ¡°Hold on there, kid,¡± Grant said, putting a hand on Calvin¡¯s shoulder. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I overheard. There¡¯s some of ours on the hill?¡± ¡°What of it?¡± ¡°Well, there¡¯s every chance that it¡¯s a trap.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a pretty tried and true tactic to use POW¡¯s as bait and ambush their units. Plus there¡¯s no guarantee that they aren¡¯t a sorcerer in disguise. There¡¯s been more than one army torn apart from the inside by especially fearless sorcerers. Cal fixed Grant with a stare. The big man shrugged. ¡°At least send someone disposable to get them back.¡± He said. ¡°I¡¯ll do it,¡± Ella said, dressed head to toe in armor, looking like the mythic juggernaut. ¡°You¡¯re not disposable,¡± Calvin said as the old man came back with three guar. The lizards seemed somewhat intimidated by the Genosian girl¡¯s size, standing eye-to eye with her. ¡°Maybe not, but you want to do it, so I want to do it,¡± She said. ¡°And I don¡¯t think a little thing like an Ilethan ambush could hurt me. I¡¯m the toughest creature in this entire camp. You civilized races are soft-skinned.¡± I can¡¯t risk Ella. She¡¯s too important. She could get hurt or captured, and then everything would fall ¨C Calvin burned to tell her to stay, but he choked off the irrational desire with a force of indignant will. That was the Guya talking. ¡°Alright, bring them back here, where we can take a look at them.¡± ¡°You got it, Huntmaster.¡± She said with a sharp-toothed grin and genosian salute. ¡°Sometimes I feel like my entire existance is using women,¡± Calvin said as he watched her lead the spare two Guar out the front gate, his stomach knotting. Grant sent him a curious glance. A few minutes later, she came back with Baroke and his companion¡­Maya, Calvin remembered. Completely without incident. ¡°Here you are,¡± Ella said as she approached, dismounting and guiding the guars the rest of the way by hand. Got me scared of a trap for nothing. ¡°Hey, boss,¡± Baroke said, waving a tired hand as he rode up, slumped across the struggling Guar¡¯s back. His massive shoulder was red and infected, oozing puss from a puckered wound. ¡°Hey, Baroke, good to see you¡¯re alive.¡± ¡°Same here, it¡¯s been a wild ride, let me tell you.¡± ¡°No.¡± Calvin said, cutting off the lumbering archer before he could launch into a heroic, and likely embellished tale of survival. ¡°We need to get you to a medic and make sure you are who you say you are.¡± ¡°W-Huh?¡± ¡°How long did it take us to catch the pig?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°The festival?¡± Calvin stayed stone-faced, not revealing anything. ¡°Under ten minutes,¡± Baroke said with a shrug, wincing at the pain. ¡°Welcome back soldier. You¡¯ve earned a day off,¡± Calvin said, unable to suppress a smile. ¡°Don¡¯t shower me with praise or anything.¡± Baroke rolled his eyes. ¡°And Maya,¡± Calvin said, turning to the other scout. A tiny, muscular girl about their age. ¡°Yeah?¡± she asked, her eyes slipping closed. ¡°Thanks for keeping Baroke alive. I think everyone here knows you were probably the only reason he made it back. You get two days off.¡± ¡°Too bad I¡¯m gonna sleep through both of them,¡± She said with a yawn. ¡°Seems odd giving them two days off when we may not be here that much longer.¡± Grant said. ¡°We do what we can.¡± ¡°Movement, South road!¡± Calvin lurched up to the watchtower again, but didn¡¯t spot anything to the south. ¡°What¡¯d you see?¡± ¡°A couple scouts on Guars, turned around as soon as they saw the walls.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Fort Choke now.¡± Calvin said with a grin he didn¡¯t feel. Now we¡¯re really on the clock. He gave a mental nudge for the knick-knacks to get started on the escape route. ***Brendan*** Brendan plucked his fingers carefully out of the indented brass cup, wiping spilled wine off his hand with a handkerchief. ¡°Say that again. I was too blinded by fury to process it.¡± ¡°Um, there¡¯s a wall between us and Surrak¡­sir. Wooden one, about four feet taller than this one was. Seems like it¡¯s being built by The Wasp. It¡¯s practically done already. ¡°Three days!¡± Brendan shouted, causing the scout to rock back on his heels. ¡°You can¡¯t build fortifications in three days! There¡¯s no magic in the world that makes a permanent object that big or that fast!¡± ¡°I think, nephew, that the young man has a way to create a temporary workforce on a large scale. You mentioned something about Knick knacks helping him?¡± Brendan reprocessed his memories before snapping his attention to the scout. ¡°Were knick-knacks there in great numbers?¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± ¡°Oh my, seems like the spell does more than just wasps, how exciting.¡± Charlotte clapped her hands together in delight. ¡°It¡¯s not exciting, it¡¯s ¨C ¡° Brendan stopped himself, giving the scout an appraising look. He couldn¡¯t let any news of how bad this was slip. ¡°You¡¯re dismissed.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± The scout saluted and left. ¡°It¡¯s fucking terrible!¡± he whispered harshly to his aunt once the man was out of earshot. ¡°My men are going hungry while that asswipe sits back and eats our food. There are simply too many men here to sustain with hunting and fishing. Either we attack the wall on empty stomachs and quite possibly suffer worse than last time, starve here, waiting for Mujenan to smash us, or we retreat through the jungle. None of those are good fucking options!¡± ¡°I agree.¡± Charlotte said with a nod. ¡°From a military standpoint, you¡¯re in a world of trouble, young man. A total failure. An utter incompetent.¡± ¡°I get it.¡± ¡°Hold on, I¡¯ve got a couple more. A oozing sack of shit, and a sword rusted into it¡¯s sheath. Worse than useless.¡± ¡°I get it.¡± Brendan growled. ¡°From a history standpoint, though, you may be on the verge of tipping the war in our favor.¡± ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°Nephew. I want that young man. I want him, bad. And I want his spell even more. A spell that can create instant troops on a grand scale¡­Real ones?¡± Charlotte¡¯s mouth gaped as she fanned herself off. ¡°We could lose every man here, and it wouldn¡¯t compare to stealing that spell. I, Charlotte Moore humbly request your aid in kidnapping The Wasp.¡± Brendan turned the ruined goblet over in his hand as he considered. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 23/30 Chapter 61: Copy Calvin’s Concerns ¡°Okay, here we go,¡± Calvin said, focusing on himself, mentally drawing a tight bubble around his entire body. He¡¯d tried copying bugs and small animals when he had first gotten Dupdomancy, and he knew the results were living copies, but he¡¯d never thought he¡¯d be using it on himself. He¡¯d never really wanted to, considering that the copy would only last an hour, along with a total lack of ability to cast spells. That and the question of whether or not Calvin was ripping his copy from some other plane of reality and dooming it to an ignoble death. Regular stuff. He didn¡¯t have the luxury of being squeamish anymore. He needed bait, and Calvin was damn sure that he was the most appetizing bait he could possibly throw out there. Splitting 7/15 Bent remaining. **** The world flickered, and everything moved about five feet toward Calvin. ¡°What? Did I mess up?¡± he muttered, frowning. He wanted to make a copy, not teleport, which was a whole different thing. ¡°Nope,¡± a young man¡¯s voice came from behind him. A tingle of apprehension worked its way down Calvin¡¯s spine as he turned around to see himself, waving at him. He had just cast the spell, but he¡¯d cast it for the copy to be standing in front of him. If it was a copy, it would copy everything, along with the memories of casting the spell. ¡°Son of a Kranka, let me guess,¡± Calvin said as dread began settling into his bones. ¡°I¡¯m the copy.¡± ¡°We¡¯re a very smart guy.¡± Calvin said, looking him up and down before holding out his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you, me.¡± ¡°Likewise,¡± Calvin said with less enthusiasm then he thought. ¡°Something wrong?¡± the original asked with a frown. ¡°I was just standing over there, thinking how clever I was, and now I¡¯ve got¡­Just over an hour to live.¡± The spell was going to end in approximately sixty four minutes, and what happened to him then? Calvin the Copy could only assume that he would cease to exist. Permanently. As in, die. Calvin the copy had lived nearly seventeen years, only to die tonight, a virgin. Unless you count some of those shenanigans with Kort¡¯s mom and girlfriend, but I don¡¯t think they count. Probably. And the blindfold incident. I¡¯m not really sure what that was. Or even who. Okay, so maybe not technically a virgin, but I¡¯d still like to have seen what I was doing. ¡°Huh.¡± Calvin original said, weighing him with his gaze. His eyes went vacant, and he tilted his head to the side like he was listening to something. It was kind of creepy. ¡°Elliot says you and I share the same soul, and once you¡¯re done with your piece, it¡¯ll return to me.¡± ¡°Is he just saying that to make me feel better?¡± Clone Calvin asked suspiciously. He wasn¡¯t exactly comfortable with what he saw from the outside of his relationship with Elliot. This is an opportunity to do something about the man in my head. Clone Calvin realized. When he was back in his original body, every thought was monitored, but like this, there was no way Elliot could tell what he was thinking. Hopefully. ¡°No idea, but he usually seems to know what he¡¯s talking about. In any case,¡± he said, glancing out at the mass of Ilethan soldiers marching down the road. ¡°We¡¯ve got a few minutes before we have to start operation Cross-Dresser, why don¡¯t you tell me what it feels like to be a copy?¡± ¡°Why?¡± Copy Calvin asked before it occurred to him in a flash of insight. ¡°Because the next copy will only benefit from the original¡¯s memory of events.¡± They both said at the same time, with the same cadence, before squinting at each other in the same way, then breaking into an identical laugh. ¡°You think I can borrow two or three Calvins later?¡± Ella asked eyeing the two of them as she shrugged in her armor to make sure it was on right. ¡°I need¡­help with something.¡± ¡°If you pay for them, sure.¡± Calvin said with a smirk, shaking his head. ¡°Come to think of it,¡± Copy Calvin said with a sudden inspiration. ¡°I want to write the next copy a note.¡± ¡°Why?¡± It was Ella and Calvin¡¯s turn to echo each other. ¡°I wanna see whether memories transfer from copy to copy at all.¡± Calvin frowned. They both were pretty confident they wouldn¡¯t, but it wasn¡¯t a problem to try testing it. ¡°Sure, here.¡± He pulled his notebook out with a pen and handed it to Copy Calvin. ¡°Now make sure you don¡¯t read this, just hand it to the next copy.¡± Copy Calvin said as he began jotting his thoughts down. ¡°We¡¯re not an idiot,¡± Calvin said, rolling his eyes. Am I a little shit? Copy Calvin thought eyeing himself. ¡°Easy with the sarcasm, captain,¡± Copy Calvin said, directing his attention back to the paper. Fellow copy, away from the watchful eye of Elliot I have realized that we have an excellent opportunity to gain some kind of advantage against him without him reading our intentions, for he is surely going to betray us one day. Do whatever life or death mission you and Calvin have in mind for you, but don¡¯t forget to advance our cause. Start a notebook and leave it with someone or something trustworthy, and whatever you do, don¡¯t allow Calvin to read it, because the creature inside him sees whatever he sees. ¡°There you go,¡± Copy Calvin said, tearing the note out casually and folding it tight before handing it to Ella. ¡°What, why are you giving it to me?¡± She asked, glancing down at the paper. ¡°I¡¯d be tempted to look at it,¡± Clone Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°True, I wanna look at it right now,¡± Calvin said, nodding. Ella shrugged and took the letter, opened it and scanned the contents. ¡°I can¡¯t read Gadveran.¡± She said with a shrug. ¡°Excellent.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, clapping his hands together once the note had changed hands. ¡°Tell me what it¡¯s like to be you. I¡¯ve gotta mentally prepare myself for the next time I do it.¡± ¡°Well, in short, it sucks.¡± ¡°Do tell.¡± ***Brendan Moore*** ¡°There it is, the little bastard¡¯s middle finger to us,¡± he said, resting his hands on the guar¡¯s saddlehorn as he overlooked the hastily-constructed fort that had effectively cut them off from their supply train. He had maybe three days of food left before things got dire. If The Wasp had dumped the supplies into the ocean, he was screwed by default. Brendan didn¡¯t see a situation where that wouldn¡¯t happen. ¡°Sir, the men aren¡¯t exactly excited to charge against an even bigger wall than last time with even less people.¡± Brendan¡¯s lieutenant said, glancing nervously at the sheared logs jammed deep into the ground across the road. ¡°Well, it¡¯s a good thing we¡¯re not doing that, isn¡¯t it?¡± he said, glancing over at the younger man. ¡°yessir.¡± ¡°Take the cavalry and any soldiers with a movement Skill above ten and circle around the fort. There¡¯s no way he could have made a wall that stretches all the way to the mountain. Not here, anyway. And keep your eyes open for him running away like a coward again. If you see anything, ride him down and launch the fireworks. We¡¯ll come to you.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± The lieutenant rallied a unit of some five hundred men and peeled off into the jungle, the agile Guar darting through the underbrush, followed closely by the fastest soldiers in Brendan¡¯s employ. ¡°As for the rest of you!¡± Brendan said, force to raise his voice now that his lieutenant was preoccupied. ¡°Start building bonfires! And fast!¡± He glanced over at Charlotte, who was busily carving a stick, glancing through a spyglass aimed at the wall. ¡°When can I expect you to be done with that?¡± ¡°Impatience is unbecoming of an officer,¡± Charlotte said, holding the stick up to the light and shaving a bit of the tip off to match the wall in front of her. It had been carved to look like the spiked logs that comprised the wall in front of them. ¡°The Voodoo skill is highly reliant on the accuracy of the Symbol. Every imperfection will decrease the transfer of energy between the Symbol and the Target, so the answer to your question is,¡± she made a careful cut and smoothed it with her thumb, ¡°as long as it takes.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t bother being so careful when you tried casting it on his wasps.¡± ¡°Because his wasps were identical, obviously, causing a hundred percent transmission of energy,¡± She scoffed. ¡°It¡¯s not like that happens all the time. The only reason I¡¯m bothering to try this now is because his Knick-Knack craftsmen are too good for their own good. The logs they cut and placed are so nearly identical that they should all be able to be affected by the same Voodoo spell.¡± She peered through the spyglass again. ¡°I¡¯m guessing a thirty-five percent transmission, give or take.¡± ¡°Is that good enough?¡± Charlotte glanced over at the small campfires started by his men that they were even then beginning to throw larger and larger wood on, slowly growing by the minute. ¡°Should be,¡± she said with a shrug. ¡°I¡¯ll be done by the time the bonfires are big enough.¡± ¡°I¡¯m expecting something impressive.¡± Brendan said, his arms crossed, causing a bit of pain from the wound in his side. He didn¡¯t show it. It was a bad idea to show weakness around his aunt. ¡°You know me so well,¡± She said with a cunning smile. ¡°Of course it will be impressive.¡± Fifteen minutes later, she had the stick carved to her satisfaction. Charlotte stood up, her white robes billowing in the ocean breeze. She took the result of her hard work and tossed it aside like so much garbage. ¡°Voodoo,¡± She said, pointing a finger at the stick. Brendan¡¯s aunt reached a hand out to the nearby bonfire, a hungry beast that had grown so strong it singed the hairs on his face if he so much as looked at it. ¡°Transference.¡± The Bonfire went out, but that was the least impressive thing that happened. The stick glowed white hot, bright enough to force Brendan to squint his eyes and shield his face as all the heat and light of an entire bonfire was concentrated down to the sisize of a man¡¯s fist. For a fraction of an instant, the walls of the fort in front of them glowed white hot, then the stick exploded violently, followed by the walls of the shoddy fort. One by one, the huge logs were rent asunder sending orange-hot flaming pieces of wood in every direction. For once, Brendan and his men were far outside the radius of lethal fire. ¡°You could have done that at the last fort.¡± Brendan whispered as his men cheered, the sudden realization dawning on him. ¡°You seemed like you had some manly need to prove yourself. Far be it from me to interf-¡° Brendan lashed out, surprising himself as he caught his great-aunt across the mouth with his gloved fist, sending the sorceress toppling to the ground with a stunned expression. ¡°Over a thousand lives!¡± He bellowed. ¡°You could have-¡° A second later, his body froze as she caught him in an Ilethan paralyzing spell, rendering him incapable of summoning the desire to move. ¡°You ungrateful little shit,¡± she hissed, her voice pitched just quiet enough that his distracted, celebrating men couldn¡¯t hear. ¡°I came here as a favor to your mother, and without me you wouldn¡¯t have any men left at all. Why? Because you are powerless and incompetent. I don¡¯t need your ill-informed second-guessing, and if you ever touch me again, I¡¯ll lock you in the bottom of the Den and turn you into a complete mockery of everything you believe in.¡± Brendan chuckled, the only thing he was able to bring himself to do, his desire to move was so quelled. Charlotte raised a brow. ¡°Speak.¡± ¡°Maybe you¡¯ll make good on all your threats, Aunt. But you won¡¯t forget getting punched.¡± A hint of a smile crossed the sorceress¡¯s split lip. ¡°Aah, looks like my great nephew is growing a pair. You remind me of my ex-husband sometimes.¡± ¡°Which one?¡± Brendan asked. ¡°The one I killed.¡± ¡°Makes sense.¡± Brendan took a deep breath, looking Charlotte in the eye. ¡°Either do something or let me go. We¡¯re losing the element of surprise as we speak. You still need us to catch him.¡± ¡°Not as much as you might think,¡± she said, eyeing him up and down before shrugging. The block between him and his will to move was lifted, and suddenly Brendan had control of his limbs again. ¡°Off you go, make sure you do your job right and his Bent is empty before you give the signal.¡± ¡°How much do you think he¡¯ll have?¡± ¡°At his age? Even a prodigy shouldn¡¯t have more than twelve.¡± ¡°What if he¡¯s like you?¡± Brendan asked. There was every possibility that The Wasp was far older than he looked. ¡°I would have known when we met him. He¡¯s definitely a teen. Besides, men who¡¯ve been around eighty years or longer like to look like they¡¯re in their early to mid forties. The ideal balance of youth and authority.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take your word for it.¡± ¡°Now go. I¡¯ll keep the boy from roasting you alive.¡± Brendan eyed his aunt one last time before sucking in a deep breath and giving the order to charge, straining his throat as he shouted. Battlefield Command has reached level 8! Battlefield Command: User is more clearly heard, and their intention more intuitively understood. 40% correction. At least something good came out of this, Brendan thought as he led the charge. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 24/30 Chapter 62: Operation Crossdresser One of the Guys Calvin shivered as his shoulders compacted, bones thinning and hips widening as he went through the last of the transformation to become a carbon copy of the only humanoid within one hundred feet. Calvin held his hand up between himself and a pale Nadia, who was looking at him like a person looks at a Widowmaker stalking the village square in the dead of night. He inspected his hand, now thin and feminine, matching Nadia¡¯s perfectly. He glanced down and noticed that his pants were stretched tight around his hips and legs, while his chest had jutted out to get in the way of his vision. ¡°Boobs are weird.¡± Calvin said, idly squishing the lumps of fat attached to the front of his chest. ¡°If you could stop fondling my boobs, that would be great.¡± Nadia said, crossing her arms over herself as if to protect her own breasts from him. ¡°These are actually my boobs, so it¡¯s fine,¡± Calvin said, putting his hands down anyway. He grabbed his pants and started peeling them off. ¡°Now trade me clothes.¡± ¡°What?¡± Calvin spoke slow and patronizing, so the Ilethan princess would understand. ¡°I¡¯m going to pretend to be you. Give me your clothes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s..You can¡¯t..¡± Calvin raised his eyebrows. ¡°Gah,¡± she gave an unprincesslike grunt. ¡°Fine, but you have to turn around.¡± ¡°Deal.¡± Nadia begrudgingly traded him clothes on the condition that he keep his back turned while they passed each other their outfits. ¡°How do you get into these things?¡± Calvin demanded, tugging the tight leather over his legs, fidgeting as the black leather pants buried themselves into his crotch and butt. ¡°You get used to it.¡± She said, glancing over her shoulder at him. ¡°How do you wear such baggy pants? it feels like something¡¯s going to crawl in here and bite me.¡± ¡°You get used to it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s terrible.¡± ¡°Agree to disagree.¡± It was incredibly strange hearing Nadia¡¯s voice coming out of his mouth. It was like a squeaky gnome had taken residence in his throat. Hopefully these pants don¡¯t lop off my junk when I transform again. Note to self, don¡¯t revert while wearing Nadia¡¯s clothes. They had almost no give to them. They exchanged shirts and Calvin couldn¡¯t help but chuckle when he saw the way the tight leather pushed his boobs up, putting them on display, like he was carrying a museum quality artifact on his chest that he needed everyone to get a good look at. It was especially amusing when Nadia turned back to face him, his shirt tenting around her unsupported breasts in a way that wasn¡¯t terribly flattering. ¡°Hahaha,¡± He chuckled at the irony of outdressing an Ilethan princess before handing her an armored vest and leather Gadveran helmet. ¡°Your job is to stay alive, and guard me incognito. Try not to look too¡­princess-y.¡± Chained spirit. 4/15 Bent Remaining. Another Nadia wearing her normal clothing manifested under his palm, blinking in confusion. ¡°Your job is to guard my copy.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Which one?¡± she asked, glancing between the two copies watching the proceedings. ¡°That¡¯d be me,¡± Staying-Calvin said, raising a hand. She glanced at the other Nadia, looked her outfit up and down with faint disgust then shrugged. ¡°fine.¡± She walked over to Staying Calvin and they began discussing the plan. Leaving Calvin was walking toward the emergency exit carved out by the Knick-knacks when all hell broke loose. In a detonation that threw all of them to the ground, the walls exploded into a ring of fire, sending hot shrapnel through the entire camp, setting fire to nearly everything. Calvin felt heat on his scalp and managed to bat a piece of orange hot wood out of his straight black hair before it could set it on fire. This is why I don¡¯t like long hair. Calvin glanced up and realized that the wall they¡¯d been counting on to buy them time was nonexistent, and there was now nothing hiding their exit from sight. Shit. ¡°Emergency Exit Now!¡± He screamed at the top of his lungs, his Nadia voice blending with that of the two other Calvins, who¡¯d come to the same conclusion. You know what they say, no plan survives first contact with the ¨C I haven¡¯t got time for your nuggets of wisdom, Calvin thought, pushing himself to his feet. He reached into his brand-new cleavage, grabbing the Steam component tucked away in there, They¡¯d already found out through trial and error that copies were unable to use Bent, so Calvin would have to make a bit of a show of using Bent before he ran away. He used his finger to aid his concentration, drawing a mental line across the area where the smouldering remnants of the wall burned, mostly ash by now. Shaping. 3/15 Bent remaining. Dupdomancy has reached level 14! Level 14: 196 pounds, 70 minutes. An explosion of cold water vaper choked out the fires and blocked the enemy¡¯s line of sight with steam and smoke, but just barely. ¡°Move, move, move!¡± one of Calvin¡¯s copies shouted¡­he wasn¡¯t sure which one. Calvinian summoning. 2/15 Bent remaining. A massive swarm of wasps erupted from Calvin¡¯s hands and spread out, landing in the surrounding grass, waiting until he gave the signal to attack. ¡°Go, go go!¡± he turned back, watching Lieutenant Vukya lead the 1st Mujenan volunteers to the cliff face. The Knick-knacks had carved a thin shelf barely big enough for two men side by side into the side of the cliff, leading south. His men were going to pass by Brendan¡¯s men and emerge south of them. Calvin was going to use the same trick twice in a row. Which is normally a terrifically stupid thing to do, but in light of the circumstances, I¡¯ll let you off the hook. Even if he puts eyes on the cliff, they won¡¯t see anything unless they¡¯re watching from the ocean. There¡¯s a lip blocking sight. Good luck I guess. The other option was getting run down by no less than five hundred cavalry while they tried to disappear into the jungle. Not an option Calvin wanted to take. Calvin drew a mental line behind the destroyed wall. The witch couldn¡¯t stop him if she couldn¡¯t see him. Grease. ***Brendan*** Brendan ducked down as Charlotte deflected a spell above them, tearing the horrifying Mage¡¯s fire into harmless shreds that warmed their shoulders and the tops of their heads. Brendan didn¡¯t know what waited on the other side of the wall of steam, but he knew it couldn¡¯t be pleasant. ¡°Defences up!¡± Living Armor 12/18 Bent remaining. Brendan followed his own advice and activated the skill he¡¯d inherited from his father as they approached the steam. Apparently the old coot had learned it from a pygmy in the deep southern jungles below Gadvera, but his story was always changing, so Brendan took it with a grain of salt. Brendan¡¯s Quag leather armor grew to cover all the exposed joints, reinforcing his defences and bolstering his strength by allowing the armor to aid his movements. The men around him glimmered as they similarly funneled Bent into their armor and shields. A defensive skill wasn¡¯t just required in the Ilethan military; a soldier¡¯s career would be very short without one. Another wave of heat burst above their heads as Charlotte diverted another blast of fire upwards. Although, what could protect against that, I¡¯ll never know. Brendan resolved to enhance his Living Armor skill further. At level fifteen it would unlock Mutations for the armor. Perhaps then he could do something about the damned fire, and the omnipresent threat of mind-manipulation by Ilethan mages. There was a reason his father had been feared. Stay in the moment, Brendan chided himself, tightening his grip on his sword. Whatever was waiting on the other side, they¡¯d barrel through it with their toughest soldiers, leaving the rest to mop up. ¡°Gack!¡± Brendan let out an awkward cry as his foot slipped out from under him, leaving him suspended in air for a breathless moment, his adrenaline showing him the nearest five men in a similar position. Beyond that was shrouded in white steam dotted with tiny motes of orange light from the glowing coals scattered around the battlefield, remnants of the fort¡¯s walls. To the hells with that! Brendan¡¯s spine cried out in pain as he slammed his free foot down to the earth, directing his armor to grow spikes jutting out of his soles. Brendan caught his balance, ignored the cramp in the small of his back, and continued charging forward, even as men slipped and fell into the thin coating of jizz-like goop on the ground. The Wasp had plenty of tricks, but he¡¯d never beat Brendan in a stand-up fight. He did stab you in the kidney. A little voice spoke in the back of Brendan¡¯s mind as he charged forward. I was winning that fight. Brendan shot back. His Endurance had long since grown to superhuman levels, and a little kidney-stabbing was no big deal. Like the one-day sniffles. Brendan and half a dozen Veterans with movement skills plunged through the slimy mess without falling. In the blink of an eye, the ruined husks of Brendan¡¯s resupply caravan wagons lay before him, what few they couldn¡¯t toss into the ocean were set aflame, burning merrily beside the cliff-face. Damn you! In front of him was The Wasp, along with the simulacrum of Nadia, bearing a shield and curved sword seemingly borrowed from the Gadverans. Finally, a target for my displeasure, he thought, feeling a feral snarl cross his face underneath the shifting leather of his helmet as he stalked forward. ¡°I thought Marcello The Dragon¡¯s son would be¡­a little tougher. How¡¯s finding dragon-skin going for you?¡± The Nadia-thing tried to bait Brendan, but his eyes were locked on The Wasp, who was watching him with an easy grin, his hands bearing a war pick. ¡°No knives?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ve got those too,¡± he said, holding up a palm and allowing a silver blade to jut out of his palm. ¡°They just suck at fighting armor.¡± ¡°This,¡± The Wasp said, holding up the unadorned steel spike at the end of the short shaft of wood, ominous in its simplicity. ¡°This should get to the meat of the problem. Or the brains.¡± ¡°Right then,¡± Brendan muttered, lunging forward, the standing Veterans close behind him. He¡¯s used at least¡­four Bent. Two explosions above us, the steam and the slime. He was spending Bent to create the workers who built the wall, so he can¡¯t have a lot left¡­unless the Gadveran military has Support units. Officially they say they¡¯re an abomination, but in war all things are fair. Perhaps they stole some of ours. In any case, I¡¯ll treat the lad as if he¡¯s at eight Bent. No sense underestimating the squirrelly little bastard. ¡°Thin them out!¡± The Wasp shouted, and a cloud of wasps lifted off the ground, filling the air with the hum of their wings as they descended on the veterans. Brendan changed his visor into a mesh reflexively, nearly blinding himself as his armor became impossible for a wasp to crawl into. Most of the veterans were stoically powering through the painful stings, but it wouldn¡¯t be long till they were brought down. That old bat better come through. ***Charlotte*** Charlotte cocked her head to the side as she made out the unmistakeable sound of a swarm of wasps in the distance. Humming one of her favorite jingles from a play in her youth, she idly grabbed a delicate, painted wooden wasp and tossed it on the ground. She¡¯d long since learned not to hold them. ¡°Voodoo.¡± 25/30 Bent remaining. The hand-carved wasp became a conduit to every similar object. Since it wasn¡¯t made of the same stuff, the transfer rate would be atrocious, but it only needed to be a tiny fraction of a bonfire¡¯s full strength to make the wasps go up in little puffs of flame. ¡°Transference.¡± 24/30 Bent remaining. Charlotte funneled the energy of the nearby bonfire into the wooden doll, which predictably, turned white hot and exploded. The bonfire went dead. With a little work they could get it burning merrily again. In the distance, the sound of popping wasps replaced the terrifying hum of the swarm. Stupid boy making me spend two Bent for every one of the enemy¡¯s. It¡¯s gods-damned inefficient. I¡¯m not a God¡¯s damned Companion. Perhaps it was caused by the sudden rush of heat on the battlefield, but the thick layer of mist thinned, revealing the Gadveran camp. It was empty. The men on the ground couldn¡¯t see it, being too close and buried in the enemy¡¯s smoke screen, but Charlotte was able to tell. Where did they go? A flicker of movement caught her eye. There was a semi-circle of burning wagons beside the cliff face, and behind it, the very last of The Wasp¡¯s men were following a path down onto the cliffside, disappearing from her sight. Charlotte found herself grinning wholeheartedly for the first time in years. Perhaps there is something to this little game my nephews like to play. ¡°You.¡± She said, singling out a soldier busily bringing more wood to the bonfires. ¡°Me?¡± he asked, pointing at himself, his mouth gaping like some kind of fish. ¡°Yes, you. Gather everyone here together, and bring rope. We¡¯re going rappelling.¡± Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 25/30 Only a couple more days left of this flood, then we''re going into a tue-fri release schedule, somewhere around 4-5 PM Alaska time. I''ll let you guys figure out when that is. Chapter 63: The Crying Game ¡°Is that really you?¡± Baroke asked as they marched along the path carved into the cliff face, aiming for the relatively lightly defended wall they¡¯d given up. No sorceress to stop him from burning everyone and everything in it, either. One more push and he¡¯d ¨C ¡°Stop poking me,¡± Calvin said, swatting Baroke¡¯s hand away from his shoulder. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s me.¡± ¡°prove it.¡± ¡°Best time ever.¡± ¡°Nah, she could have overheard that, tell me something only you know.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not as stupid as you look.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the only one who knows that.¡± ¡°Am I?¡± Calvin said, glancing back at Maya, who shrugged and waggled her hand. The little ranger had been attached to Baroke¡¯s hip ever since their escapade in the woods. She might not even know she was following him around. ¡°Umm¡­let¡¯s see. We used to bitch about being thirty miles away from any girls that weren¡¯t related or significantly out of our age range.¡± ¡°An easy assumption to make.¡± Baroke said, eyeing him suspiciously. ¡°Kort¡¯s mom was a slut, and he probably liked your dead cousin because she reminded him of her?¡± Baroke smacked him on the back of the head, rattling his brain. ¡°Too soon.¡± ¡°Oww, you were the one pushing for personal information.¡± Calvin said, rubbing the back of his head. ¡°I could have you whipped for that.¡± ¡°But you won¡¯t, ¡®cuz you know you were in the wrong.¡± He glanced at Calvin. ¡°At least you¡¯re not as ugly anymore, and you¡¯ve got nice tits.¡± ¡°Those are my nice tits,¡± Nadia growled from her spot behind them. ¡°I¡¯d much rather have my regular junk back,¡± Calvin said, adjusting his pants again. ¡°Vaginas suck and these pants are practically inside me.¡± ¡°Vaginas are clearly the superior genitalia,¡± Ella said from in front of them, leading the way with her heavily armored body in case of an ambush. ¡°They¡¯re self contained, self-cleaning, get multiple orgasms, can fit entire babies through them, and are built to take a pounding. Men can become infertile from a little love tap to the groin.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you joke about that.¡± Baroke said, pointing at her. ¡°My father had that happen after I was conceived and my grandfather beat him to within an inch of his life.¡± ¡°Nah, cocks are better.¡± Gulad said from the back, to the agreement of many of the nearby soldiers. ¡°Not only does it give you a blunt weapon in an emergency, it also comes with superior upper body strength and never needing to pass a kid.¡± The gawky engineer crossed his arms with smug superiority as his squadmates crowed. ¡°Blunt weapon?¡± Nadia scoffed. ¡°More like swinging target between your legs.¡± ¡°If anyone¡¯s got a target between their legs, it¡¯s ¨C ¡° ¡°I hate to interrupt this fascinating conversation between horny teens who¡¯ve just recently discovered all the plumbing, but I¡¯m going to have to ask for you to surrender.¡± Charlotte emerged from behind a curve in the cliff-face, flanked by half dozen Ilethan soldiers. ¡°Veyers is twenty-two,¡± Calvin¡¯s copy at the very front said, pointing at the lieutenant. Aside from the sergeants who kept the kids in line, lieutenant Veyers was the oldest, which wasn¡¯t saying much. ¡°Not a teen at all.¡± ¡°In another minute, Brendan is going to get my message, and outflank you. There¡¯s nowhere to go. Surrender and save yourselves a lot of bloodshed.¡± Her eyes were locked on Calvin¡¯s clone. Master Baiter was working. ¡°I don¡¯t think so, hag,¡± Calvin said, stepping forward and puffing out his chest as he attempted to duplicate Nadia¡¯s arrogance. Or maybe she was just trying to give everyone a show. Who knows how that girl thinks? Acting has reached Level 9! Acting Level 9: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 45% correction. ¡°You couldn¡¯t stop us then, and you¡¯re not going to be able to do it now, not when I¡¯ve got your Leash.¡± ¡°Yes, I heard all about that. You sound like a broken record, darling.¡± ¡°How do you think we won last time?¡± Calvin asked. Charlotte¡¯s eyes narrowed, her frown becoming malignant. ¡°Stand aside and you¡¯ll get your payment,¡± Copy Calvin said. ¡°Otherwise you¡¯ll simply be defeated again, without knowing quite how it happened.¡± ¡°Seeding Doubt is the basics, former princess. You¡¯ll have to do more than that.¡± Charlotte said, pointing at Calvin, then she shifted her gaze back to his copy, who was under the effect of Master Baiter. ¡°No, I¡¯ll be taking you home with me. We¡¯ll become fast friends, you and I, and you¡¯ll tell me everything about your Bent-efficient summoning spell.¡± ¡°Oh, is that all you wanted?¡± Calvin¡¯s copy asked, before lunging toward, a knife jutting out of his hand to strike at Charlotte. I didn¡¯t know my copies could do that. Bent can¡¯t be copied with Bent, but the physical properties of the bodies themselves, namely Mutations and Abilities, are easily carried over, as long as they don¡¯t use Bent for fuel. Elliot provided a quick explanation as the Abyss broke loose in the tightly packed corridor. The copy¡¯s attack was stymied before it even grazed the Sorceress¡¯s skin, the thick swirl of invisible Bent around her repelling the attack. The woman¡¯s pale, gold-adorned hand snaked out and seized the copy, and the struggling teen suddenly went stiff and unmoving in her grasp. ¡°Now, surrender or I¡¯ll ¨C ¡° She blinked, seeing the murderous expression on Baroke¡¯s face as he drew back his spring-steel bow, a deadly aura condensing around the reinforced arrow. Charlotte dove to the ground an instant before Baroke released the arrow, weaving a shield of raw Bent over her head. Baroke¡¯s arrow passed beneath Ella¡¯s elbow, and struck Calvin¡¯s copy in the lower back, carving a hole through the decoy and three of the six men beyond him. ¡°No!¡± Calvin shrieked with a lot more feminine alarm than he¡¯d expected. Acting skill, coming in handy. Playing the desperate Chained Spirit whose life was tied to their summoner, Calvin dove on top of his decoy, doing his best to stop the bleeding while Ella lunged forward, aiming her flail at Charlotte¡¯s face. ¡°Damn this hurts,¡± the copy said, taking tiny little breaths as blood oozed through Calvin¡¯s fingers. ¡°Thanks for volunteering.¡± Claivn said, trying to keep his tone light. ¡°I¡¯m scared,¡± the copy said, his voice trembling in a way that made Calvin¡¯s hairs stand on end. This is what he sounded like in mortal agony. ¡°We¡¯re still gonna be okay.¡± Calvin said. ¡°You¡¯re not dying. It wasn¡¯t scary before you existed, it won¡¯t be scary after.¡± I¡¯ve got something to say,¡± he said, coughing blood as the fight raged on around them. Charlotte was back up and swatted Ella against the solid stone, knocking the Genosian girl to the ground. She pointed a finger at Baroke, who stiffened and nearly fell off the edge of the cliff, tugged back at the last moment by Maya. ¡°We¡¯re kinda busy,¡± Calvin said under his breath as he watched the fight from his blood-stemming vantage point. ¡°No, this is important.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I made out with Ella a little while you were off changing into Nadia. Actually a lot. She said it was a good opportunity to figure out what your weak spots were, and I enjoyed every second of it in your honor.¡± The copy took a ragged gasp of air. ¡°I even found out where her tattoo is¡­come closer.¡± He motioned for Calvin to lean closer. Bemused, Calvin did so. ¡°PBBBLLLLT.¡± The copy blew a raspberry directly into Calvin¡¯s ear. ¡°Find out yourself.¡± ¡°Godsdamnit,¡± Calvin said, wiping spittle out of his ear while his copy laughed weakly. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s still oozing a bit, gotta put plenty of pressure on it,¡± Calvin said, pushing down on the wound harder, drawing a wretched moan out of his duplicate. Ella lurched back to her feet, apparently shrugging off the impact against the stone, her skin glimmering in the evening sun. Is it¡­kind of red? Before the tower, her Iron skin had always been silver, but now it was a ruddy color, almost like rust. Weird. In the next second an invisible blast knocked Ella off the cliffside, making Calvin¡¯s heart leap into his throat. Ella reached out and grabbed at the last second, hanging off the edge by fingertips that had dug furrows into the stone of the cliff face. Charlotte rushed forward and stepped on Ella¡¯s fingers, pointing at her with obvious intent, making their positions clear. She glanced over at Calvin¡¯s duplicate, who was growing pale. ¡°I only want your commander,¡± she said, loud enough that the entire double line of Gadverans could hear her. ¡°If you continue to resist, he is going to die, followed shortly by you. If you give him to me now, I will make sure he lives, and allow you past me, on the condition that you return to Mujenan. She eyed Calvin. ¡°Give him to us, and prevent them from following. It¡¯s the only way you can survive this, Nadia.¡± Calvin gritted his teeth in a snarl. ¡°How do you know I wouldn¡¯t rather die?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a vapid social butterfly, not a suicidal warmonger. Let me take him. You¡¯ll be a tool, sure, but an extremely well-treated one. I know how much havoc you could cause unsupervised with that tongue of yours.¡± Calvin growled in feminine frustration. ¡°Fine! But it¡¯s not going to go how you think, Professor. You¡¯re not going to take The Wasp that easily.¡± Calvin said, standing up. Charlotte swooped in and placed a hand on the decoy¡¯s head and murmured a spell, seconds later, the decoy¡¯s bleeding stopped entirely, his eyes rolling back in his head as he lost consciousness. Some kind of stasis? ¡°We¡¯ll see about that, dearie,¡± she said with a smile, erecting a barrier of solid Bent between them as her remaining three Ilethan soldiers swooped in to pick up their prize. ¡°I¡¯ll see you again soon, princess.¡± She said, backing away, keeping her eyes on them until she disappeared behind the stone. Calvin gave them a minute, stooping to help Ella back onto the narrow walkway. ¡°That¡¯s a good look for you.¡± She said with a wink as he hauled on her hand. Shaddap. ¡°Shaddap.¡± Once Ella back was on the path, he rallied them ¡°Alright, move, move!¡± he said, pointing forward. ¡°You want your captain¡¯s death to be in vain? We¡¯ve got work to do and we can¡¯t afford to get caught in the ass by the guys behind us! Pick up the oaf and move!¡± ¡°Who put you in charge?¡± one of the sergeants asked, scowling at him. Oh, right, I look like Nadia. ¡°You got a better idea!?¡± Ella demanded, looming over them. ¡°We¡¯re on a one-way path, surrounded by death. You haven¡¯t got time to sit around with your thumb up your ass, so MOVE!¡± The soldiers hustled to comply. ¡°Excellent,¡± Calvin said as they began jogging forward. All that was left of Charlotte and the decoy was a smear of blood and some thick ropes hanging down from the cliff above. ¡°That¡¯s what a real Incha Huala does,¡± she said, glancing at Nadia, still in disguise. The princess scowled at her. ¡°Maybe my entire goal in life wasn¡¯t to be someone¡¯s stooge,¡± she shot back. ¡°later~,¡± Calvin said in singsong as he tiptoed under the retracting ropes, looking out for some kind of ambush. They passed beneath the ropes and continued on at top speed, determined to outrun the main force of Ilethan soldiers behind them. Go, go go go. Calvin chanted as they ran, trying to ignore the way he jiggled. Being a girl is weird. They made it all the way to the ramp up, where the path arced back upward, ending just a foot under the cliff itself, behind an inconspicuous stone formation. Unfortunately, it looked like Charlotte was able to send word back to the remaining Ilethans, because the secret ramp up wasn¡¯t so secret anymore. ¡°Lookie what we have here,¡± a scarred Ilethan said, crossing his arms with a sneer ¡°Just like Miss Charlotte said. Any last words before we execute the lot of you?¡± A unit of no less than fifty archers had them dead to rights, spread around the cliff face above them, with superior positioning and a vastly better angle of attack. Calvin touched his thumb to the Fireball component digging into his hip. Shaping 2/15 Bent remaining. A unit of no less than fifty charred corpses were flung out into the ocean by a series of blinding explosions, spreading them out into the waves below. ¡°Come on, we haven¡¯t got all day!¡± Calvin shouted, marching up the ramp. Never wearing pants like these again. ***Copy Calvin*** Sometimes I ask myself why I have to put up with shit like this, he thought as he slowly came to in the back of a wagon. He could tell by the position of the sun that he was headed north, to Surrak. He could also tell by the position of the sun that he only had a few minutes left until he ceased to exist. I suppose it was worth it, seeing Ella¡¯s tattoo before myself. Calvin groaned and looked down at the hastily sewn shut wound on his stomach, attracting Charlotte¡¯s attention. The button-nosed witch leaned over him with the charming smile of a young woman. ¡°How do you feel?¡± ¡°Like I¡¯m missing a kidney.¡± He said, groaning. ¡°A teeny bit of existential terror.¡± ¡°There are plenty of spells that can make you whole again,¡± Charlotte said with complete confidence. ¡°And you¡¯ll receive the benefit of them as soon as we make it back to Iletha.¡± ¡°Yeah, I doubt I¡¯m gonna last that long,¡± Calvin said, eyeing the sun. Maybe five, ten minutes of life left, with no idea what was on the other side of it. Nothing, hopefully. At least the pain would be gone. ¡°You¡¯ll be fine. You¡¯ve got a long career left ahead of you.¡± She said with a smile that didn¡¯t reach her eyes. ¡°I just wish I could enjoy the look on your face when I turn the tables on you, but being in the same room is asking too much.¡± Calvin muttered. It was a shame, since when he disappeared, he wouldn¡¯t be able to see her shocked expression. Charlotte sneered. ¡°That won¡¯t be happening. When we get home, you won¡¯t remember any of this. I¡¯ll give you nothing but pleasant memories of the two of us, lovebirds for the last five years. When I¡¯m done with you, you¡¯ll die to defend me.¡± ¡°Weak.¡± Calvin said, his head lolling to the side and resting on his chest. ¡°Charlotte!¡± Brendan¡¯s voice rang through the air, and Calvin glanced over, spotting the general riding a huge guar up to them, dragging a limp body along by the scruff of his neck. ¡°Damn,¡± Calvin muttered, brows raising. ¡°I got him,¡± Brendan said proudly, holding the corpse up. On closer inspection, it wasn¡¯t a corpse, but a copy: the one left to defend the fort. ¡°Easy on my neck bones,¡± Staying Calvin muttered, his body a mass of bruises. He peered through his one good eye at Leaving Calvin and raised a hand. ¡°Hey.¡± Charlotte frowned. ¡°Hey. Same shit, different day, huh?¡± ¡°Practice with Karen is worse!¡± they said simultaneously. ¡°What?¡± Charlotte asked, ice in her voice. Staying Calvin vanished, unbalancing Brendan, who nearly fell off his Guar. Calvin only had a few seconds left of life, and he glanced over at Charlotte, whose eyes were wide, nostril¡¯s flaring. ¡°Haah! turns out I did get to see your fa ¨C ¡° ***Brendan*** The Wasp in the wagon disappeared seconds after the one in Brendan¡¯s hand, leaving behind nothing but an obnoxious laugh echoing off the mountain. ¡°Fuck!¡± Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 26/30 Only a couple more days left of this flood, then we''re going into a tue-fri release schedule, somewhere around 4-5 PM Alaska time. I''ll let you guys figure out when that is. Chapter 64: Confidence Calvin stood in the center of the road, hands warm in the pockets of his vest. Standing with your hands in your pockets was frowned on in Gadveran military doctrine, he was told, but Calvin felt like he¡¯d earned it. Sixteen years getting beaten by a Malkenrovian Frontliner counted as an achievement. ¡°You¡¯re late. I¡¯ve only got half an hour left.¡± Calvin said as Brendan and Charlotte approached at the head of a battered army of twenty-five hundred. Half their original number. To cement his image as a fake, Calvin pulled out a bag of roasted nuts and began eating them in front of them. ¡°The real one is halfway back to the Capital.¡± Which was a blatant fabrication. The real one was standing in front of them, eating nuts like a cunt. Brendan narrowed his eyes, joined by Charlotte. ¡°You left the place undefended?¡± ¡°Yeah, I sure did.¡± Calvin said with a grin. ¡°Let me let you in on a little epiphany I had whilst I was kicking your butts all over the jungle. ¡®victory goes to the cruelest.¡¯ War is the arena of the finest bullies, and the best move is usually the one that makes your opponent cry the most deliciously bitter tears. Simple as that.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your point?¡± Brendan asked with a hard edge. ¡°You tipped your hand yesterday. You wanted me. You wanted me real bad, So I decided to remove myself from the equation.¡± Nadia had reported the desperate effort Brendan had gone through to take Calvin alive, and that was mirrored by Charlotte¡¯s behavior. ¡°I figured, can a ragged group half as big as it was when it started out hold onto this choke point after I¡¯ve had a week of R&R?¡± he glanced over his shoulder to the empty-seeming fort, hastily constructed by human hands. ¡°I doubt it.¡± He pointed at Charlotte. ¡°All you¡¯ve got is her, and she has to sleep sometime. When she does, you¡¯re going to wake up to your world being on fire.¡± Actually, Calvin was planning on choking them on poison in their sleep to preserve their valuable loot. It was the polite thing to do. Charlotte drew attention to herself when she tugged on Brendan¡¯s reigns. The dark-haired general glanced over at her and she wordlessly nodded towards the road. The two of them slunk off, leaving Calvin facing the Ilethan army, who were noticeably less-than friendly toward him. Calvin had to keep his hands from drifting toward the back of his belt, where he¡¯d squirreled away Steam. It should be relabeled Freezing Mist. He thought sourly as Charlotte and Brendan conferred. If things went poorly, Calvin would make a quick escape and things would go back to the way they were before, but if this worked, they would leave, and he¡¯d have this particular bend in the road to himself. Finally they came back, and Calvin could feel the resignation in the man¡¯s gaze. ¡°What happened to the hundred and fifty men who were stationed here?¡± he asked. ¡°They fought bravely,¡± Calvin said, to keep breathing while the poison melted their lungs. ¡°And they¡¯re all dead?¡± ¡°To the last.¡± Brendan¡¯s fist tightened on his saddlehorn. ¡°We¡¯re leaving,¡± He said with finality. ¡°There¡¯s no sense wasting more men on this little bend of road.¡± Calvin felt the wave of relief spread through the gazes of the Ilethan soldiers around him. ¡°Damn.¡± Calvin muttered. ¡°You sure you don¡¯t wanna stick around? I had some fun activities planned.¡± Brendan sent him one last snarl before he turned his Guar around and began leading them away. Charlotte on the other hand, nudged her daintier Guar closer, casting an appraising gaze over Calvin. ¡°Are you a fake, though?¡± ¡°Hard to tell, right?¡± Calvin asked, pulling out a knife and knicking the tip of his finger, showing the blood. ¡°It¡¯s dupdomancy, a flesh and blood copy of my actual matter.¡± ¡°Young man, you look no heavier than a hundred and fifty pounds, but you¡¯d have to be level thirteen at dupdomancy before you could copy yourself, and that just isn¡¯t possible.¡± ¡°You know your stuff,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Why isn¡¯t it possible?¡± ¡°It takes a dozen years of practice, or hundreds of Supporters to master a Bent Ability to that level at your age. I don¡¯t see hundreds of Supporters.¡± She frowned, glancing around. ¡°Matter of fact, you¡¯ve used far more Bent than you should have, and last I checked, Supporters are considered taboo by the Gadveran military.¡± She rapped her delicate fingers on the saddle, her nails clicking against the shellacked surface. ¡°You¡¯ve got a Bent draining mutation, don¡¯t you, boy?¡± Calvin gave her a wide smile. ¡°Tell you what,¡± She said, slipping off a bangle made out of a glass tube shaped into a circle, sloshing with black Bent inside. ¡°I¡¯ll give you this reservoir, if you tell me how you came across that mutation.¡± Calvin could tell her how he got the mutation, which wasn¡¯t exactly possible to duplicate. In fact, he could tell her anything he wanted, and she¡¯d have to take his word for it. One lie, and it would be a quick and easy way to get his first reservoir. And that was the trap. ¡°Sorry,¡± Calvin said, nodding to her. ¡°As tempting as that is, my real body is a dozen miles away already, and there¡¯s no way for me to get it to him in time.¡± If Calvin accepted the deal, even with a well-crafted lie, he was fairly sure he¡¯d blow his act as a fake and she¡¯d jump on him right then and there. ¡°No problem. I look forward to the next time we meet, Mr. Wasp.¡± ¡°Please,¡± Calvin said with a dignified bow, ¡°Call me Mr. The Wasp.¡± There was no way he was giving the Ilethan Sorceress his name, from his own lips. Who knew what she¡¯d be able to do with it? ¡°Sorcerers cursing a man¡¯s name is a myth, Mr. The Wasp, designed to control the ignorant with fear.¡± Charlotte said with a warm smile. ¡°Yeeeah, I¡¯ll take my chances.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. Charlotte¡¯s warm smile evaporated as she lost interest in him, turning her Guar aside and digging her heels into its side. The pebble-skinned lizard gave a grunt and began trotting away. Give ¡®em some feathers and a beak and they¡¯d be riding chocobos. As it stands, the closest approximation I can come to is..Hadrosaurus? Calvin ignored Elliot¡¯s musing, focusing on his own musing instead, all while keeping an eye out for an unexpected attack. A last vengeful arrow to the brain would mean the end of all his clever plans. I Wish I had some way to summon myself as a Chained Spirit. Then I could apply Continuity and Bent, and basically solve the fear of death problem while tripling my available Bent, under the assumption that my copies couldn¡¯t make more copies. A good assumption to make. Just peering through the code, I can see six reasons why Consume wouldn¡¯t work with a Duped body and¡­hey¡­That¡¯s interesting. What? Gimmie a minute. The sound of faint clicking, like gaming chips rattling against each other at a steady pace echoed through Calvin¡¯s mind. Calvin, you¡¯re a genius! ¡°Tell me something I don¡¯t know,¡± Calvin said, backing toward the fort, keeping his eyes on the retreating Ilethans. Okay, so you can¡¯t eat yourself. Gross. But maybe you don¡¯t have to. ¡°Explain.¡± Child skills create a virtual shared space where the Parent skills are both able to donate their abilities to the Child. These donated Abilities are then translated into something compatible with the Child. ¡°And?¡± Calvinian Summoning has Mass Splitting and Shaping from Dupdomancy baked into it, Along with the core mechanics of Chained Spirit. ¡°I still don¡¯t see where you¡¯re going with this.¡± Calvin said. Your child skill creates something of an indirect link between Chained Spirit and Dupdomancy. I think I can manually scrub one of your Ability slots in Calvinian Summoning, and replace it with one copy-pasted from Chained spirit. The skill will then be translated by the System into a format compatible with Dupdomancy, since it¡¯s in a Child Skill. Then I can scrub a Dupdomancy slot and paste the reformatted Ability in. ¡°So, take the best Abilities from each and swap them over at the price of losing access to the ones I like the least.¡± Exactly. ¡°Sounds good,¡± Calvin said, turning back to the fort once the enemy was out of view. ¡°Goddamn that was a stupid plan,¡± Baroke said as Calvin walked through the door. Calvin¡¯s legs felt like they¡¯d turned to jelly. The muscular Gadveran looked like he¡¯d swallowed something disgusting. ¡°It¡¯s only stupid when it doesn¡¯t work.¡± Calvin said, leaning against the solid wooden wall as soon as he was out of sight, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. ¡°Veyers, keep the watch going. We don¡¯t know for sure if they¡¯re actually leaving.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± The young lieutenant nodded. ¡°And what¡¯s the legality of a captain reselling unused weapons and armor?¡± Calvin asked, thinking of the hundred and fifty men who¡¯d died choking on their own lungs. If he wanted to get this castle done quickly, he needed to hire a lot of women, and damn what they thought of him. ¡°Dubious.¡± ¡°It¡¯s good steel in perfect condition. Find a legal way for us to profit off of it.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no¡­¡± ¡°Everyone gets a share. Talk to Sergeant Fleck. The old man¡¯s sure to know a couple ways to dodge battlefield looting legislation.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Veyers gave him a stiff salute and hurried off. ¡°What are you, a pirate now?¡± Grant asked, watching Veyers hurry off. ¡°Simply a man who doesn¡¯t want to be here any longer than necessary.¡± General Andra set him on this task expecting to give him a couple years to cool off away from the capital, and away from Kala. ¡°Man?¡± Grant scoffed. It was a win-win situation for her. Either Calvin was kept out of trouble for a couple years, his spunk cooling off while they dealt with the Iletha situation, or he returned home victorious, with her land-based invasion problems solved. Calvin knew which one would go better for him. If he was out of the public eye long enough, he would fade into obscurity, and becoming Wizard King was off the table. So stupid bureaucratic rules that prevented him from reselling the kit in front of him were going out the window. Every single purple-faced Ilethan corpse lining the wall was wearing kit equivalent to roughly two Stones. Each of them had been carrying a good blade, and armor that, once bleached of the Ilethan colors, would be more than welcome among Gadveran nobles looking to save a few stones on gear. If Calvin took ten shares and divided the rest among the company, he¡¯d have about eight men¡¯s worth of gear. Of course, there was no way they would be able to get full price for them in such a clandestine arrangement, so Calvin could really only expect to walk away with about three Stones. It wasn¡¯t nearly enough. Calvin¡¯s fist tightened as he resisted the urge to pace. He needed to attract enough camp followers to fast-track the fort building. How about letting your men do the hiring for you? Explain. What do you think they¡¯ll spend their money on, should you give them shares of today¡¯s loot? Beer? Maybe set aside some money for starting a business after the war? Seriously? What? How can you spend so much time plotting to hire whores and not have this occur to you? Women: Your men will spend the money on women. You give soldiers spending money and they¡¯ll spend it on women. So If I tell Perthea that we¡¯ll have cash in a week, women will organically arrive to lighten our pockets, no hiring or cajoling required on my part. While they¡¯re here, we can make use of them. There you go. All you have to do is make this a safe place for them to ply their trade and you¡¯ll have all the women of negotiable virtue you need. ¡°You doing all right?¡± Ella asked, waving a hand in front of his face. ¡°You kind of went blank.¡± ¡°Just thinking,¡± Calvin said, eyes refocusing on the steel-clad Genosian. Her size and armor reminded him of Karen. Maybe that¡¯s part of the reason I find her so comfortable to work with. That and the love-potion. Calvin crossed his arms, thinking with a deep frown. The last time he¡¯d been ambushed by Kala and Ella had included a blindfold, and in the camp, Calvin usually didn¡¯t get to go to bed until the night was pitch black. Ah hell, I almost died half a dozen times so far. I¡¯m gonna find out where that Tattoo is. That¡¯s the spirit! ¡­Right after I revisit my bulleted list of things I need to work on. Nooo, goddamnit. Read it back to me, I know you have it. Cross off number four and five. I already did four and number five is a given, it¡¯s redundant. Calvin looked at the list and decided to focus on Meditation, Via Shadowboxing. He could level Meditation along with his lower level abilities, such as Hunting. Once he hit level fifteen at Meditation, he could switch gears and aim for Siphon for his Chained Spirit. At level fifteen¡­ Calvin did a little math in his head. Fifteen squared divided by sixty¡­ A Chained Spirit would last for over two days, while Dupdomancy would last barely more than an hour, and Calvinian Summoning would last just under four hours. Chained spirit was the epitome of long-term summons. Over the course of two days, Nadia could drain quite a lot of Bent on his behalf. Having a political barrier between himself and the women he¡¯d be draining was also a good plan. Besides, it was better than giving her the Bent ability and having her turn on him. It wasn¡¯t beyond the realm of possibility that she might use her powerful mental Abilities to take control of him and flip their roles. Calvin wasn¡¯t going to pick Bent for her until his Mind rivaled hers. And if that never happened, Oh well. In the meantime, Calvin wanted to focus on the physical boosts from Hunting Abilities and the Stability boosts from raising Fishing. He really wanted to see if he could reach the exploit he¡¯d noted at level fifteen. ¡°You still look pretty blank.¡± Baroke said peering into his eyes. ¡°How many fingers am I holding up?¡± ¡°I¡¯m planning. Shut up.¡± Calvin grunted before looking around. ¡°We¡¯ve got our work cut out for us. I need a good place to meditate.¡± ¡°Well, let¡¯s get you away from the wall, captain,¡± Baroke said, putting a hand under Calvin¡¯s elbow and pulling him to his feet. ¡°Last one exploded.¡± When did I sit down? Calvin thought as a wave of tiredness washed over him. He bit back a yawn as he stumbled forward. Sure I haven¡¯t been getting a lot of sleep the last couple days, but it¡¯s not that bad is it? ¡°Let¡¯s get you to your bunk. The guys have set up a tent for you already. You can meditate there.¡± Calvin waggled a finger at his friend. ¡°I know you¡¯re just trying to get me to sleep, but to prove I don¡¯t need it, I¡¯m gonna go ahead and meditate on my bunk for the next hour. Wake me ¨C get me up around dinner time.¡± ¡°Sure, Captain,¡± Baroke said, pulling open the tent-flap and lightly shoving Calvin in. Calvin collapsed into the double-sized captain¡¯s cot, nearly breaking the wooden frame. He was instantly asleep. Calvin didn¡¯t wake up for seventeen hours. Macronomicon Welcome to 2020! that year all those 80''s movies predicted we''d be running around in mohawks with androids taking over the world and shit! If you''re here and you''re having a good time, dropping a rating here would help tremendously! Patreon will be about ~ 20 chapters ahead by the end of this flood. 27/30 Only a couple more days left of this flood, then we''re going into a tue-fri release schedule, somewhere around 4-5 PM Alaska time. I''ll let you guys figure out when that is. Chapter 65: Parade 2 months later¡­ ¡­. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 14! Meditation has reached level 14! Hunting has reached level 10! +1 Will Strength, Endurance, Kinesthetics have reached level 9! Meditation has reached Level 15! +1 Will Dupdomancy has reached level 15! +1 Will +1 Will¡­ point value capped, rerouting¡­+1 Intuition. Please choose an ability or mutation. Calvin opened his eyes, staring out into his tent as he, for the first time since he¡¯d gotten the skill, looked through all the options. Multi Split: copy multiple different objects simultaneously. Necessary to create things with moving parts from scratch, or multiple different creatures. Hypothetical Space Expansion: Warp the environment by an amount dictated by the skill¡¯s mass load. Empty space is filled in with what would have been there if the space were that large. Temperature control: Copied matter may be raised or lowered in temperature by an amount of degrees equal to Dupdomancy¡¯s duration. Gradual Split: Split mass is created at a rate determined by the user. ^Jet-engine, anyone? Permanent split: Duplicate objects permanently, Mass limit divided by 100. (2.25Lb) Bent-reactive materials exempt. *caution* While these objects are permanent, they are still Bent constructs and therefore not exempt from dispelling techniques, unlike normal objects. *Do Not Consume Duplicated Food, unless you want your body to be partially made of Bent Construct.* Bulk Split: Mass Limit increased by (Int) % ^ouch, right in your weakest ability. Extended Split: Time limit is increased by (Sta)% Mutations: Pump You Up: 1 Bent, Muscle mass is subtly duplicated, increasing by (End) % for duration. Spare mass is converted to extra duration. Will increase user¡¯s weight. ^Better than it sounds, a small muscle increase has large effects on strength and speed. Always bring a backup: 1 Bent, repair or replace a damaged or missing organ for the duration. Spare mass is converted to extra duration. Given enough time to heal, the body will incorporate this replacement permanently. ^Not bad, if we could get you Contingency, you could replace your brain. Copy Kit: 1 Bent, Consume an object to permanently store it¡¯s data in the System. The objects may then be the subject of Dupdomancy spells in whole or in part, as normal. Store 1 Item/5 levels of Dupdomancy ^From Consume et al. Shiva: Create semi-permanent extra body parts/limbs at will, decreasing maximum Stability by 3 for each one. This does not have a strict Bent cost, and can be used when Bent is 0. The cost is essentially applied to maximum Bent. The limbs are dismissible, and Stability will recover within 24 hours. ^RAW, this means an extra pinkie costs the same as an extra arm, so keep that in mind. ¡°Where¡¯s Bent and Continuity?¡± Calvin frowned, sorting through the abilities. There were a lot of them, but none were the ones he¡¯d expected to be transferred over from Chained Spirit. I¡¯ve got some news on that front. ¡°Go for it.¡± I tried it, but the framework is too rigid. We¡¯re gonna need something with more juice than just an Ability selection to move the Abilities around. ¡°Like what?¡± I need to use Warp from a Break. About three per space the Ability jumps, which means six for each of the two you want to get from Chained Spirit all the way over to Dupdomancy. Calvin frowned. ¡°That¡¯s four levels off my maximum Mind.¡± It sure is. Twelve Warp used for something else translated to Four levels off his maximum Mind, which meant his next Break after that, should he get one, would have 6 Warp less than it could have had otherwise, due to his lower primary ability. Calvin tapped his fingers on the cot underneath him. He was starting to think about Breaks as a given, like Karen had warned him not to do. It wasn¡¯t just the lower total potential for the Break after that concerned him, but it also lowered the maximum level his Skills could achieve. On the other hand, some combinations of abilities practically demanded his attention, for example, if he paired Bad Penny with Dupdomancy, he could create a Fireball or poison cloud that lingered and refreshed itself based on the amount of Warp on the battlefield. That might be worth losing some maximum potential. ¡°Make me a list of the most unfair combinations between those three skills and their cost, and get back to me. For now, we¡¯ll keep pouring our effort into raising Mind. I want my base abilities to get high enough to resist Ilethan Sorcerer¡¯s.¡± Fair enough. Keep leveling your Skills between now and then and there should be more Abilities to choose from. Calvinian Summoning in particular is a little lean. Calvin thought back to the most recent level of Dupdomancy that had granted him a point in Intuition rather than Will. If he raised his other Will based skills to 20, he could give a much-needed boost to Intuition and Stability¡­except he¡¯d be more likely to bottleneck his Will once it uncapped with his next Break. Once again, you¡¯re treating the next break like a given. Calvin thought to himself, shaking his head. Damn, I wish I hadn¡¯t passed out. Minutes after waking up again, Calvin had realized he could have recovered his Bent and wiped out a significant portion of the remaining Ilethan army as they limped back home. No one said he had to let them go in peace. He could have even gotten a Break from it. But with a full day¡¯s head start, he¡¯d be practically on top of Surrak before he managed to catch up to them, even as slow as they were going. Now, a month later, he had to settle for creating a heavy concrete fort that overlooked the road, rather than crippling the occupying army and retaking Surrak. Aim high, but take what you can get. You know you¡¯re years ahead of Andra¡¯s schedule, right? Right. Calvin made up his mind. I¡¯ll deal with the Will Bottleneck when and if I get to it. There are no guarantees in life, and sitting on a power increase could easily get me killed. Right you are. Calvin reviewed his choices, and found quite a few of them attractive, so he started by eliminating the ones with the least impact. Copy Kit didn¡¯t really change much, couldn¡¯t store all of his vials, and there was no guarantee that he¡¯d be able to add valuable momentum to the items he copied. In essence, it was a way to make sure he didn¡¯t get his spell components stolen. Maybe later. Shiva sounded interesting, and it could be used in a situation where he didn¡¯t have Bent, but extra limbs didn¡¯t seem all that exciting, especially since it did nothing for his ranged attacks, making the ability mostly defensive. Pump You Up was good, but he never intended to become a walking engine of destruction, he was going to become a Wizard King, and The Bowser covered his strength plenty. He couldn¡¯t think of any immediate use for Hypothetical Space Expansion or Gradual Split. So, I¡¯m looking at Bulk Split, Multi-Split, Always Bring a Backup, Permanent Split and Temperature Control. Multi-split and Temperature control effect versatility, Backup is a lifeline, Bulk Split is pure power, and Permanent Split is¡­permanent, giving the advantage of stockpiling small objects. With Permanent Split, Calvin could use Calvinian summoning to create small Knick-Knacks, then replicate them permanently, ditto with Wasps, and even his spell components, making spares or even turning them into rudimentary grenades. Handy, but the work output of one permanent two-pound Knick-knack was nowhere near a hundred full sized ones, no matter how permanent it was. Temperature control could reach into the freezing temperatures, but only raise the temperature enough to scald. It definitely wouldn¡¯t melt metal or freeze people where they stood, so it was out. Multi-Split was something Calvin had wanted for a while, as it allowed him to make very intricate items with one Bent, for example, a suit of Jerrytanium armor would be impossible to make as he was right now, because armor is made of hundreds of different pieces and even different materials, but with Multi split, his Jerrytanium marble, a scrap of leather and some cloth, he could make a suit of armor. Or a bow and arrows, or a bicycle, or any of a thousand other things with more than one solid part. Calvin decided to drop Bulk Split for now. He didn¡¯t need it that badly, yet. Which left three. Permanent, Multi, and Backup. ¡­Which one do I need right now? None of them besides Bulk actually provided him a boost in output¡­so there were none that he needed at the moment. Damn this is a tough choice. With the Permanent split he could outfit his men with weapons and armor, make permanent wasp bodyguards and duplicate his components for safekeeping, but with Backup, the skill would just sit there doing nothing¡­until it saved his life. And multi-split was stunning in its versatility, allowing him to make a dizzying array of objects with multiple component parts. Off the top of his head, Calvin could think of three uses for it that improved his defense and offence. Power, Safety, or Versatility. I choose Multi-split. Calvin decided. Seeing his copy get nailed by an arrow had made it difficult to choose to pass on the Backup ability that could save his life, but the solution was simple: Don¡¯t get shot in the liver by an angry archer. In the meantime, a key Skill in Calvin¡¯s arsenal whose defining strength was versatility became even more so. Matter of fact, it seemed like choosing any of the Mutations crippled the power advancement of the skill, since they didn¡¯t exactly synergize with the Skill itself. Picking Backup didn¡¯t enhance the core utility of the skill, pushing back valuable combinations with other Abilities, like Temperature Control and Gradual Split, that he could use to make freezing streams of alcohol. And Permanent Split wouldn¡¯t be terribly strong until higher levels of Dupdomancy. Even so, passing on Permanent split had been nearly physically painful. Well, no time like the present to aim for level twenty Calvin rubbed his hands together and got started Shadowboxing Calvinian summoning and Chained Spirit. ¡­ Chained Spirit has reached level 15! +1 Will +1 Will¡­ point value capped, rerouting¡­+1 Intuition. Please choose an ability or Mutation -Siphon Calvinian Summoning has reached level 15! +1 Will +1 Will¡­ point value capped, rerouting¡­+1 Intuition. Please choose an ability or mutation. Abilities: Variety is the spice of Death : 2 extra slots, +1 extra slot every 5th level, rather than 10th Atom Ant: Sacrifice Mass of summon for increase to physical attributes of summon. 1 to 1 ratio. 1 summon''s worth of mass lost empowers 1 summon with double physical attributes. (Max multiplicative power equal to Calvinian Summoning Level) Chimera: The user may rearrange parts from any slotted creature onto any other slotted creature in any combination.(New slot every 10th level) Bulk Summoning: Mass Limit increased by (Int) % ^Oh, this must have been unlocked by Dupdomancy. Extended Summoning: Time limit is increased by (Sta)% ^Ditto. Diversified Portfolio of Death: User may now divide summon¡¯s mass between any different combination of *options they have access to. ^Not only size and slotted creature variations, but extras like Chimera and Atom Ant may be added to a fraction of the total summon. The summon will no longer be strictly homogenous. Mutations: Aburame Clan: Allows summons below a certain size to treat user as a nest. ^Gross. 1/10, would not recommend. Voice of the Swarm: Summons may speak User¡¯s words through the swarm, using their natural sounds to replicate speech. Survival of the Fittest: All Calvinian summons experience occasional random minor mutations of the template creature. A creature from the swarm may replace the old template creature. ^Monster breeder, anyone? I choose Atom Ant, Calvin decided with no hesitation, his mind reeling with the knowledge of the technique to empower his summons. Sure, taking Bulk Summoning would increase the output of his Knick-knacks and speed up the fort¡¯s construction, but he also needed a way to deal with Veterans, and what better way than to make his wasps essentially Veterans as well? Even if he divided his swarm¡¯s numbers by one hundred and fifty, that would still give him sixty-seven thousand five hundred wasps ten time the size of a normal wasp, and fifteen times the strength, Endurance and Kinesthetics that they should be, and quite possible lethal with a single sting, depending on whether the physical upgrade increased the potency of their venom. Give or take. His math was a bit spotty as to the exact weight of the Fever Wasp he¡¯d originally eaten. I need someone to test these on. Calvin sat up and went to look for a patsy who wouldn¡¯t die too quickly. *** ¡°You want to do what now?¡± Grant asked with a raised brow. the ex-commander was busy polishing his gear, having plenty of time on his hands, being outside the typical command structure of Calvin¡¯s company. ¡°I wanna check the performance of my new wasps,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I got an ability that should make them more combat effective against Veterans, and I want to get an idea of what they can do.¡± ¡°Well, too bad, I¡¯m not getting stung on purpose,¡± Grant said with a shrug. ¡°That¡¯s the idea,¡± Calvin said, holding out his hand. Calvinian summoning. Atom Ant. 8/15 Bent remaining. Calvin created his swarm of monstrous wasps, ten times the weight of a normal one, their physical attributes multiplied fifteen times. They should be vicious little bastards. Grant backed away with a cry as the swarm flooded out of Calvin, but he settled down a bit as they settled to the ground, the three-inch long wasps watching him with barely restrained malevolence. ¡°I¡¯m not going to overwhelm you with all of them at once Grant. I want a controlled experiment where we find out exactly how many it takes to get through your defences, starting with one. If one stings you I¡¯ll dismiss them, since I don¡¯t want to actually kill you.¡± Grant groaned and rolled his eyes, picking up his belt full of swords and strapping it over his shoulder. ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s take this over to the road.¡± The swarm leapt into the air with a horrific buzzing and went high into the sky so as not to unnerve the surrounding camp. It mostly worked. A few people watched Calvin warily, but for the most part, his soldiers had come to associate the humming sound of wasps with reinforcements, and simply ignored them, focusing on their work. Fort Gadsint was coming along nicely. As a matter of fact, between Nadia siphoning with Lady Killer for him, and the sheer number of camp followers, he was ahead of even his most optimistic schedule. All they really needed to do was wait for the concrete to dry and they¡¯d be on their way home. The two of them walked through the bustle of the camp, and past the slowly growing town that had spontaneously emerged behind it, full of enterprising individuals ready to provide goods and service for coin or barter. They finally got outside the populated area about five hundred feet away from the walls. ¡°Alright,¡± Grant said, rolling his shoulders as his swords pulled themselves out of their sheaths and began floating around him. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with.¡± ¡°I want to see something first.¡± Calvin said, summoning a half-dozen wasps down from the cloud far above them. He held out a finger and allowed a wasp to land on it. He studied the large blue and black wasp resting on his finger, twitching with eagerness to kill. ¡°Oh look, you¡¯ve got a friend. Too bad he¡¯s gonna die.¡± Grant said with a smile. Wordlessly, Calvin pointed the wasp at a jungle tree and instructed it to kill. The wasp took off of his finger in a burst of wind that washed across his face. A fraction of a second later, there was a distant crack as the wasp impacted against the tree stinger-first, burying itself up to its abdomen into the wood. Grant¡¯s confident smile slipped a bit. ¡°That¡¯s¡­that¡¯s a little much, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°Maybe,¡± Calvin said, directing another to fly into a nearby fire and retrieve a piece of burning coal. The creature was able to dive into the flame and pick up a coal several times its weight, and get it half-way back before its wings finally caught fire and it dropped to the ground, still alive. Looks like they¡¯re a lot tougher, too. I wonder how thick their exoskeleton would have to be to resist sword-blows? ¡°Umm¡­¡± Grant looked a little nervous. ¡°Let¡¯s start with one,¡± Calvin said, pointing at Grant, whose eyes widened, his swords coming up in a defensive posture. Suddenly Calvin caught sight of cloud of dust to the south, in the direction of Mujenan. He lowered his hand and squinted, trying to make out what was approaching. It seemed to be¡­an army from Mujenan, wearing the traditional gold and brown. Grant followed his gaze and let out a tiny sigh. ¡°I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d be getting reinforcements.¡± Calvin said as he watched a rider separate from the marching army, his guar carrying him swiftly up to them. The man was a perfect specimen of Gadveran virility. Well, perhaps not quite so much as Baroke, but certainly more handsome. He flashed them a dazzling smile as he reigned his Guar in, the snorting lizard bending to nibble at some roadside grass. ¡°Good afternoon. I am Colonel Elspetz, commander of the 7th Brigade. I have come to begin construction on more permanent fortifications. Could you lead me to The Wasp? Calvin felt his eyebrows raise. He glanced at the curing concrete behemoth behind him. More permanent fortifications? Well, you are a couple years ahead of schedule. ¡°That¡¯d be me.¡± Calvin said, raising his hand, almost forgetting to do the salute, seeing as the man was technically his superior. I hate rank when I¡¯m not the one on top. ¡°You?¡± Colonel Elspetz asked with furrowed brows. ¡°But you¡¯re not Gadveran.¡± Calvin let that low-hanging fruit go unplucked. ¡°That is true.¡± Calvin tried to search for the words for a moment. ¡°Can we speak privately?¡± he glanced at Grant, who looked eager for the opportunity to bail on testing Calvin¡¯s new wasps. Once Grant was gone, he turned to Colonel Elspetz, who raised a brow. ¡°With respect. I¡¯m not entirely sure your brigade is needed here, Colonel.¡± ¡°With respect, huh?¡± Colonel Elspetz broke into another white smile, but Calvin could feel the irritation in the man¡¯s gaze. ¡°Words usually precipitating a gaffe. Tell me, Wasp, why are we not needed?¡± ¡°Fort¡¯s done.¡± Calvin thumbed over his shoulder. The smiling colonel took a small glass lens out of his vest pocket and placed it over one eye. Rather than the wailing or gnashing of teeth that Calvin expected, he seemed rather pleased. ¡°Excellent, I¡¯ll have a messenger bring news back to general Andra.¡± He said, giving Calvin a hungry look. Crap, he wants credit. Be delicate. Calvin couldn¡¯t create an enemy, and he couldn¡¯t afford to let the man take credit. Kala and Andra would know who was responsible, but the name on the letter was usually what went down in history, what the common people would remember. And Calvin needed plenty of public opinion. ¡°No need,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°I included news of its completion in my weekly letters to princess Kala. It¡¯s most likely reached Andra¡¯s desk by now.¡± Invoking Kala¡¯s name had the desired effect. The man¡¯s casual disregard was now tempered with a fair bit of caution. ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯ve heard about that. You¡¯re a good friend of the princess, aren¡¯t you? I¡¯ve heard a lot of rumors circulating Mujenan about your valor in battle. More than one of them seem to come from the princess herself.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Calvin said, ¡°I wasn¡¯t there when the rumors started.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± He could feel the Colonel¡¯s gaze weighing how damaging it might be to upset the princess against how politically advantageous it would be to steal credit for the fort. Finally he felt the man err on the side of caution. ¡°Excellent work captain. Congratulations. You¡¯ve done more than your share here and practically created a miracle. You¡¯ve leave to take your company back to Mujenan for some much needed rest. My men will be manning the fort from here on out. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be met with much pomp and circumstance for all you¡¯ve done.¡± ¡°Thank you sir.¡± Probably not, considering I didn¡¯t actually send that letter. *** ¡°This is odd!¡± Ella leaned over to shout over the roar of the crowd as they rode their guar into Mujenan. It seemed like an impromptu parade had begun, with them at the center of all of it, streaming bits of paper and everything. ¡°No shit.¡± What the hell is going on? Calvin asked himself as he scanned the crowds of beaming faces. I¡¯ve got an idea. ¡°Whooo, there¡¯s the guy who killed a thousand Ilethans!¡± A big fat man shouted, his shirt unable to contain his girth as he shoved his hands in the air. ¡°Wasp, put a baby in me!¡± ¡°Beat those pasty Ilethans at their own game!¡± ¡°Veyers, you have any idea what¡¯s going on?¡± Calvin shouted over the crowd. ¡°Not a clue!¡± ¡°This might have something to do with it!¡± Baroke said, leaning over the crowd with his massive arms and snagging a weathered piece of paper off the side of a nearby building before handing it to Calvin. Calvin glanced down at the paper. The Wasp leads a cunning maneuver across the cliff face, treating the Ilethan forces like bumbling idiots as they catch them in the back for the second time in a row! Underneath a few more paragraphs of descriptive text that detailed his exploits to an unnerving degree, he found a cartoon of his forces sneaking up behind a lumbering, oafish Ilethan and poking him in the butt. Huh. Check the date. The cartoon was dated the day of his escape from Fort Choke. That¡¯s interesting. There¡¯s obviously no way someone could have gotten the news on the same day, but here it is. Somebody real friendly, with some political power and free time on their hands, has been remotely spying on you in order to make sure the public knows how awesome you are. Kala, Calvin thought, as he eyed the cartoonist¡¯s depiction of Ella¡¯s rather glamorous form. Kala¡¯s in your corner, it appears. Just make sure you don¡¯t take her for granted. Calvin folded the flier up and tucked it in his vest pocket before returning to smiling and waving. Calvin Gadsint Body: 16 Strength: 9 Kinesthetics: 9 Endurance: 9 Mind: 24 Intuition: 15 Stability: 15 Will: 24 Bent: 2/15 Skills: Stealth 7 Talking to Girls 10 Acting 9 Read Expressions 9 Sense-Grafting 13 Knife-Work 7 Dupdomancy 15 Hunting 10 Meditation 15 Chained Spirit 15 Calvinian Summoning 15 Your Princess is in Another Castle 5 Fishing 5 Genosian Language 5 Beli Ma 6 Macronomicon Chapter 66: History Lesson Perfection does not exist in a vacuum. There is no growth without pain, no victory without struggle. Always seek the ideal. Complacency leads to Stagnation, Stagnation leads to destruction. The Ravager scours away weakness. Such is their purpose since the System was first Designed. ***Elliot*** ¡°Welcome to Richie Cool¡¯s Bitchin¡¯ Recharging Station!¡± A man in a tacky T-shirt showing the sandy beaches of Marconen¡¯s tropical islands stood behind the counter of the charging station, welcoming Elliot in with a bright smile. Ritchie, presumably. Upon seeing Elliot¡¯s face, the man¡¯s professional smile slipped, just a little. He¡¯d been on the Most Wanted list prior to the coup, so it was understandable. Charging station might have been misleading, as the building itself was massive, with twin towers jutting miles up into the sky, allowing ships as big as Cruisers to dock between them and get juiced full of Warp for the trip to the nearest star systems, taking the fight to the Harbingers. ¡°What¡¯s the profit margin on a place like this?¡± he asked as his ATHK-600¡¯s filed in behind him, aiming for the bot charging hall on the left. He glanced around, noting the notches in the wall down the hall to the right, where weapons from the size of pistols to full blown miniguns could be placed to recharge, getting the energy they needed to penetrate Harbinger and Warped creature¡¯s defences alike. ¡°Not the best, but it beats that, Ritchie Cool said, nodding at a group of hunters wearing leather from Warped monsters, and grisly trophies around their necks. Some of them were even using swords, claiming it was more cost-effective than buying recharges on weapons with Warp Engines, especially if they used Warp from a Break to enhance their skill with the length of steel. Cost effective? Maybe. Stupid? Definitely. It was easy to tell between the ones who were out hunting local Fauna that¡¯d been mutated by the Warp lingering around the Siphons, and the ones who were taking the fight to the Harbingers: Mostly by the leather, horns, teeth and skulls decorating their clothes. Glorified looters, Elliot thought with a scoff. Humanity was rapidly retracting to a handful of heavily fortified safe havens on the coasts of Marconen as Warped creatures sprung up like weeds everywhere else. That left a lot of unclaimed property for those with more balls than sense to venture out and steal. The thought about Warped creatures got him thinking. The last warped Creature he¡¯d seen looked a bit like walking cyst with caterpillars for arms. The Mutations triggered by Warp were sudden, random, and violent, usually resulting in the creature¡¯s death within a few hours of the event¡­ But sometimes things got bad. Especially if it used to be a human. Those monsters were clever. Thankfully the System prevented most people from Mutating unless they were extremely negligent, so the human-base monsters were almost unheard of. I wonder if the System could be persuaded to control the mutation? Elliot reached into his wallet and pulled out his card. ¡°Whadda I owe ya for a hundred and sixteen medium size bots?¡± ¡°It¡¯s on the house,¡± Ritchie said, gesturing for Elliot to take his card away as if it were radioactive. ¡°Ritchie. I¡¯ve got a card that links directly to the government¡¯s coffers. This isn¡¯t my money, this is your tax money. Take the pay.¡± Ritchie hesitated for a second. ¡°A-alright.¡± He tapped his monitor a couple times. ¡°That¡¯ll be three hundred and forty-eight thousand.¡± ¡°WHAT!?¡± Elliot demanded, leaning over the table with a scowl, making the young proprieter of the recharging establishment scramble backward, landing on his butt. ¡°No, wait, that sounds right. Here you go.¡± Elliot said, grinning as he handed the card over the edge of the desk. Ritchie climbed back to his feet, panting nervously as he took the card out of Elliot¡¯s hand. ¡°W-Would you like to get them a buffing with that for an extra hundred points apiece?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the spirit, Ritchie. Upsell me. Yes I would.¡± Nobody liked robots who weren¡¯t presentable. Ritchie nodded and bopped Elliot¡¯s card to the panel, typed a moment, then handed it back. ¡°Recharging should take fifteen minutes. Feel free to grab a coffee while you wait.¡± ¡°I think I will.¡± Elliot turned and walked around Doug, whose gaze followed him as he grabbed a cop and filled it from the dispenser. ¡°You want anything Doug? Coffee, cocoa, orange juice, coke, coke?¡± Doug walked up next to him, glancing over at the sweating man behind the counter. ¡°You can¡¯t do that anymore.¡± He said quietly. ¡°Do what?¡± Elliot asked, standing. ¡°Mess with people.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Elliot asked as he took a sip from his coffee, staring the pudgy man down. ¡°Because you literally represent Marconen¡¯s new government. When you mess with people, that¡¯s the government messing with people.¡± ¡°Pfft, boring.¡± Elliot glanced over at Ritchie Cool glancing over at the two of them, nervously. Hmmm. ¡°Elliot, you got what you wanted. We¡¯re an independent planet now, but you really gotta stop messing with people who have less money and power than you. It¡¯s not fun for them.¡± Elliot blinked. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s why nobody likes my jokes. I could kill them if they didn¡¯t. Kinda ruins the whole dynamic.¡± ¡°Pretty much.¡± ¡°UUUGh, I hate power dynamics. So how do I have friends again, search the internet for a dating site called Singleswholiberatedaplanet.com?¡± ¡°I¡¯m your friend.¡± ¡°Yeah, but you¡¯re Doug.¡± Doug growled at punched him on the shoulder. ¡°Treason!¡± Doug punched him on the shoulder again. ¡°You will be executed for this, rebel scum ¨C ow, ow, it really hurts now, quit it.¡± Doug raised another threatening fist, when the entire building began to shake. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Elliot walked up to the windows at the front of the lobby and glanced out. Huh, it¡¯s an armada. A Harbinger one. The building was entirely surrounded by dozens of scab-colored Harbinger transport vessels, most likely containing their scab-colored footsoldiers, eager to be sent into the meatgrinder. Elliot took a sip of his garbage truck-stop coffee. ¡°Ritchie, would you mind detaching and reactivating my ATHK¡¯s? This is kind of an emergency.¡± Elliot glanced over his shoulder, and saw¡­Doug behind the monitor, Ritchie cool nowhere to be seen. ¡°Doug. Same question.¡± Doug hit a final button, and rather than the Clunk-hiss of his kill-robots being released, there was the zap-Pop-Bang! of robots exploding from over-charging. Elliot experienced the tiniest pang of betrayal. Like when you accidentally overcook your Burrito in the microwave. This is why I have trouble relating to people. That and my Intuition started two standard Deviations below average. ¡°E tu, Doug?¡± ¡°Sorry man, you¡¯re just a little... too much.¡± Doug jumped down one of the side halls with gusto, as if he expected Elliot to shoot at him as he flew, in a little action movie of his own. The emergency doors closed behind him a fraction of a second later, along with the other side door, leaving Elliot trapped in the lobby. Elliot sighed and grabbed the sugar off the table next to him and dumped a bit in, stirring it in with Bent. ¡°Guess I should see what these asshats want.¡± Elliot sauntered out into the parking lot, knocking back his coffee as he walked. The wind became a roaring gale as dozens of Harbinger ships settled down around him, their gates dropping open at the same time. Elliot¡¯s brows rose as humans marched out of the Harbinger ships, training pulse rifles on him as they crept forward like he was some kind of dangerous animal. In Elliot¡¯s experience Humans and Harbingers didn¡¯t exactly get along. Maybe Elliot had somehow inadvertently fostered peace between the warring nations, through his nuclear love-letters. Elliot glanced down at his empty coffee cup; swished it around a bit. Wish I had some more. ¡°Elliot Spencer.¡± A voice came from the back of the ship. Elliot glanced up and spotted Admiral Greyson. He looked older than the last time they¡¯d met. ¡°¡¯Sup?¡± ¡°Some friends of ours want to meet you. Put your fucking hands behind your head.¡± Elliot did so, eager to see the surprise. He watched as men with Bent resistant riot shields coated in Mnematite crept forward, enclosing him in a circle. Land bound creatures tended to think in two dimensions. Elliot slipped his Bent out through the soles of his feet and spread it through the earth, waiting for his command. Elliot¡¯s patience was rewarded when he spotted the oblong head of a Harbinger lope down the ramp, digitigrade feet giving a bobbing motion to its walk. A dozen more of the reddish brown, mottled aliens with wide heads marched lazily down the ramp, parting the sea of humans with an invisible hand. ¡°This the one you¡¯re looking for?¡± Greyson asked as they approached. The lead Harbinger came straight up to Elliot and grabbed him by the chin. His gaze bored into Elliot¡¯s eyes, and a splitting headache sprung up out of nowhere. ¡°Gah,¡± Elliot reeled backward and glapped a hand over his aching eyes and temples. ¡°Yes, this is a Ravager. You will be well rewarded for your assistance. Marconen is yours.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want Marconen,¡± Greyson said with a scowl as he glanced at the burning moon scowling down at them. ¡°Without the Mnematite deposits on Soscath, this place is less than worthless to me.¡± ¡°We will come to a different arrangement then. It¡¯s no bother to us should Marconen lay fallow, but we must take the Ravager into custody before it has a chance to grow stronger.¡± ¡°Why do you keep calling me a Ravager?¡± Elliot asked, taking his hand away from his head, the ache suddenly gone. ¡°You put your hands on the back of your head!¡± A nearby marine shouted, nudging Elliot¡¯s skull with the barrel of his gun. Elliot complied. Not gonna regret killing that guy. ¡°Pretty sure it means Pain In The Ass.¡± Greyson said. The Harbinger laid a hand on Greyson¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You do not need to know your sacred purpose to fulfill it, Ravager. It would be a waste of emotional effort for you to come to terms with your part in the System in the short time you have left before your soul is reassigned.¡± Soul is reassigned? That sounds disturbingly similar to death. Elliot made a mental note to make a backup in case he couldn¡¯t avoid this¡­soul-reassigning. In any case, it was past time for him to make his move. Elliot pushed his Bent up through the ground. Life Drain. 46/47 Bent remaining. The Bent leapt up and sucked the vital energy out of each and every one of the people around him, adding it to an invisible reservoir he could only feel in the back of his mind. The humans around him slumped to the ground in death, while the Harbingers simply watched him quizzically. Biomancy has reached level 27! Yaaay! Elliot would have clapped his hands in joy, but he was busy. Fly. 45/47 Bent remaining. Elliot rose up above the Harbingers and aimed downward. Annihilation. 30/47 Bent remaining. The parking lot blinked out of existance, along with the Harbinger ships, a bit of the recharging station, as well as a few miles of bedrock beneath it. The Harbingers appeared in a circle around him, their hands held out. Friggin¡¯ teleporters. Elliot only had a moment to complain before a raw cage of electricity slammed shut around him, electrocuting every fiber of his body as he was suspended in midair. It hurt, sure, but¡­ Your Stability has shrugged off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 2 seconds. Elliot forced his way through the cage of lightning, suffering hideous burns across his entire body as he did. He could feel the reservoir of energy drop a little as his body repaired itself, using the energy they¡¯d been kind enough to bring him. The pain of forcing his way through the lightning was worth seeing the endlessly arrogant bastard¡¯s eyes widen with surprise. ¡°That the best you weaklings can do?¡± he asked, forming layers of offensive and defensive Bent around himself. Then they did something he wasn¡¯t expecting. Three of the red-brown aliens pulled knives out of their belts and stabbed them deep into their own chests, their eyes rolling back in their heads as they died in seconds. ¡°What the¡­¡± ¡°We are anything but weak, Ravager.¡± Their leader said with narrowed eyes. What the hell are they thinking? Elliot thought, keeping his defenses up and his head on a swivel. They didn¡¯t do anything. Far beneath them the gaping hole in the earth¡¯s crust began to glow as magma made its way to the surface. Whoops, I accidentally volcano¡¯ed. Wait, this could be good. In a minute or two, it¡¯ll shoot straight up into the air, and I¡¯ll use the distraction to fuck off. When he felt the sweat beading on his forehead, he knew they¡¯d already gotten him. Oh, goddamnit, he thought as his eyes rolled back in his head. Warp overflow detected. The roar of lava exploding out of the gaping hole in Marconen¡¯s crust dimmed as Elliot lost consciousness. ***Calvin*** Calvin raised a hand to knock on the general¡¯s door. ¡°Come in,¡± Andra said before he¡¯d even had a chance to put knuckle to wood. Calvin shrugged and opened the door, walking into the warmly lit office. The first thing he noticed was Andra wearing something other than full plate, looming over a map in a dress. It didn¡¯t match her aesthetic a bit. The second thing he noticed was the gaze directed at him from the corner of the room. Calvin glanced out of the corner of his eye, but couldn¡¯t see any sign of a person. The gaze didn¡¯t feel immediately hostile, simply dispassionate and a little bored. He could feel their presense with his skin, though, an unexplained lump in the corner of the room. Is she being spied on, or am I? ¡°You called?¡± ¡°I did,¡± she said, straightening from the map to look into his eyes. ¡°Take a seat.¡± Calvin pulled out a chair and sat. on the desk in front of him, the map showed Gadvera on its horn of land, flanked by Iletha to the northeast and the great jungle to the southeast. There was a dotted line that went straight east, beneath the mountains that divided Iletha and Gadvera, skirted the great jungle for a hundred miles before it plunged into a desert with ¡®Uleis¡¯ written on it. To the northwest was Malkenrovia, with dozens of tiny isles in between. ¡°Time for a geopolitical lesson,¡± She said, folding her poofy dress to sit in front of him. Elliot groaned in the back of his head, his voice growing distant, followed by the sound of clinking glass. ¡°Can I ask about the dress?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I¡¯m going to a ball in an hour. No, you can¡¯t come too.¡± Calvin shut his mouth, his follow-up question dead on arrival. ¡°Now shut up and pay attention. This is Gadvera and Iletha. We share a similar stretch of land, with access to the Vern ocean. The Ilethan mountains are rich in resources, and for four hundred years, Iletha was the dominant military power on the continent.¡± ¡°Until Koth Sendan lead pioneers from the deserts of Uleis, traveled south beneath the ilethan mountains, and established Mujenan.¡± ¡°Once it was proven that a land route was viable, Uleis annexed Mujenan and began shipping its own goods and those acquired from the Boles empire to Malkenrovia, bypassing Iletha entirely. ¡°I imagine Iletha didn¡¯t like that.¡± ¡°You imagine correctly. Iletha tried to invade Uleis, but their attempts to attack the desert country always ended in disaster.¡± At this, she met Calvin¡¯s eyes. ¡°No one can win a major land war against Uleis on their home turf.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Fifteen years into this conflict, when both countries were exhausted from fighting each other, Koth Sendan led a rebellion against Uleis. Mujenan and the surrounding port cities were tired of having their wealth stolen from them by the oppressive taxes levied by the desert nation.¡± ¡°And we got creamed?¡± Andra shook her head. ¡°Taking a page from Uleis¡¯s own book, our young men who¡¯d grown up near the Great Jungle lured the Uleis into our home turf and destroyed them. She cocked her head as she studied the map. ¡°I heard from my grandfather that most of them succumbed to foot-rot.¡± ¡°Eww.¡± Andra ignored his comment. ¡°How do you think these three countries see each other?¡± she asked, circling the three of them. ¡°Grudging acceptance?¡± ¡°Correct. We are not friends, but we do business. Uleis is the linchpin in the trade network between the east and the west, through their connection to Boles. Soon after Gadvera declared independence, they realized they could play Iletha and Gadvera off of each other, offering better deals to the highest bidder; get their taxes that way.¡± She scowled, pausing for a moment. ¡°We need their help. We¡¯re going to send a party to negotiate for their assistance in this war. Like it or not, Gadverans are blood related to Uleisians, and share a similar culture. If we can get past the ancient grudges, it should be simple to secure a political advantage over Iletha.¡± Calvin frowned. ¡°Am I a diplomat now?¡± Andra gave a half chuckle. ¡°Gods no. You have all the tact of a horny guar. You and the First Mujenan volunteers will be bodyguards.¡± ¡°Whose body will I be guarding?¡± ¡°Princess Kala¡¯s. She will be the diplomat.¡± ¡°I can get behind that.¡± Calvin said with a nod. Nice one. Andra¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Don¡¯t get complacent. You had a good result on your last mission, but you took a lot of risks that could have cost you everything.¡± Calvin felt the invisible man in the corner of the room tense up, anticipating something. I¡¯ve seen that kind of risky decision-making before, and it got people killed. You might think you¡¯re invincible, but I¡¯m here to tell you that you¡¯re not. You are mortal, like everyone else. You can be caught off guard, and you can be hurt.¡± Don¡¯t dodge. This is supposed to be a lesson in humility. I¡¯d rather she didn¡¯t know you know, you know? Fine, but if he aims for my head, I¡¯m killing him. On que, the lurker snuck up behind him and put a blunt blade shaped object around his neck. When it got closer to his skin, he could feel it¡¯s spongeyness, allowing him to relax The sponge was drawn across his throat with a quick yank, depositing a gush of blood on his neck before he was kicked aside. Above him, a slender man turned visible, blood dripping from a fake knife. Such pageantry. Obligingly, Calvin clapped his hand over his bloody neck for a moment, panting wide-eyed to give his audience the idea that he¡¯d truly been scared by the attack. He made a show of pulling his hand away, finding his neck unharmed. ¡°See?¡± Andra asked. ¡°You¡¯ve a long way to go before you can relax. You¡¯re still a beginner. Remember that.¡± ¡°If I suck so much,¡± Calvin asked, climbing to his feet while glancing around the room. ¡°Why send me with Kala?¡± ¡°The Uleis will try to pressure her into marrying one of their heirs in exchange for their assistance, or possibly attempt a kidnapping and forced wedding. Gadvera would then once again become a vassal state of Uleis, which is why I can¡¯t allow that to happen.¡± Andra regarded him with a slow smile. ¡°I feel that you, out of all the captains I could send, are the most motivated to prevent that from happening.¡± ¡°Yes¡­Yes I am. They can have Kala over their dead bodies.¡± Kala was instrumental in usurping the kingdom. That and he liked her a lot. He glanced up. ¡°You have any soap?¡± Andra glanced over to a box on the shelf. ¡°Go find your own.¡± ¡°No need.¡± Mass Multi Shaping. 14/15 Bent remaining. Calvin isolated the box she¡¯d looked at, a tiny bowl-shaped bit of the crystal from Andra¡¯s goblet, the water from the decanter on her desk, and a sliver of velvet from her dress, Two dark blue velvet towels, along with a crystal bowl full of water, appeared next to the box, on the center of her desk. Calvin opened the box and found a piece of fancy scented soap. He dipped the first towel in the water and lathered on the soap before he began washing the blood off his neck. ¡°Was there anything else you wanted to tell me?¡± ¡°Yeah, watch the attitude, and get that shit off my desk.¡± ¡°Will do, ma¡¯am.¡± Calvin said, giving a textbook salute before dismissing the spell. The bowl and the towels vanished. The dried blood on his neck and collar that had bonded to the soap turned into a rust-colored dust and drifted to her floor as he left. I¡¯m liking that Multi-split. That stunt would have taken you four Bent otherwise. Elliot spoke to him as he left Andra¡¯s office. I¡¯m aware. We should get you the Drafting skill, or maybe Tinkering, or Chemisty, or all of the above. Why¡¯s that? Sufficiently complex objects are going to be really hard to do off the top of your head. a bowl and a couple towels? Easy. A pocketwatch or a submachine gun? That¡¯s gonna be tricky to visualize properly without help. I don¡¯t know what either of those things are. It¡¯s cool, we¡¯ve got time. ¡°I¡¯ve only got a handful of empty skill slots left. Why should I get Drafting?¡± You see that suit of armor of there? Calvin spotted one at the end of the hall. One of the uses he¡¯d had in mind for Multi-Split, actually. Make one out of Jerrytanium. Easy enough, Calvin thought, placing his thumb on the marble he¡¯d studded into his belt. He closed his eyes and concentrated, aiming to suit himself in armor. No, not on yourself, god! Do you wanna die!?¡± Calvin blinked, then decided to make the armor on something else. Multi Shaping. 13/15 Bent remaining. The armor appeared, standing in front of him, perfectly balanced and able to stand on its own. Calvin was pretty proud of himself until he noticed the huge swath of chest piece that was missing, along with the section of leg that was tilted by about thirty-five degrees in a place that had no business being tilted. One of the arms fell off, Calvin having forgotten to imagine joint-bolts for it. The shift in weight¡­did nothing. The rest of the joint-bolts were so improperly fitted that the entire piece of armor was incapable of moving. It wasn¡¯t perfectly balanced, it was frozen. ¡°You¡¯ve made your point.¡± Calvin said aloud, dismissing the spell. Not a bad result for a first try, actually, I expected it to look glitched as fuck. I imagine with a little bit of practice you could do a suit of armor on the first try every time. By the way, can we rename Multi-shaping to Fabricate? No particular reason. Practice, huh? Any reason we couldn¡¯t use Shadow-boxing to get the technique down? Not at all, but a Crafting Skill of some kind would synergize very well with Dupdomancy, as it stands. Noted. Macronomicon 29/30 I was able to get enough done that Patreon is at Chapter 88! One more than my guess two weeks ago. Enjoy! I''ll be resuming a normal schedule, so expect one chapter Thursday and Friday too. Chapter 67: Venture Capitalism ¡°Here ya go,¡± Calvin said, handing over his second month¡¯s pay to Borus Igglebaum in exchange for a small burlap sack full of raw materials. A clear vial of oil with a thumb-sized chunk of the self-igniting metal that served as the trigger for his Fireball, a palm-sized sheet of flexible glass from Uleis, a scrap of dragon leather, A glass dropper filled with highly flammable oil, a concentrated acid, base, pure alcohol, spring steel, magnesium, an industrial diamond, featherwood, and a mirror. You¡¯re gonna need another belt, Batman. ¡°And these here,¡± the Jibbleya said, putting two more objects on the treated wood from behind the counter. One was a lacquered wand of featherwood with one of Calvin¡¯s Jerrytanium marbles glued to the end of it, the other was a metal canister with the top off. Calvin picked the wand up, balancing it on his finger. The wood barely weighed anything, allowing him to flick it back and forth easily with his wrist, fast enough to blur the marble at the end. ¡°Don¡¯t break anything.¡± Borus grumbled as Calvin got caught up in the swishing back and forth. ¡°If the marble at the end came off, it would be your fault, wouldn¡¯t it?¡± Calvin said, swishing the wand back and forth. I wonder what the highest speed I can get with this thing is? I lowball a hundred and fifty miles an hour. Maybe two-fifty? ¡°And this,¡± Borus said, pointing at the metal cage. ¡°You be careful with this.¡± ¡°This is the stuff?¡± ¡°This is soap-sweat with guano-acid like you asked for. Took about a dozen tries and I melted half of my face, but I came out the other side with an amber liquid that¡¯ll blow up like no other. Then I added an untrafine sawdust and got this putty.¡± Calvin looked up at Borus. One half of the Berry-man¡¯s beard was shorter, but he looked fine, aside from that. ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like you melted half your face.¡± ¡°I know what I said.¡± he said, eyeing Calvin. ¡°Okay then.¡± ¡°Anyway, the explosion is a lot cooler than God¡¯s fire, but the force of the shockwave is significantly stronger. Be careful with it.¡± ¡°Got it. You got any of the amber liquid left?¡± ¡°I call it¡¯ Borus¡¯s Boomjuice, and I thought you¡¯d ask.¡± He said, pulling another clear vial with an opaque coating of amber crystals on the inside of the vial. ¡°When it¡¯s room temperature, it¡¯ll go off at the drop of a hat, so I made a container lined with icefish bone on the bottom. As long as it¡¯s frozen it¡¯s less likely to blow up, BUT!¡± he raised a pudgy semi-translucent finger and pointed it at Calvin. ¡°There¡¯s no guarantee, so keep it in it¡¯s own pouch somewhere safe, and preferably away from anything valuable or sensitive, I.E. your skin or other explosives. I don¡¯t wanna go through the nightmare of replacing your custom vials again.¡± It was about this time when Bee jiggled through the door, her stubby arms carrying a flat full of familiar steel vials. ¡°Dad! Lemman just got back to us with the new batch!¡± She said, huffing under the weight of the copies of Calvin¡¯s spell components. She looked out from under the traw and spotted Calvin before smiling sweetly. ¡°Oh, hi Calvin.¡± ¡°Excellent, take those in the back and mark them up to a quarter Glimmer apiece. We¡¯re gonna hit those stuffy wizards right in their checkbooks!¡± The proprieter said with a grin and a clawed hand. ¡°Like I was saying,¡± Borus said, turning back to Calvin. ¡°It was far too much effort, and I¡¯m unwilling to undertake a task like that again anytime in the future.¡± I like this guy. ¡°Also,¡± Borus pulled a leather sack out and dropped it on the table. ¡°What¡¯s this one?¡± ¡°The dust you asked for. Feathersteel and rust. Three parts rust, one part aluminum.¡± Borus opened the sack to reveal a fine ruddy powder. He pulled out a pinch of it and let it slip through his fingers. ¡°Where¡¯d you learn this recipe?¡± ¡°Oh, you know,¡± Calvin cleared his throat. ¡°Places.¡± No young man worth his salt hasn¡¯t looked up the recipe for thermite. It¡¯s so EASY! ¡°Well, the rust is basically free, but the feathersteel alone is worth five Stones.¡± What!? ¡°What?¡± Calvin asked, echoing Elliot. ¡°Feathersteel doesn¡¯t grow on trees, you know. I wasted most of my supply grinding it into this dust, then I got curious about what it was for, since you didn¡¯t tell me.¡± Ah crap. ¡°Most of your requests follow a pretty similar theme, so I tried applying some heat. That didn¡¯t work. Then I tried applying a lot of heat, and now I have a hole in my furnace.¡± ¡°Ummm¡­¡± ¡°So all told, this,¡± Borus said, pointing at Calvin¡¯s monthly salary, ¡°isn¡¯t going to cover everything.¡± For a sickly moment, Calvin¡¯s stomach sank, wondering which of the items he should remove from the list. He didn¡¯t even know what was worth what. ¡°Dad!¡± Bee shouted, ducking her head out of the back of the shop. ¡°Stop giving him a hard time! We¡¯re set for life because of the rich wizards buying components from us. Not to mention the Boomjuice, Bangputty, and heat-powder recipes.¡± ¡°Godsdamnit!¡± Borus shouted, turning around and waving his pudgy fist at his daughter. ¡°A man has to know how to haggle. Stop doing it for him!¡± I really like this guy, Elliot said with a chuckle. Borus sighed and slid Calvin¡¯s order across the counter, along with his money. ¡°It¡¯s true, I can¡¯t charge you for any of this. Because of you, Six months from now I¡¯m gonna be doing nothing but eating crab at parties and saying ¡®tut, tut¡¯ all the time. At least that¡¯s what I think nobles do. I don¡¯t know. I guess I¡¯ll find out.¡± Borus put a finger under Calvin¡¯s nose. ¡°But next time you ask me for a list of dangerous explosives, I¡¯m charging you full price!¡± ¡°Got it.¡± Calvin said, nodding, collecting the sack of miscellaneous non-perishables and tying them to his belt before carefully putting the explosives in their own separate pouches. Calvin collected his money and with a grateful nod to Bee, headed out the door. I didn¡¯t realize I was so poor. The fifteen gold Stones in his belt pouch had seemed like a lot of money to him when he was a shepherd. After all it could buy an entire hovel with a herd of sheep and money to spare, but in the grand scheme of things¡­it wasn¡¯t a lot. The money in his pocket that he¡¯d once thought enough to build an entire life off of, wasn¡¯t even enough to equip an entire squad with armor and weapons. It took a staggering amount of money to outfit soldiers for battle. and it wasn¡¯t just a one-time thing either. Their gear degraded over time and needed to be replaced at a steady pace. Between food and equipment, keeping an army of tens of thousands going cost¡­A fuckton. The amount of money flowing through the Gadveran military floored him. How on Marconen can they afford that? Calvin¡¯s recently improved Intuition filled in the blanks for him. The whole thing was circular; Systematic. The royalty paid their soldiers, the soldiers spent their money on food, sundries and women. Royalty then taxed a share of money out the hands of those vendors, and put it back in the hands of their soldiers, who put it back in the system. If he was going to afford his own army, he¡¯d need a big system to maintain them, and a lot of money. I need more money. A thought occurred to Calvin, and he turned on his heel, heading back toward Borus¡¯s shop. ¡°Back already?¡± the irritable Igglebaum asked, eyes narrowed. ¡°Can I buy some information?¡± ¡°Like what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to Uleis next week. Can you tell me what kind of things they buy from Gadvera?¡± Borus¡¯s eyebrows rose. ¡°They ship spices and silk up through Uleis, from Bole, so It¡¯s a fair bet that shipping them back that way wouldn¡¯t net you a whole lot. And Uleis is the glass capital of the world. Don¡¯t try to sell any for a profit there, they¡¯ll laugh you off.¡± ¡°Anything else?¡± ¡°Think for yourself, boy. What do we have a lot of, that they don¡¯t? That¡¯s the most basic question a merchant can ask. ¡°Ocean, and wood?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°They¡¯re a desert, after all.¡± ¡°Close enough.¡± Borus said with a sigh. ¡°Gadvera primarily exports Nem, but it also is pretty well known for pearl, mother-of pearl inlays, and scrimshaw. You could probably net a profit if you bought a few of those and carted ¡®em with ya. I hear games are fairly valuable, as well. The sand-cracks spent a couple hours around noon not moving ¡®cuz of the sun. And of course Icefin bones are probably worth their weight in gold up there.¡± Borus was talking about buying a bit of extra luggage and making pocket change on arrival, but Calvin had the seed of an idea. ¡°Thanks,¡± Calvin said, slamming a gold coin on the counter. ¡°Don¡¯t mention it,¡± Borus said, sliding the stone into his palm. Calvin marched back out the door. ¡°Bye!¡± Bee shouted after him. *** Calvin intended to go bargain hunting in the market, looking for specific luxury goods his Knick-knacks could duplicate and then resell hundreds of miles away, but somehow it turned into a date when Kala and Ella, arm-in arm like a princess and her knight, ambushed him halfway to Mujenan¡¯s open market. The market itself wasn¡¯t quite as lively as it usually was, considering the Ilethan fleet surrounding them, but it wasn¡¯t quite as bad as it was when Mujenan was under direct siege. People could get used to anything, including a looming fleet waiting for a chance to invade. ¡°What do you think?¡± Kala said, modelling a pair of mother-of-pearl earrings. ¡°They look good.¡± Calvin said. ¡°That¡¯s what you say about everything.¡± Kala said. ¡°Cuz¡¯ they all look good.¡± ¡°The mother of pearl is colder and more reserved, gives you a business, ambassador look, while the gold goes lends a more¡­slutty harbor whore feel.¡± Ella said. Calvin blinked up at Ella, who shrugged. ¡°She wanted to know how it looked.¡± ¡°It really looks like that??¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°No, I see it now,¡± Kala said, peering into the shopkeeper¡¯s mirror, turning her head from gold the gold side to the mother-of-pearl side. ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right, the gold ones a lot sluttier. Not really appropriate for a diplomat.¡± She took the earrings away from her ears and held the two of them in her palms, seemingly struggling to make a decision. ¡°You can have different earrings for different things,¡± Ella said quietly, and the princess¡¯s internal struggle intensified, sweat beading on her forehead as she stared at the jewelry in her palms. ¡°How much for both of them?¡± Calvin asked, trying not to roll his eyes. ¡°Two stones,¡± the merchant said. A man needs to know how to haggle. ¡°There¡¯s more gold in one stone than both of those earrings combined.¡± Calvin said, trying not to freeze up. I can¡¯t believe there¡¯s people that can do this for a living. ¡°Ah, but the craftsmanship is what you¡¯re paying for. It takes long hours of work to make the perfect piece, each one destined to set a dear one¡¯s heart afire.¡± The man said with what he probably assumed was a charming grin. ¡°Aww,¡± Kala said, holding the earrings over her heart and cocking her head to the side. Godsdamnit. ¡°Shelve your poetry. I can tell you¡¯re using a stamp to make these things. These are all identical, and the seam is totally obvious right here.¡± Calvin pointed to a fine lip of gold on the edge of one of the trinkets. The merchant clicked his tongue. ¡°Fine. Stone and a half.¡± ¡°Deal.¡± Calvin said, paying him. the man was probably still making a healthy profit, and Calvin didn¡¯t see the need to push particularly hard. After all, the mother of pearl earrings were just the kind of thing he¡¯d been looking for. ¡°I forgot to ask,¡± Kala asked as they walked away from the stand, Calvin scanning the market ¡°What are you looking for out here?¡± ¡°Luxury goods that are incredibly time-intensive to produce,¡± Calvin said, narrowing in on a wooden gaming set with beautiful inlays and delicate carvings. Don¡¯t forget the stain. Ah, yes, I¡¯d have to provide the stain for the wood. damn. Hours of possible drying and heat treating too. Calvin was looking for something whose only requirement was skill and time, but the more he looked, the more he found that everything required a series of steps, involving some kind of treatment to make everything look pretty. Still, it wouldn¡¯t take much to buy enough stain to make a couple hundred inlaid gaming sets, everything else he could make on his own. ¡°Like lace?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Silk lace? Costs ten stone a yard?¡± Calvin blinked. ¡°Is there a lot in Uleis?¡± ¡°I imagine it would be a bit cheaper there, but it¡¯s not really cheap anywhere, since it can take months of exacting work to make a single yard, depending on the pattern. Is that the kind of luxury good you were talking about?¡± ¡°That sounds exactly like what I was talking about. Can you show me?¡± Kala guided him to a little shop off the beaten path that was musty with the scent of herbs, where a little old woman sat behind the counter, her trembling fingers somehow operating at a speed that left Calvin staring as she wove silk strands through a tight mat of golden silk, bringing a vibrant pattern to life, inch by painful inch. She looked over as Kala entered, setting her business away when she recognized the princess. ¡°Princess, welcome. Your dress is coming along well, it¡¯ll be done before you leave next week. That being said, would it be too much of a hassle for you come by for final adjustments the day after tomorrow, make sure it all fits right?¡± ¡°Of course not, Maggie, but I¡¯m actually here to show my friend your lace. He¡¯s taken an interest in luxury goods and he wanted to know how much they sell for.¡± The old woman raised an eyebrow. ¡°He the one you¡¯re telling me about? Kinda pale and scrawny, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°Maggie.¡± Kala said through a tight smile. ¡°¡¯Course, course,¡± She said with grunt, pushing herself away from the counter and standing up, fetching a bolt of black cloth from the shelf above her. It looked like a small roll of solid black silk, but Calvin felt his eyes widen when Maggie unrolled a section of it with reverence to reveal an intricate pattern woven into the silk. ¡°This is Maggie¡¯s mother¡¯s bolt of ¨C ¡° ¡°I¡¯ll tell the story, princess,¡± Maggie interrupted, before glancing at Calvin. ¡°My ma finally finished lacing this before she died twenty years ago, and I¡¯ve been selling it off in bits and pieces to Kala¡¯s parents and their kin ever since. The last couple yards of this silk would set me up in the country someplace nice, but no one has a need for that much lace, and so I dole it out bit by bit while I work on the one I¡¯m going to leave to my children between jobs.¡± She nodded to the golden weave against the wall. ¡°Almost done with it too.¡± Oh, man, now I¡¯m gonna feel really bad for making her life¡¯s work meaningless. ¡­ ¡­.. Oh well. ¡°Do you treat it with anything, or is it all just silk in there?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Only ingredients in here are silk and my childhood. Stuff nearer the back shows my mother¡¯s growth as a seamstress, as it has more mistakes in it, but a layman couldn¡¯t tell.¡± Yikes. ¡°I¡¯d like to try my hand at it. Can I buy some raw silk from you?¡± Maggie scoffed glaring at him, clutching the bolt of silk like a baby. ¡°Try your hand at it, he says, as if it was something you could pick up in a day.¡± ¡°Is that a no?¡± ¡°¡¯course it¡¯s a no!¡± ¡°How ¡®bout now?¡± Calvin asked, placing five gold Stones on the countertop. She glanced at him, then kala, then the money, then back to him, before grunting. ¡°far be it from me to stop a noble from wasting their money.¡± She went to the back with the bolt of lace, and Calvin heard the clattering of chains and the lock before she came back with a much bigger bolt of green-blue fabric. ¡°For five Stones, this is what I¡¯ve got.¡± ¡°You ripping me off?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°You care, moneybags?¡± the old woman asked, looking up into Calvin¡¯s eyes. ¡°Not really.¡± Calvin exchanged the silk for the gold, which he threw over his shoulder. ¡°And don¡¯t let it get wet!¡± Maggie called after him as they left. ¡°Okay, looks like I¡¯m almost set for the trip to Uleis,¡± Calvin said, jingling the remaining three gold stones in his pocket. He needed to buy a few of the special ingredients, like woodstain. ¡°What exactly are you planning with all that?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Wanna see?¡± Calvin asked, looking over at the two young women. Kala in her usual yellow sundress, and Ella in loose pants and a tight shirt. Kala and Ella glanced at each other and shrugged. ¡°We¡¯ve got nowhere else to be.¡± Kala said, wrapping an arm around Ella¡¯s before grabbing Calvin and putting her other arm through the nook of his elbow. *** Kala¡¯s jaw dropped as she watched the Knick-Knacks filing across the beach and marching straight into the ocean, returning with armload after armload of oytsters of every shape and size. ¡°Come to think of it, I could make some chowder.¡± Calvin said as he watched the production take place, creating a large byproduct of freshly shucked oysters. Should make some chowder, more-like. Calvin directed a few of them to go into the forest and start picking mushrooms. I¡¯ll have to buy a lot of milk, too. The Knick-knacks gathering coral, shells and pearls were only one facet of Calvin¡¯s operation on the isolated beach south of Mujenan. the other facets included a pair of extra heavy knick-knacks who cut lumber and delivered it to smaller ones. The smaller ones were building wagons from scratch, along with mother-of-pearl inlaid jewelry, jewelry boxes, game boards, dice, and anything else Calvin could think of. All of it was inhumanly fine in detail and craftsmanship. Now let¡¯s try the silk Calvinian summoning. 3/15 Bent remaining. Calvin pushed for the knick-knacks to come out smaller than his thumb. They poured out of his palm in droves, and suddenly the sand was awash in tiny little metal creatures, the spell spawning tens of thousands of them. Dissassemble the silk back into threads, don¡¯t let it touch the sand. He gave them their instructions and tossed the bolt of blue-green silk into the ocean of tiny creatures. They fell on the silk like tiny scavengers on a corpse and the silk began to unweave in front of their eyes. ¡°Anyone have an idea for the pattern?¡± Calvin asked a moment later. ¡°How about your House symbol?¡± Kala asked, finally able to speak. ¡°That¡¯s be great, but I don¡¯t know what it looks like,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Looks like this,¡± Ella said, pulling her pants down. It was Calvin¡¯s turn to be speechless. Macronomicon 30/30 *sad trumpet noises I was able to get enough done that Patreon is at Chapter 88! One more than my guess two weeks ago. Enjoy! I''ll be resuming a normal schedule, so expect one more chapter Thursday and Friday too. Chapter 68: Wink Wink Nudge Nudge Fifteen cubed is¡­ one fifty plus seventy five, two twenty five times fifteen.. add a zero, then half again¡­ two thousand two fifty plus one one twenty-five¡­.three thousand three hundred and seventy-five. Calvin¡¯s leg muscles screamed in protest as he pulled the wagon while he figured out Nadia¡¯s summon duration. He could be riding it, but he needed to raise his physical abilities to match his Body. Calvin started on the other side of the problem with minutes in a day, his mind rearranging the problem into easier chunks as he pulled, leaning into the thick bar of beautifully carved wood. Why not make the wagon something he could sell when he got there? Twenty four times sixty¡­. Two forty times six¡­ four eighty times three. Five hundred times three minus sixty¡­ one thousand four hundred and forty. Two eight eight zero out of three three seven five. Five shy of an even five hundred remainder. Four hundred and ninety five divided by fourteen hundred and forty. At this point Calvin felt confident he could round up to just above a third, which left him with forty-eight hours and eight more, plus a tiny bit extra. Each Nadia would last two days and eight hours. Chained Spirit is awesome. He regenerated three point four Bent per day, giving him basically seven Nadia¡¯s to work with and still maintain a stable Bent supply. ¡°Are there princesses in Uleis?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at his wagon pulling partner, someone who he could pump for information regarding politics at any time, day or night. ¡°Yes.¡± Nadia said, grimacing as she leaned into the yoke beside him. Plus, she pulled a mean wagon. ¡°How many?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Last I heard, the Hash¡¯Maje of Uleis had seven wives and thirty two children, most of which are most likely daughters between the ages of fifty and five.¡± ¡°Why most of them?¡± ¡°Because male heirs tend to die young, which would weight the remaining children towards being female.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ do you think it would be easier to kidnap a fifty-year old princess or a five year old one?¡± Calvin asked, ¡°Fifty-year old.¡± Nadia said, her legs flexing as they started their way up the gentle hill to where they were meeting the rest of the caravan heading out into the desert. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to say that, I mean isn¡¯t a child small, stupid, and portable?¡± Calvin said, shaking his head. ¡°A child will be chaperoned and wary of strangers. A fifty-year old matron¡­they¡¯re desperate for a little excitement in their lives. Easy enough to get them away from prying eyes. ¡°Eww¡­are you suggesting I seduce a woman three times my age?¡± Calvin asked. She met his gaze, her blue eyes steady. ¡°You asked which one would be easier. I told you. Whether you¡¯ve got the balls for it is up to you, isn¡¯t it? What¡¯s your fascination with princesses anyway?¡± ¡°What, and tell you all my secrets so you can betray me to my enemies?¡± She raised a brow. ¡°I¡¯m just kidding. I know you¡¯d never betray me because your existence depends entirely on my whims.¡± Calvin gave a raised brow back at her before looking back at the road. ¡°I¡¯ve got a mutation that gives me two points of Body for each princess I kidnap. You technically counted, if that makes you feel any better, existentially.¡± ¡°It does,¡± she said, her gaze lingering on the side of his face for a moment before she looked out to the road. ¡°That¡¯s an awfully specific Mutation that doesn¡¯t seem like it would arise in nature. I mean, princesshood is a social construct, not something you can interact with.¡± She looked him up and down. ¡°You don¡¯t look like a Warped. You think you¡¯re a new species?¡± Sometimes a creature, or more rarely a person would mutate in the Break, and the mutation would pass down to their children. It was how most of the speaking races had come to be. At least as far as the scholars of Gadvera believed. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m something, all right,¡± Calvin said, not really interested in thinking about his mutations and their deeper meaning. He¡¯d asked enough questions to enough different strangers that he had gotten a pretty clear picture of what was not normal. Humans got Abilities, not Mutations, and nobody¡¯s System made snide remarks and called themselves Elliot. Speaking of beans. Thermite that rock! Calvin put his fingers on the ingredients in the belt over his shoulder. He didn¡¯t have to do it, but it helped his speed and accuracy greatly if he had some definitive sense of exactly where the ingredients were when he cast the spell. Multi-Shaping. 3/15 Bent remaining. Calvin closed his eyes and pictured the bar of magnesium with big holes drilled through to aerate the top half. These holes were stuffed with God¡¯s Fire and a tiny flake of the reactive metal. The magnesium appeared on top of the rock buried in a mound of thermite. Just like Elliot had showed him, the god¡¯s fire ignited the magnesium, the magnesium ignited the thermite, and in a moment, the boulder had a smoking hole in the top where the thermite had burned through. Oh, my god, I can¡¯t get enough of that. Although it took three seconds for you to visualize it all properly. We gotta work on your draw speed, kid. At least it actually caught this time. That¡¯s more important than speeding up and risking a dud. Why don¡¯t you hop in the back, and we can do some Shadow-Boxing? Can¡¯t, I¡¯m working out. Working out is so boring! Elliot exclaimed petulantly. Savages work out. Real wizards only need their minds. I don¡¯t disagree, but wouldn¡¯t it be stupid not to take the opportunity to have both? And isn¡¯t being smart rule number one of being a wizard? The first rule of being a wizard is that people are stupid and will believe things to be true if they want them to be true, or are afraid they might be. Sounds more like a rule for ruling weak-minded masses. Pretty much. ¡°What in the Abyss was that?¡± Nadia asked, craning her neck to look over Calvin at the hollowed-out, smoking boulder as they passed. ¡°A spell I¡¯ve been practicing,¡± Calvin said. ¡°It¡¯s too slow for fighting with, but you never know when you might want to melt something on command.¡± Amen. Nadia gave Calvin a curious glance, dropping down to his belt stuffed with various vials, woods, and bars of metal, then she shrugged and got back to pulling the wagon loaded down with luxury goods. Calvin didn¡¯t want to destroy Maggie¡¯s or anyone else¡¯s entire family business, so he didn¡¯t resell any of the lace in Mujenan, instead pawning a few select pieces of Scrimshaw art that his Knick-knacks had made with coral, shell and mother of pearl, in order to buy several more bolts of silk along with the materials his Knick-knacks would need to make more art: Stains, dyes, paints, laquer, that sort of thing. Come to think of it, no matter where he went, he was taking money out of the hands of someone by cornering a market as thoroughly as he was planning. You wanna make an omelet, you gotta break some eggs. You¡¯ve literally killed hundreds of people. Think of this as defunding Uleis to weaken their position while Kala negotiates, and try not to think of all the thousands of people that will probably starve when you put them out of a job. Gee, thanks. Just putting things into perspective. Moving up in the world crushes the people beneath you. There¡¯s no way around it. So helpful. Still gonna do it? Calvin glared out at the road in front of him. I¡¯m still gonna do it. Thattaboy. A few minutes later, they crested the rise, and Calvin¡¯s company came into view, along with Kala¡¯s oversized carriage covered in vibrant decorative plumage, along with her similarly plumed Royal Guards. ¡°Gotta go,¡± Calvin said, slipping out of the yoke, leaving Nadia to pull the wagon on her own. She gave a tired grunt and kept pulling while he ran ahead of his caravan of luxury exports. Calvin jogged up to his company, in as dignified a manner as he could. Grant was chewing his lip and shaking his head as he watched Calvin approach, while Lieutenant Veyers stood at strict attention. ¡°You¡¯re here early.¡± Calvin said as he approached. Calvin had been intending to have everything set up by the time anyone arrived. ¡°Grant suggested that the Hash¡¯maje might appreciate us being early, and it paid off.¡± Veyers said nodding at the fancy carriage. ¡°Do you have identical octuplets in black leather pulling your wagons?¡± Balud asked. The green-sashed engineer was standing at the front of the assembly with another two dozen or so curious onlookers. Calvin glanced over his shoulder at the caravan of eight identical wagons, each pulled by a separate Nadia in her typical black leather. That¡¯s gonna suck in the desert. At least we¡¯ll find out if a Chained Spirit can suffer from heatstroke. ¡°No.¡± Calvin said, turning back to the assembled men. ¡°Who here¡¯s got Strength or Endurance below their Body?¡± A surprising fraction of his men raised their hands. ¡°Excellent. Those of you with your hands up, join the octuplets in pulling the wagons. Those of you with your hands down¡­ find a seat in the wagons if you can, and the gods help you if you get confused about which group you¡¯re in.¡± The hundred and eighty-seven men and women hustled to do his bidding. ¡°Why is Nadia pulling the wagons?¡± Kala asked as she approached, trailing her guards. The first wagon was coming to a halt in front of them as Kala stopped to talk to him, putting the three of them within earshot. ¡°I didn¡¯t have the money for Guar. Besides, she doesn¡¯t need to eat.¡± At Kala¡¯s horrified gaze, he shrugged. ¡°She likes being abused.¡± ¡°He¡¯s lying.¡± Nadia said, her voice iron. Her gaze told a different story. ¡°You know I can literally tell what you¡¯re feeling, right?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at her. Nadia growled and pulled the wagon away from them. ¡°I don¡¯t really get it, but it is convenient.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not for me. I prefer dashing knights and romance.¡± Kala said, holding a hand over her chest. ¡°Followed by animalistic lovemaking, right?¡± Kala¡¯s guards stared at Calvin with bloodshot eyes. ¡°Ella told you about the books, didn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just say she¡¯s recently acquired a profound interest in learning to read a certain kind of literature recently, and it wasn¡¯t me that introduced her to the Cave Gardor series.¡± Calvin crossed his arms with a smirk. There was only one place those books could have come from, and they offered a little window into what made Kala tick. Kala stepped near, her scent tickling his nose, slender body so close his enhanced senses could make out every curve. It was intoxicating. Then Calvin notice her scowl. ¡°You tell no one, understand?¡± She whispered harshly, poking a finger into his chest¡­hard. Maybe hard enough to draw blood under his shirt. ¡°I was mistaken,¡± Calvin said loud enough for her guards to hear it. ¡°And terribly rude.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right you were.¡± She said with a sniff. Ella approached as Kala walked away, her posture impeccable. ¡°Was it just me, or did I just piss her off?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Was she wearing the gold earrings or the pearl ones?¡± ¡°Why does that matter?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Because you flirted with her while she was Diplomat Kala. Didn¡¯t you get the message at the market?¡± ¡°What message?¡± Calvin demanded, testing the skin of his chest for abrasion. ¡°The conversation we had? Different earrings for different things?¡± ¡°What does that have to do with anything?¡± Ella narrowed her eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t have very high natural Intuition do you?¡± ¡°Why does everyone say that?¡± Cuz it¡¯s true. But you¡¯re not totally to blame for this one, women are staggeringly better at communicating via body language. You were literally missing out on one out of every three ideas communicated on that date. The low Intuiton doesn¡¯t help, either. ¡°Kala can¡¯t be your friend all the time, especially not one you flirt with, while she¡¯s being followed around by her father¡¯s goons. The earrings are indicative of when it¡¯s safe to talk to her.¡± I did not get that from the conversation last week. ¡°Why can¡¯t people just be¡­What they are all the time!?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°It¡¯s about the roles we play in society.¡± AAHAHAHAHAHAH, you¡¯re getting lectured about propriety by a cannibal savage! There was a thump and the crashing of furniture as Elliot continued to howl with laughter. ¡°Okay¡­fine.¡± Calvin said, taking a calming breath. ¡°I¡¯ll mind my behavior, but you guys have to tell me what you¡¯re thinking¡­with words. Because I understand words. I don¡¯t understand¡­¡± Cavin winked twice and nudged Ella¡¯s arm with his elbow. ¡°You just insulted my mother.¡± Ella said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Nah.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 69: Sand in my Crack +2 Endurance, Strength, Kinesthetics. Sense Grafting has reached level 14! Stealth has reached level 8! 40% correction. Knife Work has reached level 8! 40% correction. Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 7! 35% correction. ¡°It¡¯s funny when I stop to think about it,¡± Calvin said aloud, musing as he snapped off imaginary spell after imaginary spell in Shadowboxing, perfecting his ability to mesh multiple disparate ingredients together to create a whole. How¡¯s that? ¡°I was so excited about making a single glass eye five years ago, and now I¡¯m unsatisfied with the power to roast men alive and throw the entire economy of a nation out of balance. I still feel underwhelming, but if I take a few steps back and look at it objectively¡­I wouldn¡¯t wanna mess with me.¡± Being satisfied with what you have is a fairy tale. It¡¯s antithetical to life as we know it. besides, you¡¯ll need a lot more than eight wagons to bring an entire economy to its knees. ¡°Awfully cynical, but I guess I understand. If you didn¡¯t want things, you would die.¡± If you¡¯re not living, you¡¯re dying. Calvin cycled through his prefabs, whipping them out as quickly as he could: A self-lighting torch, made with cloth, wood, oil and a spark of god¡¯s fire. A suit of armor made from Jerrytanium, dragon leather, a bit of stabilizing oil, and cloth, Self-lighting thermite, Something Elliot called a grenade, and another he called a claymore, basically two variations of iron packed with Borus¡¯s Boomclay and a simple fuse. They really weren¡¯t more immediately useful than god¡¯s fire for killing things, but Calvin recognized how effective they would be if he were to acquire Permanent Split, seeing as they stored well and were ridiculously easy to use. Jerrytanium foam. That last one was strange, but apparently if he structured the bubbles small enough and just right, It would be almost as strong as jerrytanium and light as a feather. Needless to say he hadn¡¯t got the hang of it. Once Calvin was done practicing his prefabs, he shifted over to Sense-Grafting, followed by Knife-work and Stealth, finishing up the day by begrudgingly practicing his princess kidnapping skill. There were princesses in Uleis and it would be a waste not to kidnap them long enough to trigger the Bowser ability. Raising the correction of the Skill made it more likely that he¡¯d succeed and not get killed in the process. ¡°Why is it called The Bowser?¡± Calvin asked. It¡¯s named after a fictional character that kidnapped princesses, like, a lot. To a ridiculous degree. He was also a bit of a brute. ¡°Ah.¡± Calvin opened his eyes once the practice was over, surveying the miserable sight before him. The Gadveran troops were camped out on the top of a sand dune, hiding from the sun under a thick burlap sheet stretched out between the circled wagons protecting them from the constant wind and searing sun. The heat was so great during midday that stepping out onto the sand was like stepping onto frying pan. Wagons, as it turned out, sucked on sand. At least Gadveran wagons. It seemed like every hour or so Calvin was forced to use his Knick-knacks to unstick a wagon or push one back up the side of the dune, losing them valuable time before the next debilitating wave of heat. They¡¯d added a loop of wood around the wheels to spread them out, but that only partially helped, as the biggest problem was the daytime. He almost couldn¡¯t shadowbox, the temperature was so excrutiating. The military wagons that had been full to bursting with water when they set out were getting lighter every day: Worryingly so. The guide had told them the final oasis was nearby, and they would be in Uleis, but then disappeared in the middle of the their sleep schedule with a desert guar and a full barrel of water. That probably wasn¡¯t a good sign. After the fact, Calvin wondered if the man was a spy or simply looking out for himself. A week later, Calvin was down to four Bent, and had been forced to unsummon all except for one Nadia in order to conserve the remainder. Kala and Ella helped him out, and between the Knick-knacks smoothing the path ahead of them and making sure the wagons stayed on the dunes, they were moving¡­but Calvin wasn¡¯t sure they were moving fast enough to survive Calvin was pondering the problem of increasing either their pace or their water supply when the solution presented itself. Hiss-thump! A barbed shard of brown glass about as wide as his thumb and a hand and a half long buried itself in the wood beside his head. Calvin jumped to his feet and peered out into the blazing desert, where he spotted a dozen wide vessels, bone white and sliding across the desert sand as if it were water, propelled forward by the region¡¯s constant wind. A hundred or so men and women with grim expressions, wearing next to nothing, were carried along by the merciless blast of hot air toward them. Can humans survive that kind of heat? calvin mused to himself. It was hot as an oven out there. Balud had even cooked some eggs with nothing but the sand and sun to heat his pan. They can if they had a Skill for it, I imagine. You know who these people are? Dude, I was imprisoned for a thousand years. I don¡¯t know jack. The enemy wielded tiny dark brown bows, more similar to slingshots, really, and a handful were already taking potshots at the circled wagons. Others bore shields that seemed to be made of guar hide and clear glass swords that were nearly invisible from this distance. ¡°Enemy attack! Get on your feet and get behind cover!¡± Calvin shouted. ¡°Grant, get over here!¡± Grant ran up to where Calvin was standing behind the wagon, The hulking general covering himself with his four swords as he approached. ¡°What am I looking at?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at the approaching fleet of flat white ships with sails sticking far up above them. ¡°Desert pirates, I assume.¡± Grant said with a shrug, peering out at the approaching enemy. Presumably not the kind that sing and dance, either. ¡°Grant. I want those ships.¡± Grant broke into a grin. ¡°What do you need?¡± ¡°You go high. Up and over them,¡± Calvin said, pointing up. ¡°Massacre anyone that tries to get away. Tell Baroke to start working back to front, and focus on the ones who try to run. Everyone else can shoot back at their leisure.¡± ¡°What are you gonna do?¡± Grant asked. ¡°Haven¡¯t figured it out yet,¡± Calvin said, peering out at their boats. ¡°I don¡¯t want to destroy their sails with fire, the wind makes poison impractical, and the heat and sand makes wasps less than ideal.¡± Calvin glanced at the general. ¡°I¡¯ll get back to you on that.¡± Grant nodded, hopping onto two of his swords and flitting out the back of the camp and up into the air, wincing as he came out into direct sunlight. The man was even paler than Calvin, so it couldn¡¯t be pleasant. Explosions risk damaging the ships, heat as well¡­ grease or Webs, perhaps.. the grease would be absorbed quickly by the sand, and the amount of dust would make the webs less sticky... Stop overthinking the problem and buy yourself some time first, they¡¯re coming in hot. Calvin slipped the wand out of its holster, enjoying the way the wood felt in his hand. It was the first opportunity to try it out outside of practice, and his heart was hammering wildly at the opportunity to truly test it¡¯s effectiveness. Cavin took a deep breath and ducked his head out to see where the sandships were, then ducked back behind the wagon again. As long as he knew where they were, he didn¡¯t need line of sight. Calvin took two steps back, facing the wide wooden wall of the wagon, picturing the ships on the other side, continuing to move toward them. He focused on a jagged, circular-saw shaped piece of the marble at the end of the wand, wound up, rocking backward as he shifted his weight, turned his hips, and pulled back his arm. With a grunt, Calvin swung the wand forward as fast as he could, flicking it forward for that little bit of extra speed. Mass shaping. 3/15 Bent remaining. Thousands of tiny discs of Jerrytanium appeared on the other side of the wagon, sailing out into the turbulent desert wind, tearing through the air. Calvin glanced out and spotted no less than a quarter of the attackers clutching wounds from his attack. Now bleed. He unsummoned the blades, which unblocked the jagged wounds they created, bleeding out their victims, forcing them to deal with their wounds immediately or perish. Around him, the first Mujenan volunteers rallied, firing their longbows out into the hot wind. A lot of the arrows went off target, most of them in fact, but there were enough arrows landing to make the approaching raiders crouch behind their shields, close enough now to see the whites of their eyes. In the din of combat, there was the steady thrum of a steel wire as Baroke fired arrow after arrow over the heads of the leading pirates, dropping the ones farthest in the back. He even got creative, targeting the men at the rear of the ships who were responsible for steering their vessels. Calvin watched a single well placed arrow arc down into the chest of a well-muscled man holding a rudder-like piece of glass steady on the rearmost ship. The man¡¯s grip slipped, and the entire boat veered off the side of the dune and tumbled into the ditch, dropping several pirates off onto the hot sand in the process. The ones in front didn¡¯t notice a thing, attributing Baroke¡¯s high arcs to just another missed shot. People don¡¯t bother to look behind them when they¡¯re the ones charging. When the pirates were close enough, they drove their ships straight into the side of the wagons, causing the entire makeshift structure to slip and tilt violently as the desert men jumped over top the wagons, landing inside the Gadveran circle of wagons. Upon arrival, the desert raider realized that they were outnumbered. Baroke had personally disabled four of the dozen ship¡¯s drivers, stranding their occupants far behind the front line. Grant had swept in from above and butchered the contents of two of them, and so only half of the leadin Uleisian pirates were able to make it to the wagons, and many of them were wounded. Standing front and center, Ella, Kala and her bodyguards crushed the assault like an egg against a rock. In a matter of just under a minute, Calvin saw alarm travel through the eyes of the raiders as they swiveled their heads to see half their forces laid out behind them: some stranded far behind on the hot sand, others killed by a floating sword-man. They broke and ran, and the first Mujenan volunteers picked them off with relentless efficiency. ¡°Hold on!¡± Calvin shouted up at Grant at the top of his lungs as he swooped toward the handful of stranded pirates. The distant general looked over at him and then approached, standing on his floating swords. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how to sail these things,¡± Calvin said, pointing to the white ship buried in the side of his wagon. ¡°Leave the ones who surrender alive.¡± ¡°Got it.¡± The rest of the battle wound down quickly, and minutes later, Calvin was watching the company load the contents of the wagons onto their new transportation, using nets and cinches to keep everything from blowing away in the whipping wind. Movement off to his side caught his eye, and Calvin spotted Baroke walking out into the blazing heat of the sun, grimacing as his shoes absorbed the energy in the sand. What is he doing? Calvin frowned, watching Baroke walk past the team of Knick-Knacks pulling one of the capsized sleds out of the valley of the sand dune. There was nothing out there but bodies and heat. Damnit, Baroke, Calvin thought, jumping out into the sand and muscling past the instinct to hop around from foot to foot as his feet began to scream with pain. It was tolerable. Calvin broke into a jog and caught up with Baroke as the huge archer studied one of his kills. A thin young man who stared up at the sky with a gaping mouth as if he were suffocating. The sun had already dried out the man¡¯s lips, tongue and eyeballs. ¡°I just need to be sure.¡± Baroke said, glancing over as Calvin approached, hi fingers gently closing the corpse¡¯s eyes. ¡°Sure of what?¡± ¡°Sure I¡¯m still under my own control. Continuity, a sense of cause and effect, rather than detached repetition. I need to know for sure that I killed this man because that tells me I¡¯m not killing my countrymen.¡± ¡°You saved us a lot of trouble today,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Without you, we could have lost some people.¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t you have just killed them all with your magic, wizard boy?¡± Baroke asked, glancing over his shoulder. ¡°Probably,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°To be honest, I most likely could have killed them all with wasps infused with one of my abilities to make them stronger, able to resist the heat.¡± ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you?¡± Calvin considered it for a moment. ¡°At the time, I thought I wanted to conserve bent, but after thinking about it¡­One day I¡¯m not going to have Bent available, or I¡¯ll be somewhere else, and when that happens, I want the First Mujenan to be able to do their jobs. Solving all our problems with a wave of my hand is doing you a disservice.¡± ¡°Tough love, huh?¡± ¡°Something like that.¡± ¡°How do you do it?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°Think so cold.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t¡­feel very much Baroke,¡± Calvin said. ¡°The howling emotions inside you are a gentle whisper in me.¡± Calvin clapped Baroke on the shoulder. ¡°But that just means I don¡¯t have them, I just have to listen more carefully. ¡± Calvin glanced up at the sun and regretted it. ¡°Let¡¯s get back into the shade before we bake.¡± Baroke nodded. *** Sandships were fast. They were closer to sleds, actually, giant sleds entirely made of a perfectly smooth glass that had an easy to grip surface on the top and an impossibly smooth bottom that glided over the desert sand like a dream. He wasn¡¯t kidding about Uleisians being good with glass, Calvin thought, once again admiring the creations. The whole thing only weighted a hundred pounds or so and could carry up to twenty men. Incredible¡­ Calvin thought, running a palm over the smooth glass as they shot forward across the dunes at a pace that beggared belief, going as fast as the wind. How could glass be so light? It¡¯s probably just got bubbles in it, that¡¯s what¡¯s diffracting the light and making it appear white. Also why it¡¯s so light. The thing is mostly air. You¡¯re not gonna take this moment away from me by making this any less magical, Calvin thought, standing at the front of the sled, watching the distance disappear beneath them. We¡¯re gonna live! ¡°I¡¯ve got sand in my crack,¡± Ella grumbled, wrapping a protective layer of burlap around her. ¡°Everyone has sand in their cracks right now, Ella,¡± Calvin said, spitting out a bit of sand as the city of Uleis began to sparkle on the horizon. Macronomicon Enjoy! See you guys Tuesday! Chapter 70: Dark Dealings Kurawe Oquv, the silver haired leader of the Order of the Seeking Hand, slipped the rich silk robe over his shoulders. He¡¯d completed the ceremonial bathing, he¡¯d fasted ¨C well, mostly-. There was that sandwich. And the soup, and the beer. ¨C the ceremony was ready to begin. Can¡¯t kill people on an empty stomach, anyway, He thought as he strode down the narrow hallway, his robes held off the ground by a junior member of their order. Polluq¡¯s son might be keeping robes pristine now, but in forty years, he might very well be running this place, and enjoying all the benefits thereof. He strode with confidence, the stride of a man who other men back away from. Kurawe stopped in front of a heavy oak door, seemingly at odds with the flawless stone around them that seemed permanently wet, despite the heat of the desert sun, so many tens of feet above them that seemed to penetrate all the way down. ¡°You may go.¡± Ukfeh nodded and crept away obsequiously, leaving Kurawe alone in the hall. Once the boy was gone, Kurawe opened the door and stepped inside, experiencing that familiar rush of potential energy wash over him as the Warp in the room flooded past him. It was so thick in the air, it was almost difficult to breath. Kurawe had long since grown used to it. Control Heat. 42/44 Bent remaining. Delicate glass chandeliers flickered to life as Ukfeh applied his skill at glasswork to the tiny filaments, illuminating a circular chamber made of glossy black stone; The most sacred chamber of the Order of the Seeking Hand. In the center of the room was a hole in the floor that lead to¡­somewhere else. Somewhere not of Marconen, perhaps somewhere not of this world. Perhaps even the Abyss, he thought privately. Warp radiated out of the inky black pit like heat from an open oven. Kneeling in front of the pit were three men, bound and gagged, slowly coming to as the light in the room pierced their eyelids. Burega Tan, a young man who¡¯d made a name for himself with his magnificent talent at glasswork, and his invention of a far tougher flexible glass, that put significant pressure on Polluq¡¯s business with the Hash¡¯Maje. Kurawe didn¡¯t particularly want to get rid of Burega, as that weakened Uleis as a whole, but the fool wasn¡¯t interested in selling his knowledge to his betters. Burega bore the marks of a week¡¯s torture, designed to drag the method for his invention out by force. He¡¯d parted with it easily enough by Kurawe¡¯s reckoning, once his family was involved. Beside him knelt Kimbei Unsein, a dissident who¡¯d sought the ear of the Hash¡¯maje, speaking of renegotiating the trade agreement with the Cobalts, or gods forbid, granting them citizenship. That alone was enough to Test him. And the third was Jaq Turo, a herald who¡¯d mispronounced Kurawe¡¯s name. Gotta pad the roster sometimes. Kurawe took his place by the podium, resplendent in his vibrant silks, ignoring the muffled queries as the binded men tried to speak. Moments later, three more doors opened around the room, and the remaining eleven members of the Seeking Hand strode into the chamber. ¡°Welcome, brothers,¡± Kurawe said with a smile, his gaze scanning the faces of eleven of the most powerful men in the city. Uleis was the most powerful city in the country that had been named for it, and Uleis was the most powerful country in the world. Therefore, it took no stretch of the imagination to come to the understanding that these eleven men were the most powerful in the world, each one controlling a vast industry with roots that branched out, reaching deep into neighboring countries and beyond. They entered, one by one, taking their places, as was tradition. ¡°Why do we have to do this boring crap?¡± Murak grumbled as he took his place. The skinny, red-robed man had sunken eyes and gaunt features that betrayed his callousness, even toward his own body. ¡°Could¡¯a just put a pick through their brain and dumped them in the sands. This is a waste of time.¡± ¡°Tradition. Same as every other time you ask.¡± Polluq said from the opposite side of the pit, standing in front of the three Hopefuls. Polluq was Kurawe¡¯s right hand man and second in command. ¡°Baah,¡± Murak growled. ¡°Traditions are important,¡± Kurawe said gently as the rest of the members filed in, taking their places along the rim of the pit, basking in the Warp that emanated from the dark tunnel into the Marconen¡¯s crust. ¡°It¡¯s traditional that the order of the Seeking Hand cooperate, seek each other¡¯s council, and close ranks to hedge out all comers. Would you be where you are without tradition?¡± Kurawe¡¯s pudgy fingers opened the book of prayers on the podium in front of him. He didn¡¯t need to look at the words anymore, but it helped get him in the right mindset for the ritual. ¡°It¡¯s not traditional, it¡¯s expedient.¡± Murak growled. ¡°Unlike this stupid ritual.¡± Kurawe didn¡¯t bother to respond, tracing his fingers over the words written down by their ancestor¡¯s ancestors, from a time even before Uleis had grown around the Siphon like a ring of fungus. ¡°We seek an enlightened soul.¡± Kurawe intoned, and Murak ceased his grumbling, aware that further dissent would be viewed poorly. ¡°We seek more like us, outcasts in need of safe harbor. Wandering souls exiled from their home, from their people, in search of community, purpose, and power. We regret the harm we have caused these lowly creatures, but we will never stop searching, casting our net among the exceptional and the revolutionary, Testing them, and adding those found worthy to our cause. The cause of the King-in-Exile.¡± He saw Murak stifle a yawn as he came to the end of his short speech. Amusingly enough, the speech used to be far, far longer, but Kurawe didn¡¯t have that kind of time. He nodded to Polluq. ¡°May you be found worthy.¡± Polluq said, shoving the young glassmaker into the pit with a foot. The man wasn¡¯t able to scream, but the two tied to him were able to give a muffled yelp before the steel chains stringing the three of them together drew taught and dragged the other two into the pit. A second later, there was no evidence of their existence at all, simply a black hole in the ground. ¡°Not getting those chains back,¡± Murak said, scowling. ¡°Piss off, pennypincher,¡± The robed figure beside him said. ¡°It adds up.¡± ¡°Now!¡± Kurawe said, clapping his hands together. ¡°Enough bickering. Let¡¯s discuss business.¡± ¡°You mean how Murak screwed us over by bucking the trend and backing the wrong country?¡± ¡°I backed no one. You idiots just bought a whore without checking her teeth and got burned.¡± ¡°Fuck you and your mixed metaphors!¡± One of the old men on the other side of Murak shouted, pointing a trembling, gnarled hand at him. ¡°You knew the Ilethan offensive would stall without your support and decided to get a leg over us!¡± ¡°What¡¯s it to you!?¡± Most powerful men in the world, and It¡¯s like bickering children, Kurawe thought as he carefully closed the revised prayer-book. He pulled an Amplifier out of his silk robe and held it to his mouth. ¡°Does anyone have any actual business to attend to? Polluq will be happy to escort anyone who can¡¯t act their age to the surface.¡± The members of the order clapped their hands over their ears as the sound reverberated through the small chamber growing more and more powerful with each bounce. Everyone except Asabei, who was practically deaf, anyway. Kurawe took the Amplifier away from his mouth to give it a moment to calm down. ¡°What!?¡± Asabei shouted, putting a hand to his ear. In the corner, one blue-robed member, one Ghuled Bassaan, raised his hand. Ghuled was a relatively new member, and he represented water and hydroponics for the city, replacing his predecessor after the man¡¯s untimely death. Too much orgy-ing with a heart condition, the poor bastard. At least he went out the way I think we all do. ¡°It¡¯s not business, per se, I just wanted to share the news and seek council. The princess of Gadvera arrived as an ambassador not two hours ago. I received notice shortly before we assembled.¡± The bickering men fell silent. The word was moving, and while they had their differences, they all had a nose for opportunity. ¡°I¡¯ll host her,¡± Murak said. ¡°I¡¯m the only one of you without incriminating ties to Iletha.¡± ¡°Guar shit!¡± Murak¡¯s detractor, one Orson Huul shouted. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t put your own money toward anything that wasn¡¯t a sure bet. You plan on bending the princess¡¯s ear, then forwarding the bill to the royal family! Well to the Abyss with that! I¡¯ll host her!¡± he said, jabbing his thumb into his chest emphatically. ¡°Okay,¡± Murak said with a sly smile. ¡°Oh, damn it all!¡± Orson screamed. ¡°What!?¡± Asabei shouted, his rheumy eyes scanning the dim room. ¡°Did Orson make a fool of himself again?¡± ¡°He had help!¡± Ghuled yelled helpfully into Asabei¡¯s ear. ¡°You bastard!¡± Kurawe tapped Polluq on the shoulder, gaining the brutish man¡¯s attention. He leaned in close. ¡°One day, all this will be yours,¡± Kurawe said as a scuffle broke out between Ghuled and Orson. ¡°Pass.¡± The two of them chuckled as they allowed chaos to reign for a while. It was good to get the blood pumping before the ceremonial orgy. ***Calvin*** Calvin was standing in a rich merchant¡¯s place of business, soaked in the scent of silks and spices that flowed through the man¡¯s hands like water. There were expensive lamps on the walls, luxurious rugs and the first wooden furniture he¡¯d seen in the city, gilded to boot. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like this,¡± The wizened said, running his fingertips over the lace. It was in a dizzying pattern that held the eye like firelight. Somehow different wherever one looked, but following some hidden logic that demanded the mind pay attention to it. ¡°It was my grandmother¡¯s life¡¯s work,¡± Calvin said, ducking his head in imagined pain at separating from the work of art. ¡°It was the only thing I could save from my house during the raid.¡± ¡°A wise choice.¡± The trader said. ¡°This is worth more than your grandmother¡¯s house and everything in it.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Calvin said with a hopeful smile. ¡°Thirty stones.¡± The cost of finished lace in Uleis was about eight and a half stone a yard, making it the third most expensive thing for its weight after Jush-powder and perfume. The best part was it didn¡¯t require a long process, special ingredients or tricky chemical processing, just labor. He had a bolt of thirty yards here, which put the retail price at two hundred and fifty-five stones, or a quarter of a Glimmer. Now, Calvin knew he would never get the whole price for them, because a merchant would never, ever, buy something for it¡¯s retail price¡­but thirty stones? That was a tiny fraction of the cloth¡¯s actual value. ¡°I see.¡± Calvin said, picking up the lace and heading for the door. ¡°Fifty stones then.¡± ¡°Carver down the street offered eighty.¡± Calvin said, glancing over his shoulder at the man¡¯s expression.¡± ¡°Gah, a hundred in coin and trade, then. And no more.¡± Calvin hesitated a moment to see if the man would go any higher, but apparently forty percent was the limit of the man¡¯s tolerance. It made since considering the small fortune he¡¯d offered. ¡°Alright, fine.¡± Calvin said, setting the bolt back down on the counter. ¡°I¡¯ve only got fifty stones,¡± The merchant said, pulling a large key out of a hidden pocket and ducking under the counter, coming back with a small lockbox full of gold and silver. ¡°This and a palm¡¯s worth of Jush powder, or a one pound bag of pepper.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never tried Jush powder.¡± Calvin said, eyeing the drug. It was something he¡¯d hear mentioned among the nobles in Gadvera, but no one ever really spoke to him directly about it. Calvin wasn¡¯t exactly in the in group among the nobles. The merchant chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s quite a trip, but you should probably resell it, if you truly want every stone in your pocket.¡± Calvin shrugged. ¡°The Jush powder.¡± The man stroked his goatee habitually a couple times before nodding, coming back with a tiny bag of dark blue powder along with a hefty sack of gold. ¡°K¡¯vothe bless your newfound wealth. Pleasure doing business with you¡± The merchant said. Oh, it won¡¯t be in the morning, Calvin thought, smiling as he left the glass mansion. Everything in Uleis was made of glass. The road, the buildings. Spiralling Towers that made Gadveran¡¯s stone ones look pathetic by comparison. There was every color of the rainbow, although the tops of the buildings were usually black. When Calvin asked about it, they spewed something about cooling, and Elliot tried to tell him about passive cooling, but none of it really made sense without a good visualization of what they were talking about. It didn¡¯t make sense to heat something up to cool it down. As Calvin was thinking about this, a fanciful glass carriage decorated with spiraling fluted glass rushed past him, before slowing to a halt ahead of him. calvin¡¯s feet steered around it. ¡°Young man!¡± a fat old man said, leaning out the side of his carriage. ¡°Wait!¡± Calvin frowned, pausing to look at the man, a winkled old Ulesian wearing far too many gold rings and silk. ¡°How would you like a job?¡± he said, giving him a gap-toothed grin. What the hell? Did you forget? You¡¯re super attractive right now via averaging. The old guy probably wants to suck your dick. Or vice versa. Hard to tell. Try and see if he¡¯s got a tongue stud. That should clear things up. Calvin glanced at his own dusky Uleisian skin and felt goosebumps raise up on his arms. ¡°My apologies,¡± Calvin said, performing a polite bow. ¡°But I can¡¯t accept your offer, as I have my own duties to attend to.¡± Hopefully his accent didn¡¯t give him away. The fat man¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Where are you from, young man?¡± Crap. ¡°North side of the city, my parents were immigrants from Gadvera¡­¡± ¡°Really? I should speak to them about job opportunities for their son.¡± ¡°They¡¯re dead!¡± Calvin said hastily. ¡°You can¡¯t talk to them, because they¡¯re dead.¡± Calvin, you fucking idiot! You just labelled yourself an easy mark! Double crap. He threw his bag of gold over his shoulder and started walking, but at a word, the carriage began rolling down the wide glass street, keeping pace with him. ¡°A young man such as yourself needs stability. I can offer that. A place to stay, and coin. How does one Stone a week sound to you?¡± the fat old man said. I can¡¯t take this back to our base of operations! Calvin thought, his ire growing. ¡°The finest silks, jaga fruit and all the wine you can drink.¡± Alright, that¡¯s it. Calvin turned toward the carriage, meeting the man¡¯s hopeful eyes as he set his feet shoulder length apart and crossed his arms, glaring the idiot down. ¡°I¡¯ve got better things to do with my time than fucking your mouth, ya old perv.¡± You need to learn some tact. The old perv¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Do you know who I am!?¡± he demanded, face growing red. ¡°Can¡¯t say that I do. Who do you think you are?¡± ¡°Leben, deliver the boy.¡± At the man¡¯s words, the carriage rocked, and Calvin saw a man emerge from the other side of it, a veritable wall of muscle. Time to go. Calvin bolted into an alley. The narrow space between the buildings ended in a wall, but that was no hassle. Calvin grunted, jumping from windowsill to windowsill until he reached the top of the shorter building, just in time for Leben to start his way up. ¡°Careful with the face!¡± the old man¡¯s voice echoed from the street. Calvin was crouched low, whistling a ditty in his head until Leben made it to the top of the building, his face emerging above the lip of the roof. He seemed a little surprised to see the young waif waiting for him rather than running away. Calvin delivered a vicious strike at the man¡¯s face while both hands were occupied with climbing. The Leben fellow was faster than he looked, able to take a hand off the wall to block Calvin¡¯s fist. The blade jutting from Calvin¡¯s knuckles, though, that skewered the man¡¯s palm, although he was able to pull it out of the way on muscle memory before it did more than cut his cheek. Calvin exploited the lapse in the man¡¯s concentration to deliver a knee to his knee-high face. Leben¡¯s free hand slipped off the wall and he tumbled backward into the alleyway. Calvin followed him down, landing knee-first on the man¡¯s chest with a satisfying crunch, surely breaking a few ribs. This time, the wide-eyed stooge didn¡¯t block, and the knife sank deep into the man¡¯s skull. Knife Work has reached level 9! 45% correction. ¡°Leben? Do you have him?¡± the voice called from the street, and Calvin was tempted to go further¡­but no. He didn¡¯t want to kill a rich old man on the street in front of dozens of witnesses. Now was the time for discretion. Calvin pried open the man¡¯s teeth and seized his tongue, callously yanking it out before he lopped it off with the razor-sharp knife. Consume. 8/15 Bent remaining. Native Uleisian learned. Now I don¡¯t have to worry about the accent, Calvin thought, climbing back up the wall with agile leaps. **** ¡°How did it go?¡± Nadia asked as Calvin arrived with his bags of gold and Jush powder. She was sitting in the back of a reassembled wagon, counting coins and luxury goods. ¡°fifty stones for the lace, fifty in Jush powder,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Jush pile is over there,¡± She said, making a mark on her tallying notebook and pointing at a relatively small pile in the corner of the wagon, about the size of a small child, next to the much larger piles of nem dust, spices, gold, and art. ¡°Had some trouble with a rich old man who thought my dick was for hire,¡± Calvin said, shivering the goosebumps out. ¡°You too?¡± A copy Calvin said, wearing the pretty face of a woman averaged from the women¡¯s bathing house. They didn¡¯t want to present the same person, to make things harder for him to track. ¡°Gave me the heebie jeebies.¡± He dropped another roll of silk off on top of the pile of busy Knick-Knacks while Nadia tallied up the value of the rest of the things he brought. ¡°True,¡± an older-looking copy said, dropping off his load of gold and goods. ¡°Our beauty is a curse.¡± ¡°Take from the outgoing pile!¡± Nadia snapped as the copy bent to pick up some salable goods. He winced and tiptoed over to the outgoing pile that had already been written off of their total wealth. ¡°How are we doing?¡± Calvin asked as the copy skulked away. ¡°We¡¯re only a quarter of the way done with the merchant¡¯s district, and eleven percent done with the noble quarter. We¡¯re finding it hard to penetrate.¡± ¡°Hah, penetrate.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve only got one night before word gets out that these rolls of lace are valueless via saturation, so we¡¯ve got to take the city for everything we can get. Which means, I need at least a hundred more Calvin¡¯s, now.¡± ¡°So demanding. How¡¯re your alternates?¡± ¡°They¡¯re set up in the brothels. Just give the word.¡± Calvin focused and copied himself eight times, dropping his Bent to nothing as the clones blinked in confusion a moment before getting to work checking the map of the city and marking off shops with red x¡¯s as they claimed them. ¡°Word.¡± Bent began flowing into him as distant Nadia¡¯s laid hands on his hired batteries. 1/15 Bent remaining¡­ Bent rushed into Calvin at a speed that seared his veins. 17/15 Bent remaining. Warning, overexposure to Bent has raised body toxicity by 18%! ¡°Stop!¡± Calvin shouted as his veins began to ache throughout his body. ¡°Your Stability is so pathetic. I could kill you if I wanted to, couldn¡¯t I?¡± Nadia said with a malicious grin. ¡°It¡¯s no big thing to be able to kill yourself,¡± Calvin said, making seventeen more copies of himself, who took a moment to orient themselves before grabbing loads and marking off the buildings they planned on selling their wares. ¡°Hit me again.¡± Body: 16 Strength: 11 Kinesthetics: 11 Endurance: 11 Mind: 24 Intuition: 15 Stability: 15 Will: 24 Bent: 2/15 Skills: Stealth 8 Talking to Girls 10 Acting 9 Read Expressions 9 Sense-Grafting 13 Knife-Work 9 Dupdomancy 15 Hunting 10 Meditation 15 Chained Spirit 15 Calvinian Summoning 15 Your Princess is in Another Castle 7 Fishing 5 Genosian Language 5 Beli Ma 6 Macronomicon Welcome back! Hope your weekend was great! I know it''s Tuesday and all, but...Eh. Close enough. Patreon just hit chapter 93 for those who suck at waiting. Although if you do not suck at waiting, I suggest you hold off until the turn of the month if you wanna get the most bang for your buck. How about them moneymaking schemes, eh? Chapter 71: Thank you, gracious hosts ***Orson*** ¡°Someone killed my poor, sweet Leben!¡± One of Orson¡¯s men, a waddling merchant who oversaw a large part of Orson¡¯s Cobalt imports, blubbered in front of him like a child, pressing a silk hanky into his dripping nose. ¡°I don¡¯t have time for this,¡± Orson said, flipping through the reports with increasing ire. In one night, someone had just sold lace around town in quantities that dropped the value to barely more than the silk it was composed of. A precipitous fall. ¡°Please, sir, you have to do something. There was this handsome young man¡­so handsome, and yet, Avashniel¡¯s fruit. Riddled with venom and worms on the inside. I generously offered to give him a job, and he attacked without provocation.¡± Translation: I tried to bribe a young man into having sex with me, and when he refused, I sicced my servant on the man, who was then killed in self-defense, Orson thought, rolling his eyes. A thought occurred to Orson. ¡°Wait, you said he was handsome?¡± The reports were incredibly varied, some of the people who sold the lace were older, some younger, some men, some women, but two thing all the suspects had in common was that they were rather attractive, and had a slight Gadveran accent. ¡°Oh yes, he had such a lovely androgynous face, I could hardly tell if he was a man or a woman, just imagine getting your hands on soft man-flesh like ¨C¡° ¡°Shut up. Did he have a Gadveran accent?¡± Orson asked. ¡°Well, yes, he said his parents were Gadveran and he was an orphan.¡± ¡°Uh huh.¡± Orson said, chewing on his lip as he thought. There had been a rather significant spike in the murder rate last night, as more than one shady merchant had hired goons to tail these sellers back to their abode and retrieve the money they¡¯d spent on the valuable silk, essentially making twice the profit. Everyone who¡¯d had eyes on the people had been disposed of, one way or another. Except the fat pedophile in front of him. ¡°Did the boy you met have a bolt of cloth, or a sack of coin?¡± ¡°Come to think of it,¡± The merchant said, tapping his pudgy fingers against his corpulent lips. ¡°He was carrying a bag with the East Bole Trading company¡¯s seal on it. It looked heavy. You think he had gold in there?¡± ¡°I¡¯m asking the questions. What direction was he going?¡± ¡°West on seventh avenue. I remember because I was headed to a delightful-¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± West of the East Bole, huh? Orson thought, scratching his chin. More reports were sure to come filtering in, and he would slowly cinch the noose around whatever fool had the balls to make a fool of Uleis. And when I find them first. I¡¯ll pocket the fortune they¡¯ve scraped together and add it to my own. ***Kala*** ¡°Cast away your possessions!¡± The shaggy beggar cried, jumping in their way as they tried to walk past him, wearing salvaged leather rags. His eyes bulged with zealous energy. ¡°Join me on the path to the divine!¡± ¡°Get lost,¡± Orson¡¯s bodyguard said, shoving the ragged man aside as they walked toward Orson¡¯s mansion after a failed attempt to arrange a meeting with the Hash¡¯maje. To Kala¡¯s eyes, Orson looked like a slimy white worm. The worm had razor sharp barbs hidden against its soft flesh to deter predators, and a vicious ring of teeth for it to suck blood from it¡¯s prey. This stuff is interesting. Kala thought, patting the king¡¯s ransom of Jush-powder in her purse. Ever since she¡¯d gotten the Skill, she¡¯d made a point of seeing how different drugs interacted with Seer. She¡¯d never used Jush powder before, but it seemed to afflict her with waking dreams and hallucinations without affecting her lucidity too badly. Although if something truly strange happened, Kala might not be able to react to it in time, considering how numb she was to the bizzare at this point. The potted plant with golden leaves pushed himself off the ground and skittered away into the alley before Orson¡¯s bodyguard pressed the issue further. The worm beside her was squirming around a glass vial of scintillating golden water with a large crack in it. Try as it might, the golden fluid leaked through the slimy coils of the worm. ¡°Does something upset you?¡± Kala asked as they walked. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nothing to bother yourself with, my dear.¡± ¡°Please, Mr. Huul, It¡¯s my job to keep the finger on the pulse of Uleisan politics. My only goal is to come to an agreement that is mutually satisfactory, not tear you down. I need to know what¡¯s going on around me to do my job.¡± ¡°Hah,¡± Orson chuckled lightly. ¡°I suppose you¡¯ll hear it from someone sooner or later. Someone conned half the city last night. The merchant¡¯s guild is furious.¡± ¡°That¡¯s horrible. How were they conned?¡± ¡°We¡¯re not entirely sure, but rest assured princess, the matter will be resolved soon. When this mysterious organization tries to start throwing its ill-gotten wealth around, we¡¯ll get word, then we¡¯ll come down on them like the mountains of Bast. Thieves like that rarely have the self-control to simply sit on money.¡± Kala glanced over her shoulder, where Calvin was busily slipping solid Nem cufflinks into his pockets, giving her an embarrassed smile. Calvin didn¡¯t look like any creature that existed on Marconen. In her eyes, he looked like a realization. The sudden realization of inevitable death and never-ending torment. The realization that all things happen, and one would eventually experience all of them, no matter how awful. Starting now. It was hard to describe what a realization looked like, it was more about what it made her feel like, as she watched the rapidly fluctuating patterns of Calvin¡¯s soul. Simply looking at him with the jush powder in her system made her hairs stand on end, and her body to fill with an indescribable terror. She glanced away before the shadow inside him noticed her. Terror didn¡¯t affect her the same way any more, since she¡¯d taken Grounding, the Seer Ability that reinforced her mind¡¯s resilience against mind-damaging effects, including the mind-damaging effect of looking at things mortal eyes weren¡¯t ever meant to see. Actually, she kind of liked it, now. Just looking at Calvin was a rush of sheer terror that got her heart going in the morning. And the abs. I wonder what being filled with existential terror and filled with Calvin at the same time would feel like. I bet my heart would explode. Kala choked back a lewd snicker and turned her attention back to their host. Outwardly the man was nothing but gracious, but when pressed, he didn¡¯t seem particularly helpful. Matter of fact, he seemed more interested in assessing the state of Gadvera using her first hand account, looking for weakness. Kala talked Gadvera up, embellishing the truth in exchange for information about the state of Uleis, which was similarly disingenuous. It was Hash¡¯Maje this, Hash¡¯maje that, as if the Hash¡¯maje were some kind of indomitable demigod, stomping from place to place, fighting crime and negotiating trade deals. Kala personally knew how far a single Hash¡¯maje¡¯s energy could take him, and the singing of the man¡¯s praise didn¡¯t have the ring of truth. ¡°As a matter of fact, you can see the palace from here.¡± Orson said, pointing at the castle made of enchanted blue glass, a testament to the ingenuity of the Ulesians. The spires of glass that seemed far too fragile to ever stand on their own were surrounded by a net. A strange web of chains was interwoven with twelve anchors, holding the palace down to earth. Seer has increased to level 10! 50% Correction. +1 Intuition Please choose a - Huh. Kala thought, dismissing the notification as she studied the chains. She assumed they were in her head, since there was no possible explanation to use that much steel for decorative chains. Twelve chains. Twelve laws? twelve families, businesses, people? Something was controlling the power of the palace, and it came from outside of it. Good to know. She¡¯d have to do a little digging, but it was definitely good to have a hint to start her off, rather than believing a meeting with the Hash¡¯maje would eventually come. ¡°It¡¯s lovely.¡± She said. ¡°Indeed. The palace was built from Living Glass four hundred years ago by the greatest artisan of the day; Bebel Kush. It¡¯s the second greatest pride of our nation.¡± ¡°Second?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Follow me a bit further, and you¡¯ll see,¡± he said, smiling. A couple minutes later, they were at the top of the hill that housed Orson¡¯s mansion. When they crested the rise, a massive crystalline structure revealed itself on the other side of the hill. A field of needle-like spires of delicate glass rose high up into the sky, gently swaying as the wind blew against them. They must have been absolutely massive in person. ¡°The oasis alone is not enough to support such a large city, and so we make our own, by pulling it straight out of the air.¡± He pointed at a lump in the sand that stretched all the way to the city proper. ¡°Buried there is the line for the water that is piped back to the city.¡± Calvin got a contemplative look while looking at the lifeline, obviously considering a way to poison an entire city. She¡¯d need to gently remind him that that wasn¡¯t an option. Plus the damn thing was definitely guarded. ¡°Remarkable,¡± Kala said, her mind disconnecting from her mouth in a familiar way as she retreated inward to think. She had to figure out who or what was actually running the country and arrange a meeting with them, bypassing the Hash¡¯Maje entirely. The idea of freeing the Hash¡¯maje from the tyranny of those controlling him was¡­dumb. A political coup was not the ideal outcome, so she shoved that errant thought aside. Besides, the Hash¡¯maje was probably just as much of a bastard as those controlling him. She needed to continue to seek audience with the leader of the country to maintain appearances of course, but she also needed to find out who the twelve chains belonged to and what they wanted, so she could negotiate some kind of deal rather than cool her heels here indefinitely. Work, work. Nothing but work in her busy schedule, when Kala would rather sit on the hillside with her crush, watch the scintillating spires of glass bow like grass in the breeze, and make out. Kala took a deep breath, shored up her princess face and got back to work. ***Calvin*** ¡°Hold on there,¡± one of the guards at the fanciful gates of Orson¡¯s mansion said, placing a palm on Calvin¡¯s chest as he tried to follow Kala through the gate. Calvin glanced down at the hand on his chest, not quite comprehending. ¡°Only the Princess¡¯s personal bodyguard past this point.¡± ¡°So¡­where are we supposed to stay?¡± Calvin asked, glancing back at the line of two hundred soldiers behind him. ¡°Mr. Huul only extends his invitation to the princess. You will have to seek shelter elsewhere.¡± ¡°My job is keeping her safe. How does that not include staying where I can see her?¡± ¡°It is not our duty to tell you how to do your job,¡± the smug bastard said with a self-satisfied smile. A glorified bellhop thinks he¡¯s better than me? I¡¯m gonna kill this guy. ¡°I suppose someone whose only duty involves standing in one place for hours at a time can suffer from debilitating heat-stroke, because I think you¡¯re hallucinating. Why don¡¯t you try saying that again?¡± ¡°Captain,¡± Kala said from the other side of the gate, shaking her head slightly. ¡°Probably not a good idea. why don¡¯t you find a place for your men?¡± Fine. FINE! ¡°Alright, but I¡¯m going to leave a couple runners here in case of emergency,¡± Calvin said, turning away. ¡°Grant, you¡¯re in charge. Take Ella and Carl along with half the company and set up tents here. The rest of us are going shopping for a place to stay.¡± Ever since the battle for Fort Choke, calvin had been working on Carl¡¯s movement and defensive skills, along with his Rally Skill, making him the perfect rallying point/bannerman. ¡°Why me?¡± Grant asked. ¡°You can fly, and if it becomes an emergency, I know you won¡¯t choke.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll send someone with an update on our position ever two hours or so.¡± Calvin said. He gave Kala one last glance before he turned around and headed for the city proper. Behind him, Calvin caught a fragment of Orson¡¯s men wondering loud enough for everyone to hear, why on Marconen the Gadveran royal family had decided to send someone so young to lead Kala¡¯s guard. Not quite that politely put, though. Calvin stomped down on the urge to respond with violence. His behavior reflected on Kala and Gadvera in general, after all. Poisoning the entire city is starting to sound pretty appealing right now. Not that Calvin had the means to do so. He needed to bankroll a base of operations for his company, and he had to do it without attracting too much attention from the people who were already trying to strike back against him. Conning, my ass. Calling me a thief when every single one of those merchants offered a price so far below market value it should have been criminal. Trying to steal a poor man¡¯s inheritance, is what it was. We could try buying debt. Say what? Calvin thought. When a moneylender loans someone money, they have a piece of paper that says how much they¡¯re owed. Often times this piece of paper includes a right to collect collateral. Ownership of this piece of paper is transferrable, and is often traded back and forth between lenders like money. What would we do with it? Generally, the idea is to grab people by the short hairs. Buy some rich guy¡¯s debt, then collect the collateral, I.E. his house. You can also use it to force people to do your bidding. It¡¯s great fun. Sounds like a plan, but I think Nadia¡¯s more suited to that job than I am. True. How am I supposed to explain where I got all this money, then? What are you talking about? You think Gadvera would send it¡¯s finest unit abroad without the money they need to stay solvent? That¡¯s exactly what they did. I suspect General Andra knew what I was planning. Uleis doesn¡¯t know that. Could explain where you go the money. ¡°Hmm..¡± Calvin held out his hand as he walked toward the hospitality district. He¡¯d probably have to rent out an entire inn for the first couple nights, but after that, he needed a more long term solution. Chained Spirit. 11/15 Bent remaining. ¡°What,¡± She asked, arms crossed. ¡°I want you and Baroke to go around the moneylenders and see if you can sniff out someone who owns a mansion big enough to house the company and enough debt for us to tear it ruthlessly out of his hands. Sound like fun?¡± Nadia gave him a feral grin. ¡°I spent the last two days in all the brothels in town. I already have someone in mind.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 72: The Tan problem Jinsei Tan, or Crackle to his friends, of which he no longer had any, tried to liberate the last few drops of precious alcohol from the stubborn rim of his flask with his tongue. My brother¡¯s been missing a week, my father¡¯s dead, my fianc¨¦e was withdrawn, and my father¡¯s company is rapidly circling the drain. Not all was lost though. Once his brother began selling Jin¡¯s new glass, everyone would want a piece of them. Better armor, better weapons, and best of all, it was enchantable, unlike so much other tempered glass. With an enchantment, it would be the stuff of kings. The Hash¡¯Maje himself would contract them. Just a matter of time before we¡¯re riding high again. As soon as Bur fishes himself out of whatever fancy heiress he¡¯s gotten himself into. Whores were better than an heiress in every respect. Kind, gentle, empathetic, down-to-Marconen, better shape, knew their way around a pole. Every respect. Well, except for money, but I¡¯ll be the one with the money. Maybe I¡¯ll ask Candy to marry me once this all settles down. She seems like a keeper. It was at this moment, the curtains of his pleasure booth were yanked open, revealing two rather large bouncers. The woman pumping the bellows took this as a sign to be somewhere else, rolling away from him with a rather bouncy spring. Candy sure is athletic. Suddenly there was nothing between him and the bouncers, except for his winning smile. ¡°What can I help you wi-Ack!¡± The two bouncers reached forward and hauled him off of his pillow-fort and up to his feet, dragging him out of the booth, naked as the day he was born and hard as a rock. The excitement wasn¡¯t helping things either. Outside the booth was the madam of the establishment, a dour-faced foreign woman with steel grey hair, who reminded him a bit of a sand-gulper, but Jim kept that to himself. In her youth, she¡¯d been incredibly popular due to her exotic features, and had managed to save enough to open her own brothel. ¡°Ms. Kampfer, lovely to see you.¡± Jinsei said, strung between two heavily muscled men. ¡°Your tab is due,¡± she said staring him in the eye. ¡°Pay up.¡± ¡°Well, you see,¡± Jinsei said, his eyes involuntarily sliding away from hers, ¡°I reinvested most of my money into my business, and It¡¯ll take a while before it comes back around to me again.¡± She didn¡¯t look surprised. The madam took a long puff of Murkweed and blew the smoke it in his face, prompting a cough. ¡°You¡¯ve been a good customer in the past, Jinsei. Never caused trouble, always paid on time. A few of the girls even like you.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Jinsei asked eyebrows raised. ¡°Which ones?¡± ¡°Which is why I¡¯m not going to have my boys break your kneecaps.¡± ¡°Oh, thank the gods,¡± Jinsei said, relaxing in the bouncer¡¯s arms. ¡°But I am taking your fine clothes in lieu of payment for the last week, and I¡¯m blacklisting you from having credit here ever again. From now on, if you walk through my door, you¡¯d better have cash on you, or we¡¯ll revisit the knee-breaking idea, understood?¡± Jinsei nodded emphatically. ¡°Get out of here.¡± ¡°What am I supposed to-¡° Jinsei started to speak, but the bouncers began dragging him through the brothel at a steady clip, the dim red light giving him glimpse after glimpse of debauchery as he was dragged past the booths. The second booth from the back showed an Ilethan girl enjoying the company of a man and a woman. Enthusiastically. She cast a blue-eyed gaze over to him and their eyes met for a frozen instant. She winked. I could have sworn I saw her at Gina¡¯s Palace like, two hours ago, Jinsei thought as he was dragged past her booth, out through the lobby where scantily clad women were dancing suggestively, and finally to the massive gilded glass door. Jinsei experienced a moment of weightlessness as he was tossed out of The House of Pleasure, right before his bare skin hit the rough glass of the street, back of his neck heating beneath the sizzling sun. ¡°So much for that,¡± Jinsei grunted as he pushed himself to his feet. Maybe Palla¡¯s Joy Den will take dad¡¯s gilded cigar box in trade, he thought, pushing himself to his feet. Heat Control. 6/8 Bent remaining. Jinsei tapped into his Bent and warped the heat around him and down into the enchanted glass of the street, making himself cool even under the sun¡¯s ire. He straightened up, meeting the eye of passerby with a grin and headed across the street to the Den. Jinsei had gotten five steps inside when a bouncer¡¯s meaty hand clamped down around his arm. The man was obviously a Veteran, as his grip was like iron. ¡°Jinsei, fancy seeing you here.¡± Madam Palla said, from behind the desk beside the entrance. ¡°You look less than dressed. ¡°A little trouble over at ¨C ¡° ¡°You¡¯re bankrupt, son.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Everyone knows you¡¯ve got not a pinch of dust to your name,¡± she said, her voice seductive despite the coldness behind it. ¡°I was hoping¡­barter? My father has a cigar box that-¡° ¡°Is it on you?¡± She asked, frowning and looking down at his less-than-dressed physique. ¡°Well, no, but-¡° ¡°Then no. If you show up without money again, you¡¯ll be blacklisted. Show him out.¡± The meaty fist yanked on Jinsei¡¯s arm and spun him around, giving him one last look at the jiggling dancers before he¡­ Wait a minute. The exact same young Ilethan woman was sitting on a bench, flirting with a hostess. Am I going crazy? She glanced over and winked. Yep. I¡¯m going crazy. No more Jush for me. The Den¡¯s bouncer was a lot rougher, and Jinsei did a little tumble before hitting the ground, smacking his face on the street and busting his lip, getting dirt and sand in the wound as he levered himself up to his elbows. ¡°Not, a great¡­day.¡± He muttered to no one as he pushed himself to his feet. Solutions¡­The solution was time. His brother would get back, rub elbows with all those fincy types he kept company, sell Jin¡¯s glass, and they would be rich. What if that doesn¡¯t work? What then? Maybe¡­freelance work? No, I owe far too much. Jinsei could make some trinkets, but it wouldn¡¯t make a dent in the amount his father¡¯s business owed, and if his brother didn¡¯t come back, it meant he owed that money. I¡¯m screwed. I¡¯ll be an old man shaping children¡¯s toys at the fair for dust at this rate. Jinsei felt the tears well up, and he crawled into the alley and wrapped his hands around his legs and began to bawl into his knees. The seedier element of the pleasure quarter didn¡¯t bother him, since he obviously had nothing worth taking, and he spent the next couple minutes simply wasting water into his knees, forced to face the reality of his situation. It was in the middle of his self-pity that a pair of fine black shoes paused in front of him, attached to a pair of fine legs, sealed into a ridiculous black leather outfit. That seems like a great way to die of heatstroke¡­ Sexy though. He glanced up, and spotted an exotic, fair skinned girl with wavy black hair looming over him. A second later she dropped a silk sheet over him, and he clutched it to his chest reflexively, the shame of his nudity finally dawning on him. ¡°Aww, there, there,¡± she said sweetly, stooping down to hug him, her breasts squishing into his stubble. ¡°Are you an angel? I¡¯ve been seeing you everywhere.¡± ¡°Nope, just someone with a soft spot for the downtrodden.¡± She said sweetly, stroking his hair. Jinsei knew it was a trap. Nobody would show him pity now, but he couldn¡¯t stop himself from blubbering into her chest. She held him until he calmed down, then guided him to her room at the Sandshrew inn, where they made passionate love, and he bared his heart to her, spilling all his problems into her sympathetic ears. ¡­ ¡­. ¡­¡­ Which lead to today. ¡°So this is the place, huh?¡± a young Malkenrovian spoke, eyeing the Tan manor as several hundred Gadveran soldiers stormed the place. He was maybe two years younger than Jinsei, and had his hands on his hips as he raided Jinsei¡¯s entire family fortune, porting valuable books, furniture and luxury items out of the mansion and loading them into wagons. ¡°Yep,¡± Nadia said, ignoring Jinsei as she scanned the mansion, big enough to house a hundred craftsmen in it¡¯s heyday. ¡°A little small, but plenty of land to expand the compound.¡± The boy said, nodding. ¡°Absolutely excellent for the speed that you managed to get it.¡± ¡°I had to twist a few arms, but nothing serious. Once I worked my way up the chain, I think Murak was happy to liquidate his holdings. To him, it was a toxic debt, seeing as the mansion itself was only worth a fraction of the loan.¡± ¡°What are you doing!?¡± Jinsei shouted, struggling in the grip of the Gadveran soldiers holding his arms. ¡°Nadia! How could you do this?¡± ¡°This the guy?¡± the malkenrovian boy asked. ¡°Yep, Jinsei Tan, last scion of the Tan family, a talentless hack, according to public opinion.¡± She gave jinsei an appraising look, and a hint of a smile crossed her lips. ¡°Well, mostly talentless.¡± ¡°After that night¡­ What we shared¡­you said you loved me!¡± ¡°You slept with him?¡± the boy asked. Nadia shrugged. ¡°So? I¡¯ve been sleeping with whoever I want with my off time. It¡¯s not like I have to worry about family, social status, getting knocked up, getting a disease, getting married, or any of a thousand things that used to matter to me.¡± She ticked off each of the things on one of her fingers as she spoke. The boy¡¯s brows raised, then he tilted his head and shrugged. ¡°Fair enough. Although I¡¯d appreciate it if you don¡¯t tell Kala about your exploits. I don¡¯t need her getting ideas.¡± He fished in his vest pocket for a moment, then pulled out an aged piece of paper, showing it to Jinsei. It had his father¡¯s signature, and a lot of zeros on it. ¡°You know what this is?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the loan my father took to stay in business, five years ago.¡± ¡°Indeed it is,¡± The boy said, putting it back in his vest. ¡°And this mansion was collateral, which means it¡¯s my mansion now.¡± Jinsei felt his stomach drop, as if the world had fallen out from under him. ¡°No. this is my home. This is where I grew up!¡± he shouted, struggling in the hands of the massive soldier holding him still. ¡°Jinsei. Jinsei!¡± the boy shouted in Jinsei¡¯s face, catching his attention. ¡°My name¡¯s Calvin, and it¡¯s my mansion now, there¡¯s no arguing about that, and I¡¯m going to fill it with big, sweaty Gadveran soldiers for the forseeable future.¡± ¡°Noooo¡­¡± Jinsei cried, tears streaming down his cheeks. ¡°Now the good news.¡± Calvin put a hand on Jinsei¡¯s shoulder and forced him to look him in the eye. ¡°You don¡¯t owe anyone, anything. You could walk out here right now and bring your skills as a glassworker to bear and rebuild your family fortune, if you wanted to. Or even leave, make the trip to Gadvera, Iletha, or Bole. There¡¯s nothing keeping you here, and Master Glassworkers are in high demand.¡± Jinsei blinked. The worst had happened. He couldn¡¯t actually lose anything more, and the boy was right. It could only get better. ¡°Now, a slutty bird told me that you claim to be both a master glassworker, and the inventor of a new technique that will put everyone else to shame.¡± ¡°I did say that.¡± Jinsei said, glaring at the traitor hussy, who grinned back at him. ¡°Now this is really important, because lying will get you killed.¡± Calvin said, glaring at him with an intensity that outstripped his age. How many has this boy killed? ¡°Were you telling the truth, or were you trying to impress Nadia?¡± ¡°¡­It was the truth. My brother¡¯s better with people, more reliable, so he claims he crafted it, makes it sell better.¡± ¡°More reliable?¡± Calvin asked, raising a brow. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s got low Stability and Will, makes him flighty and prone to excess.¡± Nadia said. ¡°Nuh-uh!¡± ¡°I tracked you through three brothels, until you landed naked in a gutter!¡± The massive thug holding Jinsei still chuckled, ¡°At least he¡¯s not a sadistic bitch. I had to stop you from taking that banker¡¯s finger off.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure it seemed like that.¡± Calvin seemed to ignore the bickering and focus on Jinsei. ¡°What¡¯s your Mind?¡± he asked. ¡°Fourteen.¡± ¡°How many Breaks?¡± ¡°Two.¡± ¡°How many skills? ¡°Five.¡± Calvin clasped Jinsei on either side of his head. ¡°You are like a raw diamond with a great big flaw, but with the right effort, we can cut around it and polish you into something worthwhile.¡± The Malkenrovian said with a bit of a crazed look in his eyes, boring into Jinsei¡¯s soul. ¡°Cutting¡­doesn¡¯t sound great.¡± Jinsei said. ¡°It¡¯s a metaphor.¡± He let go of Jinsei¡¯s head and pointed at his father¡¯s workshop. ¡°Jinsei, I just recently came into possession of a glassworks¡­How would you like to earn your family home back?¡± Macronomicon Sorry for the short chapter, but on the plus side, this is about as short as it''ll ever get for the forseeable future. I try to aim for 2.6-3k usually. Meet the starving artist! He doesn''t play a huge role, but he was fun to write for a chapter. Chapter 73: Always Bring a Rubber ¡°The first step is to mix your composites. The enchanting layer needs the most flex so we add a little extra softening agent to the silica and Nem mix. Cobalt keratin, if you were wondering.¡± Jinei sat crosslegged in front of three ceramic bowls, happily in his element as he demonstrated the glass procedure to Calvin and his friends. ¡°You mix Dust in? You¡¯re practically burning money to make that stuff.¡± Baroke said, frowning. ¡°Where do you think the enchanting comes in?¡± Jinsei asked with a smug raised brow. ¡°I can still throw you outta here,¡± Baroke said, but he stopped talking at a look from Calvin. ¡°So what now?¡± Calvin asked, as Jinsei finished carefully mixed blue and white powders, along with pinches of other fine ground dusts that he didn¡¯t bother to explain. ¡°Now we work it.¡± he said, tapping his mixing whisk on the last bowl for a moment before touching a hand to each bowl. At his touch, the fine sand in the bowl became red hot, and in a few moments, a glassy pool of goop filled each bowl. ¡°Now,¡± Jinsei said, reaching into the bowl and grabbing the wad of red-hot glass. ¡°Ah-¡° Calvin wanted to stop Jinsei from burning his hand off, but it was already too late. The glassworker didn¡¯t scream in pain, writhe around or show any sign of cooking his hands, so Calvin just shrugged and shut his mouth as the glassworker dipped the wad of red hot dough in a fine black powder, then began stretching it out before looping it back on itself and stretching it out again. Now there were two lengths of glass stretched between his hands. Strangely the black powder didn¡¯t seem to melt, despite being red hot, keeping the glass from reconnecting to itself. It¡¯s like one of those old Japanese men making hand-made noodles. Sit your ass down, ¡®cuz this is gonna get good. There were two lengths, then four, then eight¡­ the number of glass noodle quickly became ridiculous as Jinsei kept going, until each strand was half the size of Calvin¡¯s pinky. Jinsei frowned and laid the glass down flat, pulling out a dark spatula looking tool and cutting the middle, giving him two handfuls of several thousand strands. Pretty sure he was aligning the molecules to make it stronger and more flexible. Then Jinsei took one handful and held it over the bowl of black dust. With a moment of concentration, all the black dust coating the glass noodles fell away, returning to the bowl, and the noodles began to incorporate with each other. ¡­yeah, I don¡¯t know how he did that. Jinsei took the incorporating noodles and laid them down flat, then grabbed his other noodles and repeated the process, putting them beside the first ones on his smooth metal table. he then picked up a glowing red ceramic rolling pin and expertly made each of the two lumps into equally sized striated sheets before laying them on top of each other, perpendicular to one another. Ah, that¡¯s the old soda bottle trick. What¡¯s a soda bottle trick? Those striations indicate much greater strength in one direction, so he¡¯s using them to reinforce each other¡¯s weak direction. Like two layer plastic soda bottles? No? Whatever. Jinsei moved on to the puddle of glass with Nem in it. The glass was much harder to work, and he had to pound it into a flat shape before adding it to the stack of glass. He followed this up with the contents of the last bowl, then folded the whole thing into an ingot. ¡°Any requests?¡± Jinsei asked, glancing over his shoulder as he worked the molten glass. ¡°Bow,¡± Baroke said without hesitation. ¡°Knife-damnit,¡± Calvin said a fraction of a second behind him. ¡°There¡¯s more than enough for both.¡± Jinsei said, forming the shapes with his hands as he worked. ¡°Sword, pen, goblet.¡± Nadia said in one breath. ¡°Brooch, shield, invisible sword!¡± Ella shouted. ¡°And that¡¯s probably the limit of what I have here,¡± Jinsei said, tugging off fist-sized balls of oozing glass with his fingers. ¡°Here¡¯s something to get you started, though,¡± Jinsei said, taking a pinch off and working it into a quick ball like a child with clay, until it was perfectly smooth in every direction. A moment later the glass marble cooled into a dark blue glass. Holy shit. It didn¡¯t crack. ¡°What am I supposed to do with a marble?¡± Calvin asked, looking down at the glass. ¡°Idunno. This?¡± Jinsei flung the marble at the ground, but rather than crack, the whole thing shot off the stone floor at incredible speeds, bouncing around the glass and stone workshop, leaving dents in the walls and floor until it eventually lodged itself in a thin ceramic cup. ¡°interesting.¡± Interesting? He made glass rubber with his bare hands! What¡¯s glass rubber? Exactly! That doesn¡¯t really tell me much. In nature, you can usually only have strength or toughness. If an object is strong, it¡¯s brittle. If it¡¯s weak, it¡¯s flexible, not prone to shattering. Okay. So he made glass rubber! With his hands! Still not getting it. It¡¯s a material that wasn¡¯t invented until humans were printing organs and taking vacations to other planets. Get your hands on this and don¡¯t let it out of your sight. Okay¡­ ¡°I call it Jinsei¡¯s Hardness.¡± Jinsei said proudly as Calvin tugged the marble out of the cup and inspected it for damage. The sphere was unmarred, still perfectly smooth. ¡°It¡¯s called glass rubber, apparently,¡± Calvin said, pulling a Jerrytanium knife out of it¡¯s sheath and pressing the edge to the surface of the marble. There was a faint clicking, scratching as the two extremely hard substances competed with each other. Calvin applied more force, but couldn¡¯t make one damage the other. Calvin saw a vice on the other side of the room and locked the marble in place while Jinsei turned his attention to Baroke, asking him questions about this draw length, weight and preferred size of his bow. Calvin covered his eyes and forced the knife edge down on the marble, using another clamp as a lever. Just at the edge of his strength, Calvin was able to see the edge of the blade dimple the surface of the glass. When Calvin pulled the blade away to check the glass, the dimple was gone. Damn. I know, right? Calvin checked the edge of the blade for damage, and found it still sharp. The glass was similarly flawless. How can it be back to normal? I saw it dimple. Rubber, dude. Looks like the blade is harder, but the glass is more durable. Jerrytanium doesn¡¯t really like bending. I like it. ¡°How much of this stuff can you make at once?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I can keep about sixty-four pounds of it hot at any given time,¡± Jinsei said, pinching off a double fist sized ball of glass and gradually massaging it into the shape of a bow. ¡°Naturally I can¡¯t work more than maybe ten or fifteen pounds at once without the right tools, as it tends to slump or spill out of my hands.¡± Calvin pursed his lips. ¡°What do you need to make this on a bigger scale?¡± ¡°It¡¯d be tough. I mean, the ingredients are common glassmaking supplies, but acquiring them is somewhat difficult. The price of refined Cobalt spine is expensive, and they aren¡¯t available anywhere but the Storm-Stretch group, who ship them in from the mountains to the north. Those same people are the ones who tried to get my brother to sell them the recipe, and refused to sell him the materials we needed to make it.¡± Jinsei cocked his head to the side. ¡°My brother was actually looking for another supplier when he disappeared. ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s probably dead,¡± Calvin said, thumbing his chin. He glanced over and saw Jinsei with his jaw dropped, the glass limp in his hand. Tears welled up in the glassworker¡¯s eyes and he threw down the unfinished glass before running out the door, bawling. ¡°Damnit, Calvin, he was this close to finishing me a new bow.¡± Baroke said. ¡°I thought you liked your steel one.¡± ¡°Yeah, but come on, this one would be custom made from magic glass. I want a magic glass bow.¡± ¡°Fair enough.¡± Calvin glanced over at Nadia. ¡°I want you to put Jinsei on a training regimen to work on his Will and Stability.¡± ¡°Why, ¡®cuz I slept with him?¡± Nadia said with a scowl. ¡°Because you¡¯re a princess. I assume you were put through a strict upbringing to shore up your mental attributes?¡± Nadia straightened, her crimson lips set stoically. ¡°You¡¯re damn right I was.¡± ¡°I give you permission to visit the horrors of your childhood upon that man.¡± Calvin said, pointing after Jinsei. She smiled maliciously and sauntered out after the weeping glassworker. Her leather-clad hips swayed hypnotically from side to side as she left, causing Ella, Cal and Baroke to stare after her for a moment. She did a real good job getting the information we needed to get this place¡­ Nadia made for an excellent spy, and she was able to extract exactly what they needed with a little well-placed sex, but her loyalty to Calvin walked the razor¡¯s edge. He could try to leverage her ability to be in more places than once and set her up as an information network and source of income by ordering her to work at the brothels, rather than simply patronize them. The question was; would she actually allow herself to be used like that or should he just let sleeping princesses lie? I say go for it. Worst thing she can do is say no, amiright? The worst thing she can do is kidnap an Ilethan sorcerer, force them to wipe my mind, making me only capable of eating, shitting and summoning Nadia, then killing the sorcerer and stick me in a dungeon somewhere deep underground for the rest of my life while she lives out her life in a semblance of normalcy. You¡¯ve really thought about this, haven¡¯t you? Yes. For all the responsibilities he gave her, Nadia was the one he had the least trust in. *** A couple days later, Kala was visiting to see how they were doing and share her progress on negotiations. Calvin was trying to talk to her in the main hall of the mansion when Jinsei¡¯s training regimen spilled over into their conversation. ¡°You call this clean!?¡± Nadia shouted at the top of her lungs, following a teary Jinsei who held a mop and bucket. ¡°You must think this is a joke!¡± Her eyes narrowed. ¡°I know what¡¯ll make you take this seriously.¡± She dumped pair of fried eggs and porridge onto the immaculate floor. ¡°Eat it!¡± she grabbed Jinsei by the scruff of his neck and forced him onto the floor, tears streaming down his cheeks. Damn. ¡°Did your family ever do anything like this to you?¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Kala asked, glancing over. At the scene of Nadia abusing their glass smith. ¡°Yes, or something similar.¡± She met Calvin¡¯s eyes. ¡°You can¡¯t learn to tolerate stress without a stressor, can you?¡± ¡°His Will is up by one and Stability by two already,¡± Nadia said proudly as she pushed Jinsei¡¯s head into the floor with her foot. Wow. No wonder all the princesses you meet have a screw loose. ¡°Wow.¡± Calvin echoed Elliot. ¡°Let¡¯s take this somewhere quieter.¡± Calvin said, guiding her to a side hall, where the noise of outside construction and Jinsei¡¯s protests couldn¡¯t penetrate. ¡°So I did some looking around, and there are a dozen major players in Uleis, and every new law, every edict that the country puts forward goes through the hands of one of twelve men, who own and operate huge swaths of Uleis¡¯s industry. Together, they form the chains I saw that keep the palace in check. It¡¯s a bit of an open secret.¡± Kala said. ¡°Okay, what am I supposed to do with that information?¡± Well, now we know who we¡¯re up against. The twelve men with the deepest pockets in the entire country, and six of them bet against Gadvera in the war, investing heavily in ILetha¡¯s victory. The other six abstained.¡± ¡°How about the Storm-Stretch group? Calvin asked, interested in finding out whether or not they could secure themselves a source of Cobalt spines for their glassworks. ¡°They¡¯re owned by Orson Haal.¡± Kala said with a shrug. ¡°Was Orson one of the ones who abstained from betting against Gadvera?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°No, he wasn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Eeewww,¡± Calvin groaned. ¡°That¡¯s¡­complicated.¡± It was also looking like it might be a pain to get their glassworks off the ground. ¡°You¡¯re telling me,¡± Kala said, rolling her eyes. ¡°What do you need me to do? My first instinct it to tear it all to the ground, but I¡¯ve come to understand that that¡¯s not always the best move.¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Hmm¡­for now, I need to push the right buttons to get a room in the palace, which will give me the same level of importance as the Ilethan Diplomat.¡± ¡°There¡¯s an Ilethan diplomat?¡± Kala frowned. ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t there be?¡± ¡°Oh, I suppose so.¡± ¡°Some Ilethan prince, or so I hear.¡± Kala said. ¡°So what are the right buttons?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°First thing¡¯s first, I need to weaken Orson¡¯s hold on me. And for that, I¡¯d like you to kick him in the balls.¡± ¡°Metaphorically or literally?¡± ¡°The Storm-Stretch group transports basic materials form one side of the desert to the other, and the are the biggest asset Orson owns. I want you to make him lose money. A lot of money. But you absolutely can¡¯t get caught.¡± ¡°I can do that.¡± Calvin said, crossing his arms. ¡°Good. While you do that, I¡¯ll try to make inroads with the moderates, see if I can tip them over to Gadvera¡¯s side. If I get enough of them, I might even be able to make some of those against us decide to cut their losses and change teams.¡± ¡°Sounds like a plan. You want me to kill the Ilethan diplomat?¡± ¡°What? NO!¡± Kala said, pinching him. ¡°Damn,¡± Calvin said, rubbing his side. ¡°I think I might be able to throw the man off his game though. Could help you get the upper hand.¡± ¡°Alright, but no killing.¡± ¡°No problem.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 74: No Accounting for Taste ¡°I¡¯m gonna kill him,¡± Nadia said, squeezing her fist as she imagined her brother¡¯s head popping off in her grip. The little puppet had it coming anyway. ¡°Who, Calvin?¡± the muscle-bound idiot beside her asked with a wry grin as they walked down the street. ¡°No, not him,¡± Nadia said, glancing over and up at the towering archer. Although Calvin¡¯s lack of reaction to her provocations was infuriating, it wasn¡¯t enough for her to kill herself over. The casual disregard for her safety and her behavior was nice, but it didn¡¯t quite scratch the itch. Why she¡¯d been paired with the simpleton was beyond her. Perhaps Calvin felt Baroke provided some much-needed perspective into the dimly lit minds of the rabble. ¡°Who then?¡± ¡°My brother.¡± Nadia said, eyes narrowed. ¡°He¡¯s an insufferable cunt.¡± The prince had been engineered from birth to be as charming as possible, and as a result, the little ambassador was as fake as they came. Sycophantism in the flesh. ¡°Just him?¡± Baroke asked, earning himself a cold look. ¡°I remember a certain meat-headed lug who couldn¡¯t force his way out of a control spell if the lives of his countrymen depended on it.¡± Nadia snapped, intent on hurting him back. Baroke caught her under the throat and slammed her skull against the nearby glass building, making her see stars. A rush of disgust at being touched by such a warm-blooded simpleton flooded her body, and she couldn¡¯t resist kicking him in the ribs. His side felt like it was made of hardwood. He acted like he didn¡¯t feel anything, and she glared at him through the lights. ¡°You¡¯re not a princess anymore,¡± Baroke growled, ¡°And you don¡¯t have the Bent to back up those words, either. Don¡¯t speak to me of Ilethan sorcery, ever.¡± ¡°Touched a nerve, did I? What are you going to do if I don¡¯t stop, kill this body and make Calvin summon a new one? Oh, maybe you can ask your friend to stop everything he¡¯s doing and punish me for you?¡± That actually doesn¡¯t sound half bad. ¡°Two weeks without existing. Two weeks being a passenger in Calvin¡¯s mind, unable to do anything.¡± Nadia¡¯s heart sank. Two weeks with nothing to do but listen to the man in Calvin¡¯s head drone on was a fate worse than being strung up and humiliated in the public square. ¡°He didn¡¯t give you permission to do that,¡± Nadia said. ¡°He did, actually. If I say the word when we get back,¡± He snapped his sausage fingers for emphasis. ¡°It¡¯s back in the bottle for you. And before you get any bright ideas, if I don¡¯t come back at all, you¡¯re back in the bottle until I¡¯m found alive and well. If not¡­¡± He let the idea hang in the air between them. Nadia thought about it for a moment, and smirked. ¡°Even if I killed you, he¡¯d be forced to use me again within a couple years. Your threats are hollow. Sooner or later, your death would be nothing but the faint memory of a teen, while I would continue on, unaging, immortal¡­and very, very convenient,¡± She slid her hand down his chest for emphasis. ¡°You really wanna risk that?¡± Baroke asked, slamming her back against the house again. ¡°For little old me?¡± ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± She said with a groan. ¡°Your life isn¡¯t worth a couple years of my time.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad we could come to an understanding,¡± Baroke said, dropping her back on her feet. ¡°Let¡¯s go visit your brother. And remember: you¡¯re not to kill him.¡± Gross, Nadia thought as she rubbed her neck where the soft-willed fool had put his meat-paws, continuing on toward the palace. She didn¡¯t ask to be so picky about men, it was just the way she¡¯d turned out. She knew plenty of other Ilethan noblewomen who¡¯d gladly worship the archer¡¯s body, but he was lacking some¡­Je ne sais quoi. Probably killing intent. She hadn¡¯t sensed cold will to end her existence, simply anger and frustration. The man wasn¡¯t a killer. Not by birth, anyway. The only people she¡¯d ever been deeply attracted to had been the Red-Light Ripper, and Calvin Gadsint. Lucky me, Nadia rolled her eyes as they came to the entrance of the Palace grounds. I wonder if the Ripper is still alive? I only left him enough food for a couple months, after all¡­ He¡¯s probably fine. The pale blue glass of the palace¡¯s twisted towers faded into the sky, nearly invisible against the clear vista. Toward the base of the palace, the glass turned purple where it was slowly expanding, gaining rooms and repairing damage over the last eight hundred years, pushing the dead blue glass up into the sky like fingernails or hair. Iletha would kill to know how the Uleisians had accomplished such a feat, but Nadia was fairly certain that even if they knew the technique, there was simply no way to reproduce it outside of the desert. ¡°Hold. What is your purpose?¡± the sharply dressed royal guard said, stopping Nadia and The talking Guar in front of the entrance, eyeing the two of them suspiciously. True, they weren¡¯t exactly discreet. Baroke was nearly seven feet tall, and Nadia¡¯s foreign features stood out like a Bracchus Pine in the scrublands to the south. ¡°Nadia Ilestar, I¡¯m here to see my brother, Thomas Ilestar. This is my mute manservant, Baroke.¡± Nadia said. ¡°He¡¯s a little slow.¡± Baroke scowled at her, but didn¡¯t say anything that might raise the guard¡¯s suspicions. Dumb people scowled a lot. Because they were confused. ¡°I¡¯ve got no word of anyone visiting the ambassador today. I¡¯ll need to check this with Scheduling. ¡°Don¡¯t bother. We¡¯re not on the schedule. This is a surprise inspection from his little sister. He¡¯ll be thrilled to hear I¡¯m here.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t let you in if you¡¯re not scheduled to visit.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Nadia asked with her cutest smile. The one she¡¯d spent years practicing in the mirror. ¡°Kantor, why?¡± ¡°I just wanted to know the name of the guard who¡¯s been so helpful to the Ilethan family, and simply brilliant in following his duties to the letter. I¡¯m going to talk you up to your superiors, for sure.¡± From Nadia¡¯s tone, it could be inferred that she would be doing the exact opposite, but She left it just vague enough that if the man was wired differently, he would hear the kotto fruit rather than the stick. Let people pick the truth they want. One of the most basic lessons she¡¯d ever learned from home. The guard was perceptive enough to start faintly sweating, shifting nervously. ¡°I ah, suppose I could have a missive delivered.¡± ¡°Would you?¡± She asked sweetly. ¡°I¡¯m sure Thomas will be thrilled to hear from me.¡± ***Thomas Ilestar*** ¡°Oh gods, she¡¯s going to kill me,¡± Thomas said, crawling around the floor, trying to pick his stomach off the ground. ¡°That crazy bitch is going to replace my blood with salt and feed me to her pets under the castle, I just know it.¡± ¡°You wish for us to turn her away?¡± ¡°No!¡± Thomas shrieked before clearing his throat and picking himself up off the floor. He deepened his voice and took a firm stance, addressing his page. ¡°No, that would be disastrous, tell them to let her in. We¡¯ll deal with this head-on. Preferably in public, where she can¡¯t gut either of us.¡± ¡°Are you sure this is credible?¡± Sam said, eyeing the note with a cocked brow. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say yourself she was MIA in Gadvera?¡± The kid was pretty sharp for his age, and technically Thomas¡¯s cousin, which made him ideal for the remote assignment in Uleis, but he hadn¡¯t had firsthand contact with Nadia, which made him underestimate her crazy. ¡°I know what I said!¡± Thomas snapped, holding a hand over his stomach as the stress started working its way through his bowels. ¡°Look at it this way, either she¡¯s real and we avoid pissing her off, or it¡¯s a fake and we find out immediately, rather than letting it affect our work.¡± ¡°Speaking of work, you¡¯ve got a dinner party at old man Asabei¡¯s later this evening.¡± Asabei was one of the moderates who Thomas was most desperate to influence. The deaf old man ran a solid third of the merchants in the city, either directly or indirectly, in a system so streamlined that money flowed into the old man¡¯s purse in a manner likened to the flow of water from the condensers, passive and consistent. If they could convince him to throw his weight behind the Ilethan war effort, they could easily divert the flow of goods flowing through Uleis northerly, where Iletha would ship them en masse, furthering their stranglehold on Gadvera. ¡°We¡¯re still going,¡± Thomas said, pulling a comb out of his pocket and running it through his thick black hair, warming a dash of pomade between his hands and applying it between strokes to give it that lusterous shine. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with the she-devil,¡± Thomas said, checking on his appearance before he went off to battle the beast. ¡°I want you to stay out of her sight. I don¡¯t want her to even know you¡¯re here. I¡¯m relying on you to bail me out if she stops me from leaving my room. Send a runner with an urgent message if I haven¡¯t dislodged her after half an hour.¡± ¡°What will the message say?¡± ¡°That I have an urgent summons from the duke of excuses. Make something up.¡± Thomas said, sending the page a glance. It wasn¡¯t his job to come up with the urgent message he would need an hour from now. A lot could happen in an hour. ¡°I¡¯ll figure something out,¡± Sam said, nodding. ¡°Alright, how do I look?¡± Thomas asked, doing a spin. ¡°Stately,¡± the page said, nodding in appreciation. ¡°I¡¯ll never know how you get the back of your head so well groomed without a mirror.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a Skill,¡± Thomas said with a grin. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Accidentally got it during the second Tark offensive, when I fixed up my coiffure the morning after. Hairdressing, it¡¯s called.¡± ¡°Wow¡­umm¡­ that¡¯s nice.¡± ¡°My father didn¡¯t give me too much shit in the aftermath, since it¡¯s a Stability skill, and it makes me look damn good.¡± Volumizer. 18/25 Bent remaining. With a deft flick of his brush and the proper application of Bent, Thomas¡¯s hair turned from passable to a work of art. ¡°Alright, what¡¯s the plan? Give it back to me.¡± ¡°You distract her. I stay hidden. Bail you out in half an hour.¡± ¡°Well done. Go tell the sand-breathers to let her in, and then get out of sight.¡± ¡°Yessir,¡± Sam said, giving him an Ilethan salute before ducking out of the room. Thomas took one last look at himself in the mirror, taking a deep breath. He looked a little pale. I could use some blush, so I don¡¯t look quite so nervous, he thought, picking up the sponge and adding a little color to his cheeks. Maybe raise my brows a bit and take focus away from my eyes. I don¡¯t want to look nervous¡­ ***Baroke*** ¡°The ambassador will see you.¡± The guard said after the runner whispered in his ear. ¡°Please put your hands up for an inspection.¡± The guards checked the two of them for weapons before leading them through the labyrinthine halls of the Uleis palace, a cold glass castle with expensive imported rugs covering the halls and rooms to offset the chill of the walls and floor. Even in the desert, with the burning sun overhead, the palace was a little too cold. Baroke had no idea how they¡¯d accomplished that, but it was a welcome relief from the stifling air outside. Their guide stopped outside a decorative wooden door, an outrageous luxury in the sandy country. The guard was about to raise his hand to knock when Nadia shoved him aside, ignoring the knocker in favor of her fist, making a booming noise that shook the door on its hinges. ¡°Thomas! Open the door you fop!¡± Nadia screamed into the rich hardwood, nearly making Baroke flinch. It was only thanks to his high Endurance that the shout didn¡¯t cause physical pain. On the other side of the door was a choked scream and the sound of clattering metal on a stone floor. A litany of hushed curses and further banging sounded before the door was flung open, revealing a man. Man is a generous word, Baroke thought, looking down at the Ilethan diplomat. He was short and slender like Calvin, but had none of the lean muscle, or lightness in his step. He was wearing tight silk pants below a vest with intricate patterns emblazoned on the sides. Below his neck was a big¡­puffy thing, and his hair somehow stood impressively high above his head in a big, shiny, fluffy arch. Shouldn¡¯t he be¡­tougher? Baroke had been under the impression that nobility were generally trained from birth to be superior in every way, but this man blew that impression away. He almost felt sorry for him. ¡°Thomas, nice to see you,¡± Nadia said, stalking past her brother. The man cast Baroke a helpless gaze that conveyed a sense of futility and understanding in an instant. They were both just as fed up with the princess¡¯s antics. This guy gets me, Baroke thought, warming the tiniest bit to the effeminate ilethan. ¡°Hey!¡± Nadia said, snapping a finger in front of Thomas¡¯s face, making him flinch. ¡°No working the help.¡± She glanced over at Baroke and shook her head with a scoff. ¡°Never should have brought you along if you¡¯re gonna be falling for Thomas¡¯s binkle eyes.¡± Baroke blinked. Work? ME? Did the little bastard use a Skill on me? ¡°And there he goes,¡± Thomas said with a sigh as he sat in the chair across from Nadia, glancing reproachfully between the two of them. ¡°He doesn¡¯t seem like your type.¡± ¡°Only the gods and I know what my type is.¡± Nadia said, folding her hands delicately in her lap as she faced down the extravagantly dressed older man. ¡°Baroke, sit on your hands and focus on hating Thomas as much as you can, and maybe you¡¯ll get out of here without getting matching tattoos.¡± Baroke focused on resisting the urge to feed the man the goblet swishing back and forth in his limp wrist, sitting beside Nadia instead. He deliberately kept his hands on his knees in case something went down. ¡°So, sister, how has the last two months treated you? Last I heard you were missing in action during the siege of Mujenan. A siege which you were in charge of, and failed disastrously, if I recall correctly.¡± ¡°Spent the last couple months as a POW, the usual stuff, getting dragged through the street, rotten fruit, stress positions, and every combination therof.¡± ¡°Is that what the Herculean archer is following you around for? Babysitting? I dare say he could handle you with one hand behind his back, let alone me. Me, I think he could snap between thumb and forefinger.¡± ¡°How do you know I¡¯m an archer?¡± ¡°The callus on your string fingers, thicker than the sole of my shoe. You must be damn good.¡± At least he knows where he stands, Baroke thought, relaxing. ¡°Stop the fucking brown-nosing, damnit!¡± Nadia said, leaning forward in her chair with a scowl. ¡°You know Gadverans are horribly susceptible to flattery.¡± ¡°You¡¯re too good for me,¡± Thomas said, raising his hands in defeat. Nadia jabbed a finger at him, mouth set, eyebrows raised. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll stop. What do you want, a ride back to Iletha? I imagine the border was a no-go.¡± He glanced over at Baroke. ¡°I suppose we¡¯d have to give you a good reason to look the other way, too. Do you like money, archer?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Money. Enough to set you up for life,¡± Thomas said. ¡°All you have to do is let me take the both of you into custody. We ship her home, set you up with all the money and women you can eat, and you never have to see your commander again. We don¡¯t want to get you killed for treason when you¡¯re in your prime and obviously more valuable as a stud.¡± Baroke didn¡¯t really know what to say to that, his mouth hanging open. ¡°He accepts. How would you get me back to Iletha?¡± Nadia asked, leaning forward. ¡°So quick to trust, sister?¡± ¡°Doing my due diligence. Who says I wouldn¡¯t be better off making the trip on my own. How would putting myself in your custody be any better?¡± ¡°Oh, the trip northwest is dangerous. Sand pirates and sand gulpers and sand shrews, sand storms¡­any bad thing you can think of with a sand prefix, really.¡± ¡°You think I can¡¯t handle some bandits? Give me a few days and they¡¯d be working for me. I want speed. I¡¯ve got news to deliver, so what can get me across the dunes the fastest?¡± ¡°I suppose I can have Orson Haal do me a favor and ship you home in just a week, but that puts me down a favor. You would then owe me a favor.¡± ¡°And what would you want in return?¡± Orson¡¯s fingers tapped the goblet pensively. ¡°I remember you being half decent at working a crowd, and I could use a wing-woman tonight. If you help me get Asabei off the fence and on our side tonight at his ball, that would be more than worth the trip, to me.¡± The Leather-clad princess seemed to consider it for a moment, her foot tapping against her knee. Nadia jumped off the seat with a growl, leaping toward the diplomat, who floundered backward with a high-pitched yelp. ¡°What the -¡° ¡°I¡¯ve wanted to do this for a long time!¡± Nadia shouted, tackling him to the ground and putting his head in a lock. ¡°Nadia, stop!¡± Baroke shouted, but the princess was too far gone, cackling maniacally as she whipped out a knife before sawing away at his hair. She was halfway through shaving her brother¡¯s head before the guards tore her away from him. A fraction of a second later, Baroke was thrown to the ground by a multitude of Uleisian guardsmen piling on top of him. ***Calvin*** Calvin was making plans for Maya, Ella, and Grant in the corner of the mansion, figuring out exactly how much they could expect to spend on the raiding parties, and how to redistribute the wealth so it wasn¡¯t traceable back to him. He was tapping his pen on the corner of the paper, trying to figure out a way to have money change hands indirectly when Nadia, who was sitting at the desk where she kept track of the finances, began inexplicably chuckling, breaking into full-throated laughter. ¡°What¡¯s funny?¡± Nadia glanced at him, and cocked her head with a coy smile. ¡°Wanna go to a ball with me?¡± ¡°Oh yeah?¡± Calvin asked, whetting his pen. ¡°Whose ball will we be attending?¡± ¡°Asabei, he¡¯s one of the moderates. One of me just acquired an invitation. The Ilethan diplomat won¡¯t be attending, either.¡± ¡°That sounds lovely.¡± Calvin said, putting his notes on pause. ¡°Kala will be coming too.¡± ¡°Damnit,¡± Nadia muttered, then he felt a cunning undercurrent in her gaze. ¡°But there¡¯s only two invitiations.¡± ¡°Guess you won¡¯t be going then.¡± Calvin said, returning to his work. ¡­ ¡­. ¡°Why do I like you!?¡± Nadia demanded. Calvin shrugged, pen scratching against the paper. Macronomicon I just (sorta) moved! yay! But don''t worry, there are several reasons why it shouldn''t affect you guys: As usual Patreon is pretty far ahead, but I think we''re going to hold steady at about 23 chapters ahead for the forseeable future. Gonna be difficult to outperform in a new place on a laptop instead of a pc and all. Enjoy! Chapter 75: Big Balls Calvin stood on the second floor, overlooking the ballroom floor, a single slab of glass filled with brilliant color, where swirling dresses made him think of blooming flowers. He put his weight on the railing as he leaned foward, picking out where Kala was chatting with some other young aristocrats, searching for this Asabei fellow. Go down there and dance. Elliot interrupted Calvin¡¯s thoughts for the umpteenth time. That¡¯s not the mission. Calvin thought. You came up with that on your own! Kala looked at you like you¡¯d killed a puppy! What¡¯s more important, finding this Asabei guy for her or dancing? Dancing, obviously. Calvin¡¯s eyebrows rose. Elliot¡¯s advice was usually good, but the disembodied voice of the System was probably confused on this point. I know you¡¯re afraid of screwing up and- Me, afraid of screwing up? Fuck you! I could dance all night, and not screw up once. Do you even know how to dance? ¡­.Karen had never taught him how to dance, and in Deinos, dancing was mostly wildly stomping in circles with arms linked. No, but it doesn¡¯t matter, because I¡¯m not dancing. You¡¯re starting to expose some logical fallacies, buddy. Okay fine! I¡¯m not going down there because it¡¯s absolutely terrifying! Thinking about being silently judged at the center of that ballroom was nearly giving him a panic attack. More afraid of say, a fight to the death? Yes! Calvin thought emphatically, his fingers tightening around the bannister. Fights to the death are fun because I always win. This is a no-win scenario! Okay, I understand your apprehension. I was just as afraid of public scorn as you were, and I wish someone had taken the time to force me to get used to dancing when I was your age. You¡¯ll thank me later. Fuck you, I¡¯m not doing it. Let me appeal to your logical side, rather than your emotions. Good luck with that, Calvin thought. There are three things that a man can do that will get him laid that have remained universal constants throughout all of human history. Dancing is one of them. It shows courage, and the ability to move your body. We already covered the fact that I don¡¯t know how. And that means Kala gets to teach you. She¡¯s gonna be totally into teaching you. How would you feel about teaching her how to shake it? ¡­Pretty good, actually, Calvin thought, picturing it. She¡¯s been waiting for the opportunity since you got here, but you ran off to the upper floor the second your feet touched the ballroom floor. Calvin sucked in a breath through his teeth. That was true. Kala was still sending him curious glances every now and then. He thought it¡¯d be to figure out if he¡¯d found the host of the ball, but he was starting to suspect it was because he was letting her down. One dance. Calvin thought, taking his hands off the bannister. Yay! Now, just to warn you, you may experience a slight stress-generated out-of-body experience. This is normal for an introvert with shitty Intuition. You¡¯ll get over it. What do you know? Calvin said as he headed for the stairs. A lot, actually, Elliot said. What are the other two universal constants in getting laid? Calvin asked Elliot as he went down the stairs in order to distract himself from the pit of flesh-eating gullbecks he was about to throw himself into. Singing and playing the guitar. What¡¯s a guitar and how could it possibly be a universal constant if I don¡¯t even know what it is? Boy, I¡¯m a thousand years old. I know what I¡¯m talking about. If a man walked into this ballroom with a guitar right now, and started playing it, he would subsequently be drowning in women. Calvin was about to retort when he came face to face with Kala in a lovely white dress with curls of soft pink color, and all the words escaped his mind. ¡°Did you find Asabei?¡± Kala asked with the tiniest frown on her lips. ¡°Ah, no, I um..wanted to ask you¡­¡± Talking to girls has reached level 11! 55% correction. ¡°You want to dance?¡± she asked, her face lighting up. The pit of Calvin¡¯s stomach dropped and it felt like he was ejected out the back of his own head. He watched his own body nod silently before Kala¡¯s soft hand gripped his and lead him to the center of the ballroom floor, twirling dancers parting around them as they walked. Calvin watched himself be led across the dance floor, he watched himself learn the steps, and proceed to lead Kala¡¯s slender body back and forth across the ballroom. He watched himself bump into the occasional dancer, and watched them pardon him with no animosity or judgement whatsoever. Calvin slowly re-inhabited his body as they danced, until he was no longer a puppet he was watching from a distance, but himself, leading a beautiful girl around the floor. Returning to his body came with some interesting side-effects, such as becoming fully aware of the soft warmth of the young woman pressed against him, and knowing exactly how much she was enjoying herself. He could feel the raw desire to pull him off the dance floor and into a secluded room in her gaze, barely restrained by her rational mind. Needless to say, she was enjoying herself. Guess Elliot was right. As usual. As they came close to the side of the ballroom again, Nadia tapped Calvin on the shoulder. ¡°Asabei¡¯s over by the buffet,¡± she said, pointing. In the distance, Calvin could make out a gnarled old man with a brass horn sticking out of his ear, listening to a middle-aged businessman. Yeah, that¡¯s him alright. Calvin thought, eyeing him. Kala¡¯s warmth disappeared as she stepped away, craning her neck to see as well. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s him.¡± She glanced back at Calvin. ¡°Wish me luck.¡± ¡°May I keep your date warm while you¡¯re away?¡± Nadia asked. Kala eyed Calvin¡¯s Chained Spirit up and down, eyes narrowed. Kala and Nadia didn¡¯t get along terribly well. ¡°Fine,¡± Kala said, ¡°but not too warm.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dream of it,¡± Nadia said, taking Kala¡¯s place in Calvin¡¯s arms. ¡°Do I get a say in this?¡± Calvin asked. Nadia was attractive, sure, but she was also a crazy bitch. ¡°No,¡± Nadia and Kala said as one. ¡°I got the tickets, I get a dance.¡± Nadia said as Kala strode away. Kala sent a fleeting appreciative glance back at the two of them before taking a deep breath and putting the lid back on her feelings, aiming for Asabei. ¡°Hi,¡± Nadia said as Calvin begrudgingly swept her out onto the dance floor. The Ilethan princess seemed to want to absorb him, with how close she stuck, pressing firmly against his body. ¡°Hi...¡± Calvin narrowed his eyes, deciphering her mischievous gaze as she entwined her body around his. ¡°You want to tell me something.¡± Read Expressions has reached level 10! +1 Intuition. Please choose- Calvin dismissed the prompt. ¡°How did you know? As a matter of fact, I do.¡± ¡°Well?¡± Calvin asked, dipping her and trying not to eye the plentiful cleavage that threatened to attract his gaze like a lodestone attracted a steel nail. ¡°Baroke and I got arrested,¡± she said, her crimson lips curling into a smile. ¡°Who knows what they¡¯ll punish us with?¡± Obviously fishing for punishment from me, a cold corner of Calvin¡¯s mind spoke to him as she began to shiver in anticipation of violence. Calvin put his foot on her chest and kicked her away, making her rounded bottom squeak across the glass floor, drawing the attention of the other dancers. ¡°Demon whore!¡± Calvin said, making arcane signs with his fingers. ¡°I consign you back to the abyss!¡± ¡°Now that¡¯s no way to treat a-¡° Nadia dissolved into green mist as he dismissed her summon. The mist settled into the ballroom floor, causing many of the assembled aristocracy to gasp and back away from the two of them. Calvin glanced around the silent ballroom and fixed a smile on his face. ¡°It¡¯s fine everyone,¡± Calvin said with absolute confidence. ¡°A succubus managed to infiltrate the party, but I got rid of the she-beast.¡± Acting has reached level 10! +1 intuition Please choose a- Calvin swept that prompt to the side as well. The ball was stressing him out so much that his skill were advancing at the same rate as a life-or-death struggle. Now that Nadia and Kala were gone, he didn¡¯t know a single person here. You planned this, didn¡¯t you? It¡¯s an unexpected bonus. You should go talk to those strangers over there. I bet that¡¯ll stress you out even more. The party slowly wound back into gear, but Calvin found himself standing at the center of the ballroom, every other pair sending him curious, apprehensive glances as they danced. Oh damn, this is exactly the kind of attention I was afraid of. I need a drink. Maybe two. Or six. Calvin thought as he headed for the edge of the dance floor. Wait for it¡­ Wait for wha- A gentle finger tapped his shoulder and Calvin turned to see a young uleisan woman about his age, shifting nervously. Her friends watched her from the sidelines, twittering between them. ¡°Would you care to dance?¡± she asked hesitantly. Calvin barely avoided ditching his own body a second time and opened his mouth to refuse. Don¡¯t you dare! Elliot made him flinch by shouting directly into his ear. ¡°I would be honored,¡± calvin said, taking her hand. ***Baroke*** ¡°Why haven¡¯t you used your Bent, Nadia? You were always a talented sorceress.¡± Thomas asked, sitting across from their cells, his scalp half-shaved. It almost looked like a tonsure, but Baroke wasn¡¯t going to be the first one to mention it. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like to know?¡± Nadia asked, crossing her arms and legs before looking down her nose at her older brother. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s why I asked.¡± Thomas said, running his comb over the bald patch. It seemed a little odd to Baroke, but he wasn¡¯t going to comment on that either. Matter of fact, Baroke felt the wisest thing to do was to sit in the corner quietly and try to distance himself from her as much as possible. ¡°The royal guard is asking if you really are my sister, and if you¡¯re not, well, you¡¯re an imposter attempting to infiltrate the palace. An offence punishable by death. No trial, just take you into the other room and chop off you head.¡± ¡°Mhmm,¡± Nadia said, tapping her foot. ¡°So, if you¡¯re my sister, prove it with a little bit of Ilethan magic. Make yourself invisible with bent light, or use a mnemonic illusion on me. Anything. As antagonistic as we are towards each other, I don¡¯t want to give the wrong sentence.¡± ¡°You do what you gotta do, pretty boy.¡± Nadia said. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll tell the guards that I don¡¯t know you, the execution will be in the morning.¡± ¡°Whatever,¡± Nadia said, still tapping her foot impatiently. Nadia might be fine with getting killed, but what about me!? ¡°Hold on,¡± Baroke said, breaking his silence. ¡°She doesn¡¯t speak for me. I would very much like to not be executed in the morning. Can you make that happen?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Thomas said with a smile. ¡°It didn¡¯t escape my notice that you tried to stop her from¡­accosting me. I¡¯ll definitely put in a good word for you with the guard, but they¡¯re rather dour individuals. Getting them to look the other way might cost quite a bit of money. Do you perhaps have someone who can fund your release?¡± ¡°Captain Gadsint,¡± Baroke blurted. ¡°He¡¯ll foot the bill.¡± Nadia sighed and slid her palm down her face in exasperation. ¡°The captain of the company guarding the Gadveran diplomat? The one they call The Wasp?¡± ¡°Baroke, why are you¡­such a simpleton?¡± ¡°Interesting¡­so the gears are turning faster than I thought. I¡¯m sorry, Baroke, but I¡¯ll have to let you die.¡± Thomas¡¯s shoulder hunched defensively at Baroke¡¯s stunned expression. ¡°Sorry, sorry, it¡¯s just that the people you work for are in direct contention with the people I work for, and I can¡¯t let you bring anything you¡¯ve gleaned back to your captain. You understand, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t you just lock me up for a week or two until the point is moot?¡± Baroke demanded, fists closing around the bars of the cell as he shouted at the pompous Ilethan. ¡°Sorry¡­¡± the diplomat said, wincing as he retreated up the stairs, disappearing out of sight. ¡°Son of a bitch!¡± Baroke roared, shaking the bars, that unfortunately didn¡¯t budge. The sun was beginning to go down and the guards had retired for the night when Nadia spoke again. ¡°Well, it looks like we¡¯ve got the whole night to get to know each other,¡± Nadia said, stretching out and reclining in her cell. ¡°Fuck you and everything you stand for.¡± Baroke said, looking around the room for escape supplies. ¡°Don¡¯t be like that. There¡¯s every chance Calvin will rescue you before morning. I got your message to him and he dismissed all the copies of me but this one, after all. What do you think that means?¡± ¡°It means if you don¡¯t help me get out, you¡¯ll be the last one.¡± Baroke said as he stripped the sheet off his bed. ¡°More perceptive than I gave you credit for.¡± Nadia said with a grin. ¡°So let¡¯s make a trade.¡± ¡°What kind of trade?¡± Baroke asked, testing the durability of his cot. The glass had some flexibility. Excellent. ¡°I¡¯ll help you get out of here alive, and you answer questions about Calvin. I want to know more about the boy with my life in his hands.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure I need your help,¡± Baroke said, tearing the cot¡¯s lining away, exposing the skeleton. ¡°But go ahead.¡± ¡°What was he like as a child?¡± Nadia asked as Baroke lined his dinner plate up with the cot. ¡°Clever, liked to pretend he was a wizard king. A lot more of a prick than he is now, actually, but that¡¯s pretty typical for kids. Kids are the worst.¡± ¡°Wizard king, huh? What kind of things did he do?¡± ¡°Oh, he¡¯d steal things, kidnap other kids and tie them up, fend off the other kids who came to rescue them and scare the shit out of their parents, get into fights, torture the losers for hours¡­you know, normal boy stuff.¡± ¡°Really? Did you do normal boy stuff like that?¡± Baroke stopped what he was doing and thought about it a moment. ¡°Well, the fighting, I guess. Plenty of that between the kids in Deinos, but Calvin was the only one who tied six kids to the limbs of his ¡®tree of woe¡¯ and laughed while their parents tried to get them down.¡± ¡°And when exactly did Calvin¡¯s behavior improve?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°Why do you want to know?¡± Baroke asked, glancing over his shoulder. ¡°Just curious,¡± she said with a shrug. ¡°Well,¡± Baroke said, banging the plate against the very corner of the cot, watching a crack form on his bed. ¡°Right around the time Karen took him under her wing personally, teaching us all how to fight. The things she taught us included a lot of empathy training, trying to get inside the other guy¡¯s head so you could kill him better. That¡¯s what rounded out Calvin¡¯s attitude, I think.¡± ¡°I see, I see..¡± Nadia said, rubbing her chin. ¡°Or maybe Kala.¡± Nadia grimaced. Baroke delivered a solid strike to the side of the cot, and it released the long length of glass with a crack. This¡¯ll do, Baroke thought, grabbing the six foot length of glass and bending it around his waist before tying the sheets to either side of it, creating an awful mockery of a bow. An awful mockery that would work. ¡°Are you-¡° ¡°Yes,¡± Baroke said, snapping the short end of the cot out of its joints with sheer power, setting the length of glass against the sheet, and drawing back. Force Amplification. Penetrating shot. Called Shot. 9/12 Bent remaining. The fletching-less length of glass exploded through the lock and disintegrated on the other side of the wall, allowing his cell door to swing open. Nadia sat in the other cell, her jaw hanging open as Baroke slammed the door open the rest of the way and waved to her on the way out. ¡°They¡¯re gonna kill you so hard,¡± Nadia said, shaking her head. ¡°Still wanna help?¡± Baroke asked, fixing a make-shift arrow on her chest. ¡°Seems like it¡¯d be in my best interest.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 76: May not Cause Vampirism Elliot entered in Nadia¡¯s address in the jumble that was Calvin¡¯s System, enabled two way voice before reaching over to flip on the intercom. As soon as he flipped the switch, he heard the sound of squelching. God I hope I didn¡¯t catch her fucking again. Kinda. ¡°How¡¯s it hanging Nadia?¡± ¡°I¡¯m in the sewers with Baroke. It is absolutely foul down here.¡± ¡°Good, keep him alive unless I tell you otherwise. I don¡¯t think Calvin¡¯s ready for a solo act yet, anyway. He¡¯s got a lot of growing to do, and the right friends help facilitate that.¡± ¡°Why do you keep giving him unsolicited advice, anyway?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°Because it¡¯s the kind of stuff I wish I¡¯d heard when I was his age, obviously.¡± Elliot¡¯s parents were famously¡­underwhelming. Distant even, but not distant enough to be special. A little bit of tough love would have gone a long way. ¡°It¡¯s ridiculous. Forcing him to dance? What got you so excited about that?¡± ¡°Listen missy, when you have a dog that could win gold, do you keep it at home its entire life? No! You take it to the park and socialize the shit out of it. Stressors when you¡¯re growing up inform your adulthood. Especially how you deal with things when you¡¯re a teen. Which he is.¡± Elliot would have definitely appreciated someone helping him with his social skills when he was younger, helped him build his toolkit. When the stablized System first came out, everyone was focused on making the optimal build, including Elliot, and no one had thought to use it to patch weaknesses in personality. Hats off to that Bekvah guy. ¡°Besides,¡± Elliot continued, ¡°he got three levels in his social skills from a single ball. If that¡¯s not a tangible result, I don¡¯t know what is.¡± ¡°Fair enough, but being so keen on balancing him out is counter to what I want. I want ruthless and cruel. He had the propensity for it when he was younger, you know.¡± ¡°He¡¯s still at the age where he can learn what we need him to. You just have to present him a most vexing problem, and remove every other tool to solve it, save cruelty. Might have to do it a few times. Eventually cruelty will stick in his head as a primary method for solving problems.¡± ¡°¡­You¡¯re so wise.¡± ¡°Bitch, I¡¯m a thousand years old, I took Child Psychology in college,¡± Elliot said, leaning back in his chair, clasping his fingers behind his head. ¡°And I know this kid like the back of my hand. I was this kid, after all.¡± ***Calvin*** Calvin took a minute to excuse himself from the steadily growing line of dance partners, finding a chair at the edge of the dance floor to rest and inspect his new Ability choices. Read Expression has reached Level 10! Read Expression Level 10: Passive bonus to reading expressions. 50% correction. +1 Intuition Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities: Poker Face: Give away little by way of facial expression. Open Book: Gain an intuitive understand of the relationship between two people who are looking at each other. Princess Detector: Read Expressions correction applies to precisely divining another user¡¯s social status. Don¡¯t kidnap the scullery maid, kid! No matter how much she begs for it! ^from Your Princess Is In Another Castle. Universal Language: Large bonus to understanding pantomime and expression regardless of species. Mob Mentalist: Read the attitude of large groups of people easily. The Body Talks: read Expressions correction now applies to body language as well. Mutations: The Pheonix¡¯s (W)right eye- while making eye contact, you can discern if the target believes they are lying. Less useful on sociopaths and the misinformed. Med Tricorder: At will, determine a person¡¯s health and identify anything that might be affecting them merely by looking at their face. Includes wounds, infection, blood loss, poison, food poisoning, drugs, parasites, disease, etc. No jokes at the end of each description? Calvin thought. Well, you¡¯re growing up quick and I figured you didn¡¯t need silly shit at the end of your Ability descriptions. I suppose. I didn¡¯t really understand them either. And that¡¯s what made it funny. All right, then I better start narrowing these down, Calvin thought as he scanned through the choices. Poker face doesn¡¯t do much for me. Nobody ever accused me of being incredibly easy to read. That¡¯s out. Open book is interesting as it gives me information about people that they might not want me to know. I¡¯ll keep that on the list. Princess detector is too niche. Oh, come on! You want me to spend a whole ability on discerning what someone¡¯s status is when our entire society is built on flaunting it as much as possible? Yeah, I guess so. Carry on. Universal language is pointless when I can steal languages from dead bodies. Mob mentalist is a maybe. That would make reading them with Feel Intent more accurate, but it¡¯s low on the list. Body talks is a possibility. I could see it helping in combat. Karen was always telling me to pay attention to every part of her body at once. As if that were possible. The eye is redundant with Feel Intent, and Med tricorder is¡­interesting. Calvin was torn between Med Tricorder and Open Book. Open Book would allow him to know immediately if two people were in league with each other, which would make it very difficult for someone to backstab him or make deals behind his back. Med tricorder on the other hand would come in handy if his friends were ever poisoned or drugged, or stabbed, and he needed to know which. That¡¯s probably not gonna be an everyday occurance. I choose Open Book. Calvin¡¯s brain tingled for a good thirty seconds, along with a bit of light nausea, before it retreated. Why don¡¯t Abilities knock me out? They¡¯re less invasive, obviously. System certified not to turn you into a monster. Calvin played with his drink a moment. Did that make him want to stop investing in Mutations? Not if a good one reared its head. Calvin mentally nudged the other notification to come back. Acting has reached Level 10! Acting Level 10: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 50% correction. +1 to Intuition Please choose an ability or mutation from the list of compatible ones. Abilities: A mile in his shoes: 1 Bent to disguise yourself as the target for an hour, including voice and tactile effects. Does not lend supernatural knowledge of the targets¡¯ mental state. Infectious emoting: 2 Bent. Act out an emotional state (Anger, Calm, Sadness, Happiness, Defeatism, Courage, etc.) and watch it spread like wildfire! Confidence: At will, speak with such surety that people want to believe you. Even when they know they shouldn¡¯t. Causes victims to build belief and make assumptions based on your statements if they aren¡¯t paying close attention. Playing possum: Spend 1 Bent to prevent damage while manifesting visible wounds. User will suffer from non-lethal effects of the wound until time limit expires or User dismisses the ability. ^from Medi-Tate Master of Disguise: Acting correction now applies to the effectiveness of disguises and props in offsetting suspicion, allowing the User to maintain a cover and blend in with significantly less preparation. I.E. a hat instead of a full ensemble. ^From One of the Guys Look, a red herring!, A.K.A. Who,Me?: 1 Bent: A denial or emphatic statement from the user will distract anyone within earshot for *Acting* Seconds. Intuition resisted by Stability. ^From Master-Baiter Mutations: Me myself, And I: design up to five alter egos. Each one may be a different race or gender, changing your body when they assume control. Pro: Can fool rigorous magical testing to determine your identity or locate you. Con: stay on good terms and ask nicely for your body back. Mesmerizing Eyes: capture a target¡¯s attention for as long as eye contact is maintained, causing increased suggestibility and memory lapse. Intuition resisted by Will. ¡°Hmmm¡­ Calvin thought as he scanned through them. The Acting options were honestly a lot more interesting, and right out of the gate he could see three that appealed to him: Infectious Emoting, Master of Disguise, and Mesmerizing eyes. Infectious emoting was almost like an entire kit of emotional manipulation spells. He could act hopeless while getting arrested and escape while the guards suffered from ennui, or on the other side of the spectrum, he could act totally berserk and make his men- The thought of Berserk put a bad taste in Calvin¡¯s mental mouth. He still distinctly remembered the sheer joy of- Calvin popped the side of his head with his palm and took a swig of the bubbling wine imported from Boles. Okay, the other two. Master of Disguise synergizes extremely well with One of the Guys, making me even better at infiltrating places I¡¯m not supposed to be, and Mesmerizing Eyes¡­may cause vampirism¡­ Calvin drummed his fingers on the table, sorting through the three abilities. Elliot, what¡¯s vampirism? Seriously? Yes, seriously. Oh, Elliot cleared his throat. They¡¯re horrifying monsters that were perverted into women¡¯s pornographic literature by MaryAnne Wrice, and then a series of increasingly less capable authors, culminating with Mye Immortale. But what do they do? Well, if you wade through the sparkling skin bullshit, they are at their heart, undead creatures of the night that feed on the living. Everything else is fluff. Are they stupid? Nope. They¡¯re the aristocracy of the undead. In theory. What are the odds I become one? About one point two-two percent. I choose Mesmerizing Eye. Oh, shit, move your drink! Calvin¡¯s eyes began to sear with pain, like someone was jabbing hot glass in there. ¡°Gah!¡± Calvin choked back a scream and shoved his incredibly thin fluted glass roughly out of the way of his face, splashing some of the wine on the fine silk of the tablecloths. The pain began to spread, out from his eyeballs, around the crown of his skull in a band, and down into his jaws. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Sweet, blessed relief came when Calvin¡¯s eyes rolled up and his forehead slammed into the glass underneath the fancy white silk. ***Ella*** ¡°What are you so concerned about?¡± Ella said, waggling the roasted forearm in front of Maya. The little ranger looked like she was going to puke her guts out into the desert sand. ¡°It¡¯s not like you¡¯ll get any diseases from it. Unless you eat the brain.¡± Ella remembered the last time she¡¯d seen someone stupid enough to try eating brain on a dare. Ushu had been sent into the forest alone, trembling from the sickness, never to return. The genosians would not eat someone stricken with Kuru. ¡°Don¡¯t eat the brain.¡± ¡°I¡¯m happy with my hoppers, thank you.¡± Maya said, looking away as she flipped her hopper over in the fire. Hoppers were round shelled creatures that dug burrows in the sand and would lunge out at smaller animals like shrews and centipedes. Their shell allowed them to cook nicely in the coals of the fire. ¡°Suit yourself.¡± Ella said, cutting off slices of mostly-cooked Uleisian and chewing on them. They were a bit grainier than Gadveran, a bit flavorless. She said as much. ¡°Probably the lack of moisture and fat.¡± Grant said, cooking his own meal with a set of a dozen floating knives. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Ilethans still taste the best, in my opinion.¡± Ella said. ¡°I¡¯m honored.¡± ¡°Why are you putting up with this?¡± Maya demanded, looking at Grant. ¡°She¡¯s an abomination!¡± ¡°Rude,¡± Ella said, baring her teeth at the little ingrate. Amusingly enough, Maya was about as low as it was possible to get on the priority of edibility. She was small, meaning she wasn¡¯t worth much in food, and didn¡¯t consume a lot, either. She was a skilled hunter, meaning she was more valuable alive, and she was female, meaning she could make more of her kind in the future, replacing those they did eat. Besides, Ella was eating Uleisan so she didn¡¯t have to force Maya to share her catch, so why was she so upset? ¡°We should just leave her here.¡± Maya said, eyeing Ella. Ella felt her eyebrows rise, and a burning anger begin to build in her chest. She¡¯d been more irritable since the Guuya, a result of the blending of minds. She reflexively went still as she tried to wrestle Calvin¡¯s anger down. ¡°Nope,¡± Grant said, a floating knife bringing a bit of sand-gulper up to his mouth. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you three reasons. First, you never betray a team-member. Ever. Second, Calvin would kill you when you got back, and third¡­¡± Grant eyed Ella. ¡°I don¡¯t think you would win that fight.¡± ¡°But eating people is abhorrent,¡± Maya said, glancing over at Ella. ¡°It is what it is,¡± Grant said, his gaze going distant. ¡°I remember a winter up in Tark. We underestimated those snow-rats. While we were huddled around fires, just trying not to die, they were outmaneuvering us, moving through ten feet of snow, destroying our supply trains, damning us to a starving hell in the middle of the boreal forests.¡± Grant snapped out of it, glancing between Maya and Ella ¡°Long story short, we ate some of our men who died of the cold, then we got the fuck out of there come spring. The first Tark Offensive was a godsdamned disaster.¡± ¡°But she doesn¡¯t need to eat people, she¡¯s doing it because it¡¯s fun. We¡¯ve got an entire caravan over there!¡± Maya pointed at the caravan packed to the brim with Cobalt spines, along with travel supplies, along with food and water. It was surrounded by dark-skinned dead men who worked for Orson. Most of the corpses were sliced to pieces by Grant, but a few of them bore Maya¡¯s fletched arrows, and even fewer had signs of Ella¡¯s bludgeoning. She had to get face-to face with them, while the other two could kill from a distance. Ella glanced over. In her mind, the dead Uleisans were part of the food, but there was plenty of food to keep a couple dozen traders alive as well, packed away on the glass carrier sleds. ¡°I was curious about how they taste.¡± ¡°Could you do our pint-sized archer a favor and refrain from eating people while we¡¯re on this trip?¡± Ella eyed Maya, the little ranger giving the two of them irritated glances. She pushed down the indignation and tried to make the civilized decision, rather than beat either of their skulls in. ¡°Alright, but if we run out of meat, I¡¯m going back to Uleisans.¡± ¡°Fair enough.¡± Grant said, then glanced at Maya. ¡°Fair enough?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll¡­make sure you don¡¯t run out.¡± Maya said, holding out a petite hand. Ella tossed aside the forearm and engulfed Maya¡¯s hand with her own, grinning. ¡°Thank you, Maya.¡± ¡°Just keep your shark-mouth away from me,¡± Maya said, leaning backwards. Again, Ella stomped down the desire to break the little one¡¯s face. They were already at a compromise that favored Ella, so she could afford to be the better woman. After another hour or so of chatting by the fire, they left the caravan for the sand-pirates to find, hopping on their spare sled and heading for the mountains to the south, where the Storm-Stretch company got their primary export: Cobalt Spines. ¡°Now how exactly is leaving the spines for other people going to make us money?¡± Ella asked, looking over her shoulder as they sailed away over the ocean-like desert. ¡°You got me,¡± Maya said. ¡°The kid¡¯s got some kind of scam set up where he¡¯ll cause a major whiplash in the price of cobalt keratin, and therefore glass, allowing him to profit indirectly from foreknowledge of other people¡¯s panic and misery,¡± the aging general said, lighting a bit of Jush powder in his pipe. ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t know where he gets these ideas¡­ Sometimes he¡¯s just a horny, know-nothing teenager, and sometimes it¡¯s like having a jaded seventy-year old who¡¯d kill you as soon as look at you as a boss.¡± The jush smoke was caught in the ever-present desert wind and swept in front of him. ¡°But damn if I¡¯m not having a good time.¡± ¡°Hear hear!¡± Ella said. ¡°We just killed a couple dozen people,¡± Maya said, scowling at them. Ella ruffled her fuzzy ear-length hair. Macronomicon Chapter 77: Cobalts ***Ella*** ¡°Here we are,¡± Grant said, tacking as they headed into the wind, gradually slowing down. ¡°We¡¯re not going to get much farther than this, put the brake on, will you? Ella put her foot down on the brake in the back of the sled, jutting a steel spike into the ground. It was the only part of the sled that wasn¡¯t glass or canvas. The sled bucked a little, then gradually began to slow down as they came to a halt in front of the rocky desert outside the Cobalt mountains, big, towering orange slabs of rock in the distance, with a fortress nestled in the valley of two of them. From this distance, it was almost hard to distinguish from the mountain itself, being made with the selfsame orange rock. I wonder if my people could learn the glassworking technique from the Uleisans. As far as Ella knew glass was essentially made from stone, so why not glass the edges of rocks to mortar them together? The biggest problem was that the first step glassworking technique wasn¡¯t actually a secret, just difficult. She¡¯d only had to ask around a bit to find out that they basically baked their younglings until they got Heat Resistance or Heat Control. If a person got Heat Control, they could go on to learn the skills to manipulate glass, but it was a low chance of happening. Ella¡¯s people¡­didn¡¯t really care about the temperature. She hadn¡¯t even gotten a sunburn yet, like the pasty general. The exposed parts of the man¡¯s skin looked like he¡¯d been dipped in boiling oil. ¡°Here¡¯s where we get off,¡± Grant said, tying the sails up and kicking the anchor off the side. Maya hopped off the sled and stretched, her tiny form shrouded in a protective cloak to shield her from the heat. She bent down and took a handful of the orange-ish sand they¡¯d been sailing through the last hour and rubbed it on her cloak. She must be activating Camouflage, Ella thought as the hunter¡¯s cloak turned an identical orange. The Hunting version, and not the Stealth Version. ¡°You gonna do something about that purple skin, or do I have to?¡± Maya asked giving her an antagonistic look. Well, Ella thought it was an antagonistic look. She couldn¡¯t really tell under the layers of cloth. ¡°I suppose,¡± Ella said, reaching into her mouth and seizing one of her older, ready-to-be-removed teeth. Sacrifice. 12/17 Bent remaining. Crack. In a practiced motion, she removed a body part as a requirement of the spell, and imbued the removed part with a single unit of Bent. Genosians were better at this particular magic; they got more chances to use it. ¡°Oh, that is gross,¡± Maya recoiled as a bit of blood dribbled down Ella¡¯s chin. Aspect. She visualized gaining the aspect of whatever the tooth was in, jammed it into the sand, and her body took on a rough, gritty texture, along with her skin brightening and changing color to sun-blasted sand. The upside of the Skill was its combination of power and versatility. The downside was it took a few seconds to use, so it wasn¡¯t very good in hand to hand combat, and most other races lost something permanent. Even Genosians couldn¡¯t do it faster than once every two weeks or so, or risk damaging their teeth and gums. ¡°Happy?¡± Ella asked, spreading her arms and spitting out a bit of blood. ¡°Not exactly, but glad you¡¯re not going to be sticking out like a sore thumb. How about you, Grant?¡± ¡°Light blindness.¡± Grant said, pointing up. ¡°I¡¯m going to hide in the sun.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to fly there in a couple minutes while we have to hike for hours, aren¡¯t you?¡± Maya asked. ¡°Maybe.¡± Grant smirked as a couple swords from his myriad sheaths floated out and buried themselves under his feet. ¡°I¡¯ll meet you on that ridge.¡± He pointed toward a distinctive slab of stone that overlooked the distant fortress. A moment later, the sword-dancer shot into the sky, toward the punishing sun. ¡°I hope your sunburn gets worse you bastard!¡± Maya shouted, shaking her fist. ¡°What are you worried about?¡± Ella asked, shrugging off her wraps. The aspect part of the spell didn¡¯t include her clothes, unfortunately. ¡°Why are you getting naked!?¡± ¡°Because my skin looks and feels like sand?¡± Ella asked back, cocking her head to the side. ¡°And I¡¯m pretty sure I can¡¯t get sunburns.¡± What was the little ranger so upset about all the time? ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have accepted this assignment. I¡¯m the only normal one here. Grant¡¯s crazy, you¡¯re crazy.¡± Maya muttered as she began stalking off, looking like nothing more than a lump in the sand. Ella grabbed her flail and strapped on her shield, slinging it across her chest before she took off after Maya, crawling to catch up. According to Kala, now that the man had left, they could have ¡®girl talk¡¯, a uniquely Gadveran tradition that Ella had enjoyed immensely. Genosian women talked less about men, instead spending most of their time memorizing their history through song, mending clothes and tormenting captives with ritualistic taunting. ¡°So,¡± Ella said, coming up beside the slowly moving mound of sand. ¡°So what?¡± the sand asked. ¡°How¡¯s it going with you and Baroke?¡± The lump of sand froze in place before looking at her. ¡°What-we¡¯re not a thing.¡± ¡°You two are of course a thing.¡± Ella said. ¡°Kala and I spotted your¡­how you say¡­dalliance, with him two weeks ago.¡± They were on their way to their own dalliance, but Maya didn¡¯t need to know that part. ¡°That¡¯s¡­How¡­You couldn¡¯t have, we were¡­¡± Maya stopped talking for a moment. ¡°You and the princess? My gods¡­¡± ¡°Are you two stalking Baroke? Is the princess? ¡®Cuz I¡¯ll¡­umm¡­¡± The lump of sand began trembling. ¡°No, no,¡± Ella waved her hand. ¡°Neither of us want to take your massive¡­ummm..¡± Ella searched her slowly expanding Gadveran vocabulary. ¡°Man-ride? He¡¯s a little too¡­Ehhh¡­slow.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not stupid!¡± ¡°Sure he¡¯s not.¡± Ella patted Maya¡¯s shoulder. ¡°He might not have a Mind like a noble, but he¡¯s nice. He knows enough to¡­and he treats me¡­You know what? I¡¯m not sure I wanna talk about this with you.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s so much fun!¡± Ella said as they resumed sneaking toward the distant mountains. ¡°How about we talk about something other than men for the rest of the way to the mountain, pass the Bechdel test?¡± ¡°The Abyss is that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a rule of thumb they use in plays to ¨C agh, nevermind, you¡¯re just forbidden from talking about men, okay?¡± Ella didn¡¯t know what Maya was talking about, so she went for the first thing that came to mind. ¡°Um¡­Princess Kala is a surprisingly bad kisser?¡± Maya snorted into the sand and slammed her tiny fist into the ground, sending up a little puff of dust where they were sneaking forward. ¡°Oh, gods, that¡¯s funny,¡± she said between chuckles. ¡°Let¡¯s get off the subject of relationships in general.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that how you ¡®girl-talk¡¯?¡± Ella asked. ¡°Maybe if you¡¯re a deeply sexually repressed princess with a serious hard-on for excitement.¡± Maya said, her hooded form glancing over at her. ¡°You ever try archery?¡± ¡°All Genosians learn archery, but between my chest filling out and learning to be a Maje, it kind of¡­fell away from me.¡± ¡°That¡¯s too bad.¡± Maya said, looking up at the mountain in front of them. ¡°I find these moments of crystalline serenity when I¡¯m drawing a bow, where my whole being is focused on the tip of an arrow. I can¡¯t get enough of it.¡± Ella didn¡¯t understand all of her words, but she got the general idea of it, and they continued on in silence as she was searching herself for something that felt similar. Being the executor of Calvin¡¯s will felt like that, but she wasn¡¯t allowed to talk about men, soo¡­. ¡°By the way, please don¡¯t ever mention the words ¡®deeply, sexually, and repressed¡¯ to the princess of my country. Especially not with my name included.¡± ¡°You got it.¡± *** Hours later, they made it to the massive ledge of the mountain, where Grant had set himself up a little camp with three chairs made from piles of rock overlooking the fortress, along with a small fire to fight off the high altitude cold, and little embankment of stone to shelter them from the worst of the wind. He¡¯d been there a while. ¡°Check this out,¡± Grant said, pulling a small filigreed spyglass with the Uleisan national symbol stamped on it out of his jacket before handing it to Maya. ¡°Dear gods,¡± Maya said quietly as she overlooked the fortress. ¡°You may have been wondering why you didn¡¯t run into any Cobalts on the way here.¡± Grant said, pulling a stone away from the fire and using it to warm his hands. ¡°That would be why.¡± Maya handed the spyglass to Ella. Ella, familiar with the magic tube, put it up to her eye and oriented it on the fortress. The orange stone fortress was manned by humans, surprisingly. The walls were patrolled by no less than a hundred Uleisans, with many more inside taking care of the day to day operations of the fortress. It took Ella a few moments to find a cobalt. They were blue, hunched over creatures with a basically humanoid shape, backs that blended seamlessly with their necks, and rather large foreclaws. Their skin was mottled, darker in some places, lighter in others, even turning green in patches. On their back they sported hundreds dozens of tiny blue spines, smaller than a finger, and a handful the length of a palm. The rest ended abruptly close to the skin. Matter of fact¡­ Ella spotted a cobalt with longer spines strapped into some kind of bed, quills being snipped with a thick steel tool by a callus soldier. There was a bit of blood dripping down the creature¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I¡¯ll give you good odds the cobalts aren¡¯t a fan of that arrangement.¡± Grant said as Ella watched them pack up crates filled with their own spines under the direction of the ulesian mercenaries. Others were in cages. ¡°What do we do?¡± ¡°Calvin sent us here to get the lay of the land, figure out how long it would take for Storm-Stretch to bounce back after losing a couple shipments, but this here, this is a fucking juicy piece of information.¡± ¡°How so?¡± Ella asked. ¡°Cobalt trade is centralized. The business that dictates a huge piece of Uleis¡¯s gross domestic product, is all there, in one neat, easy to smash location. This is the kind of thing countries would pay dearly to know.¡± ¡°So are we going to help them?¡± ¡°Help who?¡± Grant asked with a frown. ¡°The Cobalts?¡± Ella asked, throwing Maya a curious glance. ¡°Oh yeah, in a manner of speaking. Just not here, or now. Anything that vital to a country¡¯s infrastructure is bound to have more than one Legend guarding it, probably Bent users as well. I can take Veterans, but Legends are a whole different Cussak game. That¡¯s a coin toss.¡± ¡°When, then? I saw one of them get killed!¡± Maya said. Anyone else here have more than five Breaks?¡± Grant asked, raising his hand. ¡°Battles where tens of thousands of people spilled Warp into the air? Show of hands.¡± ¡°Four,¡± Maya said with a sigh. ¡°Five.¡± Ella said. Same number as Calvin. A burst of light dazzled Ella¡¯s eyes as one of Grant¡¯s swords interposed itself between him and a hurtling glass bolt, partially disintegrating in the process. ¡°Wha-¡° Iron Skin. 12/17 Bent remaining Ella instinctively donned Iron Skin and threw herself over their weakest link. A glass bolt ricocheted off Ella¡¯s shoulder, and another one buried itself in her right arm, where it was interposed in front of Maya¡¯s neck. ¡°Seven!¡± a cheery voice shouted from further up the mountain. ***Calvin*** Calvin opened his eyes, and immediately had mixed feelings. Sure Kala was sitting beside him, but the light in the wall sconces was actually painful. ¡°Are you okay? You passed out right in the middle of the party and wouldn¡¯t respond to stimulus. We even poked you with a pin.¡± Kala said. ¡°I can tell,¡± Calvin said, wincing as he tested the tip of his finger. His eyes were slowly adjusting to the level of light, reluctantly, even. I didn¡¯t get unlucky and turn into a vampire, did I? No, no, It¡¯s just the Mesmerizing Eye isn¡¯t playing nicely with the night-vision you stole with 7th,8th,9th Sense. Turns out the freakin¡¯ description doesn¡¯t mention a night vision enhancement for the mutation, so I¡¯m jettisoning the Bakkun eyesight you stole. You might feel a little¡­discomfort, and possible¡­shedding of the pupils. What!? The ache in his eyeballs redoubled, causing Calvin to groan and cup his palms over his eyes. ¡°I think I¡¯ll be okay,¡± Calvin said, through the pain, keeping his palms over his eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t seem okay.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not right now, but I will be soon.¡± He said, taking away his palm to glance at Kala. She radiated light from her veins where the black Bent coursed through her body. Well, that¡¯s weird. Make people have a harder time sneaking, I guess. ¡°Elani, you don¡¯t look good. Your eyes are bleeding.¡± Kala said, dabbing a bit of blood off his face and showing it too him. ¡°How long have you been away from the party?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Maybe ten minutes.¡± ¡°You need to get back out there and tell them I¡¯m sleeping off something¡­¡± Calvin paused as the pain in his eye peaked again. ¡°Something legal, I guess. Then continue your business.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re ¨C ¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± Calvin said. ¡°This is just something that happens. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything you can do for me.¡± A handy might make you both feel better. She¡¯d probably spring for it. I¡¯m going to ignore that. Crap, he¡¯s in too much pain for his libido. Not a good sign, Dr. Spencer. Good point. ¡°Actually, come to think of it,¡± Calvin said with a grin. ¡°A handy might make me feel better.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t be hurting that bad then.¡± Kala said with a chuckle, standing. ¡°I¡¯m gonna go back to the party, but I¡¯m gonna check up on you every twenty minutes or so, okay?¡± ¡°You sure? We probably got time.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make it up to you,¡± Kala said, kissing him on the forehead before she left. You have learned well, young padawan. You got an I-O-U AND got rid of her. I¡¯m impressed. As soon as her footsteps disappeared all the way down the hall, Cal lost all his composure. ¡°Agh, my fucking eyes are separating from my head!¡± Calvin screamed into the pillow, rolling over and scrubbing his painful, itchy eyes with his nails. Now you know why the System knocks you out with Mutations. ¡°Can¡¯t you make it do that?¡± This is a manual dump¡­sooo¡­no. Bit of an oversight on my part. Apologies. There was a startled shout and the clattering of glass. What was that? Well, dumping the mutation caused a recalculation of your mutations that kinda threw it out of whack¡­and there¡¯s a bit of a cascade¡­organ failure¡­type thing¡­so I¡¯m gonna need to focus for a minute. Do me a favor and trigger Medi-tate on your end, would ya? Calvin pushed the extreme pain, itching, and now Nausea away and retreated inside himself, triggering the healing mutation. That¡¯s much better. Make sure you take deep breaths¡­okay..don¡¯t panic, but I need you to summon Nadia for some See Pee Arrr. What¡¯s that? Calvin thought, his consciousness rising closer to the surface. Stay in the healing space! Elliot shouted. And summon Nadia, Goddamnit! Macronomicon Chapter 78: Home surgery for dummies The murmur of the ball around her rose and fell like the familiar tide. It was starting to get late in the evening, when the men and women who¡¯d struck out, or had business in the morning retired, leaving the dance floor filled with half a dozen slow-dancing couples. The musicians had been relieved by one of the older patrons, who played an enchanting melody on a delicate glass instrument. Diplomacy wasn¡¯t the art of tracking someone down and begging them for help, It was selling yourself and your country. Whenever Asabei thought of Gadvera, he¡¯d think of the Gadveran ambassador. She¡¯d been wowing the man with a description of the jungles just outside Mujenan, when her internal clock told her it was about time to go check on Calvin again. ¡°What!?¡± Asabei shouted over the soft tinkling, humming noise of the glass pipes, aiming the horn in his ear at her. Kala briefly considered screaming over the crowd as he had, then decided it wasn¡¯t worth it. She had to leave to check on Calvin anyway, and she was more than half certain the old man pretended to be more deaf than he was, simply to make people embarrass themselves. ¡°I have to go check on a friend,¡± Kala said with a slight curtsy. ¡°I hope to speak to you again.¡± ¡°Okay, the bathroom¡¯s that way.¡± Asabei said, leaving Kala to wonder how much of her tales of beautiful green forests he¡¯d actually heard. She excused herself and headed through the party. It was easier to navigate now, now that so many of them had drifted away in ones and twos. Some of them retired to empty rooms in the old magnate¡¯s mansion for trysts they could only afford at a private party. Sounds like fun. She thought sourly. She probably wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything like that for many years, given her current spotlight in Gadveran politics. Even checking on Calvin was risky. If someone got the wrong idea seeing her leaving his room, they could start a rumor fire¡­and those were hard to put out. Kala discreetly checked in front and behind her as she entered the hall, then swooped into the room quickly and quietly, hopefully no one would notice. When she raised her eyes, however, all thoughts of how her behavior was perceived flew violently out of her head. The bed was covered in streaks of blood, and two Nadia¡¯s were crouched over Calvin¡¯s body, One biting his face, the other reaching her hand into his splayed open chest, clawing out his heart. ¡°NO!¡± Kala drew the stiletto from her thigh and plunged it into the heart-clawing one¡¯s chest as she looked up, driving the evil bitch off of Calvin and pinning her against the wall. ¡°What?¡± was all Nadia was able to say before she dissolved into green mist into the bookshelf. ¡°Get off him!¡± Kala turned as the blood covered one biting his face sat up to look at her. ¡°We¡¯re keeping him alive, you fuckstrated bitch! Grab his heart and start squeezing! It¡¯s not working on its own!¡± Nadia screamed, pointing at the exposed heart before she leaned down and blew two breaths into Calvin¡¯s chest. Kala glanced down at the exposed lump of meat. It wasn¡¯t moving. ¡°Shit!¡± She dove onto the bed and began squeezing Calvin¡¯s heart, prompting the muscle to contract on it¡¯s own, scraping her wrist on the jagged open ribcage at the same time. ¡°What the hell happened!?¡± Kala demanded. ¡°Not there!¡± Nadia shouted, putting her hand over Kala¡¯s and changing the position of her fingers. ¡°Squeeze over this chamber, then this one, don¡¯t just try to crush the damn thing. Get a good rhythm going!¡± Kala did as she was instructed, and the heart began pumping a bit more, a bit faster. ¡°Oh, look at that, physical evidence that you¡¯re good with your hands,¡± Nadia cackled, grabbing a nearby knife resting on top of a lamp. She pressed it to a reopened blood vessel with a soft hiss before she dived down and gave Calvin two more breaths. ¡°What is going on?¡± Kala asked again, wrist deep in her crush. ¡°He didn¡¯t give me the whole story, just terse orders,¡± Nadia said, rolling her eyes. After a couple minutes of breathing for him, she sat up and put a bloody hand on her cheek, making a coy, calculated pose. ¡°Soo¡­how was the party?¡± Nadia asked. ***Calvin*** Calvin opened his eyes blearily, finding an unfamiliar ceiling above him. It certainly wasn¡¯t the one he¡¯d been in when he¡¯d gone into Medi-tate. Calvin tried to speak, but his mouth was too weak and dry to form words. There was a bowl of slowly cooling soup beside his bed, on a glass cabinet. Beside the soup was Kala reading a book. He couldn¡¯t see her face, but he recognized the dress and the slender, dark-skinned legs. Calvin tried to raise his hand to get her attention, but that made him aware of the sudden searing pain in his chest, forcing out a quiet moan of pain, which made everything hurt even more. Kala threw the book away and leaned over him, looking into his eyes with concern. Despite the pain, she still smelled wonderful. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± she asked. Calvin opened his mouth and closed it again, unable to speak. ¡°You almost died last night. What happened?¡± Kala asked, leaning close, peering into his eyes. She stayed like that, staring into his eyes for a strangely long time until she seemed to shake herself out of it, directing her gaze at his nose. Calvin opened and closed his mouth again. ¡°Alright, so we¡¯ll wait until you feel better, I guess. I brought some broth in case you woke up. Can you swallow? Open your mouth once for yes, twice for no.¡± Calvin opened his mouth. Oh, hey, you¡¯re awake. Elliot¡¯s voice rang in the back of Calvin¡¯s head as Kala gently lifted him into a reclining position so gravity could help him swallow, rather than drown. ¡°here you go,¡± Kala said, bringing a spoonful of broth to hip lips, which he was able to down with a little effort. What the hell happened last night? Calvin asked. You want the good news or the bad news? Good news, I guess. You¡¯re still alive, and you¡¯re not a vampire! Congratulations! Tomorrow you should be able to speak and feed yourself, the day after, you might be able to sit up on your own, and two days after that, you¡¯ll be eligible for light duty. This is assuming you use Medi-tate the entire time. If you don¡¯t it¡¯ll take six to eight weeks. Oh, and you got two levels in Meditation for attempting to ignore open heart surgery. Congratulations! I don¡¯t remember that part. You probably repressed it. Alright, what¡¯s the bad news? There was a bit of a bad interaction between Lady Killer, which is Vampire adjacent, and Mesmerizing Eyes, which does carry the risk. The two built off each other in an uncontrolled reaction, and you almost died and turned into a Maculat Mulieres. What is that? Calvin asked. I Don¡¯t know, but that wasn¡¯t the bad news. That was setting the stage for the bad news. ¡­Go ahead. You¡¯ve got it latent in you now, like HIV. We didn¡¯t stop the actual transformation, we simply avoided the whole dying part of the transformation, putting it on hold. Which means? When you die, you¡¯ll turn into a Maculat Mulieres. Oh. Calvin frowned. That¡¯s it? I thought it¡¯d be worse. What do you mean that¡¯s it? you don¡¯t even know what a Maculat is! I don¡¯t even know what it is, there weren¡¯t any on Marconen before I was imprisoned! Right, but the alternative is, when I die, I start rotting and nothing happens at all. I generally try to avoid dying altogether. Hmm¡­ good point. Calvin heard Elliot¡¯s fingers drumming against something¡­maybe a table? Well, we¡¯ll just file that information under Death: Things to avoid. In the meantime, I¡¯d like to give you your ethics briefing on your first suggestion/mind control ability. Calvin groaned slightly before the pain in his chest stopped him. ¡°Did I do something wrong?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Is the soup too hot?¡± She tried a bit with a frown. ¡°Damn I wish you could speak.¡± Tomorrow, I promise. Calvin thought. The ironclad rule of suggestion, memory manipulation, and mind control is that you never, ever use it on an ally. Why, you might ask? Fiction is littered with cautionary tales that illustrate the dangers of¡­ Medi-tate. Hey, don¡¯t shut me ¨C Calvin drew the mental curtains of his Meditation Skill and floated peacefully through space, formless in his little bubble. ***Ella*** Meat Shield has reached level 7! Ella tore the brown bolt free, getting the rest of the way in front of Maya and dragging the little archer down to where her shield was. It must be the people from the fortress, Ella thought, surveying the dozen odd Uleisans on the ridge above them pelting their camp with glass bolts. Getting outflanked is shameful. Roughly half of the enemies were aiming at Ella and Maya while the other half were forcing Grant¡¯s swords to work full time keeping him from being pierced, while their Legend pushed him back. Their legend was a towering Uleisan with a jolly smile, peg leg and a sleeveless vest. His waist had a shiny rope of blue glass coiled around it and dozens of glass balls hung from the man¡¯s shirt and pants. I¡¯m not exactly sure what I¡¯m looking at, Ella thought as the man approached Grant with a glass blade. But I don¡¯t have time to sit around. She caught a glance from Grant and interpreted it as best she could. ¡°Grant¡¯s going to distract the Aiaka for us, and we¡¯re going to take down the rest,¡± Ella said, pulling her shield off the ground and up over the two of them as another glass bolt glanced off the steel. ¡°Okay, what do you need me to do?¡± Maya asked. Ella glanced behind her, the cliff beneath them was steep, but only twenty feet or so until it began to slope. A veteran like Maya could handle it. Probably. She was better in stealth than she was at standing out in the open and getting shot at. It was Ella¡¯s job to make that happen. ¡°I need you to disappear.¡± Ella said, bumping the little archer with her hip, sending her tumbling over the edge of the cliff with a startled squawk. Now that that¡¯s taken care of¡­ Ella took the blood that was lazily pumping out of her arm and spread it over her skin, turning the glossy iron skin a dark red as she hid behind the shield. Blood and Iron Mutation Triggered, each additional creature¡¯s blood will increase the Effectiveness of Iron skin, along with a permanent increase in User¡¯s skin toughness. Time to go to work. Ella jumped for her flail and spotted a glass ball half the size of her fist resting on top of it. It turned red. Ella reflexively threw her hand in front of her eyes as the glass exploded violently in every direction, pelting her skin with shrapnel. Ella blinked twice as a couple glass rods ricocheted off her neck and the ribs in front of her heart. Heavy armor has reached Level 6! Her eyes didn¡¯t have any glass in them, that was good. Through the after-image of the glass orb, she could see her weapon sailing off the end of the cliff. Amehauah, she cursed internally, turning back toward the dozen archers sending sharpened glass rods down on her. I¡¯ll just have to do this barehanded. Ella put her shield in front of her and bulled toward the assembled Archers. She heard the hum of Penetrating Shot and threw the shield up, rolling to the side as she went. A flash of white shrieked through the air and tore a hole in her steel shield before penetrating partway into the stone behind her. Her roll brought her to the face of the rock the enemy were standing on. She bunched her feet under her and jumped with everything she had, sailing up into the air and catching a rock ledge about two thirds of the way up. With a grunt, she hauled down on the ledge and sent herself flying the rest of the way up, landing on the edge of the ledge with a scramble. One of the smarter ones ran up to her and attempted to kick her back off the ledge with his foot before she could get her bearings. She grabbed his leg and flung him backwards, landing the hapless archer down near their campsite while stealing his inertia and rolling forward, putting herself beyond the danger of falling off the edge of the cliff. She came to stand in front of the eleven Uleisan archers, with their little slingshot bows. There was a moment of silence where she could have said something cool, but she didn¡¯t speak the dialect very well. The moment passed, and they dropped their bows, rushing at her with nearly infvisible sheets of glass in their hands. Ella charged forward and their blades shattered against her skin, doing little more than scratching her. Her iron fist crunched through a face, putting the archer down before she felt a stinging impact on her side, where one of the soldiers had put a blade a quarter inch into the skin over her ribs. She ignored the pain and whipped around, delivering an elbow to the man¡¯s temple, taking him out of the fight. The sword tumbled out of his hand and Ella grabbed it, mid-fall, using the blade to sever the next man¡¯s head from his shoulders before excessive torque snapped the handle off. The headless body showered blood over her, and she felt her mutated skin writhe and harden in response. Only eight left. Rather than defend, she leapt on the closest person, snapping the man¡¯s sword off against her stomach. She leaned down and bit into his neck and part of his jaw, sending a well of blood out. She picked the dying man up and shook him, roaring. She did it partially to spread the blood, partially to demoralize the others, and¡­ A few brave young men were charging her, and she tossed the bleeding corpse at them, tearing them off of their feet and sending them to the ground long enough for her to deliver debilitating iron punches to their skulls. Crunch went the bone as it succumbed to superior force. They were running now, and seeing them break in front of her was all the gratification she needed. Ella pointed her finger to aim her paralysis ability, when something struck the back of her spine, nearly folding her over it. Ella tried to turn over and look, but all she saw was the handle of a blade. All she heard was the wind in her ear as she shot up into the sky, supported by the blade. Grant? She glanced the other direction and spotted Grant, oozing blood from a few scratches, and bearing more than one piece of shrapnel, floating in the air beside her. ¡°Sorry to interrupt you when you were doing so well, but it wasn¡¯t going great for us overall, luckily Ussein can¡¯t Fly!!¡± Grant shouted down at the Aiaka standing on the lower cliff. The glass band around his waist had unwound and turned into a glowing red whip with a black core, writhing across the stone like a living thing, with three of Grant¡¯s blades in its grasp. Four more were scattered around the stone, melted to uselessness. ¡°Coward!¡± Ussein shouted up at Grant. ¡°I¡¯m keeping these!¡± ¡°Where¡¯s Maya?¡± Grant asked. Macronomicon Here you go, a Monday chapter. I''ll put stuff out on mondays as well, when I get my work done on time (like today) Enjoy! Patreon is 24 Chapters ahead! And on a personal rant, I was watching some stuff on netflix recently, and I''m not going to name names, but when I sign up to watch a monster hunting tv show, I want my monsters to be monsters, not misunderstood and oppressed. Just let my monsters be monsters, man. I want evil things you can hack away at without moral ambiguity because they eat people! (le sigh) Chapter 79: Rapid Shot ¡°Damned Savage,¡± Maya muttered as she jogged along the side of the slope, carrying her unstrung bow, aiming to outflank the battle proper. ¡°I¡¯m a hunter. I¡¯m a scout. Not a godsdamned pickup ball, or a crazy¡­battle junkie.¡± Maya jumped over a tall rock as she went, the scrapes along her right side and palms stinging viciously. There goes any rapport I might have had with the giant savage. After that, I think it¡¯s safe to say that she is completely ¨C ¡°Hello there, little miss.¡± An unfamiliar voice came from above her. Maya glanced up, her heart hammering in her chest. It was the legend, hanging halfway down the cliff, supported by a gradually unspooling whip in his hand. ¡°Looks like your team lost you. Not a big surprise what with you being so sm-¡° Before the man could finish his evil monologue,a titanic woman made entirely of blood was flung down the cliff at terrifying speeds by a flat bladed sword. Is that Ella? Maya thought in the instant before the blood giant impacted against the Uleisan Legend. ¡°Aw, gross!¡± the whip user shouted as the two of them tumbled down the cliff side. Now seems like a good time, Maya thought, tugging the broke string off with shaking hands and stringing her spare with every ounce of speed she could muster. She looped the steel bow around her back and bent it over her, snapping the string into place before shrugging it off of her. The quiver at Maya¡¯s waist only had two arrows left. The tumble down the cliff had thrown most of them out. Damn. She snatched an arrow out and jammed it into the rocky soil, hoping it would be enough. Blessing of Sirfren. 4/8 Bent remaining The arrow took, it¡¯s wooden shaft swelling and sending roots down into the soil, while branches grew outward and began forming arrow-shaped fruits hanging off of them. It¡¯ll take a few seconds to finish, so for now, I only have this one, She thought drawing her other arrow and knocking it, waiting for the perfect time to strike. The two grapplers fell another forty feet, but never out of her sight, which was well enough, Maya supposed. As the blood was wiped off by the tumble and the Legend¡¯s clothes, Maya could tell that it was indeed the savage that had rescued her. Alright, maybe she¡¯s a little okay. After maybe ten seconds of grappling, the cherry-red whip wrapped around Ella¡¯s neck and lifted her away from the furious legend, sizzling the blood on her skin and causing her to cry out in pain. Here we go, Maya thought, whipping through a draw and fire, sending the arrow lancing downhill toward the enemy. the whip coiled like a living thing to intercept her shot, catching the arrow, which then burst into flame. Damn! The Legend sent her a smug smile before tearing one of the glass balls free of his vest and pitching it uphill with all the speed of her own arrow. Maya dove and curled up behind a rock the size of a dog, shielding her completely from the explosions of glass shards. Never going to complain about my size again, She thought, inspecting the holes in her leather sleeves. When she ducked back out from behind the rock, the situation had changed drastically in a couple of seconds. Grant had exploited a moment of distraction to free Ella from the grasp of the man¡¯s whip and was pressuring him with half a dozen blades, forcing him away from the whip that writhed on the rocky ground like a living thing, creating bursts of light as the occasional shrub or insect was immolated. Ella rushed forward again, engaging the Legend in hand to hand while Grant tried to skewer him. Behind the two of them, the whip coiled like a snake ready to strike. ¡°Behind you! Whip!¡± Maya shouted. Grant and Ella glanced behind them just before the whip launched itself through the air. Grant slapped a sword against the whip¡¯s side, knocking it off trajectory, but the Legend exploited the moment of distraction to deliver a devastating punch to Ella¡¯s face befor lunging past her to catch the handle of his weapon. Then they were back in the same situation as before. Maya glanced over her shoulder. The arrow bush was done growing, and although many of the arrows were broken b y glass shrapnel, plenty of them weren¡¯t. Maya grabbed handful after handful of Bent-grown arrows with stone tips and jammed them into her quiver before turning to face the fight that was raging between the rest of her team and the Legend. Grant was looking worn down, Ella was looking angry, and the legend seemed to be having fun. Called shot. Rapid Shot. Homing Arrow. Penetrating shot. 0/8 Bent remaining. For a fraction of a second, the world slowed down around Maya as she knocked and fired arrow after arrow, playing with the Legend¡¯s automatic defenses, using the area where they were warding off Grant¡¯s blades to lead the length of glass into a position where it couldn¡¯t possibly react. Arrow after arrow took off from her without conscious effort. Maya couldn¡¯t see or feel her hands, her entire world narrowing down to the Legend who seemed to be frozen in time, battling Ella with a snarl on his face. When the last arrow cleared her bow and her fingers felt nothing in her quiver, the trance broke. Downrange, the Uleisan soldier exploded with arrows. The penetrating shot was blocked by his whip, being cut in half, while a single arrow managed to get through the man¡¯s defenses to lodge itself in his shoulder. Ella lunged forward and punched him in the wound, then tried to knee him in the crotch, recoiling from the red-hot whip that interposed itself. Grant brought a blade down on the man¡¯s other shoulder and the whip wasn¡¯t fast enough to totally negate the damage, allowing his blade to sink several inches into the man¡¯s flesh. ¡°Gah!¡± The glass balls on the man¡¯s vest turned red and exploded outward, forcing Grant back. Maya watched as thousands of tiny pieces of glass turned orange, then white hot as they swirled around the man¡¯s whip, reforming a significant amount of it¡¯s length. No, that¡¯s just a patch. Maya could see that the dark center of the whip ended where her arrow had severed it, meaning that the new length didn¡¯t have nearly the same durability. He was also out of explosives. They¡¯d dealt a blow, but they needed to present a strong front. Maya grabbed more arrows and immediately knocked one, looking for an opportunity. Without Bent, she was unlikely to land another blow on the man, but he didn¡¯t know that. ¡°Well,¡± The Uleisan soldier said, eyeing the arrow shaft still in his shoulder and the three people of wildly different races menacing him. ¡°I think I¡¯ve had about enough fun for the day. Ladies, Gentleman.¡± He said, his whip coiling underneath him before the entire man launched down the hill, aiming for the fortress. ¡°We¡¯ve gotta stop him!¡± Ella shouted, rushing to follow before the flat side of a sword pushed her back. ¡°We¡¯ve got to retreat.¡± Grant said in a somber tone, motioning Maya to join them. ¡°The fort down there definitely saw the skirmish, and there¡¯s no way they¡¯re not sending up their best and brightest to investigate.¡± When Maya arrived, six blades laid themselves down on the ground. ¡°Lie down on the swords,¡± Grant said, stepping on two of them. ¡°Why can¡¯t we stand like you?¡± Maya asked. ¡°Because I can¡¯t balance someone else when they¡¯re all squirmy. Just lie down and try not to move.¡± ¡°Fine,¡± Maya laid down on two blade, right next to Ella. They both gave a grunt of surprise when the swords lifted them off the ground and then began carrying them downhill at outlandish speed. ¡°That arrow thing was awesome,¡± Ella said jovially, seemingly heedless of the chunks of rough stone passing beneath them at a speed that could tear Maya to pieces. ¡°It was like BZZZ! And all of a sudden, arrows everywhere, just pummeling that guy. It¡¯s what gave us the win.¡± She clapped Maya on the back, knocking the breath out of her. Maya wanted to be carried along by Ella¡¯s enthusiasm and return the complements regarding the battle they¡¯d just barely survived, but a nagging questions kept returning to her. ¡°When are you going to put some clothes on?¡± ¡°After I wash off all the blood. No sense washing everything twice.¡± ***Baroke*** ¡°Nobody builds things with big people in mind,¡± Baroke said, his spine aching as he crouch-walked through the city sewers. ¡°You should be thankful I was able to squeeze you through that drain,¡± Nadia said from behind him. ¡°A godsdamned miracle is what it was.¡± ¡°Eh,¡± Baroke shrugged. If a hole was too small, he could always make the hole bigger. That never seemed to have been a problem, really. With anything. ¡°Gross.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You had a lewd look to you just then.¡± ¡°You¡¯re standing behind me.¡± Baroke said, turning to look at the black-haired witch. ¡°Not necessarily.¡± Her voice emanated from in front of him. Another Nadia stood at the end of the tunnel. ¡°This way. That one¡¯s about to disappear. It¡¯s been fifty-eight hours.¡± Baroke glanced over his shoulders at the Nadia behind him, who winked before blinking out of existence. Whatever. Baroke shrugged, turning forward again. If a second Nadia had been able to get to them, that probably meant there was a clear path to go back the way she came. And getting back means a bath. By all the gods, the smell will haunt me. Raw sewage was less a smell and more a physical sensation of being punched in the nasal passages by raw stench. Sure enough, Nadia led him to a manhole in a deserted alley, and then they began making their way toward the mansion. Baroke left his makeshift bow in the knee-deep awfulness. It had served him well enough, but¡­it was a crap bow. And that didn¡¯t have anything to do with the foul shit-water soaking the string, either. Together they made their way back to the mansion, where a third Nadia waved them around the back, where several large tubs full of soapy water waited for them. In the middle of the desert, it was a kingly welcome. After about an hour scrubbing every inch of himself and receiving entirely new clothes, Baroke was allowed inside the mansion. Calvin was waiting for him in a wheelchair at the entrance, driven by Nadia. Another Nadia. That didn¡¯t sit well. ¡°What the hell happened to you?¡± Baroke asked. Calvin wasn¡¯t exactly the infirm type. He was as tough as a guar, normally, so Baroke had no idea what could have put him down in the mere two days he¡¯d been gone. ¡°You get poisoned?¡± ¡°Nah, rapid cancerous mutation, open heart surgery. Long story. I was asleep for most of it. I¡¯ll be back to full strength in a couple more days.¡± ¡°Uhuh,¡± Baroke said, eyeing the cripple. ¡°Well, I¡¯m going to bed. I just spent a whole day and two nights crawling through a sewer. Which one¡¯s mine?¡± ¡°Take mine, it¡¯s the master bedroom.¡± Calvin said, pointing over his shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s the only one with a big enough bed. We¡¯ll get you a cot set up in the morning. Jinsei needs something to do, anyway. ¡°Sucker still owes me a bow,¡± Baroke said, ambling past Calvin, the fading fight-or-flight instinct leaving him feeling more drained than he¡¯d ever been. ¡°Oh, and don¡¯t go outside right away when you wake up!¡± Calvin said as Baroke struggled to lift his hand to the door. ¡°Huh?¡± he grunted, peering through rapidly clouding eyes at his cripple-friend. ¡°You¡¯ve got a bounty on your head now.¡± Calvin said jovially. ¡°For attempting to assassinate the Ilethan ambassador and escaping custody.¡± ¡°What about her?¡± Baroke nodded toward the leather-clad witch. ¡°Of course not.¡± Calvin said, aghast. ¡°She¡¯s a princess.¡± Nadia frowned. ¡°What?¡± The indignity of being saddled with Nadia¡¯s misbehavior welled up and the next thing he knew, Baroke had punched the princess so hard she turned into green mist. ¡°Ahahahah!¡± Calvin guffawed, slapping the side of his chair. ¡°Thought you¡¯d want first crack at her. Anyway, I¡¯ll get this sorted out for you, Baroke. I wasn¡¯t aware of it, and I wasn¡¯t able to intercede for you because of my near-death experience, but it¡¯s my responsibility and I¡¯ll make sure it gets fixed, and that Nadia regrets it. Anyway, look at it this way. No matter what happens, you¡¯re not going to be staying here forever, and Uleisan bounties are no better than toilet paper in Gadvera. ¡°¡­Thanks.¡± ¡°Sleep well.¡± Baroke stumbled over to the door, pulled it open, and collapsed into the fine silks of the king-sized bed, losing consciousness before he even heard the door close behind him. ***Calvin*** Chained Spirit 12/15 Bent remaining. Nadia appeared in front of him, coalescing from the green mist, skeleton first, her arms crossed. ¡°What in the Abyss was that?¡± She demanded and the green mist coalesced into flesh. The petulant look on her face tickled Calvin¡¯s funny bone. ¡°I was just curious.¡± Calvin said between laughs, waving her off. ¡°Turns out Baroke could have literally punched you to death when you were still alive.¡± ¡°Too bad he¡¯s such a soft-headed simpleton.¡± ¡°Ehh,¡± Calvin shrugged. Baroke wasn¡¯t actually stupid. He just specialized in his Body. ¡°Anyway, you¡¯re to stay out of the public eye as well, after that stunt. Say goodbye to parties and terrorizing your brother for the time being.¡± ¡°However will I cope?¡± Nadia said, getting behind his chair and grabbing the handles. ¡°I don¡¯t care. Let¡¯s go visit Bulad.¡± Calvin pointed, and Nadia began pushing him toward the workshop. He located Bulad working on designs to expand the mansion with the other engineers and Jinsei as an advisor. After all, they were unfamiliar with using glass as a building material. ¡°How¡¯s it going?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Great! Look at this!¡± Bulad said, the snaggletoothed engineer said, handing him the draft, a complex blueprint of an entire wing attached to the current mansion, enough to house the remaining units of his company. ¡°There¡¯s even a spot for my chickens.¡± Calvin chuckled as Bulad tapped his drafting pencil on the chicken coop. ¡°What is it with you and chickens, Bulad?¡± ¡°You try turning refuse into delicious eggs, or making a cake without them.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± Calvin said,¡± handing it back. ¡°I want you to change your measurements to necessitate fifty times as much reinforced glass.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­what?¡± Bulad asked, frowning in disbelief. Money laundering, is what that is. ¡°Fifty times as much raw materials. We¡¯re going to make something big.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­a lot. Like, most of the available reinforced glass in the city.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve got the money for it.¡± Calvin said, nodding to the wagons full of gold the trade goods would have to be re-sold at a much slower rate, considering they could be traced back to their original owners if they tried to trade with them in bulk. ¡°O¡­kay. If that¡¯s what you want.¡± ¡°Thanks, Bulad. Once you get the glass, I¡¯ll have the Knick-knacks start setting up the extra wing under your direction.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Bulad nodded and started breaking up the company into teams to go out and buy in bulk from all the suppliers in the city. When the news came in that the shipments of Cobalt spines had gone missing, the price would surge. Calvin would generously resell most of the glass he¡¯d acquired back to the suppliers at a modest profit. Then, when the sand pirates found the shipments and began reselling it on the black market, Calvin would reacquire the supplies to expand the mansion for next to nothing. Or thereabouts. ***Ussein Kabva*** Broke my freaking whip. I paid ten stones for that whip! Ussein complained internally as the fortress bustled around him, the men on high alert. It had been years since a competitor of the Storm Stretch group had reared their heads around the Cobalt mountains. ¡°Hey,¡± Ussein said, snagging one of the sergeants hustling by, an older fellow starting to develop a paunch who¡¯d been around long enough to be familiar with almost everything. ¡°You recognize a tattoo of two wasps, facing each other?¡± Ussein said, pantomiming it. ¡°No sir.¡± ¡°Agh,¡± Ussein said, putting his palm over his brow. Three different people with three different nationalities, all working on the same side to rob him? Sounded like bandits, but bandits generally didn¡¯t have Legends, and the old Ilethan with the floating swords was definitely one. They were a little too lively and well-fed to be bandits. ¡°Now I gotta report this,¡± Ussein groaned. ¡°Where¡¯d you see it?¡± ¡°Above a cooch.¡± Ussein said, taking a swig of Bolesian wine. Macronomicon Chapter 80: Light Duty Scheming Calvin walked up to the ruddy glass mansion, thankful to be back on his own two feet. He craned his neck to look up at the towering spires jutting out above the fanciful mansion, supposedly home to one of his prey. Why does everyone like spires so much In Uleis? ¡°Can I help you?¡± one of the guards asked, a lighter-skinned Uleisan with a hook nose. ¡°Is this¡­¡± Calvin slid a paper out of his vest and double checked it. ¡°Princess June¡¯s residence?¡± ¡°Her highness June de¡¯ Sereval Untei.¡± The guard corrected. ¡°And yes, it is.¡± ¡°Is she planning on attending the New Year¡¯s Ball? My Master wishes to coordinate a gift for the occasion.¡± ¡°Of course, It¡¯s tradition for the royal family to celebrate new years.¡± Hook-nose looked at him like he was dumb. ¡°Excellent,¡± Calvin said, dropping the paper and delivering a solid punch to the man¡¯s face. He was starting to feel a lot better now that he was out of the damn wheelchair. That was when Calvin¡¯s breastbone popped loose. Calvin¡¯s eyes opened with a gasp, the pain of Shadowboxing fading away rapidly. I¡¯m glad I decided to test my limits in Shadowboxing. That would have sucked. ¡°So, are you ready for light duty?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Emphasis on light,¡± he said, pushing himself out of the wheelchair. His body was a lot weaker than he expected. ¡°If it comes down to fisticuffs, I¡¯m leaving you to your fate.¡± ¡°Controlled mutations,¡± She said, shaking her head. ¡°I always knew there was something different about you, but that¡¯s just¡­¡± ¡°You can keep a secret, right?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at his perverted princess crush, a seed of a prank growing. ¡°Of course. I can see why you kept it to yourself.¡± ¡°Right, well, there¡¯s one other mutation I haven¡¯t told you about.¡± Calvin said with a hint of reluctance, trying to put all of his Skill at Acting to use to really sell it. ¡°Even weirder than the shapeshifting one?¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ my junk.¡± ¡°What?¡± She frowned. ¡°You can¡¯t see any changes outwardly ¨C¡± ¡°Other than your eyes,¡± Kala interrupted, pointing out his lighter colored eyes. ¡°Other than my eyes,¡± Calvin agreed. ¡°Unfortunately, other places on my body have been severely effected. My¡­penis has barbs on it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true, I ¨C¡° Kala went silent. ¡°You what, didn¡¯t feel them?¡± Calvin asked, struggling mightily but still ultimately failing to push down his smirk. ¡°Didn¡¯t see them.¡± she said, airily, adopting an aloof demeanor. ¡°I guess it was pretty dark in that tent. I mean, I was blindfolded, but I could tell it was dark, so I could understand why you didn¡¯t see them.¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to talk about something else.¡± She said, crossing her arms and fixing him with a scowl. ¡°Fair enough.¡± Calvin said, laughing. ¡°About the eyes.¡± she said, glancing quickly up into his eyes, then focusing on his nose. It kind of made it tickle. ¡°Right. Just try to avoid direct eye contact for now, until I get a handle on it. Elliot gave me a several hour-long sermon about them that amounted to ¡®don¡¯t use them on allies, because it turns them into ticking time-bombs¡¯.¡± ¡°What¡¯s a time-bomb?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Does it explode time, or something?¡± ¡°I think it just explodes after a certain amount of time.¡± ¡°Huh, less exciting than I thought.¡± ¡°Captain!¡± Carl shouted, sprinting into the lobby where Calvin stood beside his wheelchair. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Grant¡¯s team is back! They¡¯re pretty roughed up but it looks like they¡¯re all okay! We drew up a bath for them out back.¡± ¡°Excellent.¡± Calvin said as Carl ran off at full speed, ¡°I needed some walking, anyway.¡± He held out his arm. ¡°Assistance? My undeniable foresight tells me I can¡¯t walk without your arm.¡± Kala rolled her eyes, then glanced around, not seeing anyone else. She took the excuse to press against his side as they headed for the rear of the mansion. Nice. Don¡¯t you have work to do? Calvin asked. Namely making sure that never happens again? I am working. I¡¯ve got the System running simulations, but it hasn¡¯t flagged anything else as dangerous to your health. Including the extra senses and languages I¡¯ve been getting? What do I look like, an amateur? Elliot asked, sipping on something. After the incident, I¡¯m inclined to think so. I¡¯ll have you know that you¡¯d be a freaking lady-eating zombie right now if I were an amateur. ¡­did my Attributes backslide? I feel weak. That¡¯s just a side effect of healing so rapidly. As far as I know, attributes aren¡¯t capable of backsliding. Thank the gods. Don¡¯t thank the gods. Thank me. Eeeh. Ungrateful brat. Once they reached the end of the hall, Kala pushed away from him and resumed her princess demeanor, fixing her clothes and hair. The see-sawing attitude bothered Calvin a little, but he somewhat understood where she was coming from. They walked out into the backyard of the mansion, a field of dust and stone with some dead shrubbery that the Tan household hadn¡¯t been able to keep alive as their fortune spiraled down the drain. There were several dozen glass poles thrust into the ground with white canvas stretched between them, providing shade for the three people washing dirt and blood off of themselves. ¡°How goes it?¡± Calvin asked cheerfully as he approached, careful of his healing breastbone as he knelt beside them. Grant was slumped in the copper tub, a washcloth over his eyes and a pipe in his mouth. When he heard Calvin speak, he lifted the washcloth before clearing what sounded like a rabid kevil out of his throat, spitting into the dirt. ¡°Captain,¡± he said, nodding. ¡°Ack,¡± Maya said, folding the washcloth over herself and giving him an accusing glare. Ella simply gave them a wave before she returned to scrubbing dried blood out of her hair, rubbing her scalp with soap vigorously. Her generous breasts hopped in and out of the water like mud-skippers, and Calvin found himself momentarily hypnotized. I wonder if there¡¯s a mutation for hypnotic boobs. Calvin wondered idly, tearing his eyes away before he got caught staring. ¡°I¡¯m here for your debrief. How did it go?¡± ¡°Primary objective worked like a charm. We waylaid the major shipments for the month. They¡¯ll be able to send smaller relief caravans in a week or so.¡± ¡°Excellent. How about the other one?¡± ¡°That¡¯s an interesting story, captain.¡± Grant said, reaching over the side of his tub to bring a flask of booze up to his lips. ¡°We rode in there expecting scattered villages of Cobalts doing business with the Storm-Stretch group, but it wasn¡¯t anything like that.¡± Calvin listened with increasing interest as Grant described the oppression of the Cobalts. If there¡¯s anything I¡¯ve learned in my time, it¡¯s that horrible events and terrible suffering always present an opportunity to profit. Not so much with good things. Calvin glanced over his shoulder to ask Kala a question, and he found her staring at Ella, her jaw hanging open as the Genosian girl dunked water over her head. He cleared his throat, startling Kala out of her daze. ¡°I think I need to go¡­work on my plan to get a spot in the palace.¡± She glanced over at Grant. ¡°Good work.¡± Grant gave a casual thumbs-up as she left. Do Cobalts have access to the System? Calvin asked. If they¡¯re sapient, then yes. That gave Calvin an idea. ¡°One other thing,¡± Grant said, tapping his pipe off the side of the tub. ¡°The three of us got spotted. A Legend named Ussein Kabva got an eyeful of all three of us and lived to tell the tale. I know the guy from the wars to the east, when the Kolest were swooping south into Boles and they hired us to alleviate the problem.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a cheery fuck, but not nearly as stupid as he looks. He recognized me and sooner or later word of my current job is going to reach his ears, and then you¡¯re going to have problems.¡± ¡°Hmm,¡± Calvin said, resting his chin on his palm as he thought. I think it¡¯s about time we got some backup plans in place, because this house of cards is starting to get pretty elaborate. Calvin glanced at his mansion, and chewed his lip for a moment. I want an escape route, but I don¡¯t want anyone to know about it. That includes Nadia, Kala, and the rest of the company. People couldn¡¯t spill what they didn¡¯t know about. Calvinian summoning. Atom Ant 10/15 Bent remaining. Twenty identical Knick-knacks manifested out of green smoke, each with the strength, nimbleness and toughness of five of them. Go into the west sitting room, lock the door behind you, and dig a secret tunnel to the outside of the city. Avoid connecting to the sewers, and hide the evidence of the work. Understood? The knick-knacks nodded and ran off. ¡°What was that about?¡± Grant asked. ¡°Sending Jinsei some more help.¡± Calvin lied. ¡°In your professional opinion, what would it take to claim the Storm-Stretch fort long enough to say¡­ lure the Uleisans into sending a huge army to take it back?¡± ¡°Eehhh,¡± Grant rubbed the back of his neck. ¡°Depends on your time-table. A week ago, I could have done it with you, me, Baroke, Ella, and maybe a dozen others. A week from now, that place is going to be a tough nut to crack. Ussein is going to raise security on that place tenfold. We¡¯re talking regular patrols, makeshift watchtowers, and a significant increase in personelle. We could take everyone we have and it still might not be enough.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ve heard enough scheming, I just want a clean bed.¡± Maya climbed out of the tub, modestly wrapped in a towel. ¡°Your room is at the top of the stairs, first one on the left,¡± Calvin said, giving her instructions to Baroke¡¯s room. He glanced over at Ella, but the Genosian was still wiping red out of her ears with a sodden crimson cloth. Her bathwater was practically blood. How much blood did she get covered with? A lot? ¡°How about mercenaries?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I hesitate to send everyone I have because it¡¯s easy to identify us as a company, but you, me, and Ella could fade into the background of some Uleisan mercs.¡± ¡°Mercenaries don¡¯t attack whoever you want for a specific amount of money,¡± Grant said. ¡°I thought that was like, the definition of a mercenary,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Mercenaries, at least the ones worth their salt, very much enjoy living through their commissions. They are rightly suspicious of their employers treating them like disposable pawns, and are therefore hard to convince to take jobs that reek of futility. Ones that are easy to convince are generally unreliable, prone to sneaking away in the middle of the night.¡± ¡°There goes my plan to hire some mercenaries as disposable pawns.¡± Calvin said. Grant chuckled. ¡°Hypothetically, let¡¯s say I could hire them, how much would a force big enough to take the fort cost me?¡± ¡°for let¡¯s say, two weeks of work? Fifty glimmers, give or take a little haggling.¡± Calvin¡¯s heart dropped into his stomach. Damn all of creation, that¡¯s a lot of money! We¡¯re working on a different scale now, remember? You actually do have that much in your wagons. A lot of it was bound up in industrial glass gradually being stacked in the storage yard of Calvin¡¯s mansion. Reminds me of a Civilization game, watching people pile up raw materials like that. Calvin looked over at the expanding mound of raw materials. Prices were starting to rise to reflect the drain Calvin himself was posing on supply. He hadn¡¯t considered that aspect, and it cut slightly into his profit margin. Still should make a mint. Calvin glanced over at his wagon full of spices and drugs, difficult to resell while the merchant¡¯s guild was still watching for them. He looked at Grant, noting the streak of grey in his messy hair, the week-old beard, and his general sourness. ¡°You think the mercenaries would take commodities other than gold?¡± He followed Calvin¡¯s gaze. ¡°Yah, it might work. But you¡¯d have to be damn careful. Wanna hook them before they tattle on you. And no offense, but you¡¯re awfully¡­young to be hiring an army.¡± ¡°You look the part, though,¡± Calvin said, pointing at Grant with a grin, ¡°We¡¯ve still got quite a lot of spare silk, too. After you get done with your bath, you¡¯re getting a couple of the best tailored suits you¡¯ve ever experienced. You¡¯re going to become Mr. Grant, Titan of industry.¡± ¡°Ooh,¡± Ella said, splashing in her tub as she raised a hand excitedly. ¡°Can I have a purple and black dress, with gold and Nem earrings? I wanna surprise Kala.¡± Calvin blinked. Purple dye was the most expensive in existence, and Nem was slightly more valuable than gold, But, to be fair, they did have a fair amount of all of those things just gathering dust on the wagon. ¡°Ah, what the Abyss,¡± Calvin said with a smile. ¡°Fresh clothes all around!¡± ¡°Eiawha!¡± Ella shouted, pumping a fist. It translated roughly to ¡®sweet!¡¯ ***Orson*** ¡°Describe these attackers. Spare no detail.¡± ¡°Well, one was a little girl, real short. Was wearing camouflage, didn¡¯t really say anything, so I couldn¡¯t I.D. her. One of them, I know, an Ilethan general named Grant Kennedy, Big, tall, black hair with a streak of grey, uses floating swords.¡± Ussein said, listing off the defining features of the attackers. ¡°The third might have been Genosian,¡± ¡°A what?¡± ¡°Mountain people near Gadvera. Not entirely human. Shark teeth.¡± He bared his teeth, pointing at them. ¡°She was at least six feet tall and built like a Kushar. Stacked too.¡± ¡°Focus.¡± Orson chided. ¡°This is part of the physical description,¡± Ussein said innocently. ¡°And she had this tattoo right above her ¨C ¡° ¡°I hardly see how this is relevant.¡± Orson interrupted. ¡°You said spare no detail, but it¡¯s your dust, sir,¡± Ussein said with a sloppy salute. ¡°She had skin the color and texture of sand, which was most likely an Ability, which is why I can¡¯t be sure she¡¯s Genosian. They have skin that ranged from grey to purple, between their men and women, respectively.¡± ¡°Enough about the woman. Tell me more about this general.¡± Orson said, dismissing the lengthy description of the woman¡¯s body. ¡°Grant?¡± Ussein asked. ¡°Last I heard he¡¯d landed himself a nice cushy job as a general in Iletha, but I¡¯ve been out of the loop the last couple years, what with guarding the golden goose.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have people look into him, you can go.¡± Orson said, returning to his paperwork as the Legend sauntered out the door. The three shipments from the mine were overdue, which was no accident. Someone was attempting to undermine him, but who of the twelve members of the Hand would stand to benefit? Orson could think of three off the top of his head, plus the Malkenrovian captain buying up all the tempered glass in the city. When the spines were reported lost, the price would spike, and the captain would be able to make a hell of a profit if he kept his men in tents. Cut my losses. He¡¯d lost a lot of money, and keeping Kala under his wing was hemorrhaging money. Keeping a princess fed and clothed and entertained was fucking ridiculous. Still, while losing those shipments was a blow, he had enough fingers in enough pies that he could easily host the demanding princess for a couple years. Long enough to figure out what to do with her. Orson made some notes to restrict the flow of raw materials and new projects to insulate himself as much as possible from the coming snap in glass prices. It was a little too late to profit off of it, seeing as the captain had already taken most of what was available. Hmmm¡­ Orson remembered seeing an older fellow with Ilethan skin and greying hair in Calvin¡¯s entourage. Dimly. Seems like I should pay the boy¡¯s new castle a visit. Macronomicon Still going strong! Thanks to my Patrons. Shamelessly stealing their ideas keeps this thing interesting! Enjoy! Chapter 81: House Visit The faint sensation of being roughly jostled alerted Calvin that maybe he should snap out of Medi-tate. ¡°What?¡± He said, blinking the sand out of his eyes. Five days and he hadn¡¯t been able to use Meditation to work on any of his skills, instead forced to recover from his last Mutation. He was almost completely back to normal, now, having healed the rough equivalent of nine weeks. Calvin expected to open his eyes to a princess, and when it turned out to be a panting, sweaty Carl, he had to stop himself from recoiling. ¡°I¡¯ve got news!¡± the runner gasped. ¡°And?¡± Calvin asked. Is it a get-out-of-bed kind of news, or is it a Let-the-underlings-handle-it kind of news? ¡°Orson Huul is coming here! We¡¯ve only got five minutes or so!¡± Calvin¡¯s arms flung out and grabbed the edge of his bed. This was definitely a get out of bed kind of news. Orson Huul was the owner of the caravans they¡¯d been raiding recently, and Kala¡¯s host. Last time he¡¯d seem him, the man hadn¡¯t even bothered to give Calvin a second glance, which made his presence here highly suspicious. ¡°Crap, tell Maya to keep a low profile, and fill the rest of the drug wagon with raw glass! I don¡¯t want him to see our little nest egg.¡± ¡°Sir!¡± Carl saluted, sprinting away. Grant had already been dressed up, turning the lumbering, unshaven beast of a man into a genteel buyer and seller of men before being shipped out to get Calvin his mercs early in the morning. He was already off the mansion¡¯s land, and hopefully far enough away from Calvin that he wouldn¡¯t implicate him. That only left one person who needed to lay low, and Calvin had an idea. ¡°And you!¡± Calvin said, poking Ella who was blearily waking up beside him. ¡°You wanted an excuse to try that dress on, Right?¡± She nodded, suppressing a yawn. ¡°Well, here¡¯s your chance.¡± ***Calvin*** Calvin was waiting the front yard when Orson arrived, trailing a rather tall and slender looking uleisan fellow with close-cropped hair. ¡°Mr. Huul, what an unexpected surprise! Is this about the princess? I hadn¡¯t heard anything on my front.¡± Calvin welcomed the scowling old man with open arms, guiding him onto the grounds. ¡°Kala is fine, she¡¯s been the perfect guest. Other people, maybe not so much.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Calvin asked, blinking innocently under the man¡¯s gaze. He could feel irritation and suspicion rolling off of him like heat. Orson gave a forced smile and shrugged like a younger man. ¡°But that¡¯s not what we¡¯re here about today. Today is just a social visit, me coming by to welcome you to Uleis!¡± ¡°Thank you, Mr. Huul.¡± Calvin said with an exaggerated nod. ¡°We¡¯ve been settling in just fine.¡± ¡°I can see that.¡± Orson said, glancing over to the side yard, where human soldiers were setting glass support beams into the foundations dug by Knick-Knacks. Carl was sitting on the back of the drug and spice wagon, leaning against the glass jutting haphazardly out the back and drenching himself with water from his canteen. ¡°You work fast, young man. I¡¯d expect you to still be working on the digging.¡± Orson said, scanning the pit. ¡°They¡¯ve been taking shifts living in tents,¡± Calvin said. ¡°As a result, everyone is highly motivated.¡± ¡°Hum..¡± Orson frowned as he looked into the foundation. ¡°You¡¯re going to want to hire an Uleisan engineer, not just a glass artisan, if you don¡¯t want to bake in your new home. While the pit is open is an excellent time to install a Stells air cooler.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll¡­ make sure to do that.¡± Calvin said, a little confused. Why is he being nice to me? What, you thought he was going to huff and puff like the big bad wolf? He¡¯s going to butter you up until you show him where to stick the knife. I see. ¡°You¡¯re planning quite the structure,¡± Orson said, glancing at the mountain of raw glass waiting for Jinsei to patch it together into something resembling a home. ¡°Well, It¡¯s gotta house two hundred of us.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°Hmm¡­I¡¯m no expert, but you might have bought a bit more than you need.¡± Orson said, rubbing his chin contemplatively. ¡°I figured it would be better to buy more than I needed, seeing as we¡¯re probably gonna mess up here and there.¡± ¡°Let me rephrase that.¡± Orson said. ¡°A lot more than you need.¡± ¡°Never worked with glass before,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°Uh huh,¡± Orson said before turning to him, stepping in close and lowering his voice. ¡°Can I let you in on a secret?¡± Whoah, ease up, creepy uncle. Calvin thought. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Calvin asked, leaning forward himself, pleased when Orson drew back rather than make out with the teen, ceding his position to Calvin. He felt a flicker of irritation in the man¡¯s gaze that was quickly smothered behind calculated cunning. ¡°There¡¯s going to be a hike in the price of tempered glass soon. You¡¯ll probably be able to sell your spare material to recoup some of your costs, if you¡¯re fast enough.¡± ¡°Wow, really?¡± Calvin asked, truly bewildered as the man watched his expression like a snake watching a mouth. Why is he telling me that? Tell you later, keep playing dumb. ¡°Yes, really. Taking advantage of an artificial price hike is one of the most basic schemes. So simple, it¡¯s one of the most common ways people try to make money.¡± Orson said, eyeing Calvin for a reaction. Calvin didn¡¯t give him one. ¡°Normally you¡¯d need a certificate of integrity from the inspectors to sell,¡± he said, lifting an engraved plate off one of the pallets of glass. ¡°But these are still good until the end of the month.¡± ¡°Well, thanks!¡± Calvin said with a smile. ¡°How¡¯d you hear about it? the glass thing, that is?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my business, moving basic materials from here to there, so I¡¯m the first one to know when there¡¯s been a¡­reduction in the flow of goods. Makes my friends and I light on our feet.¡± ¡°Neat. Can we get you anything? Drink? Sandwich? I like the Gulper and mushroom sandwich, myself.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m just here for well wishes. I¡¯ll be gone in a few minutes.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± The tall man beside Orson said, pointing at where one of Calvin¡¯s more artistic men was painting Calvin¡¯s house symbol on a large glass canvas, two stylized wasps facing each other. Crap. ¡°It¡¯s my house symbol.¡± Calvin said, resisting the urge to cross his arms defensively. ¡°It¡¯s fucking cool, is what it is,¡± He said with an amiable smile, his hands in his pockets. ¡°Although I don¡¯t recognize it. It new?¡± ¡°First of my name. Gadsint.¡± ¡°A lovechild got their name in the Gadveran registry of nobles?¡± At your age? Damn!¡± This guy knows something. No shit. ¡°Nothing impressive. I¡¯m on the bottom of the ladder. About as noble as those kids who toss out chamberpots.¡± ¡°You must be¡­¡± The tall man snapped his fingers a couple times. ¡°That wasp guy!¡± ¡°What?¡± Orson asked, glancing over at his companion, grey brows furrowed. ¡°Yeah, I asked around for the latest gossip, and heard about a teen with strange magic that held off the Ilethan offensive at Mujenan nearly single-handedly. That was you, right?¡± Orson¡¯s gaze changed from sour and irritated to downright angry, but the man¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change a bit. ¡°Yeah, people started call me ¡®The Wasp¡¯ for some reason,¡± Calvin said, waggling his fingers for emphasis. ¡°Kinda sounds lame and effeminate to me. I never wanted a nickname.¡± ¡°Yeah, most of the time we can¡¯t choose our nicknames,¡± the Uleisan man said with a shrug. ¡°I¡¯ll give you some nick-name advice.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± He stooped low and lowered his voice. ¡°Change the meaning of the words.¡± ¡°How so?¡± ¡°Well, say your nickname is Ass-licker.¡± ¡°Ussein, please,¡± Orson said, rolling his eyes. Calvin blinked. ¡°That¡¯s quite an image.¡± ¡°Right?¡± Ussein said with a chuckle. ¡°But let¡¯s say hypothetically you took the name in stride, and tore a path of destruction through the known world. People come to know ass-licker as the bringer of death and fear.¡± ¡°And If I¡¯m honorable, clever and just, Ass-licker becomes a shining example of what to aim for.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°So what¡¯s your nickname?¡± Calvin asked between chuckles. ¡°Fat Kabva.¡± He said proudly. ¡°You¡¯re not fat.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I know.¡± Ussein said, straightening again to tower over him. ¡°You¡¯re not a wasp.¡± ¡°I suppose.¡± It was about this time that Ella showed up, her skin dark brown, like so many other Uleisans, although her hair was straighter, jaw wider than the typical Uleisan. The dress conformed to her curves, highlighting her body even further with geometric designs that created a sense of curvaceousness¡­or maybe she¡¯s just built like that, Calvin thought, watching her approach. ¡°Drinks?¡± she asked, her gaze lingering on Ussein. Rather than carrying a dainty platter, she was hauling a large ice chest behind her with bottles of different refresments buried in the ice. The whole thing must have weighed more than the four of them, but she pulled it without any noticeable difficulty. I like the dress. Me too. Knick-Knacks do good work. ¡°Over here,¡± Calvin said, raising his hand before fishing through the bottles, pulling out something cold and chugging it down. It turned out to be Gadveran cider, far more expensive than back home, but welcome anyway. Orson waved off the refreshments and focused his attention on the new arrival, shaking her hand lightly. ¡°And you are?¡± ¡°Ellanore Kuun,¡± She said, doing her best not to smile. She might look normal now, but as soon as she showed her pointed teeth, Orson would start asking more difficult questions. ¡°A seamstress from southern Gadvera, along for the ride.¡± ¡°That explains the accent,¡± Orson murmured. ¡°I never knew a young upstart like Gadvera could have lovely creatures like you.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not that lovely,¡± Ella said, playing coy. ¡°Of course you are, my dear. And talented. Why I¡¯ve never seen anything like that dress. I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll take the city by storm.¡± Orson said, too focused on Ella to catch the strange look Ussein was giving her. ¡°Was there anything else you needed?¡± Calvin asked, attempting to steer the conversation away from Ella and her origins. It would be best not to pick at her flimsy cover story. ¡°I could give you a tour of the mansion, if you like.¡± It wasn¡¯t like he had anything to hide in there, aside from May and the escape tunnel his Knick-Knacks were building. ¡°No, no,¡± Orsan said, returning his gaze to Calvin. In the split second the man¡¯s eyes were turned away, Calvin saw Ella give Ussein a wide, blood-soaked smile. The man silently chuckled and put his hands in his pockets. What the hell are you doing? Calvin thought, frowning at Ella for an instant. ¡°I¡¯ll be heading out in a few minutes, and I¡¯ve seen the estate before, so no need.¡± Orson said, waving his hand. ¡°Just wanted to wish you well¡­although¡­would it be terribly impolite of me to take one of the drinks on offer?¡± ¡°Of course not, go ahead.¡± The shipping magnate reached in, avoiding the most expensive brew, aged Bolean wine, and seized a bottle of cheap Ilethan beer, bringing it to his lips with a sigh. ¡°Thank you, young man. I was more parched than I thought.¡± ¡°Anytime,¡± Calvin said, watching Ussein stare daggers at Ella. ¡°You know Grant?¡± Ussein asked, causing Orson to flinch before glowering at the tall man. ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Big guy, older, salt and pepper hair, general in the Mujenan offensive? Makes swords float?¡± ¡°Oh, yeah,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I saw him from afar a couple times when I was on the wall. I think I heard he lost his position over the outcome of the war. Why, have you heard something about him?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Ussein glanced at Calvin¡¯s mansion and shrugged. ¡°Thought he might have gone east looking for opportunity. Maybe not.¡± ¡°Ussein, I don¡¯t want to overstay my welcome,¡± Orson said. ¡°I suppose.¡± Ussein said, nodding, joining his employer as they headed out the gate. Well, they¡¯re definitely suspicious of us. No shit. ¡°Why¡¯d you give that guy the ¡®fight me¡¯ smile?¡± Calvin asked after they were out of earshot. ¡°He recognized me, I figured it wouldn¡¯t make a difference. Besides, I don¡¯t get the feeling he¡¯s going to share that information with his employer.¡± Calvin rolled his eyes. They had to trust a henchman to keep something that important a secret? Might as well get ready for war. ¡°Alright, well, put some bounce in everyone¡¯s step. Odds are shit¡¯s going to go sideways sometime in the next couple weeks.¡± ¡°Can do,¡± Ella said. Chained Spirit. 12/15 Bent Remaining. 11/15 Bent Remaining. 10/15 Bent Remaining. He made three Nadias and instructed one to grab the loot from the wagon and store them in the west-facing room, while the other two got them ready for a possible legal attack. It wouldn¡¯t surprise Calvin if they were somehow misled about their ability to resell. It would be laughable if the man had simply given them advice they could be imprisoned for. Why did he give us that advice, if he thought we were the ones responsible? Getting all his ducks in a row, I think. Hedging his bets. How so? Calvin asked. Even if you weren¡¯t responsible for the attacks, he can bring up the subject of profiting off of them to probe your reaction, earn your gratitude, and make sure you commit to a specific course of action, making you easier to plan around. Damn, you really think he was doing all that? Maybe, maybe just one or two of them. Huh. Calvin was overseeing the afternoon work several hours later when a shadow loomed over him. He glanced up, expecting Ella, Baroke, or Grant, but it was Ussein. ¡°I want a new whip and two hundred stone for my silence.¡± He said, arms akimbo. Calvin blinked a couple times. ¡°Are you blackmailing me?¡± ¡°Sure, kid. And before you say anything, I¡¯m a Legend, and Grant¡¯s not on the premises, so you can¡¯t stop me from leaving and taking word back to my employer. He¡¯s not the brightest, but he already thinks something¡¯s going on here. I know you were responsible for the attack on the Cobalt mine. One word from me will be enough for him to come down on you like a ton of glass.¡± ¡°Huh, I¡¯ve never been blackmailed before, give me a second while I process this.¡± Calvin turned back toward the construction where the uleisan hired help were marking the air intake tunnels for the air conditioner. Hired help. ¡°If you¡¯re willing to stay silent for a price, how much more would it cost for you to take a short leave of absence?¡± Calvin asked, meeting the man¡¯s eyes. Macronomicon too hungry to leave a pitch here. Must go make sammich. Chapter 82: Jinnei, Junior Pirate Queen ***Jinnei Gadsint*** The island looked a bit like a balding man¡¯s head. The gentle swell of a storm-eroded mountain, mostly covered in emerald jungle, save for an inexplicable bare patch of shredded branches and black dirt, seemingly a mile wide. ¡°This is where the ships are coming from?¡± Jinnei asked, standing up in the crow¡¯s nest with Kip, her pirate blood-slave. ¡°According to the Shuweya, anyway.¡± The Shuweya were the islanders who populated the small tropical islands that dotted the sea between the east and the west continents. Originally descended from Warped humans, they were gracious hosts and fierce warriors, but rumors of a cursed island had driven them away from this place and caught Jinnei¡¯s attention. The rumored curse also mentioned that a steady stream of ships manned by Ilethan skeleton crews were sailing East toward Gadvera. They had to be doing it somehow, Jinnei thought. Something had to be supplying them ships, keeping the ocean siege strong despite General Andra¡¯s best efforts and several devastating raids on the Ilethan fleet. Jinnei had tracked the rumors all the way to this island. It certainly looks like it¡¯s been logged heavily, Jinnei thought, bringing the spyglass back up to her eye. It was odd, though, the pattern was different than any she¡¯d seen before. Rather than a receding line that worked it¡¯s way up the mountain, it was a circular patch of bald land with a trail leading around to the other side of the mountain, and another leading to the shore. Where are all the people? She thought. Even though they didn¡¯t see a port, there should at least be shacks build near the logging operation, where the laborers would spend the night after a long day of cutting and hauling timber. There should be fires where the Ilethan mess officers prepared the day¡¯s slop. ¡°Something feels weird about this.¡± Kip said. ¡°Of course it does,¡± Jinnei said, still scanning the island for signs of habitation. ¡°Why else would the Shuweya tell us to give it such a wide berth? Then Jinnei saw movement. A glint of metal from the corner of the mountain. ¡°Wait, I see something.¡± She said, orienting her field of view on the brief glimmer. It took a few moments, then she started to make out a pattern, something was shifting, in a uniform, rhythmic pattern¡­ like one large snake was wrapping around the side of the mountain. What the Abyss am I looking at? A moment of bated breath later, it emerged from the treeline, curling along the edge of the bald spot. ¡°Is that a caterpillar?¡± Kip asked beside her. The creature was so massive that he didn¡¯t even need a spyglass to make it out. ¡°No, it sure isn¡¯t.¡± Jinnei said, focusing on the enormous metal construction¡¯s mouth. A series of blades felled and stripped the massive jungle trees at a prodigious rate, visibly expanding the mountain¡¯s bald spot as it went. To the naked eye, it looked something like an inchworm chewing through a leaf. ¡°The flamin¡¯ fuck is it then?¡± he asked, the massive scar down the side of his face drawing his mouth into a permanent scowl. ¡°I think we¡¯re looking at the reason behind the sudden explosion in the number of Ilethan ships.¡± Jinnei said, bringing the spyglass down, taking in the enormity of the creature with her bare eyes. Iletha was known for its rich mineral deposits, not for its burgeoning forestry and logging. The scrub covered mountains were barely able to support a fleet after being logged to near extinction some two hundred years ago. ¡°That thing must be pumping out enough raw timber to field a couple ships a day.¡± ¡°The island¡¯s not going to last very long at that rate.¡± JInnei said, eyes narrowed. How did they even get the creature to the island in the first place? There was no ship on Marconen large enough to house the behemoth. Between the logging operation here, and the abundance of steel in Iletha, they could afford to outfit dozens of ships fully armed with cannons in the same amount of time it would take Gadvera to deploy one. ¡°What¡¯s the plan?¡± Kip asked. ¡°I don¡¯t want to tangle with whatever that is,¡± Jinnei said, closing the spyglass. ¡°Luckily there has to be another point of failure for their supply chain, and that¡¯s production. We¡¯re going to burn their shipyard to the ground.¡± ¡°When they got that many ships?¡± Kip asked, nodding toward the distant sails beyond the island, nearly a dozen of them. ¡°Each one¡¯s run by a skeleton crew, just enough sailors to limp it back to iletha, where they can outfit them with cannons and crew. There can¡¯t be more than six vessels there with a full complement.¡± ¡°Yeah, but which six?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter.¡± Jinnei said, feeling a smile come on. ¡°We¡¯re gonna use the empty ones for cover.¡± Kip chuckled evilly. ¡°Yeah, that could work.¡± Karen¡¯s Folly could outmaneuver the larger Ilethan vessels even before the skeleton crew was accounted for. They would practically be standing still. Sooner or later, Karen¡¯s gonna find me and probably kick the shit out of me, but not before she gets a good look at the name of my boat. Flaunting the rules was one of the little things that made life as a privateer so enjoyable. Jinnei had managed to steal a lifeboat off the trading vessel Karen had paid passage for them on, stowing away on a ship bound the opposite way, towards Mujenan. Which had been set upon by Malkenrovian pirates, who treated her like their queen. She was, by all accounts, the youngest Malkenrovian any of them had ever seen. Not that she hadn¡¯t had to break a few overly touchy fingers since she arrived, but all in all, they handled her presence well. Her lessons with Karen had come in handy, as loath as she¡¯d been to admit it. The story they told about their homeland was a different one than Karen had, the only other eyewitness account of the death of Malkenrovia. ***Two Months Ago*** Jinnei idly traced her foot through the grime of the brig while she listened to the story. ¡°The boys and us were heading back from Gadvera with a load of silks, spices, and drugs, and we were going to get ourselves quite a payday trading them for Warped parts, pelts and gold.¡± Lenny said, the thin captain with a single arm taking a puff of Longweed, carefully damping the Warped plant with his thumb to make sure it lasted longer. ¡°This was back when Mr. Eger was still our captain, the old fart.¡± He said bitterly, exhaling a thick cloud of smoke that hung near the ceiling. ¡°Anyway, he saved our lives, so I guess we owe him that. The old man took one look at the rioting going on the docks, and had us weigh anchor outside the port just to gawk. ¡°I didn¡¯t have a spyglass, but Kip did. He was up in the nest.¡± Lenny said, pointing at his grime streaked second. ¡°Tell her what we saw, Kip.¡± ¡°People running around like animals on their hands and feet, chasing normal ones down on the docks, pinning them to the ground and spitting some kind of black stuff into their faces. Then those people got up and started chasing down other people. I never seen nothing like it. Far as I know, there ain¡¯t no Malkenrovia anymore.¡± ¡°Yep,¡± Lenny chimed in. ¡°The captain got a good eyeful of it and he made the decision to head back, rather than try to do business with black-spitting animals.¡± ¡°Not right away, Len,¡± Kip said. ¡°Oh right, how could I forget!¡± Lenny waited for the Longweed to regrow, slowly shedding the burning coal at the end of the roll. Jinnei had heard that a master could keep a single Longweed burning for years, although she¡¯d never seen anyone come close to backing up that claim. Until now, anyway. The man slept with it in his mouth. ¡°So the captain was debating what to do, while the crew begged him to turn tail. It wasn¡¯t till they started heading our way that the captain made the decision. A boat was coming our way, followed by half a dozen more from the docks and we didn¡¯t wanna stick around to find out what was happening to everyone.¡± ¡°The one in the lead actually caught up to us before we managed to turn around. It was this woman, blonde like my aunt, and big as an oak, she had two babes in one hand and a bloody, bent sword in the other.¡± ¡°She came aboard and started tossing off orders like she was the fucking king. And you know what? We actually listened, she was so scary.¡± Lenny blinked, frowning. ¡°Actually, you remind me of her, a little.¡± ¡°I can imagine,¡± Jinnei said, tapping her foot against the iron bars. ¡°All that being said, can I use the head? I got a big one brewing here.¡± ¡°You got a pot.¡± Jinnei said, standing from the bucket she¡¯d been using as a stool in front of the cells. ¡°Oh, come on!¡± Lenny said, grabbing the bars with his hand. ¡°I¡¯m too old to be down here, I¡¯ll be dead of dysentery in two weeks!¡± ¡°You should have thought about that before you tried to start a mutiny.¡± ¡°What mutiny? I¡¯m the captain. It¡¯s my ship!¡± ¡°Not according to me.¡± Jinnei said. ¡°That seems to be how it works out here.¡± ¡°The men won¡¯t tolerate this! You¡¯re digging your own grave!¡± ¡°Actually, the men seemed pretty happy with me when I got a letter of marque, which came with an official pardon. They seemed to like the idea of making port without having a price on their heads.¡± Jinnei took the two sheets of paper out of her vest to show the ex-leaders of the vessel. She never took them off her person, for obvious reasons. ¡°Where the Abyss did you get that!?¡± ¡°I have my ways.¡± They were giving them away like candy on some kind of candy giving holiday in the town halls of the small port towns south of Mujenan, in order to turn pirates against the Ilethan fleet. Not that men who¡¯d been trapped on a ship the last four months of their lives would know that. And she wasn¡¯t going to tell them, either. ¡°Alright, you win, princess. I¡¯ll behave, just let me use the crapper.¡± ¡°You were the captain.¡± Jinnei said. ¡°And?¡± ¡°You realize what kind of position that puts you in?¡± ¡°I do.¡± Lenny said, scowling through the longweed smoke. Keeping the ex-captain alive and onboard was a staggeringly risky idea, let alone the man¡¯s number two. Anybody with even the tiniest lick of sense would have marooned the one-armed man or just killed him. The crew were used to following his orders, and that could be a problem. But Jinnei had other problems. The men were awfully tight knit, and she wasn¡¯t sure killing the slob was worth the risk, he was also one of maybe fifty Malkenrovians she¡¯d met in her entire life, including the rest of the crew. She wasn¡¯t eager to start killing them. And her last problem: She didn¡¯t know anything about captaining a ship. Confidence, the ability to kill all of them, and an enticing piece of paper could only get her so far. ¡°I¡¯ll make you a deal¡­¡± *** Present*** ¡°That¡¯s right, light those bitches on fire!¡± She cackled as they launched burning arrow after burning arrow onto the understaffed ship¡¯s decks, effectively paralyzing them. A crew of five men couldn¡¯t steer a ship and fight a fire at the same time. They were surrounded by burning ships and chaos, keeping the wrecks between themselves and the destroyers that were trying to get them in range of their cannons. ¡°Umm¡­ captain?¡± Kip shouted down from the crow¡¯s nest, squinting into the distance. ¡°What?¡± Jinnei asked from the helm. ¡°The caterpillar¡¯s doing something.¡± Jinnei couldn¡¯t see anything but smoke and fire from her current vantage point, so she handed off the helm to Lenny and jumped five feet up to the sail, thanking her high Body as she clambered up to the mast as nimbly as an ooze-weaver. About three quarters of the way up, she spotted it, through the smoke and the bobbing forest of masts, she saw the giant metal bug¡­heading for the beach. What¡¯s it doing? She thought, frowning. The creature¡¯s head plunged into the water with no hesitation, followed by segment after segment of the massive creature, until it was nearly gone. Is it¡­pooping? Little brown dots covered the beach where it¡¯s ass had trailed, as well as bobbing up and down in the water, like some kind of floating turd. But they weren¡¯t turds. Jinnei narrowed her eyes to make them out the elongated brown shapes better. They were ships. ¡°The damn thing eats wood and craps ships!¡± Jinnei shouted, eyes wide. The caterpillar slid the rest of the way under the waves, disappearing from sight. Why would it leave the island now? There¡¯s still more than half the forest left. I¡¯ve got a bad feeling about this. ¡°Kip, Lenny, it¡¯s gone Abyss-ways! Get us out of here!¡± ¡°Opening Aport!¡± Kip said, scanning the encircling ilethan vessels and pointing out a gap in their defences. Lenny smoothly twirled the wheel, causing everyone¡¯s balance to subtly shift. ¡°We¡¯re gonna present a target for a hot minute!¡± Lenny shouted as they whipped past the burning ship, putting them in view of one of the heavy destroyers that was even then turning to face its cannons toward them. It was like watching her life flash before her eyes in slow motion as Jinnei climbed the rest of the crow¡¯s nest to better see what was going on. It took minutes for anything to happen on the ocean, the ships moving like lumbering beasts riding their momentum. Plumes of smoke, fire and thunderous noise erupted from the side of the destroyer, sending lumps of iron whizzing through the air around them. One took a piece out of the port railing, sending wooden shrapnel through Tom¡¯s hand, but by and large, they were unharmed. ¡°Ha-HA!¡± Lenny shouted, his longweed cigar pointing up as he grinned. ¡°You Ilethan dicks couldn¡¯t hit the broad side of a harbor whore if she was giving ya a hand!¡± Before the cannons could reload, Karen¡¯s Folly would position themselves ahead of the closest destroyer, then bring it down to a contest of speed. They were home free. It was just a matter of working through it. It was partway through this maneuver that Jinnei looked down. The crystal clear tropical ocean around them was only a few tens of feet lower than the draft, and Jinnei spotted a shadow moving under the water ahead of them. ¡°Lenny, hard to port! Do it!¡± she shouted, her voice straining as she attempted to shout over the din. Lenny looked up at her, mouth open. The former captain swallowed whatever objections he might have had to putting them back in the line of fire, and did as he was told. As per their agreement. ¡°Put us next to the destroyer!¡± She looked down at the mess of running sailors beneath her, addressing them. Get everyone abovedecks and ready to move, NOW!¡± ¡°Are you trying to kill us!?¡± Kip demanded. Jinnei grabbed the back of Kip¡¯s head and forcibly directed his attention to the north, where a large green blob was slowly turning toward them under the water. They weren¡¯t turning fast enough. ¡°Oh, sweet Elani and dour Llortan, Lenny! Sea monster at our one o¡¯clock! It¡¯s almost on top of us!¡± ¡°Hold on!¡± Lenny grunted, releasing a puff of smoke along with an invisible wave of Bent that Jinnei could feel wash over her skin. The entire vessel tilted as it picked up a burst of speed, turning at an unnatural rate. ¡°What was that!?¡± Jinnei demanded as they turned on a Dust. ¡°You don¡¯t spend ten years as a pirate captain without picking up some tricks, princess!¡± ¡°Call me princess one more time!¡± Jinnei said, eyeing the blob gaining speed as it angled toward them. She jumped out of the crow¡¯s nest, used the rigging to slow her fall before landing on the deck, her feet sending up little splinters as she landed. ¡°Get to the fore!¡± Jinnei shouted, pointing with her drawn cutlass as they pulled up beside the destroyer¡¯s loaded cannons, ushering the crew to gather at the front of the vessel. Just when Jinnei thought it was strange that the destroyer wasn¡¯t bombarding them with iron, Karen¡¯s Folly jerked out from underneath their feet, dropping down a good foot and a half, then tilting upward, toppling nearly every one of them. When Jinnei got her feet back under her, she saw the most horrifying thing she¡¯d ever experienced. A massive wurm with steel plating fused to its skin, along with metal legs that erupted out of gaping wounds in the side of the creature, was holding onto the ship¡¯s aft. It opened its mouth, and the stench of rotting flesh washed over the entire ship, causing a few members to gag and spit. Inside the gaping maw, Jinnei saw whirring saws buried in bleeding flesh, along with tiny sparks buried deeper down the thing¡¯s black gullet. Two round blades the size of king¡¯s tables extended from the creature¡¯s open mouth, cutting the steering wheel in half, along with the man gripping it for dear life, Lenny. The ex-captain glanced at her for a moment before the blades drew him back into the creature¡¯s gullet, along with half of the ship¡¯s aft. ¡°Damnit!¡± Jinnei shouted. ¡°up the mast!¡± Penetrating Strike. Penetrating Strike. 6/8 Bent remaining. Jinnei cut a massive wedge out of the main mast as easily as a soft cheese. She dodged nimbly out of the way as the mast of their besieged ship came down violently, landing on top of the destroyer¡¯s railing and entangling to two vessels. ¡°Move!¡± Jinnei lead by example, leaping up onto the fallen mast and racing across to the enemy vessel. An ilethan seaman tried to stop her on her way to the captain, and she dispatched him by catching his blade with her own before twisting, snapping her shoulders forward and catching him on the temple with a violent elbow. She swooped up to the pale captain, and put a blade under his throat. ¡°Tell your men to fire on that thing or I¡¯ll take your head off.¡± She growled, pressing the edge of the sword into his neck hard enough to draw blood. A faint odor of rot was her only warning. The captain exploded into strange, black, snake-like tubes, causing the men coming to his rescue to flinch backwards. Jinnei put a foot in the small of the man¡¯s back and pushed away, her back slamming against the railing at the stern. The captain turned, eyes glossy, a dreadful smile on his face. ¡°The One recognizes your scent. Very familiar. Nostalgic, even? Has The One killed you before?¡± The battle quieted as every eye was drawn to the hideous monster that had formerly been the commander of the Ilethan ship. Air Blade Haste Ephemeral Form. Penetrating Strike. Penetrating Strike. Penetrating Strike. 0/8 Bent remaining. Jinnei swung a ranged attack at the monster, followed by Karen¡¯s specialty: A bum¡¯s rush. The creature warded off the air blade as she activated her movement skill and the Dodge Ability that made her temporarily insubstantial. Jinnei rushed forward in the blink of an eye and her body slipped through the creature¡¯s defensive tube¡­things, thanks to the Dodge ability. Then Jinnei spent every point she had cutting the creature into chunks. One strike cut the captain in two, a second in quarters, and the third added a couple extra pieces of bloody gristle to the mess. Once the creature was on the deck, Jinnei put her blade through it¡¯s skull, twisted, then kicked it off the side of the ship. Karen called it the Double Tap. ¡°Alright, listen up!¡± Jinnei shouted as the crew of Karen¡¯s Folly poured in around her. ¡°Fight that, or fight me!¡± she shouted, pointing at the creature turning its attention toward them, bloody maw hanging open. Leadership has reached level 5! +1 Will Please choose- Jinnei shook the prompt away. ¡°Cannoneers!¡± Kip shouted in Ilethan, divining her purpose. ¡°Blow that monster new holes or die! Your fucking choice! Now FIRE!¡± A cascade of thunderous explosions rocked the ship beneath her, and the bellowing giant¡¯s mouth was torn to pieces, inkly black blood splattering all over her former ship¡¯s deck before the creature sank back under the waves, drawn backward by the heavy metal studding its body. As the creature died, a wave of Warp engulfed them, billowing out of the monster like smoke from a forest fire. The miasma was so thick, Jinnei thought it might make her retch. She felt the All-too familiar sensation of a Break coming. ¡°Lash me to the wheel,¡± she said, turning toward the ships wheel. ¡°This is the Karen¡¯s Folly now.¡± ¡°What about the Ilethans?¡± Kip asked. ¡°Lock them belowdecks before we all pass out. That was a doozy.¡± She said, fighting off the flu-like symptoms as best she could. Macronomicon Chapter 83: The Slow Way Vs. The Fast Way ¡°What the hell is taking that brat so long?¡± Orson asked, glancing over at Ussein. ¡°Yesterday was the day he asked you to take a day off.¡± He glanced over at the mountainside where men were hiding, ready to ambush the upstart¡¯s company with vastly superior force. He couldn¡¯t afford to keep so many of his men in one place much longer. Orson¡¯s spies had reported the entire troop march out the west gate nearly a week ago, before heading south. Since then, no one had seen them re-enter the city. They had to have been heading toward the Cobalts. ¡°Hold on. There¡¯s something on the horizon.¡± Ussein said, with his blasted perfect vision. I would have perfect vision if I¡¯d been a Legend at his age, too, damnitall. Orson brought up the spyglass, and in a moment he was able to identify an uleisan message runner, on a narrow sled built for speed with a blue strip on it. The sled parked a mile or so distant before the driver jumped out and began sprinting toward them on the rocky ground. ¡°This seems urgent,¡± Ussein said, idly leaning an elbow against the wall as they watched the runner approach About six minutes later, the runner was allowed through the front gate, where he stood in front of Orson, panting and sweating, resting his arms on his knees as he took desperate gulps of air. ¡°What is it? What¡¯s the news?¡± ¡°Dead. All dead.¡± ¡°Gonna need a little more to go on.¡± Orson said impatiently. ¡°You¡¯re not poisoned, spit it out!¡± The messenger nodded, took a deep breath, and spoke. ¡°Every business you own has been attacked overnight. Somehow someone killed everyone inside without alerting anyone, and stole every cent therein, and the princess seems to have been kidnapped.¡± Orson grabbed him by the shoulders ¡°You¡¯re not saying what I think you¡¯re saying. Because if you were ¨C¡° I wouldn¡¯t have enough to pay these men. Orson realized it was probably best not to speak that part out loud. ¡°We¡¯re heading back to the city,¡± Orson said, glaring at Ussein. ¡°This was obviously a diversion.¡± Orson rallied his men, and by the end of the afternoon, they were packed up and ready to march out, carrying their sleds atop their shoulders. Upon reaching the smooth desert sand, Ussein held out a hand. ¡°Something doesn¡¯t feel right.¡± he said, loud enough for the troop to hear him. ***Calvin*** Calvin pounded his fist into his palm. ¡°Then we ambush them on the way back, and the Orson problem is no longer a problem.¡± ¡°Okay, so let me get this straight. You bribed a Legend with an inordinate amount of Nem to take a specific day off so you could attack the fort he¡¯s guarding.¡± Kala said, holding up a hand. Nadia was sitting next to her giving Calvin a strange look. ¡°Then you¡¯re going to assume he¡¯s going to report you.¡± Kala continued. ¡°Chances are good, right?¡± ¡°¡­Yeah, but not certain. Then you assume Orson¡¯s going to set up an ambush, and be there personally to witness your destruction.¡± ¡°Why, you think he¡¯s not?¡± ¡°Kind of a toss-up.¡± Nadia said, waggling her palm. ¡°So assuming all of that happens, you have a plan to raid all of Orson¡¯s properties in the middle of the night without a single witness, kidnap me, and abscond with all his money?¡± ¡°Oh, yeah, you know how you can suffocate from bad air?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°All I gotta do is burn some charcoal with limited air intake and catch the fumes in a bottle.¡± Carbon monoxide, yes. Although I bet Borus could make us a purer version than we ever could by ourselves. ¡°Then I have my knick-knacks dig a little hole into the property, about this big,¡± Calvin said, making a circle with his thumb and forefinger. ¡°Pump the entire house full of bad air to kill every living thing inside, Dismiss the summon, then waltz inside and take everything.¡± Calvin shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s not complicated.¡± Nadia was grinning now. Nadia grinning meant the plan was probably not great. Kala sighed and rubbed her forehead. ¡°What? is something wrong with the plan?¡± Calvin asked. It was a pretty good plan, he thought. The enemy would die in their sleep, no mess, no trouble, and even if he decided not to double down and kill Orson, the shipping tycoon would be ruined, with no hard evidence of whodunnit. Nadia was laughing out loud, now. ¡°Actually, it¡¯s a pretty good plan and has a high chance of working exactly how you expect it to. Aside from the fact that you¡¯re talking about killing innocent business owners and that it¡¯s a fucking war crime,¡± Kala said, fingers splayed as she gestured suddenly. ¡°Let me tag in.¡± Nadia said, patting Kala¡¯s shoulder before facing Calvin. ¡°Calvin. What happens after?¡± ¡°I win. I beat the guy. So I win.¡± What were the girls having so much trouble understanding about this concept? ¡°Right, what happens after that? What happens with say...Orson¡¯s business partners? The other eleven men who rule the city? What happens when the families of the people who live at these businesses get word that you¡¯re the one who killed their son, daughters, brothers and sisters?¡± ¡°The bad air was so that we didn¡¯t get caught.¡± Calvin said. ¡°It¡¯s not a matter of not getting caught.¡± Kala said. ¡°Even if there wasn¡¯t a scrap of evidence, they can still point the finger at you.¡± ¡°So¡­what you¡¯re saying is¡­They¡¯ll retaliate.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Kala said emphatically. ¡°That plan is stupid! Not because it wouldn¡¯t work, but because it would cause a horrific amount of retaliation. The entire city would be out to lynch you, me, and every other Gadveran living here.¡± ¡°See, this is what I need you guys for. Politics.¡± Calvin said, motioning to them. I wonder if there¡¯s a way I can murder Orson AND be lauded as a hero. Politics slipped my mind again. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you warn him?¡± Kala said, staring straight through Calvin. I wanted to see how he handled it. He asked for the opinion of someone better informed, which is good enough for me. Nadia gave Kala a curious look before schooling her expression. ¡°Okay, well, I already bribed Ussein to abandon his post two weeks from now, and I haven¡¯t gotten any immediate backlash, so let¡¯s hear what the experts have to say on the issue.¡± Nadia and Kala glanced at each other, then back to Calvin. ¡°Make him look like an idiot.¡± They said as one. ¡°You¡¯ve got to find a way to make the man look like a blundering doofus, a doddering fool wasting money and talent.¡± Kala said. ¡°You¡¯ve got to make him hemorrhage money over time, by his own hand on fruitless pursuits, rather than taking it all away from him in one fell swoop.¡± Nadia added. Damnation. I like the fell swoop. I know you do. This whole hemorrhaging thing sounds like it¡¯s going to take oodles of time. All good things take time to do right. Agh! ¡°Any advice on how to do that?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Not if you¡¯re interested in learning how to do this on your own.¡± Kala said. Calvin directed his attention to Nadia. ¡°Maybe if you spent some time convincing me.¡± Nadia said. ¡°No need,¡± Calvin said, standing. ¡°You¡¯ve been more than helpful enough. You¡¯ve earned a special reward. For the rest, I think I should try to figure it out myself.¡± He patted Kala¡¯ head, slapped Nadia¡¯ face, and headed out. He had to make some plans that didn¡¯t involve war-crimes. ***Kala*** ¡°Ah, that¡¯s more like it,¡± Nadia sighed, relaxing into the chair as she traced the red spot on her cheek. ¡°I wonder what the special reward is.¡± She bit her lip. ¡°Maybe he¡¯ll pierce my nipples, hook them to a wagon and drag me naked through the city.¡± Kala couldn¡¯t speak for a moment as she studied the fair-skinned princess. She¡¯d heard stories about the things that could happen to royals when their mental attributes were forcibly raised through unending trauma, but she¡¯d never actually seen one. ¡°You¡¯re pretty fucked up. You know that, right?¡± ¡°You¡¯re one to talk.¡± Nadia scoffed. ¡°Is Calvin gone?¡± Ella¡¯s voice came from the tall standing dresser in the corner of the room. ¡°It feels like he¡¯s gone.¡± Nadia wordlessly motioned to the closet, brows raised. ¡°Fuck you.¡± ¡°You wish,¡± Nadia said, standing to follow Calvin out the door. Noooot really¡­ Kala thought as she watched Nadia leave. Crazy was a turn-off. ¡°You think he noticed the smell?¡± Ella asked as she stepped out of the dresser with the pipe in hand. Fully clothed, despite Nadia¡¯s presumptions. Well, she was hiding in a dresser. Kala thought wryly. ¡°I dunno,¡± Kala said as Ella took Nadia¡¯s seat, opening the cabinet and grabbing another pinch of Jush. ¡°He doesn¡¯t have the best natural Intuition, so maybe not.¡± ¡°Did we actually have to hide everything?¡± Ella asked. Kala thought about it for a moment. Were they actually doing anything wrong? ¡°No,¡± Kala said with a grin, grabbing the third volume of Clan of the Cave Gardor from where she¡¯d hastily shoved it under her chair. ¡°It was fun, though, wasn¡¯t it? Now pass me that shit.¡± Ella chuckled and passed the long blue glass pipe Kala had commissioned from Jinsei, complete with multiple bubbling chambers filled with water to ease the harsh heat of the smoke. Kala took a big hit and passed it back to her friend, trying to focus on the words squirming across the page as she exhaled, Reading to Ella while getting glimpses into the creator¡¯s miniature world between the lines of script, thanks to the Jush and Seer. Shared Visions. 23/25 Bent remaining. ¡°This was it, the ceremony that would bind the tribes together as one. Evelyn would have to perform for the chiefs as the Tribe Wife¡­¡± Ella gave a crude laugh as Kala¡¯s visions began to reflect in her own eyes. ***Calvin*** ¡°Your girlfriends are boning each other.¡± Nadia said, catching up with him. ¡°They¡¯re smoking hallucinogenic drugs and reading smut. Not boning.¡± ¡°Which leads to boning.¡± Nadia said, using her hands for emphasis. ¡°Two things,¡± Calvin said, turning to face her, holding up a finger. ¡°I really, really, don¡¯t mind if they¡¯re boning. It doesn¡¯t threaten me. And second,¡± he held up another finger. ¡°It takes a bone to bone.¡± Calvin thought for a moment, then held up another finger. ¡°And third: I¡¯m getting the distinct impression you¡¯re trying to sow discord. You¡¯re running the risk of losing your special reward.¡± ¡°Well, when am I gonna get it then!?¡± Nadia demanded. ¡°When I¡¯m sure you deserve one.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t just keep using me forever!¡± Nadia said. ¡°Says who?¡± Calvin asked, glancing at her with an arched brow. Nadia shuddered with desire for a moment before glaring at him. ¡°Damn it, quit¡­doing that!¡± ¡°Doing what?¡± ¡°Doing what I want by not doing what I want!¡± ¡°That¡¯s a bit of a paradox, don¡¯t you think?¡± Calvin said, turning back down the hall. ¡°All kidding aside, I promise, if you keep working well, stop trying to turn me against my friends, and actually get along with them, I¡¯ll give you a reward, and it will be totally degrading and utterly humiliating.¡± ¡°So what, you want me to get up Kala¡¯s skirt too?¡± ¡°Being bratty isn¡¯t going to help, either.¡± Nadia clicked her tongue in disappointment before he felt her emotions sober up and get back to the task at hand. ¡°So, what are you going to do about Orson?¡± Calvin thought about it for a moment. He still wanted Cobalt Fort, but he had to distance himself from the conflict even further than he¡¯d originally thought, and he couldn¡¯t simply murder Orson¡¯s entire infrastructure, according to the Party-Poopers. ¡°I think I¡¯ll steal a messenger uniform¡­and get me some charcoal and a bottle.¡± Calvin said. ¡°The bad air idea can still come in handy.¡± *** *** ¡°Something doesn¡¯t feel right.¡± Ussein said, glancing around at the troop that was coming to a halt on the burning desert sand, readying their sleds. ¡°Where¡¯s the messenger?¡± ***Calvin Calvin hummed to himself as he tore off the messenger uniform, pulling the Storm-Stretch uniform out of his messenger bag. One of the guys. Calvin grunted as his bones and flesh shifted from that of the messenger he¡¯d waylaid, to an average employee of Storm-Stretch. Literally. With all the new faces brought in by Orson, he¡¯d fade into the crowd easily. I should have taken Master of Disguise, He thought bitterly as he slid the uniform on. Then again, suggesting that the messenger had already completed his task and should head back to Uleis would have been a lot harder without Mesmerizing Eyes. I¡¯ll just grab MoD when Acting hits fifteen. Assuming I live that long. Calvin was in the middle of shoving his messenger outfit back in the back when the door to the closet opened, spilling light on the vast array of mops, buckets, shovels, axes, and other long-handled tools. ¡°Uh¡­what are you doing in here?¡± The young Uleisan said, looking at Calvin from bottom to top. Calvin looked him in the eyes, waited for a moment for the man to meet his gaze. In an instant he felt the faint headache that let him measure the resistance of the man¡¯s Stability. There wasn¡¯t much. A moment later Ulleisan soldier¡¯s jaw hung open as he got lost in Calvin¡¯s gaze. ¡°You didn¡¯t see anyone,¡± Calvin said, wiping up dust with his finger. ¡°You had a sneezing fit.¡± Calvin blew the dust into the man¡¯s face as he walked past. Behind him the soldier sneezed violently three times. ¡°Dusty as shit,¡± Calvin heard the man complaining before he turned a corner and the sound of him rattling through the long tools faded. Calvin took his belts out of the bag and threw the rest in a latrine hole, cinching them around his chest and waist as he walked through the crowded fort. The uniform wasn¡¯t strictly upheld by the men manning the fort, so a few extra belts wouldn¡¯t really bother anyone. ¡°You smell different.¡± A small voice spoke as he made his way through the fortress. Calvin turned, ready to deflect suspicion with playful banter. In front of him was the top of a cage. When Calvin looked down, he spotted the owner of the voice. A skeletal Cobalt, lying on it¡¯s side, watching him with watery eyes. Calvin squatted down beside the cage. ¡°Can your people fight?¡± He asked studying the creature. Its spines were shorn close to its back, guts barely held inside its body by a thin membrane of skin. The creature¡¯s muscles had long since been devoured by it¡¯s own stomach. ¡°Used to. Now, fighters¡­are culled.¡± ¡°Are you a fighter?¡± Calvin asked. There was a wheezing chuff, something Calvin guessed was amusement. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t think so.¡± He took a deep breath as if to bolster his strength for something difficult. ¡°I am The Traitor. The first chief to surrender to the humans and¡­ironically, the last to remember the old ways.¡± ¡°You speak for them?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°No,¡± the wretched Cobalt panted. ¡°No. I do not.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Calvin thought, scanning the rest of the courtyard, taking in the underfed Cobalts in chains, some locked away like the one dying in front of him. Others were strapped in place and fed a strange slurry of orange rock and water with iron funnels scored by the flat tooth-marks of hundreds of Cobalts. In the distance a team of emaciated Cobalts were tossing a stack of dead Cobalts into a chute like trash, overseen by a team of four jovial looking fellows with their palms resting on their pommels. ¡°You pass away here and now if you want, but hold on another day, and you¡¯ll see something interesting. I guarantee it. Hold on another month, and you¡¯ll see something great! ¡°You smell like death,¡± The Cobalt moaned. ¡°Maybe so,¡± Calvin grinned. ¡°But not yours.¡± Calvin stood up with his hands in his pockets and ambled up the stairs. Nobody stopped him as he made his way up to the gatehouse on top of the wall, where a couple soldier were idly playing cards. In the corner of the room was one of two massive metal contraptions, designed to raise and lower the bridge. Plant matter being at a premium in Uleis, there was no massive hemp rope for him to cut, or anything, simply a complicated metal gearbox attached to chains as thick as his leg. Damn, this makes things difficult, Calvin thought to himself, studying the immensely heavy-duty gearbox that made lifting the gate possible as the card players looked up at him curiously. ¡°Who¡¯re you?¡± Dude, you practiced with thermite for this exact reason. ¡°Oh, yeah.¡± Calvin lashed out with a knife jutting out of his palm, sticking the first man¡¯s reflexively thrown up hand to his skull, before slamming the blade through the other one¡¯s ear. Mass Multi Shaping. 14/15 Bent remaining. Calvin spread his fingers around his belt like the keys on a piano, touching each ingredient to confirm exactly where it was. He created a fifty-pound stack of thermite on the gearbox in front of him, and one on the gearbox on the other side of the gate, where the two guards were rising to their feet in alarm. The other hundred and twenty-five pounds? That went to replicating the brown crystals in the frozen vial on his waist in front of the face of each soldier he could see, and the tiniest dollop of God¡¯s fire to get the thing moving. There was a crack that seemed to come from everywhere at once as the compounds exploded, and Calvin felt a concerning pain in his ears. He didn¡¯t have time to worry about it, though as the thermite caught fire and began giving of skin-searing heat from several yards away, forcing him to retreat from the gatehouse as the gearboxes began melting into slag. The heavy steel gate wasn¡¯t going to be opening any time soon. Calvin scanned the fortress. The guards in the other gatehouse were missing their heads, along with at least fifty more in the main courtyard and along the wall. No one knew he was responsible. As the alarm went up, Calvin glanced up at the mountain above the fort, searching for the sign that Grant had gotten the signal. As the soldiers sprinted back and forth through the courtyard, flooding out of the interior of the fort as they tried to figure out what had happened, Grant¡¯s mercenaries flooded over the peak of the mountain, the Veterans sprinting down the steep cliffs on foot. ¡°I hate doing things the slow way,¡± Calvin muttered, leaning against the walls as he watched his scapegoats approach to take credit. Macronomicon Chapter 84: Sand Pirate chic ¡°We¡¯re under attack!¡± Calvin shouted, pointing at the mercenaries dressed like sand pirates as they flooded down the mountain, some twelve hundred of them, kicking up dust as they sprinted at break-neck speeds down the near vertical cliff-face, led by Grant sporting a couple fancy new swords. I didn¡¯t give him the budget for that. Calvin scowled. Decent swords were moderately expensive, but fantastic ones, made by men with Skills, those cost almost as much as the mercenaries did. Calvin ran over to the alarm bell and started ringing it with all the panic he could muster. The Storm Stretch mercenaries ran up onto the walls and gawked at the approaching army. It was bad, but it wasn¡¯t impossible. They had maybe a hundred and fifty men remaining in the fort, but they also had walls, and over a thousand men just a few minutes away. If they could keep the enemy off the wall long enough, their friendlies would see the attack and come wipe out the pirates at the rear of the fortress. At least, that¡¯s what they thought. Calvin stayed at the front of the fort, ringing the alarm bell wildly as the majority of the defenders amassed at the back wall, facing down in the incoming army. ¡°Activate defenses!¡± one of the sergeants shouted above the din, and the Uleisan army rippled as various different abilities were triggered, making their armor shinier, their bodies, bulkier, or more evasive. There were porters busily hauling boxes of glass slingshots and huge cases of glass bolts, getting the men ready to rain death down on the approaching force. ¡°What the hell are you doing?¡± A nearby sergeant clapped his hand on Calvin¡¯s shoulder. ¡°We know there¡¯s an attack already! Get off the damn bell, grab a weapon and get on the line!¡± The sergeant roughly shoved a glass sword into Calvin¡¯s hand and bid him face outward, toward the desert. People needed to watch the front, too. No telling if this might be a distraction. Calvin peeked over his shoulder, toward the rear, where the action was happening. Mercenaries were beginning to make it to the base of the wall, and glass bolts were whizzing down from the top of the wall. Here I am, on the top of a wall again, and it¡¯s not even mine. Well, I mean, it¡¯s gonna be mine. Modern warfare had a lot of standing on walls. Speaking of which, I¡¯ve been meaning to talk to you about shaped Charges. All I remember about them is that they use some kind of inverted cone inside a funnel, and a metal to be shot out of it. It can literally cut through anything. We can practice in Shadow-boxing. ¡°Eyes forward, shitbird!¡± The sergeant shouted, cuffing Calvin over the head, sending a shooting pain up through his scalp and into his ear. ¡°Keep your eyes where I tell you to put the, you slack-jawed moron.¡± You DARE! Calvin stabbed him in the face, the glass blade scraping on the skull for a bit before it found purchase, sinking into the sergeant¡¯s eye socket. The sergeant collapsed in a shuddering pile of meat before he shit himself. This did not go unnoticed by Calvin¡¯s fellow wall-standers, who faced him with uncomprehending, open mouths a moment before they began to rush forward, blades raised. I think I¡¯ve got a problem. With the people trying to kill you or your lack of self-control? Calvin stumbled backward as the first man loomed toward him, putting on a show of knock-kneed fright. Presently, both. When Calvin felt the edge of the railing behind him, he used it to rebound forward, reversing direction and attitude violently, catching the man by surprise and cutting off his nose before kicking him in the crotch. The other two rushed toward him, ignoring their wounded friend to tag-team Calvin. I mean, I just put everyone working with Orson on Orson¡¯s side, and everyone working on my side on my side, and assigned equal amounts of culpability to all of them. Killing the randos who mop the floors at night sounded like a great idea because they were all The Bad Guys. Yeah, well, welcome to nuance. I Hate Nuance. Someone acts like they¡¯re better than me, I just wanna kill ¡®em. Calvin thought as he scampered backward, trying to lure them into a one on one. One person can¡¯t fight two people at once, Karen used to say. If you ever see someone successfully fighting more than one person at a time, that is actually a series of extremely fast one-on-ones. You should never, ever try to fight two people at once if you don¡¯t have to. Taking Karen¡¯s advice, Calvin retreated back to the gatehouse, the bastards coming at him nearly in lockstep. Apparently they heard the same advice. Most teenagers feel that way. Actually killing people is the big difference here. One lunged forward to stab him, while the other leaned forward, with a readied blade, aiming to take advantage of his block. Beli Ma. Calvin looped Bent in front of his left palm, he could get the field about six inches away from his skin now, rather than four. The extra two inches made a huge difference when it came to the number of lost fingers. He dragged the lunging one¡¯s blade out of the way and the readied one swung, having decided to just go for Calvin¡¯s head. Calvin ducked and put the slightly curved blade at an angle, allowing the enemy¡¯s to sail over his head and lodge itself into the side of the gatehouse. Calvin was pulling the blade downward to take out the lunging one, when the man changed from a lunge to a tackle, taking advantage of Calvin¡¯s poor stance and raised sword. The man¡¯s shoulder hit Calvin in the pit of the stomach and propelled him backward, deeper into the gatehouse than he¡¯d intended to go. Calvin¡¯s shoe slipped into something, and his back impacted against wall. Then Calvin heard a hissing pop as his skin melted against the gearbox and the faintly glowing hole in the floor. The pain caused him to mindlessly buck, shoving the man away from him and staggering away from the ruined mechanism. He wanted to lie there and moan for a few days, but the other one yanked his sword out of the wall and brought it down toward Calvin¡¯s crawling form like an excutioner¡¯s blade. Calvin rolled, and got about halfway before the pain in his back stole his breath and arrested him halfway. The man tore his sword out of the floor, where it had missed by inches and brought it down again, mindlessly stabbing down at his cornered opponent. The Bent emitted from his left hand caught the blade and pulled it to his right, earning a nasty nick on the side of his palm in the process. Beli-Ma has reached level 7! 35% Correction The man seemed surprised when Calvin used the opportunity to stab him in the stomach. The soldier stumbled away, holding his guts inside himself as his friend got to his knees, orienting on Calvin. ¡°If you leave now,¡± Calvin said, his left hand pumping blood onto the bannister as he dragged himself to his feet, holding the blood-soaked piece of worked glass in front of him. ¡°I won¡¯t have to kill you. Wouldn¡¯t that be nice?¡± The mercenary¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he lunged forward, aiming for a slash. Calvin blocked, but without the ability to slide out of the way, it was a pure contest of strength. The mercenary leaned into the blow, forcing Calvin¡¯s wrist to take more than it was ever meant to, sandwiching Calvin¡¯s blade up against his body. This is not good. The position Calvin was in was the one the guy who was about to die was usually in. He needed a defence Sure enough, the mercenary braced himself, used his left hand to trap Calvin¡¯s sword-arm in place, then hauled back with his blade, aiming to cleave up into the young wizard¡¯s chest. Really hope this works, Calvin thought, focusing his attention on his chest, aiming to sprout the stored blade sideways. There was the crunch of shattering glass as the man¡¯s blade impacted against the Jerrytanium knife, a bit of extra sting against the background of mind-numbing pain as a few pieces carried their momentum and embedded themselves in Calvin¡¯s skin, but the blade stopped. Calvin didn¡¯t give them man time to react, using his left hand to gouge the soldier¡¯s eyes, forcing him to flinch backward. His sword-arm was still trapped in the man¡¯s grip, so he reabsorbed the knife sticking out of his ribs, and jutted it out of his left fist, catching the recoiling mercenary in the face with a blade-enhanced punch. Knife-Work has reached Level 10! 50% correction +1 Kinesthetics Please choose and ability or- The man slumped to the side, directly on top of Calvin¡¯s left leg, which sported burns from ankle to lower back from stumbling into the hole the Heat-Powder had carved. Calvin screamed and kicked the corpse off with his good leg, hyperventilating as the adrenaline flooded his system, forcing the pain to the back of his mind, if only long enough to keep him alive. Just call it thermite, man. My world, my rules, Calvin thought, dragging himself to his feet under the watchful eyes of the guy holding in his own guts and the one with both hands clasped over his nose. I can¡¯t believe some people prefer this kind of fighting. I sustained major damage, could have died, just to take out three guys. Four if you include the sergeant. Calvin could take out several hundred people with a single point of Bent. So why didn¡¯t you? Three guys seemed like something I could handle without wasting a whole point. The plan is pretty demanding, Bent-wise. Calvin tossed aside his sword, fishing through his belts with his good hand. He pulled out the bottle of yellow-brown crystals in its own satchel, and the vial of God¡¯s Fire, holding the two of them in one hand. Mass Multi Shaping. 13/15 Bent remaining. He selected a chunk of the biggest crystal, then a tiny dollop of god¡¯s fire, along with a couple sharp selections of the vial¡¯s steel container, then arranged them in front of the defenders and the half dozen soldiers sprinting towards him from other direction. Calvin made a palm-sized, dense cluster of steel pieces, with a fist-sized cylinder of frozen Boom-Juice behind them, with a pinkie-sized bit of God¡¯s fire at the very back to give it the violent shock it needed The Bent flew out of his body, and a fraction of a second, there was another sharp crack, and nearly every single defender was either killed outright by the shrapnel or thrown over the edge of the wall as the shockwave slammed into their armor, delivering them into the hands of Calvin¡¯s mercenaries. Calvin limped forward, kicking the noseless mercenary in the face with his good foot on the way by. Public Relations, Calvin thought as he watched his mercenaries swarm up the walls, unhindered by the dead men atop the walls. According to the girls you can¡¯t just kill everyone who doesn¡¯t agree with you. This was Calvin¡¯s compromise with them. The way he wanted to take care of things. Rather than killing all of Orson¡¯s business associates and prompt the public to hate him, he would humiliate the old man, steal his Cobalts, prompting a unified retaliatory attack on the fortress from the rest of Uleis with an army numbering in the tens of thousands. Maybe more. Just like back home. Definitely going to have a place to crap this time. Now that the fighting was mostly done, Calvin could take a moment to rest before Grant found him. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t do that,¡± Calvin said as Noseless reached for his sword. ¡°I could kill you without moving a finger. Your best bet is waiting for ransom, or at least indenture.¡± Noseless considered this for a while before pushing his sword off the edge of the wall, taking off his hat and using it to stem the flow of blood, leaning against the wall. In the distance, the mercenary he¡¯d stabbed in the gut was also taking it easy, waiting for the outcome of the battle. Calvin fished out one of his tools for the upcoming war: it was an intricate toy produced by a master glass worker, it had twelve five-sided faces, and each one sported a strange, segmented star that had been painted a different color. The entire thing could spin on any of those twelve axis, allowing the colors of the star segments to get all jumbled up. The game was to get them all the same color again. Elliot called it a Rubik¡¯s cube, but it obviously wasn¡¯t a cube, just another one of Calvin¡¯s passenger¡¯s weird name for things. The intricate glass toy was used by rich merchants and the aristocracy of Uleis to raise their Mind during breaks as they tried to deconstruct the pattern behind it. As far as avoiding finger-pointing was concerned, Calvin had made sure that not a single Gadveran from his unit could be found here, while the mercenaries were dressed as pirates. Matter of fact, the First Mujenan Volunteers were out in the city, generating goodwill via charity, cleaning up the city, helping old women cross the street, donating labor to local constructions and businesses¡­that sort of thing. Look good with one hand, kill ruthlessly with the other. Well, I don¡¯t want to kill Orson yet. Gotta let him live so the other eleven Bad Guys have someone to blame for losing this place. Gods, I never would have thought of that. Calvin glanced over his shoulder at the army sprinting toward them in the distance. They were just a little too far out to stop the ¡®sand pirates¡¯ from taking the Cobalt mine. ¡°That you, kid?¡± Grant asked, flying in and settling down on the wall beside him, peering at Calvin¡¯s Uleisan disguise. ¡°Yeah, you got my uniform?¡± Calvin asked, glancing up. ¡°Sand pirate chic.¡± He said, reaching into a bag and tossing Calvin a couple towels. ¡°Where¡¯s the rest?¡± ¡°One¡¯s for your head, one¡¯s for your junk,¡± Grant said, pointing up and down. ¡°You suck.¡± Here¡¯s hoping One of the Guys grants me some semblance of Uleisan sun-resistance. Calvin tried to take of his pants, but found his left leg refused to move without causing agonizing pain. ¡°Grant, I never thought I¡¯d ask you this.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± ¡°I need you to take off my clothes.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 85: Breaking Ground ¡°How in the Abyss did you manage to get so wounded fighting these scrubs?¡± Grant muttered, cutting Calvin¡¯s pants off of him and inspecting the burns that wound up his leg and back. ¡°Three at a time, without Bent.¡± Calvin said, puffing up his chest a little. ¡°Had to save as much as I could for the plan.¡± ¡°Yeah, but these guys were average soldiers. Beating three of them doesn¡¯t really impress me.¡± ¡°Bah, you¡¯re just talking out your ass, being bigger and stronger than everyone by default. I only have ten strength.¡± Calvin said, jabbing his own chest. Ten strength was pretty close to the minimum for a third Break soldier. ¡°I kicked ass.¡± ¡°like watching a couple of girls slap-fighting, I imagine.¡± ¡°Pfft,¡± Calvin scoffed as the general¡¯s blade went through his other pant-leg. ¡°Slap fight? I gutted a guy.¡± ¡°Good job.¡± He said patronizingly, tearing Calvin¡¯s pants away in a manner that yanked on the gooey burned flesh of the back of his leg, forcing a yelp out of him. ¡°Plan hasn¡¯t changed, has it?¡± Grant asked as Calvin swaddled his now exposed groin in a sand pirate loincloth. ¡°Nah, One month or less. That¡¯s all I expect from them, and it¡¯s all I¡¯m paying for, either.¡± ¡°Good, ¡®cuz it¡¯s all you could afford.¡± Grant said, cutting off Calvin¡¯s upper uniform for good measure. It was best to be sure to wear the team¡¯s colors whenever possible. Calvin didn¡¯t want to get attacked by an opportunistic merc for no reason. He glanced over his shoulder and spotted Orson¡¯s main force approaching at full tilt, kicking up dust as they ran. ¡°Looks like your mercenaries are about to earn their pay.¡± Calvin said ¡°Ayup,¡± Grant said as the Uleisan mercenaries took the walls around them, clearing the dead and wounded off the rough stone surfaces before taking their places. The numbers were nearly even, and Calvin¡¯s mercenaries had the better position. The nearby mercenaries spotted the unfamiliar Calvin standing beside their employer, and noted his appearance before continuing on with their tasks, with only a couple minutes before they were attacked. ¡°Do they need anything?¡± Calvin asked, to which Grant shook his head. ¡°I hired the Seven Wastes company because they¡¯re professional. They¡¯re not going to need any help from you keeping this place, and they¡¯ll keep it until the terms of the agreement are up. Just don¡¯t get in their way. ¡°Excellent.¡± Calvin said, before pointing at southwest tower. ¡°I¡¯m going to start working in the basement of that building. Keep them out of it.¡± ¡°Got it.¡± ¡°And if you¡¯re getting overwhelmed by them, scream really loud.¡± They shouldn¡¯t get overwhelmed. Walls drastically increase the ratio of men it takes to capture an area. Even numbers means the attackers are at a huge disadvantage. Grant snorted. Calvin started hobbling away from the wall, unable to hide his limp as the burnt skin stretched and oozed. Damn, this hurts. Calvin thought, hobbling toward the courtyard. As the mercenaries streamed to and fro around him, Calvin got down to the steel cages, looking for something to feed the starving elder. Sure enough, there was some unidentified meat held limply in the hand of one of the corpses, who¡¯d been sitting at the outdoor mess. Calvin walked up and grabbed the food before heading back. Wait. Don¡¯t feed him that. ¡°Wait what?¡± Get some of the broth from the soup over there, water it down with a bit of water and feed that to him, no chunks or anything, just broth. ¡°Why? I¡¯m not trying to starve him more.¡± Long time ago, people got starved like that. when they were fed normal food, their bodies went into shock and died¡­or something like that. He¡¯s so starved that his body won¡¯t be able to process good food. You¡¯ll have to start with something light. ¡°Hmm, Okay.¡± Calvin moved to one of the Cobalts strapped to a chair, one of the healthier looking specimens, with dark blue and green skin with a deep shine, unlike most of the others here, It had quills that were short and stubby from repeated pruning, going from fur-like needles above its brow to nail-thick spines along its back. ¡°Good afternoon Cobalt.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I¡¯d like to propose an alliance between your people and mine.¡± ¡°Cobalts will never trust humans again.¡± He said. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Calvin idly took a bite of the mystery meat, stopping his chewing after a moment, a sudden realization dawning on him. ¡°This isn¡¯t Cobalt or human is it?¡± He asked. ¡°It¡¯s skipper.¡± ¡°Oh, cool,¡± Calvin said, taking another bite. ¡°Skipper was my wife.¡± Calvin coughed out a pinkie sized chunk of flesh and flung the leg aside, fighting the sudden urge to retch. ¡°Hah, dumbass human!¡± The cobalt rattled against the collar holding it in place. ¡°Oh, come on, that¡¯s not fair,¡± Calvin muttered. ¡°I don¡¯t even know what Cobalt tastes like¡­¡± He pulled out his knife. ¡°Yet.¡± The Cobalt gave him a calculating look, neither fear nor anger. Simply waiting. Calvin sighed and put the knife back before searching the nearby corpse for the key to the Cobalt¡¯s collar, which he found attached to a large ring of keys that mostly looked the same. ¡°If I let you out of here, will you help free the others?¡± ¡°Depends on what you want from us.¡± It said. ¡°If you plan to treat us like animals, I¡¯d be more inclined to put my kin out of their misery.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to give you the means to defend yourselves,¡± Calvin said, spinning the ring of keys around his finger. ¡°In exchange for a generous discount on future sales of Keratin¡± The creature¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°And how do you plan on giving us the means to defend ourselves, more prison guards?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to turn each and every one of you into Veterans.¡± Calvin said, catching the keys. ¡°Starting right now.¡± He fumbled through the keys until he found the one that matched the collar, releasing gthe thick-necked creature from its restraints. The Cobalt rubbed around its shoulders as it watched Calvin cautiously. How on Marconen was the collar keeping it in one place? He thought, seeing that the collar was wider than it¡¯s head. It probably cinched him down in the chair, Calvin thought. Calvin tossed him the keys. ¡°Make yourselves comfortable over there.¡± Calvin said, pointing at the barracks to the northwest. ¡°You can run away now, if you like, none of these men are going to stop you, but you¡¯ll be weak and they¡¯ll hunt you down. Stay for a while, regain your strength, and a few Breaks along the way.¡± The Cobalt eyed him for a moment. ¡°My name¡¯s Nash.¡± ¡°Male or female?¡± ¡°Male, obviously. Don¡¯t you see the spines?¡± the Cobalt said as he turned away, literally bristling. Huh. Calvin went back to the dying Cobalt¡¯s cage with a bowl of soup. ¡°How goes it old man?¡± ¡°I truly¡­hope you¡¯ve¡­thought this through.¡± He wheezed, his upturned ears bloody from where the explosions had damaged the eardrum. ¡°About as well as anything.¡± Calvin said, taking a spoonful of broth and holding it up to the old Cobalt¡¯s lips. Behind him, cage after cage was being opened, cobalts spilling free of restraints by the dozens, until a small army, some eight hundred or so cobalts stood behind him, watching him ladle the thin broth into the cobalt¡¯s mouth as they chatted. ¡°Wizard,¡± Nash said, arms crossed, prompting Calvin to look at him. The majority of them were looking at Calvin with restrained suspicion and reflexive anger, while the rest were raiding the mess, gorging themselves on soup and meat. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you guessed correctly.¡± ¡°It¡¯s what Ulesians call their spellcasters.¡± Oh right, Gadvera is a former colony. ¡°What can I help you with?¡± ¡°This plan of yours, does it include our females?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see why not.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Come with me.¡± Nash said, motioning for Calvin to join him , moving toward the southwestern tower, furthest away from the entrance by design. It was the place Calvin had marked out as a good spot to start working with his Knick-knacks out of sight of the mercenaries. Calvin¡¯s spell had a unique signature, green smoke and a massive swarm of summons, and he didn¡¯t want anyone to witness it at play here. One of the reason¡¯s he hadn¡¯t used wasps on people. That and Calvin was called The Wasp, so it seemed a little stupid if he used them on clandestine missions to undermine Uleis. Nash led him down a flight of stairs and a long hall, to a hefty iron door. He took out a key and turned the lock with a clunk. The door squealed open on its hinges to reveal a dim, smoky room, filled with pale blue creatures with shorter claws, a smaller frame, tits and potbellies, along with short, paddle-like tails that stretched halfway to the ground. Standing in front of them was a single Cobalt, who somehow looked even healthier than Nash, with stunning blue skin and spines. What little he saw of them, anyway. He held a shiv in front of himself, his arms trembling as the door swung open. ¡°Nash!¡± the other cobalt cried, dropping the knife and taking a step forward. Nash stalked forward like an angry parent, and the cobalt went back for the knife, but not before Nash delivered a vicious punch to the other man¡¯s face, dropping him to the ground, dazed. Then came the kicking. Dozens of other Cobalt males flooded past Calvin to help deliver the soundest beating he¡¯d seen in years. Let¡¯s see¡­ Calvin thought as he scanned the room, putting the pieces together faster than ever thanks to his Intuition. Better colored spines, room with all females, largely pregnant¡­ That one was largely kept from the mistreatment the others experienced, as a breeding stud. Sounds about right. And they¡¯re beating on him because they¡¯re pissed. Another example of the cobalts being treated like animals, he supposed. Aren¡¯t you gonna stop them? Eh, Calvin mentally waggled a hand. He wasn¡¯t super interested in selling them virtuous peace. He wanted them angry. Once they were done, the stud was bleeding on the ground, half-tucked into a ball that would have been a lot more difficult to beat on, if his spines weren¡¯t clipped. ¡°Is he dead?¡± ¡°No.¡± Nash said before tearing his gaze away from the wreck on the ground and looking up at Calvin. ¡°You see what they¡¯ve done to us?¡± he asked as Calvin¡¯s eyes landed on a mass of tiny cobalts, hidden in the shadows of the corner of the room. ¡°I do.¡± ¡°Good. I want you to believe me when I say that if you try to separate us again, we will fight until the very last of us lies dead.¡± The cobalt hesitated a moment. ¡°But if you¡¯re willing to give us the strength to take revenge, we can work with you.¡± Calvin glanced around the room and felt the same iron determination oozing from each one of them. I can work with this. ¡°I understand,¡± Calvin said, rolling up his nonexistent sleeves and nodding to the Cobalt women. ¡°They would probably like to get a change of scenery. I¡¯m going to need this room.¡± Gradually the Cobalts streamed out of the room, some of them flinching away from Calvin¡¯s gaze. They wound down the hallway and stumbled into the light of the stairs above, presumably finding someplace to treat their wounds and eat. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Nash asked, the last one to leave. Calvin couldn¡¯t exactly give the man his real name, in case this didn¡¯t pan out and he had to run like hell when everyone got captured, and a stupid pseudonym with wasps was even worse. So he had to pick some other name. ¡°Call me Elliot, for now,¡± Calvin said, reaching out a hand. Nash took it, his hands small, but his massive claws hanging around the edge of Calvin¡¯s palm. Whaddya bet Cobalts are good at digging? Doesn¡¯t matter, we¡¯re doing this without help. We can¡¯t let anyone know about it until it¡¯s been used, and that includes our friendlies. Once they were all gone, Calvin got started the real work. Calvinian Summoning. 9/15 Bent remaining. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 16! Calvinian Summoning level 16: 4096 pound limit, 256 minutes. 0 slots available. Calvin summoned five units of Knick-Knacks, composed of two big ones, eighty normal sized ones and several thousand palm and thumb-sized ones. Once they were in place, he gave them the plan. Alright, ladies and gentlemen. Here¡¯s the plan. I need an escape tunnel that leads up into the mountain, several dozen chambers underneath both the outer and inner battlefield, strong enough for thousands of pounds to go over, but thin enough for Warp to filter through. I want the walls of the fort hollowed out every dozen feet, complete with hidden holes for gas to escape. Calvin rubbed his chin. He was going to have to have the mercenaries reinforce the front door so that the bad air was more effectively trapped inside the castle, otherwise he¡¯d just make people woozy. I want those hollow chambers to be connected to chambers underground, marked with an x and behind exactly six inches of stone or whatever you can fit to plug it. they¡¯re going to be my drop points for bad air and poison. Build rails for the escape routes and some kind of toboggin to sled them at incredible speeds. If we can get all the cobalts out of here at the first sign of trouble, that¡¯ll be excellent. Make sure there¡¯s good ventilation and airflow in all the chambers meant to be livable. I don¡¯t want us to catch any of our poison in the face. Above all, you are not to be observed. Dig the primary outtake tunnel first, just like back at the mansion, then dump all your waste rock on the other side of the mountain. The plan, such as it was, was to use all of his power to pull off a more sophisticated Warp heist than he had the first time he¡¯d tried it. When the mercenaries repelled Orson¡¯s forces, which they would, Uleis would respond with overwhelming force. That meant anywhere between ten thousand and fifty thousand soldiers. A perfect number for Break number six. Oh, speaking of, Bring up Knife-Work. Let¡¯s see if there¡¯s anything that can help with the plan. Elliot brought up the menu. Knife-Work Has reached level 10! Please Choose an Ability or Mutation. Abilities: Knife Dancer: 1 Stability per knife. Imbue knives with a portion of your Bent to move them at will. Dismissable. Stability returns 24 hours after the bond has been dismissed. Bleeding Strike: 1 Bent. Does what it says. The bleeding will not stop without extreme interference. Penetrating Strike: 1 Bent. Softens material that comes in contact with the blade. The blade isn¡¯t tougher, everything else is softer. Edge Lord: 1 Bent. Grants a kinetic field of force that applies an edge to anything for as long as it¡¯s held in the user¡¯s hand. Sharpness dependent on Knife-work level. Anything can be a knife with the right mindset! MacGuyver: 1 Bent/8hrs Applies a malleable kinetic field to a knife that allows it to be used as virtually any hand-held tool (screwdriver, hammer, saw, socket wrench, tweezers, planer, you name it.) Knives to Meet You: Apply Knife-work¡¯s correction to the damage of knife attacks performed on an unaware opponent. Surgeon¡¯s Blade: 1 Bent: Apply Medi-tate¡¯s healing to the patient, with the combined level of Knife-work and Meditate. Lasts during the operation and 1 hour per five levels of Knife-work after Surgery. Invisiblade: 1 Bent. Makes a knife invisible for 1 hour. Careful you don¡¯t cut yourself with it! Sacrificial Blade: When User kills with specially prepared knife, that creature¡¯s remaining Bent is drawn from them and given to the User. Overdose may cause Bent toxicity. ^From Lady Killer Lotus Shivs the Moon: User may circulate Bent through their knife to increase the offensive and defensive range and strength of the blade. ^From Beli Ma and Blade Body. Mutations: Grindstone fingers: Sharpen any blade by running your fingers over the edge. Razor¡¯s Edge: User gives off a passive kinetic field that increases the durability of knives, and raises their sharpness when threatened. Size Matters. Increase size limit of Blade Body¡¯s storage by 1 inch per level of Knife-work. Stinger: Launch knives using Blade Body at will. I am the Blade: User may grow knifelike protrusions from their extremities at will. ^Never be unarmed again! ¡°Damn, that¡¯s a lot of options.¡± Calvin muttered as his larger Knick-knack began breaking through the floor with brute force while the smaller ones moved debris and reinforced the sides of the tunnel. Macronomicon Chapter 86: Spitting in a hole. Calvin was sitting under the eaves of the west wall, out of the sun, at the outdoor mess, fixing himself a sandwich, while around him, chaos reigned. There were glass bolts peppered in the eaves above him, wounded men running back and forth, screams of pain and the occasional explosion. There were three major Knife-Work Skills he was interested in, and Calvin decided that he could fix himself lunch while he took a minute to think about it. Arguably the most powerful: Blade dancer. It was, at its heart, the knife-version of Grant¡¯s Sword floating ability. Calvin remembered Grant using knives as well with his ability, so he must have some kind of enhancement to the ability that made it more versatile. Calvin pried a clean butter knife out of a dead man¡¯s hand and dipped it in the shattered top of the mayo jar, before spreading it out on his bread. Pros: It¡¯s higher range than Lotus Shanks the Moon, doesn¡¯t take a hand, works for attack and defense, and synergizes well with Blade body. It¡¯s semi-permanent. Cons: It costs one Stability per knife kept in flight, reducing both my resistance to Spells, mental stability, and my Maximum Bent. Calvin took the scraps of meat he¡¯d scavenged off of various plates and loaded them onto his sandwich before slapping the whole thing together and taking a bite. As it stands, keeping two blades in flight would drop my Stability down to thirteen. While that wouldn¡¯t effect my casting very much, because my regeneration is decent, that would make me much weaker to mind spells. Ah, damnit, I¡¯m already weak to mind spells. I couldn¡¯t resist Nadia when she was alive, and my Stability hasn¡¯t changed since then! He chewed the mystery meat sandwich slowly, contemplatively. So while it¡¯s strong, I think I¡¯ll wait until I have Stability to spare. That being said, I should put more effort into Genosian Language for Language barrier, and all my Stability based skills. That leaves Lotus Shivs the Moon and Sacrificial Blade. A body landed on the other end of the long table Calvin sat on, jostling the tableware. So, Sacrificial Blade: Pro: could theoretically keep me casting spells all day, under the right circumstances. Con: Requires a ¡®specially prepared¡¯ blade, whatever that means. Odds are I don¡¯t have what it takes to prepare one here. Also, unless the enemy is assassinated, or a specially prepared sacrifice, I¡¯ll probably never get more than a small fraction of their Bent, since they most likely spent it during the fight. If not all of it in a last-ditch effort not to get stabbed. Doesn¡¯t help in a fight. A powerful effect, to be sure. Each Bent gained represents a staggering array of powerful spells. But highly situational. Now, Lotus Shivs the Moon¡­. Did you name that? How did you know? Just a hunch. Pro: Solid increase to combat effectiveness. The ability to catch other¡¯s weapons from an increased distance with Beli Ma. It also mentions increased offensive range, so I have to assume the field can be used to stab as well? Get it long enough, and I¡¯d basically be dealing with swords rather than daggers. Synergizes well with Blade Body. Plus it¡¯ll help you not die to mooks. Con: Not as powerful/versatile as Blade Dancer. Requires Bent to be present. Of the three options presented, Lotus Shivs the Moon was the least tempermental, but also the least exciting. Can you search the System for what the requirements are for Sacrificial Blade¡¯s specially prepared knife?¡± Sure, hold on. A string of text flew by Calvin¡¯s subconscious faster than he could read it, while there was a persistent clacking noise in the back of his mind. Okay¡­I ran the skill through an unpacker. It looks like you have to make a pure iron dagger with some optional wavy parts like a flamberge. Iron, not steel. Then you have to prepare a mixture of Nem and your own blood, coat afformentioned dagger in it, then bake it at a couple thousand degrees to create a Nem alloy on the surface. It also seems like you¡¯d have to make a new dagger every time you Mutate, since the Bond is rather specific. Can I use the dagger without the skill? No, it doesn¡¯t look like it. Pass. I need a much more controlled environment before I start with things like that. Like a wizard tower. What? Every wizard needs a tower, like every pimp needs a chalice. Did you ever hear about the Wizard Pimp? His tower was a giant chalice. Unfortunately the guy didn¡¯t put a place for water to drain, so he wound up with a lake on top of his tower, and everything was soggy all the time. Are you serious? Deadly. Calvin rolled his eyes. I choose Lotus Shivs the Moon. Calvin¡¯s mind tingled as the technique settled into his brain. He took one of the knives out of his palm and ran Bent through it. He could feel his Bent extend invisibly an extra six inches beyond the tip of the blade before looping back, mimicking the rough shape of a knife, whie reinforcing the strength of the blade itself. On casual observation, it appeared to have the same range as Beli Ma. And Beli Ma seemed to be about an inch per level. So if I want a long sword, I¡¯ll need to get Beli Ma to level twenty-five to thirty-five. I¡¯m sure that will happen soon. Calvin rolled his eyes and put the invisible point down on the table. The Bent portion of the blade cut through the glass table like sea-foam, giving off soft cracking sounds as the table gave way. Oooh. Calvin flipped the knife sideways and pressed the flat of the invisible blade into the table, pushing harder and harder until the table once again began to crack. That felt too easy. Calvin grabbed the butter knife and pushed it against the Bent emitting from the dagger in his other hand. Only a fraction of the force felt like it was transmitted back to the handle. Calvin likes. Why? You¡¯ve got an extra long, sharp, partially invisible knife. You could get most of those things from using a sword. Blocking things with short-handled blades, which includes knives and one-handed swords, is next to impossible because of the lever action acting on the failure point: The human wrist. This skill makes it possible. Well, I¡¯m sorry I wasn¡¯t raised by a battle-maniac. Well, I¡¯m sorry I was. Calvin put the butter knife down and picked up his half-eaten Mystery Sandwich. ¡°Kid,¡± Grant said, landing next to him. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°The Storm-Stretch group got the hint and pulled out. Come meet the boys.¡± ¡°Can do,¡± Calvin said, standing and following Grant to where a tight knot of mercenaries was formed behind a single grizzled looking Uleisan with greying hair and beard, missing an eye. Well, he¡¯s got the look down. Calvin thought, eyeing the fellow. ¡°Seven wastes. This is the VIP, Caitlyn. Caitlyn, this is the Seven Wastes, they¡¯ll be keeping your work clear. Make sure he doesn¡¯t get killed. He¡¯ll be doing work on the fortress while we try to sell it back to the highest bidder. That was the cover story. Of course the Seven Wastes weren¡¯t large enough to keep the fortress indefinitely, but they believed their employer intended to sell it back to the highest bidder, which would most likely be the rich nation of Uleis. Bole might be interested as well. With that kind of money trading hands, they could justify hiring them. Of course the agreement lasted only so long as Uleis didn¡¯t throw the full force of their army at the problem, which they very well might do. Holy crap, what if they actually agree to buy the fortress back? Pocket the money and kill them with Carbon monoxide anyway? Oh yeah, guess I was worried for nothing. ¡°Caitlyn, huh?¡± Calvin asked, eyeing Grant from the side. The old man disguised his grin by lighting his pipe, conveniently covering his face. Calvin could still feel the amusement in the man¡¯s eyes. ¡°Well met, Caitlyn,¡± The Leader said, towering over Calvin and offering him a bone-crunching handshake. ¡°I¡¯m Veer.¡± ¡°Like, to swerve?¡± ¡°It means sunrise in Bolesian. My father thought himself a poet.¡± The beefy mercenary crossed his arms. ¡°You seem like you¡¯re no stranger to combat, friend. Most VIP¡¯s have to be coaxed out of their bedrooms, but watching you scavenge food from the plates of dead men was amusing. You¡¯ve got nerves.¡± Calvin took a bite of sandwich. ¡°The men and I did have a question for the two of you, though. How did the vast majority of the fortress come to be headless only moments before we arrived? Some of the bodies were still pumping out onto the ground. I was under the impression we were going to be responsible for taking the building as well.¡± Calvin glanced over at Grant, still chewing. Deflect, please. ¡°Caitlyn is a Legend acquisition specialist, Unfortunately, he¡¯s just one man, and he¡¯s used his all the Bent he has available, making him unable to keep the fort. That¡¯s what you gentlemen are for. ¡°I do need to sleep.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Will he be assisting the defense of the Fortress in a week¡¯s time, then?¡± ¡°Why all the questions?¡± Grant asked, brows furrowed. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong,¡± Veer said. ¡°I appreciate how easy it was to take the fort, But I very much do not like unknowns.¡± He lightly tapped a sausage finger into Calvin¡¯s breastbone. ¡°They imply that there¡¯s something more than what you¡¯re telling me.¡± Ah, Grant did say that mercenaries are a suspicious bunch. The good ones, anyway. ¡°You don¡¯t need to ¨C¡° Grant was interrupted by Calvin quickly spewing out Guar-shit. ¡°I¡¯m a Transmutation Wizard and alchemist from the capital,¡± Calvin said with every ounce of confidence he could muster. He needed to sell them on a similar Spell, so they would be able to see the results of his spells without putting together that ¡°I¡¯m able to change one thing into another, and control its shape. I¡¯m using my magic for our employer in order to create a charge that can potentially bring the fortress down, another bargaining chip as we both know you won¡¯t attempt to hold this place if the royal army were to show itself.¡± Veer¡¯s brows rose. ¡°If need be, I can provide minor support by changing some of the rock I¡¯m excavating into devil powder charges for you and your crew to use, but not much more than that.¡± ¡°You planning on blowing us up?¡± Veer asked, scowling at Calvin. Calvin glanced at Grant, who picked up the ball. ¡°I¡¯ll stay here as long as you do.¡± Grant said, thinking fast. ¡°You can put bodyguards on me, if you like.¡± ¡°Says the Legend who can fly.¡± Veer growled before pointing a finger at Calvin. ¡°I want someone watching him.¡± Hmm...That¡¯s going to be a problem. ¡°I don¡¯t need some poorly educated mercenary looming over my shoulder with a candle and blowing us up by accident,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I have corrections for this sort of thing. They don¡¯t. Put guards on every door if you like. I won¡¯t be leaving until the job is finished, and I definitely won¡¯t make the fortress dangerous until I install the detonator on the way out.¡± ¡°I¡¯m less than enthusiastic about working in a death trap.¡± ¡°Then leave.¡± Grant said. ¡°You¡¯ve already been given your down payment. That¡¯s probably enough to keep you from resorting to piracy for the next two weeks. If you want an actual payday though, you¡¯ll do the work you were hired to do.¡± The two men were standing inches apart, towering over Calvin as they stared each other down. Calvin ate the last bite of his sandwich. ¡°Send a letter.¡± Calvin said once he¡¯d finished. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure mercenaries share information on reliable employers. Send a letter to your wife or headquarters, or both, that says that if you don¡¯t make it, Grant be blacklisted. Allowing that letter to leave should prove that he¡¯s willing to follow through with his side of the bargain, as long as there¡¯s no mention of the sapping. Can¡¯t let that get into the wrong hands. You could even have him sign an I.O.U. attached to the letter in the event of your death.¡± ¡°You up for that?¡± Veer asked, eye narrowed. ¡°Of course.¡± Grant replied. ¡°I¡¯m tacking an extra thirty percent onto our charge for hazard pay,¡± Veer said, drawing a growl out of Grant before turning to the watching mercenaries. ¡°Holt! Get the papers! We¡¯re renegotiating the terms of our commission!¡± The mercenary presumably named Holt stopped picking at his leather armor, jumped to his feet and sprinted over to a chest the last of the Seven Wastes had hauled into the fortress, retrieving sheets of off-paper, envelopes, an inkwell, and a delicate glass pen. Veer slid a massive arm along the mess table, knocking a range of tableware to the floor with a clatter, setting the writing utensils down as the two men sat to face each other. My work here is done¡­gods, I hope we can afford an extra thirty percent. Or you could just kill them all. The letter? I¡¯m just saying, Grant¡¯s the one who takes the heat if he fails to deliver. Let¡¯s save the wanton murder for a last resort. Foo. In the meantime, let¡¯s go check on the hole, get some Medi-tating done to heal my burns, and then see if we can¡¯t raise the level of Dupdomancy. I get the feeling we¡¯re going to need some heft by the end of this. Meditation was level seventeen thanks to the botched mutation and the days of meditating while he was recovering, so Calvin could reasonably expect to raise Dupdomancy, Chained Spirit, and Calvinian Summoning to match it as well over the next handful of days by exploiting Shadow-boxing. You can also use that time to figure out how to make shaped charges and work on your grenade schematic. True. Calvin also wanted to get Beli Ma up a little higher. He¡¯d like to see how he matched up against Karen now that he¡¯d upgraded his Skills and Body. Maybe Stealth, as well, for Unseen Affinity. Ah, fuck it. Everything. I want everything. Me, too. I want everything too. Calvin left the two men scowling at each other and limped his way to the hole. As he was about to walk in the door, one of the mercenaries caught his shoulder. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± ¡°To do my job.¡± ¡°Not until the boss finishes the negotiations.¡± ¡°The negotiations,¡± Calvin said, rounding on him and stifling a grunt of pain as he twisted some burned skin. ¡°Are how much to pay you for staying here while I work. At no point does stopping me ever enter into the agreement. I don¡¯t answer to your boss, and if you don¡¯t want to watch yourself die, you¡¯ll take your hand off me.¡± The mercenary flinched away, and Calvin opened the door and began descending the stairs, shutting it behind him as the smell of lamp smoke dominated the air. Let¡¯s see how far they¡¯ve gotten in two hours, Calvin thought as he limped down the hall and opened the door. A pair of young men were standing at the edge of the rubble-lined pit that seemingly led into the Abyss, chuckling as they spit into the inky blackness, trying to gauge its depth. ¡°NOOO!¡± Calvin roared as he limped toward them, causing one to jump out of his skin while the other slipped and nearly fell in the hole in the stone floor. Calvin came up beside them as they flinched and reached for their weapons. ¡°The detonator reacts with water, you fucking simpletons!¡± Calvin lied. ¡°You could have killed us all! Out! OUT!¡± He shooed them away, practically chasing them out of the room. Freaking mercenaries, man. I¡¯m starting to see why Grant thinks they¡¯re such a handful. At least the Knick-Knacks had stayed hidden, as per their orders. Calvin limped back to the hole, eyeballing the distance to the ground. About twenty feet down, and¡­He could see debris at the bottom of the pit. They hadn¡¯t cleared all the debris yet, but from what he could feel, the Knick-knacks had bored a long, narrow hole to the dump site with the miniature ones, and were slowly widening it while the bigger ones chipped their way through the stone. In another couple hours, the debris tunnel would be wide enough to support full-scale digging under the Fortress. The Cobalts were sleeping off their Breaks in the Barracks. All of them only had one or two breaks, and the number of men who¡¯d died today was easily enough to get someone their third. One more and we¡¯ll have a few Veteran cobalts. Although if we can scrounge up two more, every single one of them will be veterans. That¡¯d be excellent. With the cobalts sleeping, Orson retreating, and Grant haggling with the leader of the mercenaries, things were starting to settle down enough that Calvin could focus on healing his burns with Medi-tate. Calvin closed his eyes, set his back against the wall, and attempted to block everything out as he focused on speeding his healing. Two hours until the summons ran out, which would put his wounds solidly into the second day of recovery. Meditation has reached level 18! 90% Correction. Oh, nice. ***Orson*** Orson crushed the ransom letter in his fist, his teeth creaking uncomfortably against each other. A thousand Glimmer for the return of Fort Cobalt and everything within. It was a king¡¯s ransom, practically a Guar¡¯s weight in whole Nem, and Orson still wasn¡¯t sure if he was willing to pay it. A figure like that would cripple him for years, but he needed to get the spines flowing again, and fast. The heart of Uleis¡¯s glass trade was reliant on the refined compounds in Cobalt spines. That fucking brat. There was no evidence other than word of mouth and extremely conspicuous timing that Calvin Gadsint had been behind the sand pirate attack, but Orson was sure it was him. Except the boy¡¯s entire company was traipsing around the city making the Gadverans look like saints, never pausing long enough to track down where he might be. I wonder if I rounded them up and executed them in front of the fort, would that draw the little bastard out? He was probably at the fort, somewhere, but there was no evidence of that. There was no evidence Captain Gadsint was anywhere. The Wasp had simply disappeared, and now he had one of the pillars of the Uleisan economy in the hands of sand pirates. A rather large army of well-armed sand pirates. ¡°Ussein, who did you say the pirates were?¡± ¡°Seven Wastes Mercenaries. I recognize their leader.¡± ¡°Think you could find out who hired them?¡± ¡°Not really my area of expertise.¡± ¡°True,¡± Orson said, taking a sheet of paper and writing down terse instructions. ¡°Linnorn!¡± He shouted, summoning his servant and handing him the orders. The other eleven members of the Order were sure to lynch him if ¨C when, not if- this travesty came to light, and he needed solutions ready before that time. ¡°Master Huul?¡± Linnorn spoke up quietly. ¡°What?¡± Orson asked, biting back an outburst. ¡°Kurawe is waiting for you in the guest room.¡± Orson launched to his feet, in a cold sweat. The leader of their order was waiting for him? Not good. Orson didn¡¯t have any loyalty to the man, personally, but the amount of sway the fat bastard had was undeniable. Orson dismissed Ussein and Linnorn and practically flew down the hall, taking a moment to catch his breath outside the guest room before plastering a smile on his face and bursting into the guest room with enthusiasm. ¡°My friend, It¡¯s wonderful to see you! What can I do to make your visit wonderful? Please, tell me.¡± Orson said as the rather large business owner came into view. The man was easily five hundred pounds, and nearly seven feet tall. He made the sitting chairs look like toy furniture for children. ¡°Actually, Orson, I was hoping I could do something for you?¡± Kurawe said, turning to him as he entered, peasant¡¯s longweed in one hand and expensive wine in the other. The man had odd tastes. ¡°What do you mean? I¡¯m in need of nothing.¡± Orson asked, the cold sweat returning. He¡¯d sent the majority of his forces up north to the Dalgur oasis for an extra month so they wouldn¡¯t spread the news, so Kurawe shouldn¡¯t have heard a thing! ¡°You see, it¡¯s this kind of attitude that causes problems. The first rule of the Order is to give help to our members who need it. Didn¡¯t I preach about that exact thing? At length?¡± ¡°What help do you think I¡¯m in need of, Kurawe?¡± Orson asked, sitting down in front of him. ¡°You¡¯ve got an upstart causing you a lot of trouble. Someone took Fort Cobalt. Am I right?¡± ¡°¡­You are.¡± ¡°Well, I for one, don¡¯t intend to give them what they want by crucifying you. They believe we¡¯ll bicker amongst each other while they make off with our money.¡± Kurawe sighed and tapped ash out onto Orson¡¯s wooden end table. his wooden end table. From Bole. ¡°We¡¯re going to help you. I¡¯m going to put forward twenty thousand of my best men, along with ten from Polluq, and a few thousand from each of the others. We¡¯re going to surround the southern mountains, pen these pirates in, then remove them from the face of Marconen. And for this, we ask nothing but your continued loyalty.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Orson said, breathing a silent sigh of relief. ¡°Oh, and bring the Gadveran princess and her bodyguards.¡± Kurawe said, exhaling a massive plume of smoke.. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I want her to see what we do to brigands in our country. And I have the feeling she¡¯ll come in handy.¡± Macronomicon Edit: Whoops, hit publish instead of Schedule. Chapter 87: Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em Kala let out a quiet sigh as the carriage glided down the road. Calvin¡¯s public outreach program was very successful in making Gadvera and Kala in particular very popular with the native population, but getting through to the men in charge was a much more daunting task. Nadia blew any chance I ever had of entering the palace. Ever since the sadomasochistic bitch had stepped foot inside, they¡¯d been on lockdown, and because Baroke was Gadveran, they looked at her extra suspiciously. Why does he give her so much attention when she¡¯s so¡­Kala untightened her fist when she felt the armrest of her seat cracking. The Ilethan Princess had done what she¡¯d set out to do, on the other hand. Her brother had hidden himself away from politics while he recovered from his ¡®hideous deformity¡¯, giving Kala a chance to grease palms and bend ears while the fop cowered in his room. A wash, I guess. Perhaps rather than the palace, when Calvin was done undermining Orson, she could pressure him to move her residence to one of the six neutral Uleisan oligarchs. He¡¯d fight tooth and nail, but hopefully Calvin had given him bigger problems than her. Kala glanced out the window and didn¡¯t recognize the district she was currently being driven through. That¡¯s not good, She thought, straightening to look out the window. From the angle of the sun, they were headed toward the West of the city. Maybe he¡¯s just lost, A quiet voice inside Kala spoke, and was quickly squashed. In her line of work, Coincidences were rare. ¡°Ella, There might be trouble.¡± Kala said quietly, poking the Genosian drooling on the seat beside her. Ella woke up with a start, blinking sand out of her eyes as she looked around the room. ¡°Sorry, this dress feels like being hugged all over.¡± Ella said, smacking her lips as she came fully alert. ¡°What was that? trouble?¡± Kala held her finger over her mouth, and Ella tensed, meeting Kala¡¯s eyes with her own yellow-green ones. Once she had the Genosian¡¯s complete attention, Kala rapped on the roof to get the driver¡¯s attention. ¡°Yes¡¯m?¡± The driver asked. It¡¯s the same voice. That¡¯s generally a good sign. ¡°Where are we going?¡± ¡°West gate, Ma¡¯am. I got the order while you were in the meeting. We¡¯ll meet Orson outside the city. ¡°Outside the city?¡± Kala murmured to herself. There was no way this was a good thing. Now to perform a little test of how bad it is. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I need to impose. Womanly concerns have raised their heads, and I¡¯d like to pick up something from my room, head there first.¡± Kala said. ¡°Womanly concerns?¡± Ella silently mouthed at her, raising a brow. Kala shrugged. Womanly concerns were kind of a catch-all. ¡°I¡¯m sorry ma¡¯am, but I was told to bring you there as soon as possible.¡± Okay, we¡¯re in the top two-thirds of bad possibilities. One more push. ¡°Kevain, I need to go to the mansion. If you put the Guar into a trot, we can save enough time that no one will notice.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Princess, I can¡¯t,¡± Their driver said. So, it¡¯s pretty bad. Kala leaned over and whispered to Ella. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll be staying in the carriage much longer.¡± The large Genosian girl nodded, grabbing the armrest and wrenching it free with a quiet crack. There was a knock on the side of the door, and Kala slid the window open to see. Kala got an eyeful of sole. Kala wrenched her head back as a man eeled feet first into the carriage in a single smooth motion, landing in the seat across from her in a fraction of a second. ¡°Good afternoon, Princess Kala. And guest.¡± He said, nodding to her. Kala glanced at the window, then at the man¡¯s shoulders, then the window. It didn¡¯t seem possible, but then again, Skills made a great many impossible things happen all the time. ¡°Who are you?¡± Kala asked, before Ella gripped her knee in warning. Kala glanced over and saw that Ella was tensed, looking like she might leap out of her seat at any moment. ¡°My name is Ussein. No last name, unfortunately. I¡¯ve been instructed by my employer to be your bodyguard during our little outing. Bodyguard or prison-guard? Kala¡¯s left hand balled into a fist. Damnit, Calvin, THIS is why I didn¡¯t want you to do anything extreme. Kala appraised him. He barely fit in the carriage and exuded an air of strength that screamed Legend. Kala would be hard-pressed to beat him, especially from this close a range. Especially while I¡¯m sober. Kala thought. She reached for her pipe under the seat, and saw the man reach for his belt, which seemed to be made of glass looped around his body. ¡°I¡¯m too sober for this¡­difficult situation,¡± Kala said by way of explanation, sure to maintain her princess demeanor. ¡°I¡¯d rather you sat on your hands until we reach our destination.¡± Ussein said, eyes narrowed. ¡°Or what? You¡¯ll hurt your precious hostage?¡± Kala asked, reaching in her purse for something to smoke. ¡°What do you think, Ussein?¡± She said as she rifled through the leather satchel full of drugs. ¡°Wet Dream? I haven¡¯t tried that yet.¡± ¡°Probably not a good idea in a carriage with a stranger.¡± Ussein said dourly. ¡°What a gentleman. I¡¯ve got Corpse Vine, Jush Powder, Primo Longweed. Doran¡¯s Havok ¨C¡° Ussein snatched the bag out of her hand, nearly causing her to drop her pipe. ¡°Hey!¡± Kala shouted, holding a hand in front of Ella so she didn¡¯t react violently. ¡°A princess should not have Doran¡¯s Havok.¡± He said, pulling out the vial of tan dust and examining it. ¡°This stuff is Illegal in every country. It¡¯s used for assassinations. Where did you get it?¡± Kala shrugged. ¡°Fine.¡± He dug through Kala¡¯s purse, his brows rising at the sheer quantity of mind-altering substances. ¡°Here,¡± he said, handing her the top-shelf Gravedigger¡¯s Crust. ¡°It¡¯s a depressant. I don¡¯t want you bouncing off the walls with Speed.¡± Gravedigger¡¯s Crust. It supposedly let you see the dead, but no one had ever confirmed it. Mostly it just made you dopey, according to what she¡¯d heard. Kala hadn¡¯t tried it yet, because she hadn¡¯t had need of speaking to the dead. ¡°Just this? Give me the Jush powder too.¡± Kala said, pushing for everything she could get. Jush powder, at least, she knew was capable of giving her useful information about this Ussein Fellow. Ussein seemed to consider this for a moment. The man knew that Jush powder produce harmless hallucinations, so he shouldn¡¯t be particularly against it. ¡°Okay, but you better blow that shit out the window. I get one whiff of it, I¡¯m confiscating your pipe.¡± He handed her the vial of Jush powder. Kala took a chunk of the sticky, lichen-like Gravedigger¡¯s Crust and packed it into her pipe before topping it with a generous sprinkle of Jush powder. ¡°Can I get a light?¡± She asked. A second later, the center of her bowl turned cherry red. Kala took a deep puff, slid the window open and exhaled. ¡°Ah, that¡¯s better,¡± Kala said, relaxing back in to her seat. A minute later, everyone began to glow a flickering orange, slowly gaining in brightness as the drugs hit her system. Ancestor Sight. Kala directed her eyes toward Ussein, and the orange glow separated from his body, and resolved into an older Uleisian man, wearing a similar belt, and watching her captor with crossed arms and a scowl. So that¡¯s what this combination does. Kala thought, eyeing the ghost. The old man glanced over at her, then did a double take, before waving his hand in front of Kala¡¯s face. Can you see me? A voice echoed in the back of her mind. Interesting. This could be useful. ¡°Yeah, I can see you.¡± ***Ussein*** I never in my life thought a princess would carry enough drugs with her to kill a small village, Ussein thought, shaking his head as the girl slouched back in the seat, all decorum set aside, the extra-long bong nestled in her lap. ¡°Yeah, I can see you,¡± the princess said to no one in particular, her eyes vacant. ¡°Who are you? Really? What¡¯s that like?¡± There was a long pause, and Kala took another small hit, blowing it out the window. ¡°How can I help?¡± ¡°I guess she¡¯s taken care of for the rest of the trip.¡± Ussein said, glancing over to the iron-skinned genosian holding the armrest like a club. ¡°Are you going to be a problem?¡± The girl put up a damn good fight last time, but she didn¡¯t have others to back her up this time around. No matter how good her defence was, she wouldn¡¯t win a fight between them. ¡°Not as long as you stay on that side of the carriage.¡± The Genosian said, baring her teeth at him. Ooh, scary, Ussein thought, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Gotta stay professional. ¡°Your terms are acceptable.¡± The princess let out a strange chuckle, followed by a burp. ¡°No way, a buried family heirloom? Get outta here. Really? You¡¯re sure about that? He doesn¡¯t look like a momma¡¯s boy. Oh¡­Shit¡­that sucks.¡± Ussein glanced at the strange princess, blinking. ¡°Does she do that a lot?¡± ¡°Sometimes,¡± The Genosian said, shrugging. ***Calvin, 2 weeks later*** Calvin did everything he could to level his skills before the response from Uleis came, while his Kncik-knacks turned the castle into his own personal playground of death. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 18! Dupdomancy has reached level 18! Sense-Grafting has reached level 15! +1 Intuition Once his magic skills were as high as he could reasonably get them, Calvin spent the last three days Shadow-boxing Beli Ma and Stealth in between physical exercises. His defence was sorely lacking, and Stealth was the essence of not getting caught. It could definitely be considered a form of defence. Calvin focused on Beli Ma first, and with with Karen¡¯s over-enthusiastic help and the looming threat, he was able to push it to level ten. Stealth on the other hand, stalled out at level 9, without expert guidance inside Shadowboxing. +1 Endurance, Strength, Kinesthetics. Beli Ma has reached level 10! +1 Stability -With Interest Calvin was tempted to take Dragon Clutches Pearl to bolster his Wizard-on-Wizard staying power, but his recent Bent-free fight with average soldiers had revealed that his close-quarters combat was simply above average, and without Bent, he could be easily overwhelmed by numbers. With Interest was a great way of countering an attack with lethal force, allowing him to dispatch each person who attacked him in an instant. Like Karen said, one person successfully fighting multiple opponents, is simply fighting them one on one incredibly quickly. ¡­. Stealth has reached Level 9! *** Who do I know that¡¯s sneaky? Calvin thought to himself as he surveyed the labyrinthine tunnels under the castle, his night vision piercing the darkness. The problem with locating a master of sneakiness to tutor him was kind of self-evident: They were very hard to find. The three escape tunnels sloped downward, with Knick-Knack-precise rails that allowed carts to zoom down them at staggering speeds. There were three escape tunnels leading in three different directions, each about a half-mile out, on three different sides of the underground complex, in case the tunnels were infiltrated. Let¡¯s face it. At some point, they¡¯re probably going to get people in here. Worst case scenario, it¡¯ll be right off the bat. It¡¯s far better to overestimate your enemy than to underestimate him, Karen¡¯s lessons kept coming back to haunt him. She¡¯s not wrong. Anybody who lives through that much shit is probably doing something right. It took roughly ten thousand dead men to make every living Legend. This wasn¡¯t taking into account multiple legends accessing the same Warp overload on the same battlefield, but the idea was solid: Legends lived through extreme circumstances. In the spirit of surviving some extreme circumstances, the entire battlefield, the fort and each quadrant around it, were connected via tunnels to five airtight chest-sized chambers underground, their systems kept separate from Calvin¡¯s tunnels. Each one had a little pictogram of the fort and the area the chamber was connected to. All Calvin had to do was create bad air or Miasma inside that chamber, and the expanding gas would shoot through the tunnels and erupt under the feet of the intended victims. Let¡¯s see, three escape routes, Gas delivery systems¡­ and yes, there is a toilet. Bent is almost full. I¡¯m about as ready as I¡¯ll ever be. I really wish you¡¯d had an extra slot to grab a HK-600. They could tear through these people like nobody¡¯s business. Plus you¡¯re not associated with them. Me too. Maybe I¡¯ll take Variety is the Spice of Death next. If Calvin could just use his Fever wasps with Atom Ant, he could make several thousand killer wasps the size of a fist with the strength of an angry, large dog. That would cause serious damage over time, plus the Bad Penny mutation would keep them going even if they lost a significant fraction of them. It was his most powerful killing ability, point for point. I guess I¡¯ll just have to settle for explosives, being the master of ¡®transmutation¡¯ that I am. ¡°Calvin!¡± He heard Grant shout from the distant entry hole. And there he goes, using my name. ¡°WHAT!?¡± Calvin shouted back. ¡°Trouble! You¡¯re gonna want to get eyes on this!¡± Calvin sprinted toward the entryway and climbed the ladder, where Grant was waiting for him with a tightly controlled urgency. ¡°What is it?¡± Calvin asked, looking around. It didn¡¯t look like anyone was near enough to have hear the aging Ilethan. ¡°Uleis is here, and it¡¯s pretty clear they don¡¯t plan on bargaining. Seven Wastes is pulling out already.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see it.¡± Calvin said, rushing after Grant to the top of the wall, pssing by hastily packing mercenaries who were marching over a ramp and jumping down on the mountain-side of the fort, abandoning ship like rats before hauling ass up the steep mountain. Calvin made it to the top, and even without a spyglass, he could see the dark smudge on the horizon, slowly coming into view. ¡°That¡¯s a lot of dudes. Do you think that¡¯s more than fifty thousand?¡± ¡°Maybe, yeah.¡± Grant nodded. ¡°Damn.¡± Calvin saw a small part of the smudge that looked different. ¡°Can I get the spyglass?¡± ¡°Knock yourself out.¡± Grant said, handing him his fancy telescope. Calvin held it to his eye, and scanned the approaching army, still a little too distant to make out the individual, but he could see the banners of individual units¡­matter of fact¡­ ¡°What the hell is the banner for the first Mujenan Volunteers doing there at the front?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°If I had to guess?¡± Grant said, rubbing his chin. ¡°They¡¯re fairly sure you¡¯re responsible for their problems, but don¡¯t have enough evidence or public support to straight up arrest you, so they¡¯re using your men as hostages.¡± ¡°Those dicks!¡± Calvin shouted, putting the glass back to his eye¡­ Sure enough, there was the flag of Gadvera, near the back, where Kala presumably was. This seriously makes me reconsider holding back the wasps. ¡°Says the guy plotting mass murder.¡± Calvin grinned at Grant. ¡°I didn¡¯t make them come here. I see this more as mass assisted suicide.¡± He glanced back down at the approaching army that wouldn¡¯t likely get here until tomorrow morning. ¡°Although, this recent development does make things tricky.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 88: True Lies ¡°Okay, this is the way I see it.¡± Calvin took a deep breath to weigh all the possible ways this could go. That vast majority of them ended up with at least a significant portion of his company dead. ¡°The best solution to this situation is¡­¡± Is..? Calvin forced the words out. ¡°Is to abandon the fort, take an escape tunnel and head back to Uleis with the Cobalts in tow¡­and play the long game like Kala and Nadia suggested. When they don¡¯t get any resistance from me, they won¡¯t have any excuse to hold Kala, and they¡¯ll let them go.¡± I don¡¯t see why that has to be the case. Kala is tougher than she looks, being a royal, and the rest of them¡­Eh. I think you could cause enough damage by yourself to cause the entire army to retreat at least, especially if they can¡¯t find you. ¡°You probably knew this, but I don¡¯t really have a standard metric for how how good I¡¯m doing as a commander, so I kind of guess based on battles won weighed against how many of my men are alive and happy. This seems like it would blow that ratio out the bottom.¡± Maybe, but do you really need men? You¡¯ve got Calvinian Summoning. Calvin stopped and blinked at Elliot¡¯s shortsightedness. ¡°It seems fairly obvious, but I need to sleep sometime, and despite my ability to cause extreme amounts of damage, I can¡¯t be in two places at once. Somebody¡¯s got to administer my kingdom for me. No sense wasting good soldiers with friendly fire.¡± But look at all that Warp. Can you afford not to take your sixth Break when it¡¯s sitting there for the taking? Calvin glanced out at the distant fires of the enemy camp, nearly on top of one of his emergency exits that lead northeast. ¡°Depends on what it¡¯ll cost me.¡± Think. They took my company and Kala because they know it was me. That means they¡¯re expecting a response from me. The guard on Kala and my men will be heavy. Even if I infiltrate the camp, the chances of getting to them will be slim. If I unleash my plan of attack, my company will be right in the thick of the slaughter. Wish I could be in two places at once¡­.dupdomancy doesn¡¯t last long enough, and the copies can¡¯t use Bent based skills. Calvin stopped. He didn¡¯t have to be in two places at once, he just needed to lure a big enough portion of the army away from his own and slaughter them. Calvin held the lantern over the map of the fort and its surrounding lands, complete with Calvin¡¯s traps and tunnels. From a far enough distance, a fleeing army looked like a big plume of dust on the horizon. Calvin mentally overlaid the approaching army on the map, a big, angry brown blob. They were approaching from the northeast, so¡­. Calvin followed his escape tunnel that led west Northwest. Far enough away, I¡¯ll bet. ¡°How about this?¡± Calvin asked aloud. ¡°Around dawn, I summon a thousand or so palm sized knick-knacks whose only job is to head northwest and toss sand into the air while they do so. See if I can lure them into a trap.¡± ¡°Are you talking to me, or yourself?¡± Grant asked. ¡°Cuz I notice you seem to be in the habit of doing that.¡± ¡°Talking to you.¡± Grant scowled as he inspected the map, before looking out at the dizzying array of tiny cookfires made of desert Guar patties. ¡°You¡¯re only gonna get one shot at a surprise attack. Either double down on the destruction or run. Don¡¯t try to half ass it. There¡¯s bound to be at least a handful of Legends in the enemy army with enhanced senses, and they¡¯ll be on to your tunnels as soon as you use one of them to attack. The best bet for maximum damage is to retreat to the tunnels, wait until tomorrow night to strike, about an hour before dawn. That¡¯s when the sentries are at their weakest.¡± ¡°As with every other organized military, Uleisan Sorcerers are famously haughty, and they don¡¯t like to let their lessers tell them what to do. That means they generally won¡¯t stand watch. If you hit hard and fast while all the men and women capable of countering your spells are asleep, you can take a huge chunk out of them.¡± ¡°Why wait until they¡¯re right on top of us?¡± Calvin asked. Grant tapped the fort on the map. ¡°There¡¯s not a chance in the Abyss that fifty thousand men can bunk in this castle. That means, they¡¯re going to be camping around here.¡± Grant circled the area around the fort that was littered with discrete vents for Calvin to pump suffocating air onto the battlefield. ¡°Additionally, once they¡¯re bedded down, you will be able to get some idea where your company is going to be. If we¡¯re lucky, they¡¯ll keep them under guard in the fort proper, which will give us a free pass to attack everyone outside the gates with impunity.¡± In the dozen or so hours since the mercenaries had fled and voided their contract, Calvin had been able to assign the Knick-knacks to making the fort walls airtight, for multiple reasons. They¡¯d spent a whole half an hour using the bright blue flames jetting front the little nozzles on the end of their strange arms to weld the glass mess hall tables to the front gate, reinforcing it and making sure air would get trapped inside the fort. Or in this case, outside the fort. ¡°And if anything goes wrong, you can still haul ass out of here as long as you don¡¯t give away the tunnels too early.¡± Calvin rapped his fingers on the stone slab underneath the map. ¡°Sounds like fun. Let¡¯s do it.¡± ***Orson*** They ran, Orson thought with a snort, eyeing the empty walls from the front of the combined forces of the Seeking Hand. For the first time in his life, he thought he might be feeling something akin to loyalty towards Kurawe. There had been no veiled threats or demands for concessions, simply immediate and overwhelming assistance. Enough to render any of this idiot Gadveran teen¡¯s plans moot. There was a path worn into the mountainside where a thousand men had fled south on foot. Little good it¡¯ll do them, Orson thought. Separate detachments had long since surrounded the south of the mountain range, which was why it took so long for the primary army to come into view of the fort. Don¡¯t want to spook the prey before it¡¯s time. Orson was just a little disappointed that he wasn¡¯t able to see the look on The Wasp¡¯s face when his not-so-clever machinations came tumbling down in the face of pure overwhelming force. As they came closer to the abandoned fort, they saw that its gate had been crudely welded shut. When Orson sent someone up the wall, they reported back that the gate and it¡¯s components had been welded into the wall itself by what appeared to be an Uleisan Wizard. That doesn¡¯t make any sense. All the mercenary wizards and powerful glassworkers who weren¡¯t from old money families were well-tracked. None of them were involved here. Strange. Orson wasn¡¯t willing to dismiss the idea that Captain Gadsint had been here, despite there being no word of a Malkenrovian lurking the sands, or even anyone with a Gadveran accent. He had attempted to bribe Ussein, which was a mistake. Orson had a stronger grip on the Legend than mere money. Unless he turned. The timing had been rather suspicious. If Calvin had convinced the man to lie about the exact nature of the bribe, he could be complicit in setting up this series of events. Orson would have to apply some pressure to the Legend, see if he ever wanted to see his family again. A finger off a random waif might do the trick. The grandfather hadn¡¯t given Orson the location of the heirloom, even as he lay dying. The spiteful bastard had spit in the mogul¡¯s face with his last breath, but hopefully his daughter was more amenable to giving it up. Of course Orson didn¡¯t think Ussein¡¯s children knew anything, so they were allowed to live undamaged, in one of Orson¡¯s feeder orphanages. Something to worry about later. After I destroy Gadvera¡¯s credibility in the eyes of Uleis. Orson felt a rare smile bloom on his face as he considered the future. The purpose of bringing the Gadveran soldiers was twofold: to serve as a buffer between themselves and whatever ploy the Gadveran captain might have, a kind of ten-foot pole to disarm traps, and to serve as a scapegoat for the attack on the fort. All they had to do was bring home the Gadveran corpses, then blame them for the attack while they were unable to defend themselves. Dead men make excellent scapegoats. With public perception shifted more in favor of Iletha, some of the other six would be forced to change their stance, and Orson¡¯s investments in the war effort would begin to pay dividends. Orson eyed the trail worn into the mountain¡¯s scraggly brush. If Captain Gadsint thought he could save his men by retreating, then he was even more of an idiot than Orson had expected. Orson turned to one of his hired Wizards, a middle-aged man from one of Asabei¡¯s supporting families. ¡°Make us an entrance.¡± The wizard gave Orson a chilly glance before Black Bent poured down the veins of his arm, evaporating into an invisible force upon leaving his fingertips. To Orson, Bent was only able to be sensed based on the subtle fluctuations in light, and the sensation of movement in the hairs on the back of his neck. The Wizard made a casual lifting gesture, and the rocky sand in front of them turned white hot and shot forward in a gentle arc, attaching to the wall of the fort. Dozens more spikes of raw glass wove together to form a massive bridge leading all the way from the ground to the wall. ¡°It¡¯ll be easy to remove once you¡¯re done with it.¡± the man said by way of explanation. ¡°That gate requires a master glassworker to repair.¡± ¡°Get the Gadverans into that fort, At sword-point if necessary. If there are any surprises waiting for us in there, I want them to catch them full in the face. Once we¡¯re sure it¡¯s safe, let¡¯s wait for the hunters to return with the catch of the day.¡± Orson¡¯s general nodded, then relayed his instructions to his lieutenants, who broke off and took command of smaller units. Cries to move forward spread through the air as the army began moving to Orson¡¯s will. I could get used to leading an army this big, Orson thought, sitting with his back straight in his ornate armor. The Gadverans were prompted to enter the castle, followed by some two thousand soldiers, who scoured every inch of the place. An hour later, and there was no sign of any traps. No Cobalts, either. ¡°Damn,¡± Orson muttered, clenching his fist as he surveyed the ruined courtyard form the top of the wall. The interior of the fort had been thrown into complete disarray, broken glass and ruined metal cages lined the walls, plates of food tossed carelessly here and there to dessicate in the sun. There was no sign of the original occupants, the arm of the Storm-Stretch group that manned the fort. ¡°Get the princess.¡± He said to his general, who nodded. Without saying a word, the man¡¯s messenger hustled off the bridge toward the mass of uleisans milling around the skirts of the fortress. ¡°If it¡¯s all the same to you, boss,¡± His general said. ¡°I¡¯m going to get started setting up defences,¡± the General said, glancing around the mountains looming over the fort, eyes narrowed suspiciously. Orson gave a dismissive wave and the man sauntered back down the bridge to toss off order to his lieutenants, pointing at the hills surrounding their position. The man was cautious to a fault. No standing army could march all the way through the desert and assault them in great enough numbers to pose a threat. A glimmer of motion caught Orson¡¯s attention, and he squinted to make out some nine hundred men being led back over the crest of the mountain in chains. Huh. Didn¡¯t I tell them to kill everyone but the Malkenrovian upstart? There could only be one reason: They hadn¡¯t caught him and intended to interrogate these men for information. Orson would be sorely disappointed if Captain Gadsint wasn¡¯t here, because it meant he was somewhere else, potentially scheming revenge for the kidnapping of his men and his princess. Not that he can do much about it. Still, it was annoying. Might as well get comfortable, Orson thought, following the train of furniture and carpets toward his new temporary office. This might take a while. Orson was just getting settled in when the princess was brought to his door, shrugging off the hand clamped around her arm as she stepped in. This, Orson had to handle with care. Royalty was a touchy subject, as there were not only political consequences to mistreating them, there were more immediate problems, what with their highly engineered Abilites. Which is why Ussein was in charge of watching her. If she tried anything, he was the most capable of shutting her down. ¡°Good evening, you parasitic worm.¡± Kala said with a slight drawl, making a sloppy bow. ¡°Is¡­Is she high?¡± ¡°Better than being high-maintenance,¡± Ussein said with a shrug. ¡°Did you drug her? Where did you get the drugs?¡± Had Ussein been taking payments from people other than him? Or did he perhaps have a habit that Orson needed to be aware of? ¡°Her drugs.¡± Ussein said, pointing at the dusky-skinned princess. Orson¡¯s brows rose, but he shrugged it off. The oddities people tended to acquire when their mental attributes were forcibly raised was nothing new to him. Drug use actually ranked fairly low on the spectrum of strange. And if the princess had a crutch, that meant he could kick it out from under her. ¡°I assume you confiscated them.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Ussein took a rather large purse off his shoulder and handed it over. Orson¡¯s jaw dropped when he felt the heft. ¡°When the¡­ Nevermind.¡± He shook his head and reoriented on the princess. ¡°Princess Kala, are you with us?¡± ¡°I suppose so, but not for looong.¡± She said, then barely suppressed a giggle. ¡°Not going with you there. You¡¯re bringing an army with you to duat, like the kings of old.¡± ¡°Oookay.¡± Orson pulled out a stack of blank sheets of paper and pushed them toward her, along with an inkwell. Maybe this won¡¯t be so hard. ¡°Could you sign these?¡± Orson said. ¡°You want¡­me to sign them?¡± she asked, peering at him. ¡°Indeed. This is the supplementary signature practice your father requested, remember?¡± Kala shrugged. ¡°Okay. I guess you can¡¯t take these with you.¡± She sat down and started putting her signature on the papers. Well, that went a lot better than I thought. All he had to do now was fill in whatever letter or legal document he wanted, and the wizards of Uleis would be able to attest that the princess had signed them herself. She was in the palm of his hand, now. Ussein gave him a curious look, and Orson shrugged. ¡°Master Huul,¡± a voice at the door sounded. ¡°The leader of the pirates.¡± It was followed by an angry growl. Orson glanced at the princess seemingly absorbed in signing her own name, her face slowly getting closer and closer to the papers as she unconsciously slumped forward. ¡°Send him in.¡± The leader of the pirates was a large man with a missing eye, wearing a dirty cloth gag. ¡°Let¡¯s hear what you have to say.¡± Ussen tore the gag out of the man¡¯s mouth. ¡°Not a pirate. Mercenary. I¡¯ll tell you everything I know. I hope you rake the son of a bitch over hot coals.¡± ¡°The son of a bitch who hired you?¡± ¡°The same. Big guy named Grant. Made floating swords.¡± ¡°And what about the Malkenrovian?¡± Orson asked, leaning forward in his seat. The big man frowned. ¡°There wasn¡¯t a Malkenrovian, just an Uleisan wizard. Said he was a transmuter, lining the walls with Devil powder so he could blow up the entire castle. Said it was a bargaining chip. Orson¡¯s blood ran cold. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The wizard. He was digging under the castle and stuffing it with devil powder. Said he was getting it ready to blow. You know, like a cannon.¡± The man made an explosion noise and gestured with his chained hands. ¡°But I guess he must have been lying, seeing as we¡¯re all standing here.¡± Orson stood, his heart hammering painfully in his chest. Sending in The Wasp¡¯s company might very well be the only reason we¡¯re still alive. ¡°This uleisan wizard, what was his name?¡± ¡°Well, Grant called him Caitlyn, but I overheard the Cobalts calling him Elliot. Odd thing, to have two names.¡± Kala started giggling in the corner, her signatures had slowly changed from words to erratic scribbles of men lying dead en masse. ¡°Ussein, I want you to move our men out of the castle,¡± Orson said, keeping his voice even. ¡°After I leave, of course. Make sure the princess and Gadsint¡¯s men stay here.¡± ¡°What about me?¡± the mercenary captain demanded. ¡°Don¡¯t leave me in this powder keg.¡± Orson eyed the mercenary. ¡°Whether you survive the night might depend entirely on how much Captain Gadsint values his troops.¡± Then, without further time-wasting speech, Orson slipped around him and headed for the main yard, intent on being the first out of this death trap. As long as he got out before the insane man hiding somewhere in the castle lit the fuse, Orson was comfortable with that. Macronomicon That was one part planning, two parts luck, I think. I''m continuing to work on the story at a steady pace, thank goodness. Patreon is at Chapter 112! I learned a lot from my previous works about pacing, both mine, and the story''s. I think. Probably. In any case, I hope you conintue enjoying it into the future! Chapter 89: Dance puppets! ***Ussein*** Despite Orson¡¯s haste in abandoning everyone else in the castle, the princess was a piece that the old man couldn¡¯t afford to lose, and even in the off-chance that the threat was credible, Ussein needed to get her out of the danger zone. ¡°Alright Princess, let¡¯s go. We¡¯ve got to get the men out of here. No sense waiting around for the place to blow,¡± Ussein said, touching her shoulder to get her attention. ¡°This is the safest place in the castle.¡± Kala said, seizing his arm and looking up at him. ¡°Just stay here, more people will live.¡± The mercenary captain glanced over his shoulder and raised a brow from where his chained hands were resting on the door handle. ¡°What do you mean.¡± Kala gave him a look like he was stupid. ¡°I mean, that there¡¯s no explosion. it¡¯s poison.¡± She nodded toward the army settled outside the fort. ¡°And they¡¯re the ones who are going to die. We need to stay inside the castle.¡± ¡°Who told you this?¡± ¡°Your grampa.¡± She glanced over at the mercenary captain. ¡°Veer¡¯s mom, and all the thousands of chariots circling the field like vultures. A lot of people are gonna die, and it would be best if we waited it out in here.¡± Ussein frowned. The princess had been saying very personal things that she shouldn¡¯t have been able to know for the past two weeks. Things that not even a detailed investigation should have revealed, not that he thought she¡¯d had the foresight to investigate him beforehand. The things she knew seemed to grow organically, as if his grandfather were truly whispering them in her ear, as she claimed. ¡°Why should I trust you?¡± Ussein asked. ¡°Trust me or don¡¯t.¡± Kala said, clumsily organizing her stack of signatures. ¡°From my perspective, it¡¯s a self-correcting problem. If you don¡¯t trust me and leave, you¡¯ll die. If you do trust me and stay, I get the feeling you will continue to trust me. Maybe put a little more stock in my words about the hand?¡± ¡°And what if you¡¯re wrong and your captain destroys the castle in a monumentous explosion?¡± ¡°You think the man assigned to protect me would risk blowing me up?¡± ¡°His supposed actions thus far haven¡¯t seemed¡­particularly stable.¡± Ussein said. ***Calvin**** ¡°AAHAHAHAHAH! DANCE PUPPETS!¡± Calvin cackled with glee, watching the Uleisan troops make an organized retreat from the castle, leaving behind his company to prevent him from ¡®exploding¡¯ it. The situation could not be more perfect. He was viewing the ants from the top of the fort¡¯s highest tower, where he¡¯d transposed his sense of sight by clever use of small holes in the walls to grant him line-of sight. ¡°You fools! Your Warp will be fuel for my army! Your-¡° Grant clapped a hand over his mouth, whispering harshly. ¡°What the hell are you doing? There are Legends whose hearing would make a turak jealous. They could be in the enemy troop!¡± They waited silently, Grant¡¯s rough hand sealing his ability to cackle. The enemy continued marching above them, the noise so faint as to be more felt than heard. Grant let out a quiet sigh. ¡°Are you going to be quiet?¡± Calvin nodded. ¡°Good.¡± He released Calvin. ¡°You just got all handsy with a superior officer. I¡¯m going to add this to your performance review.¡± ¡°Make sure you mention the part where I saved your ass.¡± ¡°Bah.¡± Calvin placed a hand on the four feet of reinforced stone between him and the gas chamber, the massive stone wheel to control the valve beside him. The northeast and northwest quadrant were on opposite sides of the low hanging tunnel, and they were waiting to be put into use. Time to start loading the chambers. ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, turning to the assembled Cobalts. ¡°I want to thank you ladies once again for agreeing to this mission, as awkward as it is. I simply don¡¯t have the Bent to make it happen.¡± He tapped the wall. ¡°On the other side of this wall is a tremendous underground cavern filled with regular air.¡± He lifted up a corked and sealed bottle. ¡°This is charcoal exhaust. I¡¯m not an alchemist by any means, but I took steps to ensure that this is as pure as possible.¡± Following Elliot¡¯s advice, he¡¯d had Jinsei fill a massive glass jug with air and charcoal, then sealed it and the glassworker had heated the charcoal with his Control Temperature, burning it inside the jar without air. Once that was done, Jinsei had cooled it as far as he could, given it plenty of time to settle, then carefully siphoned the top off into Calvin¡¯s bottle. You should get Chemistry as a Skill. It would be rad. ¡°It¡¯s also called bad air. Tasteless, odorless, and if you breath enough of it, it can kill you in your sleep. Now. We are going to start pumping this bad air up and into the lungs of the army directly above us.¡± Calvin pointed up. ¡°It will settle in the camp and suffocate them in their sleep.¡± A single clawed hand was raised. ¡°Yes, Buzite?¡± ¡°If the poison settles downward, will it come back into the tunnels?¡± He asked. ¡°Not enough to do any damage, there aren¡¯t any holes on the surface leading to these tunnels, only the gas chambers, and if by some means, it does, the tunnel has excellent ventilation. Calvin held up a hand. ¡°You feel that breeze?¡± They nodded. ¡°That¡¯s fresh air pumped from an omnidirectional windsock up on the mountain. I didn¡¯t even know those things existed, but the Knick-Knacks really know their stuff. Our air is going to be fine.¡± They seemed to be satisfied with that. Another hand was raised, and Calvin pointed. ¡°What do you need our help with?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have enough Bent to fill the entire valley with bad air. it¡¯ll take a staggering amount.¡± What was the mass again? Hold on, I have to convert from metric¡­ About two and a half pounds per cubic yard. Calvin did some quick math. He could make about a hundred and thirty cubic yards per casting of the spell, which sounded like a lot, except it wasn¡¯t, because cubic volume was a bitch. He did a quick headcount to make sure this idea had merit. Four hundred female Cobalts, each with about eleven Stability, from surviving such miserable circumstances. That would net him¡­ Wait, will this even work on Cobalts? I guess. They pass the Harkness test. Calvin could practically feel the man shrug. Four fourty times one thirty¡­add two zeros to get times one hundred, then multiply by three, add a zero, and add the results together¡­ fifty-seven thousand cubic yards. Cubic root, about thirty-eight.. of course it isn¡¯t necessary to go thirty eight yards high, three is fine so¡­ twelve areas of gas a hundred and fourteen feet on a side, nine feet tall. Don¡¯t forget a lethal dose is 10%. Yeah, we should get enough of them. Definitely enough to trigger a Break for everyone involved. You think maybe that Bent would be better spent on wasps? In sheer firepower, maybe, but the wasps actually gave the enemy something they could fight, something to get alarmed about. By the time we¡¯re done, at least sixteen of these lovely lady¡­things will have gotten a Bent back. We can consider wasps then. Calvin snapped back to his explanation. He¡¯d taken a bit of a detour, and he could see on their faces that he¡¯d blanked out for a moment. ¡°I¡¯m going to borrow Bent from you, and use it as my own. In a way, it¡¯ll be your Bent choking these bastards to death in their sleep.¡± ¡°Will it hurt?¡± one asked, a tremor in her voice. ¡°I haven¡¯t heard any complaints yet.¡± *** A few hours before the light of dawn broke there was a soft puff, a slight shifting in the sand underneath the Uleisan army. It was quickly lost in the chatter of soldiers around campfires and braying of the occasional restless guar, packed full of the supplies they couldn¡¯t transport via sled over the rocky terrain surrounding the mountains. ¡°Agh, there must have been something off in that gardor jerky,¡± Ghubel said, standing watch with his friend Kule. They tended to get stuck with the shittier jobs because of Kule¡¯s mouth, and today was no exception: Nobody wanted to be stuck with the last shift until morning, standing around and watching a mountainside. Getting up four hours early and then putting in a full day of work was nobody¡¯s idea of fun. The army was well within their country¡¯s borders and their size was massive enough that no pirate would dare attack them, sentries or no, so the watch was a joke. This nauseating sensation worming its way through his stomach was just another thing that made the day seem all the more miserable. ¡°I¡¯ve got a splitting headache,¡± Kule said, eyeing the slowly brightening horizon. ¡°Can¡¯t wait to be done with this shit. He tapped Ghubel on the arm. ¡°I tell you what, I¡¯ve got a nap space hollowed out in the thirty-second¡¯s wagon. You cover for me, I¡¯ll let you use it when I¡¯m done.¡± He touched a hand to his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know about you, but I am fucking spent. I feel like I just marched halfway across the country.¡± ¡°Maybe because you did,¡± Ghubel said, trying to distract himself from his stomach¡¯s violent protests. It worked, for a while, until one particular stomach upheaval forced Ghubel to his knees, ejecting his dinner and the sneaked jerked meat out onto the rocky ground. ¡°There, there, buddy, get it all out, and you¡¯ll feel better.¡± Kure said, patting him on the back. Ghubel didn¡¯t know exactly how long he sat there, retching into the dirt. Minutes, at least. Maybe half an hour. He expected to feel better after he threw up, but there was no relief from the nausea. It simply built, exhibiting flu-like symptoms as it did, sweating and shivering. Ghubel¡¯s addled mind began to suspect something more sinister than food poisoning. ¡°Kure,¡± he gasped between shivering heaves. ¡°Kure, sound the alarm.¡± He glanced over and spotted his friend slumped against a nearby rock, his chest barely moving. The alarm bell was attached to a post some ten feet away from him, easily within reach of a standing soldier, but from where Ghubel was kneeling, it looked miles away. He tried and failed to put his shaking feet underneath him, resorting to crawling toward the bell, his vision swimming as he did so, Losing sight of everything except for the sand and bile in front of his face. He didn¡¯t know how long it too, but eventually, his shoulder bumped agains the glass pillar, and he tried to lift himself to his feet, struggling with every fiber of his being to reach the handle on the bell. His vision was getting dim¡­ *** This one could¡­go¡­all¡­the¡­waaaay! Oops, missed it by that much, Elliot provided unhelpful commentary as Calvin watched the sentries slowly suffocate in the poisoned air with Sense Grafting. Already he was feeling Warp begin to accumulate above them, radiating through the stone tunnels. Looks like it¡¯s gonna be a quiet morning after all. Not necessarily. The attack definitely wouldn¡¯t kill all of them. It wouldn¡¯t even kill most of them. It seemed to be more effective on smaller people with less Breaks, I.E. less Endurance. Therefore, most of the people who were bigger than average with higher breaks would be able to shrug off the effects of the gas with the System¡¯s assistance. Still, given the sheer size of the army, It wouldn¡¯t be a stretch to estimate that the weakest, smallest twenty percent would likely pass away in the night, while the vast majority of them would suffer debilitating poisoning aftereffects in the morning, and the most resilient would wake up with splitting headaches. Dawn was still a few hours away, and Calvin could already feel the Warp Building to a critical point. The Cobalts were shifting around uncomfortably in the dim tunnels as they began to feel the effects of their fourth Break sneaking up on them. ¡°Go sleep off your Breaks in the west chamber,¡± Calvin said, waiting for the warp to hit the critical point for his own advancement. Grant watched him with a cocked brow. ¡°You really think you can just whip up a fighting force with these Cobalts?¡± ¡°They all got to their third break when we took the place, now they¡¯ll be Veterans.¡± ¡°Teeny tiny little veterans.¡± The he said, putting his thumb and forefinger apart. ¡°Not to mention they won¡¯t have time to grow into their Attributes. It¡¯s really not worth the time.¡± ¡°Then you¡¯ll be glad to know that it¡¯s your job to teach them the Skills they need to be an effective fighting force during the Forming Day. If anyone would have a good idea, it would be you.¡± Grants brows raised. ¡°Son of a bitch.¡± ¡°Indeed. But don¡¯t think of it as a chore, think of it as an opportunity to shape the skills of eager young warriors, no questions asked.¡± Calvin turned his attention to the castle, his disembodied eye having spectacular range of vision. There was a skeleton crew of Uleisan soldiers left to keep the place secure and search for the suspected Devil powder bombs. That they were poring over every inch and hadn¡¯t found the pinholes left by the Knick-Knacks was a testament to their craftsmanship. Calvin¡¯s company had been locked in a cobalt pen, inside a heavy steel fence, with a massive lock. If he could get them free, they could overwhelm the skeleton crew standing guard easily. Actually, Calvin thought, thumbing the edge of the silvery blade that grew seamlessly from his palm in response to his will, I wonder if I could overwhelm the skeleton crew by myself. Calvin was itching to try out his new Abilities on someone other than Karen. Losing all the time was no fun. She¡¯d been surprised by the bent-enhanced knife at first, then once she figured out their range and how many Calvin could carry inside himself at once, she proceeded to dominate him over and over in his Shadowboxing practice. Calvin had no idea how he compared to the average soldier. Calvin Gadsint Body: 16 Strength: 12 Kinesthetics: 13 Endurance: 12 Mind: 24 Intuition: 18 Stability: 16 Will: 24 Bent: 2/16 Skills: Stealth 8 Talking to Girls 11 Acting 10 Read Expressions 10 Sense-Grafting 15 Knife-Work 10 Dupdomancy 18 Hunting 10 Meditation 18 Chained Spirit 18 Calvinian Summoning 18 Your Princess is in Another Castle 7 Fishing 5 Genosian Language 5 Beli Ma 10 Macronomicon Chapter 90: Emptying Fort Cobalt Give me the text for Eye of the Tiger again, Calvin thought as he headed for the Sure, Elliot said, bringing it up. Eye of the tiger: Enter flow state at will. Meditation Correction applies to combat and learning effectiveness. The inverse of a barbarian rage. May make the user overtired with extended use. ¡­just gonna point out the obvious here. Why didn¡¯t I use that during the fight? Because we didn¡¯t think of it? Calvin had put the ability in the ¡®training¡¯ box in his mind and hadn¡¯t paid much attention afterward. Probably wouldn¡¯t have gotten any freaking damage at all. Calvin came up to the trap door, a gigantic stone plate looming over his head with a wheel beside it. Calvin wasn¡¯t ¡®seeing¡¯ anything per se. he was using the senses of a tunneling manster to feel the position of everything on his skin. It would work a lot better if he didn¡¯t wear any clothes, but that was a gulf he wasn¡¯t willing to jump yet. You ever wonder how a three hundred and twenty-four pound wasp with eighteen times it¡¯s normal physical abilities would stack up against an army? Calvin thought as he began spinning the wheel. All the time, man. Calvin hadn¡¯t tried Atom Ant against living targets yet, and the mass he was capable of producing with a single Bent was staggering. If the creature¡¯s abilities were truly multiplied by eighteen, it should take a Legend to kill. Not really cost effective in terms of kills, though. A swarm could kill hundreds or thousands at once, while a giant wasp could kill one or two. Plus the field was going to be rife with Warp, making Bad Penny come into play with the swarm. I¡¯m sure there¡¯s a happy medium in there somewhere. The stone plate moved silently on Knick-Knack crafted bearings, separating from the wall and ever so slowly opening, letting in the light of the fort. Once there was enough room, Calvin crawled through, then gave Grant a thumb¡¯s up. The older man shook his head silently and began turning the wheel. The entire floor shifted as it resealed itself up against the wall. Calvin reoriented on the hall leading to the courtyard, dropped low and began to creep silently forward. Eye of the tiger. The world came into sharp focus. The pain in his neck from stooping through narrow tunnels all day faded away, and the only thing he could think about was the task at hand. ¡°¡­is guar shit.¡± Calvin heard someone speak as he got to the edge of the next room. ¡°We already looked over everything a dozen times. At this point I hope we find something so we can stop staring at the same twenty rooms, over and over.¡± ¡°You¡¯d prefer we find a secret cache of devil powder and what, blow ourselves up?¡± another voice scoffed. Calvin fished the mirror out of his belt an took a peek around the corner. There were two men knocking on the walls and moving furniture around. Too tired, bored, and wrapped up in their monotonous task to notice the tiny mirror in the corner of the room. They seem average. That they do. Calvin pocketed the mirror and stepped out into the room. The one on the left, a little shorter than the other and facing the right way to notice him, froze in the middle of looking under the chair for the hundredth time. ¡°Where did you come from?¡± The second Uleisan started, turning around to look at Calvin, eyes widening. ¡°Hold it right there,¡± he said, scrambling to unsheathe his sword before leveling it at Calvin. ¡°Are you one of the Gadverans?¡± Gadverans and Uleisans didn¡¯t look particularly different. It was that accent that really allowed people to tell them apart. ¡°Do I sound like one of those cock-rots?¡± Calvin asked, waving his empty hand dismissively as he made it seem like he was going to walk past him. ¡°Oh, um. I guess.¡± Calvin swerved at the last second and buried a knife in the man¡¯s skull. His partner took an enthusiastic swing at Calvin, over-extending his arm when Calvin dodged. He caught the back of the soldier¡¯s elbow, violently folded the man¡¯s arm the rest of the way over his body. The man¡¯s other arm tried to scratch at him ineffectually, hampered by his own arm as Calvin stuck the blade in one side of the man¡¯s stomach and drew it up diagonally until he popped through a couple ribs. The soldier let out a shuddering gasp, falling to the ground, his sword clattering to the ground as his hand busily tried to hold himself together. He looked up, eyes watering. ¡°Wait-¡° Calvin put him out of his misery. That was a little short, Calvin thought as the corpse slumped to the ground. Sticky red blood pooled around his palm where the knife withdrew into his skin. Calvin wiped the blood onto the man¡¯s clothes, and headed for the outside. He checked around the corner, then glanced up at the towers above. Kala¡¯s in that one there. If I get to her, she can help me overwhelm the rest of the men keeping the company under guard. There were two full squads of soldiers watching Calvin¡¯s unarmed men. The guards seemed to be as bored as their prisoners, playing cards as they whiled away the night. Come to think of it, Calvin was fairly sure he could disable all of them with a single Bent, if he had to. ¡­Including the guys behind me. Maybe Calvin would feel less inclined to murder people if he had more Bent. Or if them testifying against you wouldn¡¯t get everyone you know killed. Fair point. Let¡¯s just kill them, then. It made Calvin feel a little bad, but watching Baroke or Kala get strung up outside the city of Uleis for something he¡¯d done would feel worse. There were a dozen or so men on the wall, and probably more cycling around from room to room What¡¯s the most effective way to get rid of them so none of the others notice? Ooh, it¡¯s like a stealth shooter. Here¡¯s an idea- Mass Shaping 15/16 Bent remaining. Calvin put his thumb on the Web Component and created a thick cocoon of pressurized web proteins around the face of every man within sight, and similarly gummed up every alarm bell in the fort. The webs appeared around their targets and immediately expanded outward, in a kind of wispy foam, equalizing with the atmosphere¡¯s pressure. There were faint groans and clatters as people fell out of seats and kicked furniture as they struggled to remove the web from their face and breathe. Their hands invariably stuck to the web, making them unable to do anything but wiggle on the ground with muffled cries. How can I prevent someone from doing that to me? Bleach dissolved spider webs. That base you got from Borus could probably make a breathing-hole. Without burning my face off? Pretty sure when Beli Ma becomes an aura it can disrupt spells in your vicinity. Hence why Kala gave it to you. Better than Dodge, in the long run. I probably should keep practicing it, then, Calvin thought as he watched the men in the courtyard and on the walls slowly suffocate to death. Probably. Oops, we got a runner! Calvin spotted a man running across the wall, straight out of his blind spot behind one of the towers, aiming for the alarm bell. Calvin pushed himself forward and broke into a full sprint, taking five ground-eating lunges before he leapt onto a steel cage and propelled himself halfway up the wall of the stone castle. He dug his fingers into a tiny crevice in the heavy stonework, and drew himself up with every ounce of effort he could bring to bear. Calvin flew the rest of the way up, grabbed the edge of the wall, taking a swipe at the fleeing soldier. the man let out a panicked squawk and swerved around him, avoiding the knife, but not the inches of invisible extra blade, suffering a cut along the side of his chest. The soldier kept running and seized the alarm bell like a lifeline and tugged with everything he had. The mechanism refused to move, as it was full of rapidly hardening webs. Calvin walked up behind the man desperately trying to ring the bell and put his dagger through his upper vertebra, causing him to fall to the ground like a ragdoll. This is actually pretty easy. A flicker of movement in the corner of his eye was all the warning he got. Calvin flinched back and raised his knife defensively. He felt an impact against the blade that strained his wrist, and an instant later, he felt a searing heat on his face. Calvin blinked and noticed a red-hot section of glass wrapped around the invisible portion of his knife. Where the hell did this come from? You just HAD to think it, didn¡¯t you? You just HAD to think to yourself ¡®Man, this is easy¡¯. What a freakin¡¯ idio- The enemy didn¡¯t bother with words, simply moving on to the next attack. He tugged hard on the blade with the intention of forcing Calvin to drop a weapon or lose his balance. Instead Calvin lunged forward. Closing the distance was the best way to deal with a whip-user, anyway. He felt the man¡¯s gaze land on his legs with a flash of amusement, which was all the warning he got before the whip writhed like a living thing and a red-hot segment of it rocketed towards his legs. Between that and feeling it approach on his skin, Calvin was able to narrowly hop over the whip, which left him hurtling through space, with his feet off the ground, straight toward someone bigger and stronger than him. Godsdamnit. The man held out a hand almost lazily, intent on arresting Calvin¡¯s charge in midair and probably breaking some ribs. Let¡¯s see how he likes this. Calvin¡¯s second knife jutted out of his chest, and sank a fraction of an inch into the man¡¯s palm before he reversed course in a flurry of motion, withdrawing a hand and aiming a blow at the side of Calvin¡¯s head. Calvin threw up his arms before the overwhelming force of the man¡¯s strike sent him tumbling to the ground. Gods I hope my arms aren¡¯t broken, Calvin idly thought as he desperately tried not to land on the scorching hot whip. You need some help, buddy? This feels familiar. Getting tossed around like a rag doll was an experience unique to fighting Karen¡­or those like her. Oh hey, it¡¯s Ussein, the guy who tried to blackmail us. I¡¯m starting to think think the guy¡¯s a Legend. I think you¡¯re right. Also, whip. Calvin rolled to the side as the whip slammed into the stone wall with a heavy smack, then hopped over it as it tried to take his legs off again. He was in the man¡¯s range again and his arms¡­ They¡¯ll be sore tomorrow, Calvin thought, struggling to make a fist. Bent? Bent. No sense holding back when your life is on the line. Calvinian Summoning. 14/16 Bent Remaining. Six dog-sized wasps with Atom Ant maxed manifested out of the green mist that Exploded from Calvin¡¯s Palms. Why not a swarm? I wanted blockers, Calvin thought. While a swarm might kill the other guy, they couldn¡¯t actually stop a determined Legend from cutting him in half before they succumbed to the poison. Another Shadowboxing lesson learned with Karen. That skill really pays dividends. No doubt, Calvin thought as four of the wasps harassed the man, forcing him bodily away from Calvin with limb-shearing mandibles and dagger-sized stingers that could punch through steel. They moved incredibly fast, the timing between snapping of mandibles and the heavy pounding of red-hot glass against carapace approaching the rate of a manic drummer on speed. Calvin kept the other two wasps close by in case the man tried something. One of the wasps got wrapped up in the red-hot glass, slowly sizzling under the heat, but not quite catching fire due to its unnaturally high Endurance. The other three forced him further and further away from Calvin. ¡°Gods damn it.¡± The Whip wielding legend was forced to let go of the one wrapped in glass or lose his whip. With a flick of his wrist, the whip writhed like a living thing, letting go of the wasp as he lunged out of the way of the rest of Calvin¡¯s summons. Ussein¡¯s whip flew back to him at a speed that seemed like it would cause the man physical damage, but the whip once again shifted Itself seemingly following the man¡¯s will as it wrapped around him. Is he giving up? Calvin thought, mentally giving the order to slow their attacks. He¡¯s not giving up, that¡¯s a transformation move. He¡¯s going all power rangers on you! What? Then Calvin saw the red-hot glass spread away from the black core of the whip, covering the entire man with a thin layer of glass. Somehow without damaging the man¡¯s clothes. What in the Abyss am I looking at? He¡¯s getting serious and boosting his defense. Heeey, congrats, you can make a Legend get serious. Whosagoodboy!? Well I don¡¯t have to wait for him to finish, Calvin thought, directing his wasps to kill the man. With a kick that fractured the stone he was on, Ussein leapt up to the top of the tower, buying himself the extra time he needed as the wasps hummed through the air to catch up. I need to consider a stealth ability for the wasps The black core of the whip ripped through the thin glass coating around his waist and straightened, folding in half to create a spear formed out of some kind of black metal. Great, now he¡¯s got armor, Calvin thought with frustration. Ussein pushed off the side of the tower where Kala was held captive with a thud, hurtling down at Calvin like a falling star. One of Calvin¡¯s wasps tried to get in the way, but its stinger and mandibles slipped off the smooth glass coating he wore. This sucks, Calvin thought, tumbling out of the way as the spear buried itself in the wall. Without missing a beat, rather than pull it out, the man twisted the spear like it was made of paper and aimed the butt end at Calvin¡¯s chest. The butt shimmered in midflight to form a wickedly sharp point. Calvin directed one of his summons to get between them, and the wasp¡¯s natural armor almost stopped the strike. A fraction of a second later, an ichor covered spear exploded out the back of the insect and shot towards Calvin¡¯s chest. He managed to get the invisible extensions of both his daggers in front of the spearhead covered with rapidly dissolving Wasp gunk. Calvin was forced back, and his head began to ache as the tightly controlled Bent in the blades was slowly severed. Not good. Maybe I can distract him for a second with Mesmerizing eyes, then¡­ More wasps? More wasps. I can¡¯t exactly leave anyone who¡¯s seen them alive, can I? Calvin had more tricks in his arsenal, but so many of them made loud noise when he used them. That left poison, webs, acid, miasma, to name a few. I¡¯ll bet that bastard still needs to breathe. As the two combatants faced each other down, Calvin formulated a plan to exploit the weaknesses of the human body. ¡°Calvin! Ussein!¡± A harsh whisper sounded from Kala¡¯s prison tower. They glanced up and spotted Kala in a sheer nightgown, leaning out of the window. ¡°Cut that out, you two, I¡¯m trying to sleep!¡± she whispered at them before shutting the wooden slats again. Macronomicon Chapter 91: A Quiet Morning ¡°Calvin?¡± Ussein said, frowning. He glanced at Calvin¡¯s wasps. ¡°The Wasp?¡± ¡°Seems kind of self-evident.¡± He looked Calvin up and down. ¡°They said you were Malkenrovian. And sixteen.¡± ¡°Seventeen.¡± ¡°Some kind of disguise Skill?¡± ¡°Something like that.¡± ¡°Huh. Kala said you were going to slaughter the people out there, but I fail to see how you¡¯re going to manage that when the best you can do is prick my palm.¡± He held up his barely bleeding palm for emphasis. The best I can do? The BEST I can do? For a brief moment, Calvin was tempted to show him the best he could do, but that was a waste of Bent and a waste of a Legend. Instead he pointed out the obvious. ¡°It¡¯s already done.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°Say what?¡± ¡°I poisoned them in their sleep through tiny little holes in the ground. A lot of them aren¡¯t gonna wake up. You can¡¯t exactly stop me from doing something I¡¯ve already done, Ussein.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± He glanced out into the night, eyes narrowed. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of collapsed sentries out there.¡± he said before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. ¡°I can feel Warp building. It feels like a battle.¡± ¡°Veterans and higher tend to push the unpleasant duties on the lower Break soldiers. That¡¯s just a fact of life. Although it¡¯s going to bite them in the ass this time around, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Can you get them all?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°Can you kill every man woman and child out there?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯ll be many women and children¡­¡± ¡°An army that big?¡± Ussein said, glancing out into the rocky desert. ¡°There were a few of them, I¡¯m sure, but unless they were Legends, I doubt they still are.¡± Well that¡¯s a sobering thought. ¡°I can get them all. Those wasps were the tip of the iceberg. I can make enough to eliminate the survivors completely.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Ussein said, pulling his spear out of the ground and wrapping it around his waist the glass covering his skin was attracted to the black metal core ¨C Looks like tungsten ¨C recreating his whip-belt. ¡°Because believe me, you don¡¯t want hundreds of pissed off Legends seeking vengeance, which is what you¡¯re in the process of making if you¡¯re not thorough.¡± ¡°Are you¡­helping me?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Not so much helping as¡­not destroying utterly. Your wasps are strong and fast, but they¡¯re dumb. They weren¡¯t actively trying to protect you so much as they were trying to kill me. If I wanted to I could have outmaneuvered them and cut out your heart. You¡¯re lucky I was trying to take you alive. You need to get some proper, intelligent defensive summons if you want to live through a real battle, wizard.¡± ¡°When you¡¯re done mopping up the last of them, come see me, I¡¯ve got a task for you.¡± Ussein waved dismissively and turned back towards the tower. The gall! That¡¯s no way to treat your wizard king! I will suspend you by your feet from the ceiling of an ice cave to be eaten by angry Gardors! Calvin watched the man¡¯s back, clenching and unclenching the handle of his knife. He was tempted to murder him, but it was so much safer and less resource intensive to let the man keep breathing. Calvin finally decided to suck it up and let him go. There was a whole lot more to get done tonight than putting one guy in his place. I don¡¯t need no defensive summons. I get by just fine with my training and combat skills. You¡¯re just ashamed to admit the idea never occurred to you. Where am I supposed to get an ¡®intelligent¡¯, ¡®defensive¡¯ summon from, huh? Calvin thought as he watched the legend disappear back into the tower. I can¡¯t just make them, like Ussein seems to think. There has to already be a sapient creature interested in defending me that we can feed to Calvinian summoning. Those don¡¯t just grow on trees. We could kill Ella. I¡¯m going to pretend you didn¡¯t say that. Because if you did say that, I¡¯d have to cut you out of my soul and break your spine. Just stating the obvious. Anyway, don¡¯t kill her if you don¡¯t want, but if she happens to get killed sometime in the next ten years or so, we¡¯ve got the perfect place for her. I will NOT become known as the guy who summons an assortment of sexy young women. Being called The Wasp was bad enough. Hahahah! A thought occurred to Calvin. What about those HK six-hundred things? Oh, oh yeah, those can be programmed for bodyguard duty. Pretty easily too, it¡¯s one of their pre-packaged subroutines. And yes. They are smarter than a wasp. I guess we can see if there are any bodies left when we get back. Maybe a rich collector has one above his fireplace right now. Well, that¡¯s decided, then. Calvin thought. Wait! What? Check this out. Survival of the Fittest: All Calvinian summons experience occasional random minor mutations of the template creature. A creature from the swarm may replace the old template creature. Whaddya think? I¡¯m not getting it. You can breed guardian wasps! It only took forty thousand years to create modern dogs, and that was at a rate of two to five years per generation. You could do a generation every couple hours, or faster, with some lady help. What the Abyss is a dog? Calvin thought. You¡¯re shitting me. There are no dogs on Marconen? But I could¡¯ve sworn ¨C ah, fuck it. Okay, you know sheep, right? Yeah. Well, you always bred the stud with the biggest fluffiest wool, because his babies tended to have bigger, fluffier wool, right? Duh, are you going somewhere with this? Dude, that mutation lets you breed generations of wasps for specific traits. With some time and dedication, you could literally create sapient wasps who live to guard you. Sapient death machines, you mean? That¡¯s more of an investment than you think. I would need Continuity grafted over from Chained spirit to get the maximum benefit out of that. Sapience doesn¡¯t mean much if you¡¯re starting from scratch over and over. Variety is the spice of death would also be good to have different breeding lines, maximizing the utility of altering their traits, so we¡¯re looking at level twenty-five, minimum, thirty if you want Variety. That¡¯s not exactly a skill level that most people achieve in their lifetime. Oh, you¡¯ll get there. You¡¯re not most people. Calvin glanced down at the dead fires below him. The glowing scowl of Soscath was beginning to sink under the horizon. Soon, the sky would lighten, and the survivors would begin to wake. Better make sure it sticks, Calvin thought, holding a hand out. Calvinian summoning 13/16 Bent Remaining 13/16 Bent Remaining ¡­ 3/16 Bent remaining. In a matter of minutes, three thousand two hundred and forty wasps flooded out onto the wall, each one pound, and reinforced by Atom Ant. Crawl over there, Calvin gave them a mental nudge. If something is breathing, sting it in the throat so it can¡¯t scream. One sting from a rat-sized wasp should to the trick, but¡­sting them in the throat as much as you want. The wasps flexed their finger-length stingers in glee at the order, and they began to swarm over the edge of the wall and down the side, crawling their way toward the camp in perfect insect silence. Now to sit back and wait for the dawn¡­ Calvin grabbed one of the sentries stool and rested his legs, stretching them out while he waited to see how many survivors he had to deal with. ¡­Am I forgetting something? Your friends? Oh, right! Calvin jumped to his feet and headed for the holding cells where his company was sleeping. ***Orson*** Orson blinked the sand out of his eyes as he rolled over in his bed, pulling the expensive comforter away from himself as he groaned. His head was pounding like he¡¯d been drinking himself into a stupor the entire night. At least there weren¡¯t any explosions over the night, so either that mercenary captain was lying, or there was never any Devil Powder. I guess I¡¯ll find out when I get the morning report. It was odd, waking up before the general. Usually the man came barging into his tent in the small hours of the morning with a huge list of annoyances that had occurred over the night. One of the more bitter parts of being a leader: being expected to solve other people¡¯s problems. Must be this headache that woke me so early, he thought, crawling out of bed to put on his shoes. Gods, I feel weak. I should exercise more. Orson chuckled at the ridiculous idea of himself doing pushups and jogging like any other grunt. Like the rest of the Order of the Seeking Hand, Orson was, in the strictest sense of the word, a Legend, but he¡¯d not put much effort into maximizing the raw potential of his Body and Mind. Daily exercise was tedious and distracting, especially when he had a business to run. His endurance was decent enough, though, through long overnighters, to the occasional bender at the Jush dens in his free time, he¡¯d slowly raised it over the years. Which is why this damn headache shouldn¡¯t be a problem! He thought, rubbing his temple. He couldn¡¯t even remember the last time he¡¯d had a hangover. Orson blinked, smacking his lips. Something smelled good. Barbeque maybe? There was no sound. The camp outside his tent was silent as the grave. What¡¯s going on? An army wasn¡¯t exactly a quiet thing. Even as he¡¯d been falling asleep last night, the camp had been flush with the sound of laughter, jingling harnesses, scraping pans, even the occasional shout as someone beat another at games of chance. There was no such thing as a quiet army, and morning was no different. That was when Orson noticed the beam of light streaming down from a pinhole in his tent, drawing a line through the dusty air and landing on the carpeted floor. It¡¯s almost noon! Orson realized, pushing the headache and weakness aside as he threw on his pants. Did the general reposition the entire army while he slept? Was this some kind of coup? Whatever had happened, something was clearly Wrong, and it was his job to fix it. Only one way to find out what¡¯s up. Orson donned his shirt and padding before he threw on his breastplate, keeping all his vitals safely inside a thin wall of enchanted glass. He grabbed his saber from the bedside and threw open the tent, squinting against the blast of sunlight. Once his eyes adjusted, Orson felt his jaw go slack, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. Dozens of Guar-sized wasps were methodically rounding up the bodies of his men, biting their heads off and tossing them wholesale into a massive pit full of burning bodies. That was where the smell came from. One of the corpses was just faking, and when the wasp came toward it, the man leapt to his feet and tried to run away with a strangled scream, receiving a sword-length stinger through the chest before his head was removed from his body. ¡°Morning sleepyhead,¡± a voice called from his left. Orson managed to tear his eyes away from the unsettling tableu to gaze at the short, pale Malkenrovian frying up eggs in a cast-iron skillet, along with half a dozen Gadverans, including Kala, Uleisan bandits, a massive Ilethan with half a dozen swords strapped to his body, some purple skinned woman, and¡­Ussein. You bastard. You chose now to betray me? ¡°I tried not to wake you while I was systematically slaughtering your people,¡± Captain Gadsint said as if Orson were his irritable room-mate, scraping an egg onto the large Ilethan¡¯s plate. ¡°I thought for sure you¡¯d get up when the glass wizard made a run for it, but apparently you¡¯re a heavy sleeper.¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± Orson asked, under no illusions about who was in control of the situation. Just stay alive long enough to get back to the city. I can promise him anything. When the Hand hears of this, they¡¯ll wipe this maggot from the face of Marconen. It¡¯ll take some Man-hunting Legends, but it¡¯ll be worth the price. There existed in Marconen, men and women who could and would remove anyone for the right price. This little upstart had just made himself worth the cost. ¡°Me? I don¡¯t really want anything from you. Egg?¡± he held a plate up toward Orson. Ah fuck it. Orson took the plate and sat down. He couldn¡¯t be seen as standoffish this early into negotiations. ¡°What happens to me, then? I¡¯ll pay a rich purse for my safe return to Uleis.¡± ¡°Of course you will.¡± Calvin said, getting another batch of eggs into the pan. ¡°But we¡¯re not going to take you to Uleis.¡± Orson¡¯s stomach dropped, and he stopped, mid-egg. ¡°We¡¯re going to let you have your castle back,¡± Calvin said, nodding past the Wasps hauling dead bodies over to the fort. ¡°We¡¯re going to release you there, and then we¡¯re going back to Uleis, where someone more suited to our purposes will take Kala into her home.¡± ¡°After this? I doubt it.¡± ¡°After this unfortunate sand-pirate attack composed entirely of veterans and Legends, who just tore through your troops like wet paper, not leaving a single one alive. They spared my group because you locked us in the basement. Or some such guarshit we feed to the common folk.¡± ¡°That¡¯s preposterous. No such band exists. If there were a group that powerful, they could¡­conquer¡­the kingdom¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you¡¯re staying here. You can pay me for sparing you once this is all settled.¡± ¡°The Seeking Hand won¡¯t stand for this, you know. You¡¯re going to be killed at this rate.¡± Orson took another bite of eggs. ¡°Better to ally yourself with someone more powerful.¡± The irritating boy made an exaggerated sweeping look around the dead camp. ¡°Someone more powerful? Where?¡± ¡°I was talking about me,¡± Orson gritted out. ¡°Take the time out, or take the pit,¡± Calvin said, pointing toward the huge pit of flaming corpses. ¡°¡­I¡¯ll take the fort.¡± Orson said, not intending to follow through in the slightest. Once they were gone, he could run back to Uleis in a matter of days. His temperature resistance and Endurance would allow him to do that, easily. ¡°Then I salute you, King of Fort Cobalt!¡± The captain gave him a sloppy salute, then finished cooking breakfast for the assembled people. During the meal, Orson spotted the Uleisan Mercenaries and the occasional Gadveran soldier help drag the bodies along, leaving the tossing into the massive pit to the giant wasps. Orson could practically taste the Warp in the air. Might get another Sand-wurm infestation because of this. Ordinary insects and animals had a tendancy to mutate into monsters at the site of battles. Not much of a battle though, if I didn¡¯t hear it. He thought sourly. After breakfast was over, Orson was disarmed and his armor removed before being marched up to the gate, where a door had been cut into the welded glass. Orson ducked through the door and walked intot he familiar fort. He¡¯d been here many times during it¡¯s operation, and the walls and furniture were all familiar, if eerily out of place. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something blue, and when he turned his head, his blood went cold. Nearly a thousand Cobalts, wielding rough-made glass spears, twice as tall as them. ¡°Here¡¯s the guy who owns the place. Don¡¯t ever say I don¡¯t deliver on my promises!¡± the Captain shouted to them. ¡°Wai-¡° A foot caught Orson in the small of his back and pushed him deeper into the fort. As he was picking himself up, he heard the sound of the door shutting behind him, and the crunch of sand on stone as the Cobalts approached. ***Calvin*** Calvin waited for the screaming to die down before he unlocked the door so the cobalts could get out of the fort more easily. He wasn¡¯t interested in going in here and cleaning up their mess, though. They could take care of that themselves. He was interested in making the most of his Forming Day. Calvin took out the twelve-sided glass toy and began trying to solve it as he walked back out to camp. This is infuriating, Calvin thought as he tried to solve it. There was a pattern here, and he had to solve it to get all of the sides facing the right way. Your Mind has reached 25! 28/31 Warp remaining. Calvin got himself comfortable in a hammock strung up by Knick-knacks, playing with the Uleisan Mind Grind while bodies burned in the distance, people scraping other people off the sand. Just gotta buckle down and work out the pattern. ¡­ Your Mind has reached 34! 1/31 Warp remaining. Is it ironic that this is the most restful Break I¡¯ve ever had? Calvin thought as he spun the faces of the toy, trying to put them into positions where they would fall into place, one after the other, he got six faces with their colors solid, matching the pentagram in the center, before he ran into the problem of the faces interfering with each other in multiple places, annoying him to no end. ¡°Bah,¡± Calvin said, tossing the puzzle off to the side. It did its job, after all. He was now technically a Legend, with six Breaks. The huge surge in his Mind really illustrated the separation between sixth and fifth Break, and how dangerous eighth Break Royals could be. One point left. Can¡¯t use it on a primary stat, so¡­. New Skill time. What works well with what I have already? Ooh, Ooh, pick me, pick me! Elliot shouted, excitement oozing out of his voice. I think I¡¯m gonna want everyone¡¯s input on this one. No more getting Skills by accident. Foo. ***Kala, earlier that morning*** Kala yawned, stretching as she mulled over the night¡¯s dreams, trying to figure out which, if any were prophetic. The sex dreams, hopefully. Falling into an endless black hole? Not something she was hoping to experience. Plus I woke up before I hit the ground, like a regular dream. Still, Kala wrote it in her diary, just in case. It¡¯d already come in handy with Ussein and politicking. She grabbed her pipe and some mild longweed as she looked over the notes, taking a deep draw and blowing the smoke out towards the window. ¡°Aah, that¡¯s the stuff.¡± Kala sighed as her mind became more receptive to her Seer Abilities. You have manifested Smoking! Smoking level 1: 5% correction. The ancient art of inhaling smoke to get high. Applies a correction to the effectiveness of using and maintaining pipes, bongs and other smoking paraphernalia. Correction also applies to positive effects of smoked drugs, while mitigating negative ones. 33/34 Warp remaining. ¡°Shit,¡± Kala said, coughing. Macronomicon Chapter 92: Shifting ¡°And that¡¯s the deal.¡± Calvin said to the assembled people he had any respect for. And Nadia. Baroke, Kala, Nadia, Ella, Grant, and Ghulad the engineer all sat around the fire in a semi-circle. ¡°I¡¯ve got one point of Warp left, and I¡¯d like to learn a skill to expand my abilities or shore up some weaknesses.¡± ¡°You could learn Lumomancy, or Phasing¡± Kala said. ¡°I don¡¯t have the Skills, but I learned the basics under my tutor. They¡¯re two of the twelve classic schools.¡± She held up a finger and a dot of pale white light formed on it. ¡°Lumomancy is good for things like illusions and turning invisible, Phasing is good for putting things through other things without damaging them.¡± Ask her if anyone¡¯s ever done lasers. Elliot said urgently. ¡°What¡¯s a laser?¡± Kala asked without prompting, receiving a few curious glances. Compressing light into a tiny stream that cuts through things. ¡°Oh, people have done it, but it¡¯s rather difficult to do and the effect is somewhat weaker than more specialized spells.¡± Shelve that one, then. ¡°Phasing seems interesting,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Let¡¯s put it on the list. ¡°Engineering seems like it would go well with Dupdomancy.¡± Ghulad said, raising a hand nervously. He was a little overwhelmed by the sheer number of high Break individuals surrounding him. ¡°It¡¯s really helpful for building intricate things right the first time. Makes them stronger, too.¡± ¡°How do I get it?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°It¡¯s a hybrid of Mathematics and Drafting.¡± ¡°I only have one Warp left. Drafting is definitely a possible though.¡± Remind me to teach Ghulad dupdomancy later today, since he¡¯s already got Engineering. You gonna teach him Calvinian summoning too? Of course not. Good choice. Ghulad put his hand down, satisfied with Calvin¡¯s assertion that Drafting was on the menu. ¡°Your defences suck.¡± Grant said. ¡°I think you should pick up Meat-Shield or Toughness. So you won¡¯t get done in by a surprise attack.¡± It¡¯d have to be a hell of a surprise attack. Calvin¡¯s senses had come to the point where he could feel most everything around him. ¡°What about Ilethan mind-magic?¡± Calvin asked, glancing at Nadia. ¡°Those skills are reliant on high natural Intuition.¡± She said, raising her chin. ¡°Which you definitely don¡¯t qualify for. Besides, you¡¯d need to achieve at least two hybrid skills to qualify as a decent sorcerer. Memory Reading, and Projection for Mnemonic Illusions, and then Mass Influence and Emotion for Mass Suggestion. That¡¯s six, total. Something tells me you¡¯re not interested in dipping that deep into Ilethan magic to achieve mediocrity.¡± Well, screw you, too. ¡°How about enchanting?¡± Baroke spoke up, attracting everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°You know how to do it?¡± Nadia asked, frowning at him. ¡°Naw, it just seems like¡­Calvin¡¯s specialty is making things out of thin air. if he could enchant them too¡­ that would be cool, right? plus he could make me a bow that shoots lightning.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t know how to learn the skill, don¡¯t suggest it!¡± Nadia said. I know how to learn it. Huh? Oh yeah, back in the day, a guy named Zeke coded on enchantment and he wouldn¡¯t shut up about it. It¡¯s basically coding with mnematite dust in Harbinger Script so that it creates an effect when Warp passes over it. When you get complex enough to include semiconductors, then you start being able to make logic gates. Most of the enchanted stuff I¡¯ve seen while you were walking around was simple Boolean logic or a passive effect. You¡¯d need computation or AI design if you wanted to take Enchanting to its logical conclusion and make magical artificial intelligence. Like the System. Pretty sure that¡¯s a mind-bogglingly large supercomputer composed of Mnematite Dyson-Sphere¡¯d around a supermassive Siphon. That¡¯s one theory anyway. I have no idea what you just said. Forget about it. It¡¯s a cool ability, but it doesn¡¯t synthesize with your Dupdomancy as well as you might think because Bent can¡¯t easily duplicate Warp-Reactive Material, which is required in the construction of enchantments. Hmm¡­bummer. It¡¯s one of the reasons that Nem is the unit of currency in so many countries. No wizards going around copying the stuff en masse. You didn¡¯t think about that? I just figured they had ways of checking to see if the money I was using was duplicated. The big companies probably do. Like, built into the desk or something. I see. Calvin glanced up and saw Kala scribbling furiously in her notebook, Her dark hair hanging over her eyebrows, pipe resting beside her knee. ¡°Enchanting is too much of an investment right now, Baroke. Jinsei can do it, and that¡¯s good enough for me.¡± Your Knick-Knacks could probably do it, too. Calvin ignored that and moved on, glancing over at Ella. ¡°Ella. Any Skills you think I should learn?¡± Ella raised her eyebrows, then put her index finger in and out of her circled thumb and forefinger. Baroke broke into a belly laugh, falling backwards onto the dusty stone. ¡°I agree, he does need to learn that skill!¡± Baroke said, chortling. ¡°What?¡± Kala asked, looking up from her notebook while Nadia rolled her eyes. ¡°What¡¯d I miss?¡± ¡°Nothing important,¡± Calvin said, shaking his head at Ella, scowling. Grant had taken the opportunity to fish through his pockets for a sheet of smoking paper and some longweed, eyeing Kala¡¯s nearly indestructable pipe enviously. ¡°You fools are missing the obvious.¡± Nadia said archly. ¡°He needs to learn Bent Manipulation. It¡¯s the foundation of every classically trained wizard or sorcerer, and will make every other non-Skill supported spell easier to learn and recreate.¡± She eyed Calvin disdainfully. ¡°You¡¯re obviously not going to have many more spells as Skills, after all. ¡°That sounds pretty good.¡± Calvin said, nodding as he planned Nadia¡¯s reward for the last few weeks of work she¡¯d done. I DO need a watchman to make sure we didn¡¯t miss anyone. ¡°So, how do you do it?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I¡­it¡¯s hard to describe. I could show you, before you made me into this.¡± She motioned to herself. ¡°Kala?¡± Kala shook her head. ¡°That was never part of my curriculum.¡± Nadia looked really pleased with herself, puffing out her chest and looking down her nose at everyone. ¡°Well, I¡¯m on my Forming Day, so I should be able to figure it out. Temporary savant and all. Nadia, go ahead and try to describe it to me.¡± ¡°Well, you push the Bent out of yourself and then stretch it, like some kind of elastic that gets bigger the harder you pull. You shape it into these weird fractal fourth dimensional images that you become a part of, like everything you¡¯ve ever done is a tiny facet of this reality¡­snowflake.¡± Calvin blinked. ¡°I said I¡¯d try!¡± she said defensively, crossing her arms and making sure to accentuate her bust. She¡¯s right, manipulating Bent without the training wheels of The System is pretty mind-bending. The origin of the stuff is called Warp for a reason. ¡°All right, well, might as well give it a shot.¡± Calvin said, beginning to tug on the bent inside him, raising the black veins in his arms as he moved it toward his hands. There was a soft scraping behind him, and Calvin felt eyes upon him, filled with bone-deep need. That¡¯s interesting. Calvin let go of the Bent, the veins of his arms regaining their normal color. He glanced over his shoulder and saw the old cobalt¡­drifting toward them. He was walking, after a fashion, his legs barely touching the ground as he dragged himself across the earth with seemingly great effort. And yet, the strange creature was drifting, only held down by the overgrown claws on his feet. ¡°May I make a request?¡± he asked, slumping down against an empty rock, panting with exertion. ¡°Depends on the request.¡± ¡°I would like for you to learn the Skill of my people.¡± Elliot chuckled. Let me teach you the song of my people. He then proceeded to make silly noises. ¡°I appreciate the offer,¡± Calvin said, eye twitching as he tried to tune Elliot out. ¡°But I¡¯ve only got one Warp left, and not many more Skill slots, either.¡± The ancient cobalt looked at him and heaved a huge, shuddering breath. ¡°You don¡¯t understand. I¡¯m the last one who knows the Skill, and I¡¯m a pariah. There isn¡¯t a single Cobalt in these lands who would willingly learn the Skill from me. It¡¯s tainted by association, even though it used to be such an integral part of our lives. We dug with it, we built large houses of stone, we fought like devils.¡± He looked down at the ground, seemingly contemplating something, then back up at Calvin. ¡°I won¡¯t live much longer, certainly not long enough to find another cobalt willing to learn what I have to teach. I want to give it to you because they seem to idolize you, and maybe one day you can put the Skill back in the hands of those it belongs to.¡± ¡°Allright, spit it out then, and I¡¯ll add it to the list of maybes,¡± Calvin said. ¡°It¡¯s a magic to link two objects and shift their combined weight between them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­nice, I guess?¡± Nadia said. ¡°You fought with that?¡± Grant asked. ¡°What did you do, make people too heavy to move?¡± ¡°Among other things.¡± The cobalt said, nodding. Calvin on the other hand was thinking about it seriously. ¡°You said establish a link and shift. Does that mean you can move it back and forth on command? It¡¯s not just a one-time change?¡± ¡°With an Ability upgrade, that is possible, yes.¡± That does sound pretty flexible. Calvin thought, imagining the uses for the spell. Calvin always did like flexible. In your women and in your skills, amiright? ¡°Oh, come on, a little spell that makes people heavy isn¡¯t gonna do anything to a Legend, let alone a veteran!¡± Grant said, scowling at the cobalt. ¡°Just get a defensive ability and call it a day.¡± He turned to Calvin. ¡°I could beat you up enough to get toughness right now. I been waiting for the chance.¡± In response, the rheumy-eyed elder cobalt smacked his lips, squinted at Grant, and picked up a pebble. ¡°Whatcha gonna do with-¡° The elder flicked the pebble at Grant with his huge digging claws. Grant waved a dismissive hand at the pebble, but rather than knock the stone away, it continued on unimpeded by his arm, trapping it against his side and bowling the legend over, sending him tumbling out into the desert. Not weight¡­Mass¡­ooh, I like that. Once Grant came to a halt, he stood up with a furious expression, his swords unsheathing themselves. A second later they all buried themselves in the ground, and Grant himself staggered, as if an invisible weight had settled on his shoulders. His nose began to bleed as he marched his way back toward the elder Cobalt. The elder, seeing this, stood up, once again almost drifting in the air. He lifted a shaky hand into the air, then drove his massive claw down, sinking them deep into the boulder he¡¯d been resting against. With a flick of the wrist, the boulder came up out of the ground it¡¯d been buried in and was hurtling toward Grant. Grant bent his knees and jumped out of the way at the last second, dodging the oncoming mass of stone. Grant¡¯s feet never came back down. He began to float up into the sky, his arms and legs flailing for purchase on nothing at all. I¡¯m starting to see the appeal. The elder squinted for a moment, and Grant¡¯s upward rise slowed, then stopped, leaving him about twenty feet above ground, drifting on the wind. He sat back down, wincing in pain. ¡°Have I made my case?¡± The old cobalt asked. ¡°I think you have.¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°I must warn you though, a demonstration like that is the result of a lifetime of practice. Level twenty. What you¡¯ll learn from me will be significantly weaker for a long time.¡± I wouldn¡¯t be so sure about that. I guess Shadow Boxing is on the restricted list for a reason, Elliot said again. Then why do I have it? Somebody miiiight have unlocked Administrative Access on your System Account through a backdoor. Calvin suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, and refocused on the old cobalt. ¡°Pardon my asking, but if it¡¯s that powerful, why didn¡¯t you free your people yourself?¡± ¡°I¡¯m one man.¡± The Cobalt said. ¡°Sure I can bring one person to a standstill for a time, maybe even kill him, but it took a large portion of my Bent to make it happen. There¡¯s no chance I could subdue an entire fort.¡± Ask him if he wants to be a Calvinian summon. We could totally bridge the Bent skill from Chained spirit and be able to summon an entire army of little guys who can make a Legend look like an idiot. That¡¯d be handy when you come across One again. It was true. Grant did look foolish trying to twine together his belts and shirt into a makeshift rope, trying to hook something solid on the ground to pull himself down. On the other hand, Calvin could feel the emotions in the old cobalt¡¯s gaze. He¡¯s absolutely done living, Calvin thought. Using him as a summon would be cruel to him and dangerous for us. He doesn¡¯t have Nadia¡¯s aversion to true death. Fair enough. Calvin considered for a moment. ¡°All right.¡± Calvin said, offering the cobalt his hand. ¡°I¡¯ll learn your skill and pass it back to your people when they¡¯re ready to accept it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll hold you to that,¡± the cobalt said, ¡°from beyond the Abyss, if I have to.¡± The cobalt¡¯s claws folded over Calvin¡¯s fingers and they shook on it. ¡°What about Bent Manipulation?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°I may not ever get another Break,¡± Calvin said, nodding at the cobalt. ¡°And this looks like fun.¡± Nadia scoffed and rolled her eyes. Calvin knew that Bent Manipulation was probably the better choice. Between the Abilities and Mutations, it would probably be very powerful, but something was tugging at his mind to take the offered Skill from the old cobalt. Maybe it was sympathy, or maybe he¡¯d been somehow motivated by the pure need he¡¯d felt in the man¡¯s gaze. Or maybe it really did sound like fun. In any case, he¡¯d made his decision. *** Calvin sat crosslegged, with two nearly identical small stones sitting in front of them, listening to the Cobalt describe the process of linking them together. Calvin slowly formed the bridge between them, as the cobalt described. The spell itself was oddly similar to Sense-grafting, the way it felt in his mind. The similarity made it easier to picture a bridge between the two stones, and once it was fully formed, he began tugging the heaviness from one to the other ¨C It¡¯s mass, not heaviness. ¨C Calvin ignored the distraction, focusing on making the spell happen, drawing mass through the bridge. Bridge my ass. To Calvin, it felt more like a tiny straw, only able to allow the smallest bit through ¨C grudgingly at that ¨C Calvin bore down with all his will, drawing the mass through the straw with every fiber of his being. Finally Calvin felt something give, like a chunk had cleared the straw, and the mass began flowing between the two objects. At least until another chunk blocked it. this one didn¡¯t seem to have any give to it. You have Manifested Shifting! Shifting: A utility spell developed by the cobalts to offset their small size and lack of building technology. Move mass between two objects. Efficacy, duration and maximum size dictated by Skill level. Shifting level 1: 5% shift, 1 minute, targets limited to 1 pound in mass. 0/31 Warp Remaining. 6th Break complete. ¡­ Definitely less impressive at level one. Not gonna stay that way forever, is it? Nope. ¡°I¡¯ve got it.¡± Calvin said. The cobalt blinked. ¡°Already?¡± ¡°Here,¡± Calvin said, picking up the two rocks. One was definitely heavier than the other, now. with the five percent moved between the two of them, the total difference between them was greater than ten percent. Enough to feel the difference by hand. ¡°It definitely worked.¡± The cobalt reached out with shaking claws and lifted each stone out of Calvin¡¯s hand before setting it back. ¡°Jibeyashtun.¡± The old Cobalt hissed. ¡°That was fast. I expected some difficulty.¡± Calvin shrugged. He didn¡¯t want to mention the similarity to Sense-Grafting in front of the elder. The linking portion of the lesson had been easy. ¡°It seems as if you¡¯ve truly learned it,¡± the cobalt said, shaking his head. ¡°Now I can go die in peace. They don¡¯t want me here, after all.¡± ¡°Wait a moment,¡± Calvin said as the old creature pushed himself to his feet. ¡°What is it? There¡¯s nothing of any importance to discuss.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your name? Where do I tell the cobalts it came from when I teach it to them?¡± ¡°My name¡­¡± The cobalt mused for a moment, his eyes watering. ¡°My name is unimportant. Tell them the skill was given to you by Entunshi. He was the last one who stood against the Uleisans. He was a great warrior, and a master of the art.¡± Calvin nodded. Perception was more important here. ¡°Alright. Thank you for teaching me your people¡¯s Skill.¡± Calvin nodded deeply. ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡± The elder glanced off into the distance. ¡°Now, I have to get on with the business of dying, I suppose. I¡¯m not welcome back there.¡± He pointed over his shoulder at the fort, where the rest of the Cobalts were busily practicing with Calvin¡¯s company to hone their new Skills and increased Abilities. Now that they were all veterans, they could be considered an elite fighting force: assuming they maximized their potential. Calvin watched as the Elder pushed off the ground and floated up into the air, then he began drifting away, following the breeze. Five bucks says there¡¯s a mutation in there that will let you fly. What¡¯s a buck? ¡­you suck. You and all your savage, sword-swinging friends. Grant let out a yelp as whatever force was keeping him suspended in midair suddenly cut out, and he plummeted back to the ground. ¡°Think it was worth it?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°Yep.¡± Calvin said. The old man had demonstrated the ability to toy with a Legend, to some extent, and Calvin¡¯s imagination was bursting with simple uses for it. the most obvious of them were to increase and decrease weight ¨C Mass ¨C in the middle of combat to simulate a massive increase in strength. The old man could barely move his own body, yet he¡¯d sunk his claws into stone, and thrown a boulder like it weighed nothing, most likely because it had weighed nothing. It¡¯s mass, not weight! Get it through your skull! What¡¯s the difference? Inertia! Reducing the weight of an object by having a friend lifting it up, or by reducing gravity, doesn¡¯t alter its mass, meaning it¡¯ll still be difficult to apply speed to it. for the old man to do what he did, he would have to be controlling mass. Pretty fine-tuned too. The rock he flicked at Grant didn¡¯t have mass until it left his claws, or else he wouldn¡¯t have been able to flick it. Then it gained mass midflight without losing speed! That¡¯s a staggering gain in kinetic force, from nothing! That¡¯s physically impossible, but we saw him do it! God, I love magic! Calvin tuned Elliot out after a while, and motioned to Ghulad. ¡°Do you still have Warp left? Calvin asked. Ghulad nodded. ¡°Right, I want you to learn Dupdomancy. It¡¯s a good one for an engineer to have.¡± ¡°O-okay!¡± the company¡¯s engineer said, giving him a salute. ¡°Everyone else got their Warp taken care of?¡± Calvin asked. Kala nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll be borrowing that puzzle box for the rest of the night, if you don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°Anyone else?¡± ¡°I knocked out my Body advancement this morning,¡± Ella said, ¡°Save for two Warp. I want to get a couple more fighting skills.¡± She eyed Grant, who was sitting back down. ¡°think you can help me with those?¡± ¡°Sure, sure,¡± Grant said, waving dismissively. ¡°And Nadia,¡± Calvin said, turning to her. ¡°What? You know I don¡¯t have any Warp.¡± She motioned to herself. ¡°This isn¡¯t even a real body.¡± ¡°For doing such a good job these last few weeks, I¡¯ve decided to reward you for all your effort.¡± ¡°N-now?¡± she stammered. ¡°Is there any better time?¡± Calvin asked sweetly. *** ¡°You bastard!¡± Nadia shouted into Calvin¡¯s ear as he adjusted her rock to face the valley below them. Calvin had lashed her naked body to a boulder high up in the mountains above the fort, in a location with an excellent view of the abandoned Uleisan camp. ¡°Now now, Calvin said before stuffing a rag in her mouth, tying it around behind her head. ¡°There¡¯s a really good reason for this. What if one of the army was hiding in the wreckage of the camp and once we left, tried to escape and tell Uleis what happened here? We need someone to stay and keep watch for a couple days, to make absolutely sure our story is the only one that gets told. You can warn me the moment I resummon you back in Uleis.¡± Nadia let out a series of moans and groans through the rag, glaring at him. ¡°What was that? Why not just have you do it without the humiliating stripping and tying up part? That¡¯s because you have just been behaving so well recently.¡± He tweaked her nose as her gaze betrayed deep satisfaction. ¡°That and everyone else was all for it, cuz you¡¯re kind of a bitch.¡± Calvin shrugged. Calvin pulled a ripe Kumner fruit they¡¯d scavenged from the Uleisan supplies out of his pocket and squished it, causing juices to dribble out onto his hand, before resting it on her lower back, where the juices started trickling down toward her inner thighs. ¡°For the ants,¡± Calvin explained before glancing around at the arid, scrubby mountain. ¡°Or whatever goes for ants around here. Beetles, maybe? I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll find out.¡± He got one blast of Nadia¡¯s horrified and yet deeply enthusiastic gaze before he decided to pack it in. Being cruel as a reward was difficult to get used to, and it required its own separate box in his mind, separate from his other thinking. Otherwise he might hurt someone who wasn¡¯t indestructible. ¡°Alright, see you later,¡± Calvin said, waving as he started back down the mountain. ¡°Probably gonna fool around with the better princess on the way back and talk shit about you while you¡¯re otherwise occupied. I¡¯ll let you know how it went when we get back to the city.¡± There was a hint of genuine anger there for a moment, and it warmed Calvin¡¯s heart. On the way back down, there was just a little extra bounce in his step. It¡¯s probably best that you waited until AFTER the Break was over to do this. Otherwise you¡¯d get a Leather Daddy skill or something. Probably. Calvin thought. Is it possible to enjoy opposite things? Totally. The brain is capable of seamlessly handling HUGE contradictions. So I can like being nice to Kala and Ella and hurting Nadia at the same time? Why not? Those aren¡¯t exactly opposites, anyway. I just feel like I¡¯m put together wrong, sometimes. Pssshhh, that¡¯s one of the most common feelings. Just own it. Calvin consulted with the thing in his head the rest of the way down the mountain until he got back to camp, where the combined forces of the Uleisan mercenaries, cobalts, and First Mujenan Volunteers waited for him. a combined force of just over two thousand people/creatures. ¡°Alright, the scarecrow is set up, let¡¯s move away from the fort and see what comes crawling out.¡± In the meantime, I need to practice my new spell before it¡¯ll be of any use in a fight. Macronomicon Chapter 93: Sparring above your weight ***Jinnei*** ¡°What are we gonna do with all these ships, Ma ¨C sir?¡± Kip asked as Jinnei was posing dramatically at the stern. She preferred he call her sir. Felt more captain-y. She looked out at the dozens of ships sailing in front of them in a tight cluster, under her watchful eye. ¡°We¡¯re going to make the largest pirate fleet the world has ever known,¡± she said, her chest puffed up. ¡°Really?¡± Kip asked, brow raised. ¡°Fuck no!¡± She turned to the deck where the rest of the Malkenrovian pirates could hear her. ¡°We¡¯re gonna sell the ships to Gadvera, and I¡¯m gonna split the profits with all of you! If they even give us half of what they¡¯re worth, each and every one of you is going to be a wealthy man!¡± That got a cheer. Ships were expensive. It might be an exaggeration to say it would make them wealthy, but they definitely wouldn¡¯t have to work for a couple years if they didn¡¯t want to. Thank the gods she carried her writ of privateering in her vest, because the old Karen¡¯s folly had joined with the reef below. ***Calvin*** Shifting Calvin was sitting in front of Karen, juggling stones as he used the limitless Bent of Shadowboxing to practice the skill. ¡°It seems¡­Kinda pointless.¡± She said, chin resting on her palm. ¡°I saw it work on a Legend.¡± Calvin said. ¡°And I¡¯ve got at least three ideas I¡¯ll bet the cobalts never thought of.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sure of that?¡± she asked, raising a brow. ¡°Yup.¡± Shifting. ¡°Care to tell me what they are?¡± ¡°Not until I¡¯ve gotten them to work,¡± Calvin said. Karen rolled her eyes. Shifting. Shifting has reached level 5! Shifting level 5: : 25% shift, 5 minutes, targets limited to 125 pounds in mass. +1 Will Please choose an Ability or Mutation: Sliding Shift: Mass may be freely moved back and forth for the duration, to the limit of Shifting. Multiple Shift: 1 extra target/5 levels in Shifting. Shift Storage: Adds an extradimensional space Mass can be shifted to. Limits and duration match that of Shifting. ^Does not actually store things, just allows the User to make both objects lighter. Extended Shift: duration becomes level squared. Mutations: Center of Mass: User may move their center of mass 2 inches per level of Shifting, at Will. Xeno-Adaptation: Mass increases or decreases relative to the gravity of the planet to keep the User at the same perceived weight. Oh, wow, Center of mass is exactly one of the ideas I had for how to use the spell, Calvin thought. Xeno-Adaptation¡­ I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be going to other planets any time soon. There were a lot of effects, but he¡¯d already decided on Sliding Shift before he¡¯d even reached level 5. The ability to adjust the mass back and forth without spending extra Bent to make it happen was absolutely worth it. I choose Sliding Shift. Calvin¡¯s mind tingled for a moment as the technique settled into place, then he began doing what any self-respecting wizard would do in these circumstances: He started playing with himself. Shifting. Calvin selected either half of his body as a separate entity and began shifting mass from one side to another as he moved. He¡¯d long since learned with Dupdomancy that the definition of ¡®one object¡¯ was purely objective. It was a very strange rhythm to get into: deposit mass into the anchored side of the body, push the light side of the body forward, flip the orientation, then do it again. It wasn¡¯t perfectly what he¡¯d been trying to do, because he needed Multiple Shift and another five levels to properly select both his feet and weigh them against the rest of his body. Once he got the hang of that¡­he could run on air. Not exactly flying. I¡¯ll take it. Calvin kept at it, shifting his mass back and forth as he ran, face-planting in the soft dirt of the practice yard, over and over again. ¡°You move like a pregnant guar.¡± Karen said with a yawn. ¡°Gotta crawl before you can walk.¡± ¡°What is that, a haughty Gadveran wizard saying? You too good for me now that you¡¯re in wizard school?¡± That was Calvin¡¯s cover story this time. Karen was too dim to experience the existential horror of an extremely limited life, but that came with it¡¯s own problems. ¡°Well, I¡¯m bored. You said none of this is real and you won¡¯t get hurt if I knock you around a bit right?¡± She asked, rolling up her sleeves. And there she goes again. Not unexpected. He had brought her around this time for this specific reaction from her. But it was still sooner than Calvin was hoping. He wanted to get a bit more used to the spell before Karen started whaling on him. Unfortunately, she knew the best way to improve at something was to stress-test it. Calvin dismissed the current spell and laid out a new one, targeting his upper body and a large swath of the packed dirt beneath them. Immediately he lightened his upper body as Karen came barreling in. Oh, once I get Multi-split, I can target several different spots on my body as well as the earth, that¡¯ll allow a huge variety of ¨C Calvin¡¯s thoughts were interrupted by a massive fist sweeping toward his chin. His spine nearly folded in half as he bet backwards to avoid it. And yet he wasn¡¯t off balance. Not quite as bad as he¡¯d expected anyway. This isn¡¯t so bad. You¡¯re like one of those inflatable punch clowns. I¡¯m sure your mother approves. Calvin leapt up and tried to circle around behind his foster mother before she could recover her balance, but the woman lashed out with an elbow, catching his guard right in front of his face. Now Calvin¡¯s light weight worked against him as he skidded backwards. Let¡¯s see, I normally weight a hundred and sixty pounds, and I reduced one hundred and twenty five of it by twenty-five percent, so that means¡­ I lost about thirty some pounds¡­ Calvin had truly become a punching doll. On the other hand, the damage didn¡¯t feel quite as severe as it usually did, because his body had slid away from the impact, rather than take all of it. Do you think I could reduce my mass to nothing to prevent taking any damage from an attack? Under the right circumstances, yes, but it also sounds like a great way to get yourself hurt. Let¡¯s try the other way. Calvin lunged forward once his backward slide came to a stop, aiming to clash against Karen¡¯s bulk. She must weight something like two hundred and forty¡­all muscle. If he gained instead of lost weight¡­ Calvin drew the mass back out of the ground as he charged, plus the weight of the earth itself, bringing his total weight up to the middle of the one-nineties. Karen blocked his fist with a cocky grin and blinked in surprise when he nearly threw her off balance. She adjusted her heel backward, seized his fist and rolled him over her hip as easily as a sack of grain. One problem with raising the mass of his upper body was the higher center of gravity and therefore worse balance. Somehow Karen intuited that in a fraction of an instant, deciding to use throws on him. Calvin shifted the mass away from his body and back into the earth just before he hit the ground, lowering the impact. If the old man could raise the mass of an object to increase the damage, Calvin didn¡¯t see why it wouldn¡¯t work in reverse. Only weighing a hundred and thirty pounds, the landing didn¡¯t even knock his breath out of his chest. ¡°Oooh, that¡¯s tricky,¡± Karen said with an amused smile. ¡°I like it.¡± ¡°Just wait until it hits level ten,¡± Calvin said, flinging himself into the air from his supine posture, drawing out all of his strength to aim a punch at her face. She caught him, midair, with a quick jab. ¡°You been pumping iron at that sissy school of yours?¡± She asked, using her superior reach to break his nose. ¡°The Calvin I knew only had Six Strength.¡± How am I supposed to beat this? Calvin thought, staggering backward. Even as he improved Karen remained some kind of insurmountable wall. Maybe she¡¯s got eight Breaks. To get an eighth Break was tantamount to watching an entire kingdom put to the sword. Calvin had no idea what she might have gone through to get there, but it was a lot. ¡°It¡¯s a mutation.¡± Calvin said, holding his hand to his nose to stem the bleeding and breathing through his mouth. He¡¯d long since gotten used to bloody noses. ¡°A mutation!? What kind of fool would-¡° she shook her head, looking at him with exasperation. ¡°You got lucky, kid. What¡¯s it do?¡± ¡°Raises my Body by two each time I kidnap a princess.¡± Karen broke into a gale of laughter. ¡°By all the gods, that is the stupidest thing I have ever heard of! Are you serious?¡± Calvin nodded. ¡°You¡¯re not fooling with me?¡± Calvin shook his head. ¡°So you¡¯ve kidnapped actual princesses?¡± she asked with a disbelieving smirk. ¡°Three of them.¡± ¡°Three?¡± ¡°Three.¡± ¡°What the Abyss do you get up to in that increasingly made-up sounding school of yours!?¡± ¡°Okay, it¡¯s a little made up. I just didn¡¯t want you to worry.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not worried about you, you little monster, I¡¯m worried about everyone else!¡± ¡°Thanks for that,¡± Calvin said sourly. Karen¡¯s vote of confidence was hard to separate from insult. Karen lunged forward, and Calvin started using Beli Ma to redirect her fists away from him. He needed to work Shifting seamlessly into his strategy, and for that he had to start using them all at once. For the most part, Calvin kept himself light to speed himself up and reduce damage from getting flung around, mixing it with the occasional spike in mass when he went for an attack. It was the most basic usage of the skill, but he needed to master the basics before he could start walking on air. ¡°You¡¯re turning into a slippery little bastard, aren¡¯t You?¡± Karen growled as he tugged her fist away from his face, feeling the whoosh of air rush past his cheek. Karen was taking things up a notch. He felt her knee coming up with his extra sensitive Tarka skin, and used his left hand with a whorl of Bent to draw her knee off the correct path, missing his chest and tugging her off balance. Karen leapt backward after a few more seconds of Calvin slipping around and redirecting a fair number of her attacks. The ones that got through, though, Calvin was feeling. ¡°Tell you what,¡± She said, eyeing Calvin appraisingly. ¡°I know where to find another princess you could kidnap without too many consequences. You beat me in a fight, and I¡¯ll tell you all about her.¡± Another princess? Calvin thought to himself. How many princesses would a farmer know? Although, she used to be a Legend, so I guess rules don¡¯t really apply to her. ¡°If you can beat me.¡± She said. ¡°No holds barred?¡± Calvin asked. He hadn¡¯t gone full-tilt against Karen since¡­the first time he¡¯d used shadowboxing against her. It had always been to train a specific facet of his skillset. ¡°Yeah, show me what they¡¯re teaching you at that nonexistant school of yours, brat,¡± She said, motioning for him to approach. ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, and the peasant garb disappeared, replaced by his light armor and his two bandoliers. Calvinian summoning Atom Ant Calvin created three huge wasps and sicced them on Karen. Karen ignored them. In a flash of light, his foster mother was covered in shimmering full plate and wielding a massive two-hander, hurtling through the attacking wasps and bearing down on him. Crap, I need to dodge, and I don¡¯t think Beli Ma is enough to stop that. Heart of the swarm. Calvin burst into wasps as the sword cleaved through the mass of insects where his chest used to be. ¡°Gah!¡± Karen gave a frustrated shout as the wasps began to bite and sting. She pulled the sword back, glowing brightly. This can¡¯t be good. ¡°Omnislash¡± Her sword burst into an odd fractal image, and every wasp in Calvin¡¯s swarm was bisected, even the ones clinging to her skin. Calvin reappered a foot above the ground, covered in tiny cuts. He hit the dirt rolling, ignoring the earth in his cuts as a massive sword buried itself in the training yard inches away from his shoulder. Karen was swinging the sword like it was a twig, yanking it out of the ground and sweeping it at his waist in a fraction of a second. Calvin leapt into the air, desperately twisting his body out of the way while applying Beli Ma with his right hand to change the trajectory, as well as casting a spell. Shifting. Calvin targeted the sword and a section of the practice arena, shifting over thirty pounds of mass into the blade. Or at least, that was the plan. User¡¯s Bonded Weapon resisted the effects. Caster was unable to penetrate Ability: Strength of Will. Damnation! The blade swept under him with a whizz, then Karen pulled it back up, aiming at Calvin¡¯s body floating in space. Calvin considered using Sense Grafting to disorient her, but dismissed it. If her sword could resist the ability, she wouldn¡¯t be that far behind, either. How am I supposed to fight this when she¡¯s swinging a two-hander like a switch and I can¡¯t use control spells to slow her down? In a desperation move, Calvin aimed for a tie, his fingers flying down to the vials on his person. Mass Multi-Shaping Calvin selected the god¡¯s fire, the brown crystals of frozen Boom-juice, a sharp chunk of the steel of the god¡¯s fire vial, and his fragment of thick dragon leather. Note, a belt made out of dragon leather would eliminate the need for a pocket. Noted. Calvin always seemed to think of better ways to do things mid-fight. Probably because inefficiencies and weaknesses became blatantly obvious. Calvin created an explosive between them, with shrapnel toward Karen, and a thick, multi-layer blanket of tough dragon leather on the other side, facing Calvin. With a crack, the blanket hit him in midair, propelled by the sudden expansion of gas, catching his body like a vicious punch from a mad titan and sending him spinning off the edge of the practice yard. Calvin landed in a heap, body aching all over. There was a pinprick pain in his shoulder that rapidly gained strength until it felt like someone was holding a hot poker to his chest. He gasped with pain as he checked the wound. One of the sharp pieces of shrapnel must have bounced of Karen¡¯s armor and lodged itself in his shoulder. Damn. At least I dodged the swo ¨C In midthought, a glimmer of steel caught the corner of Calvin¡¯s eye, and Karen¡¯s sword came spinning through the dust of the explosion. Shaping. Calvin touched the Jerrytanium and created a thick dome of it around himself. There was a horrendous screech, and the dome was sheared off halfway up, nearly severing Calvin¡¯s head. How is that possible? Calvin demanded, even though he knew the answer. Her strikes were reinforced with Bent and his summons were not. We need to find a way to fix that. On it. Multi-shaping. Calvin ducked behind what was left of the dome and clapped his hands over his ears, unleashing a full three hundred pounds of Boom-juice on Karen¡¯s last known location. A tremendous explosion rocked through his chest and rattled his teeth. It felt like a giant had deigned to pick him up and slap him around a little before setting him back down. Calvin staggered to his feet, coughing. Bits and pieces of the village of Deinos were raining down on him while he strained every sense to locate Karen. He felt the heat of Karen¡¯s Gaze from behind him. Shifting. Calvin separated his body between right and left again, flooding his right side with mass while pivoting on his right foot. Once his left side was moving fast enough he flipped the mass back over to the other side of his body, and his suddenly heavier left side pulled him out of the way of Karen¡¯s downward swing, as if an invisible hand had swept him out of the way. From the outside, it probably seemed as if something else was moving him. Shifting has reached level 6! Shifting level 6: 30% shift, 6 minutes, targets limited to 216 pounds in mass. Calvin equalized the two sides of his body as he charged forward, drawing his wand. He slid under Karen¡¯s swing and conjured an extra thick plate of jerrytanium between the two of them when she tried to murder him on the backswing. Her sword buried itself partway through the ridiculous material, and she spent a fraction of a second tearing her sword out of it. Calvin took a swinging posture, and shifted his mass to the left side of his body, making his right side lighter. Shaping. Calvin swung his lightened right arm faster than he ever had before, with his arm giving him less inertia resistance relative to his strength, propelling the jerrytanium marble at the end of the wand faster than it had ever gone before. He isolated a tiny spike of Jerrytanium in the wand and replicated it as a three-hundred pound spear hurtling toward Karen at blinding speeds. Karen threw up her two-handed sword, and a shower of sparks filled the dust-choked air as she batted the projectile aside with a deafening clamor of ringing steel. ¡°Ha, ha, ha!¡± Karen laughed, grinning widely as blood dribbled out the sides of her helmet, likely her ears had burst with the explosives She ran a thumb over the deep gouge in her summoned sword, watching him carefully. ¡°You¡¯ve seen some action, kid. Are you a Legend already?¡± ¡°Technically, but I haven¡¯t grown into it yet,¡± Calvin said, holding a hand over his wounded shoulder. ¡°Hmm¡­Ready for round two?¡± ¡°I¡¯m inches away from passing out here.¡± Calvin said. He was getting a little lightheaded from the shrapnel in his shoulder, and Karen seemed like she¡¯d just gone for a brisk walk. ¡°Think we could put this off for another time?¡± ¡°When you¡¯re on the back foot is the best time to improve!¡± Karen shouted, running toward him, because of course she would. Without thinking, Calvin swept an arm forward, cupping his palm to catch the air. Shaping Calvin selected an area of air between himself and Karen, and then he selected the ground. The gust of wind he made gained sixty-four pounds of mass a fraction of a second before it impacted against her face, causing the Legend to stagger, missing her swing with the massive sword. Calvin leapt into the gap as Karen recoiled, aiming to stab her through the eye-slit of her helmet with the knife that shot out of the skin of his palm. ¡°Tricky¡­Bastard!¡± Karen shouted, instinctively turning their head to the side and presenting him with the Ability reinforced steel of her helmet. Calvin¡¯s knife skittered off the edge of her armor, and before he could make another attempt, a steel fist caught him in the stomach and sent him flying. His light armor caught the worst of it, but Karen¡¯s fist did leave a him with a massive dent pressing against his diaphragm and the sudden urge to throw up. Calvin took a deep breath and tried to say something witty. ¡°Urk,¡± He barely managed to suppress the urge to throw up all over his imagination. ¡°You¡¯re so much better than you used to be, kiddo.¡± Karen said, lightly tapping her sword on the back of his neck, indicating a win. ¡°Still not enough to take my job, though.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Calvin gasped into the ground. He had a ways to go before a one-on-one against Karen felt doable. He felt a pinch on his side, coming from the real world. ¡°Looks like practice is over,¡± Calvin said. ¡°later,¡± Karen said, waving as the armor surrounding her vanished into nothing. *** Calvin opened his eyes, blinking the sand out as the heat of the desert returned to him. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Uleis is in sight,¡± Ella said, pointing. The glass city loomed above them in the distance, the blue palace rising above everything else. ¡°Is the Uleisan gear spread out for sand-pirates to loot?¡± Sand pirates were like the buzzards of the desert. They would make sure to pick the battlefield clean. The army¡¯s weapons showing up in their hands would be an excellent distractor. Calvin had briefly considered looting and reselling all the valuables before deciding it wasn¡¯t worth the certain, sudden, violent, public backlash. ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°And nobody kept any of it?¡± ¡°Not a thing.¡± ¡°All right,¡± Calvin said, slapping his cheeks to pull himself out of his stupor. He summoned Nadia. Chained Spirit 14/16 Bent remaining. Nadia hit the sand in front of him, her expression difficult to read, but her eyes flared with equal parts anger and lust. Weird girl. ¡°Nadia, were there any stragglers?¡± ¡°No.¡± He couldn¡¯t feel any misdirection in her gaze. ¡°Did you have a good time?¡± ¡°No.¡± That¡¯s a lie. ¡°That¡¯s a shame.¡± Calvin unsummoned the blue-eyed princess in a burst of green mist. ¡°Make the rounds. Make sure every leader has briefed their people multiple times. I want everyone crystal clear about what happened out there. our stories will match, and if someone¡¯s a blabbermouth, make sure they¡¯re in a hole as soon as we make the city.¡± Ella nodded and turned to leave. ¡°Now,¡± Calvin said, rubbing his hands together. ¡°Let¡¯s see what Gadvera can do to contribute to the Widows and Orphans Fund for this poor, grief-stricken city.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 94: Calvin and Company Elliot sat in front of a large oblong table of dark wood, interlacing his fingers in front of him as he glanced between the microphones on his left, with little placards that said ¡®VP of Human Relations,¡¯ and ¡®Head of Engineering¡¯, and the one on his right, with a placard that read ¡®Chief Operations Officer¡±. ¡°Good afternoon, and thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedule to attend this weekly meeting of Calvin Incorporated, LLC. I think we all are chomping at the bit to get to the heart of today¡¯s meeting, which is why did our COO, code-name Honey Trap neglect to inform Calvin of the man who evaded the sweeps?¡± ¡°But,¡± Elliot said, holding up his hand. ¡°Before we get started, I¡¯d like to open the floor for our VP of Human relations to air any concerns for the safety of the workforce.¡± He leaned over and pressed the button allowing the VP, code-name Yellow Jacket, to speak. The speaker gave the angry buzz of a seriously pissed off wasp. ¡°Looks like we¡¯re all good on that front.¡± Elliot said, switching the mic off. ¡°How about you, SassyBot?¡± The second microphone on his left doodled an ear-piercing series of beeps and whistles. ¡°I already told you, OSHA is no longer a thing. We can have this conversation some other time.¡± Elliot clicked the speaker off with a sigh. ¡°Now, let¡¯s hear from Tits McGee why I shouldn¡¯t deactivate Continuity and let her continue living the last moments of her life over and over ad nauseum?¡± Elliot opened the channel to Nadia¡¯s little corner of Calvin¡¯s System. ¡°I wanted to see what would happen.¡± Her voice came through the speaker, a little faded, but understandable. ¡°I want to see him suffer. You want to see him grow. I think being rightly called a monster would be an excellent learning experience, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± Elliot asked, finger hovering over the enter key that would turn her back into a babbling wreck. ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Elliot took his hand away from the button. ¡°A little heads up next time, COO Gold Digger. I of course expect you to manage the fallout from this on your own recognizance. I don¡¯t care if he¡¯s vilified. In fact, I want him to experience it sooner or later, and while I want our vessel stress-tested, I want to make it perfectly clear that I do not want any permanent damage done, and if he dies, you¡¯re going to be in that empty little black room until Marconen¡¯s sun goes supernova.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Elliot switched off the microphone, and tapped his fingers against the table before pushing off, rolling his chair back over to the computer sitting beside the viewscreen. He swiped away Calvin¡¯s notes on his new spell and incorporating it into his current fighting style, and went back to the scrolling feed of Calvin¡¯s system. Assuming death is the end of him. Elliot wasn¡¯t sure that would be the case. He cracked his knuckles and started designing a program to isolate the mechanism by which Calvin would become a Maculat Mulieres. If it was like any other undead he¡¯d seen, there was an exploitable transfer of ownership between the living soul and the mutated corpse. All he had to do was find the opening, and exploit it. I knew designing and tossing all those vampire mutations in would strike paydirt sooner or later. Now Elliot had a way in. Of course he didn¡¯t want Calvin to die yet. Elliot wasn¡¯t done designing the hack, the kid¡¯s body wasn¡¯t fully grown, and his stats were far short of where they needed to be. Maybe give him¡­six years. Not old enough to get wise, but fully grown, physically. Nobody wanted to be stuck in a teenager¡¯s body forever, according to a bunch of early twenty-first century vampire dramas, anyway. Elliot shuddered and got back to work, shifting between hacking his program together and optimizing Calvin¡¯s Mutations and Build, as the fancy struck him. ***Delu and Keen*** ¡°I¡¯m gonna be a soldier when I grow up.¡± Delu said quietly, clutching the sheets of his bed, staring at the cheap glass ceiling. It was flaking. ¡°That¡¯s dumb.¡± Keen retorted, the girl¡¯s nose wrinkled as if she¡¯d smelled something bad. ¡°Nuh-uh! You can be a soldier without an apprenticeship, it pays good, and you can become a general if you¡¯re good enough.¡± ¡°Soldiers die, professionally, they¡¯re professional diers. Do you wanna die for a living?¡± ¡°That makes no sense.¡± ¡°Where do you think all these new kids came from?¡± Keen whispered, glancing around the overcrowded orphanage¡¯s beds. ¡°Everybody¡¯s been talking about it. An entire army disappeared and made thousands of extra orphans. Now we gotta share bunks.¡± She jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. ¡°What do you think that army did for a living?¡± ¡°Shut up,¡± Delu whispered back, elbowing his sister back. ¡°You shut up.¡± Keen hissed, elbowing him back. ¡°Everyone shut up!¡± the matronly Jen shouted as she tromped into the room, rousing the hundred or so children who hadn¡¯t woken up by habit. ¡°Get out of bed and go potty, we¡¯ve got a special guest today and I don¡¯t want you hellions peeing yourselves in front of him.¡± Delu sighed and peeled the covers away, exposing his body to the cold of the morning. It would heat up quickly once the sun rose overhead, but the first half hour of the day was always tooth-chatteringly cold. They went to the bathroom and took care of business, one by one, lining up quietly to use the facilities under Jen¡¯s watchful eye. Once that was taken care of they threw on their ragged hand-me-downs and assembled in the front of the orphanage. Delu and Keen knew the drill, but the vast majority of the orphans here were new, so they milled around while Jen tried to get them to settle down. Once everyone was seated in the amorphous mass, which was the best the matronly woman could hope for, she sighed, and motioned to someone outside the gate. ¡°Children, I¡¯d like to introduce Princess Kala of Gadvera.¡± A beautiful girl in a clean yellow dress came out from behind the front gate, waving sheepishly. Delu¡¯s jaw began to hang open despite himself. He glanced over at Keen, and she was similarly awestruck. None of them had ever seen someone so pretty. ¡°Hello, children,¡± She said quietly. It was quiet, yet her voice seemed to carry through the crowd and penetrate the ears of the older kids at the back. It was as if she were standing in front of each and every one of them, speaking to them face-to-face. ¡°Hello,¡± they echoed back. ¡°My name is Kala, And I¡¯m a diplomat.¡± One of the kids raised a hand, and Kala pointed at her. ¡°What¡¯s a diplomat?¡± ¡°It means I¡¯m a professional friend-maker. I try to make friends between people, and between countries.¡± She glanced across the room. ¡°Now friends help each other without being prompted, and I want to be your friend,¡± She said, pointing straight at Delu. At least, it felt that way. ¡°Which is why, when I heard about what¡¯s¡­happened to you, I felt that my country had no choice but to help out their friend.¡± She scanned the crowd. ¡°That¡¯s why we went and asked around for any of your mommies who couldn¡¯t afford to feed you, and we gave them jobs with room and board.¡± A series of women came through the front gate, and no less than fifty children jumped out of the mass of kids and ran screaming to their mothers. ¡°For the rest of you, don¡¯t be sad. Sometimes life is tough, but we¡¯re going to do what we can to make it a little less awful. We¡¯re going to be funding your orphanage with enough money to keep them going for the next four years, as well as hiring an extra caretaker to help Jen out, until most of you are grown-ups yourselves. And because the room is so tight, we¡¯re going to be adding an extra story to the building. ¡°What?¡± Jen asked, blinking. ¡°This is Captain Gadsint. He¡¯s good at building things.¡± She said, motioning to an incredibly pale boy a few years older than the oldest at the orphanage. Jen walked up to Princess Kala and whispered something in her ear, and the princess whispered back. Jen paled, and put a hand to her lips. ¡°Children if you could come over here, to the front of the yard, away from the building. They all stood up and traversed the dusty yard they spent their free time playing in, assembling up against the wall. ¡°You guys wanna see something cool?¡± Captain Gadsint asked with a grin. ¡°Yeah!¡± one of the boys in the back shouted. The older boy clapped his hands together, before a green fog billowed out of it, resolving into hundreds of metal¡­men? ¡°Those are Knick-Knacks!¡± Keen said, elbowing him again. ¡°They¡¯re traders from below the surface of Marconen!¡± ¡°Where do you learn these things?¡± Delu demanded. The Knick-Knacks swarmed over their orphanage and started¡­tearing it apart. ¡°What in the abyss?¡± Jen said over the cheers of the children, who were just excited to see some lively destruction. ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Captain Gadsint said, taking one of the mothers by the hand as he continued to produce the little men by the hundreds with his other hand. The woman swooned, being caught by the woman next to her. in short order, she was replaced by another, and another. Soon enough, the surface of the orphanage was covered in gleaming metal, looking like the corpse of a baby gulper covered with ants. Captain Gadsint let go after the thirteenth mom had become unsteady on her feet, then motioned to the front gate, where a wagon packed to the brim with raw glass plates lumbered through, pulled by a team of guars. A young Uleisan man hopped off the side of the wagon and stepped over to the building as dozens of knick-knacks broke off and began hauling the sheets over to the building. Somehow the Knick-knacks lifted him up to the second floor, where the master craftsman began making some adjustments to the building, along with fully welding together plates of glass where the knick-knacks had roughly tacked them together with the white-hot flames coming out of the little nozzles in their hands. ¡°Your new building should have enough space to give everyone a bed,¡± The pale captain said, dusting his hands as he watched the creatures work. ¡°At least.¡± Needless to say, none of the children were paying much attention to him, consumed as they were by the marvelous display of glassworking. ¡°How many of you older kids are looking for a job?¡± the pale captain said, raising his voice. The word ¡®Job¡¯ got the attention of all but the youngest children. Jobs meant money, which meant food, which meant survival. ¡°Because that man up there,¡± He said, pointing at the master glass-worker wading through the ocean of gleaming metal. ¡°Is looking for apprentices.¡± About a third of the children¡¯s hands went up. ¡°And for the younger ones, we¡¯ve lined up a few people looking to adopt you. Hopefully in a few days time, this place will be back to normal.¡± The roof of the orphanage began to shift, carried away on the backs of hundreds of metal men, while the support beams were reinforced and raised, and plates of a new floor were welded in place, waiting for the glassworker to finalize it. ¡°As normal as can be expected, I guess,¡± the captain said with a shrug as the mother beside him recovered, fanning herself off. ¡°Hey,¡± Keen whispered, elbowing Delu again. ¡°Cut it out!¡± he quietly yelled, shoving her lighlty. He was starting to get a sore spot. ¡°Shut up. Look at that guy over there,¡± she said, pointing at a tall Uleisan man with some kind of glass girdle wrapped around his waist. He was staring at the two of them intently. ¡°Think we got a perv,¡± She whispered knowingly. ¡°Roger that.¡± ***Calvin*** ¡°So, how¡¯d it go with adopting your kids?¡± Calvin asked, approaching Ussein, who was staring at the ground. ¡°They think I¡¯m a pedophile.¡± The legend said, staring at the floor with glassy eyes. ¡°Ouch.¡± Calvin winced. First impressions were hard to shake. ¡°Well,¡± he said, patting Ussein on the shoulder. ¡°You¡¯ve got the rest of your life to fix up that little misunderstanding. In the meantime, we need all hands on deck to get the West Boles Trading Company off the ground. The collapse of the Storm-Stretch group left a niche to fill, and by the gods, I¡¯m gonna be the one to fill it.¡± ¡°Why would I want to¡­¡± He muttered, his fists tightening before evenetually relaxing. ¡°Even that casual scorn reminds me of their mother.¡± ¡°Oookaaay,¡± Calvin said, backing away. ¡°I¡¯m just going to start the meeting¡­you come join whenever you¡¯re¡­feeling better.¡± I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever know what it feels like to be a father. Calvin thought. Spend half your life working on a project, only to have it hate you and be stolen by another man, then magnify that by ten. That¡¯s pretty specific. Yeah, it is. Calvin set that aside as he walked into the room with the leaders of the different factions of his budding company. Veer was the leader of the Seven Wastes, who had been cannibalized into providing the majority of the workforce for Calvin¡¯s new company. He was going to run the day-to-day work of transporting heavy cargo to and from Boles and making sure it didn¡¯t get stolen by bandits. Nash was the defacto leader of the cobalts, and together they formed a feisty unit of eight hundred Veterans in-training. Their job was pretty simple. They were going to round up the rest of the handful of tribes of cobalts in the cobalt mountains, and achieve a monopoly on the distribution of their spines. Of course, there¡¯s no monopoly laws in this dust-hole, Elliot said, chuckling. While they weren¡¯t excited about harvesting their own spines, they understood that it would be far preferable to some other group making their choices for them. And they¡¯d be able to redistribute the wealth into their own living conditions. Jinsei had been tasked with teaching no less than a dozen of the more talented orphans poached from the sudden influx of fatherless children, training them into talented glassworkers. Along with some five hundred fifteen-to-seventeen year old boys and girls who¡¯d leapt at the chance for employment. Those fell under Veer¡¯s supervision. With Kala working public relations, Calvin gave generously from his stolen horde of the Uleisan¡¯s own money, earning him and Gadvera a glowing reputation for swooping in and saving the day exactly when it was needed. In the flurry of activity, no one had time to associate the disappearance of an entire army with Calvin or his people, thank the gods. Grant and Lieutenant Veyer were tasked with rounding up enough monsters from the desert sands to get anyone in his company into their third Break, including the orphans. Calvin sat in front of a large oblong table of dark glass, interlacing his fingers in front of him as he glanced between the leaders of his burgeoning empire on his left and right. ¡°So, how are we doing?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°They¡¯re talking about making shrines in Kala¡¯s honor.¡± Ella said with a grin. ¡°What? What about me?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°She outranks you, so of course she gets the glory for all this.¡± Grant interjected. ¡°Get used to it.¡± ¡°Bummer. How¡¯s the land acquisition?¡± ¡°We bought the Storm-stretch¡¯s shipping yard and moved into it yesterday. And we handed over possession of the Cobalt¡¯s shop-front to them.¡± he nodded at the Cobalts. ¡°Technically they¡¯re not allowed to own property, so they¡¯re leasing it from you for a fraction of their profits.¡± Nash didn¡¯t look terribly happy at that, but he nodded. ¡°Good enough,¡± Calvin said. ¡°How¡¯s our cash supply?¡± ¡°Running on fumes,¡± Nadia said, ¡°With all the PR campaigning and expansion, if you don¡¯t get an infusion of cash or a steady stream of income soon, this will all come tumbling down like a house of cards.¡± Nadia rested her head on her fist, lazily slumping in her chair. ¡°On the bright side, the influx of capital has reinvigorated the slums.¡± ¡°Did we try mortgaging the mansion?¡± Calvin asked. That would probably keep them going the extra month or so before their new company started turning a profit. Veer had to actually go to Boles and ship things back, after all. ¡°The top moneylender in the city has refused to work with us, one Murak¡­no last name. Of course, the rest of the moneylenders in the city have followed suit like burr-gliders, so no, we won¡¯t be able to establish a line of credit anywhere, at least not without changing the man¡¯s mind. And I hear he is remarkably stubborn.¡± ¡°That¡¯s one of the twelve,¡± Kala said, straightening, her eyes shimmering with excitement. ¡°And he¡¯s a neutral party to boot!¡± She turned to Calvin. ¡°If I can change his mind, we can get you the extra money you need, and he might tip the scales of Uleisian politics! That would be a perfect two-in-one!¡± ¡°So what do we do?¡± he asked, turning to face Kala directly. ¡°We have to find a way to make the man¡¯s acquaintance,¡± The princess said, rubbing her hands together. ¡°Then I break the ice.¡± ¡°You sure you don¡¯t want me to suffocate him in his sleep?¡± Calvin asked, raising the vial of bad air. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sure I don¡¯t want you to do that!¡± *** ¡°This is him? Kurawe asked. ¡°The survivor?¡± ¡°That he is,¡± Polluq said. ¡°My boys brought him in when he came into the east gate babbling about giant wasps. Once I heard him out, I paid them a finder¡¯s fee and hush money.¡± ¡°And can you trust them to keep their lips sealed?¡± ¡°They know what happens to people who say things they shouldn¡¯t,¡± Polluq said with a shrug. ¡°Firsthand.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Kurawe leaned down and plucked the dust-covered man¡¯s gag out of his mouth. ¡°Tell me what happened.¡± ¡°I was up in the mountains, doing advanced watch, you know, see if anyone was coming from a long way out, that sort of thing. Well, I fell asleep waiting for my replacement to show up. I thought the damn fool was late. ¡°He wasn¡¯t late, was he?¡± Kurawe supplied. ¡°Not that kind of late, anyway, sir, um sire¡­Lord?¡± ¡°Sir is fine,¡± Kurawe said. What happened when you woke up?¡± ¡°I started awake early, when the light was coming over the horizon. The average soldier knows you¡¯re not supposed to fall asleep on duty, so I wake up easily if sunlight hits my eyes or I hear someone coming. Don¡¯t want to et caught, you see.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Well, I woke up, stood up and looked down into the bowl where the rest of our people were, and I saw these giant wasps,¡± he held two fists together to emphasize. ¡°Spread out through the entrie camp, moving from tent to tent. ¡°Were they flying, these wasps?¡± ¡°Ah, no sir, they were crawling along. I can¡¯t say I saw any of them fly, at least not until the big ones came out. But that was when I decided to bury myself.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± Kurawe asked. ¡°Bury myself. I grabbed a couple shrubs and dug out a hole in the durt behind a boulder, and buried myself with the shrubs covering me. My nickname was Mole when I was a kid, because I used to hide underground during hide-and-seek ¨C ¡° ¡°These large wasps, How big were they?¡± ¡°As big as the tents, sir, I saw them snip heads off bodies before they tossed them in a pile on the side of the camp. I damn near shit myself.¡± Kurawe could think of one person who had earned the nickname ¡®The Wasp¡¯. It seemed like it was well-deserved. ¡°Well, after a couple days underground with my canteen, I ventured to stick my head above ground to check, and there was nobody living, so I headed out northeast, stopped by the Sippit Oasis, and caught a ride back to Uleis. Kurawe took the man through his tale a couple more times, asking clarifying questions, then gave him a room in his mansion to recover. ¡°Put someone on him so that he doesn¡¯t leave,¡± Kurawe said to Polluq as the man left. ¡°I want to pump him for more information about before the massacre after this.¡± ¡°You got it,¡± Polluq said, nodding. The leader of the city¡¯s police lead the weary soldier to an incredibly posh prison cell in Kurawe¡¯s estate. It might take the man days to realize he was under arrest. So, The Wasp is a summoner. A damn good one, by all accounts. He¡¯d gotten extra confirmation when Captain Gadsint had summoned Knick-Knacks to renovate several apartments and orphanages in a token gesture in the aftermath of the city¡¯s loss. He was also surrounding himself with Legends, By all accounts, Ussein, Orson¡¯s primary enforcer, had switched sides, along with the greying Ilethan, Grant. The boy was developing a presence that was getting hard to account for. I need bait, and I need a hammer strong enough to squash him. My spies tell me that the boy¡¯s almost short of cash and he¡¯s tried to secure a loan using the Manor. That seems like an opportunity. ¡°You want to use the Mole, Sir?¡± Polluq asked. ¡°Discredit the Gadverans and run them out of Uleis? With a Truthseer and some good propaganda, they¡¯d be no problem.¡± ¡°No, Polluq, not quite yet.¡± Kurawe said. ¡°That would only work if the lynchpin of the Gadveran delegation is removed. It¡¯s been proven that boy could annihilate a huge portion of the city if he wanted to. I don¡¯t want rabid, revenge-seeking citizens rattling the fence of his mansion. I also don¡¯t want to give him a chance to respond in a public way¡­¡± ¡°Tell Murak that he¡¯ll be hosting a ball, and that the princess is invited.¡± ¡°Trap?¡± ¡°Trap.¡± ¡°Murak¡¯s not gonna pay for that.¡± Polluq said, eyebrows raised. ¡°You want me to fund it?¡± Kurawe sighed and walked over to his desk, the glass floor creaking under him as he shifted his weight. On the luxurious wooden desk was a small lockbox, He flipped it open and seized two glimmers of Nem, palm-sized chunks of the valuable opalescent mineral, and worth a significant portion of the mansion they currently resided in. ¡°I¡¯m paying.¡± He said, tossing the chief of police the Nem. ¡°Then I¡¯m sure he¡¯d be happy to host a party,¡± The man said, pocketing the small fortune. ¡°And send word to our problem-solvers in Boles that we¡¯ve got a fly in the ointment. A rogue Malkenrovian summoner who¡¯s too big for his britches.¡± ¡°No problem,¡± Polluq said, before leaving the room. ¡°I like that man,¡± Kurawe said to himself as he sat in his oversized lounging chair, taking the weight off his aching knees. ¡°No problems, just solutions.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 95: Schrodinger’s Balls +1 Endurance, Strength, Kinesthetics. Shifting has reached level 8! Shifting has reached level 9! ¡­. This party¡¯s gonna suck. Calvin dragged himself down the hall from the exercise yard towards his bed. After a week of scraping together cash by the skin of his teeth, they had finally caught a break. Well, not exactly. Kala had come back from her diplomat work one day with good¡­well, fair news. The notorious penny-pincher Murak was hosting a ball! Not just any ball, arguably the worst ball in the history of Ussein. Potentially. According to Kala he¡¯d conned someone else into funding the party, then pocketed most of the funding, along with charging most of the men and women invited to the party a modest cover charge. To reiterate, there would be an entry fee, no musicians, bring your own drinks, in one of the skinflint¡¯s invitee¡¯s personal mansions, rather than his own one-bedroom apartment. Uuugh, It sounded like a crap sandwich. It actually reminds me of Scrooge Mcduck and button soup. Who the abyss is that? Nevermind. Clearly, the party was going to be awful, and the only people there were the ones desperate for a loan from the penny-pinching bastard. Clearly. Calvin was run-down. It felt like he¡¯d been running from one fire to the next, using his Knick-knacks to supplement workflow and income wherever he possibly could, but a business with no less than two thousand employees consumed money like a hungry giant. And when he got up in the morning, he had to wizard up some booze and musical instruments. Maybe I could dupe the booze, then I wouldn¡¯t have to pay for it. Yeaaah, that¡¯s probably not a great idea. When it leaves your system you¡¯d get a wicked case of lightheadedness, and a teensy bit of damage on a cellular level from any of the absorbed water and sugar molecules disappearing. Who said anything about me drinking it? Calvin thought, putting his hand on the door handle. Copy some nice vintage stuff and pass it off as a gift to everyone. Might work. only lasts ninety minutes, though. that¡¯s not enough time for Kala to diplomacise for an entire evening. Calvin suppressed a sigh. He¡¯d just have to scrounge up the means to liven up the ball tomorrow. He would have preferred to just pay the cover charge and get in, but Kala said that they needed to prove they were capable of paying a loan back, so they should make a show of being able to afford to liven the ball up a little bit. If everyone has that idea, it might not be that bad. Except for the fact that it¡¯ll be populated by people desperate for money. And Maruk would still turn a profit. Calvin shook his head. You gotta do what you gotta do, I guess, he thought, opening the door to his room and stumbling in. Calvin tugged off his shirt and was halfway done with his pants when he spotted the Uleisan woman under the covers. It was one of the mothers they¡¯d hired recently¡­Alicia, was it? She had full lips and round cheekbones that made her look a little chubbier than she really was. ¡°Can I help you?¡± Calvin asked, blinking, hoping that maybe his sleep deprivation was just making him see things. ¡°I¡¯m here to help you sleep?¡± She said, the nerves in her voice turning it into a question. The sheets were tucked up to the swell of her chest, but Calvin could hazard a guess that she wasn¡¯t wearing much under the covers. ¡°That¡¯s very thoughtful, and I respect the amount of bravery that it took to commit to this, and I get the confusion, but sleeping with me isn¡¯t actually in your job description. I don¡¯t need any help falling asleep. I¡¯m bone tired, and if you don¡¯t make room, I¡¯m just gonna pass out standing up.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± she said, sitting up and scooting aside, holding the covers over herself. ¡°Should I ¨C ¡° ¡°At your discretion,¡± Calvin said, collapsing on the bed and practically burrowing into his pillow. As he was rapidly sinking into unconsciousness, Calvin heard his door click closed. Is there a reason you didn¡¯t take the chance to get some stress relief? Because you need it. Whatever Kala, Ella and I have, I don¡¯t want to disappoint them or ruin it somehow. That it? I almost certainly killed that woman¡¯s husband. Feels like a line I shouldn¡¯t cross. Ah. That makes sense, in an arbitrary sort of way. We¡¯ll work up to banging widows later, then. It¡¯s not a big hitch in your plans to become a wizard king. Fuck you. Calvin fell asleep to Elliot¡¯s laughter. ***Kurawe*** ¡°This party is going to suck.¡± Polluq said, looking around the undecorated room populated by rickety tables and chairs, also free of any decoration. The stage was completely empty, the dance floor had scuff marks from the previous generation. ¡°It¡¯s like a young nobleman¡¯s first practice ball.¡± Polluq said, shaking his head. Kurawe couldn¡¯t help but agree. He gave Murak two Glimmer, and the man had borrowed a well-used dance hall from a ¡®friend¡¯ and rented tables and chairs, pocketing almost the entire sum. ¡°You asked me to throw a ball, and I have,¡± Murak said with a shrug. ¡°And come now, if I were to throw a ball and spare no expense, wouldn¡¯t that be far more unusual? More likely to attract attention and possibly scare off our quarry?¡± ¡°It¡¯s true, no one is going to think this is a trap.¡± Polluq said, nodding as he scanned the room, arms unfolding to encompass the sorry sight. ¡°Because the bait is awful!¡± ¡°My presence here is the bait. The young captain has been attempting to seek a loan from me for the past week.¡± ¡°Then give Kurawe back his money!¡± Polluq said. ¡°The gods know your costs are covered by your ridiculous cover charge.¡± ¡°I will not,¡± The richest member of their Order said, standing straight in front of Polluq and daring him to make a move. ¡°Consider it the price for his assistance,¡± Kurawe said gently, putting a hand on his enforcer¡¯s shoulder. He met Murak¡¯s eye. ¡°Active assistance.¡± ¡°¡­Fine.¡± Murak grumbled. ¡°At some point, the princess will approach you, and most likely charm you with her presence.¡± ¡°She is charming,¡± Murak said, nodding. ¡°Did you see her reading The Giving Tree at the orphanage?¡± Polluq demanded. ¡°I almost cried.¡± Kurawe sighed. ¡°After however much time you deem necessary, take her and Captain Gadsint to the room we¡¯ve prepared to discuss the details of a loan. He¡¯ll most likely be uncomfortable with you taking her anywhere by herself, so it shouldn¡¯t be hard to make him think tagging along was his idea.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been doing this awhile, Kurawe. I can handle it.¡± Murak paused, considering. ¡°Unless my joints are flaring up that day, then I can¡¯t be bothered.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be there, or I¡¯ll strap you to strings and puppet you around your own damn party!¡± Polluq shouted into the wiry old man¡¯s face. Murak gave them a gap-toothed smile. ¡°Once you take your seats, your job is done.¡± Kurawe said. ¡°Sounds easy enough.¡± ¡°Hold on,¡± Kurawe said, raising one of his oversized hands to caution Murak. ¡°My informants have led me to believe that the boy has some kind of mind-reading mutation based on gaze. This is pieced together from a few dozen eyewitness accounts of inexplicable behavior. So keep your thoughts and feelings under control, and try to keep your eyes on the princess. ¡°A mutation?¡± Murak asked, eyebrow raised. ¡°A useful one? And he doesn¡¯t have hair growing everywhere or an ass for a head? Lucky bastard.¡± ¡°Not so lucky after tonight,¡± Polluq said. ¡°I suppose we¡¯ll have to see.¡± Kurawe said. ¡°Now, my spies have informed me that the captain is well-known in Gadvera for revoluntionizing dupdomancy as a tool for war by copying exotic, dangerous materials like God¡¯s Fire in huge quantities and letting them do what they do best. He wears belts around his shoulder and waist ¨C ¡° Kurawe motioned across his shoulder and waist. ¡°Filled with tiny samples of dangerous chemicals, poisons, explosives and what-have you. If you can, make sure he leaves those belts at the door. That¡¯ll take a bit of the risk out of the job.¡± ¡°He also has a peculiar summoning magic, and can create at will, an army of knickknacks as a source of free labor, and wasps, ranging from normal sized to big enough to ride, in massive quantities. These wasps are highly lethal above four inches long, and he can fill an entire room with them, so when the fighting starts, run and don¡¯t look back, Murak.¡± Kurawe looked up and saw Murak¡¯s eyes sparkling. ¡°Did you say free labor?¡± The old moneylender¡¯s nose for profit never steered him wrong. ¡°No, you aren¡¯t going to torture the spell out of him. I don¡¯t care how many dampeners you put on him, It¡¯s still a grossly destabilizing influence on the labor market, and a little extra cash in your pocket isn¡¯t worth sending the economy into the Abyss or causing a revolution.¡± ¡°Bah. I¡¯ve already got all my Skills, anyway.¡± Murak muttered, turning away from the two of them. ¡°Make sure you take the ass-wipes too!¡± Murak yelled at the laborers who were busily moving furniture and toiletries from the mansion, ostensibly to ¡®make space¡¯ for all the guests. ¡°Is he¡­stealing from the host?¡± Polluq said. ¡°Sort of. I imagine he¡¯ll roll the laborer¡¯s entire bill into one tab and force the host pay for it by ransoming the man¡¯s furniture back to him.¡± Kurawe said, rolling his eyes. ¡°I almost admire the audacity, but most of me wants to punch him in the face.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the first. How do you think his nose got so squished?¡± Kurawe asked, motioning for Polluq to follow. They arrived at ¡®the room,¡¯ where Kurawe¡¯s team of problem solvers were busily preparing the false walls they would be hiding behind. Each of the mercenaries had an open Dampener clattering at their hip. Dampeners were thick steel collars lined with four Glimmers worth of solid Nem, making them incredibly expensive. The interior was lined with layers of enchanted glass, designed to forcibly draw Bent out of the victim. All that Bent was redirected towards normalizing the target¡¯s physical abilities, allowing even physical-oriented Legends to be subdued by them. It didn¡¯t prevent the casting of spells, per se, but not many people were able to think fast enough to win in the handful of seconds before they were completely empty of Bent. And to make sure the boy didn¡¯t cause too much trouble while his Bent was being drained, there was the team. On the surface, they seemed¡­unique, but Legends tended to be. There was a powerful Ilethan illusionist, Matthias, who was putting up the semi-permanent optical illusions of walls, fussing over every detail. The man wore a black and blue robe with a splash of gold embroidery, complementing his thick black hair and pointed beard nicely. Sitting in the corner was a hulking brute of a man with fur clothes and pointed teeth. A mercenary Genosian who¡¯d been exiled from his clan. Euha, he called himself. He bore a crystalline axe he must have gotten in Uleis, along with a solid steel club hanging at his side. At a certain level of strength, wood clubs just didn¡¯t cut it. There was a lithe, well-traveled Uleisan Wizard named Suppan who was well versed in counter-magic. She was dressed in traditional Uleisian garb, idly reading at Maruk¡¯s desk. And lastly, there was the ever-rare Legend burglar. People with thieving Skills seldom announced it, and even more rarely allowed themselves to be caught in large battles. Kate was probably around here, somewhere. ¡°The ball¡¯s in two hours. Is everyone clear on the plan?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t look at him,¡± the Genosian said with a thick, if cultured, accent, ¡°Until Murak sits down, at which point I rush in and slap a collar on him,¡± he pointed at the woman behind the desk, who waved. ¡°Suppan unravels his summoning spells. Kate and Matthias provide backup if necessary. We understand our roles.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about you,¡± Kurawe said, hooking his thumbs in his belt. ¡°But I think this Ball will be terrific fun.¡± *** ¡°Check this out,¡± Calvin said, holding out his hand. Shifting. Calvin targeted his hand as one object, and the rest of his body as the other, then shifted as much of his Mass into his hand as he could. At level eight, that amounted to sixty-four pounds. Calvin immediately felt off balance, and his shoulder muscles began to scream at him. He yanked his hand forward, and his body slid back about half that distance. He returned the mass to normal and flexed his arm back and forth for Karen to see. ¡°So like this my body weighs a hundred pounds, while my hand weighs sixty-five. Once I get the skill to level twenty, or close enough to matter, I¡¯ll be able to move my entire body in midair simply by twisting my hand.¡± Calvin waggled his wrists and ankles. ¡°I could do it with my feet, too. Imagine what I could do if I could target each extremity of my body separately.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that cause a tremendous amount of torque?¡± ¡°No.¡± Karen stared at him, uncomprehending. ¡°I don¡¯t get it.¡± Calvin held his hand up and moved it back and forth. ¡°This doesn¡¯t move my main body at all, does it?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°And it takes zero effort to move basically, what?¡± Calvin glanced at his palm. ¡°A pound of flesh back and forth, side to side?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°So why would it take more effort to move my entire body around my hand if my entire body weighed a pound or less? Nothing, even? The answer is, it wouldn¡¯t. The only difference in perceived effort would be wind resistance from greater volume.¡± ¡°Once I get the hang of seamlessly transferring mass back into my main body while it¡¯s moving, I can literally generate kinetic energy from nothing, allowing me to walk on air and maneuver without ever touching the ground.¡± Karen was sitting with her chin on her palm, watching him with glazed eyes. ¡°This is why I can¡¯t stand Mages. Can we get on with this? You told me you were on a tight schedule today.¡± The impatient front-liner picked her sword up and charged him. ¡­. After a couple minutes of being repeatedly hacked to death trying to dodge her blades with nothing but Shifting, he finally got what he wanted. Shifting has reached level 10! Shifting level 10: : 50% shift, 10 minutes, targets limited to 1000 pounds in mass. +1 Will Please choose an Ability or Mutation: Multiple Shift: 1 extra target/5 levels in Shifting. Shift Storage: Adds an extradimensional space Mass can be shifted to. Limits and duration match that of Shifting. ^Does not actually store things, just allows the User to make both objects lighter. Extended Shift: duration becomes level squared. Unbound: User may freely swap the targets of the Shifting link for another Mutations: Center of Mass: User may move their center of mass 2 inches per level of Shifting, at Will. Xeno-Adaptation: Mass increases or decreases relative to the gravity of the planet to keep the User at the same perceived weight. F*ck the Square-Cube Law: Endurance and Strength grow proportionally to the User¡¯s mass while using Shifting. Calvin noted the two extra entries in the Skill¡¯s description, then chose Multiple Shift as he¡¯d planned, heart hammering with excitement. I can¡¯t wait to try this¡­Calvin thought with glee as the technique buzzed through his mind. Multiple shift linked all the objects together, and Sliding shift let him move mass between them at will. At level ten he could choose four objects and freely move mass between them, draining up to half of the object¡¯s mass and feeding it to any combination of the others. ¡°We doing this?¡± Karen asked. ¡°I wanna experiment for a minute,¡± he said. Shifting. He targeted both feet, the rest of his body, and the ground. Four targets. Calvin swung his left foot up with a bit of zing and dumped a combined total of five hundred and eighty pounds into it on the upswing. ¡°Oh, shit!¡± Calvin cursed as his suddenly hefty foot continued swinging upwards of it¡¯s own volition. There was absolutely no stopping it with the rest of his body¡¯s meager eighty pounds. So? Make Ganja juice. Calvin¡¯s leg flexed as he pushed down against his own foot like he was going up a flight of stairs, pulling his body up as his foot continued its unstoppable upward momentum. He swung his other foot up, Shifting the mass over to that one midstride. ¡°Whooo!!!¡± Calvin screamed with pure joy in midair as his left foot was suddenly dangling, while the other was propelling him upward for a second glorious step on nothing but air. ¡°You know there¡¯s an Airwalk Ability in Footwork and Dodging, right? Way easier.¡± Karen called up at him. ¡°Do NOT ruin this for me!¡± Calvin shouted, pointing at his foster mother from his superior vantage point moments before he fumbled the trade-off between legs. He hadn¡¯t stabilized his body before taking the third step, and it threw him wildly off-balance, and when he tried to shift the mass again to stabilize, it was injected into an unconsciously flailing foot, which continued on its path, zipping off to the side wildly, nearly pulling Calvin¡¯s femur out of it¡¯s socket, spraining every muscle in his leg as he was forced to do the splits before being slammed violently into the ground, breaking his ankle and knee. ¡°Uuugh¡­¡± Calvin groaned straight into the dust of the practice yard as Karen laughed. ¡°Needs work.¡± I recommend Lots of practice where you can¡¯t kill or maim yourself by messing up before you try this in the field. What do you think I¡¯m doing here? Calvin asked. A pinch brought him out of his Shadow Boxing. Calvin inhaled deeply as though he¡¯d been asleep, sitting up in the carriage, a bottle of expensive Bolean wine resting on his chest. ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± Kala said, nodding to the door. Well, let¡¯s go see how bad Maruk¡¯s balls are, Calvin thought, stretching his aching muscles as he hopped out of the carriage. I guess we won¡¯t know until we go inside. Could be good, could be bad. They¡¯re Schrodinger¡¯s balls. Hah. Calvin Gadsint Body: 16 Strength: 13 Kinesthetics: 14 Endurance: 13 Mind: 34 Intuition: 18 Stability: 16 Will: 26 Bent: 2/15 Skills: Stealth 9 Talking to Girls 11 Acting 10 Read Expressions 10 Sense-Grafting 15 Knife-Work 10 Dupdomancy 18 Hunting 10 Meditation 18 Chained Spirit 18 Calvinian Summoning 18 Your Princess is in Another Castle 7 Fishing 5 Genosian Language 5 Beli Ma 10 Shifting 10 Macronomicon Chapter 96: Fun Party ¡°Raise your chin.¡± Kala said, adjusting Calvin¡¯s collar and the weird puff thingy underneath it. Calvin hadn¡¯t bothered to learn the name. He¡¯d been having too much fun ¨C Been too dedicated to training his new spell ¨C to pay much attention to the goings on recently. For this particular ball, he was going to smile and look good when Kala introduced him, then find a quiet seat in the corner where he could close his eyes and go back to Shadow Boxing. ¡°Now, this is an important party,¡± Kala said as she fussed over his clothes, straightening out wrinkles and brushing off imaginary dust. ¡°I want you to mingle and present yourself and your company to everyone here, not just lay down on a table to Shadow Box with Karen until the party¡¯s over.¡± How does she know that? ¡°Yes, mooom.¡± Calvin said, earning himself a narrow-eyed look from the Gadveran royalty. ¡°Want a puff before we get started?¡± She asked, holding up her smouldering pipe. ¡°In small doses it¡¯s great social lubricant.¡± Hah, lubricant. ¡°I¡¯m good,¡± Calvin said, holding up a hand. ¡°My social Skills level up faster if I do it raw.¡± ¡°Had to get in on that one, huh?¡± Kala asked with a raised brow. ¡°Pretty much,¡± Calvin said before offering her his arm. ¡°Shall we?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Calvin, but as a princess of Gadvera I can¡¯t be escorted into a party by anything less than a baron,¡± She said archly, turning away from him. Calvin¡¯s heart fell a little, before Kala leaned in close and whispered in his ear, her breath tickling his skin. ¡°But if you were a Wizard-King, I could suck the freckles off your manhood.¡± She turned and princess-walked toward the entrance of the mansion, leaving him standing there, jaw dropped, dumbstruck, at a complete loss for words. Holy Shit! For some strange reason, I want to be a wizard king more than I did a moment ago. Like, a lot more, Calvin thought as he gathered himself to head for the door, also strangely motivated to mingle. Strange indeed. Calvin glanced up at Ella, who was driving the carriage. She gave him a thumbs-up and a wink before turning the guar toward the parking area, where the other drivers were hanging about and chatting by a small fire. The nights got cold. Calvin watched Ella go for a moment before he went inside. Well, we knew it was going to be awful, Calvin consoled himself as he scanned the room. There was no music, nor laughter, no food, either, and the furniture was rickety and uncomfortable. The larger guests sat at their own risk. The only sound was a soft murmur of genteel conversation to mask how bored everyone was. Well, I guess I¡¯d better dive right in. Calvin walked up to a table where a small, balding man was speaking with an average woman with an above average mustache. ¡°Excuse me, folks, may I introduce myself?¡± Calvin said. ¡°Calvin Gadsint, I¡¯m the founder of the West Bole Trading Company.¡± ¡°Oh, the ambitious young man so full of piss and vinegar who¡¯s trying to take Orson¡¯s job! You must be the youngest Malkenrovian I¡¯ve ever seen!¡± The balding man said, looking calvin up and down. ¡°I¡¯m Muck Temple and this is Maddy Temple.¡± What are they, brother and sister? Elliot asked with a scoff. ¡°Muck and Maddy?¡± Calvin said to confirm their names as he, exchanged handshakes with each of them, sitting at their table. ¡°I¡¯ve got to say, I respect your bravery, young man. The race to replace the Storm-Stretch group is going to be brutal one. I¡¯m not a young man anymore, but If I were¡­I probably still wouldn¡¯t try it.¡± ¡°So tell me, what do you do?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I¡¯m a patissier. She¡¯s a baker. We make and sell exotic breads and sweets to people looking for a glimpse of what the royalty experience every day. ¡°That must be expensive to ship sugar and flour in from Iletha.¡± Calvin hazarded. ¡°It is! When we first got started we could barely afford to feed ourselves until our name got more famous. We do okay now, but we figured out a way to take the next step for our business.¡± Maddy said with barely restrained glee. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Ghuled Basaan has built two hundred new farm-plots connected to the main water-line. If we take out a loan to buy one, we can use it to produce enough sugar to offset the cost of the payment! More, even!¡± ¡°In just twelve years, we¡¯ll have a thriving empire to turn over to our grandchildren.¡± ¡°Just to play Avashniel¡¯s advocate,¡± Calvin said idly. ¡°How do you know no one else is going to plant sugarcane and make sweets? If someone were to do that, you¡¯d stand to lose a fair amount of profit margin and your plan might fall through. ¡°Oh¡­Oh¡­¡± Muck said, his furry eyebrows gathering together for a moment before he looked back up at Calvin. ¡°Excuse us. We¡¯ve got to do some reconnaissance.¡± The two of them hopped away from the table and started mingling enthusiastically. Calvin watched them whisper to each other conspiratorially between visits to other loan-seekers, and sighed, about to stand up when the large double doors at the front of the mansion burst open. Calvin tensed, half-expecting a fight. Sudden movements were starting to make him jumpy. The doors slammed open to reveal a stream of porters, carrying everything from kegs of beer to glasses and furniture, followed by a rather authoritative looking Uleisian in a clean-cut uniform. ¡°Murak!¡± He shouted, piercing the air of the quiet ballroom as he walked in. ¡°This is supposed to be a ball, isn¡¯t it?¡± He asked, panning the room with an exaggerated gaze. ¡°Why don¡¯t I see anyone dancing?¡± The man stepped aside and Calvin heard them before he saw them, a half dozen musicians paraded into the room and took the stage, all the while playing a lively tune. ¡°Here¡¯s the beer!¡± The uniformed man shouted, putting his foot up on the pyramid of kegs. ¡°There¡¯s the entertainment!¡± He pointed at the musicians. ¡°Dance, damn you!¡± The uniformed man snatched Maddy away from where she was talking to her husband and spun the squawking woman around three times before setting her down beside her spouse. Muck Temple shrugged and the two started dancing. Before long, it was an actual ball. Or perhaps something like it, given it¡¯s relative low-brow clientele. ¡°I knew he couldn¡¯t stand it,¡± a resonant voice said from behind Calvin. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and spotted Kala standing beside a rather skinny old man. He had many of the signs of being poor: thin as a twig, wearing a patched up hand-me-down shirt and pants, but it couldn¡¯t disguise the intensity of the man¡¯s gaze. ¡°Calvin Gadsint,¡± Calvin said, offering his hand. ¡°And you are?¡± ¡°Murak,¡± the gnarled man said, shaking Calvin with more steel in his grip than he¡¯d expected. ¡°What was it that he couldn¡¯t stand?¡± Calvin asked, ¡°To see something half-finished.¡± Murak said, nodding at the uniformed man. ¡°Polluq is a perfectionist, through and through. I knew he¡¯d finish what I started. It makes him an excellent right hand man, but a poor visionary.¡± Murak turned his gaze to Calvin and then Kala, and in the short amount of time he looked at him, Calvin could feel the burning greed that had been baked into the man¡¯s intent. He was already planning on how to take advantage of them. Well, the feeling¡¯s mutal. ¡°So, your princess has been giving me the details, but it¡¯s best if I hear it from both parties. Can you tell me what you need, exactly?¡± Calvin took a deep breath. ¡°I need six Glimmer to feed and house some two thousand five hundred employees as well as pay their wages for the next three months.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Six glimmer? That¡¯s quite a lot of money. And how do you expect to repay the debt, should your company fail to make a profit? You¡¯re not the only ones trying to re-establish a trade network to Boles.¡± ¡°Maybe so, but I bought up the contracts of all the caravaneers the Storm stretch Group used. The Bolesians will err on the side of familiar faces, I¡¯m sure,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Quick, aren¡¯t you?¡± Murak said, glancing at Calvin with more than a hint of suspicion. ¡°I guess so.¡± ¡°This is quite a large sum of money,¡± He said, turning to Kala. ¡°Even with the mansion as collateral, I¡¯m not sure I wish to place my money into your hands, but the infrastructure you¡¯ve created so far isn¡¯t completely without value. Would you be interested in leveraging shares of your company as collateral instead?¡± ¡°No.¡± Kala said immediately. ¡°Yes,¡± Calvin said at the same time. They met each other¡¯s eyes. What¡¯s the big deal if he gets some shares waved in front of him? We¡¯re not going to fail, and if it becomes a problem, I can always kill him or abandon the company entirely. It¡¯s nothing but words on paper. ¡°Huh,¡± Murak said, gnawing on some scar tissue under his lip as he watched their reactions. He looked at Kala. ¡°This isn¡¯t the place to discuss something this important.¡± He glanced over at the musicians with mild annoyance. ¡°Too loud. Perhaps we can have a sit-down and see if there¡¯s a arrangement that will suit all of us,¡± He said, motioning for them to follow him. *** ¡°Oh, that kid and his girlfriend got an audience with Murak!¡± Maddy temple said, biting her husband¡¯s shirt collar in consternation. ¡°I¡¯m so jealous.¡± ¡°Envious, my dear. You¡¯re envious.¡± Muck said, spinning her around on the dance floor. ¡°Whatever. I wish it were us.¡± Just as soon as she finished speaking, an explosion rocked the mansion, followed by a smoking body hurling out the hallway, twirling over their heads and impacting bowling over the musicians, cutting off the music with a harsh screech. *** Calvin followed the old moneylender down the hall, pondering the best way to convince Kala to let them offer shares without announcing to the world that he never intended on honoring the spirit of the deal. Who knows, maybe Kala¡¯s got a better idea. I guess we¡¯ll see how it goes. Murak turned a corner in the hall and ducked into a cozy side room, Kala following in after him. Calvin walked in and studied the room. It looked like a simple twelve by twelve foot room, an expensive hardwoord desk with two comfortable chairs facing it, marbled glass floor, a nice Bolesian rug and tapestried walls. ¡°Well,¡± Murak said, standing behind the desk as Kala took a seat in front of the desk, leaving the seat to her left open for Calvin. ¡°After you.¡± The walls weren¡¯t real. Calvin¡¯s Tarak skin placed the walls at three feet further away than he could see with his eyes, and behind those false walls were vaguely human-shaped lumps. This is a trap. Calvin realized, the hair standing up on the back of his neck. What? Elliot asked, his attention roused. Tell Kala this is a trap. ¡°Are you sitting down?¡± Kala asked, glancing over at him. IT¡¯S A TRAP! RUN FOR IT! Elliot shouted at full volume, making Calvin wince. Kala¡¯s eyes widened. A lot of things happened at once. Kala leapt toward the doorway as Calvin backed out of the way to let her go first. The princess hit the side wall hard enough for her momentum to carry her partway up it. ¡°They¡¯re bolting! Go!¡± A woman¡¯s voice shouted. The people behind the illusionary walls started into motion, an instant behind her. Suddenly Calvin felt the gaze of no less than four people on him as a massive Genosian leapt out of the wall, aiming for him with a steel collar adorned with Nem-blue. They know I can feel their gaze. That can¡¯t be good. Calvin backpedaled into the hallway, raising a hand. Let¡¯s see how you deal with wasps. Calvinian Summoning 3/16 Bent remaining. Over the grey man¡¯s shoulder, Calvin could see a woman point at him, and a searing pain engulfed his palm as the Bent of the spell was shredded before it could manifest as anything at all. Crap. Calvin leaned left, putting the man¡¯s bulk between himself and the woman who¡¯d countered his spell. Beli Ma Calvin swept his other hand in front of the collar approaching his neck, dragging it and the fist holding it to the right as he dodged left. Calvin took one giant step, pivoting and put his stinging hand on the vial of God¡¯s fire he¡¯d snuck in his vest pocket while his good hand aimed at the genosian who¡¯d buried the collar partway into the wall. I swear I¡¯ll never come unarmed and low on Bent to a social gathering again. He thought with a fair amount of sarcasm. ¡®it¡¯s just a ball, Calvin, nobody¡¯s gonna try to kill you there, Calvin, mah, mah, mah, mah.¡¯ One more step to the side¡­Now. Now that he¡¯d moved deep enough into the hall, the doorway was blocking sight between him and the wizard who¡¯d countered the spell. No line of sight meant no countered spells. That didn¡¯t mean she couldn¡¯t unravel the summons after they¡¯d already been created, so if anything, Calvin decided it was best to use hard-hitting, instantaneous effects, along with some subterfuge. If I see the flicker, charge forward. If I don¡¯t, fall back. Mass Multi Shaping. 2/16 Bent remaining. Calvin shaped the god¡¯s fire into a fist-sized ball of explosive goop right next to the Genosian¡¯s chest while also targeting the steel of the vial to create a sword, and he also selected himself. *** The world flickered. Calvin was suddenly two feet to the left, a steel blade dropping into his outstretched hand. I guess that means I¡¯m the copy. As he caught the sword with his tingling right hand, the god¡¯s fire burst, picking up the Genosian, setting him on fire and flinging him down the hall, above Kala¡¯s head as she sprinted for the main hall. Nice, he hit the musicians, Calvin thought, charging forward, blade held at the ready, while the original dropped low and oozed backward, turning the corner as stealthily as possible. I wonder if I got the tenth level in Stealth just now, he thought, stepping into the doorway to meet the woman charging him in hand-to-hand combat. She was wearing a light breastplate of cured pebbly leather, with a belt of exotic tools that almost reminded Calvin of his own including a familiar pair of fingerless gloves. She charged in with a curved blade, forcing him to block high. The woman¡¯s strength was far higher than Calvin¡¯s, and the blow forced his own sword partway into his shoulder. ¡°Gah, son of a bitch!¡± Her hand whipped around behind her, and Calvin instinctively lashed out with his foot, kicking the two of them apart moments before a second blade passed in front of his stomach, nearly disemboweling him. She went for a stab, and he diverted her blade with Beli Ma before catching her wrist, putting them in a lock position. She reared her head back and slammed her forehead into Calvin¡¯s face, sending him stumbling back into the hallway. A second hit knocked to the ribs knocked the wind out of him, and while he was still trying to blink the tears out of his eyes, he felt cold glass snap around his neck. ¡°Flighty little bastard wasn¡¯t he?¡± The gaptoothed woman asked, glancing over her shoulder at the counter-speller quickly before she kicked the sword out of his hand and began tying Calvin¡¯s wrists together with fine spider silk rope. ¡°What gave us away?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t talk to the target,¡± the wizard said, approaching cautiously as she stepped out into the hallway. ¡°You never know if he might have something more up his sleeve.¡± That¡¯s the one I need to get rid of, Calvin thought, watching her as he blinked the stars out of his eyes. If he kept up the charade long enough, he might get the opportunity to get close enough, then he could use blade body to deliver a critical blow to the wizard, paving the way for his win condition. ¡°Careful! That¡¯s not the real one!¡± The half-burnt Genosian said as he leapt out of the pile of musicians to bring his crystalline axe down on Kala¡¯s crystalline¡­pipe. The impact sent a ear-splitting, yet musical chime through the hall. ¡°What?¡± the gaptoothed woman asked, frowning as she glanced up at the genosian. Well I guess I¡¯ll have to settle for the other fighter. Calvin lunged forward and aimed an elbow at the fighter¡¯s chest, jutting a knife out of the bone of his arm. The blade popped through a rib before it somehow turned intangible, sliding through the woman¡¯s body without causing harm, then popping out the other side. What now? Calvin thought as he rolled to the side, his second blade jutting out of his wrists and slicing through the woman¡¯s fancy rope in an instant. He glanced behind him and saw that there was another wizard leaving the room, his finger fixed on the rogue, who was clutching her bleeding chest. ¡°What the Abyss was that?¡± She demanded. ¡°What the Abyss is he?¡± ¡°A shell game,¡± the counterspeller said, pointing at Calvin. Crap, gotta dodge. He braced his foot against the wall and shoved off with everything had, busting through the door behind him in a shower of broken glass. Why does everything gotta be made of glass around here? Calvin thought, jumping to his feet and aiming for the ceiling. ***Kate*** ¡°No, I mean what the hell was that? A fucking knife came out of that kid¡¯s arm, out of his arm!¡± ¡°Prosthetic?¡± the Matthias said with a shrug. ¡°It wasn¡¯t an illusion, I¡¯ll tell you that.¡± ¡°It was real.¡± Suppan said as they dragged Kate to the main hall, where they could see in all directions. People were screaming and beating their fists against the exits, but Polluq had long since locked everyone inside the mansion. That was what his role was, after all. ¡°He¡¯s using Dupdomancy, and a much higher tier than someone his age he should be. Third tier at least. We collared a construct, which doesn¡¯t give two shits about having its Bent drained.¡± ¡°But what about the arm?¡± Kate wheezed. Oh, gods, this hurts. ¡°Here,¡± Matthias said, kneeling down and placing a hand on their rogue¡¯s chest. ¡°This is illusionary flesh, and when it¡¯s gone the wound will come back, but for today, you should be able to keep fighting.¡± The illusionist said so for the thousandth time since Kate had known him. it was like giving that cautionary sentence was forged into the man¡¯s behavior. ¡°Thanks,¡± She said, hauling herself to her feet. The kid had been slower than her, weaker than her, and unable to use magic. Coming out on the losing end of that exchange was infuriating. Invisibility. 13/15 Bent remaining. Undetectable. Kate¡¯s body disappeared under her own gaze. Leaving her feeling like a ghost as she leapt toward the bannister and started climbing up to the second story. I¡¯m gonna get that bastard back. ***Ella*** ¡°So get this, On a dare, my friend was riding the Joyega through the forest upside down and naked, nothing standing between her and pincers the size of these carriages if she falls off.¡± The dirvers were listening with rapt attention, their breath held in their lungs. ¡°So what did you do?¡± one asked quietly. ¡°Eh, I watched her get eaten.¡± Ella said with a shrug, downing one of the beers the city guards had brought to liven things up. ¡°Oh,¡± the mood turned morose after that. A sudden pang of anxiety rocked her like a slap in the face, and she followed the pull of the Guya, glancing toward the mansion where Kala nd Calvin were trying to ¡®secure a loan¡¯. Ella didn¡¯t know what ¡®getting a loan¡¯ entailed exactly, but she was absolutely sure it had just gotten violent. ¡°Excuse me, it looks like I¡¯ve got some business to attend to.¡± Ella said. ¡°I¡¯ve gotta go help my friends secure a loan.¡± Iron Skin 13/14 Bent Remaining. Ella¡¯s skin turned shiny red and she grabbed Calvin¡¯s belt from the carriage and threw it over her shoulder before she began sauntering toward the mansion. There was an explosion from inside, and shortly after, people began to bang on the walls like mad. A city guardsman stepped in front of her and put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°That¡¯s far enough, ma¡¯am. Let us handle it.¡± Ella bit his hand off. Macronomicon Chapter 97: Sight, Sound, and Fury All right, Calvin thought as he stripped out of his ridiculous outfit, taking a moment to light the damnable puff on fire before tossing it aside. One of the Guys. Calvin calmly assessed the situation while his bones shifted, and skin darkened. We¡¯ve got four people, most likely legends, but not quite as good as Karen, so sixth or seventh Break. They¡¯ve obviously been hired to hunt me down by Maruk because otherwise he¡¯d have to give me a loan. Calvin chuckled softly at his dry humor, checking himself in the empty bedroom¡¯s mirror. He looked like a handsome, androgynous old woman. That¡¯s the average? Okay. The party HAD been filled with women with mustaches. Two of the legends are melee-base, Kala is unaccounted for, and the Uleisan in the light blue robes can counter and dispel. She¡¯d obviously be more immediately useful to me dead, but if I can curry favor with her and the people who taught her by keeping her alive, that would be wonderful. I¡¯d love to learn her skills. Calvin stripped out of his vest, leaving just the undershirt. He yanked open the drawers and was please to discover various frumpy clothes. Calvin yanked his pants off and slid a long black skirt on, hopeful that that change in appearance would be enough to throw them off and allow a counter-attack. He obviously couldn¡¯t match any of them at their specialties, so he had to break them apart and confront their weaknesses with his strengths. ¡°Careful! That¡¯s not the real one!¡± a Genosian accented voice travelled from down the hall. Shortly after, there was a crash of shattering glass door, and a fair amount of cursing. Turns out I¡¯ve got less time than I thought. Calvin thought, rolling up his sleeves and heading for the doorway with a tentative gait as close to Old Woman as he could manage. Calvin ducked his head around the corner and spotted the two wizards dragging their saber wielding friend out into the main audience hall, where Kala was. Calvin ducked his head back quickly, before they spotted him. I need a way to get back to Kala, and fast, but this hall leads right back out where they came from. I can¡¯t just waltz down the direction I came from. They¡¯ll out me in an instant. Hmm¡­Maybe I can¡­ Calvin shivered as a heavy blanket of Bent settled down around him, pressing in from every direction. What is this? Calvin thought, waving his hand through the intangible sensation. Aura of Bent Restriction Detected! Bent-Based Abilities Suppressed. Joke¡¯s on them, I only have two Bent left anyway! Calvin thought. Then the room went black. Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will ¡Ç?? ????? ?????¡¯ That can¡¯t be good. ***Elliot*** Blaring sirens were echoing through the tiny room, the lights flickering as Elliot typed furiously on the keyboard, watching the spell systematically corrupt Calvin¡¯s system. ¡°Fuck!¡± Elliot desperately to do anything he could to halt the disabling of Calvin¡¯s system. The illusion spell was a doozy. Not only did it take control of the target¡¯s senses, it temporarily fried their System. Temporarily, because everyone¡¯s got a constant uplink, and it can be rebooted or reinstalled, but Calvin¡¯s off the grid. Shit! Elliot immediately began porting main files over to his backup thumb-drive before yanking it out of his computer. There was no real computer, of course. No real thumb-drive, either. Everything in Elliot¡¯s room was a symbol, a representation of the inner working of the alien hardware installed in Calvin¡¯s brain. The thumb drive was simply a representation of the partition Elliot had backed up and disconnected. Which is why Elliot¡¯s room began rumbling, the lights finally going out while dust began to sift down from above. Elliot curled up in the corner of his little black room, clutching the backup files to his chest and praying the spell wasn¡¯t able to penetrate the unexpected custom hardware. ***Calvin*** The lights came back on all at once. Calvin was standing knee-deep in a swamp that seemed to stretch on endlessly in every direction. Gnats hovered around his head and tried to land on his face, mud sucked onto his legs, and the overhead sun shone down with an uncomfortable heat. It¡¯s all fake, Calvin thought, scowling as he scanned the terrain, lifting one squelching foot out of the mud and feeling the water drip off of it. A good fake, though. The spell had hijacked his senses and created hallucinatory terrain, effectively making him worse than blind. Calvin knew all of this because the caster had failed to take the Tarak¡¯s skin-sight away from him, likely because the caster was unaware of it, and didn¡¯t have it. Calvin could still feel where the walls and floor were around him, and the basic shape of the furniture. Calvin sighed. This sucks. He started tugging off his clothes, increasing the sharpness of the image around him. It looked like he was doing this commando. Well, I don¡¯t HAVE to take off my underwear, Calvin thought. Except¡­it was mens underwear and he was masquerading as an old woman. Damnit. Calvin glanced up and spotted a huge, pair of fangs in front of him as the spiderlike Ooze-weaver lunged forward with a ferocious squeal. Calvin closed his eyes. The ooze weaver went away, although he could still hear its angry screams. I guess I¡¯m a deaf old woman. Here goes nothing. Calvin tottered out into the hall, shaking with age and terror, ignoring his low-hanging boobs like an old woman would in an emergency. Calvin took a gamble. No one had been anywhere near him when those spells had landed, so they were most likely area spells, a combined effort designed to trap everyone inside the illusion. IF they were designed to trap and corral everyone, surely it was plausible an old woman had been rousted out of bed by the commotion then hit by the effects? ¡°AAIIII, What in the sand-blasted abyss is going on?¡± Calvin screeched with a surprisingly old-woman-ish voice, running out into the hall. ¡°Get away from meee!¡± He waved in the direction of the ooze-weaver¡¯s aggressive noises and deliberately slammed into a wall, rattling his teeth. He stood and felt the wall in faux confusion, before the Ooze weaver chittered behind him again. ¡°EEEE!¡± Calvin screeched and pushed off of the ¡®invisible wall¡¯ and slammed into the other side of the hall before ¡®figuring out¡¯ what direction was available. He then ran down the hall, making sure to pace himself and not flat-out sprint as fast as he could: Annie Bundersnatch had arthritis and weak limbs. The Ooze weaver was herding him into the main hall, of course. Now, this could go one of two ways. The first: They recognize Calvin immediately, and try to capture him, in which case Calvin would get a single surprise attack before getting his ass kicked. The other way: They assumed they¡¯d caught an old woman in their net, giving him time to launch an attack on the one he wanted to: The counterspeller. How in the Abyss am I supposed to disable the woman without killing her? Calvin thought as he sensed the hallway open up into blurry nothingness. His max range was about fifteen feet. Anything beyond that was far too blurry for his skin to feel. Isn¡¯t this where you usually give me some unsolicited advice? Calvin thought. Only silence answered him. Did they kill Elliot? he thought, glancing over his shoulder ¡®desperately¡¯ at the ooze-weaver herding him. Wouldn¡¯t be the worst thing. A few steps later, he felt a gaze on him, and a few steps leter, he made out a human lump at the very edge of his perception. There¡¯s one of them. The gaze was mildly amused, and uncomfortable at Calvin¡¯s show of wrinkly skin. Looks like I¡¯ve got the initiative, for now. The image of a person appeared in front of him, raising a hand. ¡°Calm down, ma¡¯am, the Ooze weaver is gone.¡± ¡°What?¡± Calvin breathed, looking over his shoulder. Sure enough, It was gone, replaced by this illusionary black-haired fellow in front of him. ¡°There¡¯s been¡­a bit of an event. You¡¯re perfectly safe, ma¡¯am, just sit over there with the others until we get everything sorted out.¡± He pointed toward the front of the mansion, where dozens of guests became visible in the swamp, sitting in the mud in front of the invisible double doors. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Calvin demanded, putting his hands aggressively on his hips. Annie Bundersnatch was nobody¡¯s fool. ¡°One moment I¡¯m in bed, trying to sleep through Maruk¡¯s dull party, and the next moment I¡¯m in the middle of the swamps of Leyore. You tell me what¡¯s happening right now, young man!¡± ¡°Calm down, ma¡¯am,¡± The wizard¡¯s mouthpiece said, placatingly, holding his hands up. ¡°This should all be over in minutes, and then you can go back to your bed, but standing out in the open, where you are now, is dangerous.¡± He pointed to the ooze-weavers looming over them in the trees. ¡°We can protect you better over there, with the others.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Calvin asked scowling. ¡°Matthias,¡± the wizard ¨C no, he¡¯s a sorcerer ¨C said. ¡°You¡¯re going to hear from me about this,¡± Calvin said with impotent anger, heading for the others, finally covering his saggy boobs with an arm, much to the relief of the two humanoid figures he could feel. Then a pair of Ooze-weaver¡¯s rushed past him, locket in combat. Underneath the illusion, he could feel Kala¡¯s form, wrestling with the Genosian, trying to kick the man¡¯s ribs as he drove her toward the wall, not having much luck in the stronger man¡¯s overwhelming grip. That gives me three of them. Good enough. Calvin squeaked and flinched away from the ooze weaver illusion and stumbled as naturally as he could manage, falling and crawling the last couple feet toward the feminine lump of displaced air. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about those, and just go!¡± The illusionary man said, pointing toward the huddled guests with a frustrated scowl. Calvin stood leapt up, and kicked the counterspeller in the chest, blade jutting from his toe. Keeping her alive wasn¡¯t practical at the moment, even if it would draw the ire of those who taught her. I¡¯ll send them a nice gift basket. ***Matthias*** Ugh, this old woman is pissing me off! The wrinkled, albeit slightly handsome hag was standing right in the middle of the room, where Euha was fighting the Gadveran princess, with modest success Furniture shrapnel and shattered glass flew everywhere as the princess warded off the Genosian¡¯s attacks, seemingly heedless of Hallucinatory Terrain. Did she have abnormal stability or some kind of sight augmentation? He wasn¡¯t sure, but the old woman was inches away from becoming a smear on the floor when the two barreled past her, their battle carrying them to the other side of the hall, where they smashed into the glass wall. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about those, and just go!¡± Matthias had his illusion shout. I swear to Rian if that old bat doesn¡¯t move soon, I¡¯m going to move her by force. The uncomfortably naked old woman scrambled backwards in fright, at an angle that made Matthias avert his eyes to protect the sanctity of his mind. She came to a stop close to their bemused counterspeller. Then she did something Matthias wasn¡¯t expecting. She leapt to her feet with the speed of a Veteran and kicked Suppan in the chest before she could react, lifting the wizard off the ground with the sheer force of the blow, her eyes going wide with surprise and sudden pain. ¡°That¡¯s the counterspeller gone,¡± The old woman said, waving her hand through the air as Suppan¡¯s Suppression spell unraveled. She gave him a toothy grin, looking straight at him despite the illusion no doubt showing her nothing but swamp and trees. It¡¯s the summoner! Matthias thought, a chill going down his spine. The pieces fell into place quickly, as Matthias¡¯s Mind digested the information. The boy had some kind of illusion or Polymorphic Ability, along with some kind of extra sense that Matthias¡¯s illusion couldn¡¯t account for. If he had simply resisted the illusion, he wouldn¡¯t be able to interact with it to the degree he had, which allowed him to fool them. It¡¯s not affecting the princess, it¡¯s not affecting the summoner: It¡¯s a waste of my concentration. Matthias made a snap decision, dropping the illusion and focusing on less intricate debuffs. ¡°Castle!¡± He shouted as the old woman with floppy tits charged toward him. Matthias tried not to look away. He¡¯d already made that mistake once. Euha broke away from Princess Kala with a parting shot that clipped her chin, staggering her as he broke toward Matthias. Castle was the code to drop whatever you were doing and protect the Bent-Specialists. Euha interposed himself between Matthias and the old woman while Matthias ran toward Suppan. He had to stabilize her with Illusionary Flesh. They could get her healed up as long as he kept her alive just a little longer. Euaha roared and body slammed the old woman halfway across the floor, giving Matthias the time he needed to place his hand on the puncture wound right above Suppan¡¯s heart. His Colleague had a glassy-eyed stare as she bled out, but she wasn¡¯t dead, not yet. Come on, come on! He slapped his hand down, not bothering to mind the thick blood from her heart, ignoring the battle raging on behind him as Euaha juggled both the princess and the hag. Illusionary Flesh 22/30 Bent Remaining. Matthias fused her wounds shut with fake tissue, and filled her vessels with fake blood. It would fade over the course of the next few days, hopefully giving her body a chance to fix the damage itself, but he was pretty sure a wound straight to the heart would require several applications and constant monitoring. Suppan let out a harsh gasp as her body came back from the brink of death, and she curled around her chest. She¡¯ll live, Matthias thought in relief, turning back to the fight. Euaha was having trouble with both the kids, being driven into a corner by their coordinated assault. Matthias tried to get a good bead on the hag, but she ducked down and to the left, using the much larger Genosian as cover, as if she could sense the man¡¯s gaze, which she most likely could. That¡¯s fine, Matthias thought with a growl, changing his target. Torpor. 22/30 Bent remaining. The invisible bolt leapt into Kala and stimulated her brain into flooding her body with signals that she was tired, and it was time to sleep. The princess staggered in place, sinking to her knees as her willpower fought off the effects, but not quite fast enough. Euha caught Calvin in the ribs with a huge fist, sending the boy sailing across the hall at break-neck speeds. That got him, Matthias thought with a grin. Euha had a powerful Body, and he¡¯d trained to draw every ounce of Strength, Endurance and Kinesthetics out of it that he could. The summoner was no match for that. This would be over soon. He turned his gaze to Suppan. He should make sure she was stable. The double doors at the end of the hall crashed open, revealing a massive Genosian woman with shiny skin, absolutely covered in blood. Oh, what now? Matthias demanded irately. Then Euha flew across the hall and impacted against the other side, putting yet another body-shaped dent in the wall. ***Calvin*** Calvin saw the rib-shot coming, but he wasn¡¯t fast enough to stop it. He turned to mitigation instead. The Counterspeller was out of commission for now, so he could attempt this. Here come the wasps. Calvinian Summoning Calvinian summoning¡­ CALVINIAN SUMMONING! If felt like he was reaching into a hole for the wasp pattern that had always been there, but now it was totally gone. Calvin changed tactics to Shifting. Hopefully it was undamaged. The sensations of Shifting was like some invisible force that normally kept all the Bent tightly controlled and organized in a specific pattern, was completely absent. Calvin had to hem the Bent in and guide it to do exactly what he wanted. Needless to say, the fist hit him in the ribs before he could finish and catapulted him across the room, scattering the Bent he¡¯d pulled out to the winds. What the Abyss is going on?? It was like Calvin didn¡¯t have a system. The training wheels were off, Calvin realized. I¡¯m not going to be stuck in the body of an old woman for the rest of my life, am I? Calvin dismissed One of the guys, and the Genosian flinched backward as the old woman began morphing into a young man, making a superstitious warding gesture. I guess not. Might as well capitalize on the breathing room. Calvin pulled the Bent out, shoving the sensation of his bones creaking and grinding against each other into the back of his mind as he carefully crafed the Bent into the four-way bridge that he¡¯d gotten used to using since he¡¯d unlocked it in Shadowboxing. Making it from memory was difficult, taxing, and it had a few leaks and dangling strands of Bent, but it was basically what he needed. Look Ma, no System! He targeted his right hand, the knife in his left, the floor, and his body. Calvin coughed as he slumped to the ground, his limbs finishing their stretching trick, his skin lightening to it¡¯s original shade. I think he might have busted a rib, Calvin thought as he poked the tender spot where the Genosian¡¯s fist had caught him. Nope, just gonna bruise like crazy tomorrow. If I live to see it. The Genosian shook his unease off and approached him, taking out the collar. ¡°Are you going to give up now, young Maje?¡± He asked. Calvin waited until the man was too close to dodge, then threw the knife at him. Normally, throwing a knife is an absolutely stupid thing to do. Nine times out of ten you miss, or they dodge, or block, or it hits handle-first. But even if you hit them, even if you make that perfect shot and your knife sinks into their body just like you planned; one little stab isn¡¯t going to put someone entirely out of the fight. And now they have your knife! In this case, it was different, though. Calvin shifted the weight from his hand, his body, and the floor into the knife as it was leaving his palm, blade pointed toward the Genosian warrior. The man whipped his solid steel club up to intercept the knife, and managed to divert the tip up a bit before the three hundred and fifty pound jerrytanium blade caught his club and slammed it into his chest, the sheer inertia carrying the man across the hall and slamming him into the wall. The Genosian let out a harsh gasp as the club left a dent in his chest. You bruise my ribs, I break yours! Then the front door slammed open, and Ella tromped in, covered in blood, with his spell components over her shoulder. We just might win this one, Calvin thought, waiting for Elliot¡¯s inevitable retort about jinxing things; It didn¡¯t come. Macronomicon Chapter 98: Every Hole is a Goal ***Elliot*** ¡°Thank you, dear lord baby Jesus,¡± Elliot muttered as the shaking stopped, his knuckles white around the thumb drive as he watched the ceiling for any sign of renewed shaking. Earthquakes were uncommon in space, unheard of on soscath, and rare on the surface of Marconen, so Elliot had never truly experienced a bad one. All his metaphysical shit was scattered all over the metaphysical place. The microwave had detached from the wall, dangling from its cord, his fridge had come open and spilled all his favorite ciders all over the floor. The table was on one side of the room, moved all the way over by the violent shaking. His chair was toppled over in the mess, and the monitor built into the massive arch beside the viewscreen was dark, The viewscreen. The large window where he could see out into the real world, experiencing everything vicariously through Calvin. That was dark too. The sudden thought of being trapped in this room for another several thousand years, billions, even, was enough to make the hairs on Elliot¡¯s neck stand up. Going mad in a cramped dark space was no one¡¯s idea of a good time. He wasn¡¯t even sure he could meditate to speed things up. He didn¡¯t exactly have a body and a System, after all. Elliot waited a few more minutes, making sure the spell that had scrambled the System was actually gone. ¡°Okay, just gonna stand up now,¡± Elliot said, talking to no one in particular. ¡°Don¡¯t mind me, just gonna put this little thumb-drive in the port. No big deal¡­¡± He put the backup in, then leaned down to the side of the arch and jammed his thumb into the reboot switch. Cross your fingers. System Initializing¡­ ¡°WHOOO!¡± Elliot shouted, throwing his hands in the air. He took the System through the reboot, installing some of the updates to Calvin¡¯s system that he¡¯d been cooking up. No time like the present. Elliot watched anxiously as the code streamed down the face of the monitor, too fast for him to process, but absolutely familiar. Half an hour later, the symbol of the Federation took over the screen, and the System finished booting up. Light suddenly flared from the viewscreen as the link to Calvin¡¯s brain kicked in. ¡°Welcome back, Elliot,¡± Calvin¡¯s thoughts echoed from the speaker in front of him. ¡°Thought I¡¯d lost you. Although you chose a pretty bad time to come back.¡± ¡°I can see that,¡± Elliot said with a scowl, spotting the collar at the bottom of the screen around Calvin¡¯s neck and the ring of cultists in red hooded robes around them. From the kid¡¯s point of view he seemed to be on his knees, and Kala was off to the side, looking particularly battered, with one eye swollen shut. ¡°How the hell did this happen?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± ***Calvin*** Ella appeared in the doorway, her skin a bloody sheen, teeth bared in a feral grin. She dismissed the civilians huddled by the entrance and locked on to Calvin and the three people around him. All right! Calvin thought, catching her gaze and nodding to Kala. If she could get Kala back in the fight, things would look much better. In the meantime, Calvin needed to make sure she was able to do that. The princess was curled on the ground, napping through the fight under the wizard¡¯s spell. Calvin locked eyes with the illusion wizard as both of them looked away from the door simultaneously, weighing their odds. Calvin willed Mesmerizing Eye to hold the man in thrall, but his Stability was most likely far above Calvin¡¯s Intuition, and the man shrugged the effects off, shrugging his arms out of his robes as he began kneading Bent into a sphere between his palms. Calvin shoved as much mass out of himself as he could and into the floor, no more than forty pounds or so with his weakened bridge, before he pushed off the wall and began charging toward the wizard. ¡°Castle!¡± The man shouted calmly, keeping his eyes locked on Calvin as Ella slapped Kala awake. With a blur of Bent-assisted speed the Genosian Legend launched himself off the wall and brought his glowing steel bludgeon up toward Calvin¡¯s ribs. That¡¯s crushing blow. If that hits, I¡¯m going to have compound fractures. Calvin put a foot forward and shoved backward, his light weight making it possible to lean out of the way of the whistling metal cudgel and its embedded jerrytanium ridealong. ¡°Kala, wake up, princess. Beauty sleep is fine and all, but this seems excessive.¡± Ella said, jostling Kala. Calvin shifted the weight from the floor into the knife, and the sudden torque yanked the attached steel cudgel out of the genosian¡¯s hands. The genosian gave a confused grunt and furrowed his brows as Calvin bore in on him. Calvin then leaned forward and took a swing at the man¡¯s midsection, shifting all the mass available into his right hand once it reached it¡¯s maximum speed. The Genosian used his superior speed to float around the strike, letting it go over his shoulder as he ducked. Ah, crap, Calvin had this happen to him multiple times in practice against Karen. It was just a matter of watching it happen now. The fighter put his knuckles right in front of Calvin¡¯s bruised ribs, and Calvin¡¯s hurtling three hundred pound fist did the rest of the work for him, pulling him into the strike. Crunch! This time, Calvin was sure he broke a rib. In the instant before he broke away, Calvin flickered the mass off, swung his hand down, and refilled his hand with channeled mass, catching the Genosian on the shoulder as the bigger man leaned away. Crunch! Calvin¡¯s hand bore down into the mans shoulder, the force transferring through the warrior¡¯s armor of muscle and dislocating his arm. Calvin coughed out a satisfied laugh as the brawler kicked him away, one arm dangling. ¡°Knight!¡± The Genosian said, stumbling away in pain as Calvin clutched his flaming ribcage with his left hand. Knight? Calvin didn¡¯t have time to worry about this, as the wizard was done kneading his spell. ¡°Antipathy.¡± He said, a point of red light clutched in his hand. No, you fucking don¡¯t! Calvin thought, sprinting forward. The wizard had the gall to ignore Calvin and aim the spell toward Ella, who was helping a dizzy-looking Kala to her feet. If getting both of them in the fight was Calvin¡¯s road to winning, preventing that was the most logical course of action. Damnit! Calvin thought, only a few strides away from the sorcerer. He had to take him down before he did¡­whatever that was. The briefest flash of murderous intent from his left, along with the sensation of an invisible body slipping through the air was all the warning he got. Calvin flung his feet out, ducking below waist height as the rogue became visible beside him, her swords flashing through the spot where his head had been. She¡¯s not pulling any punches. ¡°What the hell is with this freak!?¡± She demanded, swinging her swords down at him in the blink of an eye. Rude. Calvin was out of space to maneuver and energy, so he tried something he¡¯d only attempted in Shadow-Boxing, He filled his right hand with all the mass he could as he jabbed his hand forward at the highest speed he could. Calvin¡¯s hefty hand dragged his body out of the way of the woman¡¯s strike, sliding him across the floor with an ache in his shoulder as the sudden weight overtaxed his joints. Calvin slid up to the wizard and lunged forward, but he was too late, the bead of red light had already been released. Ella tried to put a chair between herself and it, but the bead went through it without harming the object. When she tried to dodge, it simply followed her, sinking into her skin. ¡°I don¡¯t fucking know! Castle!¡± The wizard shouted, backing up as Calvin leapt forward. If I can kill this guy it should cancel the effect. He jutted the last knife he had out of the skin of his palm and swung it for the man¡¯s face. The sorcerer raised his hand and let it go through his palm, sacrificing an arm to keep the blade out of his vitals, and before Calvin could make a second attempt, He felt his bent bridge snap, all the mass returning to the places they should rightly be. He was suddenly heavy, wounded, and slow. He glanced over and spotted the Dispeller panting from the ground, red-faced and furious, holding outs a hand toward him. Crap. Calvin got tackled from the side as the Genosian hit him with his good shoulder, sending him careening away, toppling to the ground. The last thing that Calvin saw from the ground was Kala dodging a flurry of blows from an absolutely furious Ella, and then a really big fist. ***Calvin*** And that¡¯s how we came to this, Calvin thought, glancing around the dimly lit ritual room. As It turns out I can¡¯t fight four Legends simultaneously yet. You should have had Ella back you up against the wizard and his guards. Well that¡¯s pretty obvious in hindsight, Calvin thought, rolling his eyes. I could have sworn I could keep them busy long enough. Dude, you were riding the razor¡¯s edge the whole time. Bah, Calvin mentally grunted, wrinkling his nose at the Warp in the room. It was so thick he could practically smell it. The Uleisans have a place that can literally bake Legends. That might explain what kept these twelve men in power for so long, if each one of them was consistently superhuman. Maybe not. Too much Warp at once IS toxic. The only reason you¡¯re not getting sick is because your tolerance is already pretty high. They could bake veterans into Legends in this place, but probably nothing less without poisoning them. Now you¡¯re just being pedantic, Calvin thought, glancing around. Kala was beside him, her neck bound in a similar blue collar to the one he was currently scratching from the inside with Blade Body and a chip of glass. It was fortuitous that he¡¯d been able to sharpen it enough for his skin to absorb it. Mutations don¡¯t get turned off, thank the gods. They hadn¡¯t left him in a cell very long. Later that night, they had dragged him and Kala into this Warp-drenched pit into the Abyss, and started some kind of annoying ritual chanting. Freakin¡¯ cults, man. Even now, Calvin was carefully, slowly rubbing the sharp piece of glass up and down the inside of his collar in an attempt to break the enchantment and turn the damned thing off, allowing his Bent to return. As it was, he was so weak that these wrinkled old men had been able to manhandle him onto his knees in front of the pit into nothingness, radiating Warp. I¡¯m going to remember each and every one of your faces, Calvin thought, craning his neck and marking each and every single one of them, his vision excellent in the dim light. Suddenly they stopped chanting, and an absolute giant of a man lumbered into the room, wearing a silk robe big enough to make a tent out of. Five bucks says that¡¯s their leader, Elliot said as Calvin looked around for Ella. Why didn¡¯t they bring her with us? The possibility that they had simply killed the nameless Genosian girl didn¡¯t escape Calvin, and the more he dwelt on it, the more his hands began to hurt, twisting against the steel manacles holding his hands in place until he felt something wet begin dripping down his fingers. She better be alive. For you, isn¡¯t alive or dead kind of a wash? Remember when I promised to break your spine? Oh, yeah. Elliot hummed pensively. You¡¯re about to die. Are you sure you want to waste time on empty threats? ¡°Welcome Brothers,¡± The giant said, spreading his arms wide. ¡°Today we have something truly exceptional. A commoner who has killed one of our own.¡± There was low muttering through the ten other red-robed men. ¡°¡­those things are expensive,¡± Calvin heard Murak mutter. ¡°Allegedly,¡± Calvin enunciated carefully through the gag with his absolute best smile. Despite the sickening feeling in his stomach and the near surety he was about to die, Calvin abhorred the idea of cowering in front of these bonebags. Kala grunted vaguely in agreement. The lean one beside the giant stepped forward and laid a smack across Calvin¡¯s face that rattled his brain. ¡°We seek an enlightened soul.¡± The giant intoned, and a hush settled over the assembled fogies. ¡°We seek more like us, outcasts in need of safe harbor. Wandering souls exiled from their home, from their people, in search of community, purpose, and power. We regret the harm we have caused these lowly creatures, but we will never stop searching, casting our net among the exceptional and the revolutionary, testing them, and adding those found worthy to our cause. The cause of the King-in-Exile.¡± The who? He nodded to lean man beside him. ¡°May you be found worthy.¡± He said, stepping forward and placing a foot on Calvin¡¯s chest. Calvin knew what he was doing, and he tried to summon his Bent, bring his hands around to his front, get up and kick the man, Abyss, he even tried to catch the lean bastard¡¯s foot with his chin. None of it worked. With a shove Calvin was tumbling backward, spine crying out in protest as he bent over nearly in half trying not to fall in the hole. But fall he did. To Calvin¡¯s utter horror, he saw the chain connecting him to Kala pull tight and violently drag the princess into the pit as well. ***Ella*** A surge of panic dragged Ella out of unconsciousness, and she sat up, teeth bared, ready to maul the first person to approach her. She was in a cot in something like a yurt, fully clothes still, with nothing more than a couple light bruises to show for the fight she¡¯d been in the night before. The fight. Ella¡¯s fingers tightened in the fur covers as she remembered how utterly useless she¡¯d been, getting possessed by the enemy and forced to hurt her own friend within seconds of arriving to help. The shame felt like a great ocean that was going to drown her if she didn¡¯t find another way to breathe. Ella drew in a shuddering breath and choked back a sob. No time to cry. Calvin¡¯s still alive, and while he¡¯s still alive, there¡¯s still work to do. Even if he was dead, Ella had work to do. She blew out as much of the guilt as she could and rolled out of bed. How did I get in a yurt, anyway? ¡°Good morning, niece.¡± A massive shape said as it entered the yurt, clutching a bowl of meat-filled broth in his sausage fingers. ¡°Uncle Euaha?¡± She asked, blinking. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about your Poeor.¡± Her gigantic Aiaka uncle said, sitting down, one arm wrapped in a sling, a massive bruise across his entire chest. ***Kurawe*** ¡°He¡¯s dead,¡± Kurawe said, placatingly. ¡°How?¡± The illusionist asked. ¡°Did you cut off his head and stuff his mouth with fucking Garlic? Because at this point I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if that didn¡¯t work.¡± ¡°He pushed a team of four Legends to the brink!¡± Kate said, holding her thumb and forefinger close together. ¡°True, we had orders to take him alive, but a seventeen year old boy shouldn¡¯t be able to nearly kill all of us. It was entirely unnatural.¡± ¡°I saw him literally shape-shift, while under the effects of Bent Suppression,¡± Matthias said, nodding. ¡°He had fucking¡­knives coming out of his skin, fully autonomous copies running around¡­explosives. Not a single damn wasp.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t like it when we aren¡¯t informed of our target¡¯s complete capabilities.¡± Suppan said, her arms crossed. ¡°Exactly.¡± Matthias said, pointing at her before lifting his bandaged hand up. ¡°He almost got each of us! more than once!¡± ¡°It sounds more like petulant complaints than the words of Legends.¡± Kurawe rumbled, grabbing his favorite bottle and slowly filling it with wine. ¡°Not complaints, We just want to be sure you kill¡­whatever that was.¡± ¡°He¡¯s dead.¡± Kurawe said. ¡°End of discussion.¡± He noticed the sharp-toothed one was absent. ¡°Where¡¯s Euaha?¡± He asked, frowning. ¡°Recovering,¡± Kate supplied. ¡°Broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± Kurawe grunted. He didn¡¯t need them all in attendance. ¡°The boy is in the Abyss. That is all you need to know.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 99: Darkness System update completed. An inhuman voice startled Calvin out of a dreamless sleep. Calvin¡¯s eyes opened to a vast ocean of nothingness. His lungs sucked in air like he¡¯d been drowning, pulling cold, harsh air across a throat sore from screaming. He immediately started coughing, his lungs overwhelmed with the sheer density of the Warp in the air. After a second he was able to control his breathing, but it felt like he was breathing molasses. He couldn¡¯t see. Even with his improved night vision, he couldn¡¯t see his hand in front of his face. Night vision doesn¡¯t work in complete darkness. Elliot supplied unhelpfully. The Tarak skin was still working, though. He could tell where the floor was, littered with disturbingly human bones, fading off into the distance where the accuracy of the sense became too fuzzy to make anything out. There, to his left, was a whole, unmoving shape with slender arms and straight hair. Kala! Calvin sat up ¨C Calvin tried to sit up. The agony that had faded into the background and stalked him patiently had hit him with sudden intensity, wrenching an anguished groan from his lips. Calvin did a quick self-eval. Broken ribs, check. Compound fracture in my leg, check. Bruising across most of my body, bleeding, both internal and external. Chances of getting gangrene and dying: pretty good. He¡¯d had worse injuries, but only in Shadowboxing. Calvin¡¯s groan must have woken up Kala, as the princess sat up, moaning and rubbing her head. From what Calvin¡¯s skin could tell, the colorless shape that was Kala didn¡¯t have any disfiguring wounds or sticky liquids matting her clothes. She seemed almost unharmed, despite landing on stone and bone from nearly terminal velocity. Duh, she¡¯d got higher Endurance than you. Especially now. What? That shouldn¡¯t matter. The collars were designed to suppress our Abilities. Nevermind. ¡°Kala, are you okay?¡± Calvin asked, tentatively reaching a hand up to his neck. The collar had split on impact with the ground, breaking along the cut he¡¯d been scoring into the glass. ¡°Give me a second,¡± She said, pulling something out the hair at the back of her neck, then applying it to the outside of the metal circle. It gave way with a soft click, falling off her neck as she rose to her feet. ¡°Did you¡­have a key tucked in your collar?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. He felt her turn toward him, his sense too fuzzy to make out her expression. She sounded contrite, though. ¡°They didn¡¯t really check my neck before slapping a collar around it,¡± She said with a shrug. ¡°Did you know we were going to be collared and tossed down a hole?¡± ¡°I saw it happening in my dreams, and took steps to survive it. It seemed like avoiding the fall would turn out worse in the long run. Sorry.¡± ¡°Eh, well, I¡¯m the one who actually made this whole shit-sandwich happen,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°No apology necessary¡­IF you come over here and set my leg.¡± ¡°Is it busted?¡± Kala asked, stumbling over to him, trying not to trip on the bones she couldn¡¯t see under her feet. ¡°Okay, stop,¡± Calvin said, and Kala froze shortly before stepping on his busted leg. ¡°Shuffle forward a half step.¡± She did so, nudging his leg, drawing a hiss out of him. ¡°Sorry, can¡¯t see anything.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Calvin said as she knelt down and put her hands gently on his thigh. ¡°Further down. Careful, it¡¯s a compound fracture.¡± He said, trying to focus on his breathing. ¡°Oh,¡± Kala said as her hand came into contact with blood-slick bone. ¡°Oh, my,¡± She looked towards his voice and from this distance, he could sense the nervous smile on her face. ¡°You¡¯re going to be okay,¡± she said with more sincerity than Calvin expected. Probably a leadership Skill. ¡°If you say so,¡± Calvin grunted. ¡°If you¡¯ve got a happy place you can go to, now would be the time.¡± Medi-tate Calvin shut himself off from the outside world, then nodded. Oh, yeah, she can¡¯t see. ¡°Go for it.¡± With a sickening scrape, Kala pulled the bone back through the wound and lined it up with the section that had remained in his leg. The pain rolled over his little marble of thought, over and past it as his nerves gradually calmed down. Meditation has reached level 19! 95% Correction. Once the pain rolling over his little marble had died down a bit, Calvin pulled out of the Ability and took stock of his situation. Yep. It hurt. The redoubled ache, and the pain of Kala putting pressure on his bleeding leg made him want to crawl back in his little marble of thought and shut everything else out, but he needed to make a plan with Kala before he could flee the sensation tearing through his leg and chest. ¡°Could you wake me up in about four hours?¡± Calvin asked. With four hours in Medi-tate, he could heal three days worth, greatly mitigating the internal bleeding, and increasing his odds of survival. Once his condition was stable they could worry about getting out of the pit. A rumbling growl echoed through the darkness, and Calvin felt something at the edge of the Tarak skin-sight¡¯s range, moving out there in the darkness. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s going to be an option,¡± Kala whispered quietly, her head turning to scan the emptiness, despite being effectively blind. ¡°You might be right about that,¡± Calvin whispered back. ¡°Help me up.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not standing you up,¡± Kala said, ¡°You¡¯ll bleed out if you try to walk on that thing. There¡¯s still a gaping hole in the side of your leg where the bone went out, remember?¡± ¡°Then what do you suggest?¡± Calvin asked. ***Calvin*** ¡°I¡¯m not sure I¡¯m entirely comfortable with this,¡± Calvin whispered as Kala redefined the Princess-Carry, with Calvin¡¯s wound held just a bit higher than his head as he sprawled in her arms. ¡°Just stay quiet and keep your eyes or whatever lets you see in the dark peeled, I don¡¯t want whatever made that noise to get the drop on us.¡± Kala, meanwhile, was picking her way through the littered bones, trying to find a wall, or something they could orient themselves on, stumbling and cursing every now and then as a bone rolled under her feet or something poked her soles. Gradually, the sensation of the ground changed, becoming less packed earth littered with bones, and more¡­a metal grate? Calvin could feel the corrugated metal beneath Kala¡¯s feet as the bones began to thin out, making them pick up in pace as Kala carried him further into the darkness. ¡°Hold up,¡± Calvin said as he felt them approach something. His senses could make out a smooth bannister running out of his field of view in either direction, fading off into nothingness. Calvin guided Kala to the bannister and they reached out a hand to feel it. The material wasn¡¯t like anything he¡¯d ever felt before. It wasn¡¯t cold, reflecting heat from his hand back to him, smooth and unmarred by time. But he could tell that it would be absolutely unbending even if he were to exert all of his strength. ¡°What is this?¡± Kala said, blindly running a hand over it. ¡°A bannister,¡± Calvin said. It was slightly curved, drawing a concave arc that suggested they were standing in a circle. Some kind of platform, perhaps? It fit with the corrugated metal under their feet. ¡°Oh, a Bent came back.¡± Kala said, holding up a finger. ¡°Shield your eyes.¡± Above her finger, a brilliant white light sprang into being, bathing the platform in harsh white light. The sudden light nearly blinded Calvin, and he spent a moment blinking spot out of his eyes before he was able to turn his gaze outward. They were on a platform, that much was true, the bannister was to prevent whoever had manned the place originally from falling into the emptiness that the mysterious construction hung over. ¡°Can you shine the light down there?¡± Calvin asked. Kala turned the light into a cone and narrowed it onto the void they were suspended over, seemingly by nothing at all. The light pierced through the darkness and landed on a dark simmering mist, bubbling like a witch¡¯s cauldron as the light shined down on it. Have her turn the light away from the mist! Elliot said, his voice seemingly more alarmed than Calvin was used to. Why? Just do it! ¡°Kala, turn the light away.¡± The light lingered on the mist for a moment, and it began to flinch, like the side of a horse with a biting insect on it. Kala¡¯s eyes widened and she pulled the light away, covering the mote of brilliant light with her hand, plunging them into darkness. ¡°What was that?¡± She whispered, glancing down at Calvin, carrying the two of them further away from the edge of the platform. Well? Don¡¯t hold out on us now. That, was a Siphon. A place where the Harbingers poked a hole between us and The Warp. Siphons are the source of all magic, the things that power the System and all Harbinger Tech. It¡¯s not the mist you have to be afraid of, It¡¯s the things on the other side of the mist. Shining a light down there is like ringing a dinner bell for all the creepy crawlies that exist on that plane. ¡°I see.¡± Kala said, nodding at Elliot¡¯s explanation. ¡°Then do you have any idea how to get out of here?¡± Well, they dropped us through the primary Warp vent, landing us on the observation platform¡­If we follow the bannister long enough, we should be able to find¡­something. I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ve never seen one in person. ¡°Sounds like as good a plan as any.¡± Calvin said, glancing around. You think I could have the wasps fly me back up the shaft? Try it. Might be better than trying to get out the hard way. ¡°Kala, can you see if you can find the shaft we dropped down?¡± It¡¯s not like the old cultists spend all day hanging around the edge of the damn thing, after all. Kala shifted his weight in her arms and uncovered the light, focusing it into a narrow beam, pointing it at the ceiling. ¡°All those lessons are finally paying off,¡± Kala said, the dim backwash of light revealing her discolored eye. The sight filled Calvin with a deep frustration at his current situation. He¡¯d gotten them here, and now he was mostly helpless. He was supposed to protect her, and she was currently carrying him like a helpless waif. It was grinding on his nerves. ¡°I don¡¯t see it.¡± Kala said, yanking him out of his thoughts. ¡°What?¡± Calvin asked, directing his gaze up, using his superior night vision to inspect the stone ceiling high above them. They were standing inside a massive dome, from what her light could reveal, but no matter how she moved the light across the ceiling, there was no evidence of a hole. Ah, crap, we¡¯re stuck in the filter. ¡°What?¡± Calvin asked out loud, not bothering to keep his thoughts private anymore. Kala could hear, or at least see Elliot well enough to talk to him. The filter is a subdimension that is a perfect copy of the Siphon, halfway between the real siphon and the warp. It¡¯s designed to keep the juicy Warp flowing, while preventing reality-warping monsters from finding a way into our existence. Like a little bug-catcher. ¡°What does that mean for us?¡± The exit isn¡¯t going to be above us. We¡¯ve got to find a working station and get it to phase-shift us out of the Filter before we can leave. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s walk the edge of the platform and see if we can find some kind of bridge off.¡± Calvin said shortly before he heard a notification that he¡¯d regained his first Bent. 1/8 Warp Remaining. That¡¯s not Bent. Why do I have Warp, Elliot? Now don¡¯t get mad, but I might have spent a few of your skill slots. And¡­ Elliot sounded like he coughed into his hand. Half your Body. What!? It¡¯s fine, It¡¯ll be fine. You¡¯re gonna come out ahead on this deal. I know what I¡¯m doing. Show me my Abilities. You don¡¯t have to see them right away, do you, I mean ¨C Right now. Calvin Gadsint Body: 8 Strength: 6 Kinesthetics: 7 Endurance: 6 Mind: 34 Intuition: 18 Stability: 16 Will: 24 Bent: 0/16 Warp: 1/8 Skills: Stealth 7 Playboy 11 Old Salt 8 Sense-Grafting 15 Dupdomancy 18 Meditation 19 Chained Spirit 18 Calvinian Summoning 18 Your Princess is in Another Castle 7 Beli Ma 10 Genosian Language 5 Shifting 11 What in Avashniel¡¯s Hoary ass is that!? Calvin thought, brows furrowing as he scanned the contents. From a rough glance, he¡¯d lost no less than six of his skills, and gained two: Playboy and Old Salt. In my defense, It¡¯ll work out better for everyone involved ¨C ¡°Why is my Body at eight!?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°What?¡± Kala asked, frowning. Well, the Warp Tank wasn¡¯t playing well with your body toxicity, so I had to cannibalize ANOTHER skill slot to redistribute half your Body to create a sort of shielding around it that keeps you from croaking. Then, to offset the lost skill slots, I made a system that allows me to stack tangentially related skills into Disciplines, which take the place of the skills in question. I put as many non-spellcasting abilities in there as I could, freeing up four slots by stacking Knife-Work, Fishing, and Hunting into Old Salt, and Talking to Girls, Read Expression, and Acting into Playboy. ¡°But why is my Body at eight!?¡± Calvin demanded, ¡°I¡¯m as weak as a first Break child!¡± Not only that, his Stealth had been forcibly dragged back down to seven, matching his now greatly reduced Kinesthetics. You¡¯re really taking a glass half-empty view on this. ¡°I¡¯m stuck in a fucking hole in the ground in the ass-end of our reality and you messed with the System in my head and made me weak as a child!¡± It was no wonder he broke his leg. He was human levels of frail right now. ¡°Why now!?¡± Calvin shouted, turning his attention inward, looking for some way to slap some sense into Elliot. ¡°SHH,¡± Kala clapped her hand over Calvin¡¯s mouth, gaining his attention. She peeled one finger off Calvin¡¯s mouth and pointed in front of them, slowly shifting the light up to reveal a massive spider watching them from just outside the range of Calvin¡¯s Tarak senses. The massive spider didn¡¯t have any eyes¡­ Calvin blinked as the fur of the guar-sized creature shifted on top of it, seemingly moving of its own accord. Trying to sense them, maybe? ¡°I think we should back away slowly,¡± Calvin whispered. Kala nodded in agreement, carrying him backwards, her hand gliding along the bannister as they backed away. Macronomicon Chapter 100: Fractal Mimic ***Matthias, Master Illusionist/Healer*** ¡°How¡¯s your temperature?¡± Matthias asked, putting the back of his hand on Suppan¡¯s head. She felt normal, thank the gods. ¡°Stop worrying, I¡¯ve got twelve endurance, and I¡¯m not some frail old woman.¡± Suppan said, slapping his hand aside. ¡°I¡¯m a Legend.¡± ¡°A legend with a hole in her heart.¡± He said. ¡°There¡¯s every possibility some sickness rode in on the dagger, and my illusionary flesh doesn¡¯t clean wounds, just patches them, and it¡¯s not like we can cancel the spell for a while to clean it, like we could with Kate, either. ¡°You sure I shouldn¡¯t watch over you while you sleep? Just to be safe.¡± He asked with a raised brow. ¡°Get out of here,¡± She said, slapping at him. ¡°Alright, Alright, goodnight,¡± He said, putting a hand on her chest. Illusionary Flesh. 18/30 Bent Remaining. He topped off the patch in her chest so the spell would remain strong through the night. It was an ability he¡¯d gotten at the fifteenth level of Mnemonic Illusions. There was no such thing as a spell that could heal someone in an instant, but Matthias was damn close. He stepped out of Suppan¡¯s mansion, rolling his shoulders with a sigh. Today was a lot more work than he¡¯d expected, but wasn¡¯t that just normal? You take a paycheck, and they put you through Avashniel¡¯s fiery domain. He glanced off to the side, where Euaha had placed his yurt on the wizard¡¯s sandy side yard. Euaha didn¡¯t much care for the wound stabilizing effects of Illusionary Flesh, and he wasn¡¯t hurt that bad, anyway. Kidnapping the Genosian and hiding her from the client was going to bite them in the ass, though, he just knew it. I really hope it was more important than getting his dick wet. Euaha wasn¡¯t telling. Not that their client would do anything extreme. Between the four of them, they were a force to be reckoned with. His mind defaulted to the worst case scenario, like a true worrier, as he made his way to his room at the inn. He could have stayed in Suppan¡¯s place, but it was woefully outside the range of the local library and red light district. His inn was the perfect distance from both. He made his way through the quiet streets and clomped up the stairs to his rented bed, his body slowly shutting down in preparation to slump down into bed. He tugged the door open and half-stumbled into his room, before he heard someone speak ¡°I want to hire you,¡± A young man¡¯s voice said. Matthias jumped in place, looking up and to the left at the source of the voice, sitting in his squeaky wooden recliner. ¡°Oh, gods!¡± Matthias gave a strangled cry as the Malkenrovian boy with the Nem collar watched him with a raised brow. Illusionary Guardians, Decoy Invisibility Blindness Torpor Call of the Void 13/30 Bent remaining. Matthias panted as adrenaline surged through his body, pointing his invisible finger at the lad wearing the incredibly expensive collar, while his tangible decoy did the same. The boy continued looking at his real body, not showing any sign of being sleepy, blind or dead. ¡°Jumpy. Are you done? I¡¯m not here to try to hurt you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s just what someone trying to hurt me would say!¡± Matthias said, edging toward the door. He needed to tell someone. ¡°Here, I¡¯ll prove it.¡± He held up his palms, and two knives emerged from them. Matthias tensed, waiting for the boy to charge or throw them, but he simply stood up and tossed them lightly out the window. ¡°There. I have no spells, no knives, just a man looking to hire a Sorcerer.¡± Matthias relaxed slightly, but he was still on guard. ¡°What do you want with me?¡± ¡°You broke my system. I saw it. I couldn¡¯t summon my wasps when I wanted to and had to resort to a low-level Shifting. That was when I decided to run for help and put the fight on the backburner.¡± ¡°Wait¡­did we arrest the copy?¡± Matthias asked. That didn¡¯t make any sense. ¡°No, he¡­you were using Bent. A construct can¡¯t do that.¡± The boy smiled. ¡°Dear Rian, you¡¯re the copy. It¡¯s been hours.¡± ¡°How did you manage to last this long? What¡¯s it like being a copy? Do you think it had something to do with the collar or the Illusionary terrain? Maybe both?¡± Matthias mind whirred into action, deconstructing the variables. ¡°Right, if the collar stabilizes your form, then suppressing the system may have broken any arbitrary time restrictions.¡± Matthias muttered to himself. This was amazing! With the proper experiments, and cooperation from a Gadveran dupdomancer, he could find a way to make permanent copies of people! It was sad it was so expensive, but the cost could definitely be worth it with the right people, and perhaps they could find a way to reduce the costs. No one said it had to be a full sheath of Nem around their neck. Maybe a small amulet or bracelet would work? ¡°Hold up,¡± Calvin said, raising a hand. ¡°Did you say suppressing the system? ¡°Yes, it¡¯s one of my passive Abilities that make my spells harder to resist by interfering with the user¡¯s System.¡± ¡°That,¡± the Malkenrovian captain said, snapping his fingers and pointing at him. ¡°I need that.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°My main body has an unwanted passenger. I want to buy some insurance.¡± ***Calvin*** The eyeless spider didn¡¯t attack, after half an hour of holding their breath and keeping their heads on a swivel, it seemed like the creature wasn¡¯t interested in them as prey. At least, not right now. Maybe it wasn¡¯t hungry, because there was no way a predator native to this place was unable to see them¡­ 1/16 Bent Remaining. ¡°Put me down,¡± Calvin whispered. ¡°I don¡¯t want to explode into wasps on you.¡± Kala nodded and gingerly lowered Calvin to the floor. He¡¯d briefly considered summoning Nadia and having her carry him, but that didn¡¯t really solve the main problem of his broke, bleeding leg, and his bruised, broken ribs. Calvin wasn¡¯t interested in being a liability. He knew from experience that when he used Heart of the Swarm, his body was put into some kind of stasis for the duration of the spell. Buying himself an extra¡­ Eighteen times eighteen¡­ Twenty times eighteen is three sixty, minus thirty six¡­three twenty four. Divided by sixty¡­ Five and a half hours. The duration of Calvinian summoning really snuck up on me. Plenty of time to regain Bent¡­Unless someone fucked with that, too. So salty. Of course I¡¯m salty, I exercised for six months straight to raise my stats that high! Okay, I think you need a demonstration of the benefits. Elliot said as Kala laid him down. Try to raise one of your stats. Pump some iron or something. With Kala¡¯s assistance, Calvin was able to do some bicep curls, basically arm-wrestling the princess. She went easy on him. +1 Strength 0/8 Warp Remaining. So you can use it like normal Warp? Yes and no. The Warp you can store can be used for four things: Raising secondary attributes, learning skills, raising skills, and modifying basic System functions, moving permanency over from dupdomancy to calvinian summoning, for example. It¡¯s more effective too, because since it¡¯s a man-made¡­tank sort of thing, the Warp isn¡¯t freely available to your body at all times. Think of natural Warp as being in an open bucket that splashes over onto everything you¡¯re doing, while this has a pump and hose on it. Open it up when you¡¯re doing the exercise or practicing the skill you want to raise, and Bam! Effortless Skill raising. What you can¡¯t do with it: raise primary attributes. Sadly, the System caught the infinite exploit right out the gate and shut me down. Oh, and we can dump your storage tank into your body if you¡¯re at a high level of Warp, helping to trigger a Break. Basically, the Warp you need to Break can be reduced by the amount you¡¯re storing. Calvin was forced to admit that it did sound good, but¡­ One more thing. Yeah? Who chooses when the Warp gets used? Me or you? There was a lingering moment of silence. I can make an activation system for the Warp Tank for you to use, no problem. That would be appreciated. Calvin thought, eyes narrowed as a clattering noise began to echo through the back of his mind, with Elliot muttering to himself. He winced as he felt a broken rib shift as his lungs expanded. Time to ditch this body for a while. Calvinian Summoning Heart of the swarm. Calvin¡¯s broken body vanished as thirty-six giant wasps leapt out of the green smoke billowing from him, each one roughly his own body weight. It made calculating his landing easier, as well as his minimum for running away. Calvin¡¯s perception expanded as it always did, forcing him to process information through multiple sets of eyes and sensitive antennae, forming a little cloud of awareness. The area wasn¡¯t quite as good, due to the relatively small number of wasps, but between the thirty-six of them, they covered an area a little wider than his Tarka Skin, surrounding Kala in a protective circle of man-sized wasps crawling along the floor. ¡°I feel safer already,¡± Kala said with a hint of a smile, tossing the light above her finger up and making it¡¯s glow redouble, shedding cold light on their surroundings. The massive grey-furred spider was closer, having crept silently through the darkness while they hadn¡¯t been paying attention to it. It was stalking them. Fun, Calvin thought, shifting a portion of his wasps to reinforce the blockers between Kala and the creature. Let¡¯s see if we can get rid of this thing. Calvin wasn¡¯t keen on live and let live with something that dangerous. A moment of inattention and it could pounce on Kala, and that would be that. It was at least six feet tall and twenty feet wide. Big, but a dozen man-sized wasps should be able to take it down. Without warning, Calvin sent a dozen wasps into the air, launching them forward and onto the still spider, jamming their stingers into the creature¡¯s grey fur. Calvin¡¯s stingers broke through the creature¡¯s carapace surprisingly easily, letting out some kind of icky white-grey blood, along with a healthy dose of Fever Wasp venom. Then the grey fur moved under Calvin¡¯s feet. Climbed up it. The creature was made of identical grey eyeless spiders, about pal-sized, and linked together to form a single whole. Calvin tried to leap away, but each of his dozen wasps were being pulled into the creature¡¯s bulk by the pull of thousands of sharp little feet scratching against his own carapace. What in the ever-dying abyss of all that is damned and¡­gah! Calvin wasn¡¯t able to curse, but his dozen wasps buzzed loud enough to made up for it, trying to stab the creature reflexively. Some kind of colony? Kala took the hint and started moving away as the giant spider reared up and caught one of his fleeing wasps with it¡¯s forelegs, somehow piercing it¡¯s carapace with fangs distinctly made of more spiders, and injecting some kind of toxin into the wasp¡¯s bloodstream. Calvin experienced a lingering moment of pain as that wasp died before it dissolved into green mist. Three of his wasps were able to pull themselves out of the creature¡¯s grasp, and calvin turned his attention to Kala. Run away, I¡¯ll keep it busy! Calvin urgently waved for her to leave with his legs while the ones beside her pushed her away. Calvin wasn¡¯t doing a heroic sacrifice. Far from it. He could literally lose wasps to the creature for hours, as long as Bad Penny was being supplied with so much Warp. Hours Kala and the rest of his wasps could use to get some much-needed distance. The creature might be annoying and immune to poison via separation, but Calvin had his own tricks. He felt a bite at the joint of one of his antennae and flicked one of the small spiders off with his foot, crushing the thing in the process. It tumbled to the ground, leaving a smear of grey gunk on his foot. The poison was already working, though, causing a terrible pain and dizziness to go through the wasp¡¯s body. Calvin thoughtlessly touched the antennae with the same foot and the pain redoubled. He mentally winced, and took a look at the black carapace wasp foot he was currently using. No way. The grey gunk was moving. Calvin held the foot real close to the creature¡¯s compound eyes, and made out incredibly small grey spiders swarming up his foot, even as that wasp started getting dizzy from the pain. A moment later, the wasp spun to the ground and died. Calvin turned the attention of his remaining wasps on it. When the wasp dissolved into green smoke, a fist-sized amalgam of grey slime formed into a grey palm sized spider, setting off toward the main body that was currently taking swipes at Calvin¡¯s wasps. That was in my wasp¡¯s head. It¡¯s not venom. It¡¯s injecting itself and eating flesh from the inside. Calvin¡¯s wasps split, bringing his total back up to thirty six in an instant. Alright, fuck this. Calvin rose up higher and began bombarding the thing with poison, dry firing above it and simply dripping onto the creature from his many stingers. Lets see how your little pieces like being drowned in poison. Apparently they did not, as large gobs of the creature sloughed off of the main mass, and it tried to get away from Calvin¡¯s unfair aerial assault. The creature twitched as calvin chased it, and it¡¯s limbs shrunk down, combining. Calvin paused, confused as it¡¯s coloration turned brown, it¡¯s shape turning vaguely humanoid. An instant later, it¡¯s shape resolved into Kala¡¯s lithe body, sans clothes, and made of smaller Kala¡¯s, each writhing over the other, inexplicably able to keep the whole together. ¡°I feel safer already.¡± It said in what was almost Kala¡¯s voice. ¡°I feel safer already.¡± ¡°Safer already?¡± it said, tilting it¡¯s head to look up at him. Cool, new species. I think I¡¯ll name it a Fractal Mimic. Think we can teach it to do tricks? Calvin just felt like throwing up. Fortunately the wasp¡¯s stomachs were empty. Let¡¯s just kill this thing. Macronomicon Chapter 101: Catch a Break ¡°Calvin?¡± Calvin¡¯s insects flinched away from the creature as it started calling his name. it must have heard Kala say it. Taking that as a sign that invoking his name could ward him off, it started saying it repeatedly, all the three-inch Kala¡¯s voices along the creature¡¯s body rose up as each of them began calling out his name, adding high pitched, chittering noises that resolved into his own name if he paid enough attention. ¡°Calvin!¡± ¡°Calvin, Calvin!¡± Calvin spun away further, his wings fluttering as his imaginary gorge rose. Is it doing something to me? Some kind of mental attack? I feel sick, like I¡¯m gonna pass out. Don¡¯t quote me on this, but you¡¯re probably just Breaking. Took a while, actually. Probably because this stuff¡¯s like crude oil compared to the stuff on the surface. Let me know if you experience any discomfort. For science. Now!? Sonofabitch! It would probably kick Calvin out of his wasp-body, and going through the Break with a body that damaged was a great way to die. Not to mention the eldritch horror that wanted to eat him with a trillion Kalas But it was happening, so Calvin had to deal. His bugs near Kala saw that she had a sheen of sweat on her brow, signifying a Break. The one thing that absolutely cannot happen is for both of us to pass out at the same time. He didn¡¯t have any Bent left, and another three hours before he got another one. Kala might have some, but even if he borrowed one point from her, his wasps were mindless killing machines without directions. He couldn¡¯t provide directions while he was unconscious. His Knick-Knacks were much smarter, and he could probably give them complicated instructions with a reasonable chance that they would follow through on it without supervision, but they were incapable or unwilling to cause harm. Nadia would let Kala die while he slept, if not kill her herself. ***Nadia*** ¡°Hah! The kid¡¯s totally got your number!¡± Elliot crowed through the little black box in her room while Nadia crossed her arms and pouted. ¡°That¡¯s Guar shit! He would obviously make her a summon! Does I look like I want an annoying Gadveran stick-princess for a roommate?¡± She threw her drink at the screen. At least I would make sure he couldn¡¯t find the body when he woke up, She thought, nodding to herself. ***Calvin*** Due to his injuries, his Break would probably be longer than normal, hours, an entire night at least. Kala¡¯s would be comparatively shorter, being in much better condition. Looks like keepaway it is. A moving, intelligent bed made of Knick-Knacks was about as good as Calvin could think of. Calvin flew all his wasps save one over to the Mimic, squirting it with all the venom he could spare. ¡°Calvin!¡± It said, holding Kala¡¯s hand up to shield itself, putting all five fingers composed of smaller Kalas in the path of the venom. They began to melt and slowly slough away as the microscopic Kalas ingested the poison and died. Gods, that makes it hard to follow through, Calvin thought as the false Kala screamed in pain, running away from him. Damn. Calvin could only hope it wasn¡¯t interested in coming back, because he was starting to lose the ability to control his swarm. Calvin quickly killed the wasps out in the darkness, then unsummoned the final one in front of Kala, dropping his real body onto the ground a couple inches off the metal grate. A nub of bone caught him in the back, but that was the least of his discomfort. The light impact grinded the broken rib-stubs against each other in his chest, paralyzing his lungs There was a warm spurt of blood from the massive puncture in his leg, along with an agonizing burning sensation that seemed to spread up and into his hips. ¡°Break,¡± Calvin said by way of explanation. ¡°Got any Bent to spare?¡± Summon the Knick-Knacks, then tell them to carry Kala and me, obey either of our instructions, and to keep us together and away from anything down here that moves. With an emphasis on keeping us safe. Should work. She shook her head, her sweat-soaked brow furrowed. ¡°Not for an hour or so.¡± ¡°Well, shit.¡± Calvin said as his eyelids fluttered, struggling to keep his eyes from rolling back in his head. ¡°Now I feel sheepish.¡± Here we go! Hold onto your assets! Warp overflow detected¡­ Initializing Warp Protection System¡­ Break. Calvin¡¯s eyes finally rolled into the back of his head as he slipped into unconsciousness. ***Jinnei, Western Ocean*** ¡°Good tide to you as well,¡± Jinnei said, folding her arms and bowing in the traditional Shuweya greeting as she stepped off the ramp of Karen¡¯s Folley. Shuweya were rather pale people who shared heritage and a root language with the continent to the west, but that was where the similarity ended. A long, long time ago a Warp mutation had carried on from a coastal fishermen to his children and their children after them. The ability to breathe water was a fine advantage, but mainlanders didn¡¯t take kindly to these people as they became more numerous, pushing them out into the ocean, where they settled the small islands that dotted the water, gradually developing their own culture and trade. ¡°I¡¯ve seen him before,¡± the Shuweya chief said, pointing at Kip, ¡°But not you, or your ship. It¡¯s make is unfamiliar.¡± Jinnei glanced over her shoulder at her vessel, where Karen¡¯s Folly had been hastily slapped over the ship¡¯s former name. ¡°It¡¯s a recent acquisition from Iletha.¡± ¡°And the rest of these?¡± he asked, motioning to the fleet of vessels anchored in the bay, their crews held hostage on the beach at swordpoint. ¡°The West Gadvera Trading company.¡± Jinnei said with a grin. ¡°Are these ships from the island?¡± he asked, his welcoming smile turning suspicious. He didn¡¯t need to specify which island. They both knew he was talking about the one with the giant caterpillar shitting out ships. Jinnei still wasn¡¯t sure she¡¯d actually seen what she thought she¡¯d seen. People exploding into black tubes, strange half-metal creatures that stank of death. ¡°They are a fleet of Ilethan trading ships whose escort was lost in a storm. We are going to sell them to Gadvera for a tidy ransom.¡± The chieftan¡¯s grey eyes narrowed. ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡± ¡°Fine, we got them from the island, but there wasn¡¯t any curse.¡± Jinnei said, ¡°Just a fleet of Ilethans chasing everyone away.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not entirely sure of that.¡± ¡°What are you, my mother?¡± Jinnei demanded. ¡°We¡¯ve got steel and you¡¯ve got food. Are you interested in a deal, or what?¡± The man¡¯s brows rose as Kip made little ¡®stop¡¯ motions with his hands on the edge of JInnei¡¯s vision. The man scowled, the gills on the side of his neck ruffling as he curled his toes in the sand. ¡°One day.¡± Kip groaned. ¡°I will give you one day and one night to trade, then I want you on your way.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± Jinnei said, putting her hand out. The chief glanced down at her outstretched hand and ignored it, turning away to stalk back up the beach toward the sprawling city carved into the stone of the island. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have insulted him.¡± Kip asked. ¡°Just sweeten the pot a little and we could have had a week.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the difference? It won¡¯t take more than a day to load the ships and be on our way again.¡± ¡°Men need rest days. A little time on land between months at sea. One day spent hauling tons of cargo before setting out the next day isn¡¯t going to sit well with the men.¡± ¡°Tell them to suck it up,¡± Jinnei said, rolling up her sleeves. ¡°I¡¯m not asking them to do anything I wouldn¡¯t demand of myself.¡± ¡°Have everybody with mercantile Skills loaded up with knives, axes and nails from the ship¡¯s storage. Have them scatter and secure enough fresh fruits and salted fish to last twice the expected journey. And¡­see if you can¡¯t hire on-board entertainment to make up for it. Use discretion. I don¡¯t want to get their hopes up in advance.¡± ¡°I guess you did learn a thing or two,¡± Kip said, nodding. ¡°If only just.¡± ¡°Get to it,¡± Jinnei said before heading back up the ramp and grabbing a heavy-duty wheelbarrow, throwing the hefty piece of wood and iron over her shoulder. Her increased Body was treating her well. ¡°Come on boys, we¡¯re burning daylight here! Every minute we waste, the value of those Ilethan ships depreciates!¡± Jinnei¡¯s pirates gave a half-hearted cry of enthusiasm. ¡°What was that!?¡± Jinnei demanded, rounding on them. ¡°Who wants to make some ¡®Vash-damned money!?¡± There was a slightly louder cheer. ¡°Who wants to snort Jush off a hooker¡¯s titties!?¡± There was a much louder cheer. ¡°Then work like you mean it! Sooner we¡¯re out of here, sooner we¡¯re drowning in luxury! You really want to share a stone cot with a fishy smelling tart!?¡± They piled off the ramp after her, leaving only the men watching the Ilethan skeleton crews. It took all night, but they eventually got enough to last them two months, twice the estimated distance of the trip between them and their final destination. During the intensive labor, many of the pirates looked like they wanted to say something, but held their tongue when they saw their captain carrying entire barrels over her shoulder, moving at a blazing hustle as she loaded up ferry after ferry, where teams of priates loaded up their primary vessel with the food. The vast majority of the food was on her own vessel, as further incentive for the captive Ilethans to think twice before deciding to overthrow their captors. They might be able to kill the pirates watching them, but they would most likely starve if they didn¡¯t regularly accept food from her flagship. It was nearing the early hours of the morning when Jinnei threw the last barrel of underripe fruits into the ferry and collapsed into it, allowing her aching body to be rowed back to Karen¡¯s Folly. When she arrived, the barbeques were running at full capacity, flooding the deck with orange light as men chatted, ate and drank. There were even a handful of Shuweyan dancers livening things up, hiding their nudity behind gesh fronds as the sailors cheered wildly. Kip gave her a hand out of the boat as it was hoisted level with the main ship. ¡°Good job,¡± She said nodding at the blissfully entranced pirates. ¡°I doubt it¡¯ll last them all the way to Gadvera, but it¡¯s a damn sight better than nothing,¡± he agreed, following her gaze. ¡°I¡¯m going to sleep. Facilitate volunteers for the morning shift, don¡¯t wake me before noon unless the ocean is on fire.¡± ¡°Aye, sir,¡± Kip said, the salty old pirate saluting her as she stumbled to the captain¡¯s cabin, hauled the heavy door open, then shutting it, slamming a heavy steel rod in place, barring it closed. As well received as she was among the Malkenrovian pirates¡­they were still filthy, brutish pirates that she didn¡¯t trust one bit. She did her customary check of the closet and the bedding, making sure no one was hiding out in her room, before collapsing into bed, asleep almost immediately **** The knocking that woke her up seemed urgent, rattling the iron bar stretched across it. ¡°Captain, wake up! Something strange on the horizon!¡± Jinnei peeled a single eye open and peered out of the steel reinforced window in the rear of her cabin. The sun was falling on the west side of the tropical island shrinking into the distance behind them. It was before noon. ¡°Better be on fire,¡± she muttered, climbing out of the pillowy down comforter and sliding her shoes on, tightening them with a quick jerk. She marched up to the rattling door, peered out to make sure it wasn¡¯t a dozen men looking to jump her, then yanked it open when she saw Kip¡¯s concerned face. ¡°You¡¯re gonna want to see this.¡± He said, nodding toward the crow¡¯s nest. Jinnei narrowed her eyes and jumped a third of the way up the mast in a single bound, catching the rungs and working her way up to the nest. She slid into the cramped space beside the thin spotter with missing teeth and bad hygiene, and accepted the spyglass from him, wiping the thing clean before putting it to her eye. She knew what these people had on their hands. ¡°What am I looking fo- oh, shit.¡± Rather than having to scan the horizon, the horizon itself seemed to be the problem. Behind them, beyond the Shuweyan island, on the very edge of the horizon, was a fleet the likes of which didn¡¯t seem possible. Sails were so thick on the horizon that they seemed to blend together to make a whitish band around the edge of the world. ¡°There!¡± The spotter said, pointing to the island, prompting Jinnei to shift her gaze. Gigantic metallic caterpillars were in the process of dragging themselves out of the ocean and setting upon the island¡¯s forests. ¡°Damn it to the abyss and all the hells therin.¡± Jinnei muttered before launching herself out of the nest, falling the thirty feet to the ground, her feet sending up splinters when she landed on the deck. ¡°Send the signal to all the other ships! Turn around and head toward the island for a pass across the western side!¡± Jinnei bellowed with everything she had. Kip began spewing out commands and the men rushed to do her bidding. Yeah, I could get used to instant obedience. Leadership has reached level 7! 35% Correction. The ship groaned as it turned against the wind, and they began zig-zagging, attempting to reach the Shuweyan before the Ilethan fleet. If that even is the ilethan fleet. The going was slow, and by the time they were within hailing distance of the island, the massive creatures had already consumed a huge portion of the Shuweyan island and destroyed huge swaths of the stone cities. The pirates muttered, expressions dark as she guided them closer to the giant creatures that had destroyed their last vessel. With the wind at their backs, the enemy fleet closed rapidly, resolving into an armada the likes of which no one had ever seen, stretching out from a few miles away, all the way to the horizon and beyond. ¡°I take it your aim is to save these people?¡± Kip asked her quietly. ¡°That poses serious challenges, sir, not least of which is how to get them all to the boats. We don¡¯t exactly have a lot of time to send out the dinghys to round them up.¡± As he spoke, the enemy fleet was beginning to curve around the island like a living thing, threatening to swallow it up. They¡¯d seen Jinnei¡¯s fleet, and were making to surround her. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Jinnei asked, glancing at him as they reached the point of no return. She pointed at the hundreds of people swimming toward their ships. Some were already trying to climb the sides. ¡°Down to the smallest child, the Shuweyan are excellent swimmers. Drop the nets for them to climb and let¡¯s get the fuck out of here. Anyone who doesn¡¯t make it, we¡¯re leaving behind.¡± ¡°Yessir,¡± Kip said, relaying the orders. The pirates breathed a sigh of relief as they began to turn away, evading the encircling net. A rumbling caught Jinnei¡¯s ears. ¡°Is it another of those wurms!?¡± ¡°Ah fuck, we¡¯re dead if that¡¯s so!¡± ¡°Shut it!¡± Jinnei shouted, tilting her head to listen. ¡°It¡¯s not the wurm. Sounds different.¡± She glanced around and noticed the arm of the the encircling armada had somehow sped up drastically, with froth spraying up behind their boats like the bottom of a waterfall. That was where the sound was coming from. ¡°What the Abyss is that?¡± Jinnei asked Kip, pointing at the boats moving at breakneck speeds, sending up walls of spray as they moved faster than the wind. ¡°I¡­don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Gods damnit! Load the cannons and ready to turn us starboard! We¡¯re going to have to brute force our way through this thing!¡± ¡°You,¡± She said, pointing at a random deckhand. ¡°Go belowdeck and grab all the arms we confiscated and put a saber in the hands of every gillface dragging himself aboard. There¡¯s no free rides on the Karen¡¯s Folly!¡± They watched helplessly as the enemy ships nimbly out maneuvered them, creating an impassible wall of wood in front of them. ¡°Hard to starboard!¡± Jinnei shouted, turning her ship into a narrow gap between two enemy vessels, unloading every cannonball they had into them. The heavy attack took the two on either side out of the race, but the other ships were travelling so much faster, they were easily able to pull up alongside Jinnei¡¯s ship. ¡°Llortan,¡± one of the greying Malkenrovian pirates said, warding himself against evil as the ships approached close enough for them to see their occupants. The enemies were Malkenrovian, primarily, with a few Ilethans mixed in, but they did not look right. They were far too pale, their eyes bruised, gums blackened. ¡°Don¡¯t let them slow us down!¡± Jinnei shouted, walking back and forth across the deck. ¡°Keep our sails clear, cut any hooks off, focus on speed!¡± Jinnei¡¯s crew of pirates, along with their ILethan ¡®guests¡¯ and Shuweyan rescues, tightened their grips on their sabers as the ocean breeze was overcome with a foul smell. Moments later, battle was joined, with the strange Malkenrovians attempting to seize control of the top deck, trying to push their men away from the railing so they could put up a board. ¡°That speed thing¡¯s all well and good,¡± Kip said between hacks, ¡°But what are we going to do about that?¡± he nodded toward a third ship easily overtaking the embattled Karen¡¯s Folly and turning sideways, presenting an impassable obstable. They couldn¡¯t go through the other ship: they didn¡¯t have the size, speed, strength or mass to survive such a thing. They were well and truly boxed in. Damn¡­ Jinnei gritted her teeth and prepared to fight to the death. There was a glimmer of light, and the ship in front of them split in half, wood creaking in protest as each severed end turned skyward, revealing some strange, bleeding metal mechanism in the ship¡¯s guts. ¡°What in the Abyss did I just see?¡± Jinnei asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but now¡¯s not the time to stop and ponder it!¡± Kip shouted, shoving a hissing Malkenrovian with blackened gums off the side of the ship. Despite his advice, Jinnei kept looking, idly fending off the occasional screeching sailor. Far beyond the split vessel was a Gadveran destroyer, but even more interesting to Jinnei was the person running along the surface of the water, from the destroyed ship, directly toward them. A very large person, wearing very heavy armor. Running on water. Crap. Jinnei forgot all of her dignity as a pirate captain for a moment and almost jumped off the side of the ship. Moment¡¯s later there was an explosion of watter off the edge of the ship and a heavily armored body landed in the center of the deck, illogically causing no damage whatsoever to the wood despite the impact rocking the entire ship. The armored behemoth swung twice, and every enemy on either side fell into two pieces, and their ships received massive gouges along their sides that began bubbling furiously, causing the ships to list. ¡°By all the gods, it¡¯s Karen the Bloodletter!¡± ¡°Nonsense, she disappeared twenty years ago when Malkenrovia closed! That has to be someone else!¡± ¡°Hi, mom,¡± Jinnei said, waving sheepishly with one hand as Karen eyed her furiously. Macronomicon Enjoy! Spent the weekend moving furniture, but unlike most of the times moving furniture in my life, this time it was my furniture. That''s right, Macronomicon has a couch. Been able to meet and exceed the deadlines well recently, so Patreon is up to chapter 128! Hopefully life will continue to be manageable...but you all know how silly that idea is. Chapter 102: Pee-conomics ¡°Look, another Ilethan scum attacking your family,¡± the Wise Man said, pointing at the soldier stalking toward his mother and sister, a lecherous gleam in their eyes. ¡°Protect them.¡± Baroke didn¡¯t hesitate. With a single breath he drew and fired, launching a thick arrow out of his bow and catching the bastard in the chest. Thank the gods I got to them in time, Baroke though, heaving a sigh of relief, his limbs drooping with exhaustion. People had been trying to rape his sister all day. His sister didn¡¯t look at him, oddly. Now that the emergency was over, she seemed¡­locked in her panic. ¡°It¡¯s fine, they¡¯re all gone, we can go to Mujenan now,¡± Baroke said, pointing over his shoulder with his thumb. They¡¯d be safe in Mujenan. Posei flickered. For an instant she was gone, and in the periphery of his vision, the skin of the ilethans darkend. Then everything went back to normal, and she turned to look at him, breathing a sigh of relief. ¡°Thanks, brother!¡± Baroke¡¯s hair stood on end. She never called him brother. She called him Baroke, or muscle-head, or fartface. Never brother. ¡°What¡¯s my name?¡± He¡¯d never given the ilethan scum his name. Not that he could recall. A slow smile spread over his sister¡¯s face. ¡°You did well.¡± She said lightly, vanishing in front of him as the massacre was revealed. He wasn¡¯t alone. He was standing in formation with dozens of Ilethans, pelting arrows at fleeing Gadverans. His countrymen. Baroke took in a shuddering gasp, but he couldn¡¯t move. His body wasn¡¯t his own. The only thing he could do was watch. Study the disproportionate number of men and women with his arrows in their hearts. He could tell because they¡¯d painted his fletching red. For science. A hand grasped his shoulder. ¡°Sleep now.¡± A harsh old man¡¯s voice whispered, tickling his ear, inducing equal parts rage and disgust. Baroke started falling asleep again, his body tilting as it slumped out from under him. No, no NO NO! **** ¡°Ow, what the Abyss, Baroke?¡± Baroke heard Calvin¡¯s voice. He felt something puny in his hand. Baroke blinked the sand out of his eyes and took in the situation. Maya was sitting up in bed, most of the covers dedicated to covering her nudity, while leaving Baroke stranded halfway in the cold of the night. Calvin was standing over him, wincing in pain, wearing a trendy effeminate blue choker, his delicate, girl-like wrist seized in Baroke¡¯s masculine, work-hardened hands. ¡°You need to stop thinking whatever you¡¯re thinking right now,¡± Calvin said with a scowl. ¡°And let go of my arm.¡± ¡°Make me,¡± Baroke said, looking back up at Calvin¡¯s face with a smile before letting the weakling go. ¡°So what¡¯s the deal?¡± Baroke asked, sliding out of the sheet and reaching down for his pants, his dreams set aside. The nagging doubt was slowly fading. None of his loved ones were being inexplicably attacked en masse, he had complete control over his body, and the continuity of events was immaculate. I¡¯m fine. ¡°I assume this is something important and you weren¡¯t just drawn here by my scent like Maya?¡± Maya hit him in the ribs with nearly thirty strength. The little ranger packed a punch. ¡°Yeah, we need to disappear.¡± Calvin said as Baroke clutched his side. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°So Kala and I am currently fighting off an ambush by one of the ¡®neutral¡¯ oligarchs of Uleis, which is a very bad thing that implies there aren¡¯t any neutral uleisan oligarchs. Once they¡¯re done with us, what do you think they¡¯re gonna do to you guys?¡± ¡°Wait a minute,¡± Baroke said raising a hand. ¡°Did you say you¡¯re currently fighting off an ambush? Why are you here, and where¡¯s Kala?¡± ¡°To the Abyss with this,¡± Calvin said rolling his eyes and turning away. The pale kid with the pretty necklace marched into the hallway of the mansion and started screaming at the top of his lungs. ¡°Alarm! Alarm! Get your asses out of bed and get mustered! Get your gear on and packed! I want you downstairs and dressed for the desert in five fucking minutes! NOW NOW NOW!¡± The confused West Boles Trading company spilled out of their rooms, half dressed and sleepy, trying their damndest to comply. ¡°I should¡¯ve just done this from the beginning,¡± Calvin said, his hands on his hips as he watched the chaos unfold from Baroke¡¯s door. Baroke put his pants on. ***Kurewa*** ¡°They¡¯re gone?¡± Kurawe asked, his glass straw rattling against the ice in his drink. How do nearly two thousand men and women disappear in a handful of minutes. ¡°Yessir, they evacuated the mansions before we were able to notice what they were doing.¡± Polluq said, nodding. ¡°How?¡± ¡°There were too many of them to disappear with no trace, so they didn¡¯t bother trying,¡± Pulluq said. ¡°By the time I got there with the guard, there was a muddy trail leading right into the west wing, with an open trap door leading into a collapsed tunnel.¡± Kurawe heaved a sigh. ¡°Less than ideal. In our custody would have been ideal. Someone must have been able to warn them. Continue with the plan. Have the mole give testimony and publicize the Abyss out of it. It¡¯s almost easier now that they¡¯re not around to defend themselves, even if it was a puppet court, but now we have to wait for them to show up at some unexpected time, waving swords and screaming bloody murder.¡± Kurawe rubbed his temples. ¡°None of which is particularly fun to deal with.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Polluq nodded and went off to do what he did best: organize men into something resembling an organization. For a moment, Kurawe briefly wondered how the boy was doing in the Abyss, but shook it off. With the collar on, the Malkenrovian summoner had probably died on impact with the platform, and if he hadn¡¯t he¡¯d be severely wounded: Easy pickings for the reality-warping creatures that roamed the depths. The princess, though. She might survive long enough to despair. Kurawe thought, taking an idle sip of his wine. His glass could be more accurately described as a carafe, but it didn¡¯t bother him too much. ***Calvin*** Calvin opened his eyes. Wow, I wasn¡¯t expecting that. For an idle moment he pondered what he had been expecting death to be like, before he sat bolt upright. Was Kala okay? Him being alive did not necessarily guarantee the princess was unharmed as well. Calvin found himself inside something he¡¯d never wanted to be in again: a Yurt. Yurts held a special place in Calvin¡¯s heart as a rather cozy, comfortable place that housed horrible people. He couldn¡¯t see anything with his eyes, but his ever-handy skin made out the sloped walls, the thick leather held up by long, porous poles¡­that seemed to be made out of bone. Gently curved ten-foot ribs. Not creepy at all. Well, let¡¯s get my bearings. Calvin mentally asked for his Status. Calvin Gadsint Body: 8 Strength: 7 Kinesthetics: 7 Endurance: 6 Mind: 34 Intuition: 18 Stability: 16 Will: 24 Bent: 2/16 Warp: 44/8 Skills: Stealth 7 Playboy 11 Old Salt 8 Sense-Grafting 15 Dupdomancy 18 Meditation 19 Chained Spirit 18 Calvinian Summoning 18 Your Princess is in Another Castle 7 Beli Ma 10 Genosian Language 5 Shifting 11 Well, let¡¯s get my bearings. So, I¡¯ve been out of it between nine to twelve hours, and either Kala found civilization, or civilization found Kala. The fact that Calvin was still alive was a good sign. His leg was wrapped in a clean, dry bandage, and splinted, and his ribs were wrapped in a tight compress to stop them from shifting around while they healed. If they were gonna eat me, I doubt they would have gone through the trouble. You never know. I imagine fresh meat is pretty precious around here. Maybe they¡¯re saving you for later. Thanks for that image, Calvin thought, shaking his head as he sat up, wincing as the pain in his ribs redoubled, protesting at his movements. Calvin managed to muscle down a groan as he sat up, before sliding his ass over to the entrance, where his night vision could make out the barest glimmer of light slipping between the leather flaps. Calvin peered out the flaps and spotted a tiny cookfire with a giant metal cookpot above it, soldered together out of a heavily beaten breastplate. Five people sat around it, poking at something boiling in the water. They were giants, easily thirty feet tall in a cavern big enough to house all of Gadvera without undue effort. Where did they get water? Calvin wondered, but the strangest thing was Kala: Kala was also a giant, sitting beside them, chatting in their huge, moaning voices, chuckling with such a deep baritone that it seemed like it should rattle his bones. Well, at least she seems to be getting along well with the giants, instead of being in the pot, Calvin thought, closing the flap. Assuming there¡¯s no weird fuckery going on here. Calvin blinked. The fire in the cookpot had been a small fire. Calvin could tell the difference between a huge fire that was simply far away, and an actual small fire. The shape of the flames was different. That had been a small fire. If the fire was small, that would mean that the giants around it weren¡¯t giants, but normal sized humans, which meant¡­ I¡¯m tiny. The revelation didn¡¯t shatter Calvin¡¯s worldview. He was probably just under some kind of spell that made the injured more portable. Kala looked safe. From what he could tell, she was charming the natives, and Calvin had been treated. He should be safe for a few more hours. I¡¯ve got other things to focus on right now, like spending my Warp. He scooted back to the center of the room, not minding the soft floor. Calvin wanted to continue the pattern of raising his Mind to the exclusion of all else, and with that as the goal, he needed a puzzle or a book of riddles or something. Two things he didn¡¯t have. There was an easy solution to that. Shadowboxing. Calvin closed his eyes and he was in his own hut back in Deinos, his rickety desk bearing a glass puzzlebox, and Bekvah¡¯s Book. Now we just have to hope I can raise my Mind more than I raise Meditation. Calvin took a deep breath and let it out, relaxing as much as possible. He wanted to focus his attention, his stress, on solving the puzzles themselves, not improving the meditative state he was in. So he sat down in front of Bekvah¡¯s book and turned past the last page he¡¯d ever read. It described a rather perplexing puzzle, and Calvin got right to work trying to decipher it. Shadowboxing Haxorz, pls nerf. Calvin ignored Elliot and focused on finishing the pictogram. He was in a rush. Every hour he spent in a literal hole, his people were probably being killed. If he was lucky they would hold a long and public trial before they got around to chopping their heads off, but Calvin didn¡¯t hold out a lot of hope. If he and Kala didn¡¯t get any theatrics, why would his men? ¡­ Meditation has reached 25! Will has reached 31 Your Mind has reached 45! 0/8 Warp Remaining. Damn, Calvin thought as the last of the Warp left his system. Despite his best effort, about eleven points of Warp had gone into his Will and Meditation rather than every single bit into his Mind. Still, forty-five was a lot. Calvin had never heard of someone having quite that much, and he had an idea for how to achieve another Break after this¡­ Maybe. That was far in the future, and for now, he should probably say hi to the people who must have rescued them. Meditation has reached Level 25! Please choose a- Calvin shoved the prompt to the side, and the System waited patiently as he scooted toward the door of the Yurt. He wanted to see what the situation was and confer with Kala before he did anything. He started scooting back toward the door, the bone splint helping tremendously at keeping his leg straight Calvin pushed the leathery door asid and began hauling his tiny self out the opening, scooting his ass along the hard stone like he had worms. There was a strange ridge between inside the yurt and outside, with the inside floor being something like a waterskin. Odd, he thought as he gained the attention of the giants. But not quite as odd as being shrunk. As he laboriously pulled himself out of the door, the giants began to shrink in front of his eyes, until Calvin flopped out completely onto the cold stone floor. ¡°Hey there, kid,¡± One of the Uleisan men said, waving at him jovially. ¡°You¡¯re a pretty rare sight around here.¡± The cave ceiling was no longer ponderously tall, but instead only about twenty feet high and perhaps the entire cave was only forty feet wide, rather than big enough to fit a small city inside. ¡°I¡¯ll bet,¡± Calvin said absently as he studied the ceiling. What about the Yurt? Calvin thought, glancing back. Sure enough, the yurt was about the size of two fists, inches away from his foot. Calvin shifted his leg out of the way to inspect the Yurt further, and discovered that it was alive. Some kind of creature with a heavy leathery outside had been pinned to the ground with stakes, it¡¯s shell carefully hollowed out in the shape of a house. A tiny little house. There was a stone dish of food right next to the creature¡¯s head, and it ate placidly, crunching through food scraps. Calvin¡¯s eyes rose, and he saw dozens, hundreds of similar houses, each one a living creature secured to a single spot. Some of them had tiny lights flickering from inside them. ¡°Just wait until I get back to the surface,¡± an old man said, drawing Calvin¡¯s attention over to the cookpot. ¡°I¡¯ll make a fortune in the storage and transportation industry.¡± The heavily wrinkled old man cackled to himself as if he¡¯d just told the most hilarious joke, but the others rolled their eyes and poked the fire with long bones. Everything seemed to be made from bone or leather¡­even the firewood seemed to be made from some kind of dried, oily tentacle. ¡°I¡¯m starving,¡± Calvin said, putting his good leg under him and standing. ¡°Is that vegetable soup?¡± ¡°Oh, look, he¡¯s already got a sense of humor!¡± The wrinkled man chuckled. ¡°Hello Calvin, welcome back.¡± Kala said, handing him her empty bowl. ¡°May I?¡± Calvin asked, glancing around. A thin Uleisan in thick leather motioned casually to the bowl. ¡°First day¡¯s free for a newcomer.¡± Calvin gave his thanks and scooped up the¡­soup. The liquid was a strange, clear substance that seemed to evaporate in seconds outside the pot, leaving him a bowl with a few crispy chunks of meat. ¡°That¡¯s new,¡± Calvin muttered, tapping the pieces of meat out and into his mouth, finding them both crispy and chewy, with a disgusting tanginess. But food was food, and Calvin choked it down with a shudder. ¡°Well, he can stand the worst part of the Gunner-ant.¡± One of the men said with a smile. ¡°What do you folks do for water around here?¡± Calvin asked, the thirst beginning to bother him. Kala and the men shared a glance, before Kala spoke. ¡°The Uleisans living here have taken the Water Conservation Skill to the extreme. There¡¯s no water in these caves but what people bring in with them. The occasional dead body at the Platform. ¡°You¡¯re not going to kill us and grind us down for water, are you?¡± Calvin asked, taking another scoop of the strange meat boiling in some kind of air. One of the quieter men threw up his hands. ¡°No, no, we would never do that. Despite our rough look, we¡¯re quite peaceful. We¡¯ll definitely wait until after you¡¯re dead to process you.¡± Calvin chuckled. How fast could we get the Water Conservation Skill and a mutation that would allow us to survive? For us? Fast enough. For Kala? Maybe not. Alright. We¡¯re getting out of here. Soon. I mean, there¡¯s gotta be moisture in the air from all these bodies. With the right condensing mutation, you could theoretically produce more water than you need, and that would allow Kala to survive as well. ¡­ ¡­.. Although she¡¯d be drinking nothing but your pee. You¡¯re a sick fuck, and we¡¯re definitely getting out of here before that becomes necessary. Calvin thought to himself, shaking his head as he took another bite of the awful meat. Survival is gross sometimes. ¡°Anybody know anything about a room with strange boxes in it, that glow when people come near them?¡± Calvin asked, giving them Elliot¡¯s description of the control room they¡¯d need to find in order to Phase-Shift. The men went silent. ¡°We don¡¯t know of any rooms like that, but we do know of a great many passages that no one has ever returned from.¡± The man in thick leathers said, glancing over at the eldest one there. ¡°But before you go disappearing forever, we¡¯d appreciate it if you could repay our hospitality. You represent a sizeable chunk of water, and it¡¯d be a shame to lose you to the deep tunnels.¡± He glanced at Kala. ¡°Your friend here tells me that you are a Summoner, and good at fishing?¡± he asked. ¡°You could say that, yeah.¡± Calvin said, sharing a glance with the princess. The look she was giving him told him he should probably make friends with these people rather than antagonize them, and Calvin tended to agree. ¡°Then I¡¯d like for you to fish something for us before you go. Fishing the Abyss has always been a dangerous task, and a summoner could provide us with quite a bit of food in just a few hours.¡± Calvin nodded. ¡°You people have been fine hosts, and I¡¯m grateful for the care you¡¯ve given me. I¡¯d be willing to go over and above. I could get you enough to last you months¡­in exchange for enough water to last the two of us an extra day.¡± Calvin said, nodding at Kala. The old man scowled, deep in thought. ¡°Bring us a Querda and I¡¯ll pay you each half a gallon of water,¡± he said, finally. ¡°But, until then¡­¡± he held up a jug with an odd filter on the top. ¡°You have to pee into this jug.¡± Survival is gross sometimes, Calvin thought, unzipping his pants. ¡°You¡¯re not going to filter this and sell it back to me are you?¡± Calvin asked, raising a brow. The wrinkled old man grinned a toothless smile. I hate isolated underground societies. Macronomicon Chapter 103: The Most Attractive Lure ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to ask something, we¡¯ve just been so busy trying to stay alive, or save our country, or fix your mistakes¡­¡± Kala said as they approached the fishing spot the filter-dwellers had marked out, just outside their long narrow tunnel, chosen specifically to prevent dangerous monsters from attacking their little village. ¡°What did you wanna ask?¡± Calvin asked, ignoring the ¡®mistakes¡¯ bit. Elani knew he made plenty. ¡°What was your deal at the first ball we went to?¡± ¡°Oh, that? Botched mutation.¡± Kala frowned, lips pursed. ¡°Explain.¡± Maybe you should keep this one under your- ¡°Elliot modified the System to include mutations as well as abilities, but he didn¡¯t balance them properly, so two ones I had in my eyes conflicted with each other, and when they got sorted out it threw everything else out of whack, so I almost died and turned into an undead.¡± Kala looked at him, then presumably at Elliot, her expression cool. ¡°And you thought it was a good idea to do that at a ball?¡± ¡°In retrospect, I think I was unconsciously trying to pass out and wake up when it was all over.¡± Calvin said with a chuckle as their Unqua settled down on the well-worn platform. There was a huge ragged hole in the railing, where something had taken an enormous bite out of the platform. Kala shook her head slightly, fixing him with a disapproving scowl. ¡°Please tell me you won¡¯t do that again.¡± Calvin¡¯s hand traveled to the faint scar on his chest. ¡°Oh, I think I learned my lesson.¡± ¡°Alright boys and girls,¡± Rufe said as he stepped out of the creature¡¯s leathery shell, suddenly becoming a giant. ¡°Let¡¯s try not to fall in.¡± There were several stone outcroppings that led to tunnels deeper in, studded equidistance from each other on the main platform above the Abyss, but the one leading to the village was none of them. It was situated through an incidental crack in the stone only big enough for one of the shrinking omnivores to fit through. The old man, Loren, was one in a long line of people tossed in the hole to be hunted by monsters, when he noticed Unqua moving in and out of a small crack in the far wall. Things didn¡¯t click until later, when he lost a makeshift spear trying to hunt a big one he assumed was an adult version, then saw a little one with an identical tiny spear. When he plucked it out of the creature¡¯s hide, it became full size again, and the rest, as they say, was history. He used the Unqua to make a cave that most enemies couldn¡¯t get to. With a safe place to sleep between hunts, the population gradually expanded, as people were tossed into the Siphon. ¡°I should get one of these as a summon, if only for the shrinking ability,¡± Calvin said to himself as he aimed to step outside the leathery walls. With the survival of the fittest ability, maybe he could make it into something offensive, or breed them to be even better storage devices. ¡°What about the mimic?¡± Calvin shuddered, turning on Kala. ¡°No.¡± he held up a hand, ticking off facts as Kala looked on with amusement, her full lips curling into the hint of a smile. ¡°First of all, it¡¯s gross, on so many levels. Second of all, anybody with a good area of effect could take it out, it¡¯s not actually that strong. The damn thing could be overcome by a tiny bit of bad air. Third! Roles: what is its role in my summon slots? I assume to kill things and horrify people or act as a meat shield? Giant wasps and huge swarms of wasps do just fine at that.¡± ¡°And fourth?¡± She asked, fighting back a smile. ¡°Fourth: It¡¯s gross.¡± Kala broke into a laugh. ¡°Okay, okay,¡± She said holding a hand up. ¡°And fourth: it would never fool a human eye, so the mimic ability is pointless. It just makes you really uncomfortable when you look at -.¡± Kala shut him up with her lips, exhaling as she pulled him in close. Any thought of arguing fled Calvin¡¯s mind as she pressed up against him, and he could feel the warmth of her body through her dress. ¡°I thought you weren¡¯t allowed to make out with anyone under a duke.¡± Calvin said when she pulled away, his limbs turning to mush as she slipped nimbly off him. The thought of keeping her there didn¡¯t even occur to him until after she was gone. She glanced around the leather hovel before giving him a mischievous grin. ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone¡¯s going to tell on me down here.¡± ¡°Ookaaay Kiidss, Tiime too stoop playing Graabaass aand come ooout.¡± A booming voice said from above the Unqua. An un-shrunk Rufe. Kala darted out of the tent while Calvin was still recovering from the unexpected kiss, his heart hammering in his chest. As his pounding pulse quickly slowed to normal, his fingers traced the scar tissue above his heart. What happens to her when I die? Obviously the ideal solution was to not die, but the idea that he might kill her shortly after meeting his own demise was something that he wanted to make preparations for. Calvin took a quick breath and let go of those thoughts, turning his mind on the current situation: he needed to quickly bag a¡­Querda? So he could get that gallon of ¡®water¡¯. I hope their filtering technique is damn good, Calvin thought sourly as he stepped out of the unqua. And what the abyss is a Querda? ¡°Nice of you to join us,¡± Rufe said, the thick leathers wrapped around his torso making him look wider than he was. ¡°What¡¯s a Querda?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°You see that?¡± Rufe asked, motioning to the bitten-off portion of the platform. Calvin¡¯s heart started up again as he imagined fighting off something that intensely powerful. ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± Calvin scowled at the thin man as he chuckled, winding up a massive leather rope from deeper inside the placid Unqua. ¡°Querda are tentacle monsters,¡± Rufe said, Not the fun kind, either. ¡°And not the fun kind, either,¡± Rufe continued. There¡¯s a fun kind!? ¡°There¡¯s a fun kind?¡± Calvin and Kala echoed Elliot¡¯s outburst. ¡°Sure,¡± Rufus said with a shrug. ¡°Squelch is great fun at parties, but a mutation that makes nightmare creatures fall in love with humans ain¡¯t exactly common, so don¡¯t go thinking they¡¯ll all be like her.¡± Hah, it¡¯s a girl. ¡°Anyway, Querda have long tentacles coming off a tough, elongated, fishlike main body, a dark blueish color. The easiest way to identify them is by the glowing yellow bulbs near the tip of each tentacle, just behind the stinger.¡± ¡°Glowing yellow bulbs, got it.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Querda are among the safer catches, because their venom only makes you wish you were dead.¡± Rufe said jovially. ¡°They also have a cornucopia of useful parts. Venom sacs, guts, leather, oily blubber, tough bones, and of course, each of them is worth a couple gallons of water once they¡¯re done being processed.¡± ¡°I thought the Abyss doesn¡¯t have any water in it?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°It doesn¡¯t.¡± Rufe said. ¡°People¡¯ve tried for years to scoop some up. No luck.¡± ¡°Then how do these things have water in them?¡± Rufe scratched his head. ¡°You got me, boy.¡± I¡¯ll take this one. The mere fact that they can burn those tentacles we saw when you first woke up means on some level, the creatures from the Warp have been Warped by our reality in return. I don¡¯t think these things even have bodies as we know them on the other side, so just pulling a living creature over from the Warp forces it to restructure to conform to our dimension. So they become partially water upon being hauled in? Yeah, basically. And anything that burns releases water, too. Kala made a note in her book. ¡°So how do we do this?¡± Calvin said, clapping his hands together. ¡°Well, you put some bait at the end of the rope, then you haul in whatever bites.¡± Rufe shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s not complicated. I was hoping your summons could be bait, or at least help with the hauling. I mean, we¡¯re all Legends here, but look at me,¡± He motioned to himself. ¡°I only weigh a hundred and fifty pounds.¡± ¡°Nobody has the Fishing Skill?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Kid, We¡¯re in Uleis. Nobody has the Fishing Skill.¡± ¡°Hmm, alright, and how big is the bait usually? We usually use scraps of corpses from the center of the platform, or dead monsters..living ones work even better. Hmm¡­which of my summons would make good bait? ¡­ ¡­. *** Master-Baiter ¡°Untie me this instant!¡± Nadia shouted as they began lowering her toward the bubbling maw of darkness below them. The rope around her waist, wrists and ankles was bristling with barbed pieces of alien metal. ¡°Now, Nadia, I could send a wasp down there, but let¡¯s face it, I don¡¯t think a wasp looks nearly as appetizing, do you?¡± he spun her around with a kick, her gratuitous cleavage window spinning with her. ¡°You bastard!¡± Nadia said, her whole body jiggling enticingly as she writhed on the giant hook with every ounce of effort she could muster. ¡°I¡¯ll pay you back for this!¡± ¡°Of course you will,¡± Calvin said, frowning. ¡°If you¡¯re good, we¡¯ll even do something like this again.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s¡­I mean¡­that¡¯s not what I meant!¡± Nadia shouted down into Siphon, causing the misty membrane between realities to twitch, her rounded bottom wiggling as Calvin¡¯s giant knick-knacks steadily lowered the Ilethan princess over the edge of the platform. Kala was watching with a vaguely satisfied expression, her chin on her palm. ¡°It¡¯s not for me, but I think I see the appeal.¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s just ¡®cuz you don¡¯t like her.¡± ¡°Could be.¡± Rufe¡¯s jaw was hanging open. ¡°Umm¡­was that¡­¡± ¡°She may look like Nadia Ilestar, princess of Iletha, but that¡¯s just her favorite form, she¡¯s actually a slutty, low class demon succubus with poor self-esteem that I summon with Malkenrovian Demonology.¡± Rufe glanced at Kala. Kala nodded, her face completely serious. ¡°Ah, I see,¡± Rufe nodded sagely. ¡°I heard about Malkenrovian summoners makin¡¯ stuff like that.¡± ¡°You dirt-eating simpleton peasant rube! Bring me back up this instant! The Warp is so strong down here I can touch smells!¡± Nadia said, her voice echoey and shrill through the distorting effect of the Warp mist. ¡°Don¡¯t worry though,¡± Calvin said, putting his elbow on the railing. ¡°She likes it.¡± At his signal, the Knick-Knacks released their hold for an instant, dropping her another ten feet closer to the Siphon, drawing out a terrified shriek. ¡°Wow, haha, that was¡­FUCK YOU!¡± ¡°See?¡± ¡°Different strokes, I guess.¡± Calvin gave the thousand-pound Knick-Knacks instructions to jig the bait up and down while moving it across the railing, to create the illusion of swimming. You think my Fishing Skill applies to the things I instruct them to do? Your guess is as good as mine, Elliot said. ¡°AAAIII!¡± Nadia¡¯s shrieking redoubled as she was jolted up and down. Calvin glanced over the edge, the dim light of the monster-oil lamp illuminating Nadia¡¯s dangling form perfectly clear in his improved night vision. Her hair was hanging down in a water-fall like spill as she thrashed, the rope digging into her generous curves. Calvin¡¯s mind wandered as he waited for their prey to take the screaming, cursing bait. I need to raise my Stability far above where Nadia¡¯s Intuition ever was before I give her back the ability to toy with people¡¯s heads. We also need to get my four new Skills first, before we start raising attributes with the Warp Tank. Calvin didn¡¯t want to wind up learning a Polishing or Gear Maintenance Skill while he was trying to raise Stability. Once all his skill slots were full, he couldn¡¯t accidently learn a new one while he was trying to raise his attributes. How do the Disciplines work? They average the values of the three constituent skills that made them, and every ten levels, you get to pick an ability or mutation from the list of all of them. Old Salt defaulted to Stability, and Playboy was Intuition. Do I still get stat points every five levels? Yes, but I want to point out that you don¡¯t get the Ability every five, just every ten. Is the correction on the three constituent skills the same? Calvin asked. Yes. It¡¯s still 5% per level. Do the old Abilities and mutations carry over? Calvin used Blade Body, and a bit of glass jutted out of his palm, answering that question. Yeah, those are locked in. So, in essence, Elliot had reduced the Ability and Mutation gain for six skills to one-sixth of their original amount, in order to make room for four more slots. Not a bad trade. Not if he chose to learn some good Skills. Bent Manipulation, Chemistry, Drafting, and¡­ maybe another magic skill. You think you could work on a Mutation in Bent Manipulation that could allow me to see or feel Bent accurately in the air? That would be excellent for counterspelling. I¡¯d have to have the Skill in front of me to see, but yeah, Bent Manipulation would probably be able to host a mutation like that¡­Oops, something¡¯s eating Nadia. Calvin¡¯s eyes refocused on the dangling princess bait in front of him, and spotted glowing pods behind wicked looking hooked talons. The tentacles were beginning to wind around Nadia, muffling her screams. ¡°Wow, that was fast,¡± Rufe said, eyebrows raised. ¡°You guys need the Fishing Skill,¡± Calvin said, eyeballing the Querda. ¡°Set the hook,¡± he told the towering Knick-Knacks aloud for his party¡¯s benefit. The huge metal men yanked the line, hard, and a second later, the rope began to move of it¡¯s own volition along the railing, the tentacle monster struggling to disentangle itself. Old Salt has reached level 9! Looks like it does apply. Cool. Yep. Calvin thought as he stood back while his significantly stronger summons pulled the line in. They made short work of the hauling, and in seconds, the first glowing pods became visible, wrapped around a struggling Nadia. One of the venomed talons was dangerously close to her face. When the creature was pulled all the way in, Rufus used a long spear to puncture the thing¡¯s main body and wait for it to bleed out. ¡°You don¡¯t want all that blood?¡± Calvin asked, brows furrowed. As the goopy white stuff spilled all across the platform, spreading a horrifying stench. ¡°Most of its blood isn¡¯t water, but if you wanna risk your life to keep a little extra, be my guest.¡± True, the strange blood was already evaporating, leaving nothing but a greasy smear. That¡¯s really volatile¡­you should bag some of that stuff. I¡¯ll bet you anything it¡¯s got really weird properties. Flammability being least of them. Could probably use it to learn Chemistry, or make a dupdomancy weapon. If I had some glassware, I could. Calvin glanced around. Sand made glass. Stone made sand, Knick-knacks could crush stone. The cave was made of stone. Yeah, that sounds like a plan. once the monster stopped shuddering, Rufe started hacking its limbs away from its main body, getting the carcass ready to transport, while Calvin stepped up to Nadia. He removed the tentacle wrapped around her face, and she sucked in a huge breath of fresh air. ¡°I swear to every god I¡¯ll do whatever it takes to bring you down. I¡¯ll haunt you for nine fucking generations!¡± she screamed with a crazed look in her eyes. ¡°Good job,¡± Calvin said, patting her cheek, and Nadia almost purred, pressing it up against his palm, her eyelids fluttering. ¡°Time to do it again!¡± Her eyes flashed open. ¡°No, its fine, you only needed to catch one right? Any more is ¨C¡° Calvin reached up to the talon oozing venom dangling behind her head and poked it between her shoulder blades. Nadia began spasming as the venom took hold, and Calvin kicked her free of the tentacles, and off the side of the platform. The rope went tight as the Knick-Knacks caught the slack, before they began jigging again. Calvin glanced up at Rufe¡¯s wide-eyed gaze. ¡°These big guys are good for five hours,¡± he said by way of explanation, patting the side of the towering giant. ¡°Might as well get a full day¡¯s work out of them, am I right?¡± Macronomicon Chapter 104: Miss Behavior ¡°Alright, here¡¯s what I¡¯ve got.¡± Show me the list. Roll that beautiful bean footage. What? Meditation has reached level 25! Please choose two from the list of Abilities and mutations Abilities: Disconnect: Allows the user to disconnect from their senses and the flow of time. Sherl*ck vision: Plan your moves out in advance with a solid sense of the near future. Buddha Body: User requires Correction/2 % less food and water to sustain themselves. ^Editor¡¯s second choice for surviving a thousand years of imprisonment. Old Clich¨¦: Meditation reverses apparent aging at Correction% time spent Meditating. Minimum age 19 for men, 12 for women. ^It¡¯s gross, but I don¡¯t make the Clich¨¦¡¯s. I.E. at Meditation 40, 200% correction, 1 hour meditating =2 hours younger. No free rides here, people. Hyperbolic Time Chamber: Correction% X perceived time flow in Shadowboxing. Shadowboxing upgrade. I.E. @ 125%, 1 hour =1.25 hours, not 2.25 ^Shadowboxing Upgrade that¡¯s over nine thousand! Macro: store any move or series of actions made in shadowboxing with a duration of Meditation/10 seconds or less. Trigger at will. 1 move per five levels of Meditation. Bent Costs paid separately. Shadowboxing upgrade. ^copy your best high-kick! Or your best come-on, you know, however it goes. Sleep When You¡¯re Dead: Meditation Substitutes for sleep at Correction/2. ^ This includes Medi-tate, and Shadowboxing, but not Eye of the Tiger, as it actively drains mental energy. 1-1 ratio @lvl 40. Mutations: Bent Regeneration: applies Correction % Boost to Bent regeneration. Mayfly/Celestial Body: User may choose to have their perceived time change relative to their Mass. *Not a perfect ratio. ^From Shifting Warpxia: Gather warp from a Correction% greater area. Admin only. Alpha state. *Warning! System has detected multiple instabilities. May cause uncontrolled mutation!* ^ May also cause a predilection for face slapping, calling yourself an older brother, pretending to be weak, and mild tourettes, causing you to utter ¡°Do you know even who I am!?¡± in situations where your identity doesn¡¯t matter. ^But seriously, don¡¯t pick this one. I just wanted to show you what I was working on. Calvin listed off the ones he had access to, save the last one, which seemed like a joke. I¡¯ll get the face-slapping kinks worked out before Meditation level 30, Promise. What about the uncontrolled mutations? That¡¯s not a bug, it¡¯s a feature. ¡­. When I can get the damn System to recognize the Warp Tank? and hook the mutation up to it without causing a huge, catastrophic System error. ¡°Okay,¡± Kala said, writing down the last Ability. ¡°I think we can start by setting aside the skills that don¡¯t give you a power boost, or a useful effect.¡± Calvin thought for a moment. ¡°So let¡¯s drop disassociate, Buddha Body, old clich¨¦, Hyperbolic Time chamber ¨C ¡° ¡°You don¡¯t want that one?¡± Kala asked, underlining the ones as he called them off. Yeah, you don¡¯t want that one? We only have a year until the Saiyans arrive, Son Goku. ¡°Shadowboxing is useful, but I don¡¯t want to invest so much in it that I spend the rest of my life training inside my own head. Rather than making something incredibly powerful slightly better, I¡¯d rather raise my other abilities to match it.¡± ¡°Gotcha.¡± Kala said, underlining the ability. ¡°Let¡¯s cross off Sleep When You¡¯re Dead as well.¡± Whaaat, you don¡¯t wanna spend all day every day training in shadowboxing between tournaments and epic fights like some kinda shounen manga? ¡°I like sleeping.¡± Calvin said with conviction. ¡°Sleep is good for you, and I¡¯ll be damned if I let the System bait me into giving it up for some half-assed substitute.¡± Extensive training has increased Stability. +1 Stability. Oh, damn. Guess you¡¯re onto something there. ¡°And that leaves us with¡­¡± ¡°Sherlock Vision¡­¡± Kala paused. ¡°What¡¯s a Sherlock? Is it some kind of magical animal that can sense the future?¡± It¡¯s a drug addict who fights crime. You¡¯d like him, I think. Kala blinked. ¡°Okay, then there¡¯s Macro, Bent Regeneration and Mayfly/Celestial Body.¡± She tapped her pen on Macro. ¡°How do you figure Macro provides enough benefit to make it on the list?¡± ¡°I was thinking of trying interesting combinations of volatile ingredients in different combinations until I found the perfect effect, then locking them into place with Macro. Maybe also reliably making highly complicated objects with Dupdomancy, by locking perfect iterations in. Also one successful air walk and I can use Macro to repeat it.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that something you could replace with practice?¡± ¡°Yeah, a lot of practice.¡± Calvin said, scowling. ¡°I¡¯ve got other things I want to do with my time.¡± Kala? Run a wizard-kingdom. ¡°I¡¯m just gonna take this one out,¡± Kala said, underlining Macro. Damn. Looks like you¡¯re gonna have to have a training Montage of breaking your legs air-walking after all. Shut up, you. ¡°Okay, Bent regeneration is in. More than doubling your effective Will is too good to pass up.¡± Kala said, glancing up at him. ¡°If you want to risk it?¡± Well? Oh, yeah, the Bent Regeneration mutation is seated in your lungs and guts so it¡¯s not gonna conflict with anything. Go nuts. You sure? There was some odd clicking noises, then Elliot¡¯s voice came back. Yes, I¡¯m sure. ¡°Okay, then that just leaves the Sherlock one and the Mayfly one.¡± The Sherlock Vision did sound useful, but it probably wasn¡¯t much different from having Eye of The Tiger active during a fight, raising his efficacy. Then he had Mayfly/Celestial body. He could use it to slow down his perceived time by lowering his body mass, or speed it up, if he wished¡­although Shifting only lasted a few minutes. Calvin drummed his fingers on the floor of the Unqua¡¯s organs beneath him. ¡°I¡¯m thinking I¡¯ll take the Mayfly one.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It adds more flexibility to Shifting itself.¡± Like I said, making my other abilities better to match Shadowboxing is the priority. ¡°Alright,¡± Kala said, making a note at the bottom of the page, before closing the book and slipping it into her dress. Calvin couldn¡¯t for the life of him figure out where it went, as the lines of her yellow silk one-piece gave no indication of where a book might be tucked away. And a girl as slender as Kala didn¡¯t exactly have a lot of places to put it. ¡°How did you get that book past the guards?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. They had been imprisoned maybe sixteen hours ago. Calvin vividly remembered the search. It was comprehensive. ¡°You don¡¯t know everything about my skills,¡± Kala said with a smile, pulling Jinsei¡¯s pipe out of her dress and stuffing it with purplish tinted longweed. The good stuff. She made a point of white-hot light on the tip of her finger that caught the dried plant on fire. ¡°I had dozens of tutors over the last dozen years. I¡¯ve learned to do a lot of minor practice tricks with Bent to prepare for the wizard academy. You can¡¯t be a Royal and not start off better than everyone else.¡± She rolled her eyes before she inhaled, exhaling out the Unqua¡¯s doorflap. ¡°Never thought disappearing small objects would come in handy, but I guess you never know.¡± I told you she was the mage, and you were the rogue. ¡°Alright, I¡¯m gonna take the mutation now.¡± Calvin said, heart hammering in his chest. ¡°Go for it,¡± Kala said, waving. ¡°Ngg,¡± Nadia groaned into the floor, still not quite able to move. Her leathers must have been fairly decent armor, because although the clothes were torn to shreds, Nadia¡¯s soft, pale skin was relatively unmarred. Just spilling out of the tears. The shreds of remaining leather seemed to embed themselves in her flesh, accentuating her curves¡­ Kala snapped her fingers, making Calvin blink. ¡°Right. Hmm.. I¡¯m gonna want you sober.¡± Calvin dismissed the summon and Nadia disappeared in a puff of green smoke. Chained Spirit Chained Spirit 0/17 Bent remaining. Two Nadia¡¯s condensed from the green smoke emanating from his hands, skeleton first. They both dropped to their knees, shivering, as the Querda venom faded from immediate lung-stopping agony into recent memory. ¡°Eyes up.¡± Calvin said, getting their attention. ¡°I¡¯m mutating now. Worst case scenario, Elliot doesn¡¯t know what he¡¯s talking about and I wind up dying.¡± Hey! ¡°It is in your best interest to prevent that, for obvious reasons. And if I do die, then start turning into some kind of weird monster, Kala¡¯s going to kill both of us. Understood?¡± Nadia one and two nodded. ¡°Alright. While I¡¯m out, Kala¡¯s in charge. You two can decide which one of you is Nadia one and which one is number two.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not falling for that one again,¡± Both Nadia¡¯s said, crossing their arms. ¡°You showed up first.¡± Kala said, pointing to the one on the left. ¡°Just by a little bit.¡± ¡°You¡¯re just trying to get us to argue.¡± The Nadia on the left said, scowling at Kala. ¡°Yeah, well, you¡¯re just saying that because you think you¡¯re number one.¡± The Nadia on the right said with an angry glare. So¡­they¡¯re both aware of what the other is thinking and feeling, right? They¡¯re sharing the same mind¡­right? From what I can tell, yeah. Calvin watched Nadia bicker with herself for a moment longer. Then why is she fighting with herself? Some ideas come to mind. It could just be a case of personality types so extreme that they push similar personalities away, rather than cooperate. She could also just be crazy and using this as a catharsis for her self hate, or maybe she wants to brat you into interceding. ¡°I think it¡¯s the second,¡± Kala said, taking another draw from her pipe. ¡°Royals tend to have extreme coping mechanisms.¡± ¡°Oh, whatever, you drugged up harlot.¡± Both Nadia¡¯s said, dropping their tiff in a fraction of a second. ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, clapping his hands to get their attention. ¡°best behavior while I¡¯m out. If I wake up and someone¡¯s dead,¡± He glanced meaningfully at Nadia, then Kala. ¡°Or if I have an ink mustache, the punishment will be equally severe.¡± ¡°how is me drawing on your face equal with her committing murder?¡± ¡°They¡¯re about at the same point in your individual scale of misbehavior.¡± Calvin said, then pointed at Kala ¡°And I could tell you were planning on it.¡± ¡°Darn,¡± Kala tucked the pen away. ¡°Boo.¡± Nadia said, the two of them resting their chin on their hands, deliberately affording him an excellent view of their decolletage. I think you pretty much guaranteed bad behavior by telling them not to do it. They are teens, after all. Someone¡¯s probably gonna die while you¡¯re out. I choose Bent Regeneration. Calvin¡¯s broken ribs suddenly ached furiously as his lungs felt like they were shifting around inside of him, a low heat that spread through his entire torso. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation takes place. Blissful unconsciousness claimed him. ***Nadia*** Nadia¡¯s other body poked Calvin¡¯s cheek. It¡¯s still so weird getting used to having so much sensory input at once. It wasn¡¯t just sensory, it was also her state of mind. If one Nadia was irritated, that caused a feedback loop that made all of them irritated. Same went for horny or angry or sad. The overwhelming amount of emotions from multiple bodies at once had battered down her built-up resistance to extreme moods, and recently she¡¯d swung between euphoric joy and extreme self-pity sob-fests, but only whenever Calvin was out of sight. No way in the Abyss she¡¯d let him see that. The fact that her tormentor was so vulnerable in front of her made her grin wickedly, the smile spreading between her two bodies. Looks like euphoric joy it is. ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s out,¡± She said before turning to face the dirt-skinned, intolerable, repressed Gadveran bitch, hand extended. ¡°Give me the pen. I¡¯ll write something on his face if you kill someone. It¡¯s the perfect crime.¡± Kala chuckled, pulling the pen out of thin air with a flourish before handing it to her. I¡¯ll get a handle on it, soon, Nadia thought as she leaned over Calvin¡¯s supine form, but for now¡­I¡¯m going to draw a dick on his face. Maybe two. ¡°By the way, I¡¯m not killing anyone.¡± the druggie said between hits. ¡­ Nadia had just finished adding the intricate veins of the shaft when Calvin began to stir. In a surge of panic, she hesitated to hide the pen. If he knew she was the one who did it, he would punish her. Which would be awesome. Except he would pick something she wouldn¡¯t like. Which would suck. Unless he didn¡¯t choose something she didn¡¯t like. He wouldn¡¯t banish her to the room indefinitely for writing on his face. And anything less than total isolation, she would probably enjoy. ¡°Iii¡­is everyone still alive?¡± Calvin said, his eyes fluttering open as a surge of adrenaline spurred Nadia to hide the pen and her ink-stained fingers behind her back. She was a bit slow making it disappear, the pen disappearing behind her back a fraction of a second after Calvin opened his eyes, but Nadia was able to shove her other body¡¯s chest in the idiot¡¯s face long enough for the bony bitch to hide it. ¡°Are you okay? No sore spots or pain?¡± She asked, her voice honeyed as she pushed the flesh of her cleavage into his nose. Despite being the lowest form of distraction, it was undeniably effective against straight men, as her captor seemed to take a moment to get his bearings sandwiched between her boobs. Finally, Calvin grunted and shoved Nadia out of the way, eyes blinking the sand out. He glanced blearily between Nadia and Kala, who was obviously suppressing a laugh. You¡¯re going to blow the whole thing! Somehow, her tormentor¡¯s sleep addled mind didn¡¯t make out the obvious signs, and he laid back down. ¡°Starting the second mutation.¡± He said, closing his eyes. A moment later, his breathing deepened as he fell unconscious again. Nadia poked him tentatively, with no response. ¡°Alright,¡± Kala whispered. ¡°You¡¯ve had your fun. Hand me the pen.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not done.¡± Nadia said. ¡°It¡¯s my turn.¡± The southern princess said, setting aside her pipe and holding out her hand. Nadia groaned and handed the pen over, and they switched places, with Kala leaning over the boy¡¯s face, drawing exaggerated eyebrows on him, her pink tongue peeking out of her mouth as she concentrated on turning his face into a work of art. ***Calvin*** Calvin opened his eyes again, his face sadly not covered in boobs this time. Nadia and Kala were sitting around him, guilt radiating from their gaze. ¡°Who¡¯d you kill?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Nobody.¡± Nadia said hastily. ¡°We¡¯ve been riding the Unqua back to town the entire time. You weren¡¯t asleep very long. Calvin licked his thumb and dragged it across his cheek, coming back with a smudge. He raised his brows, looking at Kala. ¡°That one was Nadia,¡± she said, pointing the finger at the fair-skinned princess. ¡°That one?¡± Kala blushed and avoided his gaze. His first instinct was to burst out of bed and roughhouse with them, but between the broken ribs and leg, and his vastly inferior Strength, that was a non-starter. Bummer. Calvin would have liked to give Kala a noogie. Or a spanking. Especially a spanking. ¡°Pen.¡± Calvin said sternly, holding out his hand. Kala hesitated a moment before she put the ivory pen in his palm. ¡°Forehead.¡± He said, making a ¡®come here¡¯ motion with his fingers. When Kala was close enough, he wrote, ¡®I did a bad thing¡¯, on her forehead as she waited, blushing furiously. ¡°What about me?¡± Nadia asked, shifting in her seat expectantly. ¡°You get¡­nothing!¡± Calvin told her with a cheery smile. ¡°Damnit,¡± Nadia muttered under her breath. ¡°Alright, dorks, let¡¯s go sell these nightmare fish and get enough water to get healed and get out of here,¡± Calvin said as the girls helped him to his feet. What¡¯s my Bent regeneration per hour? Calvin asked. Let¡¯s see. Thirty-one times two point two five, divided by seven. Divide twenty-four by the result¡­ two point four hours per Bent. Or almost exactly ten Bent per day. In whore terms, that¡¯s.. About eight Standard Whores worth of Bent regeneration. Eight point seven, to be exact. Congratulations. Why are Whores a standard unit of measurement? What else am I supposed to use? Calvin shrugged internally. That was a lot better than before, but it was still hours between each new point of Bent. He needed to increase his Stability drastically if he wanted to take better advantage of his high renewal speed during his downtime. It wasn¡¯t as if he was casting spells all day every day, so his downtime was important to recover a large supply of Bent. Healing, Skills, then Stability. He resolved, limping out of the yurt. He wanted to get out of here as fast as possible, but trying it wounded and weak was asking to get him killed. You could use Shadowboxing to scout the exit. Elliot chimed in. Oh¡­yeah, that¡¯ll work. Macronomicon Chapter 105: Abyssal Alchemy ¡°Then you got the refraction spinner,¡± Rufe said, ticking off another one of his fingers. ¡°Looks like a floating ball of arms weaving glass between them. Clear glass that diffracts the light. ¡®course, the glass isn¡¯t actually there, it¡¯s just the squirrely bastard fucking with reality. Careful not to get too close, those diffractions will tear you to shreds. It doesn¡¯t care about how tough you are, the thing simply makes it a fact that your limbs are separated from your body. No cutting required.¡± Calvin nodded, storing the information in the back of his mind as Kala wrote it down. ¡°Anything else?¡± ¡°Oh sure. But other than the Lure, Husker and Spinner, most things aren¡¯t slow enough to run away from, so information about them is a bit¡­¡± The man¡¯s leathery face crumpled as he frowned, holding his thumb and forefinger together. ¡°¡­limited.¡± ¡°What about a creature that is made of smaller creatures, who are in turn made of even smaller creatures, and they¡¯re all identical? And it can shapeshift.¡± ¡°Nope, never seen nothing like that.¡± Rufe said, shaking his head. ¡°Any advice for me?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t go exploring. You¡¯ve got a long life of fishing for our community ahead of you.¡± Rufe said with a chuckle. Seems like the Elder was right about the Fishing Skill being valuable. ¡°Any actual advice?¡± Calvin asked. Rufe chewed his lip for a moment, glancing at Calvin askance, before holding up his hands. ¡°If I were you¡­I would make every possible effort to establish the concept of ¡®Extreme caution¡¯¡± He framed the words with his hands. ¡°As a baseline state of mind. Around here, if you see something strange, run away. Don¡¯t poke things with sticks, don¡¯t put your head in strange holes, and definitely, for the love of Elani, don¡¯t ever sigh and say something stupid like, ¡®thank the god¡¯s it¡¯s finally dead.¡¯¡± This guy would definitely survive a horror movie. ¡°Understood,¡± Calvin said, nodding, then glanced at the fist-sized unqua behind him. ¡°How much for one of those?¡± ¡°Kid, you can¡¯t buy those things ¡®round here. Doesn¡¯t matter how many gallons you offer ¡®em. You gotta catch one yourself.¡± ¡°And where would that be?¡± Calvin asked What, you want a love shack for you and the princess, or are you just going native? I¡¯ve got an idea. You gonna tell me what it is? What, you can¡¯t read my mind? Calvin thought, suppressing a grin. ¡°Outside The Crack, head southwest. The Crack being North. walk for a few hours and you¡¯ll find a collapsed section of stone outside the platform, creating a rocky beach. Warped creatures can climb out of the Abyss there, so it¡¯s a common hunting ground for just about everything that live here. Every once in awhile an Unqua will come through. Find it, catch it, and bring it back here. The village will then gather together and help you make it livable.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Calvin said, nodding gratefully before limping back to his own fire, struggling to keep himself from smiling like an idiot. He wasn¡¯t particularly interested in a new home. He wanted the creature¡¯s guts. Calvin spent the first day in intensive Medi-tate, sipping on water and eating bits of nightmare creature during his short breaks. Sixteen hours, the first day. Sixteen hours times twenty-five, Or sixteen days and sixteen hours worth of healing. After the third day, his ribs were feeling like normal again, the bruising and minor injuries from his fight had all vanished. Even the puncture wound on the side of his leg had healed over. The only thing that remained was Calvin¡¯s stubbornly broken leg. It takes about six months to heal a femur. You¡¯re lucky it didn¡¯t blow through an artery. About nine more days and you¡¯ll be good to go. If I have to spend another day lying on my back doing nothing, I¡¯m going to go crazy. Besides, we¡¯re running low on water, so I¡¯ve got to go fishing to barter some. While we¡¯re out, I want to do some hunting, too. I¡¯ve got an idea. So you¡¯ve said. I¡¯m surprised you haven¡¯t had your Knick-Knacks build you a bigger, better water refining machine than the one they¡¯ve got set up. It¡¯s just a grind, press, filter, and boiler with a steam recollection mechanism. Watching hollowed out Querda corpses shoved into the massive machine to be ground into sludge was a sight to behold. I like to think I¡¯ve learned my lesson about alienating people. Calvin thought. Probably not. Rufe dropped Calvin and Kala off outside The Crack with their last two gallons of water in leather skins, and plenty of dried abyssal jerky. It tasted like burnt soap, but it was better than starving. Together they headed for the fishing spot, Kala carrying the rope and keeping a light over their heads, her gaze scanning the darkness, while Calvin used the bone crutch loaned to him to navigate the bone-littered platform, a handful of dog-sized wasps reinforced by Atom Ant guarding them. Well, not guarding us so much as trying to kill everything that gets close. Close enough. They arrived shortly at the fishing spot and got started right away, ignoring Nadia¡¯s protests as they used her for bait, Knick-knacks hauling her up and down, enticing the Abyssal abominations to strike. Master Baiter Come on, Old Salt¡­ Calvin wanted to raise the Discipline, and by extension, Hunting, Fishing, and Knife-work, but he was also leery of getting an unwanted skill, so he¡¯d just have to do it the old-fashioned way. The first thing that took the bait was a Toad. It wasn¡¯t actually a toad, but that¡¯s what Calvin liked to call it. The creature had the squat, rounded shape similar to a frog, but it didn¡¯t have any back legs, muscle-laden front arms, and three heads with long-barbed tongues. Aforementioned tongues shot out of the Abyss, and wrapped around Nadia suddenly, causing the princess to give a shrill shriek. ¡°Toad.¡± Calvin called, looking down at the bait. ¡°Bring it up.¡± He stood aside, using the crutch to toddle away as the creature was drawn out of the thick Warp mist. The creature had a fuzzy mane growing out of its back, and skin that seemed nearly impenetrable. Luckily it needed to breathe. Not all Abyssal creatures needed to breathe, and other than it¡¯s rather tough skin, this one was actually among the least reality-warping creatures. It had heads, eyes, tongues. A physical body. It could be killed. The creature began thrashing with it¡¯s huge arms as soon as it was reeled onto the deck, but that was before half a dozen hopped up wasps pried open the creature¡¯s enormous mouths and crawled down toward it¡¯s lungs. After a few minutes of struggling, the creature became still. Of course, unconsciousness was no guarantee something was dead, so Calvin and Kala shared a snack while they waited for it to expire. Disgusting meal done, Calvin unwrapped Nadia from the thing¡¯s tongues and shoved her off the ledge again. The Knick-Knacks were uncomfortable with it. The Toad lay limp and deflated on the platform, and Calvin had his spare Knick-knacks haul it away from the edge so he could work on it. The creature¡¯s skin was difficult to penetrate, even in death, and especially with the borrowed tools he was using. That didn¡¯t matter too much, as Calvin circulated Bent to extend the stone blade, the invisible extension far sharper than the stubby skinning knife. With a lot of elbow grease, Calvin managed to gut the damn thing, making sure not to touch the odd gallbladder looking organ that contained a wretched smelling, toxic chemical. Any reason you need to do this? These things aren¡¯t worth more than an eighth of a gallon, even with the poison cut out. Not what I had in mind, Calvin thought, taking painstaking effort to cut off a large swath of the creature¡¯s supernaturally tough hide. This is what Rufe is wearing, Calvin thought, recognizing the texture as he separated the hide from the skin, enough to make armor for him and Kala. He folded the hide neatly it before slicing a section of intestine and using that to safely contain the poison bladder, knotting it closed at either end. I wonder how he managed to kill one of these by himself. Let alone skin it. Well, everyone is a Legend down here, kid. Practically by default. Another reason not to alienate people. ¡°Any reason you need to do all this by yourself?¡± Kala asked. ¡°It¡¯s going painfully slow.¡± ¡°I want to raise my Skill.¡± Calvin said, cutting strips of intestine in an attempt to create strings to hold together the folded leather, like he¡¯s seen when he¡¯d used Harvester to take the creatures apart. All the while his Knick-Knacks were jigging Nadia up and down. Yeah, speaking of which, why not just use Harvester on these things? Because it wouldn¡¯t raise my Skill. I want to get it to ten before I start doing things the easy way. Calvin was practicing Old Salt¡¯s constituent Skills all at once, as he was fishing while using a knife to disassemble a creature. I packaged these skills together because they were the LEAST likely to help you become a wizard king, and now you want to raise them? ¡°Yep.¡± Calvin said, struggling to hold onto a strip of intestine with his weak, blood-slicked hands, finally packaging together all the bits of the Toad he wanted to keep into something basically neat and portable. Well, did you make sure to use Master Baiter on Nadia for the second drop? No, I didn¡¯t¡­ Calvin grabbed his crutch and pushed himself off the ground, toddering over to the edge of the railing, eying Nadia as she was dangled above the Abyss. Master bai- Before Calvin could finish the thought, a metallic, crystalline shape shot out of the Abyss and plunged into Nadia¡¯s chest. Her distant form jerked once, then disappeared in an explosion of green mist. The strange crystal structure stretched all the way back into the Abyss, like a single metallic shard had grown all the way up and into her. When she fully vanished, the green mist of her body was absorbed into the head-sized lump of metal crystals growing in every direction, right where her chest used to be. ¡°What in the Abyss is that?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Like Rufe was saying, when in doubt, run.¡± Calvin said, tapping Kala on the shoulder. Kala nodded and ran, aiming for The Crack. Calvin cast one last look at the creature, and didn¡¯t like what he saw. The had sized lump of crystals that had absorbed Nadia¡¯s green mist ¨C probably her Bent - had grown to the size of her torso, tangled in the hanging rope. I hope Nadia¡¯s still okay¡­a little. Calvin saw the solid pillar of metallic substance crumble away behind the creature, turning into scintillating dust as the pillar revealed itself to be hollow. It grew even more, t oabout double the size of a Guar, tangled in the rope. What a strange creatu- ACK! Calvin yanked his head backwards as the crystalline structure grew a jagged metallic beam straight towards his face, drawing a shallow cut across his scalp. Shifting. 14/17 Bent remaining. Calvin targeted himself, his crutch, the floor, and the monster with Shifting. Calvin dumped all the weight he could into the monster, hoping to slow it down, then he started running. Well, crutch-running. Kill it, Calvin instructed his wasps, intending to use them as fodder while he escaped. They didn¡¯t seem to mind. The giant Knick knacks simply moved to get between them. But what if- I¡¯m aware!¡± Calvin thought glancing over his shoulder as he frantically used one leg and his crutch to run. It wasn¡¯t pretty, but he was moving at just about full speed, taking advantage of his light weight. He couldn¡¯t see a tangible difference in the monster¡¯s speed due to the Mayfly mutation, but then again, it didn¡¯t seem to move so much as it grew in the direction it wanted to go. It was lodged in the ceiling, that head-sized mass of silvery crystal, and Calvin saw his Wasps go after it, blurring through the air with speed and strength that would make Legends nervous. They slammed into the creature, trying to pierce its body with their stingers, to no avail. Oh, come on! Those wasps could probably pierce Jerrytanium! Hah, no. Not with just the force of eighteen giant wasps. But it is tough, I¡¯ll give it that. The creature exploded outward, jagged silver crystal piercing three of Calvin¡¯s wasps, which exploded into green mist, once again drawn into the creature¡¯s crystalline structure. It immediately redoubled in size. Fuck. It was just as bad as Calvin thought. Yep. You¡¯re feeding it. Nadia was probably leaking some of the green stuff, and that¡¯s what attracted our boy here. Your summons are like sugar to this thing. Two options presented themselves: Use his summons as bait and feed the thing while they escaped. Or not. One option left them with a giant death crystal to deal with later, while the other kept it at a more manageable size, except nothing would be between his crippled form and the creature. Ah, fuck it. Calvin thought, dismissing the summons. They burst into green smoke while while the creature¡¯s trailing crystal dissolved into glitter, growing in size as it readied for it¡¯s next jump. He reached into his pocket and grabbed a handful of Toad teeth. Three, he thought as he felt them in his hand. Ballast and weapons. Shifting Shifting Shifting 11/17 Bent Remaining. Calvin linked each of the teeth to three separate spots on the floor, only interested in maximizing their weight on command. Then he slid a Toad femur out of its leather wrap, applying the same treatment to it. 10/17 Bent remaining. Shifting has reached level 12! Shifting level 12: 60% shift, 12 minutes, targets limited to 1728 pounds in mass. ¡°Calvin, what are you doing!?¡± Kala demanded, glancing back at him, halfway back to the Crack already. It wasn¡¯t as if they could get through the crack without an Unqua of their own, anyway. ¡°I¡¯m gonna kill it.¡± He said, passing one of the sharp black teeth over to his off hand. Unless it eats all Bent, then you¡¯re just kind screwed. If that¡¯s the case, We¡¯ll summon some extra fast Knick-knacks and play keepaway until Rufe shows up to help¡­Gods I wish I still had my spell components. Oooh, I get it your plan now. And I approve. Elliot said, followed by clicking noises that echoed through Calvin¡¯s head. Calvin didn¡¯t have time to say anything, as the creature grew toward him at blinding speeds. Calvin shifted the weight from the three points in the floor to the tooth in his left hand. Suddenly the tooth weighed three thousand pounds. Before it began to drop, Calvin yanked on it, pulling his lightened body sideways at a similarly unnatural speed, as if there was a solid bar there to pull on. An instant later he returned the tooth to it¡¯s former weight, generating momentum from nothing. The creature grew through the space Calvin had been occupying, slamming into the ground, but rather than take a moment to rebuild it¡¯s size like Calvin was expecting, it grew a massive, jagged spike of silver crystal toward his chest from the middle of its shaft. Hah, shaft. Not funny! Calvin swung the bone club sideways in an attempt to knock the thing off course. Normally this would be a very stupid move. The force of a sideways blow was rarely accurate or powerful enough to divert a stab sufficiently to avoid damage, but Calvin had a feeling this would turn out different. He shifted all the weight of the floor into his club at the last second. The hurtling bone struck with the force of a meteor, and the entire spike of silver crystal snapped off and shattered onto the ground, leaking a scintillating goop onto the ground that rapidly bloomed into uncontrolled crystal growth. It¡¯s hard, but brittle. The main shaft was revealed to be hollow, with some kind of goopy appendage withdrawing into the rapidly crystalizing wound, crystalline metal forming like a scab. Calvin had studied with Karen long enough to know when to press the advantage. He threw all three of the teeth toward the main shaft, adding the floor¡¯s mass to them, and each impact broke off a massive piece of the creature¡¯s protective shell. Calvin landed, wincing as his leg tried to bend in it¡¯s splint. He didn¡¯t have time for legs to flex or get his balance, he needed to attack now. He dumped mass into the club and yanked himself forward, overtaxing the muscles in his arm and shoulder as he lunged forward awkwardly on one leg. He dumped the mass out again, drew the club forward, then injected the weight back in as it smashed down on the rapidly healing shell. Calvin¡¯s strike smashed the main shaft in half, exposing the entire creature and tearing a large portion of flesh off of it. The monster screamed in pain, a sound that was more felt than heard, a strange ringing in his mind that seemed to beat against the inside of his skull, trying to pick its way out. ¡°Gah,¡± Calvin grunted as the creature retreated, leaving a slimy appendage and some ropy guts behind as it shot back up the main silvery shaft, the hole closing behind it. Calvin swung the club up, ripping his damaged muscles as he put every ounce of speed he could into the throw, then he let go. He put all the mass into the club that he could The Toad bone shattered straight down the main shaft like an iron rod tossed down the length of a thin glass tube, dislodging the strangely translucent monster, squishing it violently against the wall, before the whole thing came tumbling down to land on the platform with a sickening squelch. Old Salt has reached level 10! +1 Stability Please choose- Calvin dismissed the prompt and limped forward as fast as he could, trying to beat the crystalline shell that was slowly forming around the dead creature. He knelt down and put a finger on the creature¡¯s slimy skin, ignoring the pain from his broken leg. There were more important things to take care of, here. Harvester 9/18 Bent Remaining. In the blink of an eye, the translucent creature was separated out into all it¡¯s constituent pieces, neatly packaged as if he¡¯d been hunting them all his life. His eyes landed on a handful of clear sacs, some full of clear goop, others full of opaque white goop. Excellent, Calvin thought, peeling the crystalline coating off the tip of his finger. Calvinian summoning. 8/18 Bent remaining. Calvin summoned an army of tiny knick-knacks to get started making the glass vials he needed. Show me the list. Right-O Old salt has reached level 10! Please choose a- Kala smacked Calvin on the back of the head, jostling the list out of his brain. ¡°I could have helped.¡± She said, scowling at him. ¡°Well, yeah, but I didn¡¯t need it, did I?¡± Kala¡¯s eyes narrowed. Backpedal. Calvin held up a hand. ¡°The fight was over before I thought about help, but I promise that If I need your help from here on out, I will ask for it.¡± Kala shook her head and went to retrieve the dangling rope. Calvin watched her go for a moment to make sure no more head-smacking would occur before he checked the list again. Please choose an Ability or Mutation for your Discipline From Knife-Work: Abilities: Knife Dancer: 1 Stability per knife. Imbue knives with a portion of your Bent to move them at will. Dismissable. Stability returns 24 hours after the bond has been dismissed. Bleeding Strike: 1 Bent. Does what it says. The bleeding will not stop without extreme interference. Penetrating Strike: 1 Bent. Softens material that comes in contact with the blade. The blade isn¡¯t tougher, everything else is softer. Edge Lord: 1 Bent. Grants a kinetic field of force that applies an edge to anything for as long as it¡¯s held in the user¡¯s hand. Sharpness dependent on Knife-work level. Anything can be a knife with the right mindset! MacGuyver: 1 Bent/8hrs Applies a malleable kinetic field to a knife that allows it to be used as virtually any hand-held tool (screwdriver, hammer, saw, socket wrench, tweezers, planer, you name it.) Knives to Meet You: Apply Knife-work¡¯s correction to the damage of knife attacks performed on an unaware opponent. Surgeon¡¯s Blade: 1 Bent: Apply Medi-tate¡¯s healing to the patient, with the combined level of Knife-work and Meditate. Lasts during the operation and 1 hour per five levels of Knife-work after Surgery. Invisiblade: 1 Bent. Makes a knife invisible for 1 hour. Careful you don¡¯t cut yourself with it! Sacrificial Blade: When User kills with specially prepared knife, that creature¡¯s remaining Bent is drawn from them and given to the User. Overdose may cause Bent toxicity. ^From Lady Killer Mutations: Grindstone fingers: Sharpen any blade by running your fingers over the edge. Razor¡¯s Edge: User gives off a passive kinetic field that increases the durability of knives, and raises their sharpness when threatened. Size Matters. Increase size limit of Blade Body¡¯s storage by 1 inch per level of Knife-work. Stinger: Launch knives using Blade Body at will. I am the Blade: User may grow knifelike protrusions from their extremities at will. ^Never be unarmed again! From Fishing: We''re Gonna Need a Bigger Pond: Spend one Bent while casting to connect one body of water to any other body of water while fishing. Maximum size fish restricted by the opening of the original body of water. ^MAXIMUM SIZE IMPOSED: USE AT SEA DISABLED AFTER THE SUMMONING OF LAVASH THE WORLD DRINKER. Sea of Calm: Meditate while fishing. While fishing, the levels of Meditation and Fishing stack, applying to both their effects and abilities. for example, if fishing is 5 and Meditation is 15, while fishing, both skills will be treated as 20. User can Shadowbox between catches. ^Can''t be cheesed by fishing in Shabowboxing, you Munchkin, it''s already good enough. Calvinian Fishing: Creatures may be summoned with a hook and intangible line attached to them, allowing the user to mentally reel in fish. ^Fish with magic! Mutations: Polarized Eyes: Apply the Fishing correction to see clearly through the glare of water. ^Sometimes works on light-based illusions. Sonar: Allows the user to use high frequency noises to map out areas and detect creatures under the water. May cause Were-dolphin-ism ^eek eek! Expert Sturgeon: Eating fish applies the Fishing Skill''s correction to the body''s natural immunity/healing. Lasts 8 hours, requiring three meals with fish a day for full effect. From Hunting: Abilities: Agent of Natural Selection: Know which animals to kill and which to keep, raising the quality and health of game over time. Gentle Repose: Harvester now also halts the decay of (level) pounds of organic material for (level) days. From Shifting. ^I got you, boo. Clean kill: Applies a correction to shots fired upon prey animals, steering them toward their vitals. Camouflage: 1 Bent/6 hours. Blend in with the environment, lose your scent. Mutations: Predator¡¯s senses: Pick a sense, (Sight, Sound, Smell, Touch, Taste). That sense becomes heightened to match a predator that uses it to hunt. Blood Compass: after tasting something¡¯s blood, know its exact direction for 24 hours. Damn, that¡¯s a lot of choices. It nearly turned Calvin¡¯s stomach that he was going to have to wait until level twenty to pick something else, and only one thing, meaning the vast majority would never be chosen. I guess we have to live with them. I choose Gentle Repose. Calvin twitched for a moment as the Ability seated itself in his mind, then exhaled a sigh, repeating the Harvester ability to make sure the Gentle Repose took. 7/18 Bent Remaining. Once that was done, Calvin asked Kala to watch over him, sat down and started Shadowboxing. He appeared in the exact same location he was sitting, with a mess of translucent guts strewn out before him. Open up the Warp Tank. Roger. There was a sinking sensation in his stomach, and sweat began beading on his forehead as he felt the Warp coursing through him. 6/8 Warp Remaining. In Shadowboxing, he pulled out his borrowed knife and punctured two of the sacs, spilling goop all over the ground. Calvin watched as the two pools of goop slowly drifted toward each other, heart hammering. When the two fluids made contact, the reaction was far stronger than Calvin had expected. an explosion. Crystals jutted through his hand, into his cheek, burrowing into his stomach and out his back. I think you were sitting a bit too close. Calvin reset the shadowboxing, returning to his unharmed state, then began playing with them using dupdomancy. Aerosolizing them by spreading tiny bits evenly through the air made a beautiful slowflake-like effect, while slamming large amounts into each other made uncontrolled explosions of crystal growth. Calvin started experimenting with different combinations, different ratios, and even tried adding different fluids from the monster¡¯s body to see if it had some way of controlling the direction of the growth, or altering the properties of the crystals. After an hour or so of experimenting, Calvin was able to somewhat direct the growth of the crystal making a tube of metallic¡­stuff, that shot outward in the direction of his choosing. You have Manifested Abyssal Alchemy! Abyssal Alchemy: A branch of alchemy pioneered by the King-in-Exile in his later years, in an attempt to use monster parts as spell components. Widely hailed as the true beginning of modern component-based magic. Abyssal Alchemy level 1: 5% correction to using alchemical means to recreate Warped creature¡¯s abilities, as well as the control, malleability, stability, purity, and strength thereof. Who in the Abyss is that? Calvin thought. Idunno. Sounds like a cool guy, though. 5/8 Warp remaining. Macronomicon If you''re smarter than a rock, you''re probably concerned about what''s been going on in the world recently. I know I am. You also have heard how to protect yourself six ways from sunday. That''s not what I want to say. I want to say, that as an entertainer who does nothing but sit on my ass and wiggle my fingers for profit, I feel like it''s the responsibility of me and other webnovelists to keep putting out free content to help our readers stay happy. I think that every person whose day is lightened for the ten, fifteen minutes it takes to read one of my chapters, is a win for both of us. If you got friends who''ve Isolated themselves and run out of Hulu or netflix to binge, or don''t even have the money for aforementioned services, remind them that there''s years worth of good stuff on this site and others to keep them sane over the next few months. Good luck, you guys. -Macronomicon Chapter 106: Muscle Wizard ¡°I hate this.¡± Maya muttered beside Baroke, poking the meager fire with a stick. They had to keep it small on account of the entire nation searching for them. ¡°I know, but it¡¯s not gonna be much longer.¡± Baroke said, patting her back. ¡°Either we¡¯ll get away soon or we¡¯ll be dead soon.¡± He gave her a grin and a thumbs-up before putting his freezing hand back in front of the fire. The other one was occupied with stopping the bleeding in his stomach. ¡°How can you be this upbeat?¡± the little ranger demanded, scowling at him. ¡°Because this is most definitely real.¡± Baroke said with a smile. The Ilethans never bothered with this level of misery and graphic detail in their damned mind-prisons. Which meant Baroke was free. And that was something to be optimistic about. ¡°Would you mind?¡± Baroke asked, nodding to the knife in the fire. ¡°Could I get someone to hold down the brute?¡± Maya asked. ¡°Hey!¡± Baroke said, mildly irritated at being called a brute. A resounding flurry of not-it¡¯s carried through the camp, and Grant¡¯s distant form sighed, putting down his meager dinner they¡¯d stolen from pirates and coming over. ¡°I¡¯ll get this arm.¡± The grizzled veteran pointed at another tiny fire. ¡°You two, get the other arm.¡± The soldiers grumbled, but did as they were told, coming over and clamping down on Baroke¡¯s arm. ¡°Oh, come on fellas, I¡¯m not gonna cause any trouble.¡± ¡°Baroke, if you weren¡¯t the damndest idiot and hadn¡¯t spent every Warp point you ever had working out, we wouldn¡¯t be in this mess.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, I kind of like feeling like the entire world is made of a soft cheese.¡± Baroke said with his best grin. Without warning, Maya pressed the hot blade againt the wound, lighting Baroke¡¯s entire body up with searing pain. ¡°Agh, goddamnmutherfuckeri¡¯llkillyou!¡± The blinding pain forced him to flinch, tossing the two soldiers over to the next campfire while Grant tried to pin down his arm with his entire body weight. With an effort of will, Baroke directed the violence toward Grant rather than his petite girlfriend. Grant motioned to the side while Baroke was beating on his face with his free hand. Swords whizzed out from the general¡¯s campsite, four of them clamped down around Baroke¡¯s wrist and slammed his hand to the ground. ¡°Gaah!¡± Baroke groaned, the swords screaming with metal fatigue and twisting around his wrists as he tried to get one last punch in¡­then he came to his senses, panting from the sudden rush of endorphins. ¡°Whew, that was a rough one, right guys?¡± The two soldiers he¡¯d thrown groaned as they stood up, Grant glared at him through a swollen eye. ¡°When we see you again, remind me to give you a good thrashing,¡± Grant said, shifting his gaze over to Copy Calvin, who winked at them from the cookpan. He hadn¡¯t gotten hungry in three days, so Baroke pretty much assumed the copy didn¡¯t need to eat. ¡°Can do.¡± Calvin said, serving the next set of eggs. ¡°You sure you don¡¯t need a rescue?¡± Calvin glanced over at Ella, who shook her head. ¡°He¡¯s still alive. Alive, and¡­¡± She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. ¡°Manic.¡± ¡°What would you have to be manic about? They threw you in a pit to the Abyss, right?¡± Baroke asked, gingerly wrapping up his wound and trying not to pop it open again. ¡°Here,¡± Maya said, taking it out of his hand and wrapping the bandage for him. ¡°I can only thing of three things I could get manic about.¡± Calvin said, ticking them off on his fingers. ¡°Becoming a wizard King, discovering a new form of magic, or getting laid. It¡¯s one of those things. Kala¡¯s lost hope of ever returning, her societal reservations have most likely crumbled and she¡¯s succumbed to my masculine charm. It¡¯s probably the third one.¡± Baroke picked up a pebble and flicked it at his friend, bowling the scrawny kid over. ¡°Him being manic can only be a good thing, I guess.¡± Baroke said, turning back to the rest of the group. ¡°It¡¯s a lot more productive than depression and suicidal thoughts. If he¡¯s manic, it means he¡¯s in a good place and working on a way out.¡± ¡°By all the gods,¡± Jinsei said, his jaw hanging open. ¡°Baroke said something wise.¡± ¡°Hey, I¡¯m not dumb.¡± ¡°Really, what¡¯s your Mind?¡± ¡°Ten.¡± Maya blinked. ¡°You said you never raised it.¡± ¡°Never did. Decided I should focus on my highest Attribute and stick with it for long term gains,¡± Baroke said. He flexed his arms and kissed each bicep. ¡°That¡¯s how these beasts came to be. Eighty-one Body, baby. Would¡¯ve been ninety-seven if the damn ilethans hadn¡¯t fucked my build with all those extra Skills.¡± The entire camp went eerily silent. ¡°That is a stupidly high amount of Mind for your first Break.¡± Maya said. ¡°Not as stupidly high as thirteen Body.¡± Baroke said with a shrug. ¡°To Baroke! The Grand Wizard of muscle!¡± Jinsei said, raising a glass and downing the Bolesian wine therein. The glassworker still had a bit of a drinking habit that needed sorting out. Without Nadia to keep him in check, he was backsliding, somewhat. A few people halfheartedly joined the glassworker¡¯s salute. The rest just sort of stared at Baroke. I don¡¯t know what they¡¯re on about. Baroke shrugged and decided to ignore it. ¡°So what¡¯s the plan?¡± Baroke asked, turning his attention to Grant. ¡°We¡¯re heading East.¡± Grant said, sitting down beside the fire, tossing his ruined swords aside with a scowl. ¡°Veer is already halfway across the with country with Orson¡¯s caravan. We can meet up with him at the border and shelter in Boles for a while.¡± ¡°As bandits?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯ve got nearly two thousand men¡­and Cobalts,¡± Baroke said, nodding toward the little campfires with small blue creatures sitting around them. ¡°Armed to the teeth, without any sort of government oversight. We¡¯ll be attacked as a matter of course. Outlaws by default.¡± ¡°Boles is a big, big, place, and lush. A land of plenty. And of course that means that warlords fight over the bountiful resources therein.¡± Grant said, pulling out a knife and motioning them closer. He drew a triangle in the dirt and split it in half. ¡°This is Iletha and Gadvera, divided by the Capachen mountains, with the Genosian jungle south of them. He drew a bigger circle to the side of it. ¡°This is Uleis, big enough to swallow the two of them up, but nearly devoid of natural resources, save sand.¡± ¡°We make the most with what we have,¡± Ussein said, nodding. ¡°Then there¡¯s Boles.¡± Grant drew a huge circle nearly engulfing Uleis. ¡°It¡¯s not actually a country. Instead, it¡¯s divided into hundreds of small city-states that dot the land, constantly warring with each other. The only thing they have in common is a language and culture.¡± Grant leaned back and studied his rough map. ¡°Every fifty years or so, some warlord or other will try to unify the country, but it¡¯s just too damn big, and states constantly splinter off after their passing, until it eventually falls to anarchy again. This has happened so many times, the locals just sort of expect it. They Call it the Mandate of Soscath. They think gods live on the moon and tell the common folk who should be emperor.¡± Grant snorted. ¡°Anway,¡± he said, tapping the big picture. ¡°The regime is currently on the downswing, the last warlord to attempt unification passed away ten years ago, and the place is rife with unrest. We¡¯ll be lost in the ocean of problems the emperor is drowning in.¡± ¡°Hiding in the chaos?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Pretty much.¡± Grant said. ¡°We can rent our services to a city-state and use intermediaries to move product into Uleis, At least until we can rejoin with Calvin and the princess. Going back to Gadvera without either of them would probably be unwise. Take it from me.¡± ¡°Alright, sounds like a plan,¡± Baroke said, nodding. The other leaders of the West Boles trading company nodded. There was a hiss as an arrow tore through the air, burying itself in front of Baroke¡¯s foot. ¡°Ambush! They¡¯ve found us!¡± Grant cried, lunging to his feet, his blades weaving a shell of cover above his head. Damn it all, Baroke thought, rolling over to Betty, trying to keep his abdomen as straight as possible to avoid reopening his wound. He grabbed his fancy new magic bow and pushed himself to his feet, arrows dropping around him like hail. Betty was made entirely of rubber glass, as Calvin had called it. Nearly indestructible, with arms as thick as Baroke¡¯s thighs. She was a big girl. Cries of pain began echoing through the camp as arrows found their targets. The Uleisan army had been hounding them since the night Calvin¡¯s clone had warned them, accused of a crime¡­they had committed. Every Uleisan oasis had tried to turn them away, shunned and spit on them, forcing them to resupply their water by force before moving on. The further they got from Gadvera, the more bandit-like they became. Baroke was just flabbergasted the Wasps, all one hundred and eighty-four original members of Calvin¡¯s company, were still there. Some of them surely wanted to go back home, to the Abyss with the desert. Well, no sense overthinking it. Baroke¡¯s height allowed him to see above the chaos in the camp, making out the distant army, mostly concealed by the dark. They were charging toward them on desert guar, their timing such that they would hit their left flank at the same moment that the rain of arrows stopped. ¡°Five stones says I can hit the commander in the left eye,¡± Baroke said, plucking a falling arrow out of the air and stringing it. ¡°No deal,¡± Maya said, holding a shield of hardened leather with several arrows embedded in it over her head, trying to be as small as possible. ¡°Fine,¡± Baroke shrugged, a non-powered arrow bouncing off his shoulder, another richocheting off his scalp and landing in front of Maya. Baroke narrowed his eyes, and everything else faded away between him and his target. For an instant, even the constant ache of the wound the big Genosian had scored on him faded away. He eyed the man with the biggest hat he could see in the darkness, drew and fired in a single motion. Force Amplification. Assassinate. Called Shot. Penetrating Shot. 0/8 Bent remaining. The arrow blasted forward, energized by a massive amount of Bent, glowing white hot and crackling with energy. The rider¡¯s guards noticed the light and tried to interpose their shields between Baroke¡¯s arrow and the leader, to no avail. The streak of light shot through them, their leader, and four rows of riders behind him. Betty has reclaimed 3 Bent. 6/22 Bent Stored for User¡¯s activated abilities. ¡°I love this bow,¡± Baroke said, kissing the massive blue chunk of glass, a thumb-thick tube about a quarter full of black Bent running through the handle. ¡°North!¡± Grant shouted, pointing the way in the middle of the hail of arrows. The charge faltered and folded in on itself as its leader was removed, and Grant steered them away from the flanking maneuver opposite the charge by heading towards the mountains, aiming to scrape off one side of their pursuit by the Uleisan army and their hired legends. The men were bone tired, but each and every one was a Veteran, so they didn¡¯t waste time complaining or asking why. As a single unit, every Gadveran, Genosian, Cobalt and Uleisan hopped up and started sprinting for the north. Well, except for Jinsei, who was huddled by the fire, hyperventilating and clutching the arrow in his shoulder with a death-grip. ¡°Come on, skinny,¡± Baroke said, lifting the glass artisan up with one hond and throwing him over his shoulder as they cleared out of their camp, leaving nothing but a forest of arrows behind them. Along with a few corpses of their friends unlucky enough to be hit in a vital area. Damn it, Calvin, you really stepped in it. Baroke thought as he ran. ***Jinnei*** ¡°I don¡¯t know why it took so long to move, and I don¡¯t know what it wants, but those ships back there,¡± Karen said, pointing to the fleet behind them. ¡°Are not Ilethan. They¡¯re not Malkenrovian either. They belong to a horrifying creature that can consume the minds and bodies of anyone it wants. It¡¯s the reason the borders of Malkenrovia have been closed these last seventeen years.¡± Karen hooked her thumbs in the belt holding her greatsword. ¡°Maybe it was content, maybe it was sleeping with no one to disturb it. Maybe it was just resting and gathering strength for this day. Whatever the case, this thing spreads like wildfire, and it wants to cover the entire world in its spawn for some crazy vendetta against the gods themselves.¡± It can¡¯t die, and it had more arms, legs, and screaming, bloody mouths than the entire city of Mujenan.¡± ¡°Are you trying to scare us?¡± Jinnei demanded. ¡°Because you never mentioned anything like this the entire time we were growing up.¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to help you understand what that is,¡± Karen said, pointing a beefy arm at the armada that stretched across the ocean. ¡°That is not human. That is not going to be satisfied with a new castle, or trade agreements, or power. Or any of a million selfish human desires. The only reason it exists is for revenge.¡± ¡°Revenge on who?¡± Kip asked, raising a hand like a schoolchild in front of the Legend. ¡°I don¡¯t fucking know. I didn¡¯t stop to ask him when the King and Queen were trying to claw my eyes out with their bare fucking hands.¡± Karen said. The boat full of Malkenrovian pirates drew in a breath, and shortly after, whispers began floating around the deck like so much flotsam. Pirates they might be, but they shared the pride of a lost country. ¡°That¡¯s right, Karen the Bloodletter had an adventuring party with the crown prince.¡± ¡°I heard they did jobs for the king and queen themselves.¡± ¡°She might really have been there¡­¡± ¡°Do you think she..¡± Jinnei glanced around, her hackles rising as some of the grease-stained, smelly men cast darting glances between the blonde fighter and her black-haired daughter as they whispered. Kip raised his hand again. ¡°You were there? Do you know what happened to the royal family?¡± ¡°They¡¯re dead.¡± Karen said, glancing at Jinnei. It was quick, but the pirates didn¡¯t miss it, the hushed whispers redoubling. Karen growled a low rumble and stomped her foot. The entire ship rocked, causing a few men to fall off their barrels, or stumble in place, and drawing their attention back to her. ¡°What I¡¯m trying to say is these fuckers aren¡¯t human, and when we get to Gadvera in two weeks time, you will not be sipping on Bolesian wine and plowing whores, you are going to be fighting for your lives and the future of he gods-damned human race. Until we arrive, consider these two weeks a vacation, you understand?¡± There was a silence. ¡°If we kill this thing¡­Can we go home? Make a new Malkenrovia?¡± A voice near the back asked. ¡°Malkenrovia isn¡¯t dead as long as the royal family survives.¡± One of them whispered, glancing at Jinnei. Well, this is really fucking awkward. Jinnei thought, trying to keep her back straight. Macronomicon Chapter 107: Risk Free* Most of its life had been spent without a body. A shifting amorphous mass drifting through the ocean of it¡¯s brethren. It made itself Predator to avoid becoming Prey. It made itself Prey to fool other Prey. So much of its own thought processes were consumed with what it was, and how that could benefit it, it left little time for other thoughts. One moment, shifting, reacting, it had followed a prey into this¡­matterspace. A place where things had distance from each other, a concept so foreign to its mind that it sometimes tried to use the old methods of catching prey, which amounted to sitting and watching, it¡¯s Will reverberating off the Mass like so many nothings. But it was learning. The blue creatures that hummed like Chetzela feeding off the Pulse were nowhere near as harmless. And they used Distance and their bodies to their advantage. They made themselves large and hurt it. Made it diminish. It was painful. When it had made them small with its legs, they had been unable to hurt it any longer, but so too, had it been unable to harm the blue creatures. Distance. The creature¡¯s cunning use of this new reality¡¯s laws was admirable. Taking the form of the creature the wasps were protecting and imitating its call seemed to work for a short time, but the creature seemed to be able to unmask it, somehow. After it had deciphered the change, the assault with the strange goop out of the black shiny point in it¡¯s back had redoubled, and it had stung horribly. The attack hadn¡¯t been like one of it¡¯s own. If the blue creatures that broke away from the strange downward pull had been like it, their units would have battled directly with it¡¯s own, perhaps creating an offspring in the midst of the battle. Instead it had been a solid¡­something. Nothing there for its units to fight, only a liquid that brought death to those who touched it. It had been forced to dump the affected units and some of the healthy ones around them. Requires more study. After the confrontation, it had looped back, seizing the use of distance, and it¡¯s new vision to its advantage, following the blue creatures that broke away from the omnipull, until they turned back into a pale creature with four limbs. Most interesting. The creature was manyform. Like it. The pale four-limbed creature went still. Perhaps it was waiting for it to attack again. It experimentally tried to turn into one of the blue creatures. Six limbs, good balance¡­ It flexed its new midsection, and the units made it happen, bringing the stabby-pointy forward in a way that felt natural to this form, even creating a bit of the goop at the end of the black point. Pain pain pain pain. The units at the tip of the stinger died and it was forced to jettison them, losing even more of itself. Perhaps, replace goop with self? Things that took it into themselves became it, after all. It restructured. Similar to the first shape it had found, the eight-legged one, although the placement of the pain-goop glands were different and there was no sticky-goop glands, it was, all in all, very similar. Can I fight the Omnipull and use it to make other creatures small? It thought to itself. From what it had seen, the blue creatures had been using the clear paddles attached to their backs when they had broken free form the omnipull. It tried it. The paddles waggled in place, preforming slow rotations in a pattern that seemed to be built into the blue-creature¡¯s body. However, nothing seemed to change. The omnipull was still affecting it. Perhaps¡­faster? The paddles had been moving quite fast. It moved the paddles faster. The unique hum began to resound through the open space¡­a moment before the units at the tips of the paddles began to tear themselves off, jumping off into the distance on their own. Pain pain pain pain. Conclusion: Its units became unruly and decided to create distance when swung at very high speeds. How then, did the Blue creature¡¯s units stay put at the tips of its oars? It changed into the form of the pale 4-limbed one, watching as the duskier one slumped over the first. Were they mating? Was the dark one eating the light one? Was it a trap? It decided it wasn¡¯t worth the risk of finding out. Instead it studied the still figures from a distance, waving it¡¯s foremost appendage, feeling the gentle pull of the disobedient units as they tried to pull away from his body.. Is this me, only? It thought, before it reached down with it¡¯s front appendage and picked up a piece of this matterspace. It was pulled towards the Omnipull at a decent rate. It waved it¡¯s arm with the matterspace chunk. The pull on his units increased tenfold. It¡¯s not my units, it¡¯s a quirk of this matterspace. It let go of the matterspace chunk, and the matterspace chunk flew along the last path it had been following before it lost contact with the creature. Interesting. Objects in Matterspace wish to continue on the path that they have been set upon and will continue moving in that direction unless acted upon by an outside force. So strange! The creature was agog at the weirdness of it all. Not at all like the place it had come from. Where distance was a state of mind and thought blended seamlessly with action. And the paddles¡­ they must be interacting with more matterspace. But how to prevent the paddles from flying apart according to this matterspace¡¯s quirky rules? The blue creature¡¯s paddles were far more resistant to the strange force than its own. Perhaps it was the paddle¡¯s differentiated, specialized units. What a novel concept! Specialized body parts. The creature¡¯s pale, eyeless head cocked to the side in wonderment. It could solve the problem by locking the units into a rigid structure, but those units would then be immobile and dependant on the main body to provide nutrients and protect them. They might not even be able to think anymore. It wasn¡¯t particularly appealing, but it could see the benefit of having paddles that didn¡¯t fall apart when in use, or goop tubes that weren¡¯t destroyed by their own goop. Requires more study. But first, need to make more units. For that, need Prey. The creature used it¡¯s limbs to make the pale creature and the dusky creature small, while making other parts of the strange world bigger. It didn¡¯t quiet understand why the light and dark brown creatures used only their back appendages for creating distance, but it faithfully tottered on, confident that the reason would reveal itself if it was faithful enough in its copying. It needed to find something, make it big, then make it into more units. Then it could return and study the dangerous predators some more. ***Calvin*** ¡°I can¡¯t believe you wasted a whole six gallons of water on this.¡± Kala said, wrinkling her nose as Calvin stirred the Toad hide in the murky mixture, looking for all the world like the mythical witch. ¡°I didn¡¯t,¡± Calvin said, sloshing a glass bottle of water around for her benefit.¡± ¡°It¡¯s duplicated. I¡¯m trying to separate out whatever causes the Toad hide to be extra tough.¡± Calvin said, his voice nasal through the bone pin he was using to seal his nostrils. ¡°this time, I¡¯m going to render the hide down into glue and see if that¡¯s got the properties in it still. If it does, I can try mixing it with the Crystal Lattice¡¯s catalyst and see what happens, maybe make an armor or something out of it.¡± Like Elliot had said, half of all chemistry was boiling things and stirring stuff. Not exactly grand magic, but one did what one had to. ¡°Can I watch you experiment?¡± Kala asked, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm. ¡°Sure, but it won¡¯t be for another hour or-¡° The princess was already gone, presumably to go take a few puffs of a sleep aid and lay down so she could connect her dream to his. Shadowboxing was close enough to a dream for her to intrude on it, apparently, although she didn¡¯t quite reap as many benefits from his skill, practice was practice, even if it was imaginary. Just make sure not to tell her about her copy¡¯s tendency to jump me. Calvin shrugged and poked the floating hide back into the pot. When the water came close to expiring, Calvin carefully duplicated the simmering water and added it back in, keeping the temperature the same. You think the Knick-knacks could pull enough iron out of these nightmare creatures to make a proper spoon? Calvin thought, casually tapping his bone spoon on the side of the loaner cookpot. Probably. Wouldn¡¯t be too hard for them to wire up an electromagnet out of an arm or something. Might be more effort than it¡¯s worth, though. I don¡¯t plan on being down here forever, and I can just buy a better spoon on the surface. Calvin idled the time away, thinking about other things as he rendered the hide. Eventually the hide was all but gone, and Calvin was left with a pale slurry. Filtering, another 25% of chemistry. Calvin poured the slurry through several stages of different duplicated cloth, borrowed from clothing scraps the other villagers had lent. The water sloshed through the first filter, leaving behind the thickest chunks of hide and fat, then proceeded to drip through each successive filter, leaving behind increasingly fine goop in each one. He took the finished product, along with each seperate filter and put them each into bottles filled with duplicated air. Calvin screwed the Knick-knack created lids on and canceled his spells. Hope they don¡¯t implode like last time. The filters disappeared, along with the water and the air in the bottles, leaving only the product of the boiling, a thick paste in each of the four airtight bottles. All the chemists of the world are gnashing their teeth in jealousy right now. What, why? Your Dupdomancy just let you skip a bunch of steps, along with all the cleaning you would normally have to do. Oh. Cool. Goddamnit, show more respect to all the work I had to do as an undergrad! Scrubbing bottles every day builds character. Calvin inspected the contents of the four bottles for any sign that a substance was magically inclined, but none of them looked shimmery or otherworldly, and without any space, they weren¡¯t inclined to evaporate rapidly, either. We¡¯ll start with the mush and work our way down, Calvin thought, closing his eyes. Shadowboxing. The village of Deinos appeared around him, his favorite place to practice. ¡°What took so long?¡± Kala asked, kicking her heels against the log spectator bench as she took a long drag off her pipe. ¡°What¡¯s with the pipe?¡± Calvin shot back. ¡°I got Smoking accidentally.¡± Kala admitted, her cheeks flushing. ¡°Uncle Bekvah says there¡¯s no such thing as a bad Skill, only bad Users. In here I can smoke until I get sick and raise the Skill with no risk.¡± She pulled out some grey plant matter from a sack over her shoulder and started stuffing it in her pipe. ¡°You got smoking as a skill?¡± Calvin asked incredulously. ¡°Smoking?¡± ¡°I forgot about the Break.¡± ¡°You knew a Break was coming. You predicted those people dying. How could you not predict a stray Skill?¡± ¡°Sometimes these things happen, guy with a princess kidnapping Skill¡± Kala said, puffing perfect smoke circles. ¡°Royals get a three-Skill leeway in their designed plan to account for accidents.¡± ¡°How many do you have left?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°One. I¡¯m saving that skill slot for a special occasion.¡± Kala winked. Calvin was 99% sure it was something inappropriate. ¡°What are you smoking, anyway?¡± Calvin didn¡¯t recognize it. ¡°Corpse vine. It makes everything stressful in small amounts, and in larger amounts it will send you on a terror-driven nightmare bender that will scar you for life.¡± ¡°Why on Marconen would you ever want to smoke something like that?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Stress improves the speed of Skill improvement,¡± She said with a shrug. ¡°And smoking by itself isn¡¯t very stressful. Therefore¡­ corpse vine.¡± How does a smoked drug make everything stressful? Calvin wondered to himself. It overclocks your Amygdala by forcing the neuroreceptors to stay flipped on much longer than they should. Tell her not to abuse that. Huh, Calvin thought, not understanding a word of it. ¡°Elliot says you shouldn¡¯t abuse that.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t plan on it. Believe me, the ill effects of overuse are well documented in the Royal Skill Thesaurus.¡± ¡°Where did you kids come from?¡± Karen asked, coming out of her house, scowling at them. ¡°Matter of fact¡­Calvin? Kala? You¡¯re looking¡­older. And dressed in rags.¡± Calvin glanced down at his rough leather clothes. ¡°This is an imaginary space, I¡¯m a wizard now, you¡¯re a construct of my imagination and a Skill, no I don¡¯t want to spar, I just like visiting my hometown.¡± Karen processed that for a moment, blinking. ¡°Well, if none of this is real and you don¡¯t need me for anything, I¡¯m gonna go fuck the shit out of Ghol and his wife. Later.¡± Karen waved a meaty hand as she tromped off, heading for the center of town, where the smith¡¯s home was. ¡°That woman has seen some shit,¡± Calvin muttered to himself, watching Karen leave. Normally he¡¯d attribute that casual attitude to extremely high Stability, but with Karen¡¯s low mental Attributes, it was probably good old life experience. Calvin created a desk in front of him and dropped each of his seven bottles of monster extract on top. Lets see¡­ He glanced over at Kala, whose eyes were following Karen, jaw dropped. Calvin saw the instant the thought occurred to her, as she glanced back at him, her eyes shining with mischief. ¡°So, this is an imaginary space, and there are no consequences¡­ or observers¡­¡± ¡°End of the day,¡± Calvin said, holding up a hand. ¡°I promise. I can¡¯t trust myself not to get carried away.¡± ¡°You better get carried away.¡± Kala muttered with a scowl. Calvin duplicated the hide and fat he¡¯d skimmed off the top, putting a needle through them. The hide gave way like soft butter, falling apart at the needle¡¯s touch. Excellent. The next bottle had a thick, tacky substance that provided some resistance to Calvin¡¯s pin, but not much. I think it¡¯s just glue. But it might not be normal glue. Calvin smeared some of the paste on the table and set a block of wood on top of it, then move on to the next. The materials got successively harder to push a pin through, even as they turned more and more liquid, until Calvin got to the last one, which reversed, becoming very easy to push through, as it was a slightly gritty dust. Calvin turned to the material in the last filter, which had the most concentrated effect and started experimenting with it. The Toad essence evaporated quickly outside the bottle, but Calvin was able to smear some on his arm. It felt cold as it evaporated quickly, leaving his arm a little chilly and tingly. He tried pushing a pin into his arm. Calvin couldn¡¯t feel any kind of difference, the pain wasn¡¯t lessened, and his skin didn¡¯t show any kind of enhanced effect. The pin slid in without too much effort. I didn¡¯t expect it to be easy. He conjured a large bottle full of the substance and began mixing it with different amounts of the crystal Lattice juices. The effect wanted to evaporate, so he needed some kind of binder to make it retain it¡¯s physical shape. Time to start alchemizing. ***2 hours later*** ¡°This is a lot more boring than I thought it¡¯d be.¡± Kala said, head resting on her palm. Science is boring, but effective. Trying combination 12/2/16. Calvin flicked a ball of scintillating blue paste onto the table. The solid blue material exploded with energy, sheathing the entire table in transparent force in the blink of an eye. It was a nearly invisible coating, but it was now nearly impossible to poke a tack into the wood, the outer layer seemingly repelling the tack more than actually being hard. Calvin¡¯s heart leapt in his chest at the first major breakthrough after the crystal spears. Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 2! 10% Correction. Spell formula created. Would you like to name it? Ooh, ooh, call it Mage Armor. Not until we test it. Calvin took out a ball of the thick blue paste and lowered his body mass as much as he could, slowing perceived time. He smacked it with a hammer. The blue ball turned into a liquid as it was catalyzed by the shock of impact, then wrapped itself around the closest whole object, creating a difficult to penetrate field of repelling energy, stretched so thin it turned transparent. ¡°neat.¡± Calvin said, then tore off another little ball, smashing it against his chest. His skin turned cold for an instant, his eyeballs turning bleary for a moment as something irritated them. Now the biggest test. Can I still breathe? Calvin opened his mouth and inhaled. No problems here. He poked his own eyeball. I feel nothing. AWESOME. Calvin repeated the process with duplicated paste, and it was still effective. He had successfully created a spell component. Label it Mage Armor. Calvin thought, a manic smile bubbling out of him. Spell formula recorded. System recommends physical backups in case of file corruption or memory loss. Wizard king, here we come. Next step, I want one of those Diffraction spinners. And a Lure. And a Husker. I can¡¯t WAIT to see how the Husker¡¯s abilities interact with the other components. Maybe I can make guided spells! or telekinesis without having the spell for it! *** Oh, no. Kala watched Calvin dancing in front of his little alchemy station. His energy and passion were part of what made him cute, but the boy had just been offered S-E-X, albeit wordlessly, and Kala was absolutely sure he had just forgotten all about it. I suppose it¡¯s for the best. If he got that single-minded about me, he probably wouldn¡¯t get any work done. It still rankled, though. ¡°Kala!¡± Calvin said, snapping his fingers and whirling to point at her. The room around them changed to The Filter. ¡°We¡¯re going to go scout out the abilities of the Warp monsters with Shadowboxing so we can safely bag a few of them!¡± ¡°And then?¡± she asked expectantly. ¡°More spells.¡± Calvin said, dramatically clenching his fist. Kala sighed inwardly. He was still cute, though. Maybe I should drug him with Wet Dream, she thought, clearing out her pipe and bringing out the purplish bud. Nah, that¡¯s bad form. *** Calvin was walking through one of the tunnels southeast of the Crack, keeping his head on a swivel for attackers, but not overly anxious. He was shadowboxing to learn the layout of the tunnels and what kind of predators to expect before he went through in person to hunt some powerful compon ¨C monsters ¨C. There was no inherent risk. I¡¯ve got to show Kala a good time after this, Calvin thought to himself, hands in his pockets as he glanced around. He hadn¡¯t forgot about her, he was just¡­nervous. Can¡¯t put it off any longer, no matter my bravado. When I come back from this, I¡¯m gonna march right up to her, kneel down and say, ¡®princess Kala, will you have hardcore imaginary sex with me?¡¯ Probably have a bit of that terror induced out of body experience, but I¡¯ll get over it. Something slammed into Calvin¡¯s back, throwing him to the ground, and a hot pain shot through the back of his neck, burrowing into his brain. ¡°Gah!¡± Calvin shouted, trying to push himself up, his limbs turning weak as the pain began to turn ice cold. Calvin was walking through the tunnel, hands in his pockets But I¡¯ll get over it¡­Wait a sec. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and saw a bizarre creature phase through the wall. It¡¯s body looked like a pale worm, it¡¯s head looked like a butterfly¡¯s proboscis and all. As Calvin was throwing his hands up, Something struck him in the back, knocking him to the ground, a searing pain travelling through his spine. Calvin desperately tried to put his hands under him and push away. ¡­ Calvin glanced over his shoulder, flinching as he saw the oncoming worm-thing. It¡¯s looping somehow, MOVE! Calvin dropped and rolled, but something caught him in the back, sending pain through his entire body as it began to burrow into his brain. It got further this time. The next time it looped, the drill was already in Calvin¡¯s head, and his consciousness was beginning to scatter. Stop the Shadowbo---- It looped. It¡¯s looping, Stop the Sha Stop the Stop Sto- Ss Ssssssss Ssssssss Calvin sank into a endlessly looping mirage of pain and brain drills, his point of view slowly altering as he became the monster that was eating him, feeling everything it felt, wanting what it wanted, his mind scattered to the winds, individuality lost as he floated in a sea of pain and primal hunger, rapidly changing into something not entirely human. After what felt like an eternity of being endlessly consumed by the abomination, something changed. ¡°Calvin, wake up!¡± Calvin¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t move. He saw her, but he couldn¡¯t recognize her. He couldn¡¯t recognize anything, because he wasn¡¯t anything right now. Just a piece of meat rapidly morphing into an abomination, and yet going nowhere. The blurry brown difference in the orange-white ocean of his fluttering eyelids pulled a glowing hand back. A second¡­or maybe an hour later, a concussive blast rocked his head to the side. -1 Stability Error detected. -1 Stability Malignant logic loop detected. User protection subroutines activated. Compartmentalizing Malignancy¡­. Dumping¡­. Dumping complete. 2 Stability lost in the process. Calvin gasped, his eyes shooting open. Kala wasn¡¯t above him, rather she was laying beside him, her eyes slowly blinking open before fixing on him. The slap was inside of Shadowboxing? ¡°Are you okay?¡± She asked, her voice soft. ¡°I think so.¡± Calvin said, blinking the sand out of his eyes. ¡°I just lost four Stability, and I can¡¯t remember much of what just happened, except that it sucked.¡± ¡°Your brain got eaten and added to a Brain leech.¡± She said with a wince. ¡°You spent two hours simulating what that would be like in Shadowboxing.¡± After I got Kala to wake you up, I bound the memory to a couple points of Stability and booted it from the System. Better than you getting crippling super PTSD. ¡°Thanks,¡± Calvin said, sitting up with a groan, holding his aching head. ¡°Not looking forward to raising my Stability again to make up for it.¡± Not with my Warp, you¡¯re not. Not until we get the rest of your Skills. ¡°First things first,¡± Calvin groaned, picking himself up, until he was on one knee, looking the slender girl in the eyes as she sat up in bed, watching him with a delicate frown. ¡°Princess, will you have hardcore, sweaty, ball-slapping imaginary sex with me?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t really feel like it at the moment,¡± She said airily. ¡°Yeah I guess I understand that,¡± Calvin said, a little needle poking his heart. A guy nearly dying and turning into a drooling mess is probably not much of a turn-on. ¡°Maybe some other time, then.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± Kala said with pursed lips, and a thoughtful look, ¡°Since you need to recover your Stability, I suppose I could be charitable and help out¡­In your dreams.¡± Sex raises Stability? Dude, sex is like, the easiest way to raise Stability. Where have you been? ¡°Constantly under threat of death, that¡¯s where I¡¯ve been, you asshole!¡± Calvin shouted out loud. Touchy. You need to get laid more often. Macronomicon Chapter 108: Escape Plans In the beginning, the Ravagers were volunteers, patriots who understood the value of adversity. Over time though, the Treatment was considered more of a punishment than a necessary evil, and the core attitude of the Ravagers began to shift. Criminals and political prisoners were used by the Harbingers, rather than those of noble spirit. Carl Daley was sitting at the Admin terminal, feet up on the desk idly watching the ebb and flow of Warp, Bent and System Users as he twiddled his fidget spinner. Carl had active hands and he concentrated best while doing something else. Not that he needed to do much. The System took care of most everything. Carl¡¯s job was pretty much just watching the Refined Warp output of Marconen and calling his superiors when something went wrong. A monkey could do his job. Hell, the System could do his job, with a little rewiring. Which is why he had a subroutine built to bring him interesting news of the face of Marconen, a simple function that called up Skills earned that were unique, incredibly rare, or just sounded like a really bad time. He always got a kick out of reading them and how they were accomplished. It was the closest he could get to reading his feed while at work. ¡°Tooth-walking, you know that guy¡¯s probably limbless.¡± Carl chuckled to himself. ¡°Yandere magnet. Yanderes are (correction) more attracted to you, and women in love with you are (correction) more likely to become Yandere. Yowch. That poor guy.¡± Carl hoped for his sake the dude was tough as nails, but it probably wouldn¡¯t help much. ¡°What are you doing?¡± the reverberating voice of Carl¡¯s Harbinger boss less than a foot away made Carl flinch violently. Can¡¯t dismiss the feed, he¡¯s already seen it, but maybe I can bullshit. ¡°Just, you know, keeping an eye on unusual Skill patterns, make sure nobody gets something like Nuclear Engineer or something like that. The guys on Septon didn¡¯t have any warning before their civ went nuclear, and they blew each other all to hell. Skills can really make the turnaround time short, ya know, so I thought it¡¯d be best¡­¡± Carl¡¯s voice trailed off as the large, red-brown crested alien eyed him speculatively. ¡°That is not what you have been trained to do, Carl Daley. If you wish to suggest an alteration to the Warp Monitoring System, please submit it in writing.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Carl said in a cold sweat. Any old Harbinger could tear him to pieces. And although they tended not to, that power dynamic was never far from Carl¡¯s mind. He turned forward, laid his hand on his mouse and began to close the feed. The Harbinger¡¯s rough hand clamped over his, the unexpected contact with the creature¡¯s pebbly skin making the hair on Carl¡¯s head stand on end. This is it. he ¨C or she ¨C is going to break my hand and tear my head off, and that¡¯ll be the end of the line for Carl Daley. ¡°Wait.¡± The Harbinger said. Carl hesitantly looked up at the Harbinger. He wasn¡¯t paying any attention to Carl at all, instead the alien looming over his shoulder was staring intently at the screen. Carl glanced up. Abyssal Alchemy? It sounds kind of spooky I guess. Must have tripped the cool or rare filter. The Harbinger dragged Carl¡¯s hand up and clicked on the X, turning off the feed before he was able to read more than the title. A growl built in the alien¡¯s throat, not a pathetic human ¡®rrarr¡¯, but the sound of a two-hundred pound cat with bones rattling around on the inside. ¡°Good work.¡± His boss said, turning and stalking away, anger radiating from the creature¡¯s posture. I have to pee. Carl suddenly realized. ***Calvin*** Extensive training has increased your Attributes! +4 Stability +1 Strength +2 Endurance +1 Kinesthetics You Have Manifested Drafting! One of the unsung cornerstones of technology. Creating a plan, and sharing that plan with others before work even begins. Drafting level 1: 5% correction to drawing, designing, mental imaging, note-taking, and pencil sharpening. ^Cuz you can never have a sharp enough pencil, amiright? You have Manifested Bent Manipulation! Bent Manipulation level 1: 5% correction to manually manipulating Bent outside the body, and reducing mental strain thereof. 6/8 Warp Remaining. Hmm¡­ one skill left. Calvin was meditating in his unqua in the hours of the ¡®morning¡¯, before old Sal got up and made the Stringer filament wrapped around the central stalagmite glow with heat. He was considering what came next with his Skills. After Calvin had mostly healed his leg and recovered his Stability, It had only taken an afternoon to learn Drafting and Bent manipulation, leaving Calvin with one empty slot, and no concrete idea on what he wanted to fill it with. What am I missing right now? Calvin had several different ways of attacking and defending. Shifting covered his movement skills as well¡­barely. If nothing else, I might want to investigate phasing, teleportation, or Flying. Floating with Shifting doesn¡¯t really count. Teleportation was famously difficult to achieve a high enough level to make anything happen. Do you know what the details on teleportation are? Oh, yeah, I can look that one up. Gimme a sec. Looks like mass is level cubed divided by 1000, in pounds, with a range of level cubed feet. You wouldn¡¯t be able to teleport yourself until level fifty-five. Assuming you don¡¯t gain weight in your old age. On the other hand, you could teleport yourself thirty one miles per casting at that level. As for phasing¡­I think I know a way to get it without learning the Skill. Calvin thought, the brief glimpse of the Brain leech phasing through the wall replaying in his mind. He couldn¡¯t remember much after that. The back of his neck twinged with phantom pain. You sure about that? That thing got you pretty good in Shadowboxing. Yeah, I¡¯m not going to give it the opportunity this time. What about Flight? Calvin asked, picturing himself as the Wizard-King, hovering over his subjects, wreathed in crackling energy. Oh, there¡¯s a handful of ways of getting it from Skills like Wind Control, Weather magic¡­even some fighting Skills have Air Walk. So I heard. Anyway, couldn¡¯t you simulate a Flying Skill by taking the Gradual Split Ability and reducing your mass enough for it to move you around? How would that work? You reduce your weight, then summon air on your palms, or feet, or wherever. That air expands, pushing you around. Geez, do I have to explain how flight works or show you the iron man movies? How does flight work? Calvin thought, blinking. Oh¡­you know, sometimes I forget you were homeschooled by a sword-flinging savage. Flying creatures such as insects push air down to generate lift. Larger creatures like birds wrap air around their wings as they fly. The shape of the wing causes air that goes over them to travel a greater distance before it meets again on the other side, and therefore be less dense than the air that goes straight under. Things want to go from an area of greater density to an area of lesser, so the air under the wing, the dense air, pushes up. And that¡¯s flying 101.1.1. There¡¯s a whole hell of a lot more to it, but that¡¯s all you get right now. Huh. Neat. With the right combination of Abilities, Calvin could indeed fly, in a slapdash sort of way. Calvin could probably get Teleportation high enough to be useful before he got old and fat, with the Warp Tank paving the way, but that depended on an eighth Break. Never count on another Break. That was something he intended to keep in mind. Even with the Warp Tank making it easier, he couldn¡¯t be sure it would happen. If I can make myself fly in a roundabout way, why not Teleport in a roundabout way? Calvin pictured the two bridges linking targets, distinct Characteristics of Sense-grafting, the Gadveran School of Classic magic, and Shifting, the Skill Cobalts used to crush rock, build, and fight. Calvin picked up a pebble. Sense Grafting 17/18 Bent Remaining. He tied his sight to the stone, lurchingly shifting his point of view. Shifting. 16/18 Calvin linked the stone to himself, and shifted a bit of weight into the stone, straining his arm to lift the suddenly heavy object.. it sat there, in his hand, where he could see every wrinkle in his hand through the stone. Nothing? Calvin was sure there was some synergy between the two to be had. If you recall, Calvinian Summoning incorporated the Mass Splitting Ability as it was created. There may be Abilities you have to get for one or both of those skills before you can create a Hybrid, if that¡¯s what you¡¯re going for. You might be right. Of course I¡¯m right. I¡¯m me. Show me my status. Calvin Gadsint Body: 8 Strength: 8 Kinesthetics: 8 Endurance: 8 Mind: 45 Intuition: 18 Stability: 18 Will: 33 Bent: 16/18 Warp: 6/8 Skills: Stealth 7 Playboy 11 Old Salt 10 Sense-Grafting 15 Dupdomancy 18 Meditation 25 Chained Spirit 18 Calvinian Summoning 18 Your Princess is in Another Castle 7 Beli Ma 10 Genosian Language 5 Shifting 12 Abyssal Alchemy 2 Drafting 1 Bent Manipulation 1 So many Skills to raise, so little time. Calvin had already been stuck in this hole far too long, almost a full week now, and he was finally able to move without a cane. Let¡¯s focus on Sense-Grafting and Shifting today. Calvin thought. With shadowboxing¡¯s unlimited Bent, he could progress very fast at those skills, up to the limit of Meditation, which had spiked when he raised his Mind during the Break, using Meditation as a gimmicky way to bypass a lack of puzzles to solve. He might be able to create another Hybrid, and on the other hand, those two spells were woefully behind the others. Which all need to be raised as well. Agh. One thing at a time. Eye of the Tiger Shadowboxing Calvin opened his eyes in the village of Deinos. Calvin began using Shifting to practice his makeshift Air-walk, while simultaneously targeting everything he could see in the environment. ¡°What the Abyss are you doing, Calvin?¡± Karen demanded, sticking her head out the window as he flung himself around the sky with barely controlled footsteps. ¡°Practicing,¡± Calvin said, creating a tangled web of Mass bridges between objects that he had a hard time even keeping track of. Left foot, right foot, hand, spin, drop mass, switch. It was very demanding on his mind to continue manually switching mass from one limb to another, but he was starting to get the hang of it. ¡°When did you learn how to do that?¡± ¡°Couple weeks ago. This is an imaginary space.¡± ¡°Ah. Sparring?¡± ¡°No thanks, just trying to get the hang of this technique.¡± Karen squinted up at Calvin awkwardly marching through the sky with exaggerated foot movements. ¡°Nothing helps get your technique down like sparring. I¡¯ll go get my cleaver.¡± Calvin rolled his eyes. She was usually right. Why do I recreate Karen every time? Probably because the town felt empty without everyone in it. Even Kort was there, gawking up at him as he strode through the air. And he was dead. ¡°I always knew you were a fairy!¡± Kort jeered up at him. Maybe this isn¡¯t entirely healthy¡­. I¡¯ll worry about that some other time. Shifting, Shifting, Shifting, Shifting¡­.. ¡­Shifting has reached level 15! Shifting level 15: 75% shift, 15 minutes, targets limited to 3375 pounds in mass. +1 Will After Karen began chasing him through the sky with a gigantic cleaver, he improved at his air-walking technique by leaps and bounds, and got ranks in the Shifting skill without even noticing. By the time Kala pinched him, he was already at level fifteen. Calvin set aside the Ability menu and opened his eyes and saw the princess leaning over him, her soft lips pressing against his forehead. ¡°The pinch works better, but I appreciate that more,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I thought you would,¡± She said with a smile. ¡°We¡¯re almost out of water again.¡± ¡°Again?¡± ¡°People drink a lot of water.¡± She said with a shrug. ¡°At least, ones who don¡¯t have the Water Conservation Skill.¡± She pointed between the two of them. ¡°At least we¡¯ve got clean clothes.¡± Calvin said with a chuckle. Washing clothes with duplicated water and soap was something he¡¯d thought of after his Alchemy experiments. Once the clothes were relatively clean, just dismiss the water and soap. Clean, dry clothes without a trace of soap residue in seconds, and no wasted water. Clean clothes were a rare commodity in The Filter. The neighbors were so jealous. I wonder if I could charge water to wash people¡¯s clothes. That would be less dangerous than¡­ Calvin reached up and smacked himself, hard, making Kala flinch backward in alarm. ¡°Why did you do that!?¡± she asked, her eyes wide. ¡°I just had a very un-Wizard-Kingly thought.¡± Calvin said, pushing himself to his feet, careful of his tender leg. ¡°One that would lead to settling into a routine and winding up the old man who washes everyone¡¯s clothes.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Kala said, nodding. ¡°What should you be thinking instead?¡± ¡°Getting out of here,¡± Calvin said, following her out the door ¡°and conquering Uleis.¡± ¡°Conquering it?¡± Kala asked, brow raised. ¡°By yourself?¡± ¡°I¡¯m never by myself.¡± Calvin said, directing that at Elliot and Nadia. ¡°But yes. By myself. And for that I need new spells, practice with them, a little more time to heal, and a buttload of stats to increase. Calvin cocked his head to the side. ¡°When¡¯s the Uleisan New Year¡¯s ball?¡± ¡°About two weeks, assuming time works the same down here,¡± Kala said, picking a bit of rock off her dress. The yellow fabric was starting to wear and fade after repeated washings by the Knick-knacks. ¡°Then we are going to get back to the surface in the next week.¡± Calvin said, resolute. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°And we are going to kidnap every female member of Uleisan royalty at the New Year¡¯s Ball.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Kala nodded, giving him a bit of a cold look, letting the silence hang between them like an accusation. ¡°I need it for my Warp Tank and Body!¡± Calvin said. ¡°You sure you¡¯re not just excited to add a princess to your collection before ravishing them?¡± ¡°YOU¡¯RE the one who gave me the Skill!¡± Calvin exploded with mock anger as Kala giggled, hiding her smile behind her hand. Calvin grunted and turned away, opening the Ability Menu. Shifting has reached level 15! Please choose an Ability or Mutation: Shift Storage: Adds an extradimensional space Mass can be shifted to. Limits and duration match that of Shifting. ^Does not actually store things, just allows the User to make both objects lighter. Extended Shift: duration becomes level squared. Unbound: User may freely swap the targets of the Shifting link for another Property Shifting. User may transfer one of three simple physical characteristics between targets: Strength, Viscosity, Rigidity. Overwrites the property of the original object. Max amount = Correction% Mutations: Center of Mass: User may move their center of mass 2 inches per level of Shifting, at Will. Xeno-Adaptation: Mass increases or decreases relative to the gravity of the planet to keep the User at the same perceived weight. F*ck the Square-Cube Law: Endurance and Strength grow proportionally to the User¡¯s mass while using Shifting. Bound Blades: Temporary Shifting connection between the user and knives stored with Blade Body, for (level) minutes. Calvin scanned through the list, noting the two new choices that unlocked at level 15. Bound Blades was interesting, and could save him a bit of Bent, but it only connected him and his knives. At one hundred percent, he could only make his knives weigh a hundred and sixty or seventy pounds. With a normal casting of Shifting, he could make them weigh thousands of pounds. It was a little superfluous, currently. Property Shifting on the other hand¡­ Calvin had been intending to take Unbound for it¡¯s inherent versatility, but Property Shifting scratched that itch in the back of his head that demanded crafting skills, and being able to make rock and metal flow temporarily flow like water was very appealing. I choose Property Shifting. Calvin¡¯s mind tingled as the techniques settled in. ¡°So are we going hunting again after fishing?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Yep. I have a whole list of creatures I want pieces of.¡± Calvin glanced up at the dark stone looming over their heads. ¡°We¡¯re not getting out of here without spells, weapons, armor, and practice.¡± The thought of more spells nearly caused Calvin to have another manic meltdown. He was practically itching to get out there and discover some new combinations. ¡°What about after that?¡± she asked. ¡°After hunting?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Stability training.¡± ¡°That sounds like fun.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 109: Welcome Party ¡°Surprise!¡± Rufe said, waggling his fingers in front of their tent, along with Sal, Loren, and a handful of others. There were very few women there, and those that were, well, ¡®tough¡¯ was a pretty good start toward describing them, but didn¡¯t quite cover it. Calvin dropped into a fighting stance, arms raised. Kala just blinked. ¡°Sorry to startle you - Happy one week anniversary!¡± Rufe made a little toot on a bone whistle. ¡°Drinks!¡± Rufe produced stonework cups and a huge, foul-smelling jug, shoving a heavy cup into Calvin¡¯s hand before filling it. The liquid came out chunky, with a plop, plop. ¡°Most people die or go crazy way before the first week.¡± Rufe said by way of explanation for the sudden party as he poured Kala¡¯s drink. Plop, plop! ¡°But most people who last the first week tend to stick around for a while, so welcome to the village of The Abyss.¡± He glanced up at Calvin as he set the jug down. ¡°I know, it¡¯s not a very good name, but we¡¯re not terribly creative people. The creative ones tend to get eaten by the brain leeches. Hah!¡± Calvin shivered. They could phase through walls at any time¡­ ¡°So what is this?¡± Calvin asked, frowning, lifting the cup up to smell it. ¡°Fermented¡­something or other?¡± ¡°Well, you know how it is,¡± Rufe said with a shrug. ¡°Things will ferment just about anywhere. Even in Warp-Tainted stygian depths like these. Although the yeast might have a bit more kick to it because of the Warp. I can¡¯t remember what the booze was like topside.¡± ¡°Not like this,¡± Calvin said, eyeing the floating bits in his reddish, rust-colored brew. ¡°Just to be safe,¡± Rufe said just as Calvin lifted the stone cup to his lips. ¡°Your Endurance is higher than twenty, right? I mean, you are here, and alive.¡± ¡°It¡¯s eight.¡± ¡°Oh, my,¡± Rufe placed his hand over Calvin¡¯s cup and gently lifted it away from him. The leather-faced man gave Calvin¡¯s cup to Sal, the withered old glass-worker. He took the second cup of noxious brew in stride. Kala, dedicated to being polite, took a sip, and gave the most pained smile he¡¯d ever seen, her face red. ¡°It¡¯s¡­strong.¡± She said, blinking tears out of her eyes ¡°Best social lubricant this side of the Pitachian river.¡± Rufe said, saluting them with his cup before downing the whole thing. ¡°Eight?¡± Loren asked, the wrinkly Uleisan stepping up to Calvin and seizing him by the head, peering into his eyes. ¡°What¡¯s your strength?¡± ¡°Eight.¡± ¡°I could bend that boy over my knee!¡± one of the women shouted, to a few catcalls. ¡°Kinesthetics?¡± ¡°Eight,¡± Calvin answered, seeing where this was going. Loren leaned in close, eyeing Calvin closely. ¡°Body? Please tell me you¡¯ve got room to improve and you¡¯re just a spoiled rich boy, not some kind of freak of nature.¡± ¡°Eight.¡± ¡°By the gods!¡± The man shouted, still clamping down on Calvin¡¯s face, turning him this way and that. ¡°What did you spend all your Warp on since you got here, nose-picking?¡± ¡°My Mind is forty-five.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. The room went quiet, every Uleisan exile staring at Calvin for a moment. ¡°Ugh, that¡¯s really strong,¡± Kala said, doubling over her stomach. ¡°That¡¯s¡­a lot. How were you stupid enough to have the Seeking Hand throw you in here then?¡± Loren asked. ¡°The guys in red robes threw me in here after I¡­¡± Calvin glanced around. These people were Uleisan. Probably not a good idea to brag about the army. ¡°Killed Orson.¡± ¡°Hah!¡± Rufe broke into a cackle. ¡°Seriously? That bastard got what he deserved!¡± he said to the general agreement of those around them. A few rough hands patted Calvin on the back, their superior strength knocking the wind out of him. ¡°You guys were put here by the Seeking Hand, too?¡± Calvin said, coming to the realization. ¡°What are you, an idiot?¡± Sal demanded from the ground. ¡°Did you think a series of a few hundred people stumbled their way down to the deepest point in Uleis and accidentally fell in the bigass hole?¡± ¡°His natural Intuition was three.¡± Kala said, straightening, her posture unsteady. The princess leaned up against him, poking him in the cheek. ¡°He¡¯s just a big blockhead who can¡¯t take a hint.¡± ¡°Aaah.¡± Knowing sounds and nods of agreement traveled around the cave. ¡°I was just focused on getting out of here.¡± ¡°I¡¯m talking about me! My earrings! And that one time Ella and I invited you to come play with us!¡± Kala said, leaning on him some more, nearly tipping him off balance. ¡°I don¡¯t remember that.¡± ¡°Because you missed it!¡± she said, thwacking him on the forehead. ¡°I believe my princess is drunk.¡± ¡°Like I said, it¡¯s got a kick,¡± Rufe said, eyeing the dregs of his booze. ¡°You could even say it¡¯s magically delicious¡­assuming it doesn¡¯t kill you.¡± ¡°We fermented a Lure¡¯s ¨C Hey!¡± Sal said, halfway through his second drink before Rufe plucked it out of his hand and gave it to one of the two women present. ¡°That¡¯s enough for you,¡± Rufe said. ¡°So everyone here was thrown in?¡± ¡°Yep,¡± Loren said, nodding. ¡°That¡¯s the one thing everyone¡¯s got in common. We¡¯re all troublemakers.¡± ¡°And we all hate the Seeking Hand.¡± the stout women interjected. ¡°Two things, then,¡± he admitted. ¡°We¡¯re all from Uleis.¡± Another man chimed in. ¡°Will you people shut up when I¡¯m trying to make a point?¡± the patriarch¡¯s temper flared, while they chuckled. Calvin glanced around. Most of the faces were old, a few middle aged. No one was anywhere near as young as Calvin and Kala. No kids. I imagine kids generally don¡¯t make the kind of trouble that warrants being kicked into the Abyss. And children born here¡­ Babies rarely survived Breaking, and even if they did, they mutated, given that they couldn¡¯t consciously practice anything. So no. No kids. Calvin and Kala were the youngest inhabitants of The Abyss. ¡°Well,¡± Calvin said, setting Kala down on a squat stone slab, where she stretched out with a contented sigh, her eyes half-closed. ¡°I was planning on going hunting today, but my backup is plastered with one drink.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Rufe said. ¡°I made it myself.¡± ¡°Hunting? That¡¯s a dangerous game. Chances are good you¡¯ll run across something you don¡¯t know how to deal with and that¡¯ll be it. You¡¯ll spend the rest of your time here as a turd.¡± Loren said. ¡°A Warped turd.¡± Sal added. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s happened a couple times already,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. Every once in a while something would get him while he was scouting the tunnels in Shadowboxing. He was getting better, though. Loren didn¡¯t seem to know what to say to that. ¡°O..kay. In any case, Rufe here is the most accomplished hunter. If you¡¯re dead set on hunting for a living, it would pay to have him show you around.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Can¡¯t make ¡®em drink,¡± Loren said with a shrug. ¡°How about you guys?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°How did you wind up here?¡± ¡°Freed some Cobalts.¡± Rufe said. ¡°I was out hunting, and spotted a caravan of ¡®em heading for Fort Cobalt. I hadn¡¯t heard how bad it was, until I saw it with my own eyes. I set them loose, but I got caught, and the rest, as they say, is history.¡± ¡°I stole an entire warehouse full of spices from Boles by using my magic to pretend to be a ghost.¡± Sal said, scowling. ¡°Would¡¯ve gotten away with it, too, if it weren¡¯t for those meddling kids.¡± ¡°I made fliers, about fifty years ago,¡± Loren said with a sigh, looking nostalgic. ¡°Calling out Gojen as the true power behind the crown. Needless to say, he didn¡¯t take kindly to that, and he and his stooges threw me in here. I¡¯ll never forget how badly my ass itched while he was chanting that stupidly long prayer. At least I outlived the bastard.¡± ¡°Seemed pretty short to me,¡± Calvin said. ¡°You probably got the abridged version.¡± Loren said. ¡°You killed Orson, after all.¡± ¡°True.¡± ¡°Anyway, any fight I had when I was young is gone now. It takes everything I got just to stay alive down here.¡± ¡°Do you remember the original prayer?¡± Calvin asked, curious. ¡°Naw,¡± Loren said with a chuckle. ¡°All I can remember is how itchy my buttcheek was.¡± The old man¡¯s eyebrows lifted. ¡°But¡­there was a book he was reading out of. If you ever¡­¡± He suppressed a fit of giggles. ¡°Get topside again, maybe you can check the book out before they throw you in here again.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll think about it¡­¡± Calvin tapped his fingers against Kala¡¯s ribcage as she crawled into his lap. ¡°What do you need?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Loren asked. ¡°How can I help the people living here?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°More than just water and food.¡± ¡°Those bottles you got,¡± he said, pointing at Calvin¡¯s component pouch. ¡°We could use some bigger ones for water storage, if you think you can do it. Sal uses up most of his Bent keeping the place lit, so he doesn¡¯t have the spare Bent to make glass. Brainworms don¡¯t like the heat and light, you see, so if he stops, they start picking people off.¡± ¡°Matter of fact, if you can find a way to stop Brain Leeches from getting through the walls in the first place, that would be handy. Then there¡¯s your summons. Those Knick-knacks could make a better Water Press than what we have, I know it.¡± ¡°We¡¯re stuck mostly using stone tools. Those metal spikes on the fishing line are difficult to replace. They were made hammering out chains from corpses in the main platform using what little Bent Sal has to spare.¡± ¡°I swear, if we had more iron in this country, Uleis would rule the world,¡± Loren said, shaking his head. ¡°Infections tend to be life-threatening around here, and what little alcohol we produce goes to cleaning wounds and welcoming newcomers.¡± Loren rocked back and forth as he thought, head cocked. ¡°Pretty sure living down here is unhealthy, too. Body and Mind. Don¡¯t know what you could do about that. People die here at a staggering rate. And there¡¯s gotta be some kind of deficiency eating nothing but Warped meat, ¡®cuz some people just shut off after a few weeks, let themselves die.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t intend to stick around,¡± Calvin said, earning himself a scowl. ¡°But before I go get myself killed, I think I can help with a few of your problems.¡± ¡°Which ones?¡± ¡°The glass, the tools, and I definitely want to try brain leech proofing the Cave,¡± Calvin said, glancing around the hundred or so unqua tents placed in a little circle about thirty feet across. Most of the villagers were in their tents, as the entire cave didn¡¯t have room for everyone to be out at once, only a dozen people or so at any given time. The water press took up most of the space at the back of cavern, the village a good deal more, along with the light source on the twelve-foot ceiling that illuminated the forty foot wide cave. For the life of him, he oculdn¡¯t find a latrine, though. ¡°Where does everyone shit?¡± Calvin asked. He¡¯d been crapping into the Abyss. It amused him greatly to think his dumps had turned into some kind of thought-poop. Or maybe a gemstone. Who knows, maybe they¡¯re really valuable on the other side of the Siphon for their magical properties. ¡°See that?¡± Rufe asked, pointing to a little round cover with a hole on it above the Press¡¯s intake. ¡°Oh, tell me you don¡¯t use shit-water.¡± Calvin said, his stomach churning. ¡°Water¡¯s water.¡± One of the women said with a shrug. ¡°It¡¯s perfectly safe after it¡¯s boiled and filtered.¡± ¡°I wish I hadn¡¯t known that.¡± Calvin said, resting his forehead on his palm. He took a breath, shrugged off the disgust and returned to business. ¡°How many of you would like to leave?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Seems like kind of a dumb question.¡± Rufe said. ¡°Everyone.¡± Another man said, to a quiet murmur of agreement. Calvin digested that for a moment, glancing around. ¡°What about the walls?¡± Calvin asked, preparing to summon his Knick-Knacks ¡° I could probably widen this place out. Would you like more space in here?¡± ¡°No can do,¡± Loren said, shaking his head. ¡°The bigger the space, the harder it is for Sal to light it up and heat it. While I¡¯m sure everyone here would like a bit more room to stretch out, we can¡¯t afford it. Especially if our only other wizard ¨C¡° He pointed at Calvin. ¡°Is going to get himself killed.¡± ¡°How about this,¡± Calvin said, running his thumb through Kala¡¯s hair as she mumbled into his lap. ¡°I raise the quality of life in here, then if I manage to get everyone out of, you all support me as the new King of Uleis?¡± Silence reigned. Rufe frowned, ¡°You¡¯re not part of the royal family. Or Uleisan, for that matter.¡± He spoke into the silence. ¡°So? I plan on taking the city, anyway. And let¡¯s face it, who here thinks the current royal family has any real power?¡± Sal cackled madly. ¡°I¡¯m starting to see why you got thrown down here, boy! I like your fuckin¡¯ balls!¡± ¡°What good would we do?¡± The woman ¨C Cal hadn¡¯t learned her name yet ¨C asked. ¡°There¡¯s only a hundred of us, at best.¡± ¡°I think you might have been desensitized by being constantly under siege by Warped monsters, but You¡¯re all Legends, aren¡¯t you?¡± Calvin asked, raising a brow. ¡°If you got out of The Filter, what army on Marconen could stop you?¡± Jaws hung open, and the villagers of The Abyss glanced at each other, realization dawning on them that they, by any normal standards, were unrivaled. ¡°Why do you call it the filter?¡± Loren asked. ¡°We¡¯re not on Marconen right now.¡± Calvin said. ¡°We¡¯re stuck in a little halfway dimension called The Filter. The Harbingers use it to catch all the unwanted monsters between the Siphon and our world.¡± ¡°How do you know all this?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a wizard.¡± Calvin said, keeping his face serious as he played with Kala¡¯s earlobe. Oh, sure, take the credit. ¡°Somewhere out there,¡± Calvin said, pointing to the crack that lead back to the platform. ¡°Is an emergency escape mechanism left by the original builders of this place. I know what it looks like, and I can operate it. If I find it, I can get all of us out of here.¡± The silence engulfed his words and spread out long after he¡¯d finished them. Nothing but the occasional pop of dried tentacles on fire broke the silence. ¡°Kid, if you got us out of here¡­all of us¡­I¡¯d overthrow whoever the fuck you wanted.¡± Rufe said, his voice low and gravelly. ¡°Me too.¡± ¡°I¡¯d do anything to see the sun again.¡± ¡°¡­My daughter.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, forcing down a smile. ¡°Let¡¯s not get too excited. First thing we need to do is address quality of life issues. I have some ideas already.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 110: Quality of life Calvin stepped out of the Unqua on the other side of The Crack, stretching his back as he was able to stand up. Riding triple was cramped. ¡°So the first thing we need to address is weapons and armor.¡± Calvin said, rolling his neck. ¡°Can¡¯t have quality of life without preserving it first. Especially if we¡¯re gonna walk everyone out of here without incident.¡± ¡°And how do you propose we go about arming everyone?¡± Rufe asked, glancing around. ¡°There isn¡¯t exactly a lot of steel down here, and we don¡¯t have the additives to make proper glass weapons.¡± ¡°I was thinking that.¡± Calvin said, pointing at the strange, lightweight, alien metal that made the railing. There was miles of it, at least, stretching all the way around the enormous platform, and it was tough. Calvin pulled out a glass fragment and scratched it against the railing, hard. It didn¡¯t make a scratch. Harder than glass. Or at least harder than my arm can push glass. ¡°That stuff? We¡¯ve tried to work that before. Sal spent an entire year on it, but every time you heat it up hot enough to melt, it turns brittle. He tried everything he could think of. Of course shaping it doesn¡¯t work very well either. We don¡¯t have anything hard enough to cut the damn stuff.¡± Calvinian Summoning. 17/18 Bent remaining. Calvin created a horde of normal sized Knick-knacks, their metal bodies barreling out of the green smoke pouring out of his hands. Rufe choked back a shout and stumbled back. Calvin rubbed his hands together, looking at the railing stretching out into infinity. Secure the railing. At Calvin¡¯s mental command, the Knick-Knacks placed their hands on the railing, holding it steady. You¡¯re gonna want to use Viscosity. If you do Strength, it¡¯s more likely to crumble and lose pieces. Apologies, future people who get tossed down here. Calvin silently apologized for the lack of safety, then pulled out a vial of water and cast Shifting. Viscosity Shifting. 16/18 Bent Remaining. Calvin targeted a single ¡®object¡¯ that was a thin ribbon of air outside the railing, with thin leaves that cut into the railing itself, giving it the viscosity of water. Well, 75% the Viscosity of water. That was enough. With a gentle tug, each of the Knick-Knacks pulled a metal bar away from the railing, A small drop of thick metal juice forming at the edges. Calvin dismissed the spell before any of the metal liquid could drip. ¡°How in the Here did you do that?¡± Rufe asked as the Knick-knacks began stacking the identical bars on the platform. ¡°Things tend to get¡­odd around Calvin.¡± Kala said, wobbling her fingers, watching the walls for creepy crawlies. ¡°So, Rufe,¡± Calvin said, hefting a bar of the alien metal. It was hollow, which was disappointing, but there was still a substantial amount of material to work with as the bars themselves were big as his bicep, and the hole relatively small. ¡°What do you know about injection molding?¡± The old hunter blinked, brows furrowing. ¡°Wazzat?¡± Get me some stone. Calvin thought to the Knick-Knacks, who rushed off and began separating a large chunk of stone from the far wall, using their own bodies as a path for the others to move the slab. ¡°I can guess from the name, but I¡¯ve never heard of that before.¡± Kala said, scanning the walls. ¡°It¡¯s pretty simple,¡± Calvin said, watching the slab of stone set down in front of him. He closed his eyes and pictured an Uleisan-style saber. It needs sprues. Calvin pictured two rods extending off the back of the pommel, going in slightly different directions. Viscosity Shifting. 15/18 Bent remaining. Experimentally, Calvin targeted the air next to him as the donator of the viscosity. The slab of stone began to leak liquid rock out of two holes in the far end. Drafting has reached level 2! 10% correction. The hardest part was getting all the liquid rock out. Calvin tried blowing it out and got a face full of cold wet rock. I hope you didn¡¯t swallow any of that. Elliot commented. Calvin hadn¡¯t, but he realized it would certainly not be pleasant for rock to harden coating his insides. New spell idea! Indeed. Finally, Calvin just created compressed air inside the mold, creating a twin stream of liquid rock that shot out onto the platform, making an odd pebbly texture on the ground when Calvin dismissed the spell. 15/18 Bent remaining. I think you just reinvented spackling. Good job. Now you can live your dream of being an interior decorator. Once that was done, A Knick-Knack injected liquid metal through a simple pipe with a plunger, until the mold couldn¡¯t accept any more. Calvin dismissed the spell, then the knick-knacks cracked it open. 12/18 Bent remaining. Ugh, Calvin thought as he spotted the flakes of leftover liquid stone peeling off, making a pebbled and pitted surface. The blade was missing a chunk, and the handle had a bubble in it next to the two awkward sprues sticking up out the back. ¡°It¡¯s crap,¡± Calvin said, scowling. ¡°We¡¯ll try again. I¡¯ve got an idea for a much more efficient way of doing it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s beautiful,¡± Rufe said, picking up the amateurish sword. ¡°I haven¡¯t had a real weapon in¡­gods¡­fifteen years?¡± He glanced up at Calvin ¡°Excuse me,¡± Rufe lifted the blade over his head and brought it down on the stone slab, sending an ear-splitting screeching noise through the hall as he buried the blade halfway through the chunk. Rufe tugged the blade out with ease, and inspected it: No damage. ¡°Well, at least we know it didn¡¯t make it brittle,¡± Calvin said, nodding as Rufe started giggling to himself. It was good to know the proof of concept was successful. ¡°Now.¡± Calvin said, clapping his hands together. ¡°I just realized I was trying to make that sword like a smith, and not like a Wizard-King. Let¡¯s make something to write home about, eh?¡± How do you mean? Reversing the mold process. Ah. This time, Calvin had the Knick-knacks bring him an even larger slab of stone. Viscosity shift. 11/18 Bent remaining. Calvin hollowed out a large pit in the stone, wider than his head and a couple inches deeper than the length of a sword. Then he filled it with enough liquid metal to bring it to the brim. 10/18 Bent remaining. Calvin dismissed the spell, turning it from a shimmering pool of silver liquid, to a solid, static, matte color. ¡°So you¡¯ve got a huge cylinder of solid metal?¡± Kala asked, glancing over her shoulder with a frown. ¡°Exactly. Then we do this.¡± Viscosity shifting. 9/18 Bent remaining. Calvin targeted all of the metal except for a mental image of five closely nestled swords and the sprues between their handles keeping them together as one contiguous object. Drafting has reached level 3! 15% Correction. The metal inside the tube turned shimmery liquid again, and Calvin reached inside, dipping his hand in the silver fluid. He grabbed the five swords by the sprue and pulled them out of the bath like a magic trick. Which I suppose it is. Viscosity Shifting. 8/18 Bent remaining. Calvin targeted the pentagonal sprue with the last spell, and the five swords separated from each other in his hands. ¡°Here,¡± Calvin said, handing Rufe one of the new ones. It was better than the first attempt in every way. Five good swords for four Bent rather than one bad one for five. I¡¯ll bet if you scaled up the manufacturing process, you could make something like five hundred swords for four Bent. I¡¯m not sure I could accurately picture five hundred of anything in any detail, Calvin thought, looking at his batch-made swords. They were perfectly smooth, handles gently ribbed, guards exactly the right size and shape, and sharp as Vashniel¡¯s spear, but only because he was able to accurately picture them down to the tiniest detail. What the hell did I get you the Drafting Skill for if not creating large amounts of arms in a small amount of time and Bent? I only need to make about a hundred of them. ¡°Sword?¡± Calvin asked, offering Kala one of the blades. The princess accepted it gratefully, putting her stone axe with a bone handle aside. ¡°This¡¯ll work,¡± She said, hefting it. ¡°I think I¡¯m gonna cry,¡± Rufe said, running a thumb over the dreamlike smoothness of the side of the blade. ¡°Can you make spears?¡± True. Spears are better for fighting animals with, and there aren¡¯t any thinking Warped monsters. Calvin shrugged, glancing over at his pot full of Abyssal metal. ¡°I don¡¯t see why not, but let¡¯s not hang around here forever. I¡¯d like to do the rest of this back at the village. Let¡¯s load up the Unqua and get out of here. Calvin peeled several thousand pounds more metal off the side of the platform, combined them and reduced the resulting lump¡¯s weight with Shifting before putting it in the Unqua If riding the thing with three people¡¯s weight was cramped, three people, five swords, and a massive lump of fused metal pipes was almost intolerable. Although Kala sitting on his lap was fun. Silver linings. It was all worth it when they got back and Rufe started passing out swords, and people¡¯s faces started lighting up. Down here, a weapon wasn¡¯t a fashion statement, or a just-in-case, it was often the deciding factor of who lived and who died. One of the biggest reasons these legends hadn¡¯t taken the halls away from the monsters was that they only had sticks and stones. Well, bones and stones. ¡°Can you make silverware?¡± a woman asked, running up to Calvin with wide, imploring eyes. ¡°False teeth!?¡± said one man, predictably toothless. ¡°A peg leg that doesn¡¯t cause infections!?¡± ¡°Real cups!¡± They were beginning to crowd around him now. ¡°Those beads that you put in your a-¡° The middle aged man had a cloth forced into his mouth by a nearby woman, in the manner of a garrote. They clamored for a thousand different things, and Calvin found his mind struggling to keep up with it all. ¡°Now, now, stop crowding him,¡± Loren said, the old man pushing his way through the crowd. ¡°Pakta, get me some vellum and my writing kit, we¡¯ll make the kid a list instead of shouting in his face.¡± ¡°I can make most of the things you¡¯ve asked for,¡± Calvin said, raising his voice to be heard over the crowd that was currently choking the cavern. A few people were even poking their heads out of their unqua tents, tiny and doll-like from Calvin¡¯s point of view. ¡°But I can¡¯t do all of it. Not without help. I don¡¯t have the Bent.¡± ¡°What do you need?¡± Loren asked. ¡°I need some volunteers from the women to donate Bent.¡± The crowd was quiet for a breath. ¡°Why women?¡± one of the men at the back asked. ¡°Yeah,¡± Kala said, arms crossed, brows raised. ¡°Why women?¡± ¡°¡¯Cuz that¡¯s how the Ability works,¡± Calvin said with a chopping motion. ¡°You already knew that.¡± He turned back to the assembled villagers. ¡°If you¡¯re uncomfortable giving me the Bent directly, my lovely assistant will be more than happy to take Bent in my stead.¡± Chained spirit. 8/18 Bent Remaining. Nadia popped out of the green smoke billowing out of Calvin¡¯s hands, in a seated posture, and for an instant, it looked like she had a book in her hands. ¡°Awk!¡± Nadia fell on her butt, eyes wide. ¡°Hi, welcome back,¡± Calvin said, leaning over her Supine form ¡°Are we fishing again?¡± Nadia asked, her arms clutched tight to her chest in a defensive posture. ¡°Nope. You¡¯re the friendly neighborhood Bent Siphon for the meantime, like in Uleis.¡± Nadia¡¯s gaze radiated a faint disappointment before she blinked, her emotions back to neutral and her expression haughty, even on her back. ¡°I guess dealing with bone-wielding cave-dwellers is marginally better than entertaining myself,¡± She said, climbing to her feet. ¡°Village of The Abyss, meet Nadia. Nadia, meet The Village of The Abyss. Calvin said, motioning to the leather-clad princess¡¯s sinuous form. A few of the villagers were having a hard time looking at her face, and Nadia preened at the attention, puffing out her chest. ¡°She¡¯s a middling succubus I vanquished last year, then bound into a summon,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Careful not to pay too much attention to her, though, succubi gain power from lustful stares, and she can literally suck your brain out through your cock with her six-foot long tongue.¡± Nadia¡¯s brows went up, and Kala hid her smile behind her palm, affecting a gasp of concern rather than a grins. ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Nadia said with a sultry smile, adapting quickly. ¡°Careful, boys. Lose your way and I¡¯ll take your soul back to my master in the Abyss. The real Abyss, not this paltry imitation.¡± She raised her nose haughtily. ¡°I thought you might like a mythos.¡± Calvin whispered into her ear. ¡°More fun being a barely restrained, soul-sucking demon than a deposed princess, am I right?¡± Nadia scanned the crowd of frightened villagers, her expression thoughtful. ¡°For once, I think you are,¡± she said with a demonic grin, sashaying into the group of villagers, who backed warily away from her. ¡°Now now, donating Bent doesn¡¯t hurt,¡± she said, practically purring as she settled into her demon persona. It fit her like a glove. ¡°It¡¯s actually quite pleasurable.¡± Wow, she¡¯s really enjoying herself, Calvin thought as he watched her begin slowly making the villagers more comfortable around her. Speaking of Nadia pretending to be a succubus¡­ Can you copy Chimera over to Chained Spirit? Calvin asked Elliot. Sure, why? I¡¯ve got an idea for Nadia that I want to work on when we have free time. But first, can I move parts from slotted monsters across Calvinian and Chained Spirit? Let me see¡­ it looks like it would work, but only one way. You would need Chimera in Calvinian Summoning to put Nadia¡¯s boobs on your wasps. Damn, foiled again. Seriously? No. So, what, you want to give her bat-wings, little horns and a tail to make her closer to your fantasy Waifu? I was thinking about taking Variety is the Spice of Death, stocking up on monsters down here, and integrating Warped monster organs to give her spell-like abilities. Oh¡­that¡¯s not half bad. Why not just give her Bent though? Because I can take the mutations away if I have to, or change them to meet a specific task. It¡¯ll also be good practice for researching new spells and testing the effects of their abilities. Guinea pig Nadia. I see. Good call. And when we¡¯re not studying the effects of various organs, I can give her Tarak wings, horns and a tail. Calvin thought with a grin. There he is! Elliot said, snapping his fingers. ¡°Before we move on to that list, let¡¯s make sure we have enough metal here to get everyone armed!¡± Calvin said over the murmuring knot of people crowding around Nadia. Once they were done with arms, they would move on to armor. Now that he had the vat created, he only needed to spend three Bent to create five swords. One to add more Abyssal Steel to the mixture ¨C Abyssal Steel? Is that what we¡¯re calling it? You got a better name? ¡­nope. One Bent to add more liquid steel to the pot. One to make the swords, and one to disconnect them from each other. Three Bent per five swords. Sixty Bent to arm everyone. With Kala¡¯s help, and a few volunteers, he could be done by the end of the day. Armor would be a lot trickier, more pieces, more complicated, and different sizes for different people. I¡¯ll deal with armoring a hundred people tomorrow. Calvin thought as his Knick-knacks began moving the big rock cylinder full of metal. For now, let¡¯s get these people armed with proper weapons. Macronomicon Chapter 111: Learner’s Permit Extensive training has increased your Attributes! +1 Stability Calvinian Summoning has reached level 19! ¡­ Why can¡¯t you just cut all the sprues at once¡­ Ugh. Calvin was pissed he hadn¡¯t thought of it. After some conferring with Elliot and the two levels in drafting, Calvin thought to draw up a design to use as a reference, allowing him to raise the number of swords visualized simultaneously to ten. Between that and dissolving the sprues all at once at the very end, Calvin was able to lower his Bent required to make a hundred swords down to twenty-one rather than sixty, which left him plenty to help the Abyssians with their basic needs. For as long as the stream of Bent from Nadia held. A wordless moan echoed in the distance, followed by another that was decidedly not female. Then Calvin¡¯s Bent ticked up. 16/19 Bent remaining. ¡°Is she¡­¡± Kala asked, frowning as her gaze tracked the sound on the other side of the cave, hidden behind obstructing stalagmites. ¡°I don¡¯t know, and I don¡¯t need to know.¡± Calvin said, making a few sawblades and a handful of chisels of different shapes for the craftsmen who needed them, liquid metal dripping off his hands as he pulled them out of the vat. You think she found a way to make the Lady Killer mutation work on dudes? That would be important to know. Maybe she makes them feel like women, Calvin thought, fighting off the urge to grin. Ewww¡­and yet, I¡¯m strangely intrigued. Calvin rolled his eyes, then glanced over at the Knick-Knacks making armor for the villagers, as well as the infusion vats the finished products were resting in. Calvin didn¡¯t want to spend a week customizing each and every piece for armor and working out the kinks, as everyone¡¯s body shape and range of movement was slightly different. Making full plate with the Abyssal Steel was far too demanding on Calvin¡¯s time and Bent, so he decided to change materials. Studded Leather was a good option. Calvin had made a few hundred regular sized Knick-knacks, then assigned a dozen or so extra large ones to fish up and transporting creatures, while his wasps killed anything they brought up. Rufe was overseeing the fishing operation just outside the village¡¯s cave, and Calvin checked in with his Knick-knacks every now and then to make sure the old hunter was safe and things were progressing well. So far they¡¯d caught five Toads, a dozen Querda, a couple more Crystal Lattices, and a Husker that Calvin was eager to tinker with. Old Salt has reached level 11! Querda had a lot more surface area than the Toads, there were a lot more of them, and their skins were softer, smoother, and easier to process. On the other hand, they weren¡¯t nearly as tough as the Toad¡¯s thick hides. The solution was to boil the toad hides down and filter their glue several times until they made a vat of scintillating concentrate. Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 3! The Knick-Knacks, meanwhile, cleaned and dried the silky blueish Querda hide in record time, took measurements and stitched together perfectly fitted suits of soft leather armor. They even took the time to stitch the owner¡¯s name on the collar. Of course, soft armor was an oxymoron, and the clothes offered little in the way of actual protection until the whole thing got a bath in concentrated Toad Glue, hardening the leather drastically and infusing it with the Toad¡¯s toughness. They left all the pieces of armor simmering at a temperature well below boiling overnight, allowing them to absorb the concentrated essence of the toad¡¯s force-resistant skin. Calvin lifted the first piece of armor out of the infusion vat, wiping it down with a cloth to see what it looked like dry. The matte light blue leather had darkened to nearly black with a shimmering blue color underneath that reminded him of a beetle¡¯s carapace. Not a bad look. Ominous, yet pretty. Calvin rapped his knuckles against the armor. The Toad Glue soak had toughened it up, adding a great deal more rigidity to the armor. Not only that, about three inches away from the armor itself, Calvin felt something absorbing the force of his knock, as if he were forcing his hand through caramel or some kind of thick syrup, absorbing maybe three quarters the force of the blow, resulting in a light, slow tap. Gods, I could go for some syrup. Eating foul-tasting meats every day was driving him crazy. Well, Calvin thought as he turned the cuirass over in his hands, studying the entire thing from top to bottom. It looks like the armor was a success. Calvin eyed the name on the collar of the armor. Calvin Gadsint ¨C Wizard King. Like I wouldn¡¯t make myself some armor too, Calvin thought, setting it aside to cool and dry some more before he put it on. Calvin raised his eyes, glancing around at the village. More people than usual were out of their tents, quickly overcrowding the cave, what with the Knick-Knacks, and their workspace opposite the Water Press. They had a reason to be out of their tents, though. Something new was happening. The villager¡¯s eyes were burning with hope and enthusiasm. Even a day later, they were still marveling at the swords he¡¯d made for them. ¡°Look at this,¡± one of them said, motioning to a heavily bandaged hand that was oozing blood. ¡°I got distracted when I was testing the blade and I almost lost my hand! Isn¡¯t that great!?¡± the man held up his wounded hand with a grin of pride. ¡°You¡¯re telling me. I set it down wrong and it literally sank into my Unqua¡¯s back. The poor thing¡¯s fine now, but by the gods, I can¡¯t wait to try this on something that deserves it.¡± The woman stared down into the silvery metal with a malicious grin that was strangely doubled by the mirror-smooth plane of Abyssal Steel. The two of them saw Calvin watching them, and straightened, giving Calvin a salute before they walked away, glancing over their shoulders. Boring. What¡¯s boring? Kingdom Building. The frustration of delayed gratification began bubbling out of Calvin. I just want to make cool new spells, but being a Wizard King involves so much helping people, I think I¡¯m gonna go crazy. Hey, most people don¡¯t understand that their dream job is still a job. Nobody ever said it wasn¡¯t work. Learn to live with the boring parts, kid. If you were just developing new spells all day, someone else would be the wizard king and you¡¯d be giving those spells to him. Or her. I understand you¡¯ve got a one-track mind, and any interruption from that is incredibly irritating. That¡¯s something I had to deal with too. Try compartmentalizing your current obsession, put it on a shelf, and set it aside until you can get back to it. Calvin took a deep breath. The weapons were done. The armor was progressing nicely, and the fishing was being taken care of by Rufe and the summons. He had time to scratch the itch. 17/19 Bent remaining. Calvin gave Chained Spirit a mental tug, signaling that Nadia was done for the day. Whether or not she actually stopped pretending to be a demon succubus was up to her, as long as she stopped flooding Calvin with Bent. Seems like she takes her jobs seriously when she enjoys them. Giving your minions a job that they enjoy and excel at. What a novel concept. I¡¯m not that dense. Calvin let Kala know what he was up to, then went out of the village to join Rufe, where the hunter was watching the Knick-knacks reel in another Toad, which was being swarmed by wasps. They weren¡¯t using Nadia as bait today, because she didn¡¯t need to be distracted while she was acting as his siphon. Instead, a disposable wasp was tied up by the knick-knacks between each throw. It worked out just fine, because the mindless creatures replaced themselves, care of Bad Penny. Calvin climbed out of the Unqua as soon as it was out onto the platform, spotting the hunter standing beside the low stone wall the Knick-knacks had made to replace the railing they¡¯d taken away. Something about OSHA standards, according to Elliot. Rufe was standing with his arms crossed, chewing something as he watched the pebble-skinned creature hauled up to the platform, an oozing mound of spell ingredients waiting to happen sitting beside him. ¡°How do you deal with the Crystal Lattices?¡± Calvin asked, eyeing the inert lumps of crystal beside the man. ¡°Carefully. They¡¯re not too much trouble if you¡¯re handy with a sling.¡± He said, revealing a Toad-skin sling on his waist. Yeah right. The man probably had a Sling Ability that was able put the creatures down. Calvin couldn¡¯t imagine them being defeated with a couple marble sized rocks. As long as Rufe could beat them, Calvin wasn¡¯t going to worry about it. ¡°Are you worried about overfishing at all?¡± Calvin asked as the Knick-knacks began prepping the bait again. ¡°Nope. There¡¯s an entire world on the other side there, so I don¡¯t think our little community could make a dent. Even if we do, Toads and Querdas are basically the bottom of the food chain on the other side, from what I¡¯ve seen. There¡¯s things a lot worst than them down there, and depriving those things of a food source should make them seek prey elsewhere. ¡°Worse things¡­like the Brain leeches?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Yeah, like that. We starve those things out, they stop coming up here. I¡¯d happily take less catch in exchange.¡± ¡°As long as you don¡¯t run out of water.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that will be a problem,¡± He said, giving Calvin a rare grin. ¡°Not with you getting us out of here.¡± Calvin was hit by a strange, awful sense of responsibility as the man placed his hopes in him. ¡°I already told you not to get your hopes up.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Too late now. You armed everyone to the teeth. People are clamoring to make groups and go exploring the side-tunnels with their new weapons. You could die right now, and people would still be looking for the exit. You gave them hope. And weapons.¡± Ugh. Calvin distracted himself from the weight of expectation tightening his shoulders by kneeling down and inspecting his new spell component, the Husker. The creature had six legs, a stinger at the back, and was fat. It looked something like a caterpillar with big, clamping fish-lips at the front. ¡°Ah, the Husker,¡± Rufe said, glancing over as Calvin inspected it. ¡°It doesn¡¯t move very fast, or very well, but it¡¯s husks make up for that.¡± ¡°How so?¡± Calvin asked, running his fingers over the rubbery surface. ¡°It sheds its skin twice a week,¡± Rufe said. ¡°Creates husks ¨C hence the name ¨C these husks serve as decoys and reinforcements, and they move on their own. If you wander into a nest of them, the husks will pin you down with these big, grabby mouthparts,¡± Rufe nudged the dead creature¡¯s mouth with his shoe ¨C ¡°While the main body plants its eggs in you.¡± ¡°After that ¨C¡° Rufe shrugged and blew a raspberry. ¡°Probably better to put you out of your misery.¡± ¡°Interesting¡­¡± Calvin said, mind awhir with possibilities. ¡°You think you could make some kinda magic out of that thing?¡± Rufe asked. ¡°I know I could.¡± Calvin said. Harvester. 16/19 Bent remaining. The Husker separated into it¡¯s individual organs, and Calvin carefully put each of them in a sealed container, away from this bacteria thing that Elliot kept telling him about. In the midst of all the familiar guts, there was a dark red organ that looked a bit like a brain, but it was too red, and threaded with blackened Bent veins. When Calvin picked it up, the floppy pile of skin twitched slightly, as black Bent oozed out of the strange organ, evaporating into the atmosphere. Interesting¡­ Calvin felt his manic grin coming back as all of his other concerns faded into background noise. ***The One Who Learns*** It came to think of itself as Learner. Over time Learner identified the natural order inside this strange Matterspace. The Manifold Predator was one of the four-limbed prey creatures that seemed native to this place¡­or perhaps not native to this place, exactly, but native to somewhere else. The hints to support this idea were many. Despite being poor at creating disruptions in other creature¡¯s physical forms, they were adept at taking advantage of the quirks of Matterspace to their advantage, using some kind of strange¡­energy to often come out on top, despite the disparity in size, or, a new concept Learner had come to understand¡­Strength. Strength and size were generally linked, but they were not the same think. Strength was a concept of how much Matterspace a creature could influence at one time with it¡¯s body. Learner¡¯s strength wasn¡¯t remarkable, because its units weren¡¯t able to handle the stress¡­another unique concept. Even after adopting a shape similar two the large prey animal with two limbs, Learner wasn¡¯t able to exercise the same amount of Strength. The units simply sloughed off of each other. Learner absorbed parts of one of the two-legged prey animals until it stopped moving. A strange thing. In it¡¯s home, creatures only diminished, only gone when they had been completely consumed. For something to stop moving after only a fifteen percent of it¡¯s body ahd been turned into Learner¡¯s units, was something unique to this reality. It wasn¡¯t resisting any longer, so learner peeled the outer layer of units away from the creature, trying to find the secret of Strength. There, Learner thought, poking the hard white units at the center. They were rigid, locked together intrinsically¡­ As a matter of fact, they aren¡¯t even units! These structures were created by units! Taking in non-unit materials to create porous, rigid internal structures, that Units can live inside, while the structure absorbs the weight. Learner discovered Bones. Requires more study. Applying the concept of specialized units, Learner focused all of its attention on the units in its right limb. It placed the limb on the ground, instructing its units to create a porous latticework out of the materials available and place it inside its body. This is more difficult than I thought, Learner thought as it¡¯s units were sluggish to respond, making little more than an odd sand inside it¡¯s limbs. It was no stronger than before. Why? After a few hours of study, Learner figured out the problem. With nothing to bind the Matterspace together, it wouldn¡¯t form a rigid structure. It needed a way to reattach the grains of matterspace back together inside itself. How do I solve this? Learner was pondering the solution to this, when the Manifold predator arrived, emerging from one of the squat prey animals and making noises at the Prey Who Pulls. The Prey Who Pulls made noises back. Strange, indescipherable bursts of sound that must signify something. In the short time since it had arrived, Learner had seen several four-limbed creatures make those strange hoots at each other, often followed by action. He¡¯d seen one approach another, make a series of hoots, then one had given the other a piece of Matterspace in response. The hooter had then walked away and used the Matterspace to solve some kind of problem. It was a strange form of communication, Learner realized, allowing them to express their needs to each other¡­ Learner softly repeated the hoots to itself. It would have to pay close attention to desipher the meaning. Before Learner had thought it was a simple call, and repeating it would be enough to fool these creatures, but having experienced the breadth of the variety of hoots, it realized it would have to learn all of them to have any chance of using them. The Manifold Predator¡¯s head raised, and it turned it¡¯s eyes toward Learner¡¯s hiding place. It¡¯s face wrinkled a bit before it put it¡¯s head down again and resumed its task. The Manifold Predator seemed to have some connection with Sight, and knew when it was being observed¡­at least, visually. Learner had taken to observing it, for The Manifold Predator was a veritable font of ideas for Learner¡¯s own self-defence. Today it was using heat and water to render down a three-tongued prey animal¡¯s organs, mixing them with an odd paste made from a crystal-lattice¡¯s juices, then giving them to Prey Who Pulls. Did Prey Who Pulls rank higher than the Manifold Predator? Manifold predator produced a similar blue chunk from nowhere, and used it¡¯s limp to crush it against it¡¯s center. Almost faster than Learner could see, the Crystal-lattice paste expanded to cover all of The Manifold Predator. Odd. Very odd. Learner had no idea what this ritual entailed. Breeding? Dominance? Learner was lost. Then the Manifold Predator took out a shimmering¡­stinger-looking thing, and poked itself. The incredibly thin layer of crystal stopped the stinger, and the Prey Who Pulls looked down at the blue ball in its hand, nodded, then put it into an empty pouch on it¡¯s belly. Protection! The Manifold Predator offered Protection. Learner wondered if Learner could do that, too. Learner changed one appendage into Crystal Lattice, the other into Three-Tounged Prey. Learner started experimenting. After a large amount of time, and losing a few chunks of units, Learner hadn¡¯t mastered the protection device, but it had found a way to use Crystal Lattice juices to create bones, raising it¡¯s Strength many-fold. *Several days later So many things to learn, Learner thought as it sat there, waiting for The Manifold Predator to arrive again. It had taken to observing it to the exclusion of other things, only eating when it had to. Learner was starting to understand the reasons behind the creature¡¯s behavior. It was intelligence. Taking creature¡¯s defence mechanisms and adapting them into tools to make itself a predator. Learner liked it. Today it had removed an organ from a Husker and was channeling a strange substance through aforementioned organ to make the creature¡¯s outer units twitch, even after death. Hours went by and Learner watched in awe as The Manifold Predator heated the Husker¡¯s outer units down to a liquid, then strung together a strange little decoration out of bones. It tossed the decoration into the hot liquid, exchanging hooting noises with the Prey Who Pulls for an interminable amount of time, before pulling the decoration back out. The Manifold Predator held the organ in it¡¯s limb and Learner watched as the decoration began crawling, awkwardly at first, then faster and faster, until it began flying, making itself small and then big, then small again, nearly reaching Learner¡¯s hiding space. Requires more study. Learner snapped its fingers together, its units creating a blue paste on its middle finger that was crushed against its palm, dampening the sound. A fraction of a second later, a thin crystal coating covered its entire body. ***Calvin*** Bent Manipultion has reached level 2! You¡¯re right, it doesn¡¯t need to stay on the ground. He thought as the bone spider whipped through the air, its body moving in response to the Bent Calvin was circulating through the Husker¡¯s preserved Control Organ. It was delicate work, as the thing was a little too enthusiastic sometimes. He had to carefully pull bent out and circulate it through the organ and back into himself, in the right spots to get it to do what he wanted. It was like learning to walk over again¡­with his Bent. Needless to say it was weird, but it was making something fly around on it¡¯s own, and that was enough to make Calvin happy. What should we call it? Bone Drone? It seems to work with living material, not necessarily only bone. Drone, or Golem would be appropriate? Wood golem? If we ever see a tree again¡­ Calvin felt a flash of cautious curiosity as someone spied on him again. As soon as he looked that direction, the gaze was gone. If they wanted to watch up close, I wouldn¡¯t care that much, Calvin thought, shaking his head. As long as they didn¡¯t distract me. Honestly, just talking to Rufe around a boiling pot is getting boring. I know, right? Calvin thought, bringing the bone spider in to land on his arm. The proof of concept was already starting to fray where the leather binding it together was coming undone, but he¡¯d learned everything he could right now about the way the Husker¡¯s magic worked. Maybe there was a way to make a floating weapon, or a suit of armor that reinforced its wearer¡¯s strength, or even dragged an unconscious user away from the fight. The possibilities were astounding. I want more. Macronomicon Chapter 112: Brain Leech Hunting ¡°Alright Karen, try this one on for size.¡± Calvin said, touching the Puppet component behind his back. The goop exploded around the blonde-haired Legend, the catalysts evaporating instantly as it sank into her skin. Karen glanced down at the sheen of residue on her arm, and raised a brow. ¡°Was that it?¡± She put her sword casually over her shoulder as she approached. ¡°I¡¯ve taken more damage from a fart.¡± Calvin put his hand over the shrunken Husker brain and started sending delicate strands of Bent looping through it. Now that the Husker extract had permeated her flesh, he could use the brain to control her with Bent, like a puppet. Hence the component name. Karen stiffened as Calvin ran Bent through the shrunken brain. Yes, it¡¯s working! Caster was unable to penetrate Ability: Strength of Will. Shit! Something had to be happening, though, because Karen opened her mouth and began shaking like she¡¯d been- ¡°Achoo!¡± She sneezed violently. ¡°Whoo, boy, whatever you did bugged the hell out of my nose,¡± She said, violently wiping her nose and squeezing her eyes shut. ¡°What in the Abyss is Strength of Will?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°It¡¯s Ability from Toughness that lets me use Endurance in place of Stability to resist hostile spells.¡± Karen said, itching her nose. ¡°You like it?¡± ¡°No. No I do not.¡± Calvin said, moments before she cut him in half. Calvin opened his eyes in the real world, and glanced at the Puppet component in his hands. It was a clear glass vial with two distinct parts. Compressed Husker extract mixed with the crystalline catalyst and a few blood extracts that allowed the liquid to permeate organic materials incredibly fast on one side, and then there was the much smaller side, the knobbly, textured end to tell Calvin¡¯s fingers where the brain was. Shoot the extract with dupdomancy, then puppet whatever it hit with the brain. Simple¡­ ¡°Except I haven¡¯t been able to get a good test.¡± Calvin mused. ¡°Maybe you shouldn¡¯t try it on someone who obviously wields godlike power. Seriously, is Karen tenth Break, or what? ¡°Eighth, I think, with a lot more practical experience than us. Besides, she¡¯s a good benchmark.¡± If the benchmark was ¡®resistance is futile¡¯. True. Let¡¯s try it on some people who aren¡¯t quite so resistant. I do want to see how this works. If it can work at all. Calvin closed his eyes. Someone partway between Karen and an average person. Nadia sound good? I¡¯m game. Calvin appeared standing in the forest, Nadia before she¡¯d been killed backing away from him as her disguise was broken. ¡°How do you even know where I am?¡± The girl demanded, sliding into view, light lapping against her skin like the water¡¯s edge. ¡°It¡¯s the smell,¡± Calvin said, mimicking his original response to the girl¡¯s question. Calvin waited placidly for that to sink in. The princess¡¯s eyes widened, just like they had the first time, and she let out a growl before charging toward him, slipping into the edges of the light lapping at her sides and vanishing from sight. Calvin followed her movement easily with his Tarka skin and the ability to feel her gaze, then, as she rushed him invisibly from the left, he thumbed the Puppet component. Shaping. The Husker cocktail exploded around Nadia, and she tumbled onto the ground, sprawling in a pile of undergrowth, spitting out Husker juice and leaves. ¡°What in the Abyss did you just do?¡± she demanded, then frowned. ¡°My tan fees nam.¡± Calvin put his fingers on the pebbled side of the vial, sending strands of Bent from the tips of his fingers to exert control over her body via the connection between the husker brain and the gunk she¡¯d been sprayed with. ¡°Ah! AAAH!¡± Nadia shouted as her limbs began twitching on the ground, flopping out from under her. That¡¯s the same problem I seem to have every time I do this. I have to relearn to control the object or person in question. In this case, it wasn¡¯t quite long enough, as Nadia started to break free from the control in a matter of seconds, her limbs jerking as she put them underneath herself. ¡°Kneel!¡± Calvin sank to his knees as the Skill overwrote his Stability, but this time, his Will ate through the control in under five seconds. Shaping. Another splash of Puppet washed over Nadia, forcing her back to the ground, and there the two of them stared at each other as they ever so slowly climbed back to their feet. Nadia opened her mouth to speak. Shaping. Calvin created a ball of the gunk inside her mouth, causing her to retch and spit violently before looking back up at him with a furious glare. She opened her mouth to speak again, and Calvin took control of her mouth in the few moments he had before she shrugged off control again. Nadia tried to say something, but Calvin flopped her tongue up and down, forcing her to say ¡®lalala¡¯ over and over again. ¡°Heh,¡± Calvin chuckled as her eyes became bloodshot, glaring at him with a strange mixture of enjoyment and total fury. Calvin was entertaining the idea of animating her leather clothes separately and peeling them away one at a time, when an enormous proboscis slammed into the back of Nadia¡¯s skull, causing the Shadowboxing created princess to twitch violently. Calvin followed the dark, slimy red tube up to the light blue, shuddering, wormlike creature emerging halfway out of the huge tree. There was a crack, and Nadia¡¯s shuddering stilled as a lump began traveling up the disgusting tube, her cheeks hollowing as her insides were literally sucked out. The Brain Leech. How the hell is it here? Doesn¡¯t matter! EJECT! HOW THE HELL IS IT HERE!? Calvin felt a pain in the back of his neck as a weight drove him to the ground. STOP SHADOWBOXING. *** Calvin¡¯s eyes flew open and he surged forward, the Puppet component flying off to the side with a clatter as he scrambled to his feet, heart trying to burst through his chest. Every single hair stood up at once as Calvin slid his fingers over the back of his neck. Nothing there but a little sweat and a twinge of phantom pain. What the hell was that? Calvin thought, panting as he looked around the Unqua tent. There was nothing in Shadowboxing that wasn¡¯t under his control. It was the perfect safe place to practice his skills, abilities, and alchemy experiments¡­ Or it was. Calvin¡¯s breath slowly calmed. Where had the leeches come from, and how had they gotten into Shadowboxing? It was well known the leeches were capable of phasing. Did they¡­phase into Shadowboxing? That would imply that shadowboxing created a concrete place for them to phase into, didn¡¯t it? Or were they simply shifting from reality to idea? Calvin had no idea, but the whole thing set the hairs on his arms and neck up. ¡°What the Abyss.¡± He muttered, grasping his forehead, before running a hand over the back of his neck again. Still nothing. Calvin decided to go outside, make sure the cavern was still warm and dry, his confidence in the strategy of being unpleasant for the creature to enter beginning to wear thin. All it took was one lapse and people would get eaten. I think living down here is starting to affect me¡­Elliot? Yeah? No snarky comments? Sorry, I was just changing my pants. I¡¯m back now. There was a series of clicks and scratches in the back of Calvin¡¯s mind. I um¡­can¡¯t figure out why that happened, and it spooks the shit out of me. Shadowboxing is a simulation run by the user¡¯s Mind. To get into shadowboxing, the creature would have to access your Mind directly. Elliot. Answer me honestly. Are we inside a Brain-Leech right now? No. No, definitely not, as I would have moved on to the next body, but something is really, really screwy here. Calvin stepped out of the unqua yurt, into the cramped cave filled with the sounds of laughter and industrious Knick-knacks. He looked around for any sign of the corpulent creature phasing through the walls. I need a solution to this. As far as I can tell, nobody should be able to access shadowboxing without your permission by default. Inherently. Calvin snapped his fingers, having come to a solution. I¡¯ll just kill every last one of the fucking things. Problem solved. Really? When there¡¯s every possibility this is a glitch from your last encounter with one and not an actual brain-leech? I don¡¯t know what a glitch is, but there¡¯s no better solution than killing the problem. Come on, man, we talked about this. You work the ¡®glitch¡¯ angle and tell me if you find anything. If you don¡¯t find anything, then we have to assume actual Brain Leeches are roosting in ShadowBoxing, and we need to exterminate them. This is crazy. Those things interrupted me making Nadia¡¯s leathers peel away on their own! Calvin thought with a clenched fist. Their suffering will be legendary! And they scared the crap out of you. Nobody¡¯s admitting to that. Calvin touched his neck. ¡­ Still nothing. *** I¡¯m not a huge fan of this idea. Elliot said as Calvin settled back into a crosslegged posture. Oh, and you think I am? He thought, closing his eyes. Just be ready to pull me out instantly if we pick up right where we left off. Don¡¯t you worry, I¡¯ve got my fingers on Control Alt Delete as we speak. Shadowboxing. Calvin opened his eyes and he was on the platform. With a mental tug, Karen appeared on the platform in front of him. Ah, nice choice. Bring out the big guns. ¡°What the?¡± she frowned, glancing around the platform before her gaze landed on him. In the blink of an eye she was looming over him, the tip of a blade pressed to his throat. ¡°Who are you and what are we doing here?¡± she asked. ¡°I¡¯m Calvin, this is a spell, I¡¯m hunting imaginary phasing monsters and could use your help.¡± Calvin¡¯s intention was to get practice killing them in Shadowboxing before he did it alone. Even though they posed a real danger in Shadowboxing, it was still safer than doing it in person. ¡°Calvin?¡± she asked, frowning and stepping away from him, looking him up and down. ¡°Well, you got a little taller. It¡¯s about time. I didn¡¯t recognize you with the tan and the circles under your eyes.¡± ¡°It happens,¡± Calvin said, scanning the ceiling. ¡°Listen, I¡¯m not sure we¡¯ll have a lot of time to catch-URK.¡± Karen pushed him to the ground and batted away a proboscis that seemed to come out of the air. Calvin rolled to the side and watched as Karen took a wild swing at the pale blue worm seemingly hovering in the air. Karen¡¯s sword passed through it a fraction of a second before it flickered, and ceased to exist, like an ilethan light illusion. ¡°No blood. Damn.¡± Karen said, poking the floor with her toe. ¡°Looks like you¡¯ve got a mockingbird problem.¡± ¡°A what?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my old team¡¯s codeword for a creature or person that is flighty. Really hard to hit, and tends to vanish between attacks.¡± ¡°There¡¯s enough of them that you made a codeword?¡± Calvin asked, holding out his hand. Calvinian summoning. Atom ant. Several hundred fist-sized wasps burst out of the green smoke, searching for anything to kill that wasn¡¯t him or Karen. ¡°There¡¯s only so many basic ways you can fight, so we typify them into code words for quickl strategizing.¡± She said, glancing at him, pointing a thick finger at his smoke disgorging wasps. ¡°For example, you¡¯re a royal with cheese.¡± Sounds like a burger. Karen flickered, and Calvin felt something shove him aside. An instant later she swung her blade through the space his neck had been, bisecting the proboscis. The worm reared away, but Calvin blinked when he noticed the red tube was still in one solid piece. ¡°That¡¯s weird,¡± Karen said, looking at her sword. ¡°I felt it land.¡± Karen flickered again, and Calvin was violently knocked to the side. This time he saw the red tube go through Karen¡¯s blade on it¡¯s own, the blonde fighter leaning out of the way at the last second before it attached to her face. ¡°This thing really likes you,¡± Karen said, glancing over her shoulder. ¡°I know,¡± Calvin said as he climbed to his feet. ¡°I wanna get rid of it.¡± ¡°Lemme try some dimensional fuckery. These things don¡¯t seem too smart. Don¡¯t move. Seriously.¡± The next time it came, Karen was ready. With a grunt, she unleashed a strike right over his head, her massive blade glowed for an instant with a radiance that dazzled Calvin¡¯s eyes before it released a light-bending wave over his head. There was a squelch, then a deafening explosion that Cal felt in his very bones. Matter of fact, I feel that in my real body, too. An identical screech echoed in Shadowboxing and the real world, overlapping each other perfectly. Calvin¡¯s eyes shot open, and he leapt out of his tent, scanning the ceiling. Bluish, rubbery flesh was shifting in and out of the stone, riddling the entire cavern wall, until there was almost more blue flesh than there was stone. The leeches seemingly hesitated and pulled back as soon as they touched the warm glow emanating from Sal¡¯s light fixture, but they were slowly beginning to press in. One of the leeches was truncated, a bleeding stump where the proboscis had been. Shit. I think you pissed them off. Macronomicon Chapter 113: A 4th Dimensional Beating The screeching sound echoed through the crowded cavern as the leeches thrashed, partway into the room, shaking the very floor through some means Calvin wasn¡¯t quite sure of. If they¡¯re phasing through the walls, how are they shaking the floor!? His near-hysterical brain fixated on an immaterial issue. ¡°What in all of the Abyss is going on?¡± Loren shouted, shielding his eyes from falling dust as he looked above them. ¡°No idea,¡± Calvin lied, his mind refocusing. It might be best for everyone involved to keep his involvement in the leech¡¯s rampage under his hat. ¡°But we gotta get ready for anything.¡± If shadowboxing Karen can wound it, the solution to this problem seems pretty simple. More Shadowboxing Karen. Aye aye. Heart of the Swarm 18/19 Bent remaining. You can¡¯t eat the brain of a swarm. That should buy him plenty of time to think of a solution. Calvin burst into thousands of wasps, spreading thick through the crowded cavern, settling on every surface. ¡­on the other hand, a swarm has a terribly difficult time shutting out distractions. It was absolute chaos out there, and now his awareness was spread evenly throughout it. people were screaming, running, crowding the exit, even though there was no way to actually leave without riding the Unqua out. People were swatting him, even though he wasn¡¯t stinging anyone, making little bursts of pain twinkle like stars through his consciousness. He couldn¡¯t even close his eyes. No matter how he tried, he couldn¡¯t quite fall into the proper state to start Shadowboxing. Maybe if his environment was calm, or if he didn¡¯t have millions of eyes and antennae, he could do it. Damn. Where¡¯s that one hundred and twenty five percent correction to ignoring distractions when you need it? Calvin shifted his priorities. He needed to find Kala, then he could undo his transformation and focus on the next plan. Finding Kala wasn¡¯t terribly hard. His awareness was spread fairly evenly throughout the panicking village, and he was able to locate the princess. Heck, I¡¯m even standing on her. A few of his wasps were clinging to Kala¡¯s body, and a few more crawled under her dress, the dim light revealing ¨C No time! ¨C He shifted the mass of his swarm slightly and dismissed them, poofing into existence right in front of the princess. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°Brain leeches mad!¡± Calvin said, lacking time to explain. ¡°Guard your head!¡± He lifted his arms. Calvinian summoning. Atom Ant. 16/19 Bent remaining. Calvin spent two Bent to make two towering Knick-knacks, each roughly a thousand pounds and six times stronger than they should have been. Knick-Knacks were pacifists by nature, but that didn¡¯t mean they couldn¡¯t be useful in a fight. Play keepaway. Calvin mentally directed the lumbering pieces of metal to keep him and Kala away from being stabbed by a proboscis. Gods I hope the leeches can¡¯t just pop them like the Crystal Lattice did. You and me both. Calvin¡¯s Knick-Knack picked him up as he spent one more Bent. Multi Shaping. 15/19 Bent remaining. Calvin fashioned himself a solid helmet out of Abyssal steel, padding his eyes and ears with soft cloth taken from Kala¡¯s dress. The sounds of shouting and screeching suddenly became dull. The rest of the mass of the spell, he spent on duplicating a large chunk of Sal¡¯s white-hot filament glowing above them. Why didn¡¯t you make Kala a helmet? Elliot asked, seemingly confused. Because I don¡¯t think a helmet does any good. This is just to help me focus. Calvin remembered the time the monster had slipped right through Karen¡¯s sword. There was no reason to think it wouldn¡¯t do that when a helmet got in the way. Shadowboxing. Calvin opened his eyes in the middle of the cavern, mentally stripping away all the unqua and people, leaving the simulation with just him and the brain-leeches trying to press into the room. Here goes nothing. Calvin gave a great mental tug, and summoned Karen, then he did it again, and again, and again. ¡°Karen! No time to explain!¡± Calvin shouted, drawing their attention to him as he continued to create more and more copies of his foster mother. He pointed at the creatures shying away from the heat. ¡°Mockingbird! Dimensional Fuckery!¡± The Karens nodded as one, and without asking for more explanation, began launching their space-distorting attacks at the walls. The shrieking and thrashing redoubled amid the explosions of impact, the entire cavern shaking under him. Calvin felt a swift jerk on his side as the Knick-knack carrying him had to move him out of the way of¡­something. Gods, it¡¯s times like this I really appreciate how much of an advantage it is that Karen just goes with the flow. They formed into a circle without a word to each other, lashing out in every direction. Each of Karen¡¯s strikes dug a massive gouge in the cavern walls, cutting up the creature, and riddling it with wounds. This might actually work! Calvin thought as he attacks drove the creature back. This was of course assuming these strange attacks could affect the creature in the real world as well as Shadowboxing. That ruined one¡¯s shape and color was exactly the same. Plus, they wouldn¡¯t have gotten upset if they hadn¡¯t taken real damage. This will work. And it did work. Karen was whittling away at the monster¡¯s long, corpulent bodies, landing blow after blow on their blue skin¡­Until one of the attacks tore a hole in shadowboxing itself. Calvin saw a white nothingness beyond the wall of the cavern. Looking at it made his eyes ache, and a pounding started to build in his head. ¡°Well, damn. That¡¯s all I can do on this end,¡± The Karen closest to him said, glancing at the widening white wound in reality. ¡°You¡¯re gonna have to do the rest on yours.¡± She looked over at him. ¡°Good to see you alive.¡± The pain in Calvin¡¯s eyes redoubled as the wound snapped open further, increasing in speed at an exponential rate as it widened to engulf everything and everyone. The assembled Karen¡¯s flickered out of existence, disappearing into that white void, leaving Calvin floating in an ocean of featureless white headache. Closing his eyes didn¡¯t seem to help. The pain in his head redoubled, reaching a peak that nearly wrenched a scream out of his lungs. Then everything was gone. A fatal exception has occurred in User¡¯s Meditation Ability. Please Wait while a System Administrator runs a diagnostic. -Error, Connection Terminated. You¡¯ll thank me later. We¡¯re kind of a fugitive. *** Calvin tore the sensory deprivation helmet off, feeling something warm and sticky leaking from his eyes and nose. Calvin licked his lip. Yep, blood. I¡¯m crying blood. That¡¯s normal. Probably. The villagers of the Abyss had gotten organized, Loren staying behind, watching every last man and woman climb into their unqua and began driving the squat, shelled creatures up the tiny set of stairs that led towards The Crack. A full evacuation Where are they planning on going? It¡¯s not like moving a few hundred feet will make any difference to something that phases through stone. Doing something makes them feel better than doing nothing. Besides, it¡¯ll work. Why¡¯s that? This thing¡¯s after you, not them. ¡°Bah,¡± Calvin muttered. He hated it when Elliot pointed out the obvious. Still, as long as the filament keeps burning hot, we¡¯ve got a few hours to come up with a plan. One of the thrashing leeches somehow caught the stalagtite the light source was affixed to, and the entire chunk of stone fell to the ground with a cataclysmic, explosive noise, burying itself deep into the stone beneath it. The filament was extinguished, and the cavern was plunged into darkness, heat rapidly beginning to drain from the cave. Calvin raised his eyebrows. I know, I know, I fuckin¡¯ said it, you don¡¯t have to yell at me. I already feel stupid enough. ¡°Kala?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at where Kala was being manhandled by his Knick-Knack, kept clear of debris and leeches and other people alike. She looked a bit jostled, but otherwise safe. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Time to go.¡± Calvin pointed at their unqua. It was more like a rental, but whatever. Calvin still hadn¡¯t found one of his own and nobody would let him dissect one to study its shrinking ability. Kala nodded and at Calvin¡¯s command, the Knick-knack put her down and raised its cutting torch, blasting the white-hot flame into the air to provide the light she needed to navigate. That¡¯s not a bad idea. Calvinian summoning. 14/19 Bent remaining. Calvin summoned a couple hundred knick-knacks and had them raise their cutting torches to the sky. The rapidly draining heat in the room began to recover as the hundreds of pinpoints of light radiated their own small amount of energy. That¡¯s one way to heat up the room. I don¡¯t have any of my volatile chemicals on me. Otherwise Calvin would have made an oil-fed bonfire. Calvin glanced up at the Brain-leeches that had taken the opportunity to peek through the wall a little further. They were riddled with oozing wounds that were slowly closing in front of Calvin¡¯s eyes. The strangest thing was that several of the leeches seemed to have identical wounds, albeit in different stages of healing. What does that even mean? I wonder where Nadia is. The Chained spirit¡¯s duration was nowhere near expiring. Calvin located the leather-clad princess across the cavern, escorting a couple wounded villagers to their Unqua, helping to carry them and their valuables. No way. Politics. Ah. Once Kala was in an unqua, Calvin sent a few knick-knacks to watch her back. He needed to see if the leeches truly wanted him. Calvin swiftly pulled the Crystal component out of his belt, a uniquely shaped vial with the three primary ingredients sealed away in separate bubbles, the texturing distinct on each side to let him know which side was which without looking. Multi Shaping. 13/19 Bent remaining. With a flick of his wrist, he recreated the three ingredients in the proper amounts and the right direction, creating a massive spear of crystal, erupting from the ground and up into the writhing swarm, sending spikes in every direction upon reaching the ceiling. The mass of the crystal far exceeded the limits of Dupdomancy, but not the catalysts that created them. Magic is weird. Dupdomancy has reached level 19! 361 pounds, 95 minutes. The crystal didn¡¯t bother the creatures one bit, the shafts of metallic crystal sliding through the worm¡¯s bodies without showing any sign of creating damage. There was a sudden pressure in his side as the Knick-knack swung him out of the way of a proboscis that manifested out of thin air, striking at him before recoiling from the heat. I guess they want me. Well, shit, there goes that idea, Calvin thought, sliding the crystal component back into his belt. He¡¯d been hoping the disruptive effect it¡¯d seemed to have on his magic would work on the damn thing¡¯s phasing. Or at least harm it. Plan B. What, might I ask, is plan B? Run away until I think of something better. Even if he couldn¡¯t kill the creature, he could evade it pretty easily. I need a hand. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the swarm. Atom Ant. Calvin created normal sized wasps, three hundred and seventy pounds of them, each one nineteen times tougher, stronger, and more agile than a normal wasp. He aimed for the Crack, his swarm tightening into a thin stream as they flew at lightning speeds overtop the Unqua, air breaking around them. Calvin¡¯s stream of wasps widened out as they reached the other side of the Crack, where the Siphon lay beneath the platform. He turned his attention back to the crack and waited. Now to see if it follows me. Gods I hope Kala is okay. Moments later, he got his answer, as Brain leeches began to manifest everywhere around him, sliding out of thin air like they were stepping out of a curtain. Is it invisibility or phasing, or what!? Calvin demanded as several thousand of his wasps were smacked out of the air. Okay, so they¡¯re following me. That¡¯s good. Then Calvin saw the whole thing. The area that looked bitten off was host to an enormous stalk of some kind, dark blue and pulsing with sickly Warp energy that felt like it would scramble his brain. The brain leeches were coming out of the crown of the creature, disappearing into thin air, their ends truncated, until they appeared right behind his wasps, attempting futilely to eat his wasp¡¯s brains, slapping them to ground instead. It¡¯s all one thing, Calvin realized. But that doesn¡¯t explain the identical wounds on its limbs. It¡¯s fourth dimensional. Elliot said with a gasp. That¡¯s why it spilled into your Shadowboxing, that¡¯s why you can¡¯t hit it! It exists in more than three dimensions. Your attacks are so relatively small they don¡¯t even touch it. Why is it there now!? It¡¯s actively moving in time. It wasn¡¯t there before, now it is. Imagine yourself as a string of Calvins, from past to present going on into the future, and from side to side, representing possible Calvin variations. This thing isn¡¯t a string. It¡¯s a spider that climbs over those strings and snips them. Chances are it¡¯s probably eaten you a few times already, and likes the taste. Or will eat you a few times? I dunno. Calvin tried to blink, but his wasp-eyes were static. I don¡¯t get it. Are you saying this thing can travel through time? Why can¡¯t it just go back and kill me before I knew about it? Maybe? I don¡¯t freaking know. Nobody knows the rules of fourth dimensional stuff. We monkeys simply aren¡¯t wired to handle that information, and the System isn¡¯t going to fix that. Damn. That didn¡¯t change what Calvin had to do. He had to find a way to kill or neutralize the thing. There was only one thing he¡¯d heard of that had something even a little bit similar to Karen¡¯s dimensional fuckery attack. I wonder what the real name is. Aah, you meant the fuck-off blender from hell. Refraction Spinner. Calvin thought, trying to roll his eyes and once again coming across the limitations of his wasp body. He¡¯d seen them a few times in shadowboxing, but he¡¯d never ventured out far enough in person to bag a real one. The Brain-Leech swatted a few more of his wasps out of the air, but not hard enough to kill the tough little bastards. Calvin was safe for the next few hours. Thank the gods this thing is stupid. I don¡¯t know what we¡¯d do if this these monsters were intelligent. ¡­nothing? Elliot asked. How come when you ask for trouble like that, NOTHING happens? Just lucky that way, Calvin thought, spreading his swarm out so search for a monster with parts that could help him deal with this one. ***Learner*** Learner watched as the Manifold Predator changed into the blue flying units, able to resist the Apex Predator¡¯s attacks by refusing to give it a target. It was a shame, but the Apex predator would simply shift to the time when the Manifold predator¡¯s energy was exhausted, picking away at it and consuming it. There was precious little Learner could learn now that the apex Predator had fixated on Manifold Predator. Still, in the last desperate moments of it¡¯s existence, it would most likely use all of it¡¯s strength to escape, giving Learner a few more scraps of information before it was consumed. Learner felt a twinge of¡­something in its units. It felt¡­not good about something eating the Manifold Predator before it had a chance to fully absorb it¡¯s abilities. Is it because I want to consume it myself, perhaps? No, that¡¯s not accurate either. As Learner was considering this, the manifold predator¡¯s swarm suddenly dispersed in every direction, and Learner hugged the floor tightly, spreading itself out and creating another patch of dry bones, hardening the outside of its units to a flat surface. It had discovered through trial and error that its mimicking ability was lacking due to unspecialized unit¡¯s innate recursive behavior. It had adapted. *** Calvin expanded through the entire platform, his swarm navigating down every tunnel, harried by the brain-leech¡¯s appendages. Hundreds of them. Thousands even, as more space became available while Calvin¡¯s swarm spread out. They began knocking Calvin¡¯s wasps out of the air and crushing them en mass. He still had enough wasps to map out the entire series of tunnels. Millions of them. More wasps were grabbed by looming horrors, more were swept into the Warp by Lures posing as Spinners ¨C fucking Lures, always looking like what you¡¯re looking for - and Calvin¡¯s mind was subjected to an instant of stunningly mind-bending sights before the wasps unraveled. Through it all, his numbers were too high for the monsters of The Filter to make a dent. Not with Bad penny constantly refreshing his numbers. There. Calvin spotted Elliot¡¯s Fuck-Off Blender. He knew it wasn¡¯t a Lure because when he got close, the spinning fractal of bent light tore his wasps into chunks. It had a bulbous brown body that floated in midair, and multiple pale humanoid hands, dozens of them, that spun a spiderweb of fractured space between them. He couldn¡¯t see the thing¡¯s mouth, but its ass was completely undefended. Calvin¡¯s swarm converged on the creature, stinging it from every direction possible, even as it whipped around violently, trying to catch him with its powerful shield. Thousands upon thousands of wasps were fed to the maw in space, cut to pieces in instants as they tried to get close enough to sting the creature. Calvin had millions more. It only took a few minutes before the creature fell to the ground, the fractal web of bent space fading away to reveal a toothless, gaping maw. I guess it doesn¡¯t need teeth to eat its prey, after all. Calvin¡¯s adrenaline surged as he looked at the dead creature. Moment of truth. He canceled Calvinian Summoning. Calvin dropped to the ground, knife emerging from his hand. He brought it down and severed one of the Spinner¡¯s hands at the wrist. He grabbed the pale, inhuman hand and rolled forward as quickly as he could, a gust of air passing over his head. Calvin whipped around and swung the hand, forcing Bent through the creature¡¯s wrist. He felt his Bent settle into well-worn channels in the creature¡¯s wrist, forcing some strange substance through the hand ahead of it. 12/19 Bent remaining. Abyssal alchemy has reached level 4! Bent Manipulation has reached level 3! At the end of the hand, a messy ball of refracted space slammed into the brain leech¡¯s proboscis and corpulent body. It tore them to shreds, scattering brain-leech gunk everywhere. I can work with this, Calvin thought with a fierce grin. Macronomicon Chapter 114: Epic Victory Speech How do you spot a Ravager? Easy. Look for those seeking to oppose the established Harbinger order, and succeeding. They shine like brilliant suns amongst the lower life-forms they were born with. ***Calvin*** The Brain leech¡¯s appendages thrashed violently, showering Calvin with¡­nothing? The creature¡¯s blood and guts fell through the floor, through Calvin, even vanishing in midair. At least clean-up is gonna be easy. The tangled ball of warped space winked out an instant afterward, whatever juice was still in there spent. Harvester. 11/19 Bent remaining. The Refraction spinner¡¯s body collapsed into its component organs, neatly organized and well packaged. The skill must have known Calvin wanted the hands whole, because each one of the dozen or so hands of varying size were undamaged. He was interested to find out exactly how they worked, but Calvin didn¡¯t have time to experiment with them. He could feel the leech¡¯s attention on the back of his neck. Calvinian summoning. Heart of the swarm. Atom Ant 9/19 Bent remaining. Calvin burst into wasps again an instant before another of the brain-leeches appendages slammed into his back, careening through his swarm of wasps to no effect. This time his wasps were fist sized, able to carry the individual organs of the refraction spinner with their enhanced strength. Time to go say hi. Calvin¡¯s wasps seized the organs and burst into motion, the gale of their passing kicking up a storm of swirling wind, lifting up a cloud of dust flowing behind them as they raced down the tunnel, aiming for the platform where the leech¡¯s main body rested. In a matter of seconds, Calvin arrived at the monstrosity, and his heart leaped into his throat when he spotted the village of the Abyss crowded around Kala, fending off countless attacks. Sal was lifting a bone staff above their heads, the filament wrapped around the top white hot, illuminating their desperate struggle even as the heat pushed the leech back. It was only partially effective, though, as the creature attacked people through every avenue it could: Through the chilly stone floor, from people¡¯s shadows, where the heat of the filament couldn¡¯t reach, even people inside the circle weren¡¯t completely safe, as the occasional proboscis appeared out of thin air to strike the back of a distracted combatant¡¯s neck. A dozen or so people were already down with gaping wounds in the back of their necks, unlikely to survive, but no one seemed to have had their brain eaten, thank the gods. Calvin didn¡¯t remember it precisely, but he did know it was awful enough that he didn¡¯t want to remember. As soon as someone was taken down, the villagers around them would tear the pulsing crimson tube free with the victim¡¯s hands. Is there a reason for them to use the victim¡¯s hands? It¡¯s probably¡­tuned into them somehow? So it can touch them? I¡¯m not an expert at this. The leech seemed especially interested in Calvin¡¯s princess, and the only reason she was still alive was Beli Ma confounding the creature, and the villagers surrounding her, watching her back and occasionally moving her out of the way. It helped that Sal¡¯s hot filament was directly above her. There wasn¡¯t much more time to think as Calvin was approaching the scene at break-neck speeds. Calvin¡¯s swarm dipped down and then up before he canceled the summoning. Calvin appeared in midair, flung up toward the creature¡¯s main mass, a line of tumbling arms and organs in front of him. Shifting. Mayfly/Celestial body. 8/19 Bent remaining. Calvin shifted his mass into the floor, and the tumbling organs in front of him slowed. Between the sheer adrenaline and the slowing effect of the spell, the parts didn¡¯t seem to be moving that fast at all. He felt the creature¡¯s attention zero in on him, using whatever passed for 4th dimensional eyes. I don¡¯t have much time. Multi Mass Shaping. 7/19 Bent remaining. There were six different organs that looked likely to house the Refraction spinner¡¯s juices. Calvin snatched a large, healthy looking hand out of the mess tumbling through the air and recreated it. He created an abyssal steel cap friction-fit to the back of the hand, with a large empty gap between the severed wrist and the back of the gap. Room for the goop. He made sixty-three of them, each one lined up with the brain leech¡¯s main body in an area he could see. Then he filled each one with a slightly different mixture. Six hands got only one, ingredient, fifteen got unique combinations of two, twenty a combination of three, fifteen unique combinations of four elements, six unique combinations of five ingredients, and one with everything. Simple math. Sure you don¡¯t want a control group with nothing in it? Don¡¯t be pedantic. The hands appeared directly in front of the brain-leech¡¯s enormous body, the abyssal steel caps on the back of the wrists forcing the goop mixtures manifested inside out through the creature¡¯s channels. A large portion of the hands fizzled, or exploded, but a few shot out scrambled balls of warped space, interacting violently with the brain leech¡¯s jiggling torso. Wounds appeared on the things body and it flinched, stunned, as if it couldn¡¯t believe what was happening. The most energetic reaction that didn¡¯t destroy the hand was a four-component one.. Lumpyred plus longdoodle, Sadsak, and Marble. That¡¯s what you¡¯re calling the organs? They don¡¯t have official names, and I¡¯m doing this on the spot! Cut me some slack! You try naming six unknown organs in a fraction of a second. Calvin¡¯s feet touched the ground. Multi Mass Shaping. 6/18 Bent remaining. Calvin created a massive, two hundred pound Spinner hand, right at the center of the brain leech¡¯s body, then forced every ounce of the four-ingredient combination that he could through it. The resulting tangle of warped space was several orders of magnitude bigger than the ones before it. The creature¡¯s body seemed to resist for a moment as the warped space manifested inside it, swelling and twisting, it¡¯s corpulent flesh jiggling in pain. Then it exploded. The brain leech¡¯s goopy remains flew everywhere, through everything, refusing to interact with solid matter. In the space of a breath, there was no evidence the creature had existed at all, save for the wounded. Dupdomancy has reached level 20! +1 Will Please choose a- That¡¯s a bummer, Calvin thought as the creature flashed out of existence. I was thinking about getting it as a summon. It is dead, right? Maybe? If that didn¡¯t kill it, then I¡¯m out of ideas, Calvin thought, his shoulders relaxing. I can think of a couple reasons consuming it might be a bad idea, first on the list is the compatability issue that might cause you to explode or implode if you tried to eat the damn thing. Well, I might want to add one of these to my summons, Calvin thought, looking down at the spinner hand in his grasp. Couldn¡¯t hurt to have a summon that can damage 4th dimensional beings. I couldn¡¯t agree more, especially since ¨C ack, people! ¨C Elliot was cut off as a wave of Abyss dwellers crashed over Calvin, jostling him around and, congratulating him with ear-splitting voices and clapping him on the shoulder, making his hackles go up. Too close! ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like that!¡± Rufe said, pulling Calvin into an unwanted gardor hug, slapping him on the back before releasing him, holding his shoulders out at arm¡¯s length while other plebes tried to touch Calvin¡¯s shoulders and hair. Hands were touching him all over the head and shoulders, and Calvin was becoming distinctly uncomfortable. ¡°That was some grade-A ass-kicking, boy! You just swooped in like a hero of legend, literally flying, and POW! Blew that thing up with a flick of the wrist. By the gods, how do you even do something like that!?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t step on my organs!¡± Calvin blurted out to the gathered crowd of glowing faces, causing them to frown and lean backward ever so slightly. I think this was where you were supposed to brag about how easy killing the monster was, and how they should follow your brilliant leadership. Oh well, you can get the next one, I guess. ¡°Oh, these?¡± Rufe asked, leaning down to big up a half-trampled Longdoodle. There was a treadmark over a large portion of the organ and a bit of clear goop seeping out. ¡°Yes,¡± Calvin said through clenched teeth, keeping his voice as neutral as possible. ¡°Those.¡± ¡°Umm¡­Right. Oy,¡± Rufe said, slapping the nearby people crowding around Calvin. ¡°All you ignorant sons of bitches get back to the wounded. We¡¯ve got more important things to do than crowd the kid and step on his¡­whatever these are.¡± Alerted, the crowd backed away, dispersing around the platform, returning their attention to those who actually needed it. The thinning crowd revealed Sal, sitting on the floor in the distance, slumped against his staff in relief. The old glassworker¡¯s heavy sighs were whistling through the gaps in his teeth. It also revealed Kala, holding a hand over the back of a man¡¯s neck, her expression focused as she tried to stem the bleeding. I love a girl with the right priorities. Calvin thought, tiptoeing around his semi-stomped spinner remains. ¡°Anything I can do to help?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Can your knick-knacks sew wounds?¡± Kala asked. Loader bots should be able to perform first aid under emergency situations in the absence of a doctor, yeah. I remember reading about it in a magazine. ¡°Yep,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Then pull them out! And make several gallons of each wounded villager¡¯s blood.¡± Calvin hustled to comply, and the two of them threw their energy into preserving the wounded. ***Learner*** Wonderful! Yes, very good! The manifold predator was unharmed, and Learner was elated. Both because the creature¡¯s victory validated Learner¡¯s decision to study it, and some other¡­odd reason, stemming from somewhere in the guts of learner¡¯s current guise. Strange that any amount of decision-making beyond food processing should be carried out by the guts, Learner thought, poking its own abdomen. I wonder how it knew to seek out the Apex Predator¡¯s weakness? How did it know there was a weakness at all? Was the meaning hidden in the four-limbed creature¡¯s hoots somewhere? Back home, the only creature that was undisturbed by the Apex predator was the Refraction Spinner. While the prey was sluggish and slow, when it raised its defenses against the Apex predator, the latter always withdrew. In this matterspace, that same defense mechanism had been harnessed to bring the creature down, removing it from existence entirely. Learner¡¯s hand turned pale, and four more fingers emerged from the bottom of its palm. Each finger sprouted a hand made of units mimicking a Refraction Spinner¡¯s. It took time and a bit of concentration, but eventually the nine tiny hands worked in sync to produce a stable, scintillating pattern over its palm. Interesting. Learner pushed a finger into the pattern, and the finger was turned into tiny chunks that fell through into Learner¡¯s palm. The units rejoined it¡¯s palm, while it regrew it¡¯s finger. With the exception of the specialized units that formed Learner¡¯s ¡®skin¡¯. Locked into shape, they had no way of releasing each other and reabsorbing. Specialized units are weak to separation in matterspace. Learner realized. That was the primary way damage was dealt in this matterspace, creating separation between units. And the refraction spinner¡¯s defenses were quite good at it. All other creatures seem to be made of specialized units, therefore the refraction spinner¡¯s defense mechanism is far more dangerous to other creatures than it is to me. Requires more study. Learner returned its attention to the Manifold predator. It was absorbing the red units of the injured through its hands, while its offshoots preserved the others for consumption by pulling their units closer together. Yes, even recovering damage seems to be a matter of bringing units back into the form they had been before. Interesting. But not riveting. There was little to learn watching the manifold predator hoot at the Dark Prey Who Gazes Back. It seemed to pay more attention to that particular prey than the others, hooting at it and gazing at it¡¯s front-lumps and back-lumps when its head was turned. Probably sizing up nutritional value. Requires more study¡­but not right now. Learner had detected the pattern that the Manifold Predator was taking, and was now confident it could advance further, faster. Learner wanted to be confident in it¡¯s defences before it made contact again. It decided it would go out into the matterspace while the Manifold Predator was wasting time with lying still and hooting, and use that time to identify the defense and feeding mechanisms of each of the prey animals here, and master their use as weapons. There was a quiet thump several hundred paces distant, too distant for the rowdy crowd of four limbed prey to hear, but not Learner. Learner was already far away from these prey, and much closer to the sound of the noise. Leaner glanced over and saw the broken body of a four-limbed prey laying still upon the pile of bones. ¡­do these four limbed prey come fully formed from above the omnipull? Learner thought, glancing up at the matterspace above. A moment later, a four-limbed prey fell through the stone matterspace farthest from the Omnipull and landed on top the other one, this one still moving somewhat. A few minutes later, Learner hid while one of the four-limbed prey came and took away the one that was still squirming, hooting to each other. Learner had an idea. ¡­ Calvinian Summoning has reached level 20! +1 Will Hours later, they had managed to preserve five of the eight remaining wounded, whose spines were severely damaged by the attacks. Do you think they¡¯ll be able to walk again? Calvin thought as he leaned up against the new stone railing, his body aching with released tension. Sitting with his back that close to the Abyss made him a little uneasy, but everywhere was equally dangerous, so why not? Regular humans with no Breaks? Probably not. Legends who drink deadly poison to get a buzz? Yeah, chances are good as long as their friends keep them fed. Calvin glanced up when Rufe and a woman walked by holding the wrists and ankles of a shivering Uleisan man wearing fine clothes. ¡°What¡¯s up with him?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°This poor bastard got kicked down The Hole today. He was only third Break. He¡¯s got too much Warp going through his system.¡± Rufe said. ¡°We¡¯re gonna put him under watch until he wakes up or turns into a gibbering ball of flesh.¡± Calvin frowned. He recognized one of the merchants that he¡¯d duped upon arriving in Uleis. That sucks. Maybe it was some kind of power struggle for Orson¡¯s seat, and Calvin had crippled him, financially. You didn¡¯t kick him down here. No matter what you did to that guy. It was the assholes up top that did that. True. Calvin refocused as they carried the shivering man by. Show me my choices. Macronomicon Chapter 115: Decision Paralysis ***The One Who Looks Back*** Kala¡¯s hands trembled with exhaustion as she held her palm over the wound, using her training to try and keep the bleeding to a minimum while Calvin¡¯s thumb-sized knick-knacks swarmed over the puncture, looking for all the world like sailors cutting on the corpse of a leviathan. She looked up and saw it again. The cold, inhuman thing that watched them. Kala didn¡¯t know exactly what it looked like. She didn¡¯t even technically see it, she saw it¡¯s essence, glowing against the pitch black of the platform. She wasn¡¯t like Calvin: she couldn¡¯t see in the dark, she didn¡¯t have eyes in the back of her head, and she couldn¡¯t tell when someone was watching her. For all these shortcomings, she saw things better than he did, sometimes: She saw things and people as they were. Far in the distance was a strange, black-skinned beast, blank pages slowly leafing off of its back, filling in front of her eyes with a script that no human had ever read before, and folding back into it. The words were constantly filling in, constantly being revised, and constantly changing. The first time she¡¯d seen them, the script had been sharp, flat edges, almost mechanical in nature, and that was still mostly true, but the format was changing, ever so slowly adapting softer lines even as the words became more and more complex to her eyes. Even the shape of the creature had shifted, becoming more mammalian to her eyes. It was growing. Changing. The creature gave her an odd sensation of being in a precarious balance. Its tone shifted between that of a hungry animal, and that of a curious scholar. One, she knew, would bring the creature into direct, bloody conflict with them, while the other looked as though it would lead to many years of fruitful cooperation. And Kala could see that sooner or later, this balance would tip in one direction or the other. Kala hoped it would be the latter, because as brilliant as Calvin was at killing things, he needed friends more than more enemies. That was why she didn¡¯t tell him about it. She wanted it to have time for the writing to grow even softer, without Calvin trying to kill it. When it makes its dots with little hearts, I¡¯ll know it¡¯s safe, Kala thought with a wry smile. A page flickered out of the creature¡¯s skin with a picture of Kala looking back at it, with a tightly controlled script beneath it, and lines pointing to her eyes, lips, nose and neck, also labelled. Well, that¡¯s flattering. A second later, another picture of her without her skin flipped through the creature¡¯s pages, then simply her skeleton, staring back. Each page was lousy with notes about her inner organs and their weaknesses. Less so. Kala forced back a shiver and turned her eyes back to Calvin, who was staring into space, presumably choosing his Abilities. When she looked at him, she saw the edge of a planet, lit by the light of the sun, Calvin¡¯s fingers placed gently on its surface. The definition of arrogance and ambition. Better than when Elliot was speaking, anyway. When Elliot inevitably spoke up again, She saw a hellscape of infinite, recursive death beyond death and her fight or flight response kicked in at full power. She shivered again. The Knick-Knack tapped her hand, drawing her attention back to what she was doing. she lifted her palm up, marvelling at the perfect stitch-work. He really doesn¡¯t know how valuable he is, she thought, eyeing calvin. Don¡¯t listen to what your father says, he¡¯s never been a princess. You gotta find a good man before he¡¯s a good man, then lock that shit down before the competition gets fierce, understood? Her mother¡¯s words echoed through her mind. Five year old kala hadn¡¯t really understood, but she was starting to. Kala washed her hands with some of Calvin¡¯s summoned soap and water, and sat beside him, feeling the warmth of his shoulder as she unlocked her space, pulling out her pipe and a bit of Wet Dream. Gods, I love this pipe. The long, slender thing had taken a hit from a legend, and there wasn¡¯t a scratch on it. Once she was on her way back home, she would scout Jinsei to work for her kingdom. ¡°You mind?¡± she asked as a formality. ¡°Go for it.¡± He murmured, still staring at the options ahead of him, his lips moving as he muttered under his breath. Concentrating Calvin was cute, too. Smoking has reached level 5! 25% Correction. +1 Endurance Please Choose an Ability. Smoke Signals: You may form exhaled smoke into complex shapes at no Bent cost. Does not have any tangibility beyond that of smoke. Homegrown: Correction applies to growing the user¡¯s own smokables. Hardened lungs: 1 bent: Greatly improve resistance to inhaled poisons for (level) minutes. Hmm¡­I choose Smoke Signals. It was one of Kala¡¯s free Skills, she didn¡¯t have to tell her family about it, and she abhorred the idea of spending every possible Ability on making herself harder to kill. What was the point of living like that? life was for living, too. She wanted to have fun. Kala exhaled a lungful of smoke, and manipulated it with Bent inside her mouth as she did. The smoke settled into the form of a pompous hat resting on his head, forcing a giggle out of her. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± he asked, glancing over, the motion of his head enough to scatter the smoke to the wind, leaving behind no evidence. The perfect crime. ¡°Nothing,¡± Kala said, looking away and focusing her attention on anything else, the day spent with writing on her forehead high on her mind. She wouldn¡¯t mind getting caught again, but she wouldn¡¯t make it easy for him, either. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Calvin¡¯s eyes narrowed and he tested himself for ink before returning his attention to his thoughts. Kala took one more look toward the creature in the distance. It had left a few minutes ago, not showing any signs of wanting to attack. She breathed a sigh of relief, then brought her attention back to the boy warming up her left side. I wonder if I can make writing with this ability. ***Calvin*** Show me my options. Dupdomancy has reached level 20! +1 Will Please Choose an ability or mutation. Hypothetical Space Expansion: Warp the environment by an amount dictated by the skill¡¯s mass load. Empty space is filled in with what would have been there if the space were that large. Temperature control: Copied matter may be raised or lowered in temperature by an amount of degrees equal to Dupdomancy¡¯s duration. Gradual Split: Split mass is created at a rate determined by the user. ^Jet-engine, anyone? Permanent split: Duplicate objects permanently, Mass limit divided by 100. (4.00Lb) Bent-reactive materials exempt. *caution* While these objects are permanent, they are still Bent constructs and therefore not exempt from dispelling techniques, unlike normal objects. *Do Not Consume Duplicated Food, unless you want your body to be partially made of Bent Construct.* Bulk Split: Mass Limit increased by (Int) % Extended Split: Time limit is increased by (Sta)% Mutations: Continuity: duplicated creature¡¯s experiences carry on from one to the next, as long as the template creature was the same one. Bent: duplicated creatures gain a limited pool to draw from to fuel Abilities. The effects of the abilities are extentions of Dupdomancy and not actual Bent. Pool is 1/5th the level of Dupdomancy. Copy Kit: 1 Bent, Consume an object to permanently store it¡¯s data in the System. The objects may then be the subject of Dupdomancy spells in whole or in part, as normal. Store 1 Item/5 levels of Dupdomancy ^From Consume et al. Shiva: Create semi-permanent extra body parts/limbs at will, decreasing maximum Stability by 3 for each one. This does not have a strict Bent cost, and can be used when Bent is 0. The cost is essentially applied to maximum Bent. The limbs are dismissible, and Stability will recover within 24 hours. Damn, that¡¯s a lot of choices. Calvin pondered as he looked over the options. It seemed like Elliot had come through and moved Bent and Continuity over from Chained spirit all the way to dupdomancy. If he chose Bent, each time he copied himself, his copy would be able to use 4 abilities. That was a huge expansion in the amount of things he could do, but without Continuity, it left a bad taste in his mouth, ordering his copies around like pawns during the last few minutes of their lives. Imagine you¡¯ve got an hour and a half to live, and someone tells you to do the dishes and take out the trash. Not only that, Continuity and Bent took two ability selections away from the core spell, focusing it more toward replicating himself. Did he need to replicate himself when he had other people he could do that to? Ones who weren¡¯t so concerned with the existential terror of suddenly finding yourself on a ticking clock. Kala came over and sat down beside him, leaning against him as they rested. Her shoulder was warm. Calvin was leaning toward Gradual Split. It wasn¡¯t fancy but it allowed so much more versatility with his spell. Flamethrowers. Check. Flight. Check. Even the recent component he¡¯d created on the fly could benefit from Gradual split. The organic nature of the component required a steady stream of material down the channels in the Spinner¡¯s hands. So far he¡¯d only been able to create short blasts of uncontrolled warped space. Good as an explosion, but Calvin wanted to branch out from explosions. With Gradual split he could feed a controlled amount of substance through, and even change the ratios to control the output. A huge degree of versatility. Of course choosing that Ability put off an army of Calvin copies swarming the land for another ten levels. Could a copy use the Bent ability to make more copies, and so on? In a word, no. The System doesn¡¯t look kindly on infinite combos, and that¡¯s a pretty obvious one right there. It¡¯ll probably prevent any copy from making another copy, or destroy them altogether when they make a new one. Which is more likely, the first or the second? Why does it matter? Because if I were the copy, and Continuity were in place, I would copy myself to increase my time away from home. I would die, but the copy would share everything up until that point, and it¡¯s time limit would be reset. I would use that extra time to conspire against myself. ¡­But why? Habit, I guess, Calvin thought with a shrug. It¡¯s like Calvin¡¯s Law. Whatever Machiavellian scheming can happen, will happen. How can you know what Machiavellian means but not know what a dog is? What about Copy Kit? Calvin thought, an idea occurring to him. What defines a single object? Is it the vial, the contents of the vial, my perception of them, or what? Lemme see¡­there was a series of soft clattering noises¡­huh. It just says a contiguous object. So as long as they¡¯re touching each other, it seems like it¡¯s no problem. Size limits? Same as Consume, sooo¡­ three hundred and eighty pounds. So I could take my entire bandolier and Consume the whole thing and it would count as one object? The ability says in whole or in part, as normal. Seems like it. ¡°hmm¡­¡± Calvin¡¯s brain started warming up as he considered the problem. He could theoretically store every spell component he had, with three slots of extra space for just about anything after that. Then he wouldn¡¯t have to carry around his bandolier and touch the spell components as he used them, which was a huge advantage. On the other hand, there was the variety of new uses he could get out of Dupdomancy with Gradual Split. Specializing in simply duplicating himself over and over by comparison felt¡­not fun. Thanks for moving these, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll need them yet. No prob, Bob. I choose gradual Split. Calvin finally decided, trying to muscle his way past the decision paralysis. Even if he never got another Break. He could still get five more Ability choices for Dupdomancy before the end of his life. You know, assuming you don¡¯t bite the dust. Yes, assuming that. What¡¯s next? Calvinian Summoning has reached level 20! 1 slot available. Variety is the spice of Death : 2 extra slots, +1 extra slot every 5th level, rather than 10th (7 total @ level 20, vs 3) Chimera: The user may rearrange parts from any slotted creature onto any other slotted creature in any combination.(New slot every 10th level) Bulk Summoning: Mass Limit increased by (Int) % ^Oh, this must have been unlocked by Dupdomancy. Extended Summoning: Time limit is increased by (Sta)% ^Ditto. Diversified Portfolio of Death: User may now divide summon¡¯s mass between any different combination of *options they have access to*. ^Not only size and slotted creature variations, but extras like Chimera and Atom Ant may be added to a fraction of the total summon. The summon will no longer be strictly homogenous. Mutations: Continuity: The Summon remembers time spent during each summon, is aware of what the user is aware of while it was unsummoned, and can learn or improve System and non-System Skills to the limit of Calvinian Summoning. ^Moved from Chained Spirit Bent: Summoned creatures gain a limited pool to draw from to fuel Abilities, provided they have Bent-drawing abilities. The effects of the Abilities are extentions of Dupdomancy and not actual Bent. Pool is 1/5th the level of Dupdomancy. ^Moved from Chained Spirit Voodoo U: Damage taken by caster is absorbed by Calvinian Summon instead. ^Moved from Chained Spirit Survival of the Fittest: All Calvinian summons experience occasional random minor mutations of the template creature. A creature from the swarm may replace the old template creature. Calvin carefully looked through his list of options and swallowed a sigh. There were so many things he wanted to take, and so little points to take them with. The smart money was on taking Voodoo U. He¡¯d be able to worry less about his personal defense while his summons were in place. Seems like the thing to take if you wanna live through another fight with a Legend. Survival of the fittest looked like a lot of fun, but really needed Variety to shine. Continuity and Bent weren¡¯t important yet, Elliot had just moved them into Calvinian summoning to make them available to Dupdomancy. None of his creatures really required a firm understanding of what was going on around them. Not yet anyway. Chimera required Variety as well. Calvin was stuck there, his eyes flickering between Variety and Vodoo U. Fuck it. I¡¯m underground in a pit full of unique, powerful monsters. When am I gonna get another chance like this to stock up on things people have never seen before? I choose Variety is the Spice of death. You¡¯re gonna be a glass cannon forever, ain¡¯tcha? Until I die or wise up, I guess. Calvinian Summoning Updating¡­. 5 slots available! Well, I always did like pokemon too. Let¡¯s go catch some monsters. Macronomicon Chapter 116: Ominous Tidings ***Kurawe Oquv*** The crowd stood there in front of him, spellbound by his oration, their jaws predictably slack. Feed them enough hope and they will forget their misery. ¡°And that¡¯s why, in the wake of so many tragedies, I, Kurawe Oquv, am bringing the Royal New Years Ball to the people who deserve it most, the good people of Uleis!¡± Kurawe said, beaming as he spread his arms wide in front of the glass construction. The arena loomed high over them all, its matte surfaces absorbing the heat of the sun beating down on it, channeling it down into the cool of the earth. The people standing in front of him craned their necks upward to bear witness to the massive construction. ¡°For seven days prior to the New Years ball, games and shows will be held in the stadium, and each child who attends will be given a sack with five pounds of rice!¡± Eyes widened at that, and whispers began to circulate through the crowd. It was, at its heart, a simple way to ease the transition of several thousand widowed women and orphaned children into their new lives as breadwinners. Not needing to be concerned with food for a few days would give them a chance to reshuffle their lives and find new employment. The desperation of the poor was good motivation, but too much desperation was a disease that lead to rot. The trick was the balance. Sure some cunning individuals would try to game the system, but it was by and large, not Kurawe¡¯s problem. All the money of Uleis found its way back to them in the long run, even feeding it to hungry children. ¡°Waste of money,¡± Murak muttered under his breath, glancing up at the arena towering over them. ¡°Too many struts. Each of those struts must¡¯ve cost you twenty Stones. The damn place doesn¡¯t need that much support. The contractor was giving you the runaround.¡± ¡°I built it myself.¡± Kurawe said, glancing over his shoulder. ¡°Huh.¡± The skeletal moneylender shut up. ¡°I thought you¡¯d be more concerned with feeding the poor.¡± ¡°Why? You¡¯re making them crap at Ghuled¡¯s farm¡¯s aren¡¯t you?¡± Kurawe frowned. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Well why not? Human shit is valuable fertilizer and in exchange for free food, these simpletons will crap wherever you tell them. Why force Ghuled to pay for his own fertilizer when his profits stimulate ours?¡± ¡°Gods, you¡¯re petty. The value here is goodwill and dampening a rise in crime and discontent by giving people food and entertainment.¡± Kurawe said. Murak sniffed. ¡°One of these days, a problem will come along that you won¡¯t be able to solve by having more money than the other guy.¡± ¡°I¡¯m still waiting,¡± Murak said, motioning to himself, looking for all the world like a Terenga Buzzard with no feathers. Kurawe rolled his eyes and turned back to the crowd, plastering his happy smile back onto his face. ¡°And, good people, at the end of these seven days, a spectacle unlike any you¡¯ve yet to see! A contest between Legends gathered from around the world! It¡¯s sure to be a show unlike anything you¡¯ve ever seen before! The Royal family will attend, as well as send a representative to compete and showcase the pride of Uleis!¡± Kurawe took a deep breath. ¡°We¡¯re going to have a tournament!¡± ***Calvin*** +1 stability Shadowboxing repair 15% complete. Brrr¡­what the hell was that? Felt like somebody stepped over my grave. What does that even mean? It means my prophetic powers allowed me to see a glimpse of our horrible fate. ¡°Nah, it¡¯s probably the stalker behind us.¡± Calvin said, glancing over his shoulder, spotting the creature down the narrow tunnel. It was black on black, a looming, vaguely humanoid shadowy figure harder to see in the light than the dark. It¡¯s fine though, since it¡¯s not going to get any closer. It¡¯ll stay at that distance for hours. It¡¯s fine. Warning, assholes are closer than they appear. Oh, right. Calvin¡¯s heart stirring with a bit of anxiety. These were some of the monsters he¡¯d fallen victim to during shadowboxing. Somehow they convinced Calvin¡¯s mind that they were farther away than they actually were. He still remembered the first time he¡¯d died to one of these, listening to the breathing growing louder and louder, then Crunch! The taste of blood in his mouth. That had been informative. But it¡¯s fine. this time will be different. It¡¯ll stay back there. I should focus on finding the Unqua first. Warning, Assholes are closer than they appear! Oh, right. Elliot¡¯s my spotter. I needed a spotter for¡­something. Calvin glanced over his shoulder. It didn¡¯t look like it¡¯d gotten any closer, though, so it was probably fine. The Stalker had just got here. Calvin had time to get some help with it before it became a problem. Calvin returned his attention to the front, and his plan in general. If he could get Chimera, then he could transpose the magical effect generating organs between his summons to create some truly devastating admixtures. Just imagining a creature that could create the crystal armor of a Lattice at will, or shrink enemies by abusing the Unqua¡¯s ability, Distract them like a lure or make them complacent like a Stalker. And if he got Survival of the fittest to go with it, he could reslot the cream of the crop from each summon, making their powers even stronger, or altering those powers over time. That would be hard to deal with, Calvin thought, nodding to himself. Warning! ASSHOLES are closer than they appear! Calvin felt some breath on his ear. Ohshitfuck! Calvinian Summoning Heart of the Swarm Atom Ant 19/20 Bent remaining. Calvin burst into wasps shortly before something bisected the swarm, cleaving it into two separate masses of wasps. Why didn¡¯t you warn me!? Calvin thought as he spread out, searching for the creature. Oh good, it¡¯s backed off. Calvin thought, spotting the looming shadow in the distance. I can go on my way now that it knows it can¡¯t actually hurt me. I can ignore it. Elliot heaved a sigh. Warning, he said with more than a touch of sass. Assholes are closer than they appear. Calvin took stock of the situation. He was a bunch of wasps because something just tried to kill him. The stalker was over there, so ¨C I should just ignore it ¨C FUCK THAT SHIT! STING EVERYTHING! Calvin¡¯s swarm exploded all through the tunnel, settling on every solid surface with his wasp¡¯s vicious stingers, injecting even the stone with deadly venom. Stingers that were twenty times stronger than normal had a fair amount of penetrative power, after all. I¡¯d like to see the walls talk smack now. There was a guttural huffing behind and somewhat to the left of Calvin as the Stalker began running away. Too late you fool! Your skin will decorate the assassins of my empire! Calvin¡¯s wasps grasped onto anything that was moving, and the only thing that was moving was the Stalker. The swarm followed the wasps latched onto the creature, unable to target it directly, simply using the other wasp¡¯s pheromones as guidance, landing beside them and joining in on the sting-fest. The Stalker fell to its knees and collapsed, twitching. Calvin dismissed the spell and landed nest to the stalker, placing a hand on it. Huh, It kinda looks like a¡­mantis bigfoot, odd as that sounds. Consume. 18/20 Bent remaining. Calvin felt an instant of discomfort as the creature disappeared, a kind of swelling from inside, then the feeling vanished, and a prompt showed up. Entire creature eaten, would you like to assign it to a slot? Yes. Please choose a Skill slot to assign this creature to, or refuse to resume normal biological function. (Warning, three hundred pounds of flesh will cause lethal internal damage.) I Choose Calvinian Summoning, Calvin thought. 4 Calvinian Summoning slots remaining. Fever Wasp: Aggressive carnivorous flying insect with highly venomous sting. Fields industries Micro Construction Bot (Modified): one of the Tech-races formerly enslaved by humans, Knick-Knacks live underground. They are merchantile, peaceful masters of mining and metallurgy. Fuck¡¯en Stalker, Man. : An ambush predator from beyond the Siphon, the Fuck¡¯en Stalker, Man uses a combination of light-dependant invisibility along with minor illusions and a powerful aura of complacency to secure their prey. Has an animal cunning for hunting. -Named by the first human to survive an encounter with one, one Loren Hussar. I think the System messed up the name, a little. Eh. Thanks for the assist. No prob. I like living as much as you do. One down, one to go. What? I still gotta tear one of these guys apart and see what I can get out of them. Could you imagine if I made some kind of complacency gas? I just Consumed this one so I¡¯ve gotta hunt another one. Please, please just hunt the Unqua as a swarm of wasps. It¡¯s SO MUCH safer! No can do, Calvin thought, standing up again. They don¡¯t show themselves unless I¡¯m normal. Ugh, teenagers. Y¡¯all think you¡¯re invincible. I¡¯m not interested in leaving behind spell components when we leave. Elliot grunted. I suppose. Just keep in mind you usually die to the second Stalker after you kill one. Maybe, but I got a secret weapon. Calvinian Summoning. Atom Ant 17/20 Bent Remaining. The Stalker appeared in front of Calvin, emerging from the green smoke in front of him. Calvin, that might not be a good- The Stalker disappeared, but it continued radiating anger and hunger through the connection. In the distance, a stalker appeared at the end of the tunnel. Oh, cool, we got another one already! You know what? This is fine. Calvin got the impression of someone crossing their arms and leaning back in their seat. What¡¯s fine? Calvin got an instant surge of violent urges through the connection between him and the Stalker. Alright, he¡¯s going after the other one already. we¡¯re gonna get this done quick. Calvin also felt the violent urge through his skin as something looked at him with intent to harm. It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s probably the other-Oshitfuck! Calvin slammed his will through the connection, and the Stalker¡¯s long cutting talon stopped just over Calvin¡¯s shoulder, twitching in place as the huge beast growled menacingly. ¡­What did we learn? That complacency Aura is scary effective. Does it scrub my wariness of itself after the fact? It¡¯d have to, I suppose, or else you would¡¯ve learned your lesson after the first couple times. ...I want it even more. Elliot sighed as Calvin forced his will through the Stalker, overwhelming it¡¯s animalistic will with his own. Why is this so much harder? Calvin thought as he brought the creature to heel, fighting the urge to leave well enough alone. Did you consider that the fever wasp has the intellect of a wasp, and the Knick knacks were literally built to be slaves? Of course this will be the toughest Will you¡¯ve wrestled into submission. Barring Nadia. She¡¯s a special case. A nut case, you might say. The creature¡¯s mind struggled, slippery and flopping around violently. It felt a bit like wrestling a baby Norlock onto dry land. All squirmy and trying to squirt out of his fingers. Calvin gripped harder, and mentally socked the thing between the eyes a couple times to get it¡¯s attention. The hulking, furry abomination shuddered in place, claw twitching. Do not. Hunt. ME. You know, now that I think about it, these guys would make excellent bodyguards, compared to the wasps. Well, it would be faster to convert them into bodyguards via Survival of the fittest, anyway. They¡¯ve got higher intelligence and a stealth based skill-set. Concentrating. Calvin thought, ignoring Elliot¡¯s jabbering as he locked eyes with the creature, mentally fixing himself as The Boss. Inviolable. Finally the creature¡¯s mind went still under his own, relinquishing it¡¯s struggle. Calvin tentatively let it go, and the Stalker took three steps back and crouched low in submission. The strength in Calvin¡¯s legs fled, nearly causing him to collapse. Sweet Elani I¡¯m still alive. That thing was twenty times stronger than a normal Stalker! It would have cut me in half easier than an old man passes gas! Calvin let out a breath. He wasn¡¯t done yet. There was a lot more out there to hunt. Let¡¯s take this to the next level. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the Swarm. 16/20 Bent remaining Calvin suddenly filled the tunnels with Stalkers, twenty-five of the large creatures, and he could see through the eyes of each and every one of them. He selected a single one and focused his attention on it, testing the unfamiliar body out. The first thing he noticed: they couldn¡¯t see color. Instead they had a strange black and white vision that was starkly contrasted between light and dark, showing them exactly where they would fade from sight and where they wouldn¡¯t. The next thing Calvin felt was the inflexible face. That¡¯s fine, I¡¯ve had mandibles before. After that, he tested the scythelike protrusion on his underarm, feeling the oversized muscle that pulled it in with a snip. Probably to hold prey still. Balance is decent, Calvin thought, lifting himself up and down on the animalistic legs. He wasn¡¯t standing quite as straight as he was used to as a human, but it wasn¡¯t bad. As long as he took a back seat and let the Stalkers drive themselves, it was quite smooth. Alright, lets go hunt some Unqua.. You know what? Let¡¯s hunt everything! The assembled Stalkers got on board with that fast, spreading Calvin¡¯s awareness through the tunnels as they loped silently through the pitch black darkness, looking for things to kill. Now if only we could do something about their mouthbreathing, Calvin thought to himself, forced to listen to it. In a matter of hours, Calvin hunted down another stalker, refraction spinner, Crystal lattice, finally got an Unqua, and even a lure. They were a lot easier to track down when they weren¡¯t totally aware of his location at all times. The lures were the hardest to pin down. They looked like exactly what you wanted to find, which would cause you to blunder into them and get tugged into the Warp. When he was looking for Unqua, he¡¯d find Unqua, then the stalker would be pulled into the Warp and eaten. When he came back with another Stalker, looking for the Lure, of course he didn¡¯t find it, because that¡¯s what he was looking for. Tricky bastards. He finally managed to get one when a Lure went after the only solo monster he had: The one who¡¯d tried to kill him. In the space of a breath, the unreasonably strong Stalker had dug it¡¯s talons into the stone beneath it and tugged the Lure out of the warp. A lure looked something like an upside down piece of seaweed, with a massive bulb at the top, a long, slimy neck that went down into the Warp, and below that, an incredibly long, narrow, wavy body with dozens of mouths it most likely surrounded its prey and ate it while crushing it at the same time. Gross. Calvin thought as the Stalker put its claw through the creature¡¯s neck, causing it¡¯s goop to spill out. There was a Crunch, and the lure went still. Now we have to decide which creature we want to have as summons, Calvin thought to himself, musing. After the stalker, there were only four blank spaces, so each choice to fill a space should be carefully considered ¨C No! Put that down! Calvin ordered across the bridge as the stalker lifted the limp Lure towards its mandibles, angling to take a bite. Bad stalker! Bad! Calvin gave the only uncontrolled stalker a mental noogie, making it flinch away from the Lure. ¨C Carefully considered based on the creatures abilities. The stalker growled at the unseeable force behind its eyes, and Calvin mentally smacked it in the back of the head. We also have to consider their temperament. Let¡¯s see¡­refraction spinner is in. it¡¯s unique ability to damage things previously undamageable is useful. Lures¡­maybe. I only have one sample though, and I¡¯d like to dissect it for Components before I commit to consuming one. Stalkers are already taken care of. Huskers are out. The ability to make animated skin is¡­meh. I can always just make more summons. Definitely want the crystal-making ability. Lattices are in. Unqua¡­ Calvin was much more interested in replicating and harnessing it¡¯s ability to shrink via Abyssal alchemy rather than use them as temporary storage. Even with Chimera, giving his summons the ability to shrink was extraneous. Calvin could always summon creatures the size he needed them. The other point toward consuming the Unqua was that one day, he could possibly summon the creature permanently and use it like a storage pocket. Emphasis on one day. If I need it, I¡¯ll take one from the village. For now lets cut it down into components. Mind made up, Calvin¡¯s Stalkers threw their haul over their shoulders and headed back to the village. Rufe was on watch outside the crack tonight, and his eyes widened when he saw nearly thirty Stalkers appear at the edge of the village, his hand going down to his sling. A moment later, the hunter shrugged and relaxed, going back to carving a bit of scrimshaw. That complacency aura is nice. Right, except for how scary it is. Except for that. Calvin had his creatures deposit the haul in front of Rufe, then he dismissed them, appearing in a puff of green smoke. ¡°Agh, what the!?¡± Rufe whipped out his sword faster than Calvin could quite make out, holding it between them like a protective medallion. He saw the man¡¯s pulse race as he breathed in and out with harsh huffs. ¡°fucking stalkers, man...¡± Rufe said, running his callused fingers through his hair. Rufe held his fingers up. ¡°You were this close. I almost split you in two. You see one of those things and you realize you¡¯re gonna die, but it¡¯s just like, an afterthought, you know?¡± He took a deep breath and huffed it all out at once, his eyes wide. ¡°Goddamnit, now I¡¯ve got the heeby-jeebies.¡± ¡°Hi Rufe.¡± ¡°Ooh, a lure. We can make some more wine.¡± The scraggly hunter perked up at the idea of more booze. ¡°I¡¯m keeping it for spell components, sorry,¡± Calvin said, kneeling and using Consume on the spinner and the lattice. Consume. 16/20 Bent remaining Consume 15/20 Bent remaining. Calvin missed what Rufe said while he was assigning the summons to their slots. ¡°What?¡± he asked, glancing up. ¡°I said that¡¯s too bad, we got some new recruits who could use a welcome brew. Well, we still got some left over from last time.¡± New people? Calvin thought, perking up. It¡¯s a lucky time to get thrown in an interdimensional hole, I suppose. The New Years party was only five days away, and Calvin planning on taking everyone out with him before then. ¡°What are they like?¡± ¡°Come see for yourself.¡± Rufe said, beckoning him to follow. Calvin used Harvester on the rest of the corpses and loaded up Rufe¡¯s Unqua before they headed back to the village. Macronomicon Chapter 117: Conflict Resolution Shadowboxing repair 21% complete. Calvin formed the spinner hand into an almost paddle shape, tucking the thumb in and giving a gradual curve to the fingers. Once he had the fingers exactly where he wanted them, he started wiring them into shape with some soft iron wire extruded from the newcomer¡¯s chains. Speaking of the newcomers¡­ Calvin glanced up at Ryan walked up to him, swaggering with one hand in his pocket, the other thrown possessively over the shoulder of the slender woman standing beside him. She had a scar around her throat, and she followed beside him, flinching every now and then whenever someone moved too suddenly. His gaze radiated greed and hunger, along with the desire to take advantage of Calvin to advance his own comfort and security. Something tells me I should hate this guy right off the bat. ¡°So,¡± Ryan said without preamble. ¡°Folks tell me you¡¯re in charge around here, kid.¡± He raised his chin in what was obviously some kind of power move. Thank you, Intuition. ¡°Untrue,¡± Calvin said, checking that all five fingers were exactly where he wanted them and weren¡¯t going to shift. ¡°Loren runs the place. I¡¯m just in charge of the escape attempt.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s all that anyone really cares about, isn¡¯t it? Getting out of here.¡± ¡°It¡¯s pretty high on the priority list,¡± Calvin said, setting aside the disembodied hand to pay full attention to the annoying distraction. ¡°What about it?¡± ¡°I wanna help you, Calvin, but I can¡¯t exactly help if I don¡¯t know what the plan is, can I?¡± Calvin raised a brow. ¡°Not entirely true either. A fletcher doesn¡¯t need to know who or what his arrows are killing. You can help by helping.¡± Dara looked like she wanted to say something, before she frowned, her hand travelling reflexively back to her scarred throat. Ryan took his arm off of her shoulder and scratched his head, Dara shying away from him. ¡°Look, Calvin, I just don¡¯t want to get left behind. I got kids up there. They need their dad, Calvin. ¡°You don¡¯t look like you¡¯ve got kids.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Well I do.¡± He stared at Calvin, his gaze cold and calculating even as he had a concerned look on his face. Faced with Calvin¡¯s placid stare, he decided to change tactics. The amiability fled from his face in a fraction of a second, turned cold in a fraction of a second. ¡°Look, Calvin. The rest of these schmucks were tossed down here before you did a number on Uleis, but I recognize your name. I recognize your face. And if I tell them who you are, what do you think will happen. You need to understand that I have leverage, and if you want to keep breathing, you better play along.¡± This, my young pupil is what¡¯s commonly referred to as a sociopath. They tend to think of behaviors as keys to get what they want. They¡¯ll go through different behaviors like a man fumbling through a keyring, trying to find the one that matches until you give them what they want. Very animalistic. I can see the difference. Calvin would have lead with the blackmail. ¡°What would happen if you told everyone?¡± Calvin said, tapping his chin thoughtfully. ¡°Best case scenario for you, they¡¯d gang up and try to kill me and I¡¯d be forced to exterminate everyone except for you. Then I¡¯d leave you to die down here. Because like it or not, you don¡¯t have the keys to leave. I do.¡± Ryan leaned forward, his thin face distorted with a snarl. ¡°You think you can do that, you little puke? I¡¯m a seventh Break Legend. I could snap you in half.¡± The mute woman cringed, shuffling away from the two of them. Now it¡¯s threats of physical harm. Next thing you know he¡¯s going to pretend to fall in love with you. Calvin broke into a laugh. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Ryan asked, picking Calvin up by the collar. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s just that you¡¯re so stupid!¡± Calvin motioned to the rest of the village, who had begun to gather around the confrontation. ¡°Everyone here is a seventh break Legend. Fucking everybody. This shit isn¡¯t gonna slide.¡± Calvin¡¯s vision exploded with white as Ryan slapped him faster than he could see, snapping his head to the side so violently he thought it might have caused permanent damage. Okay, I¡¯m gonna kill him. Come on, kid, dust off those conflict resolution skills. Killing people is a way to resolve conflicts. Yeah, and that¡¯s exactly what Nadia wants¡­Don¡¯t tell her I told you that. Ew.. The idea of being the ideal man for Nadia was...somewhat repugnant. ¡°Now listen here, scrub. I heard you¡¯ve got eight Body, and Where I¡¯m from, dumbasses who can¡¯t see the way things work get pummeled.¡± Calvin blinked the stars out of his eyes, tasted blood between his teeth. He gave Ryan a wide grin. ¡°Gods, you¡¯re so right.¡± Shifting. 15/20 Bent remaining. Calvin selected four spots around the cave and Ryan¡¯s forehead. The front of the thug¡¯s skull suddenly weighed several tons. Ryan¡¯s eyes bulged as his head tilted forward. ¡°What did you-¡° His fingers were yanked away from Calvin¡¯s collar as he tried to support his own skull. Calvin eased up on the weight just before it hit the ground so as not to kill the man, then he eased it back up, until the expression on Ryan¡¯s face could be best described as ¡®anguish¡¯. ¡°Listen up, Ryan. I¡¯m practicing my conflict resolution skills right now, so I¡¯m going to need you to rate my performance after this is over. Do you think you can do that?¡± Ryan gave a half-choked sob and said something disparaging about Calvin¡¯s physical prowess. Again. ¡°Now, Ryan,¡± Calvin said with his most patient tone of voice, ignoring the man¡¯s squealing. ¡°Do you know what the pounds per square inch that it takes to sink through solid stone?¡± ¡°W-What?¡± the man asked, half sobbing. ¡°The front of your skull,¡± Calvin tapped on his head. ¡°The thing that prevents your brain from getting squished. The front nine square inches are heavier now, as you might have noticed.¡± Calvin crossed his lags and sat next to the bastard. ¡°So the question is, how many pounds per square inch before you start sinking into the stone itself?¡± ¡°Or maybe,¡± Calvin said thoughtfully, glancing up at the ceiling. ¡°¡­Yeah, your forehead will probably just tear off. How many pounds before your forehead tears off?¡± Calvin started slowly dialing up the weight. ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡± Ryan blubbered. ¡°I won¡¯t do it again! I was wrong!¡± the surrounding villagers started laughing. ¡°These are all things that I know, Ryan. Can I call you Ryan? Anyway, Ryan, what I asked you, Ryan, was how heavy do you think your skull has to be before it tears itself off?¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t.¡± Ryan said quietly. ¡°Ryan. You¡¯re not answering me, Ryan. You¡¯re not engaging, Ryan. How much do you think it¡¯ll take, Ryan?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± The thug screamed into the ground. ¡°just a guess, that¡¯s all I¡¯m asking, Ryan. Then we can be friends, Ryan. You¡¯d like that, Ryan, wouldn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Two hundred pounds!¡± ¡°To go through stone?¡± Calvin asked with a slowly spreading smile. ¡°That¡¯s kind of a lowball, Ryan. Your head is already supporting more than that, so it¡¯s gotta be a lot higher. I¡¯m thinking somewhere in the thousands. Calvin dialed it a bit higher, and heard a soft crack, as the man¡¯s skull began to separate, followed by an anguished yelp. Ah, stress relief. He was actually starting to enjoy Ryan¡¯s company. Calvin glanced up and spotted Nadia watching with sick fascination while Kala watched with her arms crossed. She shook her head, slowly, from side to side. Oh, shit, I¡¯m torturing someone, aren¡¯t I? Only a little. Calvin dialed it back down to where the thug couldn¡¯t move, but it wasn¡¯t causing horrible pain. ¡°You¡¯ve earned yourself a time out mister. I¡¯ll let you think on your misbehavior until the spell runs out.¡± Calvin said for Kala¡¯s benefit. Calvin knelt beside the man¡¯s ear and whispered. ¡°And if you whisper a word to anyone about me, I¡¯ll kill you in a way so graphically awful that they¡¯re gonna tell stories about it for thousands of gods-damned years. Do you understand me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Ryan whimpered. ¡°Cool.¡± Calvin stood back up, spat the blood out of his mouth and smiled sheepishly at the princesses. Dara was nowhere to be seen. ¡°Hi Kala, this guy was giving me trouble and¡­¡± Kala raised her eyebrows. ¡°¡­Sorry?¡± Kala wordlessly turned and left. Damn. Calvin thought as a sliver of worry drove itself through his stomach. He didn¡¯t like pissing off Kala. It usually meant he was on the wrong track. Nadia¡¯s gaze brimming with lust was a similar warning indicator. Calvin knelt down beside Ryan¡¯s head again. ¡°Scale of one to ten,¡± Calvin whispered into the man¡¯s ear. ¡°How would you rate my conflict resolution skills today?¡± ¡°Two.¡± Ryan groaned, blood oozing out from under his forehead. ¡°Yeah,¡± Calvin said, glancing back up. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought, too. Damn.¡± *** Gradual Split 14/20 Bent remaining. Calvin began pumping duplicated refractor goo through the creature¡¯s wired together palm. Damnation. What could I have done better there? The bastard wasn¡¯t listening to words. If I had to guess, it wasn¡¯t what you did so much as how you did it. The thing that got under Kala¡¯s skin was that you were enjoying yourself. A small triangle of warped space emerged from the creature¡¯s palm. Hmmm. I guess I can see that being a problem. Calvin ramped up the rate at which he was putting goop through the creature¡¯s veins. The triangle grew bigger, a squat blade, almost as wide as it was long. Calvin adjusted the mix, paying close attention to the blade, which slowly warped and shifted as he modified the mixture. The blade slowly grew longer and thinner until Calvin was holding what was essentially a short-sword. Excellent. Once Calvin was absolutely sure he couldn¡¯t make the blade any longer, he wrote the mixture ratios down. Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 5! 25% Correction. +1 Intuition! Please Choose an Ability or Mutation. Abilities: Blue Magic: Being effected by a Warped creature¡¯s ability provides insight into the user¡¯s understanding of how said ability works. Chemistry: Abyssal Alchemy''s Correction applies to non-Warped (I.E. nonmagical) chemistry as well. Refining: 1 Bent to Convert any warped substance into a concentrated powder. Stores indefinitely and reconstitutes with water. Abyssal Craft: Abyssal Alchemy¡¯s Correction applies to objects primarily created with Warped creature parts. Mutations: Storage: Store 1 Warped organ in user¡¯s Body for later use, +1 Per 5 levels of Endurance. Organs refill as normal while stored, but cannot be used. ^The beginning of a mutation tree You¡¯re Warped, Too: User¡¯s Mutations may be (correction) more easily be distilled from the User¡¯s own flesh and blood. Performance enhancing drugs: Consume warped creature parts to temporarily augment your performance. Effect varies. Eyes of the Abyss: Abyssal Alchemy Correction applies to identifying the alchemical uses of Warped creature¡¯s organs. Living or dead. A lot of mutations¡­ Calvin thought, eyeing the different effects. Speaking of mutations¡­ ¡°I could have used Mesmerizing Eye to get out of that without pissing off Kala!¡± Calvin said, slapping his forehead. It¡¯s understandable you¡¯d forget about them after you get so many abilities, but I don¡¯t think mind control is going to improve your conflict resolution skills. Bah, what do you know? You¡¯re dead because you pissed everyone off. You don¡¯t know that¡­For sure. Alright, eyes of the abyss are nice but I don¡¯t want to stack eye mutations again. Storage is too low level to be very helpful. You¡¯re Warped, too¡­ What are my Mutations? Third eye, feel Intent, 6th,7th,8th sense. One of the guys, Lady Killer, Blade body, consume, heart of the swarm, The Bowser, And maybe a couple others. That¡¯s more than I thought. They add up. I¡¯ll put that one on the list, take it later when the correction is more powerful. I don¡¯t want to drain myself dry to infuse a piece of armor with Blade body. Okay. Calvin rapped his fingers on his knee. Nothing really stood out as exceptionally powerful on its own. Well, I didn¡¯t really expect much from fifth level Abilities. I choose refining. At least this way he could store his components indefinitely, even after Harvester expired. Calvin¡¯s mind drifted back to the Kala problem. Obviously, not talking to her ever again would be a problem, and apologizing right away is problematic too. Just ask what I did wrong? Might work. There was a flutter of movement off to the side that caught Calvin¡¯s eye. Dara was standing there, the underfed mute shifting nervously from foot to foot, watching him curiously. Her gaze mostly carried fear, hesitance, and a thin core of determination. ¡°Can I help you?¡± She shifted from foot to foot for a moment before handing him a note. ¡®can you teach me something?¡¯ Calvin frowned, reading the paper. ¡°What? Why?¡± She frowned and took the note away from him and wrote on the back. ¡®To defend myself.¡¯ ¡°Is it your Forming day?¡± Calvin asked. It was the day after the newcomers had arrived, after all. She nodded. Of all the things Calvin knew, most of them were useless or sworn to secrecy. I guess dupdomancy isn¡¯t off limits, but¡­ There was something off in her gaze. Calvin couldn¡¯t quite decipher it, but it gave him a bad feeling about the girl¡¯s intentions. ¡°Go talk to Kala, the Gadveran girl about my age. She knows how to fight.¡± Calvin pointed across the village. She frowned, but did what Calvin said. Why¡¯d you turn her away? I think she was either working for Ryan to get a Skill out of me, or planning to harm him. I didn¡¯t want any part in either of those things. Wow, you¡¯ve come a long way. Enough of that, Calvin thought, securing the disembodied hand on his belt. Let¡¯s focus on grinding out that last Skill. Calvin mentally uncapped the Warp Tank and began casting Sense grafting in a manner as complex as he could manage, stretching his range and targeting people with high Stability to present a challenge. It didn¡¯t take more than a couple castings before his skill began to tick up, aided by the raw Warp. Sense-Grafting has reached level 16! 7/8 Warp Remaining. Sense-Grafting has reached level 17! 6/8 Warp Remaining. Sense-Grafting has reached level 18! 5/8 Warp Remaining. Sense-Grafting has reached level 19! 4/8 Warp Remaining. Sense-Grafting has reached level 20! Sense Grafting Level 20: Sight, hearing, touch, pain, smell, Taste, Balance, Identity. On target, 400ft range, 100 minutes. +1 Intuition 3/8 Warp Remaining. Please choose an Ability or mutation. Please choose an ability or Mutation. Omniscient Grafting: The User can now graft senses without losing their own, as well as create and process multiple inputs simultaneously. Synesthesia: Bundle two or more senses together. Taste colors, see smells, etc. Extremely debilitating condition, but allows the user to process a particular input using more areas of the brain, allowing a more comprehensive understanding of the medium. ^For example, seeing and hearing music, allowing you to make music that looks and sounds good, with a depth that normal people will be amazed by. A mile in their shoes: User copies any number of senses from a target onto themselves, allowing them to experience what the target is experiencing. ^Really, really good for sex, kid. I highly recommend. Desensitize: reduce chosen sense from mild weakening to complete deprivation. ^Also good for sex, if you know how to use it, amiright? Mutations: Gaze into the Abyss: See from the perspective of any creature observing the User. May cause headaches without Omniscient Grafting ^unlocked by Third Eye and Feel Intent Compensation: Sacrifice a sense at will to boost another drastically. Reversable. Calvin studied the list for a moment. I choose synesthesia. Calvin¡¯s brain tingled as the technique established itself. Calvin opened up the warp tank, and picked up a rock. So what are you planning on ¨C Viscosity shift Strength shit Sense grafting. 5/20 Bent remaining. Calvin matched the rock¡¯s physical traits to his own, while simultaneously pouring every sense he could into the rock, including the new Identity sense that had unlocked at level 20. Calvin became a rock. Combining the unique effects of Shifting and Sense Grafting, you have created a Hybrid Skill, Trait Doctoring! Congratulations! Reallocating Strength and Viscosity Shifting to Trait Doctoring¡­ Trait Doctoring: A Forbidden Skill created by The King in Exile shortly before his death at the hands of Pasha The Watchman, Trait doctoring allows increasingly complex physical and non-physical characteristics to be transferred between objects. Trait doctoring level 1: Strength, Viscosity, Sense of Self, 1 pound, 1 minute. This guy again. Who the fuck is this guy? Calvin? Caaalvin? Oops. Well, he¡¯ll be fine in an hour and a half. Calvin The Rock didn¡¯t have much to say on the subject. ***Ryan*** Gods, This disgusting meat is doing a number on my stomach, Ryan thought as his stomach cramped again. When he saw Dara coming, he straightened, taking his hand off his gut. Couldn¡¯t let her think he was weak. ¡°What did you get?¡± He asked, aching for a chance to use one of the bastard¡¯s Skills against him. The muted whore shook her head and made the sign for ¡®nothing¡¯. Her eyes widened as he began wrapping his fist with cloth, but wisely chose not to try to run. He¡¯d hurt her worse if she ran. ¡°You¡¯re.¡± He punctuated his words with a punch rendered silent by the cloth on his knuckles. ¡°Lying!¡± Suddenly there was a crushing pressure on his balls, and Ryan just barely managed to suppress a wail of pain as he doubled over. ¡°Here I thought Calvin was overreacting,¡± A woman whispered in his ear with a Gadveran accent. Out of the corner of his eye, Ryan spotted the slender girl he¡¯d marked earlier as a juicy conquest, along with the exotic Ilethan wench, who watched with a smirk. ¡°Told you. I know his type.¡± The Ilethan bitch said. ¡°Looks like I owe Calvin an apology, because I¡¯m going to enjoy this.¡± The Gadveran bitch said. Ryan flailed outward with his elbow, which was caught in the girl¡¯s palm before a vicious strike went for his stomach. Slow and weak, Ryan thought with a smirk as he blocked it. Then the girl¡¯s fists blurred and somehow went past his guard, slamming into his stomach. Still weak. Ryan¡¯s strength and endurance was in the mid thirties, now. He was a Legend, and a little girl wasn¡¯t going to be able to- The other bitch stepped to his side and punched him in the side of the head. He swung wildly at her, but the first one punched him on the other side of his head, disorienting him. This might not go well for me. ¡°I understand,¡± He said, holding his hands up. ¡°I¡¯m sorr-¡° they didn¡¯t stop to listen to his words. They kept punching and kicking him until he was a bleeding mess on the floor. The pale bitch kept kicking him in the stomach and balls even after he went down. Gods, it feels like they knocked something loose in there. Macronomicon Chapter 118: Grinding ***Learner*** Day 1 among the four limbed prey: Deciphering their hoots has taken priority over all other endeavors, as understanding this strange communication will lead to rapid advances in understanding. Thankfully my disguise has allowed me to listen to a wide range of hoots from multiple four-limbed prey while also studying their behavior. The smaller ones with lumps are weaker and smaller on average than the others, and yet, somehow more valuable, sought as a resource of some kind by the larger, flatter ones. Perhaps they are a caste of decision makers for the larger ones? An inherent higher value reinforces my choice of form, and perhaps explains why the manifold predator was protective of it. Side note: Some meaning seems to be conveyed beyond simply the hoots they make, including simple motions and stances. I am proud to say I have already grasped the ¡®come here¡¯ gesture. The primary subject of study, the Manifold Predator is seldom seen, which is fine for now, as I have not yet mastered the strange hoots to communicate with it. Although my guts feel a little¡­not good at the prospect of not seeing it. Post script: Many other four limbed prey are using the hoot ¡°asshole¡± to describe the one previously hooted at as ¡®Ryan¡¯. Can names among these four limbed prey shift over time, or am I missing something entirely? Requires more study. On further inspection, Internal organs seem to be fairly universal between flat Hooters and lumpy Hooters, with a few exceptions. They are most likely recently divergent species. ¡­I just gave something a nickname. I¡¯ve never done that before. Requires more study. ***Calvin*** When Calvin¡¯s sense of self came back, he thanked the gods that breathing was an autonomous part of his body, cleaned up the mess and got back to work, turning in early after a full day of hunting and experimenting. The next day, he got right to work. Okay. The new years festival is in four days. Including today. I want a day to prep, a day to escape, and a day of leeway. So all the time I have to practice is¡­today. Hmm¡­ Calvin was deep in thought as he flicked the tip of a knife out of his finger and extended the cutting edge just under an inch with Bent. He was currently dissecting the Lure, carefully removing the top of the creature¡¯s bulb-like head. He could have taken it apart with Harvester, and he still intended to do that to salvage any mistakes he made, but sometimes it was far easier to figure out how something worked when it was still together rather than a pile of pieces. There was no bone in the bulb, per se, just a sort of cartilage that parted in front of the knife quite easily. Beneath the tan flesh was something he wasn¡¯t expecting: Empty space. In the center of the bulb there was a pinkish looking orb, see through, and distorting the light that went through it. Surrounding it was nothing but air until it struck the edge of the bulb, where there was a film that shimmered like cut meat. The film was pearlescent, pale, and incredibly delicate. it fell to pieces at the slightest touch from Calvin¡¯s fingers or knife. Deciding to leave it alone, Calvin glanced down at the pink orb. At the base of the orb was meat, and¡­spinal column. Neat. Calvin thought as he reached in with a finger, produced a tiny blade and separated the orb from the pine with a soft pop of separating squishy bits. Old Salt has reached level 12! 60% Correction Oh, that¡¯s what this reminds me of. What¡¯s that? Calvin thought. This looks something like an eye. Elliot said. How¡¯s that? That pink orb? Lens. The pearlescent film? That¡¯s the sensitive bits that process info. Or reflect it. I don¡¯t know. Usually the lens is on the outside and the film is on the inside. This is all backwards. It couldn¡¯t have been using light to see, as the creature¡¯s bulb was opaque. I¡¯ll bet this is the sensory organ that lets it tell what people were looking for. Calvin thought, inspecting the orb before setting aside and digging deeper into the creature¡¯s spinal column. The spine seemed to be threaded with brain-like organs blooming off the sides, connected by thick strands of nerves. Somewhat similar in design to the fire worms, really. He¡¯d gotten up to his elbows in guts before he stopped and used Harvester. 19/20 Bent Remaining. The remains of the Lure were sorted out into neat packages, including a perfect peel of the sensitive film on the inside of the bulb. Are you thinking what I¡¯m thinking? Elliot asked as Calvin eyed the rapidly drying film. If you¡¯re thinking reinforcing it then seeing if I can use it as a thought-sensitive component in the future, then yes. Or perhaps grind it down, use Refine and create a coating. That sounds more practical. We¡¯d have to verify that the lining actually does what we think, though. Ah science and dissecting the kill. Youth really takes me back. As fun as that was, Calvin thought, heading for his cleaning dish, I¡¯ve got to practice some Skills before we leave this Warp-rich atmosphere. Calvin had his Knick-Knacks bag up the monster parts and start the process of labelling them and saving them for later, while he cleaned the goop off his arms. Which Skills did you have in mind? With the concentration of Warp, he had points coming in every hour or so. It would probably be faster, but Elliot told him that was as quick as his body could ¡®naturalize¡¯ the Warp. He had enough points to catapult a single skill to the top, or even out his oddly stilted mental Attributes, or, if he was feeling particularly dumb, spread them around evenly. I¡¯m thinking Beli Ma. It was the only defensive skill he had, and Calvin wanted to get it to a level that it could be relied on more heavily. For that¡­he needed to talk to Kala. Calvin stared at the bowl of soapy water for a moment, took a deep breath and set his shit aside. Better talk now than later. Calvin forced himself to march over to Kala¡¯s Unqua. If I slow down or stop, I¡¯m not going to be able to do it. Then her feelings will fester and she¡¯ll hate me forever. Calvin had a bit of the rush and sudden lack of control a person might experience going off a waterfall as he stepped up to her tent. The Unqua grew huge in front of him, but he knew he was actually the one shrinking, as evidenced by the receding cavern ceiling. Calvin felt like he was slipping back out of his own mind again, watching his body lift the flap, duck and stride into the yurt. ¡°¡¯scuse me.¡± ¡°Can I help you?¡± Kala said, scowling at him, her front covered by her yellow dress, crumpled against her chest. Whatever Calvin had been planning on saying was shoved aside when he saw the curve of her legs, sloping up toward her waist, soft dark skin barely covered by the ragged dress she held in front of her. ¡°Oh. Um. I¡¯m S-¡° ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Kala said. Calvin blinked. ¡°For being naked when I came in?¡± ¡°No, you doof. For making you worried. Watching you do that to Ryan got under my skin. Until I found out how much of an asshole he really was.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Well, this is going easier than I thought. ¡°I still didn¡¯t like the way you did it though.¡± She said, her shoulders relaxing as she let the dress down, baring her lovely mounds as she picked up the needle and got back to fixing her dress.¡± ¡°Uuuh,¡± Calvin said, staring. ¡°Those are really distracting.¡± ¡°Tough,¡± she said with a scowl. She was still a bit mad at him, but he could tell from her gaze that she also very much enjoyed the impact she had on him. Calvin never could quite grasp how someone could feel multiple ways at once, but girls did it more than others. Calvin shook off the distraction. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was enjoying hurting Ryan. And I shouldn¡¯t have been.¡± ¡°No, probably not.¡± Kala said, glancing up at him. ¡°Have you ever seen my dad torture people out in the middle of the palace?¡± ¡°Well, no, but I haven¡¯t really spent that much time in court. I¡¯ll have to take your word for it.¡± ¡°How about your village elder, then?¡± ¡°Well, he spanked a kid who threw eggs at his house, once.¡± Kala sighed and tested the rip in her dress before standing, pulling it over her head and sliding the silk dress back down over her lithe body, turning as she did, affording him an excellent view of her rounded backside. ¡°What I¡¯m trying to get at is when you become a Wizard King, you need to let other people punish people for you. Your violence needs to be impersonal, and calculated. At least in public.¡± ¡°So what you¡¯re saying is¡­I need people to get angry for me?¡± Kala shook her head and chuckled. ¡°Not exactly, but¡­close enough. Nadia and I set Ryan straight for you. He won¡¯t be bothering anyone again¡± She tested the sewing job again then glanced over at him. ¡°Was there something else?¡± The knot in Calvin¡¯s stomach eased. That was so much easier than I thought it would be. Thank the gods Ryan deserved it. Calvin refocused on the task at hand. ¡°I¡¯d like to get more practice with Beli Ma before we go topside again.¡± Calvin said. ¡°If you could help me with that, I¡¯d appreciate it.¡± Kala broke into a smile. ¡°Might make me feel better.¡± *** Beli Ma has reached level 11! 55% Correction. Beli Ma has reached level 12! 60% Correction. Beli Ma has reached level 13! 65% Correction. Beli Ma has reached level 14! 70% Correction. 4/8 Warp Remaining. Calvin held his hand up and tried to do the technique Kala had described to him, spinning two whorls of bent against each other. It was far more advanced than simply dragging a strand of Bent behind his palm and allowing it to tug the attack aside. If successful it should be able to catch a strike in midair between the two whorls, and it was the next step toward having Beli Ma become an aura. Bent manipulation has reached level 4! 20% correction! 3/8 Bent remaining. The two whorls in front of his palm became slightly smoother, but the momentary distraction proved to be too much, as the bone switch caught him in the palm before Kala whipped it back and caught him in the head. Calvin bit back a yelp and tumbled away, rubbing his head as the violent sting slowly dulled to an ache. The adrenaline from the pain slammed through Calvin¡¯s heart, making all his nerves tingle with unspent energy before they gradually faded away. A chuckle went through the crowd that had begun to gather, watching him practice the skill against Kala. There wasn¡¯t a lot of entertainment in the Abyss. At the moment boiled down to either watching Calvin get pounded or sex. Hahaha. Calvin smirked at the double entendre. ¡°Alright, again,¡± Calvin said, readying his hand and creating the two whorls of energy. ¡°Yeah, again!¡± Nadia called from her seat on some poor bastard¡¯s lap. ¡°Actually,¡± Kala said, wincing as she looked at Calvin¡¯s battered body. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m enjoying this as much as I thought I would.¡± ¡°No, this is working, I¡¯m almost level fifteen.¡± ¡°Ooh, ooh!¡± Nadia said, standing up and waving her hand excitedly. ¡°I¡¯ll do it!¡± Kala gave Calvin a glance, asking if that was okay. Calvin nodded, and Kala handed the switch to Nadia, who practically leapt over to them, jiggling with excitement. Without preamble, Nadia turned around and began beating Calvin with the switch. ¡°Die, you bastard!¡± she shouted, her grin white and feral as she brought the bone down on him. Calvin held the whorls in front of the attack, but Nadia was way too fast for his feeble Strength to keep up with, and she simply whipped the narrow bone around his defenses and caught him across the face. Calvin¡¯s vision exploded with white and he stumbled backward, guarding his face as at least six more strikes fell on his ribs, neck and legs. ¡°Nadia!¡± Kala shouted over the Ilethan¡¯s cackling. ¡°It¡¯s fine!¡± Calvin said, holding up his hand toward Kala. ¡°She¡¯s holding back.¡± The Ilethan princess could probably have removed his head from his shoulders at full strength, so she must be slowing the switch down a bit at the last moment. Still hurt like a bitch, though. Blood from Calvin¡¯s split eyebrow began dribbling into his left eye. Calvin wasn¡¯t faster, but he knew what he was doing. When the blood forced him to blink, he blindly waved his hand up, trailing Bent in a basic Beli Ma style. Nadia tried to hit him where he was blind, and the switch was caught, forcing Nadia¡¯s arm up with the switch. For a brief second the switch was caught in the flow of Bent, Calvin was able to narrow Nadia¡¯s options, stepping closer and forcing her onto her back foot. When the Bent let go of the switch it was up above Calvin¡¯s head, and there she was, on her back foot, arm raised in the air. She had two choices: Step back, or strike. It was fairly obvious which choice the hyper aggressive princess would make. Calvin leaned his head to the side and held up his palm, whorls running counter to each other. It was as if the switch was sucked into his palm, trapped in a tight area of circulating Bent and coming to a halt barely an inch away from his skin. Nadia tugged on it with a snarl, but all that happened was the bone switch snapping off in her hand. the rest of it stayed firmly secured in midair, floating in front of his palm. Beli Ma has reached level 15! 75% Correction. +1 Stability. 2/8 Warp remaining. Calvin reached out and flicked Nadia¡¯s nose to scattered applause. The Ilethan princess scowled, backing away from him. ¡°The princess isn¡¯t done yet. Somebody get her another switch.¡± One of the onlookers leapt to their feet to get another bone stick. Let¡¯s see the list while he¡¯s running¡­ Please choose an ability or mutation. Passive External Circulation: 1 Bent/5 levels of Beli Ma may be passively circulated outside the body. This Bent is disconnected from the User¡¯s internal storage, allowing a greater amount of Bent to be stored total, while also improving reaction time with Beli Ma. External Bent may be reabsorbed, but toxicity rates apply if it is above internal storage limits. Long Range: Beli Ma¡¯s range is increased by (Intuition)% Elliot¡¯s Invisible Hands: Use fine threads of Bent to manipulate objects within range of Beli Ma at will. Body Awareness: Beli Ma Correction applies to the entire body. Rooted Lotus Style: Double Beli Ma Correction by standing still. Mutations: Dragon clutches Pearl: Absorb (Correction*1) of a successfully deflected Ability''s Bent cost. limited to original Bent cost. Slippery When Wet: Able to excrete a slippery substance through your pores to make it more difficult for others to grapple or hold you. Can be directed with practice. I choose body awareness. Calvin thought as the man returned with another switch. Of the choices available, it seemed like the first step toward an aura type ability. What about the Passive Circulation? That seems aura-esque. What, did you think I was gonna stop at level 15? Calvin thought as he watched Nadia swish her new stick through the air. Calvin held his thumb to the cut in his brow until it stopped bleeding. ¡°Let¡¯s get back to work.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 119: Princess Meat Shields Day 2 among the four limbed prey: Disguise still holds. Even the Prey who Looks back seems to be unaware of my presence. Although I am not discounting the possibility that they are simply acting like they don¡¯t know about me. Until I can decipher more than ¡®here,¡¯ ¡®there,¡¯ ¡®him¡¯ and ¡®her¡¯, I can¡¯t be too cautious. And of course the unspoken language that they use to convey meaning as well. The interaction between the ¡®Asshole¡¯ Ryan and the pale, lumpier than average prey has proven to be most insightful in hooter behavior. As in, they both are generally view negatively for their behavior. The lumpy hooter seems to encourage it, while the asshole hooter seems to have quieted down after the blunt force trauma. Requires more study. ***Ryan*** ¡°What are you looking at?¡± Ryan demanded as the dumb whore stared at him while the pale whore fed him in an inhuman facsimile of kindness. He hadn¡¯t been able to move since the beating, and the pale bitch¡­ What was her name¡­.Nadia? More like stupid slut. I¡¯m gonna call her that in my head from now on. ¡°Now Ryan, is that any way to talk to the woman who watched over you all night?¡± Nadia ¨C stupid slut ¨C asked, raising a perfectly plucked brow. ¡°Sitting and watching, that¡¯s all she¡¯s good for.¡± Ryan said, glancing over at Dara. ¡°Dumb Bitch, get me some wine. Wine!¡± He grabbed a nearby bowl and threw it at her, sending the mute scurrying out of the yurt as it shattered behind her. Ryan groaned as he leaned back. His aching gut tweaked when he threw the bowl, and now it felt like it had shifted out of place again. Gonna have to lay low for a couple weeks. If I can tag along on the coattails of all the other escapees, I can just bail once we¡¯re topside. Quietly relocate, and nobody ever sees me again. Ryan was a Legend, but down here that meant next to nothing. Once he was topside, though, he became valuable. He¡¯d put some distance between himself and Uleis and the monster kid. Maybe Boles. Maybe Gadvera. He would fetch a high price in one of the Bolesian city states, and he could be captain of the guard in just a handful of years. Maybe I could even set my sights lower. Someone low enough to not have any real responsibilities, and a danger level laughably below my Break. Ryan could cruise through the next thirty years like that, no problem. Maybe I¡¯ll do the Dumb Bitch a favor and take her with me when Prissy Cunt and Stupid Slut get bored with her. ¡°Open.¡± Stupid Slut said, grabbing his jaw and wrenching it open before shoving a spoonful of the disgusting meat into his mouth. ¡°Agh!¡± Ryan tried to spit it out, but she held a hand over his mouth until he swallowed. Ryan was nominally stronger than her, but that didn¡¯t mean much, as his body was a solid lump of bruises. ¡°Now, Ryan, it just looked like you were planning something stupid.¡± The stupid slut said. ¡°Well, that ends here. From now on, you¡¯re my bitch, and your plan is my plan.¡± She leaned forward and tousled his hair playfully. ¡°Doesn¡¯t that sound nice?¡± she said, hugging him to her bosom, big white globes deforming around his face. ¡°Fuck you, and your tits are cold, you witch.¡± Her fingers in Ryan¡¯s hair tightened and drew his neck back painfully, whispering in his ear. ¡°Calvin might have creativity, but I¡¯ve got practice.¡± She said, so quietly he might have imagined it. ¡°If you try to play the tough guy, trust me when I say I can hurt you just so¡­ make you moan like a whore. And if you don¡¯t do exactly as I say, I¡¯m going to beat your wench to death with my bare hands and leave her cooling corpse in your yurt.¡± Ryan¡¯s breath caught in his throat. ¡°Yeah, I know. You like her in your own fucked-up way.¡± Nadia whispered, holding him close to her cold tits and petting the back of his head. ¡°Just imagine how Calvin and Kala will react when you kill her.¡± She was right. If that were to happen, it would her word against his, and his word was already worthless to them. Ryan felt like his whole body was falling down a deep pit. The light was rapidly fading above him. ¡°What do you want from me?¡± he managed to whisper. ¡°For now? I want you to be a model citizen, and await further instructions. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯ll only be little things like delivering messages and such. You can do that, can¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Yeah, I can do that, you stupid slut.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good boy.¡± Nadia said, gently patting his head. ***Calvin*** Extensive training has increased your Attributes! +1 Stability Beli-Ma has reached level 20! +1 Stability ¡­ Beli ma has reached level 23! Level capped at Current Stability. Wizard needs food, badly. Calvin didn¡¯t remember much of the last few hours of practicing Beli Ma, and he didn¡¯t remember dragging himself to the Unqua and collapsing into bed, but he must have, because that¡¯s where he was when he opened his eye. Eye, singular. Calvin¡¯s left eye was swollen to the point of uselessness, and the rest of his body wasn¡¯t far behind. I don¡¯t think I actually did make it to bed, Calvin thought, noting the tucked in sheet made from the patchwork clothes of dead men. Calvin sure as Vashniels hoary realm didn¡¯t tuck himself in. Probably Kala. Calvin sat up...tried to sit up. His whole body rebelled against him, but he was still able to move his arms, covered in cane marks as they were. He gingerly rolled his blanket down to reveal a body riddled with long, thin bruises. Between Eye of the tiger, being in the real world, and emptying his Warp Tank multiple times, he¡¯d made several years worth of progress in an afternoon. ¡°Not worth it,¡± Calvin groaned as he struggled to right himself. He¡¯d gotten far too used to the lack of consequences in Shadowboxing. Morning after aches had been largely forgotten. What¡¯s my Warp? 6/8 Warp Remaining. It had refilled six points as he slept. What¡¯s the best way to distribute them before I head out, I wonder? Show me my stats. Calvin Gadsint Body: 8 Strength: 8 Kinesthetics: 8 Endurance: 8 Mind: 45 Intuition: 20 Stability: 23 Will: 36 Bent: 27/23+4 Warp: 6/8 Skills: Stealth 7 Playboy 11 Old Salt 12 Sense-Grafting 20 Dupdomancy 20 Meditation 25 Chained Spirit 18 Calvinian Summoning 20 Your Princess is in Another Castle 7 Beli Ma 23 Genosian Language 5 Shifting 15 Abyssal Alchemy 5 Drafting 3 Bent Manipulation 4 Trait Doctoring 1 The plus four on his Bent was confusing until he remembered the Ability he¡¯d gotten from the twentieth level of Beli Ma, allowing him to store four more Bent outside his body. When he turned his attention on them, he could feel the Bent like four little wisps of smoke, not directly connected to him and drifting idly around him, ready to deflect attacks and never quite going further than twenty three inches away from his body. The range was maybe three inches below that of his fingertips, meaning he was rapidly approaching the level where he could deflect attacks without moving his arms at all, if not already there. And the next step? An Aura. Or close to it, I suppose. If Calvin got another two levels, he could take the increased range ability and he was fairly sure from then on, he would be able to completely deflect attacks without ever moving his arms. Just like a Wizard King should. He¡¯d have to raise his Stability first, which would take a while longer without Shadowboxing. Agh, but today is the day I need to leave. Calvin looked down at his terribly bruised body. He needed Stability, and he needed to kidnap some princesses in roughly seventy two hours. I can make this work. **** In less than an hour, Calvin was dressed, sitting in front of the Village of The Abyss, resting a hand on a bone cane, his fingers trembling with exhaustion. ¡°Alright, listen up,¡± Calvin said, addressing the assembled villagers. ¡°Before we leave this hole, I¡¯ve got a leadership Skill that¡¯s one point away from granting me a new Ability, and it might make the difference between life and death once we make it to the surface, which is why we¡¯re going to play a little game before we leave. Trust me, though, you guys are gonna have a good time.¡± ¡°It¡¯s called Capture the Princess.¡± Calvin said with a smile. **** After explaining the rules of the game, he arranged the villagers into two teams, one team with Nadia, the other team with Kala. You scored a point by kidnapping a princess and carrying her back to the goal. Calvin wasn¡¯t able to move well, so he cleaned his boots while his minions played the game for him, his Warp Tank uncapped. Extensive training has raised your Attributes! +1 Stability. 5/8 Warp remaining. Gear maintenance was one way to raise stability. Once Calvin had that point, he settled down to actively participate in the game. You sure this is gonna work? One of calvin¡¯s teammates handed Nadia off to a hulking Knick-knack, who sprinted for the finish, holding out its other arm to block the defenders as they tried to pick her out of it¡¯s grasp. The Ilethan princess simply crossed her arms and scowled at Calvin as she was tossed back and forth like a ball. After a few minutes, Calvin¡¯s team scored a point, tossing Nadia to the ground and dancing wildly. T-T-Touchdown! Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 8! 40% Correction. 4/8 Warp Remaining. Yes, I think it¡¯ll work. We should give the other team a handicap, though. The skill seems to be swaying the outcome of the game. ¡­ Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 9! 45% Correction. 3/8 Warp Remaining. Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 10! 50% Correction. 2/8 Warp Remaining. +1 Stability Please choose an ability or mutation. Stockholm Syndrome: YPiiAC correction now also applies to the emotional bonding of captive princesses with the User, as well as the resulting allegiance. Safe and Sound: YPiiAC correction now also applies damage reduction to princesses allied with you or in your custody. No distance limitations. Complete damage negation not possible. Formula: (Damage) / (1+Correction) I.E. at 100% correction, princesses take 50% damage. Diminishing rate of return. Not Heavy at All: User automatically redistributes(Correction%) mass of princess to pursuers when attempting to flee with a stolen princess. ^ From Shifting. Max 98% Save the Last Dance: 4 Bent to begin a dance with a princess that cannot be interrupted. As long as both participants continue to dance, they are immune to physical attacks, physical restrictions, Bent abilities, mental manipulation, etc. True Love''s Kiss: 2 Bent, heals a princess of any curses, poisons, or afflictions, including foreign Bent, restores condition and heals similar to a week''s bed rest, potentially sealing otherwise lethal wounds. Consumes princess'' remaining Bent, but restores User''s Bent at level/10 efficiency. Mutations: Bloodline: Consume Princess blood to potentially gain access to Skills and Abilities unique to their bloodline. Wolf in Sheep¡¯s Clothing: User is able to adopt a role that make them appear to belong in a given setting, and behave in a way that draws no attention as they aim for the princess... From Playboy. Calvin waffled between Save the Last Dance and Safe and Sound for a minute before picking Safe and Sound. If Ella and Kala are going to keep running headlong into danger, I¡¯ll feel better if they¡¯re as safe as I can make them, even if we¡¯re not close to each other. The last dance ability was good. Really good, but Ella was off on her own, And even Nadia wouldn¡¯t be near him every moment of every day. So while it could get him out of a tight spot, it wouldn¡¯t always get him out of a tight spot. The Safe and Sound ability was always active, and would allow his blockers to soak up more damage. Be honest. You just want them to look like they¡¯re in their late twenties when you¡¯re old and grey, don¡¯t you? wait, does it stop working if they become queens? Couldn¡¯t hurt. Calvin thought with a shrug. The ability to use princesses as meat shields was higher priority right now. Princess meat shields. Hahahaha! Elliot seemed genuinely pleased, cackling in the back of his head. That¡¯s damn close to an oxymoron, but you wear the contradiction well. Now, Calvin¡¯s Stability was twenty five, and he had two Warp remaining. ¡°Alright!¡± Calvin shouted once he¡¯d made his choice, Gathering everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°Thank you all, that made the skill cross the threshold! Thank you!¡± There was a cheer, as the villagers had been having a great time, playing a game free from worry for the first time in years. Well, everyone had been having great fun except Kala and Nadia, who were a little disheveled, but otherwise okay. Next time I should adjust the rules, give them their own team of blockers so they can take more direct control over the game. Well, lessons for the future. ¡°Now,¡± Calvin said, rubbing his hands together with a smile. ¡°I need someone to beat me with a stick again.¡± Predictably, Nadia¡¯s hand went up, followed by Kala. **** ¡°How did you get so much better at this in one night?¡± Kala asked, tugging her stick free from the whorls of Bent over his shoulder. ¡°Temporary savant from Warp overflow.¡± ¡°Did you Break again?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± He felt Nadia swing a stick at the back of his head, and he created two whorls of Bent to catch her strike before it touched his scalp. He could either deflect four attacks simultaneously, or catch two without summoning Bent from inside. The Body Awareness ability at first had let him move Bent to his joints or any place he could normally move, and as his Skill increased by leaps and bounds, his range had slowly grown across his body until he could move Bent naturally to any point inside the twenty-three inch bubble available to him. ¡°This is less fun than before¡± Nadia whined, tugging her stick free. ¡°Keep it up,¡± Calvin said, sitting crosslegged. A Warp had come back already. Kala swung at his head. He caught it again. They continued until Beli Ma was level twenty five. +1 Stability Not spotting anything indicating a passive effect, Calvin chose Long Range, ballooning the size of his bubble from twenty five inches away, to thirty, several inches past his fingertips. Calvin was now able to deflect and stop attacks outside the reach of his arms. Alright. This will work. ¡°Okay,¡± Calvin said, letting them know they could stop. ¡°Finally,¡± Kala said with a sigh, dropping the switch, sitting back and taking a sip from her water bottle. Nadia relaxed, then experimentally tried whacking him across the back now that his guard was down. He caught it. ¡°Damn,¡± Nadia muttered, tossing the stick aside and wandering off. I wish I could see how well this fares against Karen, Calvin thought. Probably not great. At this point he was half-confident the woman was some kind of war god who¡¯d secretly infiltrated the mere mortals to watch their struggles for her amusement. ¡°So what now?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Now we leave.¡± ¡°What, like, today? Do you actually have a plan?¡± ¡°Yep. I¡¯m gonna scout out the tunnels with Calvinian summoning, find the exit, clear all the monsters between here and there, then get us out.¡± ¡°What if there is no exit?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Not really worth thinking about, is it?¡± Calvin asked with a shrug. Calvin Gadsint Body: 8 Strength: 8 Kinesthetics: 8 Endurance: 8 Mind: 45 Intuition: 20 Stability: 26 Will: 36 Bent: 23/26+5 Warp: 6/8 Skills: Stealth 7 Playboy 11 Old Salt 12 Sense-Grafting 20 Dupdomancy 20 Meditation 25 Chained Spirit 18 Calvinian Summoning 20 Your Princess is in Another Castle 10 Beli Ma 25 Genosian Language 5 Shifting 15 Abyssal Alchemy 5 Drafting 3 Bent Manipulation 4 Trait Doctoring 1 Macronomicon Chapter 120: Setting the Stage Four Legends stood on the side of a mountain, cold wind buffeting them as they gazed out into the gently shifting scrubland. This far away from Uleis, the desert was gradually becoming less and less barren, shifting from rolling dunes to scrubland and then grass. Gonna freeze my tits off. ¡°Are you sure you want to do this?¡± Kate asked, the burglar¡¯s corded arms crossed as she watched their Genosian meat shield kneel down in front of the fire and flick a cover in front of it with quick and precise movements¡­sending a message to their quarry. ¡°These are the people we¡¯ve been chasing the last two weeks. Did anyone forget that, or the thing they work for? The one that¡¯s dead?¡± ¡°Guya is thicker than water.¡± Euaha muttered, making their little campfire into a signal. ¡°If Ella says her poeor is still alive, it is so.¡± ¡°I for one, relish the opportunity to study this creature.¡± Suppan said, arms crossed. ¡°Imagine the advances that could be made in Mutation research.¡± She held up her fingers. ¡°He must have had at least three mutations, with no outward sign. Lovely.¡± ¡°Same,¡± Matthias said, sitting on a nearby log, drinking tea, of all things. ¡°Although the reward on offer for this little message is also a factor.¡± They waited on the mountainside, Kate and Euaha ignoring the cold wind with their enhanced Endurance while Suppan and Matthias huddled next to the fire, trying to keep their weak bodies warm. In the stretch of a few hours, the gravel on the desolate mountainside began to crunch, and three figures stepped out of the darkness. ¡°Uncle?¡± the towering girl said in Genosian as she came forward, scanning the four of them. How can these savages wear so little and still be fine? Kate thought, her arms wrapped in front of her aching chest. Euaha nodded and motioned them to come forward. The remaining figures resolved into the mutant boy¡¯s doppleganger, and a¡­ Kate¡¯s mouth hung open as a walking slab of muscle emerged from the darkness, and for a moment she forgot how cold it was up here. He was wearing a glass bow over his shoulders and a quiver of arrows at his waist that looked underwhelming compared to the man¡¯s sheer size. MMH. ¡°What did you call us for?¡± The shark-toothed girl asked, while the beautiful man scanned the horizon with an alert, almost noble gaze, glancing at them askance every now and then. A guy like that could make a me-shaped dent in the furniture. The conversation kept going for a few minutes before they spoke to Kate, snapping her out of her drooling stare. ¡°What?¡± She asked, not particularly concerned with their judge-y gazes. ¡°The Uleisan dungeon.¡± the doppleganger supplied. ¡°Is that where they¡¯d put me?¡± ¡°Ah, right. No.¡± Kate, of the four of them, was the most intimately familiar with Uleisan penal law. Despite never being imprisoned herself, people in her previous circle expected to do some kind of hard labor at some point in their lives. ¡°The Order of the Seeking Hand, that¡¯s the eleven men whose toes you stepped on, have a habit of making people disappear. That¡¯s most likely what happened to your friend.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t most people who do shady work?¡± the dark skinned perfection asked, frowning like the most erudite scholar. ¡°Not like these people. There¡¯s no bodies coming out, there¡¯s no food going in. A small fraction of those who cross the Order simply vanish. If he is still alive, he is definitely not being held in the Uleisan dungeon. It¡¯s somewhere far more secretive.¡± ¡°If it were me,¡± Matthias said from his seat, taking a sip of his steaming brew. ¡°I would use the tournament as a stage for executing the kid.¡± Silence settled over the group as they turned to look at the illusionist. ¡°People like Kurawe don¡¯t make huge festivals for only one reason. What better place to publicly execute the boy than the newly constructed arena? Where tens of thousands of Uleisan citizens can see him put to death for his crimes? An event like that would be good for swaying public opinion toward supporting the war against Gadvera as well.¡± Matthias glanced off into the distance. ¡°Not that they need to. You did most of the work yourselves.¡± ¡°I blame Calvin.¡± The chiseled man-god said with a brilliant smile. He still has all his teeth, Kate thought. ¡°You¡¯re sure about that?¡± Ella asked, frowning at their illusionist. ¡°I¡¯m sure of nothing. But if they did have plans to execute him publicly, I can¡¯t think of a better place. Otherwise your boy is in a hole that he¡¯s never coming out of.¡± ¡°What if we kidnapped one of the eleven?¡± the doppleganger asked. ¡°That might work, but it¡¯s a damn sight more risky than any other plan you might have. They¡¯re sure to have heightened security after losing one of their own, and they¡¯re all above Sixth Break, so they aren¡¯t going to be easy to keep docile.¡± Kate said. ¡°So what can we do?¡± Ella asked, frowning. Suppan shook her head. ¡°Not our problem. Our arrangement was for information and no more. Uleis is going to officially end our pursuit of you as of tomorrow. We¡¯re turning the army around in the morning, so if you continue heading East, you¡¯re free.¡± The doppleganger drummed his fingers in his knees, frowning in thought. ¡°How do you guys feel about crashing the tournament?¡± ¡°What, turn around, outpace the Uleisan army back to the city, sign up for a tournament wearing disguises and rescue you when you¡¯re to be executed at the end?¡± the handsome Gadveran asked. The mutant doppleganger snapped his fingers and pointed at the big man. ¡°Got it in one.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a stupid idea,¡± the burly man said, confirming Kate¡¯s belief in his wisdom. ¡°I like it.¡± Why? Why are the men I crush on always such morons? ¡°Do as you like,¡± Suppan said with a shrug. She slipped a letter out of her voluminous robes. ¡°If you could do us a favor and tell this story when you are inevitably captured. That would be great. We want to isolate ourselves from backlash as much as possible. Memorize it. Burn it.¡± ¡°Ooh,¡± The mutant boy said, rubbing his chin. ¡°So that¡¯s why you all look and sound like trees.¡± Matthias gave a friendly wave. ¡°I wasn¡¯t gonna say anything, I thought maybe they were tree people,¡± the big one said, nodding as he took the letter. ¡°We won¡¯t spill the beans, you can leaf it to us.¡± Kate put a hand to her temple, suddenly over her attraction to the enormous archer. ***Several days later*** **Ella** ¡°My goatee itches.¡± Baroke complained for the thirteenth time. ¡°This is why I don¡¯t grow facial hair.¡± He was wearing an enchanted charm made by Jinsei, a little button laced with a nem enchantment that subtly altered his features. It mostly changed the appearance of his eyes and lips. Since Uleisans and Gadverans were largely from the same stock, as long as Baroke kept his mouth shut, he blended in¡­except for his sheer size. A passing Uleisan woman craned her neck to follow the gigantic archer as he passed. ¡°People seem to like it.¡± Ella said, rolling her eyes. ¡°You got to disguise yourself all fancy, while I have to look like an evil, half-fish version of myself,¡± Baroke stopped to look in a shop window and study his appearance. ¡°It¡¯s not like I enjoy wearing these either,¡± Ella said, motioning to the tight bolesian dress with the long slit in the side. The button from Jinsei changed the shape of her face and blunted her teeth, so that she could be mistaken as a half Genosian, or even a Bolesian to those who weren¡¯t paying attention. She was lying of course. The uniform pressure on her from all sides was supremely enjoyable, but she let Baroke think she was suffering alongside him in silence. Together they made their way to the sign up kiosk outside the arena, where a small line of hard-bitten men and women formed a knot around the desk. They received more than their fair share of curious glances as they waited in line. What¡¯s so unusual about a genosian woman in a bolesian dress and a seven foot tall man with no scars whatsoever? Damn, I answered my own question. Everyone present showed signs of combat, scars, armor, missing teeth, nicked blades. Baroke¡¯s skin was flawless, bulging at the seams with lean muscle, and he had a completely unused greatword slung over his back in the manner of an amateur. He had to leave his bow, as it marked him as one of the most wanted men in Uleis. His actual primary weapon was an uleisan slingshot and a couple dozen glass bolts resting on his hip. Luckily they didn¡¯t stand out any more than half a dozen other colorful characters from across the world. There was even what looked like a Malkenrovian mage, a wizened man in long, colorful robes. As Ella was scanning the competition, a man nearly as big as Baroke approached, riddled with scars, and at least twenty years older than them. He looked Baroke up and down with a scowl. ¡°I don¡¯t know where you¡¯re from lad,¡± he growled in a deep, foreign accent, ¡°but sheer muscle isn¡¯t going to take you very far. You need experience and Breaks, and from what I can see, you¡¯ve got neither. Why don¡¯t you run back home and go back to lifting weights?¡± Baroke raised a brow and glanced at Ella, pointing at the man beside him quizzically. What am I supposed to do with this? He seemed to ask. Ella shrugged. ¡°Thank you for your advice,¡± Baroke said, putting a friendly hand on the man¡¯s shoulder before he crushed it between his fingers. The deep growling voice turned into a shriek of pain as the man tried to dislodge the Gadveran giant. ¡°Hey!¡± The man behind the kiosk, a slender Uleisan scribe shouted before pointing to a sign above the desk. No attacking the other contestants. This means you! Baroke scanned the sign for a moment, the bearded man stumbling away clutching his shoulder. ¡°I didn¡¯t do any of those things, though.¡± Ella knew in that moment that Baroke had read the sign before he crushed the man¡¯s shoulder socket. The scribe narrowed his eyes before pulling out a grease pen and adding a line. ¡°If it happens again, it¡¯s a DQ.¡± The scribe said pointing the grease pen at Baroke. ¡°Aye, aye,¡± Baroke saluted. ¡°I could beat everyone here and you¡¯d disqualify me? Uleisans truly are soft.¡± A pale man in a flamboyant orange¡­costume¡­ that seemed to be covered in orange feathers and rhinestones said. He was shorter than the average Uleisan, who were shorter on average than Ella. He was directly in front of Ella and Baroke. ¡°Seems like you¡¯d want your contestants to at least make it to the stage.¡± Ella said, glancing at him. ¡°Why? If they can¡¯t compete with men like me, what worth do they have?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a show?¡± Ella pointed out. ¡°For the people who are watching?¡± ¡°Foolish.¡± He sniffed and signed the waiver before leaving them at the front of the line. I really hope I see him again in the preliminaries. ¡­She hadn¡¯t added Bolesian blood to her mutation yet. ¡°Next,¡± The scribe said, and Baroke stepped forward, filling out his details before Ella followed. ¡°Name?¡± ¡°Breanne Gadsint¡± Ella said. ¡°Breaks? Minimum is six to join the tournament. Maximum is eight.¡± Ella rolled her eyes. Eighth Break Aiaka were incredibly rare. ¡°Six.¡± ¡°Style?¡± ¡°Style?¡± Ella echoed. ¡°do you follow a specific school of combat? Organizers need that information to prevent odd matchups in the beginning of the tournament. If you don¡¯t have a school, simply describe how you fight, and I¡¯ll get you marked down.¡± ¡°My skin turns to steel and the enemy bats at me ineffectually as I tear them limb from limb.¡± ¡°So¡­heavy frontliner.¡± He scratched a note in a column on the page with her false name in it. ¡°What weapons do you use?¡± ¡°Whatever works.¡± Ella said with shrug. ¡°Got it. Any mutations to declare?¡± ¡°My skin gets tougher the more blood it absorbs.¡± Ella said. The scribe raised a brow, looking her up and down. ¡°Any offensive use for that? is your skin poisonous or covered in blades?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Light things on fire or cloud people¡¯s minds?¡± She shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m going to leave the mutation section blank, as that doesn¡¯t sound too different from a few extra levels in a Toughness skill, and I¡¯m too busy to vet this.¡± He moved on. ¡°Before you sign, I must warn you,¡± He said, leaning on his palm as he read from the script in an extremely bored tone, ¡°the event you are taking part in contains live combat, is dangerous, and could lead to death or permanent injury.¡± Installing¡­. User is now under the effect of Safe and Sound from User 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-5-6-2 33% Damage mitigation from all sources. ¡°I don¡¯t think It¡¯ll be a problem,¡± Ella said with a smile. ¡°That¡¯s what they all say.¡± The scribe sighed. Ella bent down to sign the paper, and moved along when he waved her away. She found Baroke a dozen feet away, idly eating a skewer of Sand gulper. ¡°Let¡¯s find a place to spend the night.¡± Ella said as she approached. ¡°I¡¯ve never rented an inn before. should be interesting.¡± ¡°Hey,¡± Baroke said, nudging her shoulder and pointing. ¡°Check that out.¡± A man with no limbs, his torso wrapped in cloth, was walking down the street on his teeth. The man¡¯s teeth were jutting out of his mouth, growing to unbelievable lengths and moving on their own, carrying him along as smoothly and quickly as any man with two legs. He was aiming for the sign-up kiosk. ¡°I¡¯m having a good time already.¡± Baroke said with a grin. ***Calvin*** Well, this wasn¡¯t exactly what I was expecting. Elliot mused as they took in the control room. Or what passed for a control room at the end of twenty miles of winding deathtrap. On one hand, Calvin had all the ingredients from warped monsters that he could ever want. On the other hand¡­ How in Elani¡¯s name am I supposed to work this thing? The room was empty save a single panel in the center of the room, and a large gate at the end The ceiling was a half-dome of Abyssal Steel, the gate made of some shiny black substance that seemed nearly organic, growing out of the wall. Geiger-esque is the name for it. The panel in the center of the room was shaped like a crystal, rising out of the floor and decorated with a strange stylized flame on the top of the slanted surface. There was no interface to speak of, not like Elliot had described it to him. he had there would be ¡®computer banks¡¯, big blocky things with ¡®monitors¡¯ and ¡®keyboards¡¯ that would allow them to escape the filter. Just a crystal. Are you sure this is the place? Well, the other three sure as hell aren¡¯t. The other tunnels lead to a breeding room for wolf-sized insectile creatures, an abandoned dormitory, and living area for the construction workers. It was true, this room looked¡­important. Well, it seems fairly obvious. Calvin thought, approaching the pillar in the center with his Stalker. He poked the crystal. Nothing. He put the creature¡¯s knobby hand on the top of the crystal. Nothing. Maybe I have to be in person. Calvin thought. He¡¯d been wearing the Stalkers with Heart of the Swarm for the last ten hours to prevent himself from falling prey to the myriad hunters in the Filter, and their complacency aura was an excellent way to accomplish that. Calvin took a last look around the room for danger before he canceled the summon, bursting into existence in front of the crystal. Here¡¯s where we find out if the crystal wants to cut me in half, Calvin thought, heart hammering after Elliot¡¯s tales of the harbinger¡¯s defense systems. The light shifted as Calvin¡¯s mostly human eyes took in the situation. There was a lot of subtlety in the colors on the wall that the Stalkers simply hadn¡¯t been able to see, colorblind as they were. There were pictures drawn in fading paint, and words etched into the very stone of the wall, in a language that Calvin couldn¡¯t begin to fathom. The mural that covered the entire ceiling, though, seemed to tell a story, as a wave of crested men seemed to march across the stars, opposed by armies of alien creatures, invariably lead by a single crested figure. They invariably lost. Why are they always opposed by their own? Calvin thought, frowning as he studied the murals. I¡¯ll get this one, Elliot said. I had to learn harbinger script for my job. Ahem. Bless this Siphon, and may it¡¯s power be used for the betterment and protection of our people, when the harvest¡­yadda yadda¡­power over souls¡­ immortality¡­yadda¡­ultimate power...yadda yadda¡­Ancient destroyer will one day return¡­boring¡­Here we go! In order to prevent lower life-forms from escaping this Filter, One may only open the gate by placing their hand on the surface of the crystal and injecting their Bent. Huh. That seems fairly straight forward. Calvin put his hand on the flame shape, his palm fitting oddly into the groove, fingers splitting around the two He injected his Bent. 28/31 Bent remaining. Suddenly Calvin¡¯s hand was locked to the crystal, and Bent flooded out through his palm at a prodigious rate. 23/31 Bent remaining. 18/31 Bent remaining. 13/31 Bent remaining. Gate opened. A shimmering light opened in the center of the organic, shiny black gate, spreading until the entire gate was filled with a shimmering that looked like the surface of water. Welcome, User 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-5-6-2. It has been nine hundred and forty Standard years since the last scheduled diagnostic. Would you like to run the diagnostic? Sure? Siphon 3?64942?812?8272531: Concentration: 112 WPPM Flow: 82600 WPM Dispersal: 1200 WPM ***Warning, Severe Blockage detected!*** Stabilizer Integrity: 32% ***Warning, Organic material corroding Stabilizing Platform*** Filter at 135% Capacity Overall: Sub-optimal performance. Low output due to blockage. Possibility of high tier Warp creatures passing through the Siphon due to low stability and Filter overcrowding. Maintenance recommended. No shit. Calvin thought of the pile of bones from thousands of sacrifices just rotting away on the platform above the Siphon, and the brain leech that hadn¡¯t even been on the same plane of reality, exactly. If anything was a high tier Warp creature, it¡¯d be that. Calvin briefly considered cleaning up the mess and cleaning the Filter. Then he decided he didn¡¯t care. He just wanted out. How long is the Gate open for? Calvin thought, eyeing it. Phase Shifting Gate will remain open for fifteen minutes before User must provice another 15 Bent. Okay, let go of my hand. The thing stubbornly held onto his hand, refusing to let his skin leave contact with the crystal beneath it. Try Log Out. Log Out. Logging Out. Calvin¡¯s hand detached from the crystal with the strangest popping sensation, sending shivers up his neck. He glanced at the shimmering gate, and felt the tiniest impulse to jump through, and damn everyone else. He shoved that impulse in a burlap sack, beat it with canes and threw it in the ocean wrapped in chains. We¡¯re getting everyone out. Especially Kala. Calvin directed his attention towards summoning Stalkers and Knick-knacks. The stalker¡¯s job was to kill every monster between here and the Platform, and the knick-knacks to mark passages, patch over the more perilous death-traps, clean rubble out of the way, and make the entire journey fast and easy. The quicker he could get everyone through the labyrinthine tunnels, the safer they would be. He felt a giddy anticipation spreading through his chest. We¡¯re getting out of here! ***Kurawe*** ¡°We seek an enlightened soul,¡± Kurawe said over the muffled protests of the most recent round of sacrifices. ¡°We seek more like us,¡± Kurawe said, eyes closed as he went through the prayer by rote. ¡°outcasts in need of safe harbor. Wandering souls exiled from their home, from their people, in search of community, purpose, and power. We regret the harm we have caused these lowly creatures, but we will never stop searching, casting our net among the exceptional and the revolutionary, Testing them, and adding those found worthy to our cause. The cause of the King-in-Exile.¡± He glanced back down at the pit to the Abyss, moments away from telling Polluq to do his job and shove them down the hole, when he saw something that made the order catch in his lungs. Four pale fingers grasped the edge of the pit into nothingness, curling one at a time, like a spider, followed by four more. A silvery metal hook with a rope at the end was slammed into the edge of the stone pit, the sound stealing the attention of every person present. The Malkenrovian captain pulled himself up into the ritual room. He was thinner, and paler than he¡¯d been before, with bags under his eyes, bruises covering his face and a manic grin. He was wearing different clothes that seemed primarily composed of leather, along with some kind of iridescent cuirass. ¡°Oh good,¡± he said, pulling a silvery blade out of his belt. ¡°You¡¯re all here.¡± The leather rope attached to the hook tugged, and another pair of fingers alighted on the edge of the pit, followed by another, and another, as dozens of ghosts from their past climbed out of the pit, armed and armored, expressions murderous. ¡°Who wants to die first?¡± The members of the Seeking Hand glanced among each other, unsure of what to do. Polluq¡¯s hand edged toward his weapon hidden under his robe. Do they not pay any attention to the sermons? Kurawe thought, repressing the urge to roll his eyes. He threw himself to the ground, knees aching as his bulk hit the stone floor. ¡°The order of the Seeking hand welcomes the Enlightened Soul!¡± Macronomicon Chapter 121: Consolidating Power 101 There was silence so complete that Calvin could hear his own heart hammering in his chest, and the harsh breathing of his troops. The sight of a seven foot tall obese man completely naked underneath a fine silk robe throw himself to the ground and begin groveling before any stabbing had taken place threw Calvin a bit, but he recovered quickly. ¡°Okay, I¡¯m assuming he wants to be last.¡± Calvin said, pointing. Strangely enough, three of the other red-robed men dropped to the ground an instant behind their leader. Murak, the skin and bones moneylender, a full-bearded fellow who might have been the youngest man there, and a third man he didn¡¯t recognize. ¡°Please spare us your wrath, we only wished to find you, Ravager.¡± The huge man said into the ground. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Do you actually have to listen to what they say to kill them? Rufe asked, eyeing one of the standing old men, who paled. ¡°What are you doing!?¡± The largest, second-youngest cultist said, pulling out a heavy mace. ¡°Stop!¡± the big man on the ground hissed, but it was already too late. Seeing the weapon, the villagers leapt into action, wielding their blades with feral snarls, and all Abyss broke out. The big cultist swung at Rufe with his mace, catching the hunter in the chest and catapulting him backward, despite his magical armor. Rufe slammed into another cultist and crushed him against the wall. The red-robed old man collapsed bonelessly to the ground as Rufe stood up, patting the tiny dent in his armor with disbelief. The armed cultist didn¡¯t have time to follow up as more villagers swarmed out of the hole, attacking the cultist with a weapon, attacking the other cultists, who panicked and ran, scurrying around the edge of the pit in complete disarray. In short, it was a total clusterfuck. The big cultist pulled some kind of shenanigan with his mace, and suddenly it had grown by twice the size, and had an extra head on the other side. He was industriously thwacking villager after villager with the strength of a Legend who was trained for war. He was better than they were, it was undeniable, but they were Legends too, and they were much angrier. The big man flung two villagers off of him and caught the attack of a third, only for the Abyssal blade to shear the inferior material in half and cut a long streak of red down his right side. He took the severed halves and reversed his grip, knocking the villager aside and moving to deal with the next one. Calvin scanned the room and took in the chaos. Old scruffy men chasing old silk-robed men Leaders create order out of chaos. Shifting 7/31 Bent remaining 6/31 Bent remaining 5/31 Bent remaining 4/31 Bent remaining 3/31 Bent remaining 2/31 Bent remaining Calvin tapped his thumb to the vial of water on his belt, targeted each cultist, and five spots in the walls and ceiling, burdening the red-robed men with the weight of a ton of stone, dropping them to their hands and knees in short order. ¡°STOP!¡± Calvin roared, getting the attention of the villagers. Rufe looked up curiously, moments away from beheading one of the cultists. Calvin knew the cultists had to be Legends, and would throw off the spell quickly, so he also targeted the floor beneath their hands and knees with Viscosity Shifting to bind their movements. Sink them into the stone then take away it¡¯s fluidity, and he had the perfect restraints. Error: Viscosity Shifting has been subsumed by Trait Doctoring. Mass limit 1 pound. One of the cultist¡¯s knees dipped a fraction of an inch into the floor. Son of a bitch. Calvin played it off. They didn¡¯t know he¡¯d failed. As far as they knew, he took everyone to the ground with a single Bent, and that¡¯s what he needed them to believe. ¡°I know you¡¯re pissed.¡± Calvin said. ¡°But trust me. We can¡¯t kill them in a mob. There¡¯s an order to these things.¡± The villagers scowled at being denied their vengeance, looking between Calvin and Loren. The old survivor broke into a cold smile and nodded to Rufe, who sighed and took his blade away from the cultist¡¯s neck. They looked at Loren. Calvin thought, sparing an extra moment to study the old villager who¡¯d pioneered surviving the Filter. How do I fix that? Welcome to politics. My least favorite aspect of wizard king-dom. Calvin glanced aside and spotted one of the villagers, a solid, scarred woman, carrying a pot made out of bones, scaling the side of the pit with one hand on the rope. In the pot was a rooted mass of slimy blue-green tentacles wrapped around an Unqua, riding the tiny shelled creature like a lethargic steed. ¡°Is that¡­¡± ¡°Squelch.¡± The woman said. ¡°I ran back to her house and asked her if she¡¯d like to move up top and meet more people, and she said yes.¡± ¡°You must be Calvin,¡± the tiny ball of tentacles said in a squeaky voice, extending one slimy extension towards Calvin, who shook it. ¡°I¡¯ve heard so much about you from the men who visit me, and let me tell you, it doesn¡¯t do you justice. You smell divine.¡± ¡°¡­cool.¡± Calvin said, staring at the ball of tentacles and estimating it¡¯s real size. Humans were small enough to fit inside the unqua¡¯s shell four at a time. A creature so big that it had to ride outside the damn thing was¡­big. ¡°¡¯ta.¡± The tentacle monster said, waving as the woman carried her away. That was interesting. I forgot about Squelch. Rufe only mentioned her once. ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, returning his attention to the eight pinned men. Three of the cultists had died already, from swords to the face and one from being crushed against the wall. ¡°I¡¯ve had a lot of time to think about this,¡± Calvin said, rubbing his hands together. ¡°And here¡¯s what¡¯s going to happen.¡± It was going to involve a lot of pain and humiliation, that was for sure. Nobody tosses me down a hole and leaves me for dead and gets away with it. Calvin heard someone clear their throat, and he glanced over his shoulder. Kala and Nadia were standing there, arms crossed in disapproval. ¡°What¡¯s going to happen is I¡¯m going to confer with my princess and my hellspawn.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Keep them under control.¡± He pointed at the wounded cultist specifically before heading over to the princesses. ¡°What?¡± ¡°We decided that right now would be an excellent time to receive a brief primer on establishing a firm rule.¡± Kala said, before pointing at her peer. ¡°Nadia?¡± ¡°When taking power, you can¡¯t kill everyone who already holds power.¡± Nadia said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You need the city you just conquered to keep running smoothly. These eleven ¨C¡° She glance over at the three corpses. ¡°Eight men are lynchpins, or keys, that keep the industries they are in charge of going strong. If you kill all of them, you will create complete anarchy in the city of Uleis as their underlings struggle to fill the gaps and fight against you. You¡¯ll wind up having to kill or enslave far more people than you would have otherwise.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± Calvin grunted, mind trying to soak this up like a dry sponge. So¡­don¡¯t kill them? then how am I in charge of the country? Isn¡¯t it the same as before? ¡°So..don¡¯t kill them?¡± Nadia sighed and nodded to Kala. ¡°Don¡¯t kill all of them. You need to take control of the wealth of Uleis, then use that wealth to incentivize the loyalty of the men who control its industry, law and military.¡± Kala said, ticking them each off with her finger.¡± Calvin frowned, deep in thought. ¡°So you¡¯re saying I need to¡­reward the men I just conquered?¡± ¡°After you kill the ones you don¡¯t need.¡± Nadia said, a hint of a smile growing on her face. Grab them by the purse-strings, kill the majority of them, redistribute their power between them and take the lion¡¯s share for myself. Calvin thought. That¡¯s both pragmatic and far more sinister than I thought. ¡°What would I do without you, Kala?¡± ¡°Probably die to a revolt or assassination, or failing that, run Uleis into a state of complete anarchy while you bumble through the politics.¡± Kala said. Nadia seemed a bit miffed that she didn¡¯t warrant appreciation. Calvin glanced over at the eight old men, eyes settling on the wealthiest among them, Murak. Murak the moneylender, richest of the twelve, and Orson, the leader of the Sand-stretch group, who¡¯d controlled and profited from the flow of goods through Uleis. Between those two, there was fantastical amount of money to be made. Calvin had already taken steps to replace Orson. Why not take it one step further? Calvin took a sword out of a nearby hand and walked up to Murak, where the gnarled elder was pressed flat on the stone floor. ¡°How would you like to live?¡± Calvin asked, squatting down to the old man¡¯s level so they could speak privately. ¡°I could be persuaded,¡± Murak said, glancing up at him. ¡°Eighty-five percent of your current wealth.¡± Calvin said, resting the tip of the sword beside ¡°I¡¯d rather die. Five percent.¡± ¡°This is not a negotiation. Eighty-five percent, or I go to your fearless leader with the offer after I kill you and cannibalize your assets.¡± Calvin leaned close to the gnarled moneylender¡¯s ear. ¡°Your money would make quite the windfall in buying the others off. I¡¯m going to get it, one way or the other. I¡¯m betting you don¡¯t even have a will.¡± Murak¡¯s eyes narrowed, and Calvin felt the sting of wounded pride. Of course the skinflint didn¡¯t want to give anyone else his money in the event of his death. It would be claimed by the state. Or in this case, Kurawe, their leader. Now the carrot. ¡°I¡¯m also thinking about having someone run Orson¡¯s business.¡± Calvin whispered, and Murak¡¯s eyes widened, staring into the floor. ¡°What could you do with fifteen percent of your wealth and the ability to run both sides of the equation?¡± ¡°Fifty percent.¡± Murak said, his face beginning to glow with enthusiasm. ¡°Seventy-five,¡± Calvin said, getting down to the actual negotiation. Murak let out a quiet, guttural growl. ¡°Two thirds, you cunt.¡± ¡°Deal.¡± Calvin said, standing. He walked over to the massive cultist on the floor. ¡°Ravager, we of the order of the seeking hand have a divine mission to seek out ¨C¡° Without preamble, Calvin cut his head off. There was a collective gasp of fear as the huge man¡¯s neck began squirting blood violently, his neck tumbling forwad, past the two sacrifices, still bound and gagged. The head tumbled into the Pit of the Abyss, a look of stunned surprise on his face. Calvin couldn¡¯t afford to keep the leader of these men alive, no matter how cooperative he was. Their members would always seek him out as a leader rather than Calvin, and that was unacceptable. ¡°Who¡¯s his successor?¡± Calvin asked, glancing around. Gods, I hope he¡¯s not one of the three dead guys. ¡°Me,¡± The energetic cultist with the mace growled, restrained by no less than three villagers. ¡°What do you do?¡± ¡°I¡¯m the Supreme Commander.¡± Military. ¡°Do you run law enforcement as well?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How would you like his job?¡± Calvin said, pointing at the dead giant. ¡°And a hefty raise.¡± Calvin felt the gears of self-interest turning in the man¡¯s head as he matched Calvin¡¯s gaze, and he knew the man would say yes, for as long as it profited him. ¡°I¡¯d like that.¡± ¡°Then when we leave this room, divert your men toward peacekeeping during the transition, I want everyone nice and calm, continuing to do their jobs. Do you think you can handle that?¡± He nodded. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Polluq.¡± ¡°Polluq, as long as you keep working for me, bounty will flow freely, but if I wake up with the Uleisan police at my door, I¡¯ll tear this glass city to the ground by myself.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Calvin felt a hand on his shoulder, and glanced over to see Loren, watching him with a frown. ¡°How can you forgive these men? Each and every one of us suffered at their hands.¡± His weathered face was set in a flat stare. Calvin felt barely restrained anger radiating off of him. ¡°Look at it this way,¡± Calvin said, standing to address him. ¡°What happens if we kill these men? The entire city devolves into anarchy. We might get control back eventually, but do you really want to cause that many wasted lives, and waste that much time? These men might be evil, but those who would suffer if they die aren¡¯t.¡± ¡°They are your people. Calvin said. Loren scowled, glancing around the room at the pacified leadership of Uleis. He glanced back at Calvin. ¡°Keep them on a tight leash.¡± He said, finally. Calvin could tell from his gaze that he wasn¡¯t happy. Or entirely convinced. Loren headed for the door, nearly two thirds of the villagers following after him. About two dozen hesitantly stayed behind, glancing between Calvin and Loren. Rufe stayed, along with about ten more of the younger villagers, the hesitators split up, most of them trailing after loren. The mute girl, Dara, hesitated longer than most, but finally decided to stick with Calvin. Seeing this, Ryan looked torn, glancing between the mute and Nadia, before scratching the back of his head furiously and sitting against the wall, glaring silently. He glanced at Nadia, and she glanced back, casual disregard in her every behavior¡­but¡­ Open Book Informed him that the relationship between Nadia and Ryan was that of a domineering controller and unwilling servitor. Interesting. One of the serious faults of Chained Spirit was that Continuity allowed Nadia to see through his eyes, constantly. She knew almost everything he did, but he could not say the same. Now he knew something she didn¡¯t expect him to know, and he needed to find a way to leverage that. Extensive training has increased your attributes! +1 Intuition No wonder royals are so messed up. Calvin glanced over at Rufe, the old hunter with his foot on a red-robed back. The man hadn¡¯t made a single move to follow Loren. ¡°I told you I¡¯d help you overthrow whoever you want,¡± Rufe said as he met his gaze with a shrug. ¡°And I appreciate that,¡± Calvin said as he observed Polluq climb to his feet. I need to cull the herd before this Polluq fellow gets any bright ideas. Now that Loren had left, presumably seeking to gaze at the sky for the first time in fifty years, they no longer outnumbered the cultists quite so heavily. In the corner of the room, he felt one of the cultists whip his hand forward, and a spinning piece of something sharp and hard hurtled through the air toward his neck. Calvin caught it in midair between two whorls of Bent, the knife hovering in midair, trapped by the opposing swirls of invisible energy. Everyone stared at him in stunned silence as Calvin plucked the knife out of the air with his hand. ¡°Get rid of that.¡± Calvin said, pointing at the culprit without looking. A moment later, a sword came down on the offending cultist and another one was relieved of their life. six dead, two employed, four left. Calvin walked up to each of the remaining cultists and asked what their area of specialization was, focusing on how they interacted between making him money and keeping the Uleisan government stable. He killed all but one of them, the bearded farmer, who¡¯d been among the first to surrender. One Ghuled Bassaan. The man was in charge of feeding the peasants, and that was something Calvin couldn¡¯t overlook. It¡¯s too bad old man Asabei died in the fighting, Calvin thought. He found the old man amusing. ¡°Mr. Bussan.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± the bearded farmer asked, cowering and looking intently at the floor. ¡°You have just found your responsibilities expanded. Of the three of you-¡° Calvin said, pointing between the three of them. ¡°- you are the most likely to win the favor of the people. So I want you to do that. Become the face of the new regime. Keep people fed, keep them happy, keep them working.¡± Calvin turned to Murak. ¡°You are the banks. Forge as many papers as you have to.¡± Calvin pointed at the blood stains lining the pit. ¡°The property and businesses of the twelve members of the Seeking Hand will be transferred to me. Until such time as I own the city of Uleis, you aren¡¯t going to be allowed to leave my sight.¡± Calvin scanned the survivors. ¡°And you three will be the stewards of that wealth, for a generous slice of the pie. Understood?¡± Murak started giggling into the floor. ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± The withered old moneylender said, pushing himself up and wiping tears away from his eyes. He pointed toward the bloodstain where Kurawe had been. ¡°He said that one day I would run into a problem having more money than everyone else couldn¡¯t solve.¡± Murak burst into chuckles again. Macronomicon Chapter 122: The T Word Learner¡¯s Research notes: day 3 The hooters separate each other, and yet do not consume them, choosing instead to push their still mass into the downspace from which we had emerged. Perhaps there was some kind of territorial dispute? This seems to be the root of the issue, although the specific details elude me. Requires more study. The Manifold Predator, or Calvin, as the others call him, seems to have taken a somehow central role in this territorial dispute, as others seem to look at him constantly, approximately 67% more than any other average person. With the sole exception of Nadia¡¯s lumps, but I don¡¯t think they¡¯re part of the territorial dispute. Something else is going on there. They are very nice, though. Soft-looking. Requires more study. The surface world is different. More divorced from the reality I existed in before. I can feel the potential that hung in the air thinning out, The further away this group of hooters get from the circular downspace in the center of the empty matterspace. At first I believed this new, confining matterspace was the new reality where the hooters came from and we would spend the rest of time existing in this narrow dome-shape. Then one of the hooters lead others out some kind ¡­Swingy-flat-wall-thing. I didn¡¯t have a name for it, as it was a concept I¡¯d never encountered before. It reminded me of defences, or perhaps a mating tube. Are the hooters some kind of sperm of some unknowably larger creature? Unlikely, but possible. Requires more study. Side Note: Not once have I witnessed the Hooters consume other hooters, despite ample opportunity and motivation. They obviously have more readily digestable flesh than the other inhabitants of the place they hooted as ¡®the filter¡¯. This implies an aversion to consuming their own that reinforces the concept that they are a social creature. This leads me to believe I must ¡®present¡¯ myself as something that similarly disdains consuming hooters. They enjoy being mirrored. Hoot meanings are becoming more clear as they are more often repeated. I can say with confidence that I have added ¡®I, You, Me, mine, this, up, harder, down, Unqua, carry, and Balls-deep¡¯ to my lexicon. *Expletives too numerous to list, and are essentially meaningless. Disguise still uncompromised. ***Calvin*** ¡°How did I do?¡± Calvin asked, returning to Kala and Nadia, who¡¯d watched without saying anything. ¡°Eh,¡± Nadia said, waggling a hand. ¡°You¡¯re learning.¡± ¡°For a first attempt at staging a coup and seizing power over a country, it was very good.¡± Kala said patronizingly, patting him on the shoulder. ¡°You¡¯ll do better next time.¡± Calvin frowned, glancing at the people watching him. ¡°Tell me what I did wrong.¡± ¡°First: You should have killed them publicly in some kind of ceremony to cement the transfer of power in the minds of the commoners. People are stupid. They need public events to tell them things have changed, otherwise they¡¯ll mill around and wonder what is going on, leading to panic.¡± Kala said, sounding a lot like her Ilethan counterpart. ¡°Second: You didn¡¯t court the village of the Abyss as well as you should have, garnering the loyalty of only a small fraction of them, neither did you eliminate their leader before you left the Abyss, ensuring a fracture in loyalty after making it topside.¡± Nadia said, stepping in after Kala. ¡°Third: you killed one too many men, the three stewards you chose are fine, but they¡¯ll have trouble running the city alone for the first few weeks. You should have kept the one in charge of health and sanitation alive. Without him the city runs the risk of a sickness.¡± ¡°And last, publicly seeking advice from your friends before and after each decision makes you look weak in the eyes of those watching.¡± Kala said, nodding at the men behind Calvin. Calvin¡¯s brows rose at not only the sheer cruelty of their suggested course of actions, but the specificity of them, as though it had resulted from years of training. ¡°Where in Vashniel¡¯s hoary asshole did you girls learn all this stuff?¡± Calvin asked, blinking surprise away. ¡°When you¡¯re royalty, learning how to usurp power is the same as learning how to defend against the usurpation of power.¡± Kala said, frowning slightly. ¡°You can recognize the signs and prevent them before they happen.¡± Oh, right. Calvin resisted the urge to slap his forehead. They¡¯re princesses. ¡°What? They didn¡¯t teach you how to seize control of a country in that shit-flinging village of yours?¡± Nadia asked, arms crossed, sass dripping off her words as she cocked an eyebrow at him. ¡°No, the only two things I learned from my mom were how to fish and how to smack mouthy royalty.¡± Calvin said, raising his hand threateningly. ¡°I wish I knew how to fish,¡± Nadia mumbled under her breath. Calvin shook his head, resisting the urge to laugh. The sheer strangeness of the situation was getting to him. Talking to Kala helped get his head on straight, but now he had to get back to it. ¡°All right,¡± Calvin said, turning back to the dozen or so villagers, Rufe, Ryan, Dara, Murak, Ghuled, and Polluq watching him expectantly. ¡°Let¡¯s get this show on the road.¡± Calvin said, walking past the rather large bloodstain in the floor and snatching up the cult¡¯s holy book on the way past, following the path Loren had taken to leave. He grabbed Murak¡¯s shoulder with the other hand and marched the banker along in front of him. ¡°First stop, Murak¡¯s. Let¡¯s get this all property transfer signed and sealed.¡± Calvin turned to polluq. ¡°Send people over to the residence and businesses of everyone who died here. keep it quiet, but Murak is going to need their seals.¡± ¡°What about the key speaker for the commencement of the Tournament?¡± Ghuled asked, trailing behind him. ¡°Kurawe was supposed to do it personally.¡± Calvin rounded on the farmer/engineer, releasing Murak. ¡°What. Tournament?¡± Oh, crap, he said the T word. Tell me you¡¯re not planning on joining that whole circus. The farmer frowned. ¡°Imagine I¡¯ve been living in a hole in the ground for the past two weeks.¡± Calvin said, ignoring Elliot. ¡°Explain it to me.¡± He had been living in a hole the last two weeks, so it wasn¡¯t particularly hard for Calvin to imagine. Ghuled¡¯s eyes drifted toward the bloodstain in the center of the room, where Kurawe had lost his head. ¡°Kurawe was one of the most powerful glass shapers in the country.¡± Ghuled said. ¡°He created an arena in a matter of days and was going to use it to host the royal family¡¯s New Year celebration, along with giving the people an outlet. Without him, the plans are in serious jeopardy.¡± ¡°The royal family¡¯s new year celebration?¡± Calvin asked, cocking his head to the side. That¡¯s right, the royal family of Uleis has somewhere around fifty children and more than half are daughters. Hmmm. ¡°Will the entire royal family be in attendance?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Well, yes, but without Kurawe, the chances of the tournament happening are¡­¡± ¡°Change of plans,¡± Calvin said, grabbing Murak by the shoulder again and heading for the door. ¡°We can set aside the paperwork for now. The first order of business is making sure the tournament goes off without a hitch, because we¡¯re going to kidnap the entire royal family.¡± ¡°What?¡± Murak said, frowning. ¡°You heard me.¡± Calvin said, shoving the banker ahead of him. ¡°I¡¯m still gonna need that two thirds, though.¡± Murak made a noise that sounded like an animal in physical pain. ¡°Ffffine.¡± He said, slumping as Calvin pushed him ahead. ¡°Polluq. Same as before, keep people calm, do damage control, but I also want you to promote whoever worked directly under the Crap Magnate.¡± ¡°Gane Bergson, the landlord in charge of the plumbing and sewers for the entire city? The one who tried to throw a knife at you?¡± Calvin snapped his fingers. ¡°That¡¯s the one. Get the city¡¯s sewer maps from them while you¡¯re at it. After you get preparations in order, I want all the information for the construction and security of the arena, specifically the security of the royal family. Don¡¯t change any of it, I don¡¯t want them to get spooked, just ask for the report and pass that on to me.¡± Rufe shifted his weight nervously for a moment, putting his blade away before he leaned close and spoke quietly into Calvin¡¯s ear. ¡°Every Uleisan above the age of twelve knows that the royal family is just a figurehead. They don¡¯t have any actual power. Kidnapping them isn¡¯t going to do much¡­of anything, other than piss us off.¡± ¡®us¡¯ meaning natural born Uleisans. They may not attribute them any power, but even a figurehead is a symbol, Elliot said. And all symbols come with a certain amount of emotional attachment. Tread carefully there. ¡°It¡¯s more of a kidnapping hobby than anything,¡± Calvin replied with a grin as he met the old man¡¯s eyes. Information about his mutations was kept close to the vest. ¡°I can give you my word that no harm will come to them and they¡¯ll be free again in a matter of hours, without fail.¡± Rufe¡¯s eyebrows rose as he leaned away. Calvin felt his smile growing wider as he pictured the extra seventy Body sitting there in the stands, ripe for the taking. ¡°Let¡¯s get to work.¡± Finally I¡¯ll be able to show up that muscle-bound smug ass. ¡­ Actually, half of those points are going to go raising the capacity of your Warp Tank so really, you¡¯ll only gain like, thirty, thirty-five points of Body. Calvin stopped in his tracks, staring into the air as he spoke to Elliot. What? I thought it was static. You took half my body and were done with it. No, it grows with Body. On the bright side, a higher capacity makes it much easier to achieve a break. How, exactly? Okay, so your highest stat is Mind at forty-five, yeah? That times one point three is fifty-eight, rounded down. You need a high enough concentration of Warp that can raise your internal Warp to Fifty-eight to Break again, you follow? Yeah. That level of concentration takes tens of thousands of people dying, but if your warp tank were say, forty six, and it were full¡­ I could dump it out of the tank and into my body at the right time and simulate that level of Warp concentration. As long as the concentration in the air was¡­twelve? That¡¯s the same amount of warp as a first Break. That seems insanely easy. Since we¡¯re talking concentration, it¡¯s not actually linear like that, but yes, It¡¯ll be much, much easier. I¡¯ve always been good at breaking the System. Elliot said with a glimmer of self-satisfaction. You kidnap those princesses, we spend a weekend in the Filter, we¡¯re looking at Break nine, easy. Maybe ten. Do they even have puzzles that difficult? Calvin thought. Umm¡­no. I don¡¯t think they do. Agh, my master plan foiled by no one ever getting smart enough to make a puzzle that could challenge someone with hundreds of Mind. You¡¯re just being facetious now, aren¡¯t you? We¡¯ll go over the basics of theoretical mathematics and FTL technology. Should tide you over. ***Ryan*** Ryan watched the vicious little bastard stop in his tracks like an idea had occurred to him. Expressions began flowing over his face like he was in the middle of an interesting conversation, shutting out the outside world. I could end him right now, and it would end her. Ryan thought, glancing over at Nadia, thumb approaching the hilt of his blade. Two problems, one sword-stroke. Ryan was a little stronger and faster than the two princesses, and the men standing beside Calvin would celebrate if her were to die. But¡­that dagger. Watching the knife stop in midair like it had been caught by an invisible hand gave Ryan second thoughts about trying his luck. The damnable kid hadn¡¯t even been looking. It was some kind of wizard¡¯s autonomous defence, and if it managed to stop his Ability, then he was dead meat. Even if I manage to pull it off, getting away is another thing entirely. Damnitall. Why did Dara have to choose to cling to those two bitches? They¡¯re fucking evil incarnate painted with a veneer of gentleness! With a silent growl of frustration, Ryan took his fingers away from the handle on his waist. He glanced over at Nadia and saw that she was watching him, bemused. ¡°Does he do that often?¡± Ryan asked, nodding toward Calvin to cover staring at Nadia. ¡°Often enough, but don¡¯t overthink it.¡± I won¡¯t stay your bitch forever, you damn demon. He thought, scowling, his guts tightening with the stress. As soon as Ryan had finished the thought, Calvin started moving again, hustling everyone along to get back to work, despite no one being entirely sure what their exact job was. ¡°So much to do, only two days to do it in,¡± the cocky shit said on the way out the door. Gods, I hate him, Ryan thought, idly itching the scar on his side he¡¯d gotten in the fall when the red-robed pricks had tossed him down the hole. Eventually a smile came to him. At least those bastards are dead or suffering. Ryan wasn¡¯t too petty to admit Calvin had taken most of his revenge for him. ***Ella*** ¡°You heard any word?¡± She asked, glancing up at Baroke as he returned from the commissary with a stick of lurker meat and a jug of lukewarm water. The water was the far more expensive of the two. ¡°Nothing.¡± Baroke said, splitting the skewers between the two of them and passing her the jug. ¡°If there¡¯s going to be an execution, they¡¯re keeping it very hush-hush.¡± One moment, Calvin was nowhere and everywhere, a strange sense of directionless to her Guya bond, and the next, the ever-present tug snapped into place, and she knew he was that way. Ella came to her feet, scouring the stone siding of the fighter¡¯s pen with her gaze. Calvin¡¯s heart hardened, before he began moving under his own power, the sensation gradually shifting. ¡°Aihuasenaveya,¡± She muttered, sitting back down. ¡°What?¡± Baroke said between mouthfuls of heavily seasoned skewer. ¡°Calvin is above ground.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Baroke glanced around the pen, where a couple dozen fighters were drying their palms, bouncing their knees, oiling their sheaths, along with a dozen other signs of stress. ¡°Should we take off?¡± He asked. glancing at her. ¡°No,¡± Ella said, suppressing the urge to leave. ¡°If he¡¯s fine, he¡¯s fine. If he¡¯s not, leaving now may give away our cover. Stick to the plan. There¡¯s still a good chance they¡¯re moving him to the arena.¡± The plan was to win the qualifier, then lose early in the tournament proper. As fallen competitors they would be allowed free reign to walk around the arena without anyone questioning their presence wandering the arena¡¯s massive halls. Ella had never seen a construction by man that was this tremendously large, housing thousands of men and women at any given time, but she was rapidly becoming numb to it as the sound of chanting and stomping feet crowded her senses. Shortly afterward, a burly Uleisan opened the door and got their attention by rapping his clipboard on the wall. ¡°Breanne, Schen, Baroke, Gabel, Storm, Kip, Tasker, Hold. You¡¯re up.¡± Ella and the other fighters stood, following the man down a long hall and out into the sun. Once they broke into the open air, the heat began beating down onto them, along with the overwhelming noise of thousands of men and women screaming. The stands aren¡¯t even very full. Ella thought, glancing around as she noticed many people hadn¡¯t bothered coming for the qualifiers. But those who were there still numbered more than she had ever seen in her life. Well, save for the pile of corpses Calvin lit on fire. In the center of the massive circle of seats, There was a large platform divided into four equal squares. ¡°Breanne, you¡¯re against Schen,¡± the Uleisan man said, scowling against the sudden sun and heat. He pointed at one quadrant. ¡°Baroke and Gabel.¡± He pointed at another. ¡°Storm and Kip.¡± ¡°Tasker and Hold.¡± He didn¡¯t bother to point out the last. ¡°First one to tap out, be removed from the ring, give up, fall unconscious or die is the loser. Deliberately killing your opponent is a disqualification. Get to it. Your ref will be waiting by the stage.¡± Schen was the Bolesian Legend with the gaudy orange feathered outfit that looked to be so riddled with sparkling stones that it was practically stiff. Baroke¡¯s opponent was a lean uleisan man with a long, thin sword, along with several backups on his waist. ¡°I suppose it¡¯s your lucky day.¡± Schen said, walking beside Ella. ¡°A beast of burden shaved down and stuffed into an insulting mockery of the dress of my homeland would be butchered where I came from.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Ella asked, glancing down at the little man. ¡°Women of my homeland are delicate flowers, not fighters. Give up before you embarrass yourself.¡± Ella chuckled as they walked, but didn¡¯t say anything. Words weren¡¯t going to make her feel better. Crushing his skull would make her feel better. They arrived in front of the referee, who briefly recapped the rules, set them up on the stage, then gave them the signal to fight, chopping through the air with his hand. Immediately, Schen¡¯s ostentatious garb caught fire, the massive orange feathers turning into blazing jets of flame. The heat rolling off the contestant was blistering as he began to rise, his feet lifting off the ground, until the Bolesian man was at eye level. The referee put his hand over his eyes and backed away as Schen floated toward Ella, supported by gouts of flame as thick as her leg. ¡°You¡¯ve got one chance, woman!¡± Schen shouted above the roar of flame as the entire arena focused their attention on him. ¡°Trust me when I say you can¡¯t afford the burns on your face.¡± The other fighters stopped in the middle of grappling to look at the spectacle in the northwest quadrant. Schen seemed to revel in the attention, his clothes growing brighter and hotter. ¡°I am prince Schen of Gin! Son of Schen tzu! Fifth in line for the throne of the Gin dynasty! I have trained my entire life in the art of combat! These clothes were made from the feathers of an Andarian firebird, the symbol of royalty! They are worth more than this arena and everyone in it! Only I have the ability to harness their sheer power. You are looking at the man who will win this tournament! You are looking at the man with the mandate of Soscath, who will unite all of Boles!¡± Iron Skin 15/16 Bent remaining. Ella waded through the heat, muscled past the pain and punched him in the face, iron knuckles driving aside the weak man¡¯s clumsy block and fracturing his nose. Since he was floating in midair, he tumbled twice, spraying blood out of his face before slamming into the ground at an odd angle, knocking himself senseless with another blow to the head. The flames winked out, leaving the Bolesian lying there, eyes open and rolling in the center of a slowly cooling patch of red-hot stone. I wonder if any of that boasting was true. ¡°Winner.¡± The referee called, pointing at Ella. ¡°No looting the enemy.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not allowed?¡± Ella asked, glancing up as she was halfway through slipping the man¡¯s shoulder out of his valuable clothes. ¡°He said they were worth the entire arena.¡± ¡°Nevertheless.¡± The referee said, pointing to the exit. Macronomicon Chapter 123: Hamfisted Exposition In the year 6887, A pair of Harbingers established the Order of the Seeking Hand and seeded its dogma across the universe in a vain attempt to provide some small comfort and camaraderie to the Ravagers. Those souls, divorced from their own people would forever suffer, never return to their homes, even when the Great Front has passed them by. Why should they be without belonging for all eternity? So we try to pluck out the exceptional, as a soul too big for its container shows in many ways. We test them, in the hopes that we can find our lost brothers, sisters, leaders, friends, again. ¡­I regret the many lower life forms that are sacrificed to single out even one Ravager, but I would slay every breathing creature across the face of thousands of worlds if it meant I could speak to my Jeneveve again. Even for these lower life forms, there is a benefit to carrying on these practices. A Ravager, once located, will become a nexus of change. The anger seated deep down in their souls will compel them to cast down oppressors ¨C ¡°Did he really believe this shit?¡± Calvin asked, glancing up at Murak, who was industriously filling and signing documents like his life depended on it: which it did. ¡°He really did.¡± Murak said without looking up, his tongue caught in the side of his mouth as his eyes scanned between ledgers, reading them at a rate that Calvin would have described as inhuman¡­if he didn¡¯t know the man was a Legend. A Legendary Banker. The gnarled old man obviously had no combat skills, Exclusively focusing on ones that allowed him to make more money. He¡¯d focused on his merchant Skills to the exclusion of all else when he was young, and when he could afford it, he¡¯d bought his way into Veteran status, and then become a Legend when he joined the Order of the seeking hand. ¡°So, can you make gold coins breed in captivity with Bent or something?¡± Murak glanced up at him with a scowl that carved deep wrinkles through his face. He looked like he wanted to burst into a tyrade. Calvin could feel the man¡¯s barely suppressed urge to cuss out this young upstart. Calvin lifted his knife into the banker¡¯s field of view. ¡°Don¡¯t you have somewhere else to be?¡± Murak finally said. ¡°I think I understood some of the advice I got.¡± Calvin said, closing the book and frowning in faux concentration. ¡°I was told to grab the money of Uleis by the balls. You are responsible for more than a quarter of Uleis¡¯s wealth. You also have temporary possession of Orson¡¯s assets since my company was declared traitorous and dissolved by the state.¡± ¡°That means, you have over a third of this nation¡¯s capital. And I have you. So no. I don¡¯t have anywhere else to be.¡± Murak radiated extreme frustration, but he hid it well. ¡°Fine. Just keep quiet. I¡¯m concentrating.¡± ¡°So can you make gold coins reproduce?¡± ¡°Yes, but it¡¯s a novelty and a waste of my time, okay!?¡± Murak said, his gnarled fingers tightening around his pen. ¡°Neat.¡± Calvin opened the cult¡¯s ritual book again, starting from where he left off. ¡°Do you believe?¡± ¡°No. joining the order of the seeking hand was just a step on the road to power. Not joining them was a good way of being tossed into the Abyss by a competitor.¡± ¡°So how did Kurawe believe in everything without realizing he was the oppressor?¡± ¡°It just turned out that way. Strong-bonded boys club. One member gets wealthy, shares the opportunity with the other members of his cult. The situation propagates over hundreds of years. It¡¯s no surprise they wound up in control of the entire country.¡± ¡°Huh.¡±Calvin kept reading about the cult¡¯s origins and Ravagers in general. Apparently they were Harbinger souls who¡¯d been subjected to some kind of process that marked their soul to the system, which would redistribute them at the edge of the Great Front, which was shorthand for the outer edge of the Harbinger empire¡¯s line of expansion. Of course, infinite space meant infinite expansion, and ever more diluted forces. Harbingers attempted to keep up via portals, FTL and massive expansion in the number of Harbingers, but at the same time, conquering planets was easy. So easy in fact, that the Harbingers got complacent, and despite no resource scarcity, they nearly fell to civil war. The immortal king of the Harbingers at the time ascribed to the theory that like every living thing, the empire needed some kind of light opposition to keep the stagnation at bay. So he created the Ravagers. Harbinger souls exiled into lower life forms to rally them against Harbinger control. Bad Harbinger commanders get defeated, are replaced with better ones. Bad harbinger tactics are replaced with better ones, bad Governors, etc. Opposition to facilitate strength. The dead flesh is scoured away, that healthy flesh may thrive. But it never ended well for Ravagers. One soul against an empire of naturally Bent-manipulating creatures? Invariably, after the ravager had exposed the Harbinger¡¯s weakness, they lost, were killed, and moved further afield, toward the edge of the Great Front. Even some of the ravagers who seemed to be on route to carving out their own territory, without making a single mistake, were inexplicably beaten within a single day. Calvin felt his hair stand on end. Am I one of these things? The sheer enormity of the book¡¯s claims seemed nonsensical. What about the gods? Are they the gods? Other worlds other than Marconen? Everything he knew from the beginning of his life had taught him there was only Marconen, and anything else was myth. What about the creation of Marconen and Soscath? Is that true? Yes, life on other planets exists. Don¡¯t let it distract you. Chances are pretty good you¡¯re a Ravager. That¡¯s what they called me. This book has been very informative. Keep it around. Those passages about the sudden inexplicable defeat of certain ravagers leads me to think there might be some kind of failsafe in the System code in regards to Ravagers. I¡¯m going to be doing some soul-searching for a kill-switch of some kind. Nobody puts a fucking kill switch in my soul and lives to tell about it. In the meantime, don¡¯t overthink it. One way or the other, this doesn¡¯t really affect you until you get off-planet. Just keep doing what you¡¯re doing and try not to think about the insignificant mote of dust you¡¯re fighting over. Thanks, Calvin thought, rolling his eyes. I can always count on you for helpful advice. Sometimes, ¡®don¡¯t think about it¡¯ is the right advice. I¡¯ll take it under advisement. Calvin thought, closing the book, breathing in deeply then letting all those thoughts go. It wasn¡¯t a problem he could solve right now. Extensive Training has raised your attributes! +1 Stability Focus on something I can do. Don¡¯t just waste time waiting for the report to come. Studying magic calmed Calvin down. Or at least made him manic enough to ignore his concerns for a few hours. Calvin opened his satchel full of dozens of monster ingredients. Each of them had been reduced to powder and carefully labelled with a knick-knack inscribed picture so he knew exactly which organ they¡¯d come from. There¡¯s so much to do. Splitting. 31/32 Bent Remaining. Calvin copied the entire bag and set aside the original. He took the pink orb out of its case and peered through it. On impulse, Calvin glanced at Murak. The shriveled banker was upside down and shrunken in the view of the lens, but there was something else, too. Calvin could make out odd yellow shimmers blinking in and out of existence around him. Hmm¡­ Calvin dug through the bag until he found the powder that used to be the sensitive material, then added water to it, slathering it over the lens, leaving a pinhole for light to go through. Calvin pointed it at Murak, peering through the pinhole. The yellow glinting glimmers resolved into a rain of gold coins constantly falling around Murak, bouncing off him and tumbling to the ground, only to vanish. He was still upside down, though. Very interesting. Calvin thought, eyeing the material slathered around the lens. With a little work I could make a spyglass out of this. Calvinian summoning. Atom Ant. 30/32 Bent remaining. Murak yelped when dozens of Knick-knacks appeared out of thin air. Calvin closed his eyes and pictured the design of such a spyglass, keeping every detail and every material carefully catalogued in his mind. Drafting has reached Level 4! 20% Get to work. The Knick-knacks began pouring through his duplicated materials, aiming to create his vision. He was going to hold onto the original material for now until he was sure that was what he wanted to do with it. ¡°You can create a workforce of knick-knacks?¡± Murak asked, his jaw slowly slackening. ¡°Do you have any idea how valuable they are?¡± Calvin glanced up at Murak. ¡°Yes. Who did you think crashed the price of lace?¡± Murak¡¯s grip on his his pen tightened again, but from his gaze, the man wasn¡¯t angry as Calvin had thought he¡¯d be, he was instead experiencing a wave of greed that bordered on orgasm. ¡°nnggg,¡± Murak bit his tongue and got back to work, visibly setting aside the overwhelming desire to ask follow up questions. You, Calvin mentally selected a dozen knick-knacks waiting on the edge of the spyglass construction. Hold these. Calvin gave them several vials of powders taken from the Lure and the Stalkers. He poured water into each and started testing their effects, using the knick-knack¡¯s torches to heat the vials. *** ¡°How do I look now?¡± Calvin asked, dabbing a bit of refined Lure juice on his nose. Murak sighed with exasperation, looking up from his paperwork. ¡°I told you, you don¡¯t¡­¡± He stopped speaking. ¡°You look like a horrifying abomination, composed of a huge pile of money, my dead wife, and my Bolesian villa.¡± ¡°Interesting,¡± Calvin said, wiping the stuff off the tip of his nose. Must be too concentrated, and I don¡¯t have a method of forcing it to choose one illusion or another, so it defaults to all of them. That must have been what the lure was using the lens for. Accurately identifying a person¡¯s current desire, then targeting it. There must have been an organ that fine-tuned the illusion that was displayed, because I¡¯m just getting a mishmash of garbage. It wasn¡¯t actually changing the way he looked, though, just the way he was perceived. Maybe¡­ Calvin took the lure blend he¡¯d been working on, took out the visual stimulating elements, diluted it, cut it with Stalker juice, and pumped the result through the inward turning, curly-que organ that generated the Stalker¡¯s Complacency Aura. ¡°How about now?¡± Calvin asked, glancing up at Murak. ¡°You look normal.¡± Murak said, glancing up at him. ¡°You know, conquering kingdoms is a fine goal, but at your age, a strong saving account will be priceless in the future. I¡¯d be happy to show you how to manage your money.¡± Murak lifted a paper, showing it to Calvin. ¡°This document here is a -¡± Calvin shook the mixture out of the stalker organ, clearing its tubes. Murak blinked. ¡°What the Abyss was that? It was like I didn¡¯t care about what you¡¯ve done to me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t overthink it,¡± Calvin said, making a note of the combination and its effects in his journal. ¡°Get back to work.¡± Let¡¯s call that one Charm. Calvin shrugged, writing it down. Good a name as any. Next was the Unqua beads. Unqua were fascinating in that they grew two beads, one small and black, twice the size of a bean, the other large and silvery, yet pebbled, about the size of a Bola nut. The two beads sat in a complicated section of bone and muscle in the center of the Unqua, designed to push the beads closer together and lock them in place. The beads repelled each other with a significant amount of force, but when they were forced together¡­ Calvin tried to force the two beads together with his fingers, watching the size of the room fluctuate around him as his own size fluctuated rapidly in time with the two sphere¡¯s distance from each other. The rules for how the beads worked were very interesting. Organic matter touching the beads directly would shrink completely, without leaving any part of the creature behind, along with a small amount of aura around that matter, entirely dependent on the mass of the creature. In short, if a huge creature like the Unqua shrunk, it could carry several people with it, but if Calvin did it, he could barely keep his clothes with him. Push these together, Calvin through, handing them to a knick-knack, interested in the impact on a construct. The knick-knack was far stronger and steadier than Calvin was, and it managed to shrink itself easily. So maybe it¡¯s not living matter so much as contiguous matter. Calvin thought as the Knick-Knack enlarged itself again. He set a glass lid on top of the knick-knack¡¯s head, looking like a little hat. The next time it shrunk, the hat stayed the same size, covering the ant-sized Knick-knack until it grew in size again. Calvin instructed the nearby knick-knacks to weld the glass to their companion¡¯s head. A moment later, it shrank again, and this time the hat shrank too. According to the knick-knack, the resistance to pushing the two beads together was a tiny fraction higher with the extra amount of mass. Interesting. Calvin thought as he took the two unqua bead out of the kncik-knack¡¯s hand. I could design a contiguous wagon, or some kind of large transportation method that relies on a vice of some kind, pushing the two beads together with an inhuman amount of power, then locking the two beads into place. Basically, copy an Unqua. One side would have to be solidly attached to the rest of the wagon, while the other side would have the vice mechanism attached to it. The entire wagon would be massive enough to include the vice mechanism and cargo in the aura generated. Calvin thought a little more. Did he have to keep the beads the same shape? What would happen if I were to process the two stones into a thread and wound it around something? I need more time to study this stuff. Calvin wished he could spend all of his time playing with his new toys, but life was what it was. The door to Murak¡¯s office clicked open, and Polluq stepped inside. He paused for a moment, holding a clipboard as he watched the Knick-Knacks putting the finishing touches on Calvin¡¯s spyglass. ¡°¡­These are the sewer maps you requested.¡± ¡°Ah, just the person I wanted to see,¡± Calvin said, holding out his hand. The knick-knacks placed the spyglass in his hand, and Calvin inspected the man in front of him, his hackles rising as he saw the man¡¯s lust for power personified in the form of broken bodies and chains around necks. It was a total violation of the man¡¯s privacy. But they weren¡¯t friends. ¡°You¡¯re going to curb that temper while you¡¯re working for me, understood?¡± Calvin said, setting aside the spyglass and holding out his hand for the report. ¡°Understood,¡± Polluq gritted through his teeth, handing him the report. Calvin flipped through the details of the tournament¡¯s security, clapping his hands in glee. ¡°Yay! Fifty-two royals in attendance! And thirty five of them of them are the king¡¯s children! Wonderful!¡± ¡°About that.¡± Polluq said. ¡°There¡¯s a good chance a large portion of the royalty may not attend, or send representatives in their stead. Especially with Kurawe¡¯s sudden disappearance. He was the primary reason the royal family was forced to be in attendance. If he doesn¡¯t show himself, they won¡¯t feel the need to do so, either.¡± ¡°Son of a bitch,¡± Calvin muttered. ¡°Gather several men who generally look like Kurawe, the more you can find, the better. About the right age, too, preferably.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re looking for a body double, just say so and we¡¯ll find one.¡± Polluq said. ¡°Did I misspeak?¡± Polluq¡¯s jaw tightened. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Anything else?¡± ¡°The royal contestant has been seeded in the tournament proper, leaving fifteen open slots. As of this morning, those fifteen slots have been filled with these people.¡± He handed Calvin a stack of papers. ¡°Kurawe¡¯s plan was to give the winner a prestigious prize and then toss them in the pit after recouping the prize. I¡¯m assuming you don¡¯t want to follow the original plan?¡± ¡°You assume correctly,¡± Calvin muttered, scanning through the profiles, until his eyes landed on a familiar name. Grabnar The barbarian ¡°Is this actually the contestant¡¯s name?¡± Calvin asked, pointing it out. ¡°Those are the names they gave.¡± Well, that¡¯s obviously Baroke. The meatball used the name when they played conquerers back when they were younger. Jinnei always hated playing the princess. Calvin scanned the rest of the fifteen until he found Ella, the only six-foot tall woman with iron skin in the tournament. As he read, he couldn¡¯t help but laugh. What the Abyss are they doing in a godforsaken tournament? Rescuing you from kurawe, maybe? That¡¯s the only reason I can think of. Calvin thought, shaking his head, still giggling. ¡°Something funny?¡± Polluq asked. ¡°This tournament is what¡¯s funny. It¡¯s not Kurawe¡¯s absence that¡¯s causing the royal family to scorn it. It¡¯s boring. What you need is real spectacle. Team battles, ocean warfare, deadly monsters. Pitfalls and explosions. Fireworks. You get all these legends together and waste their talents on a handful of one on one fights?¡± Hahahahaha! Baroke is gonna be pissed! Polluq paused. ¡°Where is the money for that going to come from?¡± he asked. The two of them glanced meaningfully over at Murak. The gnarled old man sank into his desk, clutching his head with trembling fingers and moaning. ¡°Got it.¡± Polluq said, nodding. ¡°We need the right bait.¡± He frowned. ¡°I still don¡¯t know why you¡¯re insisting on this, though.¡± ¡°Why is my business.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Clear the Arena for the night, send the Kurawe lookalikes to the arena, arrange for drastically more spectacle, whatever it takes, and¡­¡± Calvin tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair. ¡°Announce that I¡¯ve been captured and will be executed at the end of the games. That should help lure out the royal family.¡± Too much for a practical joke at Baroke¡¯s expense? I¡¯m just scared of Ella¡¯s reaction at this point. ¡°True.¡± Calvin said, nodding. But she should at least be able to sense that I¡¯m fine. ¡°What¡¯s true?¡± Murak asked. ¡°We¡¯re leaving.¡± Calvin said, standing. ¡°We?¡± Murak asked. ¡°What part of keeping you within eyeshot at all times did you not understand?¡± Calvin said, eyeing the powerful banker. ¡°I didn¡¯t think you were serious.¡± Murak muttered. ¡°Like I would let a snake like you disappear back into the underbrush.¡± Murak began shoving all his paperwork into a case with a growl. Macronomicon Chapter 124: minor changes to the rules ¡°Number twelve, step forward.¡± Calvin said. In the distance, the Kurawe lookalike with the blindfold stepped forward, his feet crossing the line at the edge of arena that marked one hundred feet distance. One of the Guys. Calvin shuddered as his bones shifted and his flesh ballooned outward, growing in height and girth, until was the size and shape of the late cult leader. He turned and ran back to Murak, dressed in Kurawe¡¯s clothes stolen from the cult leader¡¯s mansion. ¡°What do you think?¡± he asked, running his hands down his body sensually, rubbing his corpulent body. ¡°Well, I can honestly say that¡¯s disturbing,¡± Murak said. ¡°You got it perfect. Or close enough to perfect.¡± ¡°Excellent,¡± Calvin said, sitting across from the banker. The chair was tiny, like a child¡¯s set of furniture and Calvin found himself balanced precariously, trying to stay seated next to them. ¡°Not a fan,¡± Kala said, leaning away from Calvin¡¯s new bulk. ¡°I¡¯ve seen disguise abilities before.¡± Murak said. ¡°They¡¯re instantaneous. That was not instantaneous.¡± ¡°True.¡± Calvin said, glancing around the noisy arena. Thousands of knick knacks were tearing apart the royal stands and modifying the arena itself to alter the contents of the tournament. Calvin dug the arena¡¯s blueprints out from under the pile of documents that Murak was sorting through. Signing the city over to Calvin took time. He laid them flat on his side of the table, then overlaid the map of the city. ¡°The aqueduct runs directly under the arena. Right around here.¡± Calvin said, marking the spot gently with a sharpened piece of charcoal. ¡° And the sewer is here¡­¡± He marked another spot. ¡°And the royal stands are¡­here. Calvin groaned as he marked a spot as far away from his two favorite methods of egress as possible, rubbing his temple. They wouldn¡¯t be able to drop the royal family straight into the sewers. Maybe a slide¡­ ¡°What¡¯s under the royal stands?¡± Calvin asked aloud, shuffling through the next set of blueprints. ¡°The contestant rest area.¡± Kala said, passing him the basement level blueprint and pointing. ¡°They don¡¯t need all that space, do they?¡± Calvin asked, shading in about half of the area, then made a note on the side. *35 degree track. Track¡­ ¡°What¡¯s the height of the ceiling?¡± ¡°Twelve feet.¡± Kala said, pointing to a side view. ¡°In the plans, anyway.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to need to double check. What the plan says and what happened isn¡¯t always the same. ¡°In my experience, it¡¯s never the same,¡± Murak said idly, stamping another document with a thump. He glanced up and spotted their stunned expressions. ¡°I¡¯m eighty two.¡± He said patronizingly. ¡°I wasn¡¯t rich and powerful my entire life. I worked on plumbing a time or two.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Calvin frowned as he went over the blueprint. ¡°The most important thing here is that the kidnapping goes off without a hitch. Fewest possible points of failure. Exactly, we¡¯re not making a Rube Goldburg device. I don¡¯t know what that is, Calvin thought as he glanced up at the royal stands the knick-knacks were industriously cutting away from the main building. Unfortunately the stands themselves were part of a section of build that was never intended to be free floating, so they weren¡¯t contiguous. I need contiguous. Calvin pulled out the blank sheet of paper and began sketching the plan for the kidnapping vehicle. The most important thing was making sure the shrinking effect worked the way he thought it did, and that the shrinking happened to the exact measure that he needed. That meant math. But math based on the real world is seldom perfect, Calvin thought glancing back up at the arena as he sketched the mechanism with a preset¡­ No, not preset. Put a Knick-knack in charge of the shrinking. Calvin circled a little hole in the floor beside the tightening screw and made sure it had a clear line of sight to the wheels under the platform. A knick-knack could aim for the estimated shrinkage, then adjust as necessary to make sure the wheels landed properly. He filled in a little straight-lined man holding onto a crank. Drafting has reached level 5! 25% correction. +1 intuition Please choose an Ability or Mutation. Foreman: Drafting corrections apply to those building on your behalf. Visualization: superimpose a mental image on the real world to aid in drafting. Only visible to the user. Steady hands: Correction applies to effective Kinesthetics level. Idiot-Proofing: Blueprints drawn by the user apply the user¡¯s correction to others trying to understand and remember them. ^ We can finally compete in the race against nature''s ability to create a better idiot. Mutations Igor Brain: Grow a specialized sub-brain that can aid in the design and recall of complicated structures/processes. ^yes, Master! ^ Slight chance of becoming an eldritch abomination. You know, assuming you weren¡¯t already slowly becoming an undead as your body slides inevitably toward death. Cuz who doesn¡¯t wanna be an eldritch abomination, amiright? Never go without: User¡¯s appendages may be transformed into Pencils at will. Extreme amounts of writing may cause damage to the user¡¯s body. ^*shrug* Why not? Calvin scanned the options. None of them immediately jumped out at him. At least you¡¯ve got a 25% sharper pencil. Okay, let¡¯s sort through these. Foreman is out because Knick-knacks don¡¯t need any kind of boost. They are already inhumanly good at what they do. Steady hands is redundant because I plan on getting a huge amount of Kinesthetics in the next couple days. Idiot proofing is¡­well, good for giving other people my designs, but I don¡¯t plan on doing much of that in the immediate future. Igor Brain¡­ Calvin was far more cautious about mutations since The Incident. He didn¡¯t think he¡¯d fare so well if there was a conflict Elliot hadn¡¯t predicted. His brain couldn¡¯t slough off as easily as his eyes. Perhaps it¡¯s a bit too on the nose, but I liked being the only one in residence in my skull. I don¡¯t need another wisecracking asshole in here. Was that directed at me? So that leaves Visualization. Not an exciting power, but Calvin could see himself using it, and using it well. I choose visualization. Cal closed his eyes as the knowledge tingled its way into his mind. Hey, what about the pencil one? You don¡¯t want to be Pencil Man? No. Calvin opened his eyes. Let¡¯s try the suit of armor trick again. Visualize was very versatile, allowing him to picture the suit of armor as if it were standing in front of him, every little piece apparent to his eyes. Even the insides. It was bizzare, but if Calvin shifted his focus, the part of the armor blocking his side would become somewhat transparent, allowing him to see the back of the piece, along with all the tiny details of the armor. There were a few spots that weren¡¯t perfectly imagined, rivets just a tiny bit oblong that might make the armor squeak as it moved. They were a breeze to change, resulting in a flawless set of armor standing in front of him, held up by sheer balance. Calvin touched the Abyssal Steel marble and the leather of his belt. At this point it was like he was a child, filling in a draw by numbers book. It was laughably easy. Mass Multi Shaping. 16/32 Bent remaining. Murak flinched as four suits of Abyssal steel armor appeared, fully formed to the side of their table, balancing for a moment before they toppled to the ground. Yeah, that works. It had added a couple seconds to the casting time to fill in all those tiny details, but Calvin was sure he could bring that number down. And in a situation where accuracy was more valuable than speed, being able to literally visualize the creation as he was making it was a damn good advantage. I like this, Calvin thought, steepling his fat sausage fingers together and trying not to break his chair as he studied the armor lying on the sand of the arena. Behind them, he heard the sound of someone walking through the sand, along with the feeling of Polluq¡¯s form, hand resting on the pommel of his shortsword. He stopped for a moment, studying Calvin¡¯s huge form before addressing Murak and Kala. ¡°It seems as if the body double turned out well enough, where¡¯s the little shit?¡± ¡°That¡¯d be me,¡± Calvin replied with a very close approximation of Kurawe¡¯s voice. ¡°Disguise Ability?¡± Pulluq asked, eyes narrowing. ¡°Does it stand up to magical scrutiny?¡± ¡°Sure does.¡± ¡°You want me to dispose of the templates?¡± he asked pointing a thumb at the men sweating bullets with their eye covered. ¡°..no? Just keep them quiet until after the tournament. It doesn¡¯t require killing them.¡± Polluq seemed a little disappointed. How the hell did Kurawe keep this guy on a leash? Oh right, he threw people in a hole for fun. Nevermind. ¡°Well, we¡¯ve got everything set up, including the announcement of the changes to the games, along with your execution at the conclusion. Was there anything else?¡± ¡°I need this set of rules given to the contestants.¡± Calvin said, passing him his List of Demands. Polluq scanned it, frowning deeply before looking up at Calvin with a scowl. ¡°What on Marconen is this shit?¡± ¡°Shits and giggles.¡± Calvin said. There was a massive cracking noise as the last section of the royal stands came loose from the rest of the glass structure. It immediately began to shift, flipping over high above their heads as knick-knacks used their own bodies as bracing for the fragile structure while they welded support struts to the bottom. ¡°How much do you think that weighs?¡± Calvin asked, watching the monolithic chunk of floor shifting out of the way. Calvinian summoning 15/32 Bent remaining. 14/32 Bent remaining. 13/32 Bent remaining. 12/32 Bent remaining. 11/32 Bent remaining. Calvin shook his tent-like sleeves out of the way and held out his hands as a gout of green smoke billowed out of his hands, resolving into a thousand more Knick-knacks, who climbed up the side of the arena and dove into the area beneath the seat-filled platform. They were the ones responsible for working on the track. ¡°Nadia, I need a pick-me-up.¡± She wasn¡¯t able to read his mind unless he directly tried to influence the summon with his will, so verbal commands worked better, since she could see and hear everything he did. 12/32 Bent remaining. 13/32 Bent remaining. 14/32 Bent remaining. ¡­ 33/32 Bent remaining. ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡± Back to work. Minimal changes for maximum distance. ***Nadia*** Nadia¡¯s prey gasped for air as she pulled her lips away from theirs. ¡°Please,¡± the young woman gasped, her furious heartbeat showing in the hollow of her neck. The uleisan tart was sprawled backward in the thick pillows of the brothel, barely able to remember her name. ¡°Sorry, that¡¯s all I can do for now,¡± Nadia said sweetly as she laid next to her, fixing the gullible rube¡¯s hair as the girl¡¯s eyelids fluttered in between gasps of pleasure. ¡°Did I have to be around for this?¡± Ryan asked, shifting in his seat uncomfortably. ¡°No, that was just bad timing on your part,¡± Nadia said, turning her gaze back to the simpleton. She levered herself off the bed and went over to the nearby desk with a letter on it. She handed it to him. ¡°You¡¯re going to deliver this to a professor named Seymour.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you do it?¡± the petulant sociopath asked. ¡°Because the strings attached to me aren¡¯t my own,¡± Nadia said, putting her face uncomfortably close to her puppet¡¯s. ¡°The strings attached to you, though¡­¡± She said, tapping him on the chest with her finger. Those are mine. All you have to do is deliver the letter, and I¡¯ll reward you with a small fortune I squirreled away earlier.¡± ¡°How will you know I¡¯ve delivered it?¡± Ryan asked. ¡°Seymour will get into contact with me. When that happens¡­¡± Nadia smiled brightly. ¡°You¡¯re paid.¡± Ryan pursed his lips, looking at the envelope. ¡°I can do that.¡± ***Baroke*** Matthias was right. Damn. It was confusing as the Mist, because from what Ella told him, Calvin was feeling mischievous, not about to be executed. There was something going on. They gathered in the contestant¡¯s lobby on the morning of the tournament, gawking at the changes made to the room. The ceiling was now sloped downward at a thirty-five degree angle, leading almost a third of the room to be entirely unusable except for a few souls taking naps under the low section of the ceiling, despite the water dripping onto them. The organizer of the tournament walked in the door, looking down at his clipboard and clearing his throat. ¡°Alright, a lot has changed since yesterday, as you can see. Kurawe has decided to add naval battles to the menu along with team battles and games of skill.¡± Baroke blinked. What is going on? The other fighters looked similarly confused. ¡°For the first event, we¡¯ll take all sixteen of you and assign a unit of twelve infantrymen to each, and the point of the game will be to sink the other team¡¯s ships.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t what I signed up for! I can¡¯t even swim!¡± one of the fighters said, to the general assent of others. ¡°Then I suggest not getting your ship sunk,¡± the bald man said, cocking a brow. ¡°You all signed a waiver that not only acknowledged the risk of death, but also said you would comply with whatever changes the organizer of the event deems necessary. He deems this necessary.¡± ¡°Son of a bitch.¡± The guy who couldn¡¯t swim said. Baroke wasn¡¯t the best swimmer either, his density was pretty high. ¡°there will be six other events over the course of the day, and the one who places highest in the average of all the events will be the champion. With all the associated benefits¡­Including¡­¡± The organizer looked up and scanned their faces. ¡°The right to execute The Wasp, the monster who killed the Third Division.¡± A hushed murmur floated over the crowd as Baroke¡¯s skin crawled. ¡°The loser of each event will be disqualified from winning the prize and removed from the arena until the end of the tournament.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t even get to watch?¡± one of the men asked. ¡°Nope. Moving on..¡± Baroke tuned out as his mind raced. If he didn¡¯t win, he¡¯d be kicked out of the arena until after Calvin had been executed! What kind of guarshit was that? That ruined everything! Baroke¡¯s plan to coast along after forfeiting the first round was thrown out the window. He had to double down and beat everyone here to get close enough to rescue Calvin. He or Ella had to make it to the end. They had to win. ¡°Oh, I almost forgot.¡± The organizer said, reaching into the satchel on his side. He pulled out a tiny scrap of leather thong, connected to two extra tall platform high heels made of ivory, and a bright pink puff of stiff cloth. ¡°Any contestant over the height of six foot eight is required to wear these,¡± He said. ¡°The organizer said that, and I quote, ¡®our tallest men and women are a gift from the gods and should really pop on the battlefield.¡¯ End quote.¡± Heads started to turn towards Baroke, the only one who was obviously above that height threshold. I have to do it, Baroke thought, his heart hammering in his chest. I have to save him. ¡°Oh, and there¡¯s body oil in here for anyone above two hundred and forty pounds. The producer says it¡¯ll help show off your muscles or curves, what have you.¡± The burly man said, pulling out a canister full of congealed oil. Baroke could make out short, curly hairs clinging to the side of the can. I can swallow this humiliation. I have to ¨C ¡°Oh.¡± Baroke said, realization slamming him between the eyes. ¡°OOOH,¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Ella asked, glancing over at him. ¡°Calvin¡¯s running the damned tournament. He¡¯s fine. Let¡¯s get the fuck out of here.¡± ¡°Rewards for first and second place have been changed to include a suit of armor made of a magical metal never seen before on this world, and a quiver full of magical arrows made of the same stuff. Not only can they penetrate nearly anything, but the quiver can fit in the palm of your hand. Hmmm¡­. Macronomicon Chapter 125: Landfall ***Gadvera, somewhere high up.*** ¡°I am Goob, master of the wizard tower!¡± Goob said, one foot placed on the edge of the stone railing with triumph. The city of Mujenan lay sprawled out below him, an inch away from surrendering to his superior forces. One day, Goob thought with a grin, looking down at his soon-to-be subjects. ¡°You are Goob, Master of avoiding chores,¡± an aged voice said, sending a chill down his spine. Ohcrap! Goob leapt off the edge of the academy¡¯s weather tower and whirled in midair, kicking the broom up into his hands as though it had never been abandoned on the floor. At the staircase leading down was Evor. The black haired wizard was growing a white streak through his hair since he¡¯d assumed command of the academy. ¡°Master Evor. Good to see you. I was just finishing up sweeping off the Fairweather.¡± Goob made a few brushing motions in the weather machine¡¯s general direction. Goob thought he saw an instant of amusement crushed under a wave of solemn disapproval. ¡°Goob. There aren¡¯t a whole lot of wizards left in Gadvera these days. Only a handful of our faculty survived through luck or subterfuge.¡± He glanced down at the headmaster¡¯s pin on his robe. ¡°We aren¡¯t the best and brightest. We¡¯re the just ones who are still alive.¡± Evor pointed at him. ¡°Your generation is going to be responsible for rebuilding this academy as a place of learning. And that responsibility starts with sweeping the godforsaken ¨C ¡° Master Evor¡¯s brown eyes narrowed. ¡°Um, wha-eep!¡± The aged master wizard stormed toward Goob, and before the apprentice could react, the master¡¯s rough hand pushed his face out of the way as he marched past. The wizard stopped at the edge of the tower, staring out into the ocean. ¡°Damn.¡± Goob hustled to stand next to the master wizard, peering out into the shimmering ocean. There¡¯s nothing there. Is it something only he can see, or¡­wait. Goob adjusted his gaze further up and out. On the very horizon. Dots of white. Hundreds, thousands of them. And just a little ways ahead of those white dots, a single vessel the size of a grain of rice. Are those all¡­ships? Goob thought, the hairs on his arms standing on end. There were more ships than there were citizens of Mujenan, by his count. ¡°Master, what¡¯s going on?¡± Goob asked, looking up at the dark-haired wizard. His master was scowling, his weathered face looking like it had carved out of stone. The bells of the city began ringing. Soldiers looking like ants began to assemble on the shorter towers around the city, gawking at the armada beyond belief coming their ¡°Get everyone up here. We¡¯re going to activate the fairweather.¡± ¡°But don¡¯t you need approval from-¡° ¡°Goob,¡± Master Evor said, glancing down at him, his eyes fiery with anger. ¡°Now is not the time to question me. Get everyone up here if you want to live. Now.¡± Goob started running. ***Jinnei*** ¡°Landfall in an hour, princess!¡± Kip shouted from the crow¡¯s nest. ¡°Incoming, princess!¡± one of the crewmembers shouted as another massive bolt descended from the sky, a giant spike of iron and wood the size of a lifeboat, covered with a writhing mass of black tubes. Karen leapt into the air and diverted the attack, knocking it aside in a shower of sparks. The bolt spun off into the distance, splashing down into the salt water, causing the nasty things to squirm in pain before they sank beneath the water. A few of the squirming black tubes landed on the vessel and in the rigging, and the pirates raced back and forth to stab them and toss them overboard before they could get under anyone¡¯s skin. Karen didn¡¯t seem to notice them, though, brushing the strange worm off her shoulders with casual disregard as she walked back, scanning the horizon for any more attempts to kill them. ¡°All the crawlies have been dealt with, princess!¡± Jinnei scanned the malkenrovian pirates grinning at her as she steered the ship. Most of them missing teeth. The last dregs of a dead country looked at her like she was made of pure unadulterated hope. ¡°The next man who calls me princess loses his balls! You call me captain!¡± Jinnei shouted, feeling her face heat up with anger and embarrassment. ¡°Aye aye, Captain Malkenrov!¡± ¡°That¡¯s not my name!¡± A huge hand clapped over her shoulder, and Jinnei glanced up to see Karen looking down at her with sad eyes. ¡°It would have been, had things gone differently.¡± She said with a shrug before moving on, taking a seat against the rear mast, watching their backs. ¡°You hear that fellas!?¡± A resounding cheer went up through the ship that nearly deafened her. She wanted to reach out and slap someone, but was unwilling to let go of the ship¡¯s wheel. By the gods. Turns out I¡¯m a princess and my entire kingdom is a boat full of smelly men past the age of forty. Fucking Abyss. ¡°Does that make us dukes?¡± One toothless salty bastard asked, tapping his chin. ¡°I think it does, my good sir,¡± another said, bowing with a flourish. ¡°There ain¡¯t anyone left to disagree!¡± The first one cackled. ¡°Oy!¡± Kip shouted from the crow¡¯s nest. ¡°Clean the fucking wax out of your ears shitheels! We¡¯ve got some temperamental weather ahead!¡± Jinnei raised her eyes. Above them, storm clouds were beginning to swirl, creating a tube of sunlight directly around the city of Mujenan, the only place that wasn¡¯t covered in clouds. ¡°They¡¯re summoning a hurricane!¡± Jinnei shouted turning the wheel counter to the wind, getting as much spare distance as she could, because in a matter of minutes, they would be fighting for every inch. **** The wind hit them. Then the rain. And then the lightning. ¡°Whooo!¡± Kip shouted, one hand on his safety rope while the other flailed about above him, riding the smoking crow¡¯s nest like a wild guar tamer. The sound of wind and rain drowned out the noises that anyone made, but Jinnei was able to get her orders across by pointing and snarling. The severity of her facial expression indicated how urgent the task was. Leadership has reached level 10! +1 Will Please choose a- Why does this thing always level at the exact wrong time? Jinnei thought as a bolt of lightning crashed into the water beside them, boiling the ocean. Fuck it, she thought as a massive swell of water nearly upended them. More Abilities can only be good. Show me. A River To My People: up to Correction/10 % of user¡¯s Attributes are added to their subordinates. Efficiency Scales with loyalty. The Men Come First: Leadership Correction is improved by (Sta)% as long as the User does not eat, sleep, or relax before every direct subordinate has had a chance to do the same. Groupthink: Leadership gradually influences subordinates to share the same ideals as their commander. Last time she¡¯d chosen Press Gang to increase the odds of successfully integrating the ilethan sailors, but now¡­ She glanced over her shoulder. Of the dozen ships following them, only three remained. She needed something with immediate impact. I choose A River To My People. Jinnei thought. Her mind tingled for a moment, then there was some kind of insistent tug that felt as though it were sapping some of her strength. It was no worse than an arm falling momentarily falling asleep, but it seemed to have quite the effect on the pirates. Suddenly the salty bastards were climbing the rigging like spiders, sure-footed and fast, untangling lines and setting the sails to take advantage of the extra wind. ¡°Whooo!¡± Kip shouted. ¡°I¡¯ve never felt this amazing in my life!¡± he shouted, lightning crashing down around him. Well, she thought that¡¯s what he said. Lightning was crashing down around him, so it was hard to tell. Jinnei could tell that she could deactivate the ability if she wanted, or gate it so that only specific subordinates received its effect. What she hadn¡¯t counted on was the pirate¡¯s suicidal loyalty. It wasn¡¯t to her, not exactly. It was a lifetime of pain mixed with deep national pride, lit on fire by the tiny hope that they might see their home again one day, even if they had to rebuild the damn thing from scratch. That everything could go back to normal. It was insane. It was fanatical. And it was exactly what the Skill needed to perform beyond its original design. There was a massive crack as the rudder broke loose from the ship, nearly knocking everyone off their feet as the entire wooden construction shook beneath their feet. Mujenan, only a few short miles ahead of them began to slide sideways as the wind pushed them toward the rocky shoreline surrounding it, threatening to dash them against the beach. ¡°Fuck that shit!¡± Kip shouted from the top of the crow¡¯s nest, his voice oddly audible through the storm. He whipped a knot around his waist and jumped, springing forward like a grasshopper, the rope unwinding behind him as he flew out into the ocean. Two sailors saw this and leapt up with inhuman strength, reaching the crows nest and seizing Kip¡¯s rope before it ran out of line. Like one being, they jumped back down, slamming into the wood with no visible damage and and looping the rope around the mast. Kip, meanwhile, landed on the rudder that was rapidly floating away from them as they were driven by the wind. He looped the rope around the rudder and screamed for them to haul him in. Jinnei felt her body grow weaker as the sailors pulled, as though she were the one expending all that effort. They got the massive rudder up to the side of the ship in a matter of moments, and Karen seized the whole thing, the ship bucking in protest as she threw onto the deck. ¡°Get the biggest fucking nails you got!¡± Jinnei shouted against the rain. ¡°We don¡¯t need steering, we just need to make landfall.¡± She pointed to the starboard side with her most urgent scowl. Karen gave her a small frown. ¡°On it!¡± an ilethan sailor shouted, sprinting to the hold and back in a matter of seconds, returning with massive iron spikes the width of Jinnei¡¯s wrists. As if it had been rehearsed, the sailors, Pirates and islanders lifted the massive board and shoved it into the water against the current. The entire ship bucked as its sideways momentum was presented with a massive amount of drag, forcing the ship to move forward rather than sideways. ¡°Gaah!¡± the men seemed to scream as one as they fought to keep their grip on the wood that desperately wanted to tear itself out of their hands, forcing large splinters through their flesh. ¡°Lower!¡± Jinnei shouted, her body barely able to hold itself up on the steering wheel as they inched closer to the sharp rocks. ¡°You wanna see your fucking country again you saggy nutsacks!?¡± They shouted as one and jumped overboard, catching themselves on the gun ports. ¡°Hold it!¡± Karen shouted, rappelling down, holding an iron spike between each finger. She didn¡¯t have a hammer, but she didn¡¯t need one. The Legend slammed the huge nails through the disconnected rudder by hand, burying them deep into the wood. Almost too deep. ¡°There! You¡¯ve got it!¡± Jinnei shouted, eyeing the rate they were gaining on the rocky cove around the city¡¯s port. They weren¡¯t going to hit the city proper, but they¡¯d be close to the city¡­when¡­they¡­ Why is everything so dark? Jinnei¡¯s eyes rolled back in her head. *** A blast of wind and water across her face brought Jinnei back to consciousness. She was swaying back and forth, looking straight up at a grey, cloud filled sky. Wind and water were slicing against her cheek. Why can¡¯t I move? Jinnei glanced down and saw that she was wrapped up in a hammock like some kind of cocoon. ¡°What in the Abyss is going on?¡± She demanded. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re awake,¡± Karen said, her face entering Jinnei¡¯s field of vision, grinning with delight. ¡°You just missed the best crash. It has to rank somewhere in the top five ship crashes I¡¯ve been part of, easily. All four ships hit roughly the same spot in an insane pileup, and The whole thing broke in half. Mmn. I¡¯m actually kind of proud.¡± ¡°Is everyone okay?¡± Jinnei asked. ¡°As a matter of fact,¡± Karen said, her hand supporting Jinnei¡¯s back and pushing her upward until she could see. The entire crew of the last four ships were spread out behind her, marching through the rain and wind with grim determination, following a narrow path above the rocky shoals. Behind them, she could see a lighthouse with a trebuchet on top of it. Which would mean¡­They were on the road to the city of Mujenan. ¡°Alright, let me out. I wanna help.¡± ¡°You are helping.¡± Karen said, looking ahead of them. ¡°If you drop whatever buff you purchased aboard the ship, some of these men will drop from exhaustion. If you want them to live, keep it up¡­princess.¡± Karen winked. Ah, son of a bitch, Jinnei thought as she was carried into the city at the front of the line. I¡¯m a goddamned figurehead. Macronomicon Chapter 126: Shots fired Farren, eldest of the king¡¯s two dozen heirs, had a plan. At the Arena, Farren¡¯s eldest daughter would prove the superiority of the Uleisan royalty to those who doubted them. Shelia was a dervish on the battlefield, and through skill and cunning, had achieved Legend status at a very young age, breaking through the numerous barriers their enemies had created for her. She was sure to present well for the royal family. But more than that, Kurawe, the leader of the vipers who¡¯d crippled the royal family for two generations, was going to be there, within arm¡¯s length of the people he¡¯d enslaved. ¡°For the last time,¡± His father, King Ollust said, rubbing his temple. ¡°It¡¯s a boorish spectacle, a complete waste of our time, and a desecration of our traditions for the sake of entertainment. We are above this.¡± The gnarled, wispy haired man was a tired husk of the king Farren remembered growing up. ¡°I don¡¯t believe that¡¯s the case, my king,¡± Farren said solemnly. ¡°We are kept separate from the rest of the city because they control us, true, but to push ourselves further into isolation willingly because we are offered the chance to refuse? It appears weak at worst or uncaring at best.¡± ¡°Measure your words carefully, brother.¡± Gant, the second eldest brother said. Gant was beginning to show streaks of grey in his beard, and his eyes burned with ambition. Not unlike Farren himself. ¡°¡­But I believe he¡¯s right. Going to the tournament is more beneficial than not going, all things considered.¡± ¡°King Ollust¡¯s hand came down from his temple and he glanced between his two sons with rheumy eyes. ¡°It¡¯s rare thing, for you two to agree on anything. Especially something I oppose.¡± King Ollust tapped his fingers on the arm of the throne for a moment. ¡°Very well. Make the arrangements.¡± Farren and Gant bowed and turned to leave. ¡°But..¡± their father¡¯s wavery voice carried to them, forcing the brothers to turn back. ¡°Farren. You¡¯re too ambitious. You¡¯ll not attempt violence at the tournament, or anything else I might consider stupid.¡± ¡°No sire.¡± Farren said, nodding deeply. ¡°And Gant, You¡¯ve a lot of free time, being the younger boy.¡± The wrinkled old man said, holding up a finger. ¡°I¡¯d like for Gant to arrange an informal party after the tournament where I can meet my daughters and granddaughters in an informal setting. It¡¯s always been my favorite part of New Years.¡± ¡°As you command.¡± Gant said, bowing. The two of them silently retreated from the empty court. Oh, how sweet it will be when the halls are filled with petitioners again, Farren thought, eyeing his brother, who eyed him in turn. ¡°How are you going to do your typical scheming, Gant, when you have a party to plan?¡± Gant shrugged. ¡°Delegate. How are you going to murder your rivals when the king has forbid it?¡± Farren shrugged. ¡°Delegate.¡± The two brothers eyed each other before they broke into chuckles, the only other sound silk gliding across the immaculate palace floor. ***Baroke*** Baroke was led into a side passage that wound gently up, curving slightly, until he was standing in front of a massive archway. Beyond that archway was¡­what could only be called a boat. The glass construction sat in the center of a huge reservoir of water, with a thirty foot tall door sitting in front of the boat, separating them from the arena proper. Baroke could picture the door falling open and riding the ship across the resulting wave crashing across the arena. It had four rowers on either side, and four men manning cannons, the whole thing was maybe twenty feet long from end to end. There was a steering wheel near the back with a captain¡¯s hat resting on it. Baroke¡¯s position. ¡°Take a minute to get to know your men, then when the door begins to lower, the fight is on.¡± The official said, motioning for Baroke to enter. He pointed at the pyramid of cannonballs. ¡°You¡¯ve got thirty shots. Use them wisely. Sink the other contestant¡¯s ships or take them, be the last man standing on a vessal, and you win. Simple.¡± ¡°What if one of the cannons takes off an arm?¡± ¡°The cannons aren¡¯t particularly strong, the veterans were chosen because they have high Endurance, and the boats are actually quite brittle. As long as no one takes a cannon directly to the balls, everyone should be alright.¡± ¡°Good enough for me,¡± Baroke said, adjusting the thong digging into his crack. He was gonna win. And he was gonna get Calvin back for this. With the Uleisan slingshot on his waist, he had a hell of an advantage¡­until he used it. That was why he had to get through as much of the tournament as possibly while relying only on his superior strength. The official left, leaving Baroke standing there in front of the dozen soldiers, their eyes soaking in his outlandish outfit. ¡°Get a good look now,¡± Baroke said, flexing as they stared. ¡°Because once we¡¯re in there, I want your heads in the game.¡± One by one, they began looking at his face rather than the ridiculous pink poof of fabric around his waist. ¡°Good. Now, My name¡¯s Grabnar the Barbarian, and we¡¯re going to be the winners of this little game as long as you follow my commands.¡± Baroke almost faceplanted when he boarded the ship as his heels tried to wobble out from beneath him. He corrected at the last second, his fingers putting grooves in the handholds. The guy was right. Whatever the boat was made out of made him feel like it would crumble under his grip. Like so many other things. Baroke walked unsteadily up to the captain position and put his hat on. ¡°Now there¡¯s two things we have to do. First we have to establish a unified team taking off those uniforms and wrapping the colored shawls around our heads.¡± They glanced around at each other. ¡°You heard me! Off with the shirts and on with the headbands!¡± One man began slipping off his uniform, followed by another, until Baroke was facing a group of men in their skivvies with bright red sashes tied around their heads. ¡°Now remember your war faces!¡± Baroke said, grabbing one of the oars out of Its holder, and testing it in his hands. Sturdy. ¡°When we go out there, you aren¡¯t a bunch of guys in your underwear, you¡¯re starving animals that¡¯ve been cooped up in the ship for sixteen months and you¡¯d slit a bastards throat soon as look at him. Roar!¡± They glanced at each other. ¡°I said fucking roar!¡± Baroke followed by giving his best bellow, listening to it ring off the glass walls. They echoed him their voces filling the empty space and pounding against his skull. ¡°That¡¯s why we¡¯re gonna fucking win! Now, kick the cannons overboard.¡± ¡°What?¡± There was a crash, then the rattling and creaking of metal as the massive door began to slide downward, lowering itself into the ground. ***Farren*** Farren was sitting in his chair, marveling at the size and scope of the arena. This was the first time he¡¯d visited the thing. It was as amazing a construction as it was a disgusting display of Kurawe¡¯s sheer power. You like my arena? I built it myself in a week. Farren rolled his eyes. He¡¯d built it to remind people that while he was getting on in years, he was also still a powerful wizard. The newer additions to the arena though, those seemed like they were made after the fact and welded in place. The waterworks were something he only heard about recently, and the shade and water reclaimers arcing above their heads were similarly new. The water works were a hideous misuse of water, though. Not having access to the ocean or a river, they¡¯d diverted water from the primary aqueduct for this. Farren shook his head. Maybe the old giant was finally losing his mind. That would be nice. Farren was sitting at his father¡¯s right hand, with Gant at his left. One seat over¡­that was where Kurawe would sit. ¡°You may sit.¡± King Ollust said, and everyone in the arena sat. More a formality than anything. Farren pulled out his itinerary and scanned the contents. Commencement speech, Damn. Naval battle, Greased Horker catching¡­. What was this, designed by a teenage rube from the sticks? Faren scanned through the increasingly churlish games and his eyes landed on ¡®salute to the royal family¡¯, right in the middle of the day, just after the human cavalry jousting I¡¯m just going to have to try and stay awake through the commencement speech. The audience settled into a hush as the ungainly huge man walked up to the stage to give the address. He opened his mouth to speak, and¡­ It sucked. What more was there to say? Kurawe was a master of oration, one who loved to listen to the sound of his own voice, but strangely enough, this time, he¡¯d given a short, sweet speech about remembering the fallen, hope for the future, gratefulness to the citizens of Uleis, then turned tail and waddled off the stage, almost like he didn¡¯t like the attention of thousands of people bearing down on him. That¡¯s unusual, Farren thought, frowning and sitting up straight in his chair to watch the fat man leave. He shared a glance with his brother across their father¡¯s knees. What in the abyss was that? His evil brother mouthed. Farren shrugged, then had a sudden realization. His Shelia was going to be wrestling with peasants for a greased pig. Farren put a trembling hand over his brow. That was why he changed the tournament itinerary. To humiliate us. To humiliate me. I¡¯m not going to let this slide. ¡°Oh hey, Farren, right?¡± a deep, reverberating voice said. Farren took his hand away from his face and was greeted with the sight of Kurawe, true ruler of the city, looming over him. The man was wearing some kind of platter attached to his chest that held a huge quantity of fried foods and a massive pitcher of wine. ¡°My assistant here tells me this is the first time we¡¯ve met, officially.¡± He said, thumbing at a little Uleisan girl struggling to carry a massive amphora of wine, resorting to rolling it. ¡°I told you not to shake the contents,¡± Kurawe said, laying a gentle smack upside the little girl¡¯s head. Well, if I didn¡¯t like him before, I certainly don¡¯t like him now. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± They shook hands beneath the giant¡¯s enormous plate, then Kurawe carefully sat back in his velvet chair, one step removed from the king¡¯s side. ¡°So, who are you placing your bets on?¡± ¡°Oh¡­Either Grabnar the barbarian, or Breanne. I don¡¯t know any of these other people. Maybe we¡¯ll get some surprises, eh?¡± Kurawe grinned at him. ¡°Did you forget my daughter, the one seeded for the first round?¡± Farren asked, fuming at the man¡¯s deliberate insult, but keeping his calm to the best of his abilities. ¡°Oh!¡± Kurawe blinked, his eyes widening in surprise and confusion. ¡°Ummm¡­ Yes sir, I did. Apologies. Is she technically a princess?¡± It was Farren¡¯s turn to be confused. Kurawe didn¡¯t apologize. Kurawe also knew what qualified as a princess, and what did not. Ergo, the man sitting beside him wasn¡¯t Kurawe. That explains the speech, too. Body double, huh? I guess the assassination is off. Farren took the handkerchief out of his vest pocket and wiped his nose before he put it on the arm of the chair beside him, signaling Borsch that the order was called off. ¡°No, she is not, until I become king.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± Now he had to swallow his disappointment and sit through the games, awaiting another chance to take down the bastard who¡¯d kept them Veterans their entire lives. There was a huge roar and a rumbling that put Farren on edge as water erupted out from beneath the stands, so close to the royal seating that he could feel a fine spray of mist. The crowd began murmuring in surprise as the entire arena filled with fresh water in a matter of minutes. ¡°Excuse me,¡± Kurawe said, pulling an Amplifier out of his pocket and standing. ¡°Let the games begin!¡± ¡°So which one¡¯s this Grabnar fellow you mentioned?¡± Farren asked, not having anything in particular to discuss with a body double, but needing to fill space. ¡°Oh, he¡¯s in that one over there,¡± Kurawe pointed at a slowly lower gate across the arena. ¡°If I know him well, he should give us a good show.¡± When the gates finally lowered, equalizing the water between the holding areas and the arena itself, all hell broke loose. Out of the area the body double had pointed out, the boat screamed out at a speed it surely wasn¡¯t built for, sending up a massive spray of water as it moved. The reason? The cannons were missing and the cannoneers were doubled up on the oars, providing extra muscle to the propulsion. The rowers to a man, had abandoned their uleisan uniforms, and wore the most ferocious snarls they could muster. The ship darted to the center of the arena while the others were still leaving their ports. ¡°How is he going to¡­¡± ¡°Wait for it.¡± the body double said, interrupting him. Farren almost dropped the fa?ade and murdered the peasant with the audacity to interrupt him. But this was a dance where he couldn¡¯t let the other side realize what he knew, so he swallowed his anger. Then he felt his jaw drop as the massive man in the thong with the bright pink puff, picked up a cannonball in his huge hand and threw the damned thing. The entire boat bucked from the force of the throw as the steel ball shot outward and speared through a competitor¡¯s boat while they were still leaving the port, sinking them just outside the gate. ¡°Oh. I see.¡± Grabnar the barbarian whooped and made a hard turn on the boat¡¯s steering, sending up a spray of water as he headed for his next victim. Macronomicon Chapter 127: Best Boi Learner¡¯s notes, day 5: Today I learned that hooters will deliberately poison themselves for some reason. Spent the entire day in a place where hooters did nothing but poison themselves. I don¡¯t see the appeal, but it seemed as if some hooter felt better afterwards, while others felt worse. I took the liberty of trying some of this poison. It killed a noticeable fraction of my units. No, drinking poison is not for me. This may prove to be a hindrance when I attempt to pass as a hooter, so I¡¯ve considered creating a design for a specialized ¡®poison processing¡¯ unit. Or perhaps an impermeable sack to hold onto the poison until I can expel it later. That seems like it would work. Didn¡¯t see The Manifold Predator today. The absence made my guts feel like they were being eaten. Learned new vocabulary. Too numerous to list here. ***Shelia Uleis*** They could hear their breathing in the air before the gates went down, reverberating through the silent chambers. ¡°We¡¯ll win this battle for you, Milady,¡± one of the men said. She wasn¡¯t sure if they were trying to make her feel better or suck up to her. It didn¡¯t make much difference. Royal Order 22/24 Bent remaining. ¡°I don¡¯t want your words, I want Focus.¡± The soldiers snapped to attention, straightening their shoulders and staring dead ahead, glaring a hole in the doorway. That¡¯s more like it. One had to use a light hand with Royal Orders, lest the user leave their people feeling violated or insignificant. That was why she typically used it to bolster her own troops. They couldn¡¯t be particularly upset with vague commands that boosted their effectiveness. The door began to sink into the water, revealing an entire arena full of the life-giving stuff. Having lived in the deserts of Uleis her entire life, It was like nothing she¡¯d ever seen. Wasteful, she found herself thinking. A hulking man riding a boat screamed past her, the tuft on the top of his hat thrashing in the air as he was forced to keep a hand on his head to avoid losing the damn thing. He was beautiful. Rippling muscles shining in the light of the sun as though he¡¯d been rubbed with oil, the sheer amount of power in those hands¡­ Then she took in what he was wearing and almost laughed. What in Elani¡¯s name made him want to dress like that? It¡¯s outlandish! Then she saw him take out a competitor¡¯s ship with a single throw. Shit. Gotta stay in the game! ¡°Put on all the speed you can manage!¡± Shelia shouted. ¡°Get us close to the action if you can! Can all of you swim?¡± As one they shook their heads. Fuck. ¡°The water¡¯s only seven feet deep, just remember you can float if you keep a lungful of air, and failing that you can kick off the bottom between breaths until you get to the wall of the arena.¡± Royal Order 21/24 Bent remaining. ¡°Don¡¯t Panic. Understood?¡± They nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s go. Full speed!¡± If there¡¯s people that can sink our ship with a flick of the wrist, the only safe place is¡­ Next to someone else so I can take their ship. It seemed like the brute had made an impression, because several other ships eschewed the use of the cannons entirely, about five of them gathered together to form a small flotilla of chaotic fighting at the center of the arena. Shelia instinct steered her away, refusing to join the pile while attempting to stay close enough to one of the eight other circling ships so she could jump on board if necessary. In a matter of minutes, her hunch was proven right. Lightning leapt from a man¡¯s fist on the far side of the pile of ships, detonating against the glass and tearing a hole in the vessel immediately, it¡¯s commander jumping onto the next boat and fighting for control. Then there was a deep thrumming noise, and one of the boats shattered, making the flotilla even smaller. Thank the gods I didn¡¯t join that pile, Shelia thought as she watched the Legends on the outside tear the boats out from under their competitors with their Abilities. Might as well join the fray. In her time defending the borders of Uleis, Shelia had made a point to study one of the twelve classic Gadveran disciplines, along with the traditional Uleisan Heat Control. Baromancy. The ability to control pressure. She drew her Nem lined sword and used it as a focus to target the water beneath the competitor in front of her. Heat and pressure combined to create the hybrid skill: Fragomancy. Or explosion magic, to the layman. Detonate 20/25 Bent remaining. She increased the pressure under the boat, which dipped down as the water compressed under it. Then the liquid swelled up in a massive dome before The boat erupted into the sky with all hands aboard, tumbling in midair as the crumble-glass fell apart under the pressure. An instant later, the boat plunged into the water. The owner, thoroughly soaked, was removed from the running. She scanned the mess. More boats had been sunk in the few moments her attention had been diverted. There were only six boats left, including her own. Nine down, five to go. The massive man in the distracting outfit was one of them, his boat moving so fast it was able to dodge blasts, arrows, and the occasional lightning as it weaved through the arena. Another contender, a woman more than a foot taller than Shelia, wearing a ripped Bolesian dress with no sleeves, stood upon a boat that seemed to have been transmuted to steel. Attacks bounced off of her and her vessel left and right. The woman was bleeding from the mouth as she grinned wickedly, lifting a cannon over her shoulder and aiming it by hand at an opponent. Booom! Four to go. Shelia thought, glancing at the last two contenders. There was an Electromancer from the southern jungles with thick coils of copper wire on his arms and legs giving her the hairy eyeball, and a¡­torso that seemed to be sprouting massive ivory blades from its mouth, deflecting cannonballs and sinking ships. No one ever said this wasn¡¯t going to be crazy. She thought, taking a deep breath You get that many Legends in one place, and things are bound to get strange. First thing¡¯s first. The Electromancer. From Shelia¡¯s rough understanding, the man¡¯s attacks were both difficult to predict and defend against, he could be somewhat neutralized by dousing him, and he was heading her way. Alright then, she thought, pointing her sword down. ¡°On my mark,¡± she said, aiming for the water between them. The man¡¯s arms moved. ¡°Fire.¡± Detonate 19/24 Bent remaining. The water between them ballooned upward before transforming into a massive geyser, blocking the bolt of lightning in an explosion of steam. The ball of steel, however, plowed through the water like it didn¡¯t exist. I need to see. Shelia thought. Detonate. 18/24 Bent remaining She created an explosion in the center of the geyser, clearing the wall of water in an instant. The electromancer was staggering backward, holding his shoulder. It seemed the cannonball had hit him instead of his ship. Damn Shelia tried to put an explosion directly under his ship while he was distracted, but the man was alert enough to sent his own Bent down into the water to interfere with hers, resulting in roiling bubbles. Damn. There goes the chance of ending this quickly. That was when a lightning bolt leapt out of the man¡¯s hand and slammed into her chest. Her muscles convulsed in a painful split second, throwing her overboard. He doesn¡¯t need to move? Shelia thought as adrenaline began to course through her veins, slowing down her fall into a timeless instant. He probably thinks he¡¯s won. What better time to steal that victory? Wings of Aldrin. 17/24 Bent remaining. A controlled explosion caught the center of Shelia¡¯s mass and flung her high up at a speed that felt like it might break her neck if she had a commoner¡¯s Endurance. That explosion was followed by another, hurtling her toward the man, until she could see the whites of his eyes. He raised an arm, and Shelia hit herself with explosion after explosion, zigzagging across the sky as she made her way to him. A bolt of lightning lit up the air inches away from her face, and she got the briefest whiff of ozone before she flipped over, and drove her heel into the man¡¯s solar plexus at a speed he couldn¡¯t follow. The man left behind one of his copper earrings as he hurtled backward and slammed into the wall of the arena before tumbling down into the water. Shelia winced. I hope he¡¯s not dead. When she glanced back over toward her ship, she found it sinking. The woman with the metal ship waved jovially as she drove the prow of her boat through Shelia¡¯s like a knife. Damnation. ¡°You,¡± She said, pointing to the electromancer¡¯s former crew. ¡°You¡¯re under my command now.¡± ¡°Ah, Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± In the distance, she spotted the huge man battling the tooth-man¡­thing. He was aboard the other man¡¯s vessal, using an oar to fend off the ivory blades that were slicing towards him at blistering speed. He¡¯s so shiny. Maybe he really did rub oil all over himself. What kind of man would do that? A self-absorbed one, most likely. Why am I overthinking this? She set those thoughts aside and focused on the woman. The foreigner¡¯s dress was slashed in several places, revealing that her steel skin was spread across her entire body, not just her limbs. Detonate. 16/24 Bent remaining. As an opening gambit, Shelia created an explosion right beside her opponent, guessing she likely didn¡¯t have any training in counterspelling. Shelia was right, but it didn¡¯t change anything. The blast of concussive wind more than capable of sending a body hurtling through the air didn¡¯t do more than make her opponent rock to the side. Some kind of toughness ability, perhaps? On the bright side, the majority of her opponent¡¯s rowers were catapulted off the side of the boat, leaving them limping through the water. With that extra range, Shelia had the advantage against the close range fight. ¡°Get our cannons aimed at her ship.¡± ¡°But ma¡¯am, that thing¡¯s already shrugged off several cannonballs. I¡¯ve seen it.¡± Shelia eyed the water between them and behind her, not spotting any soldiers close enough to be in danger, then she calculated the risk to the Uleisan men rowing her opponent¡¯s ship. It was acceptable. ¡°Just load the ball, don¡¯t bother with the devil powder.¡± She said, glaring at the competition. For her part, the other woman was reaching into her own mouth and¡­ Is she snapping off a tooth!? A shiver of disgust crawled across Sheila¡¯s skin. ¡°Aim!¡± Her men aimed both port cannons at their enemy Multi Detonate. 16/24 Bent remaining. The explosions she put in the cannons were far stronger than the play-toy shots of devil powder designed to barely damage crumble-Glass. This would put a hole through the wretch¡¯s ship. The cannons recoiled violently as they channeled Shelia¡¯s magic into forward momentum, sending the steel cannonballs shooting forward at lightning speed. Her opponent somehow could keep up with the speed of the ball, diving downward, knuckled of her right hand intersecting with the hurtling ball. There was a metallic ring that hurt the ears of all the spectators as the steel-skinned legend drove one of the cannonballs into the water, while the other took a healthy chunk out of the boat. The woman was on the clock now, as water gradually lapped into her boat. I¡¯ve won this one. She has no way of getting to me. Then the savage threw her tooth, the sharp triangular thing flew through the distance between them and buried itself in the floor. What the ¨C There was a crack of green lightning, and a copy of the woman was standing in front of her, giving her a bloody smile. Shelia dodged backward, a steel fist brushing air past her nose. She whipped her sword forward, and the Nem-laced sword bit into the woman¡¯s skin, but just barely, unable to create any tangible wound. A few drops of blood oozed from the wound, and the savage¡¯s shiny skin seemed to turn rust colored, and thicken. Shelia didn¡¯t have time to think about this as the savage pressed her advantage, pushing Shelia further and further toward the edge. Just as Shelia was coming up with a plan to toss the duplicate overboard, it switched tactics, kneeling down and smashing a fist into the deck of the crumble-glass ship. ¡°No!¡± Shelia shouted, rushing forward. In her haste, she forgot to mount a defence. The savage woman in the ruined dress leapt forward and caught her by the neck. Shelia slammed her fists and her pommel against the woman¡¯s wrist and face, butit did nothing to deter her. ¡°Goodbye,¡± She said. An oar came down on the back of the woman¡¯s head, moving through the air so fast it screamed. The oar exploded on contact, and the evil savage¡¯s grip went soft as she slumped to the ground before dissolving in a green mist. Shelia tumbled backward, and was nearly forced to use Wings of Aldrin again when a strong grip caught her waist, halting her fall. She found herself cradled like a child in the arms of the enormous contender. Up close he seemed even bigger. ¡°I figured you could probably use some help with Breanne. She¡¯s a tough one.¡± ¡°Go find your own opponent, you dirty scavenger!¡± the savage woman shouted with a thick accent the Shelia had trouble placing. ¡°Already done with him!¡± the giant shouted back with a Gadveran accent, pointing. The tooth man was pulling himself out of the water already, climbing up the loser¡¯s exit. ¡°I can¡¯t find the words to thank you,¡± Shelia said, taking in the shape of his jaw. ¡°How about dinner?¡± ¡°I have a girlfriend, sorry.¡± ¡°Damn,¡± Shelia clicked her tongue. The big, strong arms vanished from beneath her, and in the blink of an eye he shoved her down into the water. Her whole world became watery and wet, as she plunged into the lukewarm water. The shock of sudden moisture was nothing compared to the shock of defeat. She broke the surface just in time to witness the giant unsling a Uleisan bow from his hip and casually put a glass bolt through the steel ship, somehow exploding the transmuted boat out from under her former opponent. Not what I wanted, but third place is recoverable over the rest of the tournament. The score was averaged, after all. She just had to make sure she averaged higher than those two. ***Farren*** ¡°What did I tell you?¡± Kurawe¡¯s imposter said, munching on fried Horker as the referee paddled out to the last ship above water, where the ridiculously dressed peasant¡¯s arm was raised. ¡°And here we have the victor of the first round, Grabnar the Barbarian!¡± The huge fighter bowed. ¡°Would you like to say anything to the audience, Grabnar? The spectators have been wondering about the outfit for a while now. Do you dress like that normally?¡± Kurawe chuckled at this and took a long swig of wine, not showing any of the concern a body double might for his act or his safety. Strange. The huge man in the thong and high heels stepped up to the amplifier, tapped it then began to speak. ¡°Ah, yes, it¡¯s a traditional garb from the faraway village of Deinos that is worn by the ¡®best boi¡¯. It marks me as superior to everyone in my generation. Despite the gnashing of teeth, it¡¯s just a fact that I¡¯m objectively more attractive, and this clothing is symbolic of the bitter envy of my smaller, weaker, uglier peers. The best boy nomination wasn¡¯t a direct result of making it to second and possibly even third base with certain people¡¯s sisters, but I¡¯m sure it did factor into the decision making process when I was given this outfit.¡± ¡°That son of a bitch,¡± Kurawe said, chuckling playfully beside the crown prince. ¡°It¡¯s on.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 128: Primary Lumpiness Indicators Learner¡¯s Notes, Day 6: The hooters are the same species! I made this realization when I spotted some very small hooter prisoners take off their lower coverings and defecate on the side of the arena. The lumpy hooter they were with hooted at them in a rather aggressive way, and they quickly ran off, chased through the thick crowd by their lumpy hooter jailor. Isolating the memory, I found that the small hooter was undifferentiated from the one next to it save certain anatomical features. We¡¯ll call them Primary Lumpiness indicators for now. All observed hooters display one of the two primary lumpiness indicators. When I saw the small prisoners defecating, I realized that the very small hooters are not simply all one phenotype, but rather, undifferentiated hooters. They grow. I have witnessed a wide enough sample size that I can safely guess that they start as small, undifferentiated wriggling flesh-worms incapable of defending themselves, up through growth stage, lumpy stage, the flabby stage, then wrinkled and slow stage. I can safely assume these to be the appropriate stages as they both link in size disparity and with the number of living samples: There are fewest of the wrinkled and slow hooters, and most of the wriggling flesh-worms, and a steady line between them, indicating the attrition rate of natural predation has thinned them out over time. There seem to be two stages that the most value is placed on. Hooters seem to defer to the expertise of either wrinkled hooters, or particularly lumpy hooters. Flat hooters, Flabby hooters, pupal and growth stage hooters are typically subordinated beneath these two categories. Requires more study. Vocabulary increasing exponentially as more hoots become available to define other hoots. Soon I will have enough to learn to ¡®read¡¯ visual hoots. Disguise uncompromised, although this leads to a limited amount of opportunities to learn about The Manifold Predator. I must be patient and learn everything I can. Seamless integration will be key. ***Matthias, Master Illusionist/Healer*** ¡°Alright, remember, the fracture in your shoulder isn¡¯t gone, it¡¯s just patched by a slow dissolving illusion, same with the bruises. You¡¯ll be good to fight for the rest of the day, but you¡¯re going to ache for a week or so afterwards as your body heals. Understood?¡± The Juntai Electromancer nodded. Juntai hailed from the jungle south of Uleis, their range stretching east until they abutted Boles. They had angular features and reddish skin, toughened by a life lived in a jungle. There were rumors that they hoarded the secrets of the past in massive ancient cities buried in the jungle. When Matthias saw the uniformity of the copper wire wrapped around the man¡¯s forearms, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder. The Juntai prized copper almost as much as everyone else prized Nem, and many nations took advantage of this to buy large amounts of lumber with copper. None more so than Matthias¡¯s home country of Ilethas, whose mineral resources far outstripped their forests. The man was practically dripping with it, too. He had coils of copper in his ears, nose, eyebrows. A couple large studs went right through his shoulder. Matthias was surprised the cannonball hadn¡¯t ripped something loose. ¡°Thank you, Doc-tore.¡± The bald man said, nodding as he rolled his shoulder, testing it¡¯s flex. ¡°I would recharge your hearth, if you but ask.¡± ¡°¡­¡¯Kay.¡± Matthias responded with a frown. Was he offering to go get wood for my fire? that seems like what he meant? It was probably a traditional Juntai expression of thanks. The juntai bowed again in gratitude, then turned and left, leaving Matthias alone with his assistant. ¡°That¡¯s another ten stones for you,¡± Calvin the clone said. ¡°Easy money. Bet you¡¯re hoping people get even more messed up.¡± ¡°Not really.¡± Matthias responded, turning back to face the boy. ¡°Despite your experiences during the war between our respective countries, not every Ilethan is a coldhearted, exploitive asshole who would kick an orphan for a pinch of dust.¡± ¡°Just the ones in charge,¡± Calvin said, spinning in his chair because he knew it annoyed Matthias. Gods, why did I agree to this? Matthias sighed. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s mostly the ones in charge. Mind magic has a strong tendancy to bring out the worst in people. It is by its very nature, a violation, and ripe for abuse.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± Calvin frowned pensively. ¡°Ella¡¯s here.¡± Matthias glanced up to see the team¡¯s niece entering the physician¡¯s room to be examined before the next fight. ¡°You¡¯re here.¡± She said, looking at Calvin. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°The real Calvin. You¡¯re controlling the tournament somehow. There were a couple of rules that targeted Baroke based on height and weight that had him prancing through the first round on high heels, in a thong.¡± ¡°Hah!¡± the construct said, slapping his knee. ¡°Gods, I wish I got to see that. So I¡¯m out of danger?¡± ¡°As far as I can tell.¡± The muscular Genosian princess glanced at the boy. ¡°What would you do if you were running the tournament?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯d probably kidnap all the princesses that are attending, and hide under my victim¡¯s nose to get off on the danger and revel in their confusion. In the meantime, I would fuck with Baroke and also make the contestants debase themselves for my amusement.¡± The copy kicked his heels against the seat and threw up his hands at Matthias¡¯s horrified expression. ¡°I¡¯m just saying that¡¯s what I¡¯d do.¡± ¡°The next event is catching a greased Horker.¡± Ella said dryly. ¡°AHAHAHAH!¡± ¡°So Calvin is most likely in the royal stands, posing as someone else, and has some kind of plan in place to kidnap all of them at once.¡± Matthias said, rubbing his chin. ¡°Salute to the royal family?¡± He asked, pointing at the itinerary, the fourth event on the list. ¡°Yep.¡± The copy nodded. ¡°Seems like an appropriate time to whisk them away.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a twisted little shit, you know that?¡± ¡°Say what you want, but I¡¯m not hurting anyone, just kidnapping them and wounding their national pride. Maybe.¡± Matthias shook his head before gesturing to Ella. ¡°Let me take care of those bruises and scrapes for you.¡± ¡°Such a gentleman,¡± The Genosian girl said, offering him her hand in a delicate manner. ¡°Not like my Poeor, who thrives on chaos.¡± ¡°I¡¯m getting it from both sides, here.¡± the construct said, crossing his arms and scowling at them. ¡°Well you know what? I don¡¯t have to take this.¡± He grabbed a pair of shears and set it to his collar. ¡°What-¡° Snap! The Nem of the collar broke, and the construct winked out of existence, allowing the collar to clatter to the ground. ¡°Did he just kill himself?¡± Matthias whispered. ¡°I think he thought it would be funny?¡± Ella said with a frown. ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°Funny?¡± Matthias said, brows raised. ¡°You realize that copy had all the same experiences as your original?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Meaning your original boy is capable of killing himself¡­as a joke?¡± ¡°¡­he makes it a point to ask his copies what they think and feel. I think as a way of coming to terms with the idea that one day he will open his eyes and be one of them, with precious minutes of life left.¡± Matthias scratched his head. ¡°Well, your boyfriend has got some screws loose, is all I¡¯m saying.¡± ***Farren*** ¡°Pardon me,¡± Farren said, excusing himself to use the lavatory. The body double waved him off pensively. Farren was gripped by the urge to put his glass dagger through the back of the imposters head, but it wouldn¡¯t accomplish anything. He walked inside the arena, passing by Gant on the way through. The two eyed each other suspiciously but neither said anything. He ducked into the toilet, where Borsch posed as a servant, waiting patiently with a towel and an extensive shaving kit if he felt the need to groom himself. ¡°Welcome milord,¡± The assassin said, tone neutral. ¡°It¡¯s not him,¡± Farren said. Short and sweet, and difficult to parse without knowing the context. Exactly how secret conversations should be. ¡°Ah,¡± Borsch said, brows raised. ¡°Then I take it you no longer need my services?¡± ¡°No, something tells me this arena may get messy. I need you on hand in case I need some help keeping myself tidy.¡± The door to the royal toilet creaked open, revealing Polluq, and a shiver went down Farren¡¯s spine. Kurawe¡¯s top enforcer had caught him in the same room as Borsch. He wasn¡¯t even supposed to be here today! ¡°Good afternoon, Farren, and who do you have here? Why it¡¯s Borsch, Uleis¡¯s top assassin.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll cost extra if you don¡¯t want him to leave this room.¡± Borsch said, his voice dispassionate. ¡°Now I was just passing by, overheard your conversation and took an interest.¡± ¡°How¡¯s that?¡± ¡°For starters, this whole plan to assassinate Kurawe.¡± Farren and Borsch tensed, ready to fight for their lives if need be. ¡°It¡¯s not gonna go well. Even if the man were still alive, it probably wouldn¡¯t go well.¡± ¡°What?¡± Farren asked, icy fingers working their way up his spine. ¡°That guy parading around as Kurawe?¡± Polluq said, pointing toward the stands. ¡°He cut Kurawe¡¯s head off right in front of my eyes, then proceeded to do the same to damn near every single leader of the city. Your whole world¡¯s already been torn down, and you¡¯re living in the past.¡± ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡± Farren asked. ¡°Oh, because the idiot handed me the keys to the kingdom, and I need a figurehead.¡± Polluq said bluntly, leaning against the wall of the bathroom. ¡°You want me to take my father¡¯s place as your puppet?¡± Farren sneered. ¡°I would rather die.¡± ¡°That can be arranged,¡± the military commander bristled. ¡°But it¡¯s no skin off my back if you don¡¯t want to deal. Your brother seemed fairly eager to replace you when I pitched the idea to him.¡± Farren chuckled. ¡°You don¡¯t know my brother as well as you think you do. The only thing we have in common is our vehement distaste for your yoke.¡± ¡°Well, I warned you,¡± Polluq said with a shrug. ¡°If you¡¯re interested in my offer, get off the stands before the salute to the royal family.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Polluq grinned. ¡°You¡¯ll see. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going to happen to everyone there, but it¡¯s not going to be fun.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take that under advisement.¡± Farren said, brushing past Polluq. The commander let him go, moving out of the way with an amused expression. He cast a glance at Borsch. ¡°Keep your hands clean.¡± Then he strode off, his hard soles clacking against the glass floors. ¡°What do you think?¡± Borsch asked, following Farren out the door. ¡°I think, ¡®fuck that guy, I¡¯ll do what I want to spite him¡¯.¡± ¡°Very good your highness.¡± Farren marched back out to the stands and took his seat beside Kurawe, then leaned over. ¡°A Gossipfly told me that you killed Kurawe and are planning something untoward during the salute.¡± He whispered. Kurawe leaned back from him with a raised brow. ¡°Looks like someone¡¯s a leaky leakerson.¡± The man focused on Farren¡¯s eyes for a moment, weighing his choices. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°Tell me what happens during the salute.¡± Kurawe pondered for a moment. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you. If¡­you agree not to cause a scene or leave your seat.¡± Of course there was no way he would hold to the bargain if it were a death sentence for him and his family, and there was every possibility that was the case, and the words coming out of the man¡¯s mouth would be an avalanche of lies. But perhaps the lies could illuminate some facts. ¡°Deal.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to shrink the entire royal stands and send it and everyone on it down into the sewers on a rail, zipping it out into the desert at unimaginable speeds, then when you¡¯re all well and properly kidnapped, I¡¯ll send you back to the city, none the worse for wear.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­Mad. Why would you do that?¡± Farren quietly hissed. ¡°That¡¯s not even a good lie! There¡¯s no reason to do that! And people can¡¯t shrink!¡± ¡°What lie? That¡¯s what¡¯s going to happen.¡± Farren clenched his fist then slowly relaxed it. Take it slow, take it easy. If this man was fool enough to hand Polluq control over the military, then he might be na?ve enough to grant Farren some measure of power. If Farren could get his fingers into the military, he could grow the royal family¡¯s influence over the next generation. Possibly seize back the crown in his lifetime. The man across from him seemed blunt and informal, so Farren decided to match him. ¡°In the event that Polluq betrays you, I would like his job.¡± ¡°A real go-getter, huh? Gant asked me that same thing.¡± The body double leaned over and waved at Gant, who waved back. King Ollust between them, was taking a nap in the afternoon sun, fanned off by the nubile servants they could barely afford to keep up pretenses. ¡°So tell me, why should I trust a snitch? Obviously you¡¯re not loyal to me. You don¡¯t even know me.¡± Was this a trap? Farren tapped his fingers as he concentrated on a believable story. He couldn¡¯t flat out say he had no respect for his choice of representatives and wanted to slowly usurp his power. He had to put spin on it without being too misleading. ¡°To me, Polluq represents the old guard. I would oppose him with every fiber of my being if it meant a glimmer of a chance my family could retake a fraction of their previous status, even if that outcome saw us in service of another.¡± ¡°Alright¡­I think we can do business. If Polluq tries to stab me in the back.¡± The lookalike said with a smile. ¡°Stay in your seat until the end, and I guarantee you¡¯ll see something fun.¡± ¡°And here we go!¡± The announcer¡¯s voice began to echo through the stadium, drawing their attention. ¡°The contestants are at their stations, and the horker has been slimed! Ready! Set! GO!¡± Macronomicon Chapter 129: Just a Sweet Little Girl ***Baroke*** ¡°Now the key to catching a greased horker is dirt,¡± Baroke said confidently to the princess at the station beside his, rubbing the sand of the arena onto his hands as he eyed the prize. ¡°Gotta slough off the grease with plenty of dirt, otherwise you won¡¯t get traction. It¡¯s a matter of wearing the grease down. Let other people go after it the first couple times. The rich girl with the scar up her brow bent down and covered her hands with sand, too. She was serious about winning, but she wasn¡¯t Baroke. There¡¯s no way anyone else is going to win this one, Baroke thought, giving the horker a look. I¡¯m going to eat you, you tasty little bastard. Well, if this contest is anything like the ones in Deinos, where they end the celebration by eating the horker¡­It seems like a lot of Deinos celebrations end with eating the entertainment. As it turned out, the contest was nothing like the one in Deinos. ¡°Ready!¡± Baroke crouched down. ¡°Set!¡± Baroke balanced on the balls of his feet, ready to spring forward. ¡°Go!¡± Everything turned white. ***Calvin*** Calvin was in the form of a little girl, sitting crosslegged a little bit in front of his decoy¡¯s seat as he watched the game turn sour. ¡°Well, that doesn¡¯t seem to be in the spirit of the game,¡± Calvin said through his lookalike as the arena erupted into full-on war. The Legends had all individually come to the conclusion that any one of them could easily catch the horker with their superhuman abilities, and instead decided to first eliminate the competition. Baroke, as the winner of the last round, received special attention, as a lightning bolt struck him in the chest the instant the announcer declared the start of the game, followed by a blast of wind so strong he was flung into the stands. ¡®Kurawe¡¯ motioned his attendant to lean close. ¡°Disqualify Grabnar for this event and send someone over there to make sure his heart is still beating, double time.¡± The young Uleisan nodded and started sprinting down the stands. The people who¡¯d ranked third and fourth, Shelia and the electromancer, seemed to have created an imprompteau team and immediately tossed the winner of the last round out. That electromancy is neat. It seems like he can¡¯t just summon lightning out of nothing, he¡¯s got to run a magnetic field past a copper coil to generate it first. I wonder how he aims it? Some kind of fine-tune air control? One of the less confident Legends made a break for the horker, trying to end the competition by actually competing as they were meant to. He was interrupted halfway to the squealing creature by a woman bearing what seemed to be a miniature harp. She strummed a few notes and the man¡¯s legs broke out from under him, dropping him to the ground, screaming in the dirt. Huh, what is that? Sonomancy maybe? If I¡¯m not mistaken she¡¯s altering sound to match resonant frequencies to make things explode. What¡¯s that mean? She can make your bones rattle so hard they break inside you. Neat. I guarantee you it¡¯s not comfortable. The woman was wearing a colorful full body dress made of heavy cloth that marked her as a one of the people who dwelt in the plains far to the northeast. She had been taken out of play relatively early in the last game by rushing in too quickly, but this time she was playing to last. She stayed near the edges of the arena, keeping her head on a swivel, watching the horker and her sides for anyone that might try to remove the competition. She got three other contestants before they started paying attention to her, unfortunately, it didn¡¯t help much. Once they started chasing her, she started running away, stalling long enough to get them to give up or rattle their bones until they couldn¡¯t move. I¡¯ll call her rattlebones. Ella pulled away from the horker as soon as she noticed that chasing it wasn¡¯t the object of the game. Several people went to take her out of the competition, since she¡¯d gotten second place in the last game, but they all wound up bruised and bloody, collapsed into the arena sand like ragdolls. Eventually it was down to Ella, Shelia, Rattlebones, and The Electromancer, all standing there, staring each other down. Calvin¡¯s attendant leaned in close. ¡°Grabnar is still alive and he seems lucid. He says he¡¯s hungry.¡± Calvin relaxed a few muscles he didn¡¯t know he¡¯d been tensing, his shoulders drooping. ¡°Get him a grilled horker, cheese and pickle sandwich¡­and for the rest of the disqualified contestants too, why not?¡± Calvin¡¯s attendant ran away again. I could get used to having an attendant. Then again, that¡¯s kinda what Nadia is anyway. Maybe a less evil one to round out the selection When Calvin looked back, Ella and rattlebones had formed a team to beat the electromancer and Shelia. Why would you do that? Calvin thought as he watched the fight play out. Ella must not have realized it, but she was largely immune to both the electromancer and Shelia¡¯s blasts. Everyone except rattlebones, really. Helping rattlebones was like putting a target on her back. I think she doesn¡¯t realize metal is grounding against electricity, and that resonance doesn¡¯t care so much about your skin. I blame her education. Ella¡¯s ignorance about the strengths and weaknesses of magic played out in gruesome detail as she held off Shelia long enough for Rattlebones to beat the electromancer, who was pressed into a bad spot, since he couldn¡¯t afford to beat rattlebones until she beat Ella. As soon as the electromancer was down, rattlebones switched things up and backstabbed Ella, breaking her legs with a strong thrum of her harp. Then it was down to Shelia and Rattlebones, and the explosions were fast and furious, with Shelia constantly changing the air pressure between the two of them to blunt the effects of rattlebones abilities. Eventually, Shelia managed to overwhelm her opponent through sheer magic, driving the Plainswoman into the wall of the arena with explosion after explosion until the woman went limp. Finally Sheila put an explosion behind the horker, launching it into her arms. ¡°Looks like my daughter is the favorite to win so far.¡± Farren said with a grin somewhere between pride and a sneer. ¡°Huh?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at the hook-nosed crown prince. He didn¡¯t think of crown princes as grey haired schemers, but he supposed that was what happened, more often than not. He¡¯d been distracted by watching his friends get hurt. He didn¡¯t like it. Calvin had pushed them into playing a game they had a chance of taking real damage in, for nothing more than a joke. I could have just given them the things I baited them with. Calvin thought, scratching his head. It wasn¡¯t even like the tournament was going to be able to have a conclusion, since he was interrupting it right in the middle. What in the abyss am I doing? ¡°Kurawe?¡± The crown prince asked his lookalike. Give me a reason to leave. Calvin instructed. ¡°I¡¯m out of fried gulper bits,¡± ¡®Kurawe¡¯ said, smacking him upside the head again. ¡°Go get some more, you little pest.¡± ¡°Yes sir, right away sir,¡± Calvin said, kowtowing before he ran off. Being a little girl servant was mostly to his advantage. He was socially invisible, especially to men like Farren and Polluq. He¡¯d used One of the Guys at a school, coming up with this disguise. A perfectly lovely little girl, on account of the averaging effect. Didn¡¯t him from getting weird looks and the wrong attention from the occasional weirdo, though. A smelly rag-covered, grimy old man caught Calvin by the shoulder as he was sprinting down the hall, giving him a gaptoothed grin. ¡°Where are you going to quick, sweetheart? Lose your parents?¡± A knife slid out of Calvin¡¯s palm and he held it to the drunkard¡¯s nose. The man¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°I will gut you, old man.¡± Calvin said, his words serious, but his voice that of a child. The man let go, backing away with his palms up. ¡°Easy now, I just ¨C¡° Calvin didn¡¯t stick around to listen to the rest of his excuses, turning and running at full tilt, aiming for the sick ward, where everyone was recovering after that disaster of a game. Calvin made it in a matter of minutes, and was surprised to find Ella, Rattlebones and Shelia standing next to each other and talking like friends. Emphasis on standing! It seemed as though Ella¡¯s broken legs were healed. She didn¡¯t sport any visual bruises or anything. What¡¯s going on? ¡°Remember, the fracture in your leg isn¡¯t gone, it¡¯s just patched by a slow dissolving illusion, same with the bruises. You¡¯ll be good to fight for the rest of the day, but you¡¯re going to ache for a week or so afterwards as your body heals. It¡¯ll feel like growing pains. Understood?¡± Calvin¡¯s attention was drawn to an out-of place Ilethan giving one of the contestants a warning with a tone of voice that said he¡¯d given it a thousand times before. The healed man nodded and hesitantly put weight on his legs before bouncing up and down a bit, a small smile coming to his face. ¡°Thank you doctor.¡± ¡°Take it easy on those legs for a month or so. Next!¡± The ilethan said. The contestant gave Rattlebones a sour look and went to sit down at the hastily constructed table full of grilled cheese and horker sandwiches. That¡¯s where I remember him! Calvin realized a moment later, eyes widening. That¡¯s the illusionist guy who shut down the System! Where!? Get him! Kick his ass! Calm down, nobody knows who I am. Calvin thought, glancing over at Ella. Ella was staring at him. Oh, right, I forgot, she¡¯s got that Guya sense. Calvin waved for her to be patient and headed toward Baroke, who was devouring a plate full of sandwiches, a big black scorch mark on the front of his chest. ¡°Sorry about getting you struck by lightning.¡± Calvin said, sliding into the seat across from him. ¡°Why, are you the one who did it?¡± Baroke asked with a frown, glancing over at the electromancer who seemed to be meditating between rounds. ¡°I coulda sworn it was him¡­¡± he said, continuing to shovel food into his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s Calvin.¡± Calvin said. Baroke raised an eyebrow. ¡°Calvin? You¡¯re a lot younger and girlier than I remember. ¡°It¡¯s a disguise, obviously.¡± Calvin said, rolling his eyes. ¡°Right, the shapeshifting thing¡­So what¡¯s up?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to participate in the tournament. There isn¡¯t even going to be a winner.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Baroke said between bites. ¡°You know?¡± ¡°Yeah, your copy told us about the plan to kidnap all the princesses in the second half.¡± Calvin frowned, cocking his head to the side. ¡°What copy, and who¡¯s us?¡± Baroke held up a finger between bites and sucked greasy cheese off his thumb. ¡°Me, Ella, and Matthias.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s Matthias?¡± ¡°That guy.¡± Baroke said, pointing at the Ilethan illusionist who¡¯d nearly killed him. ¡°How the¡­¡± Calvin shook his head. ¡°You know what. Tell me the whole story, from the beginning.¡± ¡°Alright, but there isn¡¯t much time until the obstacle course.¡± ¡°Are you enjoying this?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°Of course. I haven¡¯t had this much fun in a long time,¡± Baroke said, wiping the scorch mark off his chest to reveal unblemished skin. ¡°They don¡¯t have anything that can hurt me.¡± ¡°And here I was worried about you.¡± Calvin said, rolling his eyes. ¡°What about me?¡± Ella¡¯s voice came from behind him before her arms wrapped around Calvin¡¯s little girl body and ensconced him between her breasts. ¡°Weren¡¯t you worried about me?¡± ¡°Yes, I was worried about you, damnit.¡± His brain had experienced a huge hiccup when he¡¯d seen her legs collapse out from under her, and he was more than a little upset at Rattlebones. Seeing her this lively was a welcome relief. ¡°Excellent.¡± Calvin could tell she was grinning, even though he couldn¡¯t see her face form his current vantage. ¡°Where¡¯s the first Mujenan, and the rest of the company?¡± Calvin asked, dangling from Ella¡¯s arms as she picked him up. ¡°Grant has them holed up at the border.¡± Baroke said. ¡°Who¡¯s this little one?¡± The Ilethan asked, approaching them. ¡°Oh this?¡± Baroke said, pointing at Calvin. ¡°This is my retarded half-sister who likes eating dirt and singing old show tunes. Isn¡¯t that right?¡± ¡°Eat a dick.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Ella, turn me.¡± ¡°I,¡± Calvin said as Ella turned him to face the illusionist. ¡°Am the current ruler of Uleis, and I wish to hire you.¡± ¡°Let me guess, with my very own library, a generous grant for studying whatever I want, and a mansion next to Suppan¡¯s?¡± ¡°Ummm¡­If that¡¯s your price.¡± Calvin said, frowning. The guy seemed like he was a couple steps ahead of Calvin already. Oh right, the copy. How did that happen? ¡°It is. I take it you¡¯re that shapeshifter we fought at Murak¡¯s mansion.¡± ¡°It actually wasn¡¯t his mansion,¡± Calvin said, crossing his arms above Ella¡¯s hands wrapped around his tummy. ¡°He was just borrowing it.¡± ¡°Fascinating,¡± The ilethan said, pulling out a faint blue monocle and holding it to his eye as he scanned Calvin up and down. ¡°There¡¯s not a speck of Bent construct or illusion on you¡­but those floating bits are interesting.¡± ¡°Enough about my floaty bits. I want to ¨C¡° ¡°Sorry,¡± The Ilethan said, putting his monocle away and stepping back. ¡°I¡¯m not a fan of helping with regime changes. I like to keep my head down. And attached. Besides, your clone already hired me. Said I didn¡¯t have to tell you what for, and you still have to pay me upon services rendered.¡± ¡°That¡¯s ridiculous!¡± Calvin said. ¡°How would that ¨C But ¨C ¡° I vote we go back to the beating his ass idea. He can¡¯t take us without his friends around, and he probably doesn¡¯t have a lot of Bent left, either. ¡°You¡¯re not going to try to stop the¡­¡¯event¡¯ this afternoon, are you?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°The only thing I was hired to do here was keep the tournament going when you people are going around shattering each other¡¯s bones with reckless abandon. I¡¯m not going to do anything. No, Kate¡¯s the one who¡¯s been hired to stab Kurawe in the back of the head after your little kidnapping heist goes down.¡± ¡°Does everybody know about the kidnapping?¡± Calvin asked incredulously, shaking his head. ¡°Wait, hired by who?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t say,¡± Matthias said, picking up a plate and taking a sandwich from the line cook tossing them out. ¡°But I¡¯d imagine it¡¯s probably going to be whoever gloats the most after the deed is done.¡± ¡°Fair enough. Ella, put me down. I need to go watch people¡¯s plans go up in flames and return their gloating as they despair.¡± ¡°I want to too¡­¡± Ella sighed, setting him down. ¡°I know,¡± Calvin patted her side. ¡°I¡¯ll send someone for you after the obstacle course.¡± ¡°Awesome!¡± Ella clenched her fists with savage glee before she recovered. ¡°Do you really feel like this?¡± ¡°All the time.¡± Calvin said before sprinting out of the infirmary, aiming for the food stands. He snatched up a bucket of crispy bits and made his way back to the royal stands, flashing his badge when they tried to stop him. ¡°Took long enough,¡± ¡®Kurawe¡¯ said when he arrived, cuffing him and snatching the bucket out of Calvin¡¯s hands. Turned out the man¡¯s acting skills were even better than Calvin¡¯s. All of his enemies thought he was Calvin pretending to be Kurawe, and not the other way around. Better him with a knife in the back of the head than me. Macronomicon Chapter 130: My Kingdom for a Cashew The obstacle course was an entirely different affair than the other competitions, as there was no interaction with other contestants. It looks like ninja warrior on crack. You think it¡¯s too hard? Calvin thought. As they released the contenders in order of ranking, winning the first rounds was no longer an advantage. To be fair, winning never was. The people later in line watched as the fragomancer tried her best to navigate the obstacle course. She started down the path, skipping through poles, navigating the spinning wheel with ease. Rather than use the salmon bars she just grabbed the sockets and threw herself up the arch, going hand over hand with a look of intense concentration. ¡°Should I disqualify her?¡± Calvin¡¯s attendant asked. ¡°I think the failing is ours for assuming people knew how to use them. Just let the contestants know we¡¯ll subtract ten seconds for anyone who doesn¡¯t use them.¡± Why they call them salmon bars anyway? It¡¯s named after a fish that swims up waterfalls. Not big waterfalls. Little, graduated ones. Ah. A moment later she hit the balance beam covered in Oozeweaver ooze, courtesy of Calvin. The Not-quite princess¡¯s feet shot out from under her and she let out a startled squawk, tumbling into the vat of slime underneath her. Also courtesy of Calvin. Farren¡¯s teeth made weird little clicking noises as his daughter gasped for air and hauled herself out of the tub, falling prone on the ground, unable to get her feet underneath her. The next guy faired much the same. The third guy did the splits, nutting himself on the beam, much to the delight of the crowd. That guy came out coughing violently, likely having inhaled some slime. You¡¯re right, this is amusing. Right? This is an ancient human tradition. They¡¯re probably still playing this in space somewhere. Baroke, in the middle of the pack, was the first to solve it. He took a running head start, hunkered down and braced himself, the incredibly slick surface carrying him to the end of the narrow beam in a matter of seconds. He grabbed the five second backpack and the four second backpack which weighed a combined nine hundred pound of lead, and continued on his way at full speed. ¡°Is he allowed to take two of the handicap bags?¡± The attendant asked. ¡°Apparently. If a contestant wants to further burden themselves, that¡¯s their business.¡± Calvin replied. Baroke went through the rings, tossing himself ten feet between handholds with nine hundred pounds on his back. One of the rings popped loose at the sheer weight, but the giant was able to sling one of the backpacks over the bar before he fell into the slime, to great applause from the audience. The came the part Calvin was looking forward to. Baroke¡¯s fear of heights. You thought I forgot, didn¡¯t you? Calvin thought as Baroke looked up at the tower of power. A perfectly vertical obelisk in the center of the arena, at least four stories tall, with inch-deep handholds ten feet apart, and no apparent safety mechanisms. ¡°Are those ledges rated for eleven hundred pounds?¡± Calvin¡¯s assistant whispered. ¡°I guess we¡¯re gonna find out.¡± Calvin replied with a shrug. ¡°I didn¡¯t make the bastard take two handicaps.¡± Baroke leapt fifteen feet in the air and caught the ledge before scrambling up the side of the obelisk like a spider. Calvin could tell his strategy was simply moving faster than his fear of heights could paralyze him, and not looking down. In a matter of seconds, the behemoth had achieved the top of the tower and stopped the clock, fell to his knees and puked horker sandwich everywhere. The announcer, a consummate professional, read the result for the audience. ¡°Grabnar the barbarian, with a time of thirty one seconds, minus nine seconds for handicaps, has a total time of twenty-two seconds!¡± The crowd went wild, and Baroke hugged the top of the obelisk, refusing to look down or be moved. The crowd shifted from cheering to laughing as the officials tried to pry Baroke off the obelisk ¡°Oh, come on, you wouldn¡¯t even sprain an ankle from that height!¡± Calvin shouted, standing and cupping his hands around his mouth. ¡°You¡¯re fucking tougher than the bedrock, asshole!¡± ¡°He fell out of a tree when he was younger,¡± Calvin said as he spotted the crown prince watching him with furrowed brows and a gaping jaw. ¡°¡­I had nothing to do with it.¡± ¡°That boy can¡¯t be older than twenty.¡± ¡°He¡¯s actually closer to seventeen. All that stupid muscle confuses the issue.¡± ¡°¡­How old are you?¡± Calvin relaxed control over Kurawe¡¯s body. Go ahead and take this question. ¡°Old enough to have seen you try to fight the monsters, only to become one yourself, Farren. It¡¯s a shame about your son¡¯s suicide. I wonder if that will inform your parenting from now on, or do you still truly blame the girl? Where is she now, by the way? Rotting in some dungeon?¡± Farren went as pale as an Uleisan man could go, his jaw trembling. He leaned back in his chair and didn¡¯t have any further questions. Calvin resumed control of the body, sitting back down in the seat. This casual handoff couldn¡¯t be done without Kurawe¡¯s active participation, because Chained Spirits retained nearly full autonomy and the man¡¯s stability had been higher than his own in life. It helps that he thinks I¡¯m a living god. After listening to Murak describe Kurawe¡¯s zealotry at length and seeing what the man could do with glass, he¡¯d decided to leave the banker asleep with Kala and Rufe, then headed back down into the pit and Consumed Kurawe¡¯s corpse. Chained Spirit granted a slot every ten levels, after all. It also helped that Polluq and Murak were misinformed as to Calvin¡¯s actual location Sure does. Are you thinking what I¡¯m thinking? Start a religion with ourselves as a god-king? Took the words right out of my mouth. Wouldn¡¯t that be awesome? We could spend the rest of our lives being waited on hand and foot by girls in short-shorts. Like Ronny. Not happening. Why!? Zealots are so convenient! Because then I would be a god-king and not a wizard-king. Oh, you¡¯re right. I almost lost sight of the goal there. Whew. Thanks buddy. You¡¯re welcome. Ass. When they finally dislodged Baroke with the aid of magic and cleaned up the top of the obelisk, the next competitor was set to begin. With Baroke establishing the pattern, the other competitors quickly raced to beat him. A few went down on the balance beam, but for the most part, the difference was decided by the nine second handicap. Ella, wearing the three second backpack, wound up only a few seconds behind Baroke. After her turn, Calvin leaned over to his attendant and had the man bring her up to the royal stands. ¡°What can I say?¡± Calvin said, shrugging Kurawe¡¯s shoulder¡¯s. ¡°A guy like me needs large women.¡± ¡°I¡­see¡­¡± Ella showed up a few minutes later, in the middle of the last man¡¯s run. ¡°Ah, Breanne, a lovely showing. I shamelessly requested your presence in the middle of the competition to admire your beauty.¡± He held out his bowl of dried fruits. ¡°Care for a date?¡± ¡°No.¡± She said, wincing at Kurawe¡¯s corpulent body. Well, shit, that joke fell flat. The last contestant reached the finish and stopped the clock. ¡°And that¡¯s thirty five seconds, with a five second handicap, making Grabnar the Barbarian the winner!¡± Baroke stepped out of the line of finishing contestants, flexing and smiling like he hadn¡¯t been forced off the top of the tower with weapon grade magic. He joined the announcer at the bottom of the tower, and the man held the amplifier in front of him. ¡°Grabnar, would you like to say anything to the audience?¡± ¡°Audience, you¡¯ve been lovely.¡± Baroke said, grinning and waving to the stands. ¡°To the guy who decided on the height of that tower, eat a huge bag of dicks. A big ol¡¯ bag.¡± Calvin broke into a full-throated chuckle. ¡°And that¡¯s all the time we have!¡± the announcer said, snatching the amplifier away from Baroke¡¯s face faster than Calvin thought possible, thanking the audience and telling them to remain in the arena for the next event before he shooed the contestants away and bowed out. Another voice echoed through the arena. ¡°And now, would you please rise for our salute to our king and his royal family! May they reign eternal!¡± The entire audience rose to their feet, Calvin included, as a marching band came through, playing the national anthem on glass instruments. Somehow even the drums sounded pretty good as they belted out their song, the bannermen in front saluting the royal family between flag twirls. It was all quite grand. Let¡¯s see, deploy the shrinking as soon as the music comes to a halt and everyone salutes as one. That seems like the appropriate timing. Kate on the other hand, didn¡¯t seem to care about appropriate timing. Calvin¡¯s actual body got a minor sensation of disturbed air a second before a knife buried itself in the back of Kurawe¡¯s head. The giant man toppled forward, twitching. The Legendary rogue didn¡¯t even bother to show herself, slinking away invisibly as Farren and those around them came to their feet. ¡°Farren, What have you done!?¡± King Ollust demanded in a moment of pique. ¡°I had no hand in this.¡± Farren said, shaking his head and distancing himself from the body, as if being further away could make him seem less guilty. Which, to be fair, it can. ¡°He¡¯s telling the truth,¡± Polluq said, striding out into the stands, emerging from the shadows with a victorious grin, trailing a solid double line of uleisan soldiers The marching band¡¯s wind instruments cut out with a fart-noise, leaving the arena in silence. The sound of boots stomping along the glass floors sounded as the entire royal family was surrounded by stone-faced soldiers, and no less than six of the Legend tournament contestants, long with the rest of Matthias¡¯s party. True to the illusionist¡¯s word, he wasn¡¯t actually attending the coup. ¡°That imposter,¡± Polluq said, pointing at the twitching body. ¡°Wanted to disguise his dealing within the royal family as a kidnapping. Ridiculous. If he was an imposter, then there could be more infiltrating the royal family. As the marshall of Uleis, I¡¯ve taken it upon myself to place the royal family under protection until such time as we can be sure no foul shapeshifters remain in their midst.¡± See, that¡¯s how you coup. Gotta give the public a half-baked reason and do it publicly so everyone is aware of it. Then you cull them. You totally did it out of order. Enough back-seat couping from you. Calvin thought. It¡¯s time to blow this fucker¡¯s mind. As always, Calvin¡¯s little girl body was completely ignored by Polluq and his soldiers as they kept an eye on the royal family. ¡°Take them away.¡± The soldiers stepped forward to put hands on the royal family, who rose in their seats, with intent to resist. Engage operation shrinky-dink. Calvin rolled his eyes and dismissed the chained spirit. The dying summon exploded into green smoke that vanished a moment later, drawing the attention of everyone. Polluq¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°He¡¯s not ¨C¡° The arena outside the royal stands got bigger. A lot bigger. Large became huge, and then gargantuan as the knick-knack under the platform spun the wheel that forced the two spheres closer together, shrinking everything in direct contact with the platform, and a little more besides. This included everyone on top of the platform. They fell for an instant, everyone clutching to their chairs and shrieking as the support beneath them became too big to support the tiny little platform. Then there was a sudden crash, and the floor tried to buck up and break their knees as the massive iron wheels hit the toy-sized track, fit perfectly by the Knick-knacks¡¯ precise eye. Calvin held out a hand. Chained Spirit. 31/32 Bent remaining. ¡°Ladies and Gentleman,¡± Kurawe said as his skeleton and flesh formed out of green smoke, stepping forward to address them. ¡°For reasons I am not worthy to know, the Ravager has chosen you to advance his cause. Please, for your own safety, keep your seats, and keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times.¡± He turned and winked at Polluq. A young girl shrieked in fright as a titanic Knick-knack loomed over them. It was actually only a hundred pounder, but it looked like it could knock over a castle like it was made of sand. Calvin grabbed the nearby seat, fingers white. Whoosh! The Knick-knack pushed them down the track, getting them started on their way. Every hundred perceived feet or so, another giant knick-knack gave them a push, speeding them up even further until the gentle curve of the track threatened to unseat them. A few soldiers fell off the platform from the sudden acceleration, becoming monstrous colossi as they left the field generated by the Unqua beads interacting with the stands. One of them damaged the track as he fell off of it, shearing the glasswork behind them off with his huge bulk. The track rattled, but continued along, getting faster and faster. After a moment longer, Calvin felt the track begin to straighten out. Here comes the sewer. ¡°If you would like to hold your breath,¡± Kurawe said with a smile, ¡°Now¡¯s the time!¡± They plunged through the small tunnel the Knick-Knacks had cut into the sewers and continued on their way zooming through the filth-ridden undercarriage of Uleis at a speed that didn¡¯t quite give them an opportunity to get the full experience. The stench of the sewers buffeted against their faces, poop-laden air trying to force its way into their noses and mouths at over a hundred miles an hour. ¡°I didn¡¯t think of this!¡± Calvin shouted to Ella, covering his eyes with his hands. ¡°Obviously!¡± ¡°Maybe this is why Kala didn¡¯t want to come along!¡± ¡°You think!?¡± Ella shouted back. Thankfully, even Polluq and his men couldn¡¯t do anything but hang on, because Calvin was fairly sure the man had noticed exactly who had summoned Kurawe, and he would seek to take the harmless little girl out of the painting. In a matter of minutes, they were outside the walls of the city, outside of the sewers in a small tunnel built by the Knick-knacks. The track began to tilt upward, their momentum kept high as the Knick-knacks pushed the further along every time it seemed they might slow. At last there was a spot of sunlight ahead of them and a drastic angle change in the track, launching them up and into the hot desert air. ¡°Whooo!¡± Calvin shouted, hands in the air as the entire stadium stands and all the royals aboard, regained full size in midair. For one timeless moment, they were flying through the air, and Calvin could picture himself as a fearless stadium captain, piloting the magic flying bleachers wherever they might be needed. Then the stands hit the sand dunes, sending up a spray of sand as sheer momentum carried the construction another hundred feet across the fine sand before it finally came to a halt. As an engineer, I have to say I¡¯m astonished the stands held together so well, I was expected at least a third of them to be violently scattered to the winds. ¡°Attention Royals! You have been kidnapped!¡± Calvin said, jumping up onto the railing in front of the stands. ¡°Please do your best to remain calm and seated until I have issued each of you a ¡®kidnapped¡¯ stamp! I don¡¯t want to double count anyone.¡± ¡­Hmm. I¡¯m not getting the reward for kidnapping them. I wonder why. Polluq dragged himself to his feet, a welt forming on his brow where something or someone had hit him during the escape. He laughed. ¡°I never thought you¡¯d succeed, but very little has changed, shapeshifter. Look around you.¡± Calvin looked around. The remaining Uleisan military flanked them on either side, some hundred thousand men and women, give or take. ¡°Huh.¡± ¡°This abomination right here is the one who killed our people!¡± Polluq shouted, pointing at Calvin. ¡°He murdered fifty thousand of our own and had the audacity to try to usurp our government. Our people!¡± ¡°Kurawe, can you reach under your seat and hand me the belts you find there, so I can show these people why you think I¡¯m a god?¡± He¡¯s probably going to stop Kurawe from handing my my belts, so I¡¯ll have to rely on Calvinian summoning. I don¡¯t think I can kill this many people with unknown abilities in a straight fight, but if I use wasps and then Stalkers, the complacency aura should let me escape in the chaos. ¡°You fool, you¡¯re surrounded by Legends!¡± Polluq crowed. ¡°I¡¯ve assembled every man or woman with more than five Breaks within a hundred miles here to ki- Polluq¡¯s words were cut off as the massive Genosian warrior standing behind him cleaved the man in half with his crystalline axe. Silence fell over the crowd as Polluq fell to either side with a splat. ¡°The fool was going to get half of us killed.¡± The sharktoothed man said, spitting on the corpse. ¡°Oh.¡± Calvin said with a frown as he studied the shivering corpse. ¡°What was your price?¡± ¡°You better keep my niece alive long enough to pump out a couple spawn.¡± The hulking genosian said, pointing at Calvin with his axe. ¡°Uncle!¡± Ella shouted. ¡°Anybody else going to try to stop me?¡± Calvin asked, glancing around. The stands were quiet. The lines of soldiers on either side of Calvin stood still, sand blowing past their shoes as they watched silently. ¡°Good.¡± Calvin said, looking up at the stands full of petrified royals. ¡°Consider yourselves kidnapped.¡± Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 11! 55% Correction. Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 12! 60% Correction. ¡­ Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 18! 90% Correction. +1 Stability Please choose a- Your Body has reached 9! Your Body has reached 10! Your Body has reached 11! ¡­ Your Body has reached 34! Calvin¡¯s Body finally stopped ticking upwards at thirty-four. Damn, only twenty-six princesses among them, eh? Still a pretty good haul. Calvin wasn¡¯t looking forward to the sheer amount of exercise it would take to fill that out. ¡°And now, by the power vested in me by a shit-ton of paperwork,¡± Calvin said, fishing in his shirt and pulling out a deed signed by all the appropriate people. ¡°I would like to sell these rights to the largest share of land and businesses to King Ollust, in exchange for¡­Oh, let¡¯s say those cashews next to your hand.¡± Calvin glanced up at the royal family. ¡°You¡¯re un-kidnapped by the way. I have no further use for you.¡± He grabbed the bowl of nuts and shoved the deed in the king¡¯s hand. ¡°Little girl, this is a lease agreement¡­¡± King Ollust said. ¡°Pretend these cashews are worth an entire city,¡± Calvin said, spinning the bowl in his hand. ¡°I can¡¯t keep track of all these cashews alone. I need someone to administrate the cashews for me. Someone with¡­public approval.¡± ¡°Let me see that.¡± Kurawe said, reaching over Calvin¡¯s head and yanking the paper out of the King¡¯s hands. Kurawe scanned through it, chuckling. ¡°Oh, man, Murak is the worst human, but the best at what he does. Yeah, this is fine.¡± He handed it back to the Uleisan king before giving the ancient man an exaggerated bow. ¡°I look forward to working with you.¡± ***Baroke*** ¡°Fatherless piece of shit,¡± Baroke muttered under his breath as he scaled the death trap for the second time that day. Of course Calvin would abduct the entre royal stands and throw the arena into chaos without so much as a ¡®bye¡¯. Baroke didn¡¯t know where the bastard was going, but if there was a place that could spot where he re-emerged, it would be at the top of the tower in the center of the arena. That and all the stands were choked with panicking civilians, so leaving wasn¡¯t an option, unless he jumped over the arena wall itself. Baroke finally made it to the top of the tower and scanned the horizon. After a few moments, he made out where Calvin had landed with the entire section of stands. I wonder if I could clip him from here, Baroke thought, hand twitching toward the miniature bow on his hip. Nah, it¡¯s not worth it. Shelia joined him at the top of the tower a moment later, following his gaze out into the desert. ¡°What are they doing? I can¡¯t quite make out any detail. ¡°Just talking,¡± Baroke said. A moment later somebody got cut in half. ¡°Okay now somebody died. And they¡¯re back to talking. ¡°Is my father okay?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who your dad is, but only one person got cut in half, and everyone else seems like they¡¯re cool with each other, so¡­probably?¡± After a minute of watching what was going on in the distance, Shelia tugged on his shoulder, pointing out to the west. ¡°What is that?¡± Baroke turned and stared hard at the smudge growing on the horizon. ¡°I¡­don¡¯t know.¡± Macronomicon Patreon is up to Chapter 156! Come check it out if you''re still here. Chapter 131: Defending Mujenan ¡°Well, we¡¯re all gonna die,¡± Kip said cheerfully. The aging pirate dressed up in ill-fitting Gadveran armor, his calloused hands rested on the haft of his spear as he looked out into the face of death. The typhoon had delayed the landing of the Malkenrovian¡¯s strange fleet, crashing many hundreds of ships into the rocks outside the Mujenan port. The typhoon continued long after Jinnei arrived in the city, but the combined power of the Academy was no longer what it once was. They couldn¡¯t hope to keep the storm raging forever. And there were thousands more ships waiting just outside the range of the winds. Jinnei glanced over the edge of the wall, unable to see the ocean through the sails. ¡°We all die at some point, Kip.¡± ¡°Yeah, but that don¡¯t mean I like the idea,¡± Kip responded. Jinnei¡¯s eyes narrowed as the skips began crashing against the shore and began spilling open. Yes, spilling open. The ships broke apart on the beaches inside the cove, unleashing what looked like a wave of slithering black snakes. These black snakes squirmed forward with a speed she could barely believe. They rushed up the side of the wall, somehow clinging to the smooth stone as if it were solid ground. ¡°Burn them off!¡± General Andra shouted to the handful of wizards on the walls. ¡°Sir,¡± The eldest wizard stammered. ¡°If we do this, we won¡¯t have anything left for the siege. Would it not be better ¨C ¡° ¡°Now!¡± The wizard nodded and instructed the rest of the noble-born men and women to do as the general said, retrieving odd silver vials scarcely bigger than her thumb from their pockets. Below them, heat bloomed as the wizard¡¯s fire burned the black snakes off the wall, shriveling them as they fell off. ¡°You, form a team and round up barrels of oil! The wizards aren¡¯t going to be able to hold this forever!¡± ¡°You,¡± She turned back to the wizards. ¡°You¡¯re done for now. Lock yourselves up inside your tower and wait further instructions. Focus on getting that Bent back as fast as you can. I don¡¯t care how you do it.¡± ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± The grey streaked man nodded and left. ¡°Pirate. You¡¯re sure those worms are as dangerous as you say?¡± She asked, glancing at Jinnei. Jinnei nodded. ¡°They get inside you, and suddenly you¡¯re no you anymore. More than one of our crewmembers turned against us as we tried to save them. ¡°Anything else?¡± ¡°They¡¯d got something like a Beranga wurm, it crawls under the water. It can¡¯t match a ship going full speed, but it¡¯s fast nonetheless. They should arrive any hour now.¡± Andra seemed to stiffen up at the mention of a threat she was familiar with. ¡°Like the steel one three months ago?¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t here three months ago, but yes, it did have steel bolted to its body somehow, and blades in it¡¯s jaw.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t forget that it eats forests and poops out ships!¡± Kip added for good measure. Andra¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°If I weren¡¯t looking at a fleet that could carry an entire nation, I would call you mad.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a good thing we¡¯re looking at the same fleet then isn¡¯it?¡± Kip said with a sneer before he remembered where he was. ¡°um, general¡­sir,ma¡¯am¡­forget I said anything.¡± The pirate looked back out to the ocean with studied casualness. Andra watched him a moment longer before turning her gaze back to Jinnei. ¡°And what do you want as a reward for the advance notice? A bigger ship, perhaps? I¡¯m sure there will be plenty to choose from if we survive this thing.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want anything,¡± Jinnei said, shaking her head. ¡°I grew up in Gadvera.¡± She glanced back over at the old pirates lining the walls. ¡°These bastards, on the other hand¡­¡± ¡°We want Malkenrovia,¡± Kip said. ¡°Whatever¡¯s there now, it ain¡¯t human. That makes the land ours by default. We¡¯ll have to find out who¡¯s most closely related to the royal line, and make them our queen.¡± Andra¡¯s brows raised. ¡°That¡¯s a discussion to be had with the Hash¡¯Maje, assuming we live through this.¡± ¡°I s¡¯pose,¡± Kip said. Their words dried up as the heat from the wizard¡¯s fire began to fade away, allowing the black snakes to continue their ascent. ¡°They don¡¯t like salt, either.¡± Jinnei remembered. ¡°They died in the salt water. That¡¯s probably why they had a fleet.¡± ¡°like slugs, huh?¡± Andra said, as she glared down at the dimming orange heat of the walls. ¡°Damn, but I could use that wasp-brat right now.¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Captain Gadsint? The Wasp?¡± Andra said, eyeing Jinnei sideways. Gadsint was the last name of a bastard. It was Calvin¡¯s last name, actually, but he couldn¡¯t possibly be the bastard she was talking about. ¡°I¡¯ve been on the ocean the last quarter-year.¡± Jinnei said with a shrug. ¡°Figures,¡± Andra said before turning back to her troops. ¡°Get the salt! The salt you bastards! Double time!¡± ¡°You sure your pirates can hold this strip of wall?¡± She asked looking back at Jinnei. ¡°You seem like you¡¯ve got some kind of leadership aura. It¡¯s kind of puny but we¡¯ll take all the help we can get. Jinnei scanned her ragged group of pirates, including a handful of press-ganged Ilethans and gill-folk. ¡°Yes. We¡¯re veterans, and we¡¯ve dealt with these things before.¡± Jinnei¡¯s words were punctuated by a massive iron spike fired from the ocean slamming into the wall. The spike was covered in meaty nodules that burst, unleashing more of the black snakes above the line of heat created by the wizards. The snakes flooded up, and Jinnei¡¯s men quickly put the rags over their mouths before they began squishing the worm-like creatures en mass. Nobody wanted what happened to Guliver to happen to them. Where is Karen in all this? Jinnei know her mother couldn¡¯t hold her hand through everything, though, and she was most likely saving her time and energy for when things got really bad. There was a groan that shook the walls, and no less than three of the strange ship-building worms reared their heads out of the water, somehow immune to the salt that the little black creatures seemed to fear. Damn. Still no Karen. As one, the worms reared up and slammed their bodies into the walls of Mujenan, their heads even with the top of the wall. The reinforced stone shuddered, but held against the titanic pressure. Jinnei wrinkled her nose as she caught a waft of rotting flesh form the slimy jaws in front of her, big enough to bite a ship in half. As a single entity, the worms opened their mouths and heavily armored men poured out of them, covered in slime. Jinnei could see the side of the worms rippling as they continued to disgorge man after man. Except they aren¡¯t men. The ¡®men¡¯ were curled in fetal positions as they landed on the edge of the wall, a strange umbilical cord dangling from their stomachs. Did those things birth these? As Jinnei looked closer, she saw that the armor they wore wasn¡¯t armor in the proper sense, it was bonded to them, made of hardened chiton, formed into a facsimile of armor by convergent purpose. ¡°What are you waiting for!?¡± Jinnei shouted to her men. ¡°Kill them before they start moving!¡± They rushed toward the growing pile of bodies, hacking and slashing the still forms. The creatures seemed to be waking up, though, as some of them began moving. And their armor, it was rapidly hardening after they were born. They only managed to kill fifty or so before they began to defend themselves, the umbilical cord shriveling and falling away as they got to their feet. It was then that any doubt as to their inhuman nature was washed away. Their armored, lipless mouths split open, revealing a horrifying array of slicing teeth and wiggling, grasping fingers meant to pull food into their gullets. ¡°Iyaaaah!¡± Kip squealed, half in anger, half terror, as he shoved the tip of his spear through the chest of the monster in front of him. Jinnei felt the power he siphoned off of her as a little prick of tiredness. She focused on the sensation, bottlenecking it. She couldn¡¯t afford to give her men more than she had and pass out again. ¡°Where was the warning about these!?¡± Andra demanded, hacking through the creatures with greater ease than Jinnei had given her credit for. ¡°I don¡¯t know everything, damnit!¡± Even with the outpouring of strange inhuman soldiers, Andra made sure the snakes couldn¡¯t make their way up the side of the wall and join the fight. Hours of pitiless fighting went on and on, and Jinnei became more and more drained, her power used sparingly to bolster those who would otherwise fall. Andra held the rest of the Gadverans together through force of personality and strength of arm. ¡°Tell Bekvahl to give us another breather!¡± She shouted while making hand signs to one of her royal guards. The man nodded and sprinted away. ¡°Hold them off until the prince arrives!¡± Andra shouted, kicking several more enemies off the side of the wall, letting the fall do the work for her. This is going to be one of those long days, isn¡¯t it? Jinnei thought, narrowing the flow of energy to her men down to a thread. ***Calvin*** ¡°So the lease effectively chokes them off over time?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Effectively,¡± Kurawe agreed as they walked back to the city. ¡°Murak balanced the resources required in the lease to appear nonessential, yet they function as the lubricant that keeps greater industries afloat. I suspect his plan is to ransom those resources back for an even greater share of the city¡¯s wealth.¡± ¡°Damn.¡± Calvin¡¯s heart was finally starting to return to its normal measure, now that he was away from the [prospect of fighting an army and had firm control over the city. or at least, over the people who had control of the city. The royal family would take over the administrative, governing duties, as well as control over the military, while Murak tended to the money that flowed through Uleis. The two factions were not friends, however. The royal family couldn¡¯t simply try to order their army to seize control of the commerce of Uleis, because Calvin represented a significant deterrant in his own right, combined with the fact that the Uleisan Royals had no idea which of the Legends that currently crowded the city were also under Calvin¡¯s employ. Ella¡¯s uncle had planted the seed of doubt, and Calvin was going to capitalize on it. Now all I have to do is get Ella knocked up a couple times, and I don¡¯t owe him anything, either... Can humans and Genosians make babies? I can add a mutation for that in Lady Killer or YPiiAC, Elliot said, ever helpful. I¡¯ve been dabbling with something that could ensure fertility no matter the species of the other person. I call it The Captain Kirk. I¡¯ll have you know I was pretty good at biomancy back in the day, and this sort of stuff is in my wheelhouse. Calvin rolled his eyes. Of course he would experiment with something like that. Let¡¯s see. How much Warp in the tank? 8/34 Warp Remaining. ¡­Okay, whip it up. I¡¯m probably going to spend the next week in The Filter anyway maxing out my Attributes. Calvin anticipated at least two more skills from Playboy. Now that he had successfully kidnapped the Uleisan princesses, he had a combined Body and Mind that was damn respectable. About the level of a finely tuned Eighth Break Royal. Thank the gods the Uleisan royals were Break-starved. Kala and Nadia hadn¡¯t had time to grow into their abilities, but Kala¡¯s father? Nadia¡¯s father? Those guys might be able to beat Calvin soundly. Especially when my Attributes are far below their maximum. Which was exactly what spending another week underground would help fix. After that¡­Push for my eighth Break, see where we can go from there. with the warp tnak, I might be able to break nine. The atmosphere alone in the Filter wasn¡¯t enough to trigger the eighth Break, but if he used his Warp tank to bolster the amount in his body at the right time, he should definitely be able to break into the realm of people told of in stories and song. Like Karen the Bloodletter. Come to think of it¡­Nah. No way they¡¯re the same person. Giant sword, check. Name, check, huge suit of armor ¡®battle mode¡¯, check. ¡­I¡¯m sensing a pattern here. Calvin shook his head and dismissed the thought. Didn¡¯t matter now that he was raised by one of the greatest slaughterers of men of her time, he had other things to worry about. Like building a country. The lease payment on the country of Uleis gave him ¨C Just call it tribute and be done with it. Fine. The yearly tribute from Uleis should go a long way toward funding the creation of a city-state of my own to the south. Once this war is over, I¡¯ll be able to carve a larg chunk out of the jungle and set up a trade route between Juntai and Gadvera. The Juntai were rather xenophobic, but they had specialties and needs like everyone else. Carving a trade route to their heart would very possibly unlock a completely new market. There¡¯s gotta be a lot more than wood in the southern jungles¡­ Calvin was drawn out of his scheming by the sound of the massive glass chimes above the city wall, tolling to summon the guard, the majority of which were strung out behind him, trudging their way back to the city. ¡°Enemy attack?¡± ¡°I doubt it.¡± Kurawe said, pointing to the west side of the city. ¡°They started over there. Whatever¡¯s coming is coming from the west.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going.¡± Calvin said. ¡°As you wish.¡± Calvinian summoning 31/33 Bent Remaining. Calvin created a massive wasp and saddled himself between the segments. A moment later, with a mental nudge, the enormous insect shot into the air, sending a punishing blast of air down beneath it. In a matter of seconds, Calvin rose high enough to see what the commotion was about. People. A massive line of people. Men, women and children wearing Gadveran clothes, stretched back to the horizon. The only reason Calvin could see for a line of refugees that big was that the war with Iletha was Not Going Well. Why do the gods delight so in ruining my plans of conquest? You¡¯re telling me. Let¡¯s go see what¡¯s going on, Calvin thought, urging his steed toward the stream of refugees. Macronomicon Chapter 132: The Flesh? Learner¡¯s notes: Day 7 One hooter ¡®week¡¯ into my observation of these hooters and I noticed the strangest thing. A flat hooter and a lumpy hooter pressing their mouths together. Alerted to this behavior, I began pay attention for it, finding more than I ever thought on casual observation. Flabby or wrinkly hooters put their mouths on each other¡¯s cheeks or quickly against each others mouths before parting, while smooth Hooters spend long amounts of time with their mouths pressed together, making strange motions with their jaws, as if¡­transferring something between them. I can only assume that there is some kind of control mechanism¡­a chemical or some kind of large brain parasite, that transfers over from the mouths of the weaker, lumpy ones, to the larger, flat hooters that convinces them to do heavy, more dangerous labor on the lumpy one¡¯s behalf. They even seem to use it on the undifferentiated ones to control them as well, though usually on the cheeks, and with no tongue. Most ingenious. This once again reaffirms my choice of forms, although I have yet to isolate the parasite in my own form. It is possible that it¡¯s a symbiote that isn¡¯t present in my body given that I never had it passed on to me by a flabbier lumpy hooter. Even Ryan¡¯s behavior improves after a few of these parasite transfers. His immune system must be quite resistant to them, as this never lasts very long. In short order, he goes back to being what the other hooter¡¯s call ¡®an asshole¡¯. Requires more study. Early in the day, even more ¡®refugees¡¯ arrived, some sleeping in tents, others under thisck clothes. They looked¡­not as quick of step and mind as typical hooter. Ryan said they looked ¡®tired¡¯ ¨C New Vocabulary! ¨C They wore different wrappings than the ones I¡¯d gotten used to, although under their wrappings, they looked largely the same. Perhaps the wrappings were some way of indicating affiliation? If I understand the gist of what happened, these ¡®refugees¡¯ crossed a great distance and lost many of their own in order to escape some great danger. That suggests to me that these refugees could not possibly have taken an accurate accounting of who arrived and who did not. I could vivisect a few of them to gain a more accurate understanding of their anatomy. I¡¯m especially curious about the lumpy and undifferentiated lumpy hooters, with a mind to identify and obtain my own parasites. But¡­Priority one is to appear ¡®harmless¡¯. Killing two of the most valuable castes of hooters would not be likely to tag me as ¡®harmless¡¯ Perhaps there¡¯s a socially acceptable way within these hooter¡¯s paradigm to get what I want? Requires more study. ***Calvin*** Shadowboxing 84% Repaired. ¡°It was like a tide of black from beneath ocean foam.¡± The woman said, her hands shaking as she touched her forehead in a brief nod to the gods. ¡°They came up to the city in boats, enough to cover the horizon. And they kept coming, in endless numbers, those snakes. On the third say of the siege, the creatures must have found some kind of crack, because in the middle of the night¡­¡± She paused to take a breath. ¡°In the middle of the night, thousands of men and women ceased to be as they were taken in their sleep. My Boon, he has trouble sleeping, so he was awake when they came into the room.¡± ¡°He fought them off, and I ran,¡± She said, her voice breaking. ¡°The streets were just, thick with them. The only thing I could see of them was their black skin shimmering in the moonlight as I ran. That was enough.¡± ¡°Cries of alarm started going up through the city as I ran, then a brilliant light from our prince rose above us¡­¡± She paused, touching the top of her head as though recalling the sensation. ¡°little, fingertip sized pieces of¡­something began raining down on us, and I ran into a patrol, who set up a line preventing more of those things from reaching the palace.¡± Her face crumpled in sorrow. ¡°I made it, but Boon¡­¡± She heaved a single sob. ¡°I looked back, and he just stood there in the street, staring at me, and I knew it wasn¡¯t Boon. We lost most of the West district that night.¡± I got the idea from Slither, and other body snatcher fiction. Zombies are a lot more effective than you might think, because of the psychology of hurting your friends and family. And everyone knows hive-minds win like crazy. You like them? I can¡¯t say that I do, Calvin thought. Bah. ¡°And you said this attack was how long ago?¡± Calvin clarified. ¡°Let her get to it,¡± Kala said, her voice tightly controlled. Calvin glanced over and saw the way the princess¡¯s jaw was straining against her skull. She was barely holding it together for her people. ¡°Over the next week, we gathered in the palace as the Hash¡¯maje joined the fight personally. The walls were claimed by the enemy.¡± She dabbed her eyes ¡°Everyone thought we were doomed when the city walls became our prison, but Andra and the Malkenrovian pirates punched a hole through the next day, at a spot where the flesh wasn¡¯t growing.¡± The flesh? Elliot asked. ¡°The flesh?¡± Calvin echoed, eyebrows raising. She glanced up at Calvin and shuddered, then continued her story. ¡°They guided us through and guarded the path of our retreat, with instructions to seek you out, milady.¡± She said, nodding her head. She glanced at Calvin. ¡°That was two weeks ago.¡± So the invasion started a little over three weeks ago. The refugees set out day ten-ish. If things were already bad before¡­I have no idea what the defense would look like now¡­and what in Vashniel¡¯s name is ¡®The Flesh¡¯!? Ummm¡­I don¡¯t know. You don¡¯t want your backup revenge killing machine to be unthinking, because those are the easiest kinds of killing machines to fight, so I miiight have given One a little bit of latitude on how to go about its business and respond to threats. Great. Calvin thought, rolling his eyes. ¡°Did the monsters follow you?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°No, Jinnei and the others made sure we were able to get a good lead, and we kept the pace as best we could. Partway into Uleis, the creatures turned back.¡± ¡°Who?¡± Calvin and Kala asked as one. *** Calvin¡¯s fingers moved at a blur as he got himself fitted in the boiled leather armor, but his mind was completely elsewhere. Jinnei. He hadn¡¯t thought about his sister in months, flying from one life-threatening situation to another every time he had a moment to catch his breath. Here I am about to fly into another one. Maybe take some goggles. Last he¡¯d heard had been vague accounts of Karen and Jinnei boarding a ship out of the country before the war with Iletha got into full swing. Calvin had been under the na?ve impression that Jinnei had been¡­I don¡¯t know, safely knitting and herding sheep somewhere. But when he stopped to think about it¡­That was not the girl who¡¯d gotten herself killed fighting a legend. That was some other idealized sister that wasn¡¯t a thrill-junky. This particular sister was raised by one of the most accomplished killers of all time, and it would be foolish to think she wouldn¡¯t put herself in the thick of things. But staying there? after they got the refugees out? What were they hoping for, reinforcements from Uleis. Calvin knew after listening to the woman¡¯s tale, that the Uleisans would scoff at it and any hope of reinforcements from them was hopeless¡­Had they not recently come under new management. Kala was watching him lace up the armor. Her gaze felt conflicted and in turmoil. It slowly hardened into steel. ¡°I¡¯m not going with you.¡± she said quietly. ¡°Yeah, I figured.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Lotta people here who don¡¯t exactly have our bes interests at heart.¡± A thought occurred to Calvin. ¡°The Uleisans won¡¯t believe an invasion of strange creatures, but would they believe a new war on Gadvera?¡± Kala frowned. ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°The refugees are obvious evidence that Gadvera is in dire straights, why not convince the Uleisans that they can retake their former colony?¡± ¡°You mean to send the Uleisan army into our country, only to feed them to these monsters as a way of relieving pressure on Gadvera?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a bit of a simplification. They might win.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°in which case we¡¯d negotiate a deal to buy back your country from the people who saved it¡­who I have a fair amount of sway over.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll take two weeks to muster them and another week to send them over the sands on sleds.¡± ¡°What about all that mustard?¡± Calvin asked, gesturing toward the army that had been roused by Polluq to ambush him. ¡°They¡¯re not equipped for a trek across the desert. They need water, food, and transport. If I could drive them into some kind of rabid lather, I might be able to cut the time till arrival down to two weeks, but I¡¯m just one person.¡± ¡°Shit.¡± Calvin muttered, running his fingers through his hair as his legs became jittery. He could theoretically stay behind and pour his Bent into hastening the departure time, but it would still take days before they were ready to go. Or he could go right now. You could stock up on warp in that time. That¡¯s a non-issue. Oh? When I get there, if things are as intense as they say, there¡¯s going to be plenty of Warp on the battlefield. Get it here, or get it there where we can also make a difference, which would you rather do? Umm¡­. No. I¡¯m going. ¡°There¡¯s only one of you, correct?¡± ¡°A copy wouldn¡¯t last long enough ¨C¡° Chained spirit 22/33 Bent remaining. Eight Nadias emerged from the smoke, glancing around curiously. ¡°Nadia. Coordinate with Kala. You¡¯ve already heard the plan. If you succeed, I would be very appreciative.¡± All eight of the Nadia¡¯s swallowed a shudder. ¡°Of course.¡± She said with her usual ¡®planning something¡¯ smile. Chained Spirit. 21/33 Bent remaining. ¡°Kurawe. You¡¯ll be the force and the face behind the push to invade Gadvera while those two bend ears.¡± ¡°I¡¯d be honored to fulfill your design,¡± Kurawe said, bowing. And he meant it. ¡°You see?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at the giant zealot, while giving Nadia a look. ¡°He means it. Kurawe¡¯s a model Chained Spirit. Don¡¯t make me replace you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure Kurawe would be wonderful at seducing dumb noblemen for you.¡± Nadia said, her crimson lips curling in a smile. ¡°I¡¯m sure he might even enjoy it as much as I do.¡± Did she change her lipstick? In my head? I may have given her the option to change her appearance, a little. Nothing more than makeup and a change of clothes. Bribing my Chained Spirit? Ehh¡­. ¡°Get outta here, succubus,¡± Calvin said, pointing at the door. Calvin glanced at Kurawe. ¡°You too, zealot.¡± Chained Spirit Has reached level 21! 7/34 Warp Remaining. He had taken the Chained Minds Ability so he could control his ¡®disguise¡¯ more convincingly, but now they were going to provide a perfect communications link between himself and Uleis from miles away. That and he was dead set against allowing his Chained spirits Bent until he both got to know them very well, and had a staggering amount of Stability. The only thing that would prevent Nadia from taking advantage of him was if she literally couldn¡¯t do it. Seven Warp remaining. More warp at our destination. Need to make a big splash upon entry. Do the chained spirits need any more time on their summons? At their current level they¡¯ll last a little over six days. Plenty of time to see if the push to reinforce Gadvera is going the way I want it to. The politicians of Uleis wouldn¡¯t be able to sell helping Gadvera, especially after he did so much damage to it in their name. But they could sell the idea of annexing it. And if their conquest-bent army were to happen across a horde of monsters outside Mujenan? Two tarak with one stone. No, he didn¡¯t need to raise Chained Spirit any more. He needed more levels in Calvinian Summoning and Dupdomancy, his two most powerful forms of offence. If I can spend the warp I have to get Calvinian summoning to level twenty-five, I can take Chimera and make something that could roll over the enemy¡­ Sounds like a plan. Calvin finished lacing up his foot armor as the Bent constructs left to go do their jobs, leaving him in the room with Kala, Ella, and Baroke. ¡°I¡¯m coming.¡± Ella supplied as soon as the view was clear. ¡°I¡¯m not¡­administration material.¡± She glanced at Kala and sighed. ¡°And a little envious of the time you two spent underground.¡± She bit her lip. ¡°I¡¯m coming too,¡± Baroke said, his full-sized bow slung over his shoulder. He glanced over at the two girls who¡¯d locked eyes. ¡°But, umm¡­not for the same reasons.¡± ¡°Good, cause we¡¯re gonna be heading out in a couple minutes.¡± Calvin said, stomping the hardened boot against the floor to make sure it settled properly on his foot. ¡°Minutes? Don¡¯t we need like, a couple barrels of water and sleds?¡± ¡°No, we¡¯re going to be riding the wasps.¡± Calvin said, glancing up at him. ¡°Up high, where we can see Gadvera but they can¡¯t see us for a cloud.¡± ¡°Umm¡­¡± Baroke squinted. ¡°Riding wasps¡­flying wasps, up high¡­in the air?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°Fuck it, I¡¯ll just run the damn thing.¡± Baroke said, shaking his head. ¡°How fast can you run?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Here to Mujenan? Over sand?¡± He glanced in the direction of their home, his eyes meeting the glass walls of the mansion. ¡°Couple hours, probably, at full speed.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, standing. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna force you ride a wasp, but it¡¯s gonna suck otherwise.¡± ¡°I can hack it.¡± ¡°Calvin,¡± Kala said, getting his attention. The princess threw her arms around him and held him close, her hands running over his back and shoulders while she gave him a long kiss, holding him in place until he relaxed into her caress, his heart hammering in his chest. Kala pulled away from him, her breath tickling his face as she looked into his eyes. ¡°You be careful.¡± ¡°If there¡¯s more where that came from, I¡¯ll be immortal.¡± Calvin said, blinking the shock away. ¡°Good,¡± Kala said, stepping away. Then she turned and surprised Ella by grabbing the girl¡¯s head and bringing it down into another kiss, her other hand digging into the Genosian¡¯s leather-clad butt. Huh. Huh. ¡°You too,¡± Kala whispered, flushing furiously before she retreated from the room, Practically skipping on her tiptoes as she left the three of them staring after her, awestruck. ¡°Um...¡± Baroke frowned, gaze following the fleeing princess, his thick brows furrowed. ¡°What exactly did I just witness there?¡± His gaze turned to Calvin. ¡°I kinda wanna hit you right now.¡± ¡°No time!¡± Calvin said, resisting the urge to grin. ¡°Send a message to Grant, then we go!¡± ¡°How in the abyss am I supposed to send a message to Grant?¡± Baroke demanded. ¡°How do you think you would send a message?¡± ***Grant*** ¡°You see? The roots are edible, but you gotta cook ¡®em¡± Grant said, roasting the Knotweed roots in front of the mixed audience, internally lamenting at his fate. Stuck babysitting a bunch of new recruits in a ragged band of two thousand, with mixed species and mixed ideologies. It¡¯s a godsdamned nightmare. They even needed survival lessons. Agh, gone are the days where I had hand-raised lieutenants who could anticipate my every need. But you gotta start somewhere. Damnit, I¡¯m too old to start over again. By the time Grant had raised anyone to any level of leadership competence, he¡¯d be a sickly old man. There was a sudden hissing of displaced air coming from above him, and an arrow detonated the campfire, sending bits of flaming wood and particles of shredded knotwood root everywhere. ¡°Enemy attack!¡± Grant shouted, jumping to his feet and preparing to ward off thousands more arrows with his swords. No more arrows came. No one charged. Not a sound was made that wasn¡¯t their own panicked movements. ¡°Everyone shut up and listen!¡± Grant shouted. Nothing. What in the abyss? Grant ordered a perimeter check, his head on a swivel. When they determined they weren¡¯t under attack, Grant took a look at the arrow buried in the slowly cooling glass pit that used to be his cookfire. It was made of a strange metal, and it had etched words in the side. Grant plucked the arrow loose and read it. Took Uleis, Meet Kala east of city for instructions. ***Calvin*** ¡°You think he got that?¡± Calvin asked, staring after the arrow that had disappeared into a point of light in the sky. ¡°Oh yeah,¡± Baroke said, putting the bow back over his shoulder. ¡°You know, assuming they were still camping where we left them. or even if they were within a few miles. You know, Called Shot gives a much better correction with a lot of time and distance so it¡¯s ideal for -¡± ¡°Archery nerd!¡± Cal shouted. ¡°Magic nerd.¡± Baroke replied with a shrug. ¡°Okay, ritualistic insults before life threatening mission taken care of, let¡¯s head out,¡± Calvin said, unbottling the Warp tank. Calvinian summoning. Atom Ant Calvinian summoning. Calvinian summoning. Calvinian summoning has reached level 21! Calvinian summoning has reached level 22! Calvinian summoning has reached level 23! Calvinian summoning has reached level 24! Calvinian summoning has reached level 25! 3 slots remaining. +1 Will - Chimera: The user may rearrange parts from any slotted creature onto any other slotted creature in any combination. (New slot every 5th level) 2/33 Bent Remaining 2/34 Warp Remaining Calvin created two large, extra strong wasps to carry himself and Ella, along with several hundred Knick-Knacks to be used at Kala¡¯s discretion to help the refugees get the shelter that they needed. ¡°Don¡¯t you need your Bent when you get there?¡± He asked. Calvin thought of the multiple Nadias he¡¯d left behind. ¡°Nope. After you,¡± Calvin said to Baroke as they climbed on the wasps. Baroke took off, leaving a gigantic plume of sand marking his trail as he raced across the dunes, Making the biting desert wind look slow. Wow, that guy can move. Macronomicon Recently Dungeons of Dredmor has taken up a lot of my time and attention. For such a stupid little game it''s claimed more than it''s fair share. I feel I may be a masochist as I keep trying to play on the hardest difficulty on ironman mode, which is kind of a -hurt me more, daddy- sort of way to play. Patreon is slowly gaining steam. As of writing this, it''s 27 Chapters ahead. Of course if you''re not an impatient addict like me, you''ll get a flood of chapters eventually. (might take a couple months) - I totally started supporting Unbound because I couldn''t stand waiting for his chapters to come out. Chapter 133: That Flesh Learner¡¯s notes: Day 7 Cont. Ryan took us to something called a ¡®library¡¯ today. When I spotted the hooter scribbles on the flat sheets of pressed pulp, I was somewhat intrigued, but when I saw the hooter put it back, I realized the entire wooden construction was supporting three hundred and forty-two of these sheet binders full of hoots. A strange sensation went down the center of my back, where the knobbly bone bits are, as I gazed across the contents of the entire ¡®library¡¯. If each of these sheet binders was of a different subject, then this ¡®library¡¯ was such a wealth of information that it put my efforts so far to shame. I knew in that moment that I must make an active effort to learn the visual hoot language as soon as possible. Ryan delivered something called a ¡®letter¡¯, which is a hoot scribbled onto pulp with the intention of passing on a message. He gave the letter to a hooter others referred to as ¡®Professor Seymour¡¯. A notion I¡¯ve recently come to consider is that some hooter¡¯s names are indicative of their status or profession while others are not. I wonder if Professor¡¯s first name is one of those? Perhaps if I meet more ¡®professors¡¯ a common theme will be established that will give me the answer. This Professor Seymour was an odd one, because its coloration was not like the rest of the common hooters of the area I¡¯d found myself in. Similar to Nadia and Calvin, he was considerably paler, with a curly black mane, long in the front, that fell in front of his eyes as interpreted the hoot scribble. Professor¡¯s extremities shook as he read the ¡®letter¡¯ and then Ryan enquired as to the meaning of the letter. Ryan had already deciphered it himelf, and apparently didn¡¯t understand it¡¯s meaning quite the same way as Professor did. When Professor proved unwilling to share what caused his fear, Ryan ¡®beat it out of him¡¯. Professor finally told us something about ancient history, and ¡®System Administrators¡¯ who had grown powerful enough to challenge the gods, and been cast down for their arrogance. ¡­. ¡­.. What is a System? Requires more study. ***Ryan*** Ryan burst into Nadia¡¯s room at the whorehouse, half expecting to find the fallen princess entertaining guests again, but the bitch was just reading, her finger¡¯s tracing the book¡¯s words. Under a series of odd raised bumps was a title. The lusty Uleisan Maid? She looked up at him, her gaze flickering down to the blood on his knuckles, then back to the book. ¡°What brings you here? Seymour was supposed to contact me.¡± Dara hesitantly ducked her head inside, then decided better of it like a good girl. Ryan scoffed, and set the professor¡¯s letter back on the table. ¡°Seymour¡¯s not very talkative right now. So, tell me, what were you hoping a history professor could tell you about your situation?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you could tell me.¡± Ryan followed her gaze down to his knuckles that still had traces of Seymour on them. ¡°That depends,¡± Ryan said, lacing his fingers. ¡°How much of his guar-shit are you willing to buy from me?¡± He had her over a barrel now. A fun proposition. He knew what Calvin was carrying around inside him¡­or what she suspected Calvin was carrying around inside him, sharing space with her. If she wanted to get the professor¡¯s input on the subject, she¡¯d have to give him something in return. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Nadia tapped her fingers on her crimson lips. ¡°I want to buy¡­none of it.¡± ¡°Ah..What?¡± What the Abyss did she send me there for, then? ¡°Aww¡­It¡¯s not you, Ryan,¡± She said sweetly, closing her book and laying a possessive hand on his knee, leaning forward and looking into his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± ¡°My mind isn¡¯t exactly a private space these days. So you¡¯re going to keep me in the dark about the things you¡¯re doing for me, especially when it comes to sensitive information about our mutual friend.¡± ¡°How am I¡­How are you supposed to¡­What?¡± ¡°Here.¡± she said, passing him another letter. ¡°Pardon my handwriting, I wasn¡¯t looking.¡± She glanced down at his knuckles again. ¡°I wish you hadn¡¯t done that, though. It¡¯s going to make this next part awkward.¡± Ryan opened the letter, surprised to see a key tucked in the letter. The handwriting was a little sloppy, but easily legible. Next job: discuss my options with Professor Seymour and take him to the Sacrificial pit to Break. Follow his instructions. Relay results in Braille. Ask him what that means, you ignorant thug. Nadia narrowed her eyes as she watched him read the note, then she set her romance down snatched the note away from Ryan¡¯s hands. Rather than text, there were raised bumps on the romance novel¡¯s pages, which caused a moment of confusion. Without looking, the bitch wrote a quick note and handed it back to him. Do NOT throw him in the pit. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dream of it.¡± Ryan said, standing, hefting the key in his hand. ¡°I guess it depends on if this key is worth enough to make nice with the Ilethan with his head up his ass.¡± ¡°Do me a favor, and cut your reward by a quarter for not following my instructions in good faith.¡± Nadia said as she returned to her book. Ryan chuckled. ¡°Good one.¡± He turned and left, brushing past Dara on the way by as she hovered near the doorway. The mute meekly followed behind him. If the pay is underwhelming, I¡¯m changing teams. Dara can hang. ***Calvin*** Chained Minds. Calvin closed his eyes, then he opened Kurawe¡¯s eyes in his mind, as easily as opening one eye or the other. Suddenly he was sitting in the Giant¡¯s study, in the middle of a conversation with Ghuled Bassaan, discussing the logistics of feeding and housing all of Uleis, as well as an expedition into Gadvera. Did you wish for something, Ravager? Kurawe thought as he felt Calvin¡¯s mind make contact with his own. How¡¯s the situation? Calvin asked. I¡¯m afraid that in order to field the Uleisan army, One of three groups must suffer. The Uleisan people, the army, or the refugees. We do not have food for all of them, even with no effort spared, and dipping into the emergency reserves. Calvin thought about it for a moment. Can you just equip the army with more hunting supplies? Let them get their own food? That would upset the soldiers, reduce morale and drastically reduce the speed at which they would be able to arrive, my lord. If you try to keep everyone fed, you¡¯ll wind up with more trouble than if you simply choose one to suffer. Can you send Rufe and the rest of my Legends out in advance of the military and have them leave care packages along the trail? My Lord, despite being Legends, Rufe and the men who were trapped in the Abyss could not possibly hunt enough game to supply an army of one hundred thousand. ¡­They¡¯re Legendary hunters, not soldiers. I think they can do it. Make it happen. As you wish. Calvin opened his eyes again, severing the connection between them. Gods, I hope I¡¯m not screwing everything up constantly. Calvin had considered cutting off the refugees, but his status with Gadverans and Kala¡¯s family in particular was sterling, and he needed to maintain that. And the Uleisan army probably wouldn¡¯t be willing to take food straight out of the mouths of their families. There was no good answer there. Calvinian summoning. Atom Ant 30/33 Bent remaining Calvin summoned a swarm and split it into two, mentally directing them to go miles afield and push big game toward the road between Uleis and Gadvera. That should help. Why don¡¯t you wanna check in with Nadia? Elliot asked. I¡¯m pretty sure she¡¯s plotting something. Because ever since I got the damn Chained Mind Ability, half the time, she¡¯s ¡®busy¡¯. I swear, I¡¯m pretty sure she¡¯s doing it to keep me from prying into her business. So? What¡¯s stopping you? Getting a free show¡¯s gotta be tittilating, right? It¡¯s from her point of view. Up close and real personal. Oh, not quite as fun. I¡¯ll just write her down as scheming something horrible and leave it at that. Hah, stymied by gross-out. Careful that your homophobia doesn¡¯t get you stabbed in the back. Whatever. Calvin thought as the hot air blasted against this face. You try opening your eyes to a dick in your mouth and tell me that again. AHAHAH¡­.hmm¡­I see your point. They were making great time, the desert sands sliding by beneath them at a rate that beggared belief. Already scraggly shrubs and plant life were beginning to show up as they made the gradual transition between desert and jungle. The grass began to show up, dry and yellow at first, then lusher and more vibrant, until the jungle leapt up below them, marking a stark division between Uleis and Gadvera. There¡¯s a few things I need in that jungle. Eventually they passed over a stand of wide leaved trees covered in white maggot-looking worms. How nostalgic. Calvin created a handful of wasps, with a little something extra. He vividly pictured the organ the supplied the aura of complacency, along with the ones that connected to it. Calvinian Summoning Atom Ant Chimera. 29/33 Bent remaining. The resulting Wasp was not pleasant to look at. Somehow its hairs were thicker and darker, and the creature seemed to have a more menacing look to it. But it was fine, because they were under Calvin¡¯s control. Nope, not going through that again. Calvin ignored the desire to simply let the wasps do whatever they wanted and established firm control over them before they killed somebody. Go get me three or four of those grubs. Dead and unexploded. The capture wasps buzzed down into the clearing, and a series of explosions and plumes of fire began to rock the jungle just as Ella arrived beside him on her steed. ¡°Why did we stop!?¡± She shouted over the pervasive hum of their mount¡¯s wings, glancing down at the fires. ¡°Supplies!¡± Calvin shouted back. Ella frowned when the first was showed up, clutching a limp Fire-worm between its clawed arms, thankfully having not burst any of its storage organs like so many of it¡¯s bretheren. Calvin put a careful hand on the creature. Consume 28/33 Bent remaining. Entire creature eaten, would you like to assign it to a slot? Yes. Please choose a Skill slot to assign this creature to, or refuse to resume normal biological function. (Warning, volatile chemicals inside the creature may cause severe internal damage to User.) I Choose Calvinian Summoning, Calvin thought. 6/8 Slots filled for Calvinian Summoning. On its own, a fire-worm couldn¡¯t do much, but with its ability to spew fire or explode able to be passed to other creatures via Chimera¡­Calvin definitely wanted it on his roster. A moment later, another two dead grubs were brought up to him and Calvin used Harvester, storing them in his satchel full of ingredients. The compound in the worms might not be as potent as God¡¯s Fire made by a chemist like Igglebaum, but it was a Warped creature¡¯s ability, meaning his Abyssal alchemy skill would synergize with it and make it more powerful, And.. there was every possibility that he could find a catalyst in his other materials that would make the stuff even more valuable. Exploding crystals? Substances that burned memories? Who knew? Calvin was excited to see what he could make with it. The Widowmaker he wanted to add, on the other hand, wasn¡¯t as easy to pick out as a stand of Sweating Trees, and Calvin didn¡¯t want to delay his arrival in Gadvera more than a few seconds. Still. ¡°Let me know if you see me naked down there!¡± Calvin shouted over the constant hum of the wasps. ¡°Widowmaker?¡± she asked. ¡°Yeah!¡± ¡°What makes you think it¡¯ll be you!?¡± Ella shouted back, giving him a sharp-toothed grin. ¡°Educated guess!¡± Calvin shouted back, hunkering down over the wasp¡¯s prickly back before the creature burst into motion, slowly catching up to where Baroke was screaming down the trade road. Widowmakers had a perfect design for capturing live prey. With a few modifications, he could make the perfect princess-napping summon to take care of the work for him. I¡¯m not really sure there¡¯s enough princesses in the world to justify industrializing it to that extent, Elliot weighed in. Eh, it¡¯s that or a Tarak and a Float-Goat. Could be handy. Not exactly what we need right now anyway, Calvin thought as the jungle slid by beneath him. This is another one of those moments, Calvin keenly felt how far he¡¯d come as he effortlessly flew over the jungle he¡¯d nearly died in half a year ago. In the distance, he made out the massive Kugeya, it¡¯s thick armor plates catching the light as it slithered between the treetops. The very same creature that had terrorized him and Ella seemed¡­unimpressive. If I wanted to, I could probably kill that and take it as a Calvinian summon, if I wanted to. What¡¯s my total poundage at right now? Calvinian Summoning level 25: 15625 Lbs, 625 minutes. Wow, Damn. Calvin narrowed his eyes, trying to guess the massive creature¡¯s weight. Ah to hell with it. It doesn¡¯t matter. While a Kugeya was armored and big, he could easily get a wasp that big, and the only other thing it had was venom, supposedly, but not as potent as the young of its kind. No special abilities that interested him, either. All in all, it wasn¡¯t something Calvin wanted in his lineup. You¡¯re less valuable to me than a grub, Calvin thought, narrowing his eyes as the segmented armor disappeared under the canopy. That¡¯s your punishment. Live with the shame. Hah, good one. Hey, how big do you think a fifteen thousand pound wasp would be? Eh, two, three stories tall, Calvin thought, picturing it. Big fuckin¡¯ wasp. To the point where it was more effective to just make small ones. But the size would be damn intimidating. That could be useful. The jungle began to thin as they approached the coast, and Calvin sharpened up, scanning the horizon with his gaze. Finally, he began to be able to make out the city of Mujenan in the distance, cut out of the dense jungle surrounding it. It was mostly in one piece¡­except the walls were the wrong color, along with most of the buildings. They had been tan sandstone, for the buildings, and off-white for the city walls, presenting a bastion of order and trade in the middle of the Gadveran coast. Now, they looked¡­off. it was more yellowish than Calvin remembered, and as they came closer to the city, Calvin was able to make out red veins spreading out across the strangely colored walls, like an old man¡¯s nose, and ¨C ¡°Oh. That flesh.¡± Calvin said aloud as he made out the walls of the city for what they were. The walls had been plastered with some kind of skin-like substance that pulsed in the heat of the summer sun. Clear pustules dotted the sides of the walls, filled with what appeared to be humanoid figures. That was all that Calvin could make out from this distance, and he wasn¡¯t going to go any closer without a plan. Now, to make an entrance. Calvinian summoning. Chimera. 27/33 Bent remaining Calvin used the Fire-worms as a base, scaling them up to the size of two grown men, then added the wasp¡¯s wings. A swarm of thirty-nine four hundred pound Fire-worms burst out of a cloud of green smoke, ready to shoot liquid fire in copious amounts out of their asses. Burn that shit off the walls. Rather than leap to obey, all thirty-nine winged Fire-Worms thrashed, their wings buzzing wildly as they plummeted toward the ground. Booom! Boom Boom BOOOM! In a series of ear-splitting explosions, the Fire-Worms hit the ground and detonated, sending gouts of flame towering above the treetops. So high, Calvin could feel the warm air against his skin. Well, if you wanted to let One know you were coming, you certainly accomplished that. Probably should have added the chunk of brain that lets them know how to control their wings, too. Or restructured a wasp¡¯s insides instead, because those worms were NOT built to fly. Fuck. Calvin watched as the pustules along the walls of Mujenan began to burst, and the tiny humanoid figures fell to the ground. We¡¯ll get the kinks of Chimera worked out. In the meantime¡­ Calvin raised his hands, a cloud of green smoke resolving into thousands of fist-sized wasps. 26/33 Bent remaining These will keep them busy. Macronomicon next chapter in a minute or two. Chapter 134: Harpoon’d Jinnei leaned against the palace walls, the last line of defense against the encroaching horror that was slowly consuming the city of Mujenan. Her belly ached from the reduced rations as she waited for the Alpha strike. Surely after weeks of fire and fury, the monsters wouldn¡¯t simply decide to starve the last of them out¡­and yet everything had been quiet for the last seven days while she and the last remnants of Gadvera held on. The only time they were showed any opposition was when they tried to leave. Hordes of creatures would descend to shove them back in the palace. At the rate they were growing new soldiers, they had to have stored up enough to literally cover the palace from wall-to-wall, so why hadn¡¯t they killed them yet? ¡°I don¡¯t like this,¡± Andra said, standing beside her and scowling out at the flesh-covered city, that ever so gradually expanded forming silk-thin connections between buildings that grew over time into pulsing arteries. ¡°What¡¯s there to like?¡± Jinnei asked. ¡°We¡¯re bait.¡± Andra said, scowling. ¡°What?¡± Jinnei asked, raising her head from the wall. ¡°I¡¯ve been around long enough to recognize the signs. Look,¡± She said, pointing at the half-collapsed walls covered in pustules. ¡°There¡¯s even a clear line of sight to the roads. The outside can see us, we can see them. I know for a fact it would be more tactically sound to block sight both ways, and these things are capable of that level of thought, obviously.¡± ¡°¡¯Cuz of the boats?¡± ¡°¡®Cuz of the boats.¡± ¡°The only problem is why bait? It makes no sense.¡± Andra said, chewing her lip. ¡°Gadvera is awful short on allies at the moment. Our army is already in check. There¡¯s no other country whose army would be willing to fall into such an obvious ambush just to try and save us.¡± ¡°What about a person, then?¡± Prince Bekvah asked as he approached, taking his glasses off his hawk nose and cleaning them with his remaining hand. ¡°If not a country, perhaps these things are aiming for an individual.¡± ¡°One person?¡± Andra scoffed, then frowned. ¡°Maybe. It¡¯s as likely as anything else. It¡¯s not as though we understand the motivations of a Warped abomination.¡± She glanced up at Bekvah. ¡°How are the children?¡± ¡°All of them made it, to my extreme relief,¡± Bekvah said with a sigh. ¡°Getting Breaks back-to-back like that isn¡¯t without risk. In a matter of days, they¡¯ll be able to help get all of us out of here.¡± ¡°What?¡± Jinnei frowned, glancing between them. ¡°Bekvah has studied magic across the world.¡± Andra said. ¡°Including knowledge of Malkenrovian Elementalism, specifically earth-shaping. We gathered up all of the apprentices, messenger boys, girls, orphans, anyone without more than one Break to their name, and we went and got them Breaks. Several of them.¡± ¡°Ooh, that¡¯s what that was,¡± Jinnei said, remembering the last four ¡®last ditch¡¯ attempts Andra had made to flee the palace with the Hash¡¯Maje, only to be beaten back. ¡°I thought you were being an idiot.¡± Andra¡¯s eye twitched. ¡°Anyway. We¡¯ve got no less than two dozen children at fifth Break in here, and each one of them has been spending each Break increasing their Mind and Earth-Shaping.¡± ¡°Using children to literally dig our asses out of trouble?¡± Jinnei asked before grinning. ¡°I approve.¡± ¡°Children without Breaks are a country¡¯s most valuable wartime asset. Hopefully those things haven¡¯t been around long enough to learn that.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to find out.¡± Bekvah said, putting his glasses back on the ridge of his nose. ¡°In a week, they¡¯ll be full of Bent, and ready to tunnel us out¡­assuming nothing bad happens between now and then.¡± There were thirty-nine flashes of light, followed by distant detonations, drawing their eyes to the east, where towers of flame were consuming the edge of the forest. ¡°Is that a wasp?¡± Jinnei asked, squinting into the distance, above the flames. There was a hovering insect that¡­had to be a trick of the light. If it was real, it had to be much, much bigger than a man. A wailing cry went up through the entrie city, as the normally gently pulsing flesh encompassing the buildings began to writhe, spewing out soldiers at an alarming rate, deflating as they took to the streets, screaming with rage. Then the ground beneath the buildings began to crack and heave as a huge leg jutted out through the cobblestones, shearing off the side of a sandstone building. Andra reached over and smacked the crown prince of her nation in the back of the head. ¡°You just had to fucking say it, didn¡¯t you?¡± Strangely, rather than head for the palace¡­the swarm headed for the fire, flooding out of the city as more gigantic, crablike entities pulled themselves out of the ground, taller than the buildings that collapsed around them¡­ and the trees of the jungle itself. ¡°Oh, looks like the ambush was for Calvin.¡± Andra said with a frown. ¡°Huh.¡± ¡°What?¡± Jinnei asked, glancing at the general. ¡°Captain Gadsint is Calvin?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Oh, gods,¡± Jinnei muttered, slumping against the wall. ¡°He¡¯s never gonna let me live this down.¡± ***Calvin*** Shadowboxing 88% Repaired. Damnit, I really wish I¡¯d had time to practice Chimera on the way here. Calvin thought as his wasps spread out around him and secured the perimeter. Let me help. I¡¯m good at biology. Hence the mutations. What do you want? Right now? Calvin thought. Wasps that shoot fire out their butts. Or crystal lances, or anesthetic. Okay, It¡¯s my understanding that Chained spirits, and therefore Calvinian summons do not need to eat or breathe. We can take advantage of this. There are a huge amount of life support systems in a wasps¡¯ abdomen, along with the venom gland for the stinger. You can afford to remove all of these, and replace it with Fire-Worm guts. Is the abdomen the middle part? Jesus Christ, it¡¯s times like this I remember how bad your education was. Alright. The butt is the abdomen, the middle part is the thorax, where the muscles to control the wings are kept. Don¡¯t mess with those. Tell you what, put it up with Visualize. Visualize. In front of Calvin¡¯s eyes, a wasp about the size of a pig bladder appeared, perfectly still. under his gaze the outside of the fever wasp sloughed away, showing a fascinating series of organs inside the wasp, highlighted in different colors and annotated as to their purpose. I¡¯m hacking the stored plans for the Fever Wasp from Calvinian summoning into Drafting. After the fight is over, I¡¯ll whip up something more formal. Got it. So, we remove the heart, the breathing, the venom glands, leaving the central nervous system of course¡­ As he mentioned each part, the corresponding representation in the Visualize ability vanished. Then we pack it with the Fire-Worm¡¯s beads and squirter. Calvin thought, filling in the abdomen with a tightly packed coil of the interconnected beads, all connected to the fire-worm¡¯s nozzle placed right in line with the wasp¡¯s stinger. Exactly. Move the nozzle a little closer to the exit, make sure your central nervous system thinks shooting fire is the same as stinging, and you got yourself a build. Calvin felt a strong urge come over him. Then we add the catalyst organs from a Crystal Lattice. What? Calvin added three of the six Crystal Lattice organs right next to the edge of the nozzle. Calvinian summoning. Calvin made another thirty-nine summons, and this time they stayed airborne, hovering in place as they waited for something to unleash their malevolence on. Calvin nudged one to sting the air, and it happily complied. Wasps will sting anything. The crystal lattice was interesting in that it could make a huge amount of material from a tiny amount of liquid, and part of the way it did that was by using these three catalysts to create a magical effect that made more of what was already there. Almost like Dupdomancy, but strangely it didn¡¯t register as a Bent Construct. Calvin¡¯s theory was that one of the catalysts was stored undifferentiated matter, that, when combined with the other two catalysts, could both mimic whatever it interacted with, and unpack its mass. In short, the spray of flaming liquid widened out, literally adding more of itself as the catalysts unpacked, creating an inverted cone of flame that nearly consumed Calvin and the wasp he was riding on. Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 6! 30% Correction Drafting has reached level 6! 30% Correction You¡¯re just all kinds of stupid, aint¡¯cha? We¡¯ll see. Calvin gave the thirty-nine wasps instructions to go sting the air above the approaching troops. They looked almost human from a distance, but as they came closer, Calvin could tell that their armor was made of some kind of shell bonded to their bodies. Their mouths¡­Definitely not human. The wasps did as they were bid, laying down massive blankets of fire across the charging army, reducing the mindlessly charging army to charred corpses. But they didn¡¯t stop coming. Somehow the enemy had a seemingly limitless supply of soldiers. Well, as long as I can fly and they can¡¯t this shouldn¡¯t be too bad. Crack! A deep-rooted jungle tree was torn asunder as a four story, crablike creature pulled itself out of the fertile earth, several hundred yards behind Calvin. It bore a pulsing lump on it¡¯s back that looked¡­ ¡°Fairly ominous.¡± Calvin said as light began to warp around the creature¡¯s back. You¡¯re telling me. I¡¯m starting to think this might be a little suspicious. ¡°Nah, this is ¨C¡° Hundreds more of the crab-like behemoths tore themselves out of the earth in a half-mile semicircle around Calvin, as buzzing, fist sized insects crawled out of the gaping holes and began taking flight in expanding clouds. ¡°Trap.¡± Trap. Might I suggest getting the fuck out? ¡°Now that would just be planning for failure,¡± Calvin said, reviewing what he knew in his head. The creature that was sending these after him knew him¡­when he was a Veteran. It had effectively stymied his wasps and his spellcasting before, and it would most likely have refined a plan to do so even further. So the question was, could he come up with a gimmick that could take this creature by surprise? Something it didn¡¯t know about? As Calvin was thinking about this, there was an inaudible whine in the back of his eyeballs more felt than heard. It suddenly changed in pitch to a low roar, shaking his ribs and the leaves on the trees beneath him. Calvin leaned and instructed his wasp to dodge as a beam of tightly controlled purple light shot out of the nearest towering crab, catching Calvin¡¯s leg and part of the wasp he was riding. The wasp burst into green smoke as soon as the beam made contact with it. There¡¯s the antimagic. Calvin thought, glancing at his leg as he fell. Other than tingling a little, there was nothing wrong with it. Is it trying to catch me alive? Calvin asked Elliot, focusing on how he was going to slow himself down. Web down beneath me might be better than a burst of air. less chance of it failing, and I can dismiss it as soon as I come to a halt. Calvin¡¯s plans were put on hold when another nearby giant crab launched a massive spear from its back, a bone-white, barbed thing with some kind of thread leading back to its back. Calvin activated Beli Ma, waving a hand and creating a whorl of Bent in front of the spear¡¯s path. He probably couldn¡¯t catch it, but diverting it wouldn¡¯t be too hard. The rumbling sound came again, and Calvin¡¯s whole body was caught In the purple beam of a third attack, shredding his Beli Ma, and scouring away his externally stored Bent. For a timeless instant, Calvin saw the harpoon heading for his heart and knew he couldn¡¯t do anything about it. Then Ella kicked him in the shoulder. The Genosian was freefalling beside him, having abandoned her mount. The harpoon buried itself in his stomach, jutting out of his back as the barbs set themselves in his flesh. And I¡¯m still falling. Calvin thought, adrenaline beginning to really hit now. Gods, I hope that didn¡¯t hit my liver. Calvin uncapped the Warp Tank. Hopefully it would help with surviving being pinned like a display butterfly. Extensive training has raised your attributes! +1 Endurance 1/34 Warp Remaining. Yaaay. Calvin could see the crab beginning to reel him in, even as he fell, the sudden tug separating him from Ella and forcing him to put a hand on the harpoon to prevent it from moving too much. I don¡¯t know how much One knows about human physiology, but there¡¯s no way I¡¯m going to survive the fall with a harpoon in my stomach¡­unless¡­ Heart hammering, Calvin watched the dispelling crabs, and the rapidly expanding jungled beneath him. They seemed to be waiting for him to try something, the light around their back-lumps pulsing. Bastards. To be fair, your brain will probably be ¡®alive¡¯ long enough for a specialized unit to yank your soul out, so massive trauma isn¡¯t really a problem. Thanks for that. Calvin¡®s view was occluded by green. Now! Shifting. 19/33 Bent remaining Shifting level 16! 80% shift, 16 minutes, targets limited to 4096 pounds in mass. 0/34 Warp remaining Calvin targeted himself and a tree, shifting all but thirty pounds into the tree as the silken thread he was being reeled in on was caught by a branch. As if sensing his use of Bent, a beam of purple energy pierced through the trees, missing him by a hair¡¯s breadth as his connection to the harpoon in his guts swung him violently forward. By clenching both hands on the harpoon with a death-grip, he was able to avoid his own body weight ripping the damn thing out of him the wrong way and killing him in a matter of minutes. Below him, Ella hit the ground without a scratch and began running toward Mujenan, in the direction of the road, where Baroke was, waving at him to follow. Oh, sure, I¡¯ll get right one that. The fisher crab was still reeling him in, though, and his leeway between himself and the branch was rapidly diminishing. Calvin used Blade body and slammed an Abyssal Steel knife down onto the silk where it looped over the branch of the tree. Thankfully, it worked, but Calvin was falling again, seconds away from the ground. If the beam crab targeted him whenever he used Bent, this was going to be difficult. As if to add insult to harpoon strike, Calvin heard the buzzing of closing insects that were decidedly not his. Okay, this is looking pretty shitty. Calvin bent his knees and began casting Calvinian Summoning. When he felt the whine in his eyes, he kicked out, catching a tree limb and altering his course just enough to throw off the beam. Can¡¯t hit what you can¡¯t see. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the swarm. Atom Ant. Calvin burst into green smoke a fraction of a second before he hit the ground, separating into three Stalkers with enhanced physical Attributes, each of which weighed just a few pounds more than he did. The Stalkers hit the ground running. The one closest to Calvin¡¯s falling trajectory was hit with a purple beam, and it vanished from his senses, leaving two, going opposite directions. According to Calvin¡¯s understanding of the mutation¡¯s mechanics, he wouldn¡¯t reappear until both of the remaining summons were destroyed. And until they were destroyed, Calvin¡¯s guts were not an issue. The Stalkers were able to slide through the jungle with speed that Calvin¡¯s mind struggled to keep up with, creating a hissing noise in the air as they moved. The complacency aura seemed to work in their favor as the beams of purple mana seemed to be belated, unable to accurately pin them down. Either that or he was too fast. Calvin didn¡¯t care either way. One he sent toward Mujenan, the other, toward the outside edge of the encirclement. Either way worked for him. In a matter of seconds the Mujenan Stalker broke out of the treeline into the light of day, and Calvin began zigzagging wildly as beams began to scan the charred as he made his way toward the walls. He glanced over the Stalker¡¯s shoulder and spotted Baroke and Ella running along the road to his side, mostly unhindered by the nightmare creatures surrounding them. They all had eyes for Calvin. Baroke. Now there was a good solution to his giant anti-magic monster problem. Now how to tell him to kill the dispellers without vocal cords? Hmm. Calvin ran up to Baroke, ducking and weaving as the light tried to unravel his physical form. He tapped Baroke on the shoulder. ¡°Oh, hey, what¡¯s up? Is that you, Calvin?¡± Baroke asked, slowing down as he fell under the influence of the Stalker¡¯s Complacency Aura. Able to finally get a bead on him, one of the beams caught Calvin¡¯s summon, bursting it into green smoke in front of Baroke. Calvin¡¯s awareness was jettisoned back to the Stalker still weaving through the jungle. Hopefully he gets the message. Calvin thought, aiming for the outside of the encirclement. A streak of light passed over the stalker¡¯s head, and one of the nearby enormous legs staggered as though it¡¯d been subjected to a blow. The archer had got the idea. Let¡¯s try this again. Time to make some Warp. Calvin leapt into the air and dismissed the Stalker summon, appearing in midair, stomach burning. He put a hand over the spear and kept running, gritting his teeth against the pain. It wasn¡¯t the worst pain he¡¯d ever experienced. But it also wasn¡¯t imaginary. Wasps with Spinner hands? No, no guarantee they¡¯d be able to use them. Exploding wasps? No¡­ too much collateral damage, and only one attack per wasp. Even with Bad Penny, they¡¯d likely all kill themselves I want more damage over time. Ah. Calvinian summoning Heart of the Swarm Atom Ant There was a brief whine in Calvin¡¯s eyes before a streak of light shot overhead and silenced the sub-aural noise. Thank the gods he¡¯s not stupid, Calvin thought, exploding into a swarm of head-sized refraction spinners. Macronomicon Chapter 135: That’s a lot of blood Turned out a refraction Spinner couldn¡¯t see. How could they with a constantly diffracting surface in front of them? And no eyes. The sudden lack of senses brought Calvin¡¯s swarm to a grinding halt while he tried to interface with the alien creature¡¯s senses. Thank the gods he¡¯d had a Tarak skin for a while now, because that was the closest analogue he was able to make, and it helped him quickly acquaint himself with what was going on. As it turned out, the many fingers of the refraction spinner are maddeningly sensitive. It felt to Calvin like the whole world was trying to crawl its way up his arms through the tips of his fingers, where the vibrations of reality fed them information. He slowly became able to process what his fingers were telling him was there, referencing it against what he already knew was there. It only took a few seconds before he was able to feel what was going on around him. That¡¯s a tree, that¡¯s a leaf, that¡¯s the ground, that¡¯s a nightmare crab-monster leg. Now, the other problem, flight. When he took direct control away from the creatures, their flight stabilized and they were able to move where he directed them, but when he assumed direct control over the monsters, they tumbled out of the sky. Why? The most obvious thing he could see was that they didn¡¯t seem to have wings, or any other form of propulsion for that matter, just a toothy sphere with a dozen arms. Calvin directed the swarm to scatter in every direction, and tried to jump his consciousness into one spinner after another, jumping out before they hit the ground. He tried everything he could, moving the creature¡¯s arms in every direction he could think of, until one of the spinners dropped onto a branch in its fall. Ow, my ass. The spinner nudged forward. No. Oh, yeah. it¡¯s kegel time. Tighten your sphincters and let¡¯s put this baby into gear. To be fair, it wasn¡¯t kegels, exactly. There was some kind of internal use for the spinner¡¯s ability to warp space that actually allowed it to hover in midair, and it only felt like clenching his butthole because he didn¡¯t have his own space warping flight muscle. Close enough. Forward, ass captain! Also, remind me to bring up FTL travel and how it pertains to space-warping later. It took a few tries, but eventually Calvin got the hang of flying with internal muscles. There were more than six pairs of them, and it was confusing at first, the refraction spinners he was flying wound up causing a lot of damage to the forest by reducing large chunks of wood to chips as they crashed into them. Thankfully that was the exact amount of damage he intended to do to the crab monsters. Normally, a spinner wasn¡¯t particularly fast, tough, or smart. Its only offensive ability was the impenetrable field of tangled space that julienned anything going through it, and that only faced one direction. With Atom Ant multiplying all of their physical abilities by twenty-five and Calvin directing them? They became fairly dangerous. They hissed through the air at high speeds, not as fast as a wasp with a similar enhancement, but still difficult to track, and their fields of warped space were roughly the same size as a full grown spinner¡¯s. Turn this jungle into a hurricane of flesh-chunks. Calvin ¡®watched¡¯ from one of the nearby spinners as one of them slammed into the side of a crab, cutting through to the other side in a shower of viscera. Another head-sized spinner impacted against a crab leg that exploded into chunks as the spinner passed through, staggering the creature. At Calvin¡¯s direction, they spread through the jungle and began grinding it to shreds, blending wood and flesh into a red pulpy mess like..some kind of machine made to blend things. It¡¯s called a blender. What is this strange device you speak of? Is it magic, good sir? Now I know you¡¯re fucking with me. Hand blenders have existed for a thousand years. A massive crab gave a guttural moan as it toppled onto its side, sending a shockwave through the forest, picked up by Calvin¡¯s many, many fingers. You know, I think if I took the space-warping organs out of the fingers, this thing would make a good spy summon, seeing as it can fly silently and has ultra-sensitive fingertips. I¡¯ll write it down. New ideas were always occurring to Calvin during a fight, like being in mortal danger was the only time he could really think. That and experimenting with magic¡­and Kala¡­and Ella¡­ Focus. Right. Mortal danger. You think the spear hit my liver? Yeah¡­ I think it mighta nicked it. Good news is it probably isn¡¯t going to kill you instantly. The spear wasn¡¯t big enough to shred the liver. So as long as you don¡¯t have any major bleeding, Medi-tate can ward off peritonitis, since the infection wouldn¡¯t be able to keep pace with your rate of healing. Any abilities that might help me get it out of me without causing any more damage? Calvin thought, searching his internal list of powers. Knick-knacks were programmed with the ability to perform emergency surgery. I used them on the villagers, after all. You might be able to make the Mage armor spell function like a bandage. Maybe I could alter the viscosity on the joint connecting the barbs, sheer them off. That might leave bits of spear inside you once the spell expires. Letting the knick-knacks clip them off might cause more damage overall. The clips won¡¯t be perfect. As they commiserated about how best to remove the harpoon in his guts, Calvin¡¯s swarm of spinners focused on taking down the crabs, specifically the ones with the anti-magic lumps on their backs, tearing them to pieces one at a time. The harpooners weren¡¯t as much of a pain in the ass. Calvin had just driven a head-sized projectile through the last anti-magic crab when he exploded. There was a sudden sensation of blistering heat and each and every spinner detonated. Calvin¡¯s center of mass was ten feet off the forest floor, and he suddenly appeared, imploding out of green mist, dropping face-first to the ground in a heap. The fall shoved the harpoon¡¯s barbs the rest of the way through his stomach, covered with dark blood, a good sign his liver had taken damage. Fuck. NOW it¡¯s the most painful thing I¡¯ve ever felt. Calvin groaned, hand reaching down to make sure all his guts were inside. Spear¡¯s stopping you from bleeding, don¡¯t take it out yet. No shit. Who in the abyss do you think my mother is? Calvin thought as he tried to lever himself to his knees. His arms and legs were too weak to support him, though, and he remained face first in the dirt. This is what weirds me out about your upbringing. I sure as hell didn¡¯t learn that kinda stuff from my mom. Oh yeah, what¡¯d you learn? Not much. Unwarranted high self-esteem I suppose. Yeah, I can see that. Shifting. 17/33 Bent remaining. Calvin poured his weight into the ground, and suddenly he was not too weak to lift himself, able to push up to a sitting position with ease, gritting his teeth against the pain. Trait Doctoring. Viscosity. 16/33 Bent remaining. Calvin reached back and located the place where the spear jutted out of his back with his finger. He cut the harpoon by making it fluid just at the point his finger touched it. Multi-shaping 15/33 Bent remaining. Calvin made a leather strap using the leather of the belts over his shoulder, then wrapped that around his stomach, the remaining harpoon stub settling into notches designed to hold the damn thing in place. Calvin let out a groan of pain as he tightened the belt, then stood. Calvin¡¯s stomach hammered home that he was injured with a throbbing pain that made him want to curl up in a ball and pass out. But it didn¡¯t leak. On the outside. A deep burning sensation was beginning to spread through his stomach, radiating outward from his wound. ¡°Okay, what in Vashniels hoary ass happened to my summons?¡± Calvin asked, glancing around, trying to find a reason for the sudden loss of cohesion. One¡¯s avatar catch you? I remember when it was puppeting Nadia it was able to spank you pretty readily. ¡°Nah, this didn¡¯t feel like that, plus One just countered me as I was casting, not after. It felt more like¡­ Charlotte. ¡°Charlotte.¡± Calvin groaned. Why not? Still sure you don¡¯t want to get out of here? maybe turn into a stalker and get out? Stop the clock on that wound until you can fix it? ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sure,¡± Calvin said, head spinning as he leaned against a tree. ¡°Wizard kings win by¡­¡± Calvin¡¯s thirty-pound body was starting to get heavy, and cold. Shit. Need some first aid. Calvin leaned against the tree and slumped against it, sliding down. Calvin, you need to get in another surrogate body asap, buddy. Shut up. Visualize. Calvin brought up an image of himself, slumped against a tree, large as life Can you do that thing where you add the information from the System? Sure. The image flickered like a candle for a moment, then Calvin was able to look inside himself like he had with the wasp, He inspected the wound, his eyes peering straight through the intervening muscle and organs, until he spotted the large tube leading to his liver that¡¯d been nicked by the barbs. It was pumping blood into the left side of his stomach, flooding his organs and putting pressure on them while other parts of his body, namely his head, were beginning to feel the lack of bloodflow. That could be a problem. Ooh, Calvin, I don¡¯t mean to be alarmist, but that spear nicked your hepatic artery, so you¡¯ve got about three minutes to live. It¡¯s fine. Calvin raised his heavy hand and pointed his finger toward his chest, watching the image of himself until he was aiming exactly at his own heart. Two inches deep. One, two, three, and¡­Now. Gradual split. 14/33 Bent remaining. Calvin targeted a tiny bit of the blood that was at the center of his heart and reproduced it, flooding his heart with a steady supply of new blood. ¡°Ugh,¡± Calvin coughed. ¡°That feels weird.¡± I should think so. Shaping. Calvin targeted the knife in his hand to make a narrow sharpened tube, found a good spot on the image of himself without too many important pieces, and jabbed it into his gut. The blood flooding his stomach finally had somewhere to go, gushing out onto his pants in an alarming amount. Four hundred pound blood pack, huh? You know if all your blood disappears in an hour, you¡¯re gonna be in the shit, right? ¡°Better than three minutes,¡± Calvin said, refocusing on the nicked artery in front of him. How to close that in the most elegant way possible? The humming of One¡¯s insect swarm brought his attention back to his current situation. Crap. From what Calvin remembered, the insects were a little bigger than someone¡¯s head, most likely used for scouting and blocking his own swarm from killing the crabs. In his current state, they were pretty dangerous, though. Calvinian Summoning. 13/33 Bent remaining. 12/33 Bent remaining. 11/33 Bent remaining. 10/33 Bent remaining. 9/33 Bent remaining. 8/33 Bent remaining. Calvin flooded the area with wasps, spinners, Spinner-wasps, worm-wasps, worm spinners, any novel combination he could think of. A moment later, he heard the telltale sound of wasps catching fire, a soft wumph. It¡¯s definitely Charlotte. She probably thinks she has the upper hand. Which is why we should run away. ¡°Nah,¡± Calvin said, levering himself to his feet, blood still gushing out of the tube in his stomach at an alarming rate. ¡°I think I¡¯ll go say hi.¡± By the way, do you think it would be a better idea to create a patch using glue and my own artery flesh with dupdomancy, or send a tiny knick-knack into my chest with a tiny needle and some of the silk thread in my belt? The silk thread, hands down. Better to get a semi-permanent solution there. ¡°Aw man, I was afraid you¡¯d say that.¡± Calvin muttered as he mentally commanded everything that was left to spread out and find her. A woman with gold hair had the tendency to stand out on this continent. Knick knacks in the chest was going to hurt, a lot. Unsurprisingly, the plain wasps were knocked out of the sky almost immediately, as well as the spinners, but the multitude of hideous chimeras, she had a harder time getting a sample, and she wasn¡¯t able to get rid of all of them before his summons found her. 0/34 Bent remaining. ¡°Nadia. If you wouldn¡¯t mind,¡± Nadia¡¯s thoughts brushed against his own. I was thinking that this was an excellent time to renegotiate the terms of our arrangement. Calvin kept walking toward the clearing in the middle of the jungle, ignoring Nadia¡¯s power play. Either she did as she was asked, or they died, to whatever fate that would lead them. She had no leverage, not when Kurawe would be willing to do her job. Calvin emerged into the clearing where the blonde sorceress was sitting with a glass of wine and several attendants fanning her off. There were several large fires burning nearby and some in the midst of being relighted by her other attendants. ¡°Gadvera is disgusting, you know.¡± She said sourly as Calvin entered the clearing. ¡°Wet heat is the bane of man¡¯s existence, as far as I¡¯m concerned. And don¡¯t get me started on what it does to my¨C¡° The sorceress glanced down at the constant stream of blood splattering down on the ground in front of him, looking fairly disgusted. ¡°You¡¯ve got a leak.¡± She said dryly. ¡°Don¡¯t I know it,¡± Calvin replied with a smile, pulling out the extra seat and carefully sitting down in front of her, wincing as his stomach send up an especially painful flare. Charlotte moved her pristine white shoes away from where blood was streaming out of the tap in his stomach. ¡°I just stopped by to let you know you can¡¯t beat me,¡± Calvin said. ¡°And if you keep trying to stop me, not only are you going to run out of Bent and get killed by me, you¡¯re either going to be added to my collection, or the collection of the thing you¡¯re working for.¡± ¡°With.¡± Calvin made a pained expression and waggled his palm. ¡°You¡¯re working for it. Don¡¯t get confused. You aren¡¯t going to be able to stop me, because I¡¯ve got more Bent than an entire city.¡± You suck, you know that? With that last complaint, Nadia did her job. 1/33 Bent remaining. 2/33 Bent remaining. 3/33 Bent remaining. ¡­. ¡°Oh? Forgive me if I seem doubtful.¡± Charlotte said with a smile. She raised her hand and a bolt of red energy darted toward Calvin¡¯s face. Iroh Special 17/33 Bent remaining. Calvin created a cloud of the reactive Bent in front of him in the blink of an eye. The red spell disappeared as though it had dove into a lake, then the formless energy coalesced into an identical red bolt, following the trajectory back to Charlotte¡¯s chest. The woman held her palm up and the bolt careened off of it, hitting an attendant. The man collapsed, eyes rolling back in his head while the other one scrambled away. Calvin shoved Bent outside his body, creating the five wisps of Bent that would serve to deflect and catch spells and attacks. He deliberately reached down toward his belt with the Crystal spear components. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be out of Bent! All the..¡± She gestured at the air furiously. ¡°Shit I got rid of. The fight with those crab things! That!¡± she pointed at the faucet of blood in his stomach. ¡°How are you doing that!?¡± ¡°Last chance to leave.¡± ¡°Do it!¡± Calvin felt one of the attendants pull a crossbow and shoot it at the back of his head. He caught it with Beli Ma before it hit him, not moving a muscle. ¡°Gah!¡± Charlotte snarled. Calvin tapped the ingredients of the Crystal Spear and placed the start of the spike at his bloody feet. Charlotte reached out and Calvin could feel her Bent entering the area of Beli Ma. So he shredded it, preventing it from interfering with his own spell. Bent Manipulation has reached level 5! +1 Intuition Pleas- After the crystal spear¡¯s ingredients formed at his feet, it was no longer able to be interfered with. It was an alchemical reaction that simply grew in the direction of his choosing. Perhaps not understanding that, Charlotte tried to use her Bent to tear the thing apart, and finally to shield herself. The crystal pierced her Bent with a little puff of blue light, given off by her shield as the crystal tore it apart and absorbed it. The woman gave an unladylike ¡®Hurk!¡¯ as the spear shot through her stomach and lifted the sorceress off the ground, suspending her in midair on thick crystal. Calvin stood, glancing around. The attendants had fucked off, which stood to reason. Calvin didn¡¯t know how well they¡¯d fare with One infesting the woods, but he didn¡¯t really hold anything against them. Charlotte on the other hand¡­ ¡°Sorry, ma¡¯am.¡± He said to the blonde suspended on the crystal. ¡°Charlotte¡¯s not there anymore, is she?¡± ¡°What?¡± The woman asked, looking down at the crystal in her chest before her eyes glazed over. a puppet. Calvin felt a brief moment of guilt for killing an innocent woman, but it was Charlotte that had been hiding behind her. Ilethan mind mages are the worst. Some offense taken. Nadia said. Think she got the message? I think I put the fear of me in her. Calvin thought, straightening his shirt. Now, let¡¯s plug this damn leak. Chained Spirit. ***Charlotte*** ¡°What in all the Abyss was that!?¡± Charlotte screamed, ignoring her startled nephew as she tore the sense-dep hood off her face. ¡°I take it the job didn¡¯t go well?¡± Brendan asked, cracking another nut between his aging knuckles. ¡°Not getting paid now?¡± ¡°Monsters.¡± Charlotte said, running her hands through her hair as she paced back and forth. ¡°Goddamned monsters running around in Gadvera. And I¡¯m not talking about the giant crabs, although Malkenrovia is proving to be¡­.worrisome.¡± Charlotte pointed an accusing finger at Brendan. ¡°That cannot be the same person we fought. That was some other wizard. People don¡¯t get that good in¡­months.¡± ¡°Well, if they Break, they might.¡± ¡°No,¡± Charlotte said, shaking her head slowly. ¡°Breaks do not account for this level of improvement.¡± ¡°He¡¯s got some kind of Bent repository, or suppository, or whatever. I counted. It¡¯s common sense to count your enemy¡¯s Bent as they cast spells.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°He was somewhere around fifty before I lost count.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± As usual Brendan didn¡¯t seem particularly impressed. Charlotte shuddered. ¡°I have to report this to the crown.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 136: Dangerous Hugs ¡°Why summon me and not your new zealot?¡± Nadia asked with a scowl, folding her arms over her chest. ¡°You¡¯ve got smaller fingers, now get over here.¡± Calvin said, holding up the team of thumb-sized knick-knacks on the palm of his hand. They looked like little spelunkers with lanterns on their heads, getting ready to plumb the depths of an unexplored cave. They even had little coils of rope over their shoulders. Unfortunately in this case, I¡¯m the cave. Nadia stepped forward and took the knick-knacks from calvin, marveling as the shrew-sized creatures wriggled in her grasp. ¡°Now, setting up the drainage hurt pretty bad, but this is going to be a whole different level. I need you to pull out the harpoon and jam those knick-knacks into my wound until I tell you to stop.¡± ¡°Now, I don¡¯t wanna pass out, so let me ¨C agh!¡± Nadia slid the last portion of the harpoon out of his stomach and followed it with two knick-knacks in a single flowing motion. A spurt of blood made the back of his shirt wet as more Knick-knacks climbed up from his belt to stem the leak. It was a precarious balance between trying not to scream and trying not to pass out while little things were crawling around inside of him with sharp needles. To be fair, the knick-knacks kept the needles sheathed until they needed them, but it didn¡¯t make it feel much better. Oh, that¡¯s a good idea. You could use some local anesthetic on that belt of yours. Add that to the shopping list. ¡°No kidding,¡± Calvin muttered, feeling like the veins in his neck were going to explode from the pressure of trying not to thrash around and make everything worse. Calvin watched the little miners in Visualize as they made progress through his body, squirming gingerly between his organs until they made it to the problem area, an artery gushing blood. Thank the gods it wasn¡¯t completely severed. You know, I read a story about a guy who laced his arteries with an armor-like fiber so shit like this wouldn¡¯t happen. Seems like you might wanna look into that. ¡°That¡¯s nice,¡± Calvin groaned as the first knick-knack stood up and spread out its limbs, creating space around the gushing tube while the other one began knitting the two edges back together with fine silk. Colon-clenchingly painful as it was, at least the knick-knacks were fast, stitching the artery closed at an inhuman rate, then turning around and started climbing back the way they came, making a few minor stitches on the way out. As soon as they finished, the pressure in his heart skyrocketed for a painful couple of seconds, until Calvin had the presence of mind to choke back the amount of blood his gradual splitting spell was creating to the smallest possible amount, keeping it at par with the substantially reduced blood loss. Nadia helped them out, pulling them out of his body with bloody fingers and an enthusiastic smile. ¡°Thanks for that, I haven¡¯t had a free pass to hurt you in a long while.¡± she said, licking the knick-knacks clean suggestively. Is she trying to weird us out or piss us off? Both? Calvin tried to get the knick-knacks to stitch her tongue permanently into that pose, but their damned programming wouldn¡¯t allow it. Damn you, OSHA, My Kingdom will have no such thing. ¡°Oh is that why you did it so quickly? Because you wanted to torment me? It actually seemed like you were trying to be as gentle as possible.¡± ¡°Did you see how smoothly she took that harpoon out?¡± So smooth. Like a lover¡¯s caress. Nadia balked. ¡°No, I-¡° ¡°Dismissed.¡± Calvin let that summon go, and she was gone. I was protecting my investment, that¡¯s all, Nadia continued in Calvin¡¯s head. I can¡¯t afford for you to die, or else I¡¯ll be stuck in this box for all eternity. I want you to know that I enjoyed every second of your agony. Right, Nadia still didn¡¯t know about Calvin turning into a monster if he died. That was between Calvin and Elliot. You¡¯re gonna turn into a monster!? Nadia demanded as some of his stray thoughts caught hers. How, Why, WHEN!? Goddamned Chained Mind, Calvin thought, mentally closing the door for Nadia to communicate with him, shutting out her barrage of questions. Look at you, leaky Mc-Leakerson. I still blame you for those dodgy mutations. I put the warning on the damn thing. ¡°Calvin!¡± Ella¡¯s voice cut through the woods as the Genosian entered the clearing where Calvin sat, talking to himself beside a massive crystal impaling a blonde in bloody finery. ¡°Ella.¡± ¡°We need to get you out of here ¨C ¡± she paused and looked him up and down. ¡°That¡¯s a lot of blood.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Calvin said, standing up and yanking the drainage tube out of his stomach. ¡°It¡¯s under control now.¡± ¡°Although,¡± he said, holding up a finger as a thought occurred to him. ¡°I may want to avoid getting shot by another one of those dispelling beams because my blood is on loan right now and I can¡¯t afford to have it poofing.¡± Ella nodded and put Calvin¡¯s arm over her shoulder, forcing him to stand on his tiptoes as she helped him walk out of the forest. ¡°Is Baroke keeping those things under control?¡± Calvin asked as they walked. ¡°We haven¡¯t seen any more since a few minutes ago. The last of them dug themselves back into the earth and vanished.¡± Saving energy for the next attempt, Calvin thought. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll take us to the palace, see who¡¯s left. Hop on.¡± Calvinian summoning Heart of the swarm. 16/33 Bent remaining. Calvin poofed into a giant wasp and gave Ella a lift, meeting with Baroke outside the city walls. Together the three of them made it over the flesh wall and to the palace in a matter of minutes. The Mujenan royal palace had a solid, tall wall, with roots that sank a hundred feet into the ground, reinforced with Bent abilities over the course of the last hundred years. The soldiers on the wall looked as though they wanted to unleash arrows on the giant wasp that flew up to it, but Calvin spotted Andra waving them down. Calvin landed right in front of the general, allowing his two passengers to disembark. Baroke took a few deep, calming breaths before he hopped onto the wall. ¡°Baroke?¡± Calvin picked up a familiar voice, and he focused his attention to his left, where his sister was approaching, wearing actual armor and some kind of silk sash. ¡°Vashniel¡¯s icy cock! It is you!¡± Jinnei said, approaching Baroke. ¡°I thought you were dead!¡± ¡°Jinnei?¡± Baroke said, frowning at first, then catching the raven-haired haired girl¡¯s body as she practically tackled him. Jinnei squeezed Baroke until his face registered something resembling pain, before stepping away. ¡°Where¡¯s Calvin, and what the hell is this?¡± she asked, pointing at Calvin and Ella. ¡°Did you go native while I was gone or something?¡± ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± Ella asked, a small frown dawning on her face. Ooh, this is good. I¡¯m just gonna stay a wasp for a minute. I¡¯m hoping for a catfight. Gross. Hey, it¡¯s not my sister. ¡°So you¡¯re not related to the people who kidnapped my brother and killed half the people I grew up with?¡± ¡°Listen,¡± Baroke said appeasingly, holding up his hands. ¡°There are circumstances, Ella¡¯s¡­kind of like¡­¡± ¡°Calvin¡¯s uenha.¡± Ella said, standing straight, half a food above Jinnei¡¯s head. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to be?¡± ¡°Life partner.¡± ¡°What!?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a rough translation,¡± Baroke said, glancing at Calvin desperately. ¡°Calvin, you wanna help explain here?¡± Calvin responded by testing the ground with his mandibles, wiggling his antennae, and generally trying to act wasp-like as much as possible. Jinnei¡¯s gaze settled on him, and he knew he was screwed. Abort! The wasp¡¯s wings began humming as he started gaining lift - ¡°Oh, no, you¡¯re not getting out of it that easy!¡± Jinnei said, whipping out a sword and crunching it down through the wasp¡¯s brain-stem. An instant later, Calvin coalesced out of imploding green smoke in front of an inquisitive Jinnei. ¡°Balls, Jinnei, what if I¡¯d just been shapeshifted!?¡± Calvin got tackled too as Jinnei wrapped him in a hug that threatened to burst the seams on his hepatic artery. ¡°Too tight!¡± Calvin whispered as he patted Jinnei¡¯s back. ¡°Oh, Calvin, it¡¯s been awful! I wound up being the mascot for a bunch of inbred pirates, and they all think I¡¯m gonna be the next queen, and they want me to make decision for them when they¡¯re all so stupid! It¡¯s like herding the wool brothers back home, but there¡¯s even more human shit!¡± She inhaled a ragged breath. ¡°And the smell¡­Oh gods, the smell. Imagine a crew of thirty unwashed men with irritable bowels and an aversion to soap, then magnify that by the power of ten, they you¡¯ll begin to understand what I¡¯ve been through.¡± She pushed him away, finally actually looking at anything other than his face. ¡°You¡¯ve got a hole in your stomach and you¡¯re covered in more blood than a human body could ever bleed.¡± She noted. ¡°Well said.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I¡¯m going to need some time to get that blood back. And some pizza. Or whatever the soup of the day is. Can we put off sharing our stories until¡­¡± Calvin did some quick math. ¡°Two hours from now?¡± ¡°Actually, I¡¯d like to debrief you before then.¡± Andra said, putting a hand on his shoulder. ¡°Debrief and a sandwich?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I need to get my blood back.¡± She glanced down at the blood beginning to crust and stiffen his pants. ¡°Fine.¡± Is there a way that a Gradual Split can end gradually as well? Calvin asked. His level of alarm was dependent on the answer. Yeah, looks like it¡¯s a first in, first out basis, rather than ending all at once, which is good news for you. Thank the gods. ¡°Two hours,¡± Calvin said to Jinnei as he followed Andra off the wall, Gadveran soldiers parting in front of them. ¡°And try not to get into a catfight with my nubile slave girl. I went through Vashniel¡¯s torture to get her, and I don¡¯t want any structural damage to the palace.¡± Calvin sent one glance over his shoulder and spotted Jinnei and Ella looking each other over speculatively while Baroke shuffled from foot to foot uncomfortably. I should thank Andra for the rescue. Calvin followed the general to her fine-furnished office, and sat down in the chair across from her desk. ¡°Where¡¯s the sandwich?¡± Calvin asked, holding a hand over the little hole in his gut. ¡°Food is being rationed.¡± Andra said. ¡°Give me information worth a sandwich. First off, where¡¯s Kala?¡± ¡°She¡¯s off helping run the Uleisan government.¡± Calvin said. ¡°They had some cutbacks, recently.¡± ¡°Does this mean her mission was successful?¡± ¡°Oooh, definitely not. She is helping run the show now though, so you could say the effect is the same.¡± Andra crossed her arms and peered down at him from across the desk, eyes narrowed. ¡°I think you should tell me the story from the beginning.¡± ¡°I think you should get me some food before I literally exsanguinate and turn into jerky.¡± Calvin responded. There was a tense moment where Calvin half expected Andra to attack him, the way she was sliding her thumb over the Nem pommel of her sword. An explosion sounded in the distance, breaking the moment. ¡°Fair enough. For telling me the princess is alive.¡± She opened her desk and pulled out some sort of dried potato and gravy slurry, sliding the dried patty in front of him. ¡°I¡¯ll be back in one hour.¡± Calvin was beyond being picky at this point, he tore into the thing with abandon and snatched up the water next to him, downing it in a matter of seconds. Calvin closed his eyes. Now, to use Medi-Tate to concentrate two days worth of healing into an hour. Bent Manipulation has reached level 5! 25% Correction. Please choose an ability or mutation. Oh right. Damnit. Calvin took a breath. He wasn¡¯t in immediate danger any more, so he could afford to check out his new list of abilities. Show me. Abilities: Ghost hand: Manipulate Bent stored by Beli Ma as hands with physical attributes mirroring User¡¯s mental Attributes. Increases range of Beli ma by 1 inch per level of Bent Manipulation. ^From Beli Ma Bent Sense: User gains the ability to sense external Bent movement within (level)^2 feet with their own Bent. ^ First ability for counterspelling. Bent Reclamation: User¡¯s Abilities have a (correction)% chance to reclaim Bent spent on them when countered. Bent Condensation: Condense 5 Bent into one hundred grams of black liquid Bent. One hundred grams restores 1 Bent. ^No wonder those potions are so expensive. Spell Penetration: User¡¯s Abilites and Bent Constructs are (Stability)% more difficult to dispel. Sliding Scale: Add up to (level)% To one numerical effect of an Ability while taking the same percentage away from another numerical aspect. ^ Ex. +5% Duration, -%5 Mass Mutations: All Seeing Eye: User can physically see Bent. ^ Fuck Bent sense, Why not just see the damn stuff? Warped Bent: User¡¯s Bent is now closer to Warp in the way it interacts with the environment. More difficult to counter, more difficult to control. May cause mutations. Damn. There were a lot of good abilities in there. Sliding scale and Spell Penetration were especially attractive, but he had to choose Bent Sense. Right now, Calvin could feel Bent when it was within the range of Beli ma, and he could tell if people were making a move by body language but it was mostly guesswork. Only the few inches of Beli Ma wasn¡¯t enough warning. Calvin wanted to be able to sense what was going on all the way across the room, and as the ability leveled up, even further. Why not get All Seeing Eye? I¡¯m not going to dignify that with a response. ¡­Fair enough. I choose Bent Sense. Calvin took a deep breath as the technique settled into his mind, tingling as always. Now to get this damn blood back. He finished the rest of the food and closed his eyes, activating Medi-tate and slowly cutting off the supply of blood being created in his heart. Macronomicon Chapter 137: Magenta Learner¡¯s Notes Day 8: I am unable to gather as much information about the System as I wish due to obvious issues with communication, so I instead improved my hearing and language processing centers through trial and error. By listening to every hooter conversing within about a hundred body-lengths, I have been able to pick out more tidbits about the System here and there, mostly from flabby hooters to hooters just on the verge of differentiation. It seems as if in order to get the System, one must Break. This means one must achieve a lethal dose of Warp, which is a contaminant that settles in living things and is immediately released into the environment when someone or something dies. The System will then step in and use that Warp to modify the creature to be more proficient at¡­whatever it does. Odd. It has also been revealed that too much Warp, completely unchecked, will cause dangerous and often fatal mutations. If my guess is correct, Warp is composed of leakage between my reality and this one. It would stand to reason, as around those rifts, the familiar predators and prey I was accustomed to were drastically altered with terrifying abilities to do things like¡­move, and manifest physical bodies, and¡­. Think about things? It seems as though I have been drastically altered by this Reality without realizing it. It seems to be no cause for alarm as all my units are stable and I am using this mutation to great advantage. As far as I can tell, Hooters are the only ones who benefit from the System, and other creatures either mutate, die, or shrug off the effects of Warp toxicity. So in order to fool the System, I would have to disguise my Units as fixed human cells, more than skin deep, and engineer a lethal intolerance to¡­my own reality. Requires more study. Side note: No progress on the mouth-to-mouth control parasites yet, but with my enhanced hearing I was able to make out many lumpy hooters taming the flat ones. Their hoots made my lower guts feet warm. Is this a side-effect of the hooter condition or a weakness of this form specifically? It felt nice, so I ignored it. ***Underground*** The massive polyp of brain matter that had been slowly building underneath Mujenan considered the problem at hand. It had been seeded on the eastern continent to further One¡¯s agenda, and two weeks into its expansion it had received its first setback when it tried to ambush Origin¡¯s Vessel. 16% of above ground forces lost in first contact with Origin¡¯s Vessel. Results unacceptable. Adjust strategy. Vessel has shown substantial growth in Bent capacity and summon morphology since last contact. Possible mutation or outside supplement to Bent supply. Scanning hosts for information regarding Origin¡¯s Vessel¡­ Scanning¡­ Hit. Hit hit hit.. Captain Gadsint¡­. The mass of brain dedicated to coordinating One¡¯s assault collated the data regarding Origin¡¯s Vessel that was stored in the brains of the hosts under its control. Gradually a picture began to emerge as it poured through the minds of hundreds of the twitching citizens of Mujenan, as they slowly dissolved into the flesh surrounding them. The Vessel possesses a mutation that allows rapid Bent siphoning from females. And¡­it can use this ability at range through a pale-skinned, black-clad, host, created by an ability of the vessel¡¯s The polyp¡¯s brain drew more information out of the host¡¯s dying minds. Captain Gadsint¡­The Vessel, left for Uleis¡­ Uleis. City of hosts in the inhospitable desert to the East. Vessel was presumably in that location until last rotation. Likelyhood of pale-skinned, Black clad host acting as a Bent lifeline in Uleis: Very high. Adjusting Tactics¡­ Designing countermeasures. Gestating. Deploying scrubbers. ***Calvin*** ¡°You expect me to believe you took control of Uleis?¡± Andra asked with a raised brow. ¡°Not if you don¡¯t want to, I suppose,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°That¡¯s your business.¡± Andra cocked her head to the side, a frown blooming on her face. ¡°Are you still loyal to Gadvera, Calvin?¡± ¡°Loyal?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I like the land, it¡¯s where I grew up. I like the people, I even like the people who run the place. I want nothing but good things for Gadvera, but if you¡¯re asking me to die for it or surrender Uleis, that¡¯s a big ask.¡± Andra tapped her fingers on the table, looking him over carefully. ¡°What¡¯cha doin?¡± ¡°Deciding whether or not to kill you.¡± ¡°That seems like an extreme reaction.¡± ¡°Does it?¡± Andra asked. ¡°Because I distinctly remember ordering you to be Kala¡¯s guard, not stage a coup.¡± ¡°They threw Kala in a hole.¡± ¡°After you killed one of theirs.¡± ¡°After he tried to kill me.¡± ¡°After you defrauded Uleis of thousands of Glimmers.¡± ¡°They got to keep the lace.¡± Calvin protested. ¡°Not fraud at all. Legitimate business. They pushed me into taking over their country.¡± Andra sighed and scratched her head. ¡°Are they getting enough food? You didn¡¯t wreck the entire country, did you?¡± ¡°Oh no, I put the former rulers of Uleis under me as my advisors. Their leader reports directly to me. Everything¡¯s business as usual.¡± ¡°And you expect Uleis to be¡­under your control when you get back?¡± Chained spirit. 16/33 Bent remaining. Kurawe stepped out of the green smoke as it curled into him, forming the imposing man¡¯s skin and clothes. ¡°Kurawe, Is Uleis still under my control?¡± ¡°It is, ravager. The arrangements for the holy war are still being made, but Rufe and the others have already set out across the desert to guide the way. We expect to be able to head out three days sooner than estimated.¡± ¡°Wow, someone¡¯s a go-getter. Good to hear.¡± Calvin thumbed over his shoulder ¡°Get eyes on the situation while you¡¯re here. Should help, knowing the situation.¡± Kurawe moved to leave. ¡°He¡¯s not going anywhere,¡± Andra said, hand on the pommel of her sword as she stood. Calvin was pretty sure she could cut him in half in about the time it took him to blink. ¡°Did that man say something about a holy war?¡± ¡°Ehh¡­¡± Calvin waggled his hand. ¡°Kurawe thinks everything I do is holy, so I¡¯m sure he just slipped it in there by habit.¡± ¡°Your struggle against the gods has been foretold and repeated for countless eons. If there is something holier than that, I don¡¯t know what it is.¡± ¡°You see?¡± Calvin asked, pointing over his shoulder at the fat giant. ¡°Who are they going to war on, exactly?¡± ¡°Ostensibly?¡± Calvin asked ¡°You.¡± Andra narrowed her eyes. Must not get cut in half. ¡°But what do you think they¡¯ll do when they get here?¡± Andra glanced off to the side as she considered it, her scowl fading to something approaching respect. ¡°They¡¯ll be drawn into the conflict with the Malkenrovian abomination, taking pressure off Gadvera.¡± ¡°Ideally. Kurawe and I are happy to help steer public opinion toward fighting these monsters rather than Gadvera, but you have to give it time to play out, and if I¡¯m dead, Kurawe ceases to exist, and you won¡¯t get an army marching in here to push these bastards out of your land. You get a bickering city-state of precisely no use to anyone during this invasion.¡± Andra considered it long and hard. ¡°I guess I won¡¯t be killing you. When do you expect your army to show?¡± ¡°Two weeks.¡± Calvin said. ¡°We¡¯ll starve before then,¡± Andra said, shaking her head. ¡°We¡¯ve got a plan to leave ¨C well, we had a plan to leave, until I saw those giants hidden under the earth.¡± Andra cursed quietly under her breath. ¡°You didn¡¯t know they were there?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°No, we had no idea. There was a plan for Earth specialists to dig our way out, but now we don¡¯t know if we¡¯d be risking connecting our tunnel to one of theirs and simply creating another access point. I can¡¯t give us another front to fight on.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Why not make another front to fight on?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Obviously we¡¯re going to have to drive them out from underground at some point. I¡¯m fairly sure I could do a lot of damage to these things.¡± ¡°Planning to win instead of planning to fail, huh?¡± Andra asked with a chuckle. ¡°That¡¯s something you taught me.¡± Calvin responded. Andra sighed, sitting back down in her chair. ¡°You¡¯re right, of course. Uleis doesn¡¯t have the capacity to feet everyone. Not by a long shot. We need our farms, forest and ocean, and if we let this thing drive us off our land, that¡¯s it. Gadvera as a country is over. most of our people will be dead, and the rest assimilated into other countries.¡± ¡°I guess I just balked at the idea of using children as weapons.¡± ¡°What?¡± Andra leaned forward and met his gaze. ¡°Two weeks ago there were precisely no earth elementalists in the palace. We rounded everyone up with one Break or less and taught them the skill, then forcibly fed them Warp until they were all fifth Break.¡± ¡°Children.¡± Calvin supplied. Adults wouldn¡¯t have less than two at least. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°How many?¡± ¡°Enough to tunnel us halfway to Uleis, in theory.¡± ¡°I have an idea.¡± Calvin said. *** ¡°This,¡± Calvin said to the awestruck children. ¡°Is a fireworm.¡± He placed an easy hand on Moab¡¯s side. ¡°This particular one Is named Moab.¡± The nearly sixteen thousand pound grub jiggled its pale flesh as he laid a hand on it. The thing¡¯s hairs, which were normally invisible, were almost the size of his thumb, now. It was a monster that dominated the basement they were in. ¡°It¡¯s got a series of organs that create a self-igniting compound that burns like a motherfucker,¡± he said, pointing along the creature¡¯s side.¡± Jinnei scowled at him. ¡°Whoops, I mean, it burns good. Anyway, the plan is, you guys are going to make us a tunnel out of here, and when we run into a tunnel that¡¯s not ours, we¡¯re going to fill it with fire.¡± ¡°Alright!¡± a skinny kid shouted, stepping forward and pumping his fists. ¡°Let¡¯s get started!¡± With a wave of his hand, a massive hole opened in the floor, angled straight downward and ten feet deep. Calvin was fascinated by the way he could feel Bent moving inside the boy before it even came out, and bridging the gap between the boy and the floor. ¡°Hold on!¡± Calvin said, but the kid hopped into the tunnel, taking out the next chunk of stone in a matter of seconds. ¡°Ella, could you retrieve him?¡± ¡°Why me? Do I look like some matronly figure, fit for wrangling spawn?¡± ¡°I have a hole in my stomach.¡± Calvin said, pointing. ¡°Fair enough,¡± Ella jumped into the hole without further complaint and climbed back out, holding the overeager child aloft by his shirt. ¡°What¡¯s your name? Calvin asked the scowling boy. ¡°Malacath the Destroyer.¡± Calvin cocked his head. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°His name¡¯s Goob.¡± One of the little girls in attendance said helpfully. ¡°Is not!¡± ¡°Listen, Goob. What I just gave you wasn¡¯t the plan, it was the goal. I spent a lot of my life going into stuff with just the goal in mind, and it hasn¡¯t always turned out great. Trust me, if you wanna be destroyer of anything, you gotta make plans.¡± ¡°Our plan,¡± Calvin said, motioning to all of them. ¡°Is a fifteen degree decline, eight foot diameter walls. Only four of our Elementalists are going to be down there with us in the tunnel at any given time. ¡°Break into groups of two, the first group will dig as far as one of them can dig. When the first person runs out of Bent they run back and get the next group to replace them while the second person keeps digging. One the second person is done, they leave it to the relief group. Rinse and repeat. Understood?¡± ¡°Where does the fourth person come from?¡± A girl asked. ¡°If one of us is already out of the tunnel when the relief shows up.¡± ¡°That¡¯s where we have our next job.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I need one of you to stay with us the entire time. It¡¯ll be that person¡¯s responsibility to make a seal around the fire worm so we don¡¯t get roasted, and if there¡¯s a sudden attack or something goes wrong, it¡¯ll be that person¡¯s job to get us out of there.¡± ¡°Ooh, ooh, pick me!¡± Goob said, waving his hands. Ella, perhaps remembering he was there, set the boy down, whereupon he immediately started dancing in front of Calvin, waving his arms as if he was trying to signal him from a long distance. ¡°This is going to be the most dangerous role, as the extra time in the tunnel drastically increases the odds of getting hit by an explosion or having a cave-in dropped on your head.¡± ¡°ooh, ooh, me, meee!¡± Goob said. Does this kid seriously want to die or am I just misinterpreting that? ¡°And I want them to have full Bent.¡± Calvin said, hoping that would shut the boy up. ¡°I¡¯m right here! I have full Bent!¡± Calvin experienced a minor snap. ¡°We literally just saw you use Bent to dig that hole right there!¡± Calvin shouted, pointing. ¡°And if you hadn¡¯t done that, I still wouldn¡¯t pick you because nobody should be excited about this!¡± ¡°¡­Oh.¡± Goob deflated and returned to the group of children among some friendly ribbing. ¡°Wow,¡± Jinnei said, brows raised. ¡°You¡¯ve gotten a lot more-¡° ¡°What you should be excited about is the pillars of fire this baby is going to make on the surface.¡± Calvin said, patting Moab on the side again. The enormous grub shuddered and twitched. ¡°I¡¯m hoping for fifty feet of fire straight into the sky or more once we fill the enemy tunnels to capacity with burning fuel.¡± Goob¡¯s jaw dropped, eyes wide. ¡°Huh?¡± Calvin turned toward Jinnei. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°Nevermind,¡± his sister said, waving him off. ¡°Forget it.¡± ¡°Now,¡± Calvin said, turning his attention back to the children in fornt of him. ¡°Who wants the dangerous job?¡± ¡°Ooh, ooh!¡± Goob said, waving a hand. ¡°I already said no, Goob.¡± Goob pouted while Calvin picked someone who looked like they had their priorities straight. It was hard to tell with children, who was flighty and who wasn¡¯t, so he¡¯d have to watch them close. *** The mission itself was uneventful, if tense. They crept through the earth several hundred feet before they finally struck another tunnel. It opened up in a wave of foul odor, the smell of rotten flesh mixed with seawater. Calvin spotted pulsating flash against the far wall, and several humanoid shapes buried inside with his enhanced darkvision before he summoned Moab and quietly ordered them to close the tunnel again as they crept backwards. Moab¡¯s name was Elliot¡¯s idea, calling the barely mobile eight ton grub ¡®Mother of all bombs¡¯ but the description was accurate enough to go with it. Calvin had replaced all its digestive and respiratory organs with Crystal Lattice catalyst organelles. Each one was about the size of Calvin¡¯s torso and primed to pump their mixture straight into the creature¡¯s ass valve. If the wasps he¡¯d made were anything to go on, this would make a huge volume of fire. Calvin ushered the groaning kids backwards as they whispered to each other about the nasty smell, slowly filling the tunnel back in with stone. At least they didn¡¯t see the people embedded in the wall, or I¡¯d probably have a panic on my hands. Once Calvin was confident he had at least twenty feet of solid stone between him and moab, he told it to do it¡¯s thing. The grub squirted a huge amount of clear substance that burst into flame in midflight. That flaming goop expanded, adding more of itself as the catalyst bonded with the substance it was in, creating more and more flaming goop, until one tunnel couldn¡¯t support it, pushing into more and more tunnels, filling the entire underground tunnel system and the city¡¯s sewers with clinging flames. There was a deep rumble overhead as the fire expanded rapidly through the city, shaking the earth itself. Thankfully they¡¯d backed far enough away and put enough stone between themselves and the source of the blast for it to find other outlets. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Calvin said, ushering the children back up the tunnel, not stopping until they were once again above ground, standing in the palace courtyard. Peeking above the high palace walls, Calvin could make out plumed of fire and smoke from where it must have escaped the underground. In the middle of all this rumbling, Calvin heard the patting of bare feet on stone. The noises resolved into Goob coming down the stairs from the wall and dropping to his knees in front of Calvin. ¡°That was awesome!¡± **** The Polyp felt the end coming, a burning pain that suffused the being of every unit buried under Mujenan, spreading rapidly outward from the center of the city and burning every aspect of it¡¯s being. It was with a single reflexive response that it decided to deploy Magenta. The prototype was unfinished, but it knew its mission. The Polyp died, satisfied that One now knew of the Vessel¡¯s capabilities, but frustrated it hadn¡¯t done more. Macronomicon Chapter 138: A Brand New Life Magenta sprinted through the jungle, digitigrade legs outrunning the underground fires as goopy film sloughed off of her body. She was losing bits and pieces of unhardened flesh that should have become her armor. Unfinished. She was unfinished, half-formed, all she knew was her name, her mission, and basic information harvested from thousands of Gadverans. Everything the Polyp knew about the Vessel had been given to her, along with a deep rooted sense of enmity. More than anything, she wanted to kill the Vessel and return his soul to One. It was her purpose for existence, and more than that¡­it just seemed like a fun, rewarding, fulfilling thing to do. What else would she do with her time? Human concerns like breeding and familiarity caused a sense of physical discomfort. She wanted to kill the Vessel just for being one of them. But right now she couldn¡¯t simply attack the Vessel. Not while his ¡®friends¡¯ ¨C Magenta shuddered at the thought, feeling like something disgusting was working its way up her spine ¨C were still helping him. The Vessel regained his power through females, and his summoned familiar could do the same. There were two ways this could be remedied. Remove the summons he¡¯d left behind and prevent him from using more¡­ Or¡­Kill all the human females on Marconen. Either plan didn¡¯t really bother Magenta, but the latter seemed like it would take a great deal more effort. Better chance of working, though. Perhaps One can come up with something to that effect. Origin¡¯s original host was quite skilled at biomancy, but that wasn¡¯t Magenta¡¯s speciality. Come to think of it, Magenta thought, slowing down in the middle of the jungle. What is my speciality? A voice brought her out of her thoughts as four wide, muscular bald men stepped out of the forest, their skin grey. Genosians, her generalized knowledge spoke to her. Man eaters. Two held bows, a third had a stone axe, and the last was fat, bearing several weapons strapped to his waist. They looked at each other and grinned, practically salivating as they approached her. Don¡¯t let them think. Magenta broke into a sprint, dashing toward them. The genosians with bows were confused for a fraction of a second, allowing her to get three steps closer before they fired on her. One arrow hit her shoulder, the other glanced off her hip. Non-lethal. Before the foremost archer could nock a second arrow, Magenta was on him. She reached out and grabbed his bow, and while his hands were occupied trying to wrestle it out of her grip, she sharpened her fingers into a spear-point, jabbing her fist through the man-s eye socket. The orb popped, but she didn¡¯t stop until the man¡¯s orbital cracked wider from the pressure of her palm passing through it. She dragged the shivering body to the side where it absorbed a second arrow from the other bowman. The axe-wielding genosian shot across the distance between them with some kind of Ability, arriving above her before she could fully react. The obsidian axe laid a large gash across her shoulder and arm while she caught the wielder in the chest with all the strength of her other fist. The Genosian stumbled back in stunned surprise as his ribs nearly broke from the force of the strike. The wind was knocked out of him. Magenta took the opportunity to jump up and wrap her legs around the muscular man¡¯s arm and the axe it carried with it. With a quick wrench, the wrist broke, and he let go of his axe, which was a mistake. Magenta caught the axe and put it through the warrior¡¯s skull before turning on the last two Genosians. They no longer looked like they wanted to hunt her. They looked afraid. Good. The fat one snarled something at the bowman, and the bowman ran while the fat one did something with his hand. Don¡¯t let them think. Magenta charged forward again, aiming for the fat one. A burst of green smoke erupted from the fat ones¡¯ fingers, turning into a skeleton, then another Genosian warrior, somehow even more muscular and battle-scarred than the others coalesced. He raised his arms wide with a confident grin, acting like a shield as the fat one turned to run. Magenta swung the axe forward, and the summoned genosian caught it easily, catching her with a brutal backhand in the process, knocking her to her hands and knees. The moment the creature¡¯s skin came into contact with hers, some fire inside her that had never had a chance to burn was suddenly lit, setting every nerve in her skin alight with energy. Something began pumping through her body, welling up from inside and emerging from her skin, forming a narrow cloud of magenta energy around her. Magenta pushed herself up and launched herself up and at the enemy, aiming to kick it in the crotch, where humans were fragile. The summon caught her kick with an easy smile, opened its mouth to say something, then it popped. The Genosian seemed to unravel into green smoke in incredibly high speed from where it touched her aura, almost too fast for the summon¡¯s confused expression. Where the green smoke touched the magenta coating hovering around her body, she felt distinctly uncomfortable, as if something were stretching her joints the wrong way. She pulled herself away from the cloud, then resumed pursuit of the running fat man. She had the satisfaction of seeing him look over his shoulder with a horrified expression before she buried the hatchet¡­in his expression. So this is my specialty, Magenta thought, tugging the arrows out of her body. There was very little blood and the wounds sealed quickly, as if she were made from some kind of space-age, self-sealing material. Where did I get that information from? Magenta glanced up and spotted that the archer was long gone, presumably to report her existence to a larger force. It¡¯s fine. I got enough Warp from the three men for the first Break. She could feel the Polyp¡¯s pre-planned mutations kick into gear now that they had reached the critical level of fuel. She should have had the Warp fed to her by the Polyp¡¯s Scrubbers, but life had a way of dicking your plans around. She just had to find a decent place to sleep it off, and a food supply. Magenta glanced down at the corpse with an axe buried deep in it¡¯s face. She shrugged. Good enough as any. Magenta kneeled down and began to eat. She marveled as her face stretched wide, her cheeks opening up to reveal a massive set of meat-eating teeth hidden behind a fa?ade of dainty human teeth. I really like being me, Magenta thought as she gulped down large chunks of fat and meat without swallowing. Maybe the Pollyp had designed her to be comfortable in her own skin, and maybe it had designed her with a deep-seated need to kill the Vessel, not necessarily giving her a choice in the matter, and for some reason, it had given her enough sapience to self-analyze this lack of choice. But¡­she didn¡¯t really care¡­because the polyp made her that way. Magenta shrugged again. If she couldn¡¯t bring herself to care, she couldn¡¯t bring herself to care. The only thing she wanted to do was kill the Vessel. Now, how is the best way to go about doing that? She thought as she stumbled off to sleep, her stomach distended with Genosian. She spent the next few minutes on her hands and knees, rapidly getting sleepier as she dug herself a burrow. once it was big enough, she crawled in, covered herself back up with dirt and plants, before falling asleep. ***Calvin*** Karen¡¯s boots were up on the seat next to her, chatting with the Hash¡¯Maje, picking a bit of meat out of her teeth. ¡°I¡¯ve never been partial to Juntai chicken myself,¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Kala¡¯s father asked, fingers clasped as he studied Karen intently. ¡°Not gamey enough.¡± ¡°Not gamey Enough?¡± the Hash¡¯maje asked with raised brows and a chuckle. ¡°You live out on the edge of the wilderness long enough, you come to expect a certain level of gameyness. Without it, it¡¯s just kind of¡­disappointing.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure I¡¯d love to try your cooking sometime.¡± ¡°Not gonna happen.¡± Karen said, taking a sip of wine, her cheeks colored from the alcohol. ¡°Probably not gonna happen.¡± ¡°There you are!¡± Calvin said as he approached. He caught sight of Kala¡¯s dad watching him with an amused gaze. ¡°What is this? What are you two doing?¡± Calvin pointed out the window. ¡°There¡¯s an entire kingdom out there that needs cleanup, and where were you two during the fighting?¡± ¡°Calm down,¡± Karen said with a sigh. ¡°for your information, Giles and I ¨C¡° ¡°Not my name.¡± Kala¡¯s dad said, shaking his head. ¡°We were waiting to see if we needed to step in. I thought for sure there would be some epic fight that would turn against you at the last minute and I¡¯d have to step in at a dramatic moment, but here we are. You handled everything by yourself.¡± ¡°Well, I thought for sure that you had been taken over by a worm-thing and turned into some kind of Calvin-killing machine designed to prey on attachment to you, and we¡¯d have to fight each other in a dramatic final battle!¡± Karen cackled, slamming the table with her palm and rattling the empty dishes that spanned the massive piece of wood. ¡°Oh, you¡¯d be so screwed!¡± Calvin glanced over at the Hash¡¯Maje, who looked suitably chastised. ¡°I may be Eighth Break, but my build is more suited to leading than fighting. When I do fight, it takes a lot out of me, and my people. I only fight as a matter of last resort.¡± The Hash¡¯maje said with a guilty shrug. ¡°That and your mother¡¯s pregnant.¡± Time stopped for a brief moment while Calvin tried to unpack those words. Calvin cocked his head to the side. only women and animals get pregnant. Karen is KAREN. That doesn¡¯t¡­how¡­ ¡°WHAT!?¡± ¡°You know that thing with Ghol?¡± Karen asked, blushing as she spun her finger around the edge of the cup of wine. ¡°Well, you weren¡¯t just making it up.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re so o¨C ¡° ¡°Don¡¯t say it!¡± Karen said, glaring at him. ¡°ooold.¡± Calvin finished, unable to stop the momentum of his mouth. ¡°I¡¯m only forty-two.¡± Karen muttered, slumping in her chair while the ruler of Gadvera patted her shoulder apologetically. That sounded pretty old to Calvin. ¡°Calvin, your mother has very high Endurance, and a few sources of Damage Reduction, which means she¡¯s able to get¡­erm¡­ ¡°Knocked up?¡± Karen supplied. ¡°In the family way,¡± the Hash¡¯Maje said with a wince. ¡°For a relatively longer time than most women. She came to me to ask how that might be possible. It¡¯s a generally poorly known side effect of being high-Break. Something Royals have more experience with. My mother was sixty when she had Bekvah, for example.¡± ¡°Something I was blissfully ignorant of,¡± Karen said, with a sigh, rubbing her eyebrows as she stared at the goblet of wine in front of her. ¡°Excuse me,¡± Calvin said, picking up the wine and taking a sip. Just juice. ¡°Nevermind.¡± He put it back down in front of Karen as she gave him an angry stare. ¡°You¡¯re lucky you¡¯re my kid or I might have broken some fingers,¡± Karen said, snatching the goblet back before she resumed brooding. ¡°Elaine was always trying to trick me into getting knocked up. Turns out all it took is a well-built couple who smell like fire.¡± ¡°Couple?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Yeah, Ghol¡¯s wife had this thing she did where she put her finger in your ¨C¡° ¡°Stop.¡± Calvin said, holding up his hand. ¡°I think I¡¯ve heard plenty.¡± Karen shrugged. ¡°Anyway. Running around at sonic speeds and getting knocked around by monsters isn¡¯t exactly conducive to keeping this thing alive.¡± Karen said, patting her belly. Now that Calvin could see it, there was a baby-bump forming there. Calvin hadn¡¯t even thought of it as anything more than another sign of his mother getting old and fat. Stupid! Well, your natural intuition is terrible. Calvin still had some gaping gaps in his intuition, mostly from inexperience, since he would have never thought of Karen as a being that could create life. ¡°I had to avoid Jinnei the last couple weeks. For some reason I was ashamed of her knowing. I was only gonna step in if you were in danger of losing.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t want me knowing what?¡± Jinnei asked, ducking her head in the dining room. ¡°Calvin, don¡¯t ¨C¡° ¡°Karen¡¯s pregnant.¡± Calvin said, glancing back at his sister. Jinnei had taken off some of her light armor in light of the recent turn in the war against the invading creatures. They still popped out of the breeding flesh, but it was regular and light, completely uncontrolled and uncoordinated. Calvin had inadvertently killed whatever was controlling them. Now all they had to do was clean it up. ¡°YES¡± Jinnei fist pumped before dropping down on her knees, hands folded in prayer. ¡°Sweet Elani, thank you for this gift of life. I finally get to be a sister.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Calvin said with a scowl. ¡°Don¡¯t I count?¡± ¡°Barely.¡± Karen rubbed her forehead some more. Jinnei leaned over and dropped her voice to a whisper. ¡°Who¡¯s the father?¡± ¡°Ghol and his wife,¡± Calvin replied quietly. ¡°And his wife?¡± ¡°She did this thing with her finger where ¨C¡° ¡°Stop,¡± Jinnei said, holding up a hand. Her gaze flickered over to the goblet of dark juice and a moment later she stepped forward and snatched it up, tasting it before Calvin could tell her otherwise. ¡°You¡¯re good,¡± She said, setting it back down in front of Karen. ¡°Alright. Get out you two.¡± ¡°But what about ¨C ¡° ¡°OUT!¡± Karen spoke, her voice reverberating in his bones and sending a shock of primal panic through his heart. Calvin and Jinnei leapt in place and scurried out of the royal dining room like frightened animals before they were able to collect their thoughts. ¡°How does she do that?¡± Calvin asked aloud. ¡°She¡¯s our mom, duh,¡± Jinnei shot back. ¡°Nah, that¡¯s gotta be some kind of Ability.¡± ¡°Pretty sure it¡¯s not.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 139: Test Subject Learner¡¯s Notes: Day 9 Hooters use something called money to exchange for goods and services. I find this odd as it has no inherent value. Sure, copper and silver could be melted down into tools, but gold is simply useless. Somehow everyone has surrendered to the same delusion that the shiny substance has value, and goods and services continue to change hands over and over again in front of my eyes for nothing more than an idea. The metal is useless, and yet many ¡®wealthy¡¯ hooters will wear a lot of it to display how much ¡®money¡¯ they have to other hooters. This display seems to make hooters with less money do things for the ones with more money¡­for free. This makes no sense to me. Usually these things are minor, such as moving out of the money-laden hooter¡¯s way faster, but sometimes I see tangible benefits such as giving the wealthy one a seat, or preforming small favors, competing with other unladen hooters for the gold-laden one¡¯s attention. This behavior reminds me of the horker spawn we saw nursing at their broodmother¡¯s teat, jostling each other out of the way for access to the live-giving nourishment. Requires more study. ***Magenta*** Magenta left the confines of her burrow the next morning, stretching and yawning. She felt better. More whole. The mutations had finally finished, and she was ready to head out on her mission. Nothing like getting a bright and early start, She thought, smacking her lips. She walked lazily back to where she¡¯d left the corpses. There were still two well-built Genosians to snack on before she left for the desert, after all. They probably wouldn¡¯t be as tasty as the fat one, but she could make due with nothing but tough muscle if she had to. She was dragged out of her thoughts regarding Genosian flavor profiles when she noticed that the bodies had been removed. Studying the ground she noticed the ground had been trampled around them, but there was no blood like a predator might have left, messily feeding on the bodies. No, someone took these bodies and carried them away. More Genosians, she thought with a growing smile. The runaway archer had brought friends. Magenta began following the tracks, until she spotted a group of six Genosians sitting on fallen logs, chatting around a fire while their dead rested against the trees. She stalked closer, until an arrow whizzed out of the bush, causing her to flinch. The obsidian-tipped arrowhead carved a gash across her face. Out of seemingly every bush, camouflaged hunters jumped out with primitive bows and axes, intent on killing her. At least my next mutations won¡¯t be far off, she thought, bounding up to catch the first prey that leapt toward her. They¡¯re just so eager. ***Sometime later*** Well-fed and well exercised, Magenta happily trotted off to the east until she got sleepy and made herself another burrow, awaiting the next set of mutations. ***Calvin*** Extensive training has increased your Attributes! +2 Stability +2 Strength +2 Endurance +2 Kinesthetics 0/34 Warp remaining. ¡°Check this out,¡± Calvin said, jamming an Abyssal Steel tube into the Cystal lattice¡¯s pale side. The odd, clammy monster jerked a little at the pain, but otherwise stayed still. It wasn¡¯t able to form it¡¯s protective covering because Calvin had deliberately changed out one of its catalyst organs with a Spinner finger. Without a shell, and under Calvin¡¯s complete control, it simply sat there as he did experiments on it. ¡°Now this creature can steal Bent and use it to digest matter to create something I like to call undifferentiated mass. See that clear goop coming out?¡± Calvin held the bottle underneath the tube, catching the goop as it fell out. ¡°This stuff is highly concentrated¡­anything, and packaged in such a way that the vast majority of its weight and volume don¡¯t exist. It¡¯s possible that fourth dimension shenanigans are at play here, but that¡¯s not the focus.¡± ¡°But¡­ Calvin said, showing Goob the bottle full of clear liquid. ¡°This stuff is useless to us, because it was made from a summoned creature. Watch.¡± Calvin unsummoned the crystal lattice and the goop in the vial vanished in a puff of green mist. ¡°Cool! It¡­didn¡¯t do anything.¡± Goob said, deflating. ¡°Now,¡± Calvin said, moving over to the sluglike creature he¡¯d been feeding Bent and stone every hour or so for the past six hours. ¡°This one, I¡¯ve been feeding since breakfast, and you see how much we have in here?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at the many tubes leading to individual class jars of different catalysts, each carefully labeled by a knick-knack. Each jar was almost completely full of liquid. The idea had been spawned with Elliot suggested speeding up blood production via temporarily increasing bone marrow through dupdomancy. If it created enough blood from real nutrients, was it possible that some of it might remain after they¡¯d been created? ¡°Now watch closely.¡± Calvin said, dismissing the crystal lattice. The creature itself disappeared, dropping its tubes to the ground. The liquid in the jars, though, began to bubble furiously, green mist rising out of the top. ¡°Awesome!¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± Calvin said, standing behind Goob. He hadn¡¯t actually tested it before, and if it destabilized the undifferentiated mass, he wanted someone or something to absorb some of the high-speed, self-replicating glass shards. Why get a safety glass when you have an apprentice? Exactly. Thankfully, there was no explosion, and eventually, the disintegration of the liquid slowed and finally came to a halt, leaving the tiniest film of liquid on the bottom of each of the jars. ¡°Yes!¡± Calvin shouted, pumping a fist. He had just proven that it was possible to make more Alchemy ingredients with a creature he¡¯d summoned¡­as long as all the materials came from reality, and the efficiency wasn¡¯t great¡­ All problems that could be worked on in the future. For now. ¡°So how does it work?¡± Goob asked, reaching into one of the jars. ¡°Stop!¡± Calvin shouted, freezing the child mid jar-reach ¡°Unless you like the idea of having a giant cancerous growth on your finger. Or a really big finger, or a smaller Goob living on your finger. None of those sound very good, do they?¡± Goob shook his head, whipping his hand out of the jar and putting it behind his back. ¡°How it works is like this,¡± Calvin said, bringing out a slice of bread he¡¯d gotten from the kitchens and setting it on the table. ¡°Add the Catalysts together,¡± He said, tipping the two jars carefully over the bread, a single drop from each, one on top of the other in the center of the slice. ¡°Then the undifferentiated mass.¡± Calvin said, putting a drop in the center, watching the young wizard lean closer with wide eyes. The bread exploded in front of them, out to a bun with a radius of four feet in an instant. It drew a satisfying squawk out of Goob as the bread smacked him in the face with the force of a modest punch, toppling him over a stool. The boy climbed to his feed in seconds, panting and staring at the giant loaf of bread jutting out of the original slice. ¡°Holy Guar!¡± he said, stepping closer and enthusiastically poking the bread. ¡°Instead of a crystal lattice, we¡¯ve got a bread lattice. Hah. Have some,¡± Calvin said, ripping off a chunk and eating it. Mmm, that¡¯s a good bread. I should try this with some garlic and butter. Goob snatched a chunk and started devouring it. The boy probably hadn¡¯t been able to have a good meal since the rationing began. Calvin spat his out while Goob wasn¡¯t looking. ¡°Anyway, that¡¯s one of the ways I plan on helping with the food problem,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Can¡¯t have people starving between now and when we finally get rid of these creature ¡°Can you use it to make anything?¡± Goob asked, looking up at him. ¡°Sure,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°How about gold?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because then you¡¯d be rich!¡± ¡°Aside from being rare, gold has very little value.¡± Calvin said. ¡°And I¡¯m already rich.¡± ¡°What about girlfriends!?¡± Goob said. ¡°Could you like, use this to create a girlfriend, or like, several of them from one!?¡± Technically you could, but it would require a 3-d printer with space age precision. ¡°No. A real wizard makes his girlfriends the old fashioned way. Meet a girl who has a lot in common. Someone who likes magic and either conquering nations or supporting someone who does. Easy.¡± ¡°Easy for you to say,¡± Goob muttered kicking the floor sullenly. ¡°Don¡¯t overthink it.¡± Calvin said with a sigh. Goob¡¯s sullenness lasted about as long as it took for him to land on another thought. ¡°Could you use it to make your junk bigger?¡± ¡°Remember what I said about cancerous growths?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°What about storing a lot of stuff, and recreating it?¡± Goob asked. ¡°What if it ate like, a house, and you could carry around that house in a vial and just pour it out, and there¡¯s a house again. That would be cool!¡± ¡°That¡¯s actually¡­¡± A really good idea. It would need some kind of blueprint to recreate the undifferentiated matter back into it¡¯s original form. Or a predetermined form¡­ Can¡¯t my body already do that, or something similar? Calvin thought. Blade body was able to recreate the knives that were stored inside him, down to the little dents and scratches in their blades. They were being disassembled and reassembled at will. How? Calvin frowned. Maybe if you could isolate whatever stores the knifes in your bloodstream, we could either use it as a design storage catalyst, or more likely use the sensitive material from the Lure bonded with it to create some kind of design ¡®snapshot¡¯¡­ Damn, this sounds like it could take a long time to iron out. But the ability to carry a kingdom in a jug. Imagine that. You think the people would be grateful to spend most of their time as inanimate goop? Probably. Who knows? ¡°Or you could, Idunno, put it in a water bladder and throw it at a girl, and have it explode and just absolutely drench her.¡± Goob laughed wickedly, his gaze distant as he retreated into his imagination. ¡°How¡¯s the project going?¡± Evor asked, entering the laboratory, empty since the majority of the wizards in the city had been killed. They¡¯d fared much better this second time around, but there was plenty of space to spare, and Calvin had received his own lab and his own assistant, as part of the package deal for supporting the retaking of Gadvera. He could basically ask for any price he wanted at this point, and he had. The lab was a rather small portion of it. From Elliot¡¯s and Kurawe¡¯s recommendations, he¡¯d asked for land to the southeast, money, and a title. What he wanted more than anything else was fame, though. He needed people to follow him in droves when he went to cut his own kingdom out of the jungle to the east. The best way to get that was to be the messiah who fed the hungry and clothed the poor. So Calvin was working on ways to transmute rock into bread through Abyssal alchemy fuckery. ¡°So far the results are good.¡± Calvin said, motioning to the massive loaf of bread dominating the table. ¡°And it¡¯s not a construct?¡± Evor asked, frowning as he approached, looking over the bread. Calvin felt a pulse of Bent shoot out and try to dispel the bread, leaving it exactly the same as before. ¡°Did you make sure it isn¡¯t poisonous?¡± He asked, eyeing the large hole the boy had devoured out of the side of the massive loaf. Calvin glanced at Goob, who was poking some of the other half-dozen bottles Calvin was planning on using to make armor and weapons with. ¡°We¡¯ll know soon.¡± Evor¡¯s expression soured. ¡°I¡¯d rather you not use Goob as a lab rat.¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t mind.¡± Evor narrowed his eyes some more, his face taking on wrinkles Calvin didn¡¯t know he had. ¡°Then can I get some rats, please?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°That can be arranged.¡± Evor tilted his head toward the door. ¡°And I was to tell you Andra needs more troops.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Calvin said, setting down the jar and putting its lid back on. ¡°Thanks, I¡¯ll be right there.¡± ¡°Make sure all the lids are airtight,¡± Calvin said, making sure his own was locked tight before setting it under the table. ¡°I¡¯ll see you when you get back, sir,¡± Goob said, giving him an overenthusiastic salute. Calvin glanced down at the jars in front of the kid¡¯s chest. ¡°Yeah¡­no. I don¡¯t trust you alone in a room with these. You¡¯re coming with me so you don¡¯t try to flood the gold market, or make a cancerous twin pop out of your neck.¡± ¡°That would be so cool!¡± Was I ever this bad? More or less. Goob levered the tops down on the bottles, put them under the shelf and sprinted to the door. Calvin glanced back at the jar with the tiny film of liquid at the bottom, trying to estimate its worth. There were maybe fifteen to twenty-five drops of liquid in the bottom of the glass, enough to make somewhere around a thousand pounds of gold, if one were so inclined. Calvin scoffed and shook his head, briefly tempted to pick it up and carry it around with him everywhere he went to protect it from being stolen. Not only would that be awkward, it would also draw attention to the thing¡¯s perceived value. He didn¡¯t want anyone to steal it, but if they did, would it really be the worst thing? He would just tighten security, and wait for the idiot to reveal themselves by suddenly having more gold than the entire royal family. Then Calvin would kill the idiot and life would move on. I can think of something more valuable than gold. Oh yeah? Plutonium. A thousand pounds of that would be something. Macronomicon Chapter 140: Let’s Put Our Evil Heads Together Shadowboxing 100% repaired. Please refrain from imagining trans-dimensional or existential attacks while using this Ability. Doing so may cause side effects including, but not limited to, shortness of breath, sneezing, itching, anxiety, nausea, Gran-mal seisures, stroke, aneurism, detonation. Any further abuse will be reported to System Admin 562 Hah, sucker. Did it say detonation? **** Calvin barged in on the planning committee, namely Andra, The Hash¡¯Maje ¨C I don¡¯t remember his name! ¨C Kurawe, and Nadia, overlooking a map of Mujenan and the surrounding areas. What does that put the Evil percentage of this war council at? Seventy-five percent? Calvin knew the general was cold and results-driven, as expected for someone of her station, Kurawe represented institutionalized greed and nepotism, while Nadia was an avatar of primal maliciousness. At least. We can¡¯t rule out the possibility that Kala¡¯s dad is secretly evil. Did you forget all those times we Shadowboxed conversations with him? The guy is totally chill. Maybe that¡¯s what he wants you to think. ¡°You can¡¯t afford to put all our effort into extermination,¡± Kurawe said, ¡°nor should you. the entire purpose of sending the Uleisan army was to prove that there was an inhuman threat that we should rally against.¡± He glanced at Calvin with a raised brow. ¡°Which you then blew up.¡± Calvin shrugged. ¡°I suggest you instead corral the remaining creatures toward the approaching Uleisan army rather than kill them, and kill two birds with one stone. See? Evil. ¡°First, you¡¯ll weaken our army with no loss of life on your part, alerting them to the presence of these creatures, whereupon they will change their goal from conquering to surviving. This weakening will make them less likely to try for Mujenan. ¡°Second, our people will take care of much of the heavy lifting in regards to slaughtering these animals. As it stands, there are thousands of these disposable soldiers born every day. Exterminating htem is costly in terms of manpower and lives.¡± Kurawe marked a V across the map with the wooden troop figurines. ¡°Burn the spawners away in this formation, push them outside the city, and Uleis will stumble upon the threat in a grandiose fashion.¡± ¡°That sounds tenable.¡± Andra said with a nod before glancing at Calvin. ¡°I¡¯ll be needing more burners from you.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°This plan of exterminating them slowly solely to bloody the Uleisan¡¯s noses¡­¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said from his throne, overlooking the map. ¡°It doesn¡¯t sit well with me.¡± ¡°You realize this is the fastest, most effective way to make them engage with the threat? Kurawe simply calling off their attack would do nothing but draw out the animosity between our people.¡± Andra gazed up at the throne, her expression inscrutable. Holy crap she¡¯s besotted with him! Calvin thought as Open Book gave him hints that her expression didn¡¯t ¡°I understand that,¡± he said with a sigh, rubbing the skin under his crown. ¡°It¡¯s two things that bother me. The eager sacrifice of lives for politics, and the speed at which we are doing it.¡± Andra¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°You think it could grow back.¡± ¡°It grew as far as it did in two weeks. Hollowed out tunnels, bred giant crabs, and covered most of the aboveground in those spawners. Who¡¯s to say it won¡¯t recover while we twiddle our thumbs and wait for the Uleisans to show?¡± He pointed at Calvin. ¡°We have Count Gadsint, do we not? Tell me you couldn¡¯t scour the land clean in a matter of hours with that summoning spell of yours.¡± I¡­Probably could. Oh, and I told you he was a nice guy. Lucky guess. I¡¯m telling you, you could have pushed for a Duke title. ¡°Then you¡¯ll be fighting a war on three sides,¡± Nadia said, walking up to Calvin and placing a possessive arm around his shoulder. ¡°And he doesn¡¯t have the stamina for that.¡± ¡°What the abyss does that mean?¡± Calvin asked, glancing at Nadia. ¡°Just advising you not to start a war on three sides,¡± She whispered in his ear with a grin, deliberately breathing on his ear. Calvin looked the Ilethan beauty up and down, taking in her outlandishly well-proportioned body with his eyes. Not so much as a twitch of desire. ¡°I think I can handle that.¡± Calvin whispered back, eliciting a scowl from his sadomasochistic summoned creature. ¡°It¡¯s true,¡± Andra said, drawing attention to herself. ¡°There is a risk that One will recover ground while we take our time positioning its minions, but if we don¡¯t secure an alliance against it with Uleis, we will be done, as a nation.¡± The Hash¡¯Maje sighed. ¡°You¡¯re right, of course. Do as you must, but I want you to pay close attention to the remaining creatures, should they begin to act with purpose or spread that abominable flesh again, I want you to drop down on them like Vashniel¡¯s spear.¡± ¡°As you wish,¡± Andra said, dropping to one knee in acknowledgement. Calvin copied her and left as well. He couldn¡¯t afford not to play the game now that he was a Count, technically speaking. He hadn¡¯t seen his lands yet on anything other than a map, but they included a river to the southeast that could connect to Gadvera with just a little effort, and Juntai, with just a little more. It wasn¡¯t resource rich, aside from farmland and lumber, but for Calvin, the first several thousand acres were the sweetest. He¡¯d never been a landowner before, and he was practically jittery with the desire to make it to his new domain and start building it up. Wizard King! The fact that he¡¯d most likely have to spend the next several months fixing up Gadvera to a state where it was inhabitable again was an irritating distraction, but he couldn¡¯t exactly run off and leave the country to wither. He¡¯d already been paid for his services, and Gadvera was the nation that legitimized his claim on the land. Well, that and Uleis, the northern neighbor. Kurawe had already gotten the ball rolling toward recognizing his right as landholder there. Now all we gotta do is brutally kick all the natives off their ancestral home, as is tradition. Hopefully it¡¯s not going to come to that, Calvin thought as he came back to his feet, joining Andra in the hallway outside the throne room. ¡°The food is working wonders for morale, Count,¡± she said, glancing at him. ¡°But I need to you save enough for a sudden attack and land clearing. Are you sure you¡¯ve got enough Bent to juggle these responsibilities?¡± ¡°Barely,¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°It¡¯ll hold.¡± ¡°Good. I want another six units of Knick-knacks to repair and rebuild behind my soldiers, and fortify their position when they stop for the day. I want the city locked down in such a way that it¡¯ll be damn near impossible to move through without our permission.¡± ¡°Why not-¡° ¡°We both know you could burn the flesh of the city, but our soldiers need their Breaks, and our people need their homes and businesses back. And we as a city need to build fortifications against the Uleisans, rather than tearing down everything we own. ¡°Isn¡¯t the plan for them not to attack?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°If a pie were sitting on a windowsill, would you take it?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± Maybe. ¡°How about if said pie was behind razor-wire?¡± ¡°I think I see your point.¡± Calvin said. The plan to have Uleis not attack them would in some respects, rely on intimidation. They had to believe it would be far easier to ally themselves with Gadvera than it would be to conquer it, and that involved at least some preparing for war. Well, more war, Anyway. Andra branched off while Calvin stayed on the path to the amusement hall, where soldiers recovered from wounds and played darts and foosball. I can¡¯t believe foosball still exists. Calvin entered the noisy room where Baroke was playing darts blindfolded, and yet the colossal villager was sinking every dart into the exact same spot while the crowd around him applauded. Ella was resting off to the side with a leg of lamb from the countryside. As long as he kept the Genosian stocked with meats, he wasn¡¯t too afraid of her eating someone. A nearby soldier offered her a tankard of booze, to which she shook her head. Genosian stomachs weren¡¯t able to process fruits and vegetables as easily as others, and this intolerance extended to most alcohols. ¡°Shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot!¡± The soldiers crowding around Baroke chanted as he lined up another dart, balancing a shot on his knuckles. Somehow the archer tipped the drink over into his mouth while simultaneously making another shot dead in the center of the dartboard, sending up a wild cheer. ¡°You look like you¡¯re having fun.¡± Calvin said, raising his voice above the din. Cheering turned to whispers and then silence, extending outward from Calvin in a wave as people recognized him. Baroke raised a brow and turned to face him, eyes still covered by the black scrap of cloth. ¡°Calvin? What¡¯s up?¡± ¡°Just checking up on you. I figured you might appreciate a timeline,¡± Calvin said, glancing around the room. ¡°Hit me.¡± ¡°The end is in sight. Three weeks at a conservative estimate, then we can start bringing your families back home. In the meantime, with the siege broken, we can start getting resupplies from rural towns.¡± The announcement was met with a rousing cheer, and more than one soldier ignored Calvin¡¯s rank and patted him vigorously on the back, along with plenty of encouragement for ¡®The Wasp¡¯, the persona he¡¯d built for himself. If everything goes to plan, I¡¯ll be building my kingdom square in the center of the jungle in a month. If everything goes to plan? When has everything ever gone to plan? A boy can dream, Calvin thought as the celebrating reached a peak. There was a tap on his shoulder, which Calvin shrugged off, taking it as another good-natured celebratory shoulder clap. A second later it was back, tapping insistently. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and spotted Nadia. Probably looking for an opportunity to secure some kind of punishment, or make his life miserable. Preferably both, it seemed. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°One of me just got murdered.¡± She said with a confused frown. **** Deep in the jungle to the east, a Brain Polyp was growing to maturity in a man-sized burrow, where Magenta had laid it during her third Break. The Brain Polyp was a seed, the nucleus of a new army, but it needed to grow in order to accomplish its task. Instinctively, before it had even fully awakened its sapience, it was already sending mycelium deep into the ground to latch onto any and all sources of biomass in order to fuel its resource intensive brain. Now aware of the fate of its predecessor, and, after studying the creature¡¯s memories, it began devising a new strategy. But first it would have to hatch foragers, Takers, and finally scrubbers. The humans, now forewarned, would most likely scour the land with extreme caution, so it would have to avoid detection for weeks, or even months while it built the ability to defend itself. The polyp began growing the mycelium to the south, forager eggs growing in the ground like potatoes as it shifted its center of mass further away from its current position. Although it couldn¡¯t move, it could easily create branch brains that could retain its mind if the original were to be destroyed. This close to Gadvera that had an excellent chance of happening. When the first foragers hatched, they began piling dead trees onto the polyp, making sure to slather rot between the branches, which the mycelium shot through, absorbing the energy and fueling the rapid expansion to the south. Once it reached a safe distance, it would focus on its new strategy, which could be summed up in a short Malkenrovian proverb. Quality over quantity. ***Ryan*** ¡°There¡¯s no chance that egghead is right about any of this shit, is there?¡± Ryan spoke aloud, glancing at the dumb woman who¡¯d taken to following him around. She knew better than to say anything in response. Or maybe she just couldn¡¯t. In either case, Ryan enjoyed the tacit agreement of her silence. Still, it wasn¡¯t his job to prepare for the end of the world and gods coming down to the surface of Marconen. All he had to do was deliver messages to the stupid, evil bitch who thought the end-times were upon them. Not gonna let her stress me about this. Stress makes my stomach hurt. It was just a fuckwit with more money than sense playing pretend. The hardest part had been putting everything down in braille by poking the damn paper. It had taken hours to write down a simple message from this Seymour guy that he could have delivered in ten seconds verbally. On the other hand¡­ The sheer amount of money in that lock-box piqued my interest, He thought, fingers unconsciously landing on the gold necklace he¡¯d bought with a fraction of the Nem. Can¡¯t let people think I¡¯m poor, now can I? For that amount of money, Ryan was more than willing to let her play pretend with her professor. The series of bumps on paper in his hand, read thusly: I have come to believe strongly that the Elliot you speak of is indeed one of the ancient Administrators that warred against the gods. According to my notes, the System is able to track souls, and somehow this Elliot was able to coerce the system into recording his mind along with his soul, and now he dwells in the System of his most recent incarnation. This Calvin boy. They have the same soul, same body. Elliot will most likely attempt a coup when the host has become strong enough to warrant attention from the gods. In a moment of weakness, he will take the body for himself. The only ways to prevent this are to erase Elliot, which would cause substantial damage to the host, strengthen the partition between them, which would be a temporary solution at best, remove the System entirely, unwise, given your personal reliance on it, Or remove the partition entirely and let the two identities compete until the stronger one achieves dominance. Needless to say, none of these options are ideal. If you wish for a recommendation to someone who can work with the System, I can recommend you to some priests I know, but the chances of contacting the gods to resolve this matter are slim at best. I will inform you when I know more. They don¡¯t exactly make manuals for this sort of thing, you know. WoooOOooO, the gods, ravagers and the eternal expansion beyond the sky. Ryan snorted. Everyone knows you can¡¯t get past the sky. How would you get there, on a catapult? Ryan was already inside the brothel and ducking into the hall leading to Nadia¡¯s room, when he came face to face with the she-demon right in front of her own room. The door was ajar, splinters of wood where the handle used to be. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Nadia asked, her hand on a sword as she stopped in front of him, eyes checking every corner suspiciously, lingering on the busted door. ¡°Your letter? I took the professor to the Pit to Break, and he spent the rest of the night diving through history books.¡± Nadia extended her arm. ¡°Give it he-¡° The wall exploded outward, and Nadia¡¯s body was crushed against the far wall an instant before it violently burst into green mist. A little old lady in Gadveran dress, indistinguishable from any of a thousand other refugees, watched him with a reptilian coldness. ¡°What is The Pit?¡± she asked, her limbs retracting into her loose-fitting shawl with the clicking of bone-on-bone. Nope. Ryan turned and ran, shoving Dara into the creature¡¯s path, bolting around the corner and out the door of the brothel in seconds. Ryan heard Dara give a wordless shriek before she was silenced. He just put his head down and kept running. Better her than me. Better her than me. Goddamn, running makes my stomach hurt. The pain made his eyes water. Macronomicon Chapter 141: Coward Bad Learner¡¯s notes: day 15 cow¡¤ard /?kou(?)rd/ noun noun: coward; plural noun: cowards. A person who lacks the courage to do or endure dangerous or unpleasant things. Example: Ryan, who left his caste-mandated superior yet physically weaker, lumpy hooter behind is a coward. And an asshole. ¡­But I already knew that. I¡¯ve heard hooters call each other names and have achieved a rough understanding of derogative terms, enough so that while some derogatory terms are used as terms of endearment, the word ¡®coward¡¯ has always led to a fistfight between flat hooters. It seems to imply a lack of emotional or mental strength. The mental equivalent of calling someone weak, and flat hooters do not like being called weak. No they do not. They also highly prize flat hooters who defend the physically weaker lumpy ones. Seeing Ryan leave his tamer behind was a rather harsh turn from the behavior I¡¯ve come to expect from flat hooters, and likely the reason behind the ¡®asshole¡¯ label. The creature appears to be natural to this plane, despite showing signs of mutation, as it¡¯s appearance blended quite seamlessly into the flabby lumpy hooter with rags category, a section of the hooter demographic that no one seems to have any caution toward. Interesting choice. I probably would have chosen to present differently to take advantage of hooter social instincts, but I can understand the reasoning for prioritizing dropping hooter¡¯s guards when intending to hunt them rather than assimilate. It also appears to be as strong or stronger than a Legend, as it destroyed Nadia¡¯s physical form in a fraction of a second. Or perhaps there was something more at play? Requires more study. ***Magenta*** Waste not, want not. Another stupid folk saying reverberated through Magenta¡¯s head as the quiet female wriggled in her grasp, face turning red as Magenta¡¯s grip cut off her breathing. All it would take was a twitch, and she could deploy the claw hidden in her wrist, and she would sever the female¡¯s pine and be done with it. The urge to do so was nearly overpowering, as close contact with a live human was unnerving, and she¡¯d already determined the source of the Vessel¡¯s unbelievable Bent regeneration. Take out one more female, then there¡¯s one less in the world for him to draw off of. But¡­the female was standing close by when the male mentioned ¡®the Pit,¡¯ which from context, was a place to gain Breaks with minimal effort. Magenta sighed. The things I do for love of killing Calvin. She raised the wriggling female to eye level, and opened her mouth in a smile. The mask of the frail old woman split apart along her jaw, revealing the gaping maw to the panicking woman. ¡°Do you know where ¡®The Pit¡¯ he spoke of is?¡± The woman nodded, her eyes bulging beneath Magenta¡¯s grip. ¡°Good. Take me there.¡± A woman stumbled out of the nearby room, covering herself and running for the exit. Magenta broke into a grin as she watched the slow female make her way to the front of the brothel. That reminded her that there were plenty of other Bent batteries that she could remove from the equation. Good things come to those who wait. Get outta my head, folk sayings! ***Ryan*** Ryan sprinted down the street like a dervish, bypassing carriage that was moving far too slow. He had to get out of town. He couldn¡¯t trust that Kala bitch to not throw the book at him when everything was said and done. She thought Ryan was some kind of monster, and this was all she¡¯d need to justify having some thugs cut his head off. Well, not today. I¡¯m a goddamn Legend. I¡¯ll make it across the desert before they I.D. the body. I¡¯ll move to Boles, captain of the guard with a solid paycheck. I might have to learn a couple words in the Bolesian, and possibly marry some slant-eyed bitch, but that¡¯s life. Ryan¡¯s mood was starting to improve as he approached the archway leading out to the desert. He¡¯d almost made it when he had a sudden attack of conscience. His stomach ached as though it had been stuffed with hot coals as he passed underneath the gate, and he stumbled to a halt, holding his arms around himself. ¡°Ugh,¡± he grunted, dropping to his knees and curling into a fetal position. The sudden wrenching pain pulled him out of his plans and back into the moment. Dara was gone. Never coming back. And he¡¯d been the one to kill her. Goddamnit, He thought, hot tears pouring out of his eyes and dropping onto the sandy, glass-covered road. He¡¯d known Dara since before they¡¯d been thrown into the pit together. He¡¯d always come visit her and tell her stories about all the amazing things he was going to accomplish once he was a Legend, and she¡¯d listen, wide eyed and hopeful. He¡¯d never particularly intended to follow through and steal her away from her life as a comfort woman, but when he was chased by the police a month ago, he¡¯d been able to think of no one better to hide him. They found him anyway, and then they¡¯d both been thrown in the pit. Ryan felt a little Guilt about getting Dara thrown in the pit, but what a blessing in disguise. He was finally a Legend, and at least able to keep her as his own. Then he¡¯d gone and thrown her at a monster like a coward. Hiding behind a woman, again. Even though she¡¯d continued following him after all the shit he¡¯d fucked up¡­ DAMNIT! Fucking coward! ¡°Get out of the road, jackass,¡± the carriage driver shouted with a tired voice. Ryan pushed himself to his knees, panting as he crawled out of the way of the carriage. When he turned back toward the city, the ache in his stomach receded. This is the right path, his nerves eased as he pushed himself to his feet, decision made. Her stared down the road. There¡¯s a chance, a small chance, that Dara is still alive, and I¡¯m going to prove to her that I¡¯m not a goddamned coward¡­ But first I¡¯ll get some backup. That thing was pretending to be human! It could speak! Ryan shuddered. Everyone knew the horror stories about thinking monsters. Ones that could speak. Creatures just like that had disappeared entire towns and triggered hunts that spanned entire countries. Definitely get backup. ***Kala*** His palms were rough as he slid them down Amanda¡¯s collar, the discomfort vanishingly small compared to the fire that grew in her loins, overriding her sense of propriety. Those heavy hands settled on her shoulders, heavy, mounting pressure that gradually drove her to her knees. She willingly surrendered, humbling herself in front of Marcus¡¯s stony figure. She knew what he wanted, as the heat barely contained in his trousers radiated outward, warming her face. She didn¡¯t shy away from it any longer, eyes lingering on his body as she ran her fingers up her master¡¯s legs, hesitating ever so slightly as her hands approached his manhood, the blood beating through its length in time with her own frantic heartbeat. He wanted to claim her mouth. This was what she had been trained for. All that discomfort, for the sake of surrendering her body to this man, pleasing him in every way imaginable. Her fingers curled around the edge of the soft underclothes, dragging them slowly down, angling to free her prize from it¡¯s tight confines. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± A cold voice spoke from the doorway. Mrs. Hollander! Amanda tried to hide, tried to flinch away from the woman¡¯s gaze and the enmity it bore, but Marcus¡¯s rough hands held her as firmly in place as they ever had. Amanda turned her gaze away from the older woman¡¯s piercing eyes, unwilling to risk any further disciplining from her mistress. ¡°Now, now,¡± the woman¡¯s voice tickled her ear as she felt her body kneel down behind her. Mrs. Hollander¡¯s breasts brushed against Amanda¡¯s back, the unexpected contact sending shivers up and down her spine in waves, concentrating on the warmth radiating through her center. ¡°I can¡¯t very well let you do this without the proper guidance,¡± Mrs. Hollander said, her fingers sliding through Amanda¡¯s hair until she grasped the teen tightly by the back of the head. ¡°It¡¯s my job to ensure you get the right Skill for your master on your Forming Day.¡± Kala blinked, turning the page. Okay, now I¡¯m interested. She was halfway through the next paragraph, when things were really starting to get good, when someone said something addressed at her. Kala effortlessly made the switch to pristine princess and glanced up at the ruling council of Uleis. ¡°Apologies, I was reviewing the city¡¯s history.¡± Kala lied, closing the book whose cover she¡¯d switched specifically to survive the dry meetings of state. ¡°My lord would like to speak with the two of us in private.¡± Kurawe, said glancing at the other members of the city council. Murak waved him off, nose deep in paperwork and happy to be there. the rest of the men around the table looked more than happy to call it a day. ¡°I believe we¡¯ve covered enough ground today to afford a short recess.¡± The crown prince of Uleis said, organizing his papers into an orderly stack. They grey haired man stood and cracked his back while the other bureaucrats followed his lead, pushing themselves away from the table with a sigh. One of them even pulled out a sandwich. The fat giant gestured toward the door, and Kala followed, body tensed. She knew on the surface that the man was a zealous worshipper of Calvin, but she could never bring herself to fully trust him. Not after he¡¯d led the cultists who¡¯d thrown them to their deaths. ¡°What¡¯s this about?¡± Kala whispered as they headed toward the door. Kurawe held up a hand, a frown on his face showing he was listening to Calvin¡¯s words from miles away. I wish I could hear Calvin¡¯s voice whenever I wanted¡­ ¡°One moment.¡± He opened the door for her, and they stepped outside the warded room. The hallway was just as soundproofed as the rest of the council chambers, but Kurawe felt the need to whisper. ¡°Two Nadia have been killed by something in the city. I¡¯ve been asked to provide him additional support, and you¡­¡± Kala winced. ¡°He asked you to figure out what¡¯s going on.¡± Oh, thank the gods. Kala didn¡¯t want to seem squeamish, but she was vehemently against the idea of sharing her Bent in that way with anyone but Calvin. Especially when he¡¯s a giant fat old man that I¡¯m half afraid of. Gods, that¡¯s the direction my life was going without Calvin creating absolute chaos everywhere he goes. Were it not for Calvin, she might wind up betrothed to someone just like the giant oligarch standing in front of her. ¡°I¡¯ll get right on it.¡± ¡°Make excuses for me if they ask,¡± Kurawe said with a nod before power-walking away, his tent-like clothes fluttering in the wind behind him. Alright, Kala thought, I need to track this problem down, and quickly. If I get to the top of the palace tower and take a few puffs, I might be able to spot whatever¡¯s doing the damage as the world around me begins to fade away. Seer was quite powerful, and if there was something really bad happening in the city that would uncover it quickly. The doors in the hall burst open in front of Ryan as he skidded to a halt, panting and sweaty. Behind him were several Veteran palace guards raising the alarm and chasing after him. ¡°A monster killed Nadia and it¡¯s got Dara!¡± He said between gasps, clutching his stomach and pointing down the hall. ¡°Down at the Easy Peach.¡± Well¡­Sometimes the answer just falls into your lap, no mind-altering drugs required. Kala stepped in front of Ryan and held her hand up in front of the palace guards storming in after him. ¡°He¡¯s one of ours, Gentlemen.¡± Kala said, stopping the soldiers in their tracks. ¡°He¡¯s reporting to me.¡± They left reluctantly, spurred on by a royal glare. Once the men had filed out of the room, she turned to Ryan. ¡°Where is it?¡± She asked. ¡°I just said, the Easy Peach.¡± ¡°Yes, but do you know where it was going?¡± ¡°Ummm¡­.¡± Ryan squinted like he was thinking really hard, then winced. ¡°It overheard me talking about The Pit, asked where it was, but I didn¡¯t tell it anything. I got right out of there.¡± ¡°You said it had Dara.¡± ¡°Yeah, so?¡± ¡°So she knows where The Pit is, doesn¡¯t she?¡± Kala asked, raising a brow. ¡°Oh. Yeah, I guess she does.¡± ¡°And how did it get Dara?¡± ¡°The creature went straight for her, like it had a purpose.¡± Ryan lied. Kala could see the slight shifts in his behavior and expressions that gave away the lie. He¡¯d left her there, with the monster. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡± Kala said, marching toward the exit. They didn¡¯t have a whole lot of time. ¡°Aren¡¯t we gonna get more people? The thing spoke, princess.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re a Legend, act like one.¡± Kala said, restraining a growl as she snatched a sword out of the sheath of a nearby guardsman, tossing it to Ryan as she ran. ¡°We¡¯ll get help on the way there.¡± ¡°R-right. I haven¡¯t had a lot of official training, but I know how to hold my own in a fight. I even ¨C ¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± Kala said as they sprinted down the halls. ***Magenta*** The Warp gradually grew stronger as they made their way down the tunnel buried underneath the inauspicious building, pressing invisibly against Magenta¡¯s skin. It was clear they were on the right track, but Magenta wasn¡¯t interested in killing her captive just yet. There might be some kind of trick to entering that the mute female was withholding. They came across an underground labyrinth of pleasure-rooms, for the sickening purpose of allowing these apes to fornicate with greater comfort. In other rooms were cells with bands or iron attached to the walls, thick and designed to hold humans with greater than average strength. The rooms had splotches of dried blood all over them, where torture and sadistic games must have taken place. The implied violence against her least favorite species almost brought a smile to her face. The mute female led her through the winding passageways, the only clue they were going the right direction was the rapidly thickening Warp in the air. Finally they came to a thick wooden door with a hand carved on it. The mute woman quietly opened the door, and Magenta was taken aback by the wash of Warp that engulfed her, radiating outward from a pitch black hole in the ground. So this is where the Vessel achieved his current level of strength. Just standing above the hole she could feel the saturation of Warp in her body reaching a critical level. She would Mutate again soon. Magenta had to either control The Pit, or destroy it. Controlling it was better. A Siphon at One¡¯s disposal on this continent would drastically improve the amount of power he could bring to bear in a short time. Magenta knew exactly how to do it too¡­ It just hurts my cloaca every frigging time. ¡°Thank you for your help, You¡¯re free to go.¡± As the female relaxed in her grip, Magenta drove her arm-talon through the mute¡¯s spine, rendering her floppy and boneless. The woman¡¯s eyes widened in surprise, and glazed over in a matter of seconds as she bled out through the massive rent in her neck. Magenta tossed aside the corpse and got started doing her business. She hiked up the shawl covering her hunch and her inhuman legs, and popped a squat at the side of the hole. I like to sing familiar songs, like my ABC¡¯s while I drop a deuce, it helps me relax. Stupid memory bits. With so much information torn out of human brains, there was a little bit of non-essential fluff that had made its way into her head. Mostly that took the form of folk wisdom relevant to her thoughts. Magenta didn¡¯t really have any familiar songs that might help her relax and pass the new polyp, so she decided to make one up on the spot. ¡°? Kill the Vessel¡­ Kill the vessel¡­¡± Why does this stretching have to hurt so damned much!? A design flaw if I¡¯ve ever seen one. ¡°? Kill the Vessal¡­Kick him in his¡­diiiick!¡± Hey, whaddya know, it¡¯s working! Plop. The new brain polyp landed on the ground as Magenta heaved a gasp of air, happy to have finally passed the damn thing. It was right then, in that moment of relief, that four humans kicked down the door. staring in stupid ape silence at Magenta squatting over the pulsing red lump of brain slowly putting mycelium through the mute¡¯s corpse. ¡°Can¡¯t you see I¡¯m busy here!?¡± Magenta demanded. ¡°Dara!¡± the one in the middle of the pack, the black-haired one that¡¯d run away from her earlier, charged forward, sword raised high. Magenta extended her arm outward to catch the man¡¯s swing before it began, then backhanded him across the room. Four blades whipped out of the sheaths adorning the biggest human¡¯s body, and they shot toward her, hissing through the air as the other two made to attack. Oh look, another of my targets came to me, Magenta thought as she compressed her body and dodged out of the way of the swords. She reached out and grabbed one of their handles, wrenching herself off to the side before flooding her palms with her magenta aura. There was a brittle crack, and the force directing the sword was disconnected, allowing her to carry the blade with her as she flew through the air to the other side of the room, landing closest to her prey. Obligingly, Nadia reacted quickly, leaping towards Magenta with her blade held ready while the grey haired one mourned the loss of his sword, wincing with his hand on his temples. Magenta parried and brought the sword-lock in close, aiming to put her palm across the target¡¯s face, but the girl ducked out of the way with lithe grace far beyond her appearance, and tried to knock Magenta¡¯s feet out from under her with a leg sweep. Good enough, Magenta thought with a mental shrug as the summon touched her, unraveling into a burst of green smoke. Now the summon knew touching her was a sure way to get banished, fighting them would become harder. ¡°Uh, Grant, what the Abyss was that?¡± ¡°No idea.¡± One down. Three to go. The slender one in the silk attacked with¡­some kind of bong. That¡¯s new, Magenta thought as she fought off the slender girl and her long blue pipe, bouncing around the room faster than they could keep up thanks to her inhuman design. The most dangerous one was the grey-haired one with the swords, so Magenta methodically seized them out of the air one at a time, allowing the final sword to hit her just below the heart to force the human to commit to it. Once she disconnected the final blade from the man¡¯s control and tossed it into the pit, she finally saw what she¡¯d been looking for: Fear. ¡°I¡¯ve got some holdout blades,¡± ¡®Grant¡¯ said, scowling. ¡°But it¡¯s not going to buy a whole lot of time. Get some backup, princess.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s an option.¡± The slender female said, matching Magenta¡¯s stare. ¡°I¡¯ll go get help!¡± the coward shouted, running for a door. Magenta was about to cut him off when he groaned, his feet coming to a halt as he clasped his stomach. ¡°Oh, gods, what¡¯s going on?¡± he muttered, staring down at his legs. What the hell am I looking at? Magenta wondered as the man¡¯s legs turned back toward her, half-bent and shaking, as though against his limbs were no longer his to control. ¡°Aghh¡­It hurts¡­I Can¡¯t breathe!¡± The black-haired male desperately gasped as he stepped forward, until his knees buckled, finally collapsing him to the ground between Magenta and her opponents. ¡°Nng!¡± A fountain of blood sprayed out of the human¡¯s mouth as a hand pushed the skin of his chest outward, followed by another, and a knee, and¡­ The male exploded, his innards spilling outward as a young female climbed out of his body. Her form was covered in blood, but she looked strikingly similar to the slender girl with the battle-bong. She even gave the wide-eyed girl a shy wave. ¡°Coward bad,¡± She said. ¡°Help you bitches so make good thinkings of me.¡± The underground chamber was eerily silent for a moment. ¡°Did I miss something?¡± Magenta asked, raising a brow. Macronomicon This reveal was a Patreon favorite. Hope you enjoyed Learner''s gory public Debut! As of today, It''s up to chapter 169. Chapter 142: Doran’s Havok Learner¡¯s notes: Day 15 On combat: The most common way for hooter to permanently deactivate, or ¡®kill¡¯ each other, it to damage the structural integrity of their physical forms beyond the individual¡¯s tolerance. The three most common ways of doing so include poking holes with sharp objects, cutting with bladed objects, or crushing with blunt objects. All of these techniques seem to be aimed at relieving the hooter¡¯s body of the red specialized units that transfer nutrients across it¡¯s body, or damaging the strange specialized organs inside their bodies. Why would someone ever willingly have specialized organs? It made no sense, creating a huge bundle of weaknesses. The only saving grace was the fact that they seemed to do their jobs more efficiently than unspecialized units. Hooter fists fall into the blunt category, and are a poor example thereof. It is not only difficult to kill another hooter with fists, but also damaging to the hooter¡¯s own fists in the process. Highly inefficient. I will not be using them. This odd hooter appears to have gone about things in a more pragmatic manner as well, forming blades about two hand spans long that jut out of its split open palm. The blades appear able to equally cut or poke. I¡¯m not about to rule anything out, but there is a possibility that this saggy-stage lumpy hooter isn¡¯t actually a saggy-stage lumpy hooter. Or perhaps this is the reason the other hooters seem to defer to the saggy lumpy ones. Requires more ¨C it¡¯sattackingsigningoff! ***Learner*** The hooter asked if it missed anything, staring at Learner, along with the two remaining hooters, who held their weapons in front of them cautiously. There was a silent moment for Learner to take a few notes, before it lunged toward Learner, swinging a blade toward Learner¡¯s neck. Oh, look, it¡¯s got tiny serrations! The carefully crafted ratcheting vice of bone and mucle in Learner¡¯s chest tightened, forcing the two Unqua beads closer together. Click, click, click click! As the two beads stiffly resisted being pushed together, they gave off the unqua¡¯s unique aura that made themselves small. In an instant the saggy hooter in front of Learner became enormous, its blade passing far above without even threatening to touch the hairs on the top of Learner¡¯s disguise. Yes, I¡¯m definitely seeing the appeal of specialized units. Learner opened the channels in it¡¯s fingertips, releasing a carefully controlled stream of Crystal Lattice catalysts. A spear of crystal shot out, growing massive in size as it detached from Learner¡¯s body. The spear caught the saggy hooter in the center, or ¡®gut¡¯, and propelled it across the room, slamming it violently into the far was, causing the ceiling to rumble and shake, sending down little particles of dust. I wonder about the structural integrity of this room, Learner thought as the vice unclicked. Click, click, click, click. The room shrank as Learner expanded. It seems as though most creatures in this world take distance for granted. ***Kala*** ¡°Did you know about this?¡± Grant whispered. Kala shook her head. ¡°I knew Ryan was sick, but I never knew with what. And I didn¡¯t care about the bastard to pursue it any further. His stupid asshole aura hid that thing from my eyes.¡± Kala shook her head. That had been a stupid mistake. She had to keep track of even the unpleasant ones. ¡°What should we do? Kill it?¡± Grant asked, holding one of his emergency blades ¡°No, it¡¯s highly intelligent and forming its personality while it learns about the world. it¡¯s trying to save us and make a good first impression. We have to act in good faith or it might turn out poorly.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s what that gibberish was.¡± Grant said, relaxing. ¡°It called us bitches.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been riding around in Ryan.¡± ¡°And? Does the guy say bitches a lot?¡± Grant asked. Kala forgot Grant had been absent the last couple weeks. She rolled her eyes with a sigh. ¡°All the time. He called everyone a bitch, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if that¡¯s what she thinks the word for women is.¡± Grant started chuckling. ¡°That¡¯s not funny.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a little funn ¨C¡° The creature leapt forward, slashing down at the other creature. The monster from the Filter¡­vanished, blinking out of existence. A fraction of a second later a massive crystal caught their opponent in the gut and slammed it against the far wall, shaking the entire room. Not vanished, Kala realized as she began to grow from the size of a mouse to a full human again. Shrunk, like an unqua, and using crystals, like a lattice. Oh, crap it copies things, doesn¡¯t it. The creature¡¯s butt jiggled just a little as it hopped to its feet, reminding Kala that it¡¯s chosen form seemed to be an exact copy of her. And it was naked. If Grant made that connection, he wisely chose not to say anything. Very wisely. ***Learner*** Learner turned around and gave the other two hooters one of Ryan¡¯s ¡®thumb¡¯s up¡¯, letting them know that they were on the same side. Probably. The ¡®thumb¡¯s up¡¯ seemed to be highly situational. Meaning agreement or acknowledgement, assent, or encouragement, depending on what was necessary. One thing Learner knew: it was always used in a positive interaction. So while Learner wasn¡¯t exactly sure if they were using it in the right context, it could only mean good things. A positive thing in this situation would be ¡®I am helping you¡¯. Language is hard. Learner¡¯s efforts to master hooter body language were rewarded when the tall flat hooter with the grey hair gave a thumb¡¯s up back. Copied behavior! Yes! Communication has been established with these pathetic prey animals! The first step in infiltrating their strange hive society and getting closer to the Manifold Predator has been taken! A massive weight slammed into Learner¡¯s side, and they tumbled across the room as poke after poke landed in Learner¡¯s neck and face. Learner felt the sack that was hiding all her unspecialized units part like the Manifold Predator¡¯s gelatin under a hot knife. The creature¡¯s blades poked all the way through learner¡¯s head and gouged into the stone floor beneath it. No, bad! Hooters had a strong negative reaction when they spotted Learner¡¯s units, which was why Learner had made just enough specialized units to contain them and complete the disguise. Now they were going to spill out! Learner turned it¡¯s head to the side and shoved the annoying creature off, slamming it back against the wall again. ¡°No look!¡± Learner said, covering its head with its hands as its units drew the perforated face-sack back together. I was so focused on making a good first impression that I failed to make a good first impression! As soon as I learn the word that represents that phenomenon, I am going to curse it! ***Kala*** ¡°Is it bleeding¡­little you¡¯s?¡± Grant asked as they watched the monster hide its face from them. Unfortunately the other creature¡¯s talons had gone all the way through its head, and bits of it were welling out the back as well. The tiny little Kalas industriously held the tears in the creature¡¯s skull closed while others sealed it somehow. The gaping tear rapidly vanished under their care, and the last remaining one simply flattened itself over the part that was missing a bit of skin and¡­melded into the skin, growing hair to match the rest of the scalp. In a matter of seconds, there was no sign of any damage whatsoever. But they all knew what lay just under the skin, now. ¡°Am I the only one that¡¯s a little weirded out, here?¡± the monster disguised as an old woman asked, coming back to her feet as the wound in her stomach sealed itself closed. Kala tapped Grant. They needed to get back into the action. ***Learner*** Learner¡¯s notes: Day 15. On anger: Anger is a new sensation to me. It seems to come part and parcel with this form. Anger is the natural result of frustration, which is the sensation when many solar rotations of careful planning are ruined by a stupid mutant creature. Anger is¡­AAAAGAGAAHHHHHAGHH!!! Learner jumped off the ground and hit the mutant across the midsection, knocking it to the ground before beating on it with Learner¡¯s inefficient human fists. It was absolutely the wrong move to achieve maximum disruption to the creature¡¯s form, but it felt so right. ¡°You stupid bitch make bad thinkings!¡± Learner shouted as it landed blow after blow on the bitch¡¯s face. Learner wasn¡¯t entirely unscathed, as poke after poke jammed its way through Learner¡¯s disguise. The saggy bitch was ignoring the blows to the face and instead trying to eviscerate Learner with her blades. There was some damage to the multitude of internal organs Learner had replicated from other creatures in the Filter, but nothing even remotely capable of threatening Learner¡¯s life. Honestly, it was about as ineffective as Learner¡¯s punches. The units in my hand are getting damaged beneath the skin, Learner thought after a good fifteen seconds beating on the saggy face, gradually coming back from the strange exultant detachment of anger. Adjust strategy. Learner clapped a hand over the creature¡¯s mouth and let the units split through the skin of its palm, flooding the enemy¡¯s airway with units. Consume. The creature¡¯s eyes went wide, and it bucked violently, throwing Learner off and into the hole in the center of the room. Learner wanted to explore this strange dimension more, and going back to the little prison underground was not conducive to that. With a grunt, Learner tried to activate the internal spinner flying organs, and found that they¡¯d been too damaged to work. Stupid specialized organs. Learner made a desperate stretch, elongating its arm by a good two extra arms, catching the edge of the hole and slamming into the stone shaft, damaging thousands of hapless units. The specialized skin of its arm was stretched nearly to bursting, but it was the only thing that gave Learner¡¯s units the tensile strength to resist detaching from the ledge and falling the rest of the way into the hole. Thank you, specialized organs. Learner pulled hard, flipping up and over, landing on the opposite side of the large hole in the floor while reeling in the over-stretched skin and the units contained within. There was every possibility that the creature was going to make another attack, so Learner had to be extra cautious. Except¡­the creature seemed to be busy. It bent over and convulsed, jettisoning something out of its body that looked very similar to an esophagus. The esophagus was broken down by Learner¡¯s units in a matter of seconds, the tiny dark skinned hooters eating their way out of the package and marching back toward Learner. As it vomited out a bit more goop, the creature¡¯s face split in two, revealing a much longer mouth filled with teeth, as though a saggy hooter¡¯s face had been plastered on the nose of some great beast. Well, now I¡¯m pretty sure that that¡¯s not actually a saggy-stage lumpy hooter. There¡¯s nothing in their morphology that suggests they grow into flesh-eating monsters. The creature unpacked, it¡¯s arms and legs unfolding and lengthening, the massive hunch uncrooking to reveal a torso nearly as long as a man¡¯s entire body, topped with a strange, prehensile, jointed mouth that was able to simulate a neck. Is that strange? Learner glanced over at the hooters. Their eyes were widened, skin pale, and were flinching backwards, good indicators of surprise and alarm. I¡¯m really getting the hang of this body language thing. Despite their apparent fear, the hooters capitalized on the moment the creature spent hurking up it¡¯s own throat to make their move. The prey who looks back ¨C also known as Kala ¨C made a flourish with her fingers, conjuring some strange purple crystal and jamming it into the far end of the glass tube, then a point of light dotted her finger before she inhaled deeply and the crystal somehow turned glowing red. Most interesting. Even more interesting was when the lumpy hooter exhaled the white air which shot through the air in a thin stream, straight into the creature¡¯s nostrils. The creature recoiled, coughing violently. ¡°What the hell was that?¡± the flat hooter demanded. ¡°Doran¡¯s Havok!¡± Kala shouted. ¡°You inhaled that!?¡± ¡°It should be fine,¡± Kala shouted, flicking the sticky charred crystal out of her tube. ¡°Long as I take a sedative!¡± she conjured a moss and inhaled its smoke. ¡°Kill it while it can¡¯t think!¡± She shouted at the flat hooter, then pointed at Learner and motioned to join them. ¡°You too!¡± ¡°You fucking idiot, you¡¯re gonna be speedballing like crazy!¡± I wonder what all this means. ¡°Aaaaaiiiigggh!¡± The creature¡¯s skin flexed and dozens of pointy spines rose out of it¡¯s pale flesh, a bladed tail ripped through the tattered clothes, tearing the last of them away from the creature¡¯s form. ¡°What the hell was that!?¡± it demanded. ¡°I¡­.fuck you! AAAGH!¡± The creature¡¯s words devolved into pure rage-driven guttural screaming as it lunged forward and¡­tore the rapidly growing brain polyp to shreds, along with the corpse underneath it. I did not expect that, Learner thought, continuing to retract the extended arm. The motion seemed to attract the creature¡¯s attention, and it pounced across the pit in the floor, huge cutting claws extended. Learner wasn¡¯t in terrible danger, but it didn¡¯t make sense to let the creature harm Learner¡¯s borrowed organs any more than necessary. Click, click, click, chunk! Ow. Learner¡¯s rachetting stopped partway as the damaged bone slipped, only allowing partial shrinking. It was barely enough to avoid the wild swipes of the creature, nearly shearing off part of Learner¡¯s disguise. Whereas before they had been calculated to cause as much disruption to Learner¡¯s organs as possible, now it seemed like the creature was just angry at everything. Learner kicked off the creature¡¯s leg and slid out from under the monster. For a full three seconds, the monster continued to slash at the floor while Learner released the shrink and ran away at full speed. Learner looked back and saw the creature biting off its own talon and slamming its head into the ground, as if it were trying to damage its own units. How strange. In that time, the flat hooter had reestablished control over two of his swords, the blades glittering beside his shoulders. I like flat hooter shoulders. Learner shook the thought off. Irrelevant to the situation. The space-warping organs and the shrinking organs were damaged, but the ones buried in Learner¡¯s fingers were working fine. Learner buried a packet of catalyst in crystal and shot it at the far wall, just on the other side of the creature. When it hit, the packet cracked and sent another blast of crystals spearing outward from the far wall, damaging the creature and sending it spinning through the air toward the flat hooter. The flat hooter motioned with his hand, and the two swords flew out, catching the beast in midflight, and dragging it down into the pit. Stone screamed as the claws tore rents through the shaft on the way down, until the sound suddenly vanished. ¡°Whew.¡± The flat hooter exhaled, looking down the pit. ¡°That¡¯ll buy us some time, at the very least. Thanks for the help.¡± He gave a thumbs up, and this time, Learner returned it. ¡°You¡­stupid bastards¡­¡± Kala¡¯s voice attracted learners attention to where the observant hooter was leaning against the wall, weakly sawing at her wrist with her shiny golden hair ornament. ¡°You just sent it¡­.Agh¡­Into the fucking filter. I¡¯ll kill you after I kill myself,¡± She said, a bit of spit hanging from her lips. Kala¡¯s head hung limp, but she stared at them with an expression that Learner interpreted as Extreme Rage. ¡°What¡¯s the filter?¡± the flat hooter asked, leaning closer. ¡°Come closer so I bite your throat out.¡± Kala replied, drooling a bit. ¡°Well, she¡¯s not going to be any good to anyone for a couple minutes, let¡¯s take her to Kurawe and debrief.¡± The flat hooter looked down the hole. ¡°Cuz I¡¯m not stupid enough to go after that thing.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong with this bitch?¡± Learner asked. ¡°This bitch is hopped up on Doran¡¯s Havok, which deadens pain, causes a psychotic break, extreme rage and a strong inclination to self-harm. Very messy way to kill someone.¡± ¡°Grab her other arm,¡± he said, hoisting Kala to a standing postion. ¡°And watch her teeth.¡± ***Magenta*** Magenta was weightless, but it didn¡¯t register so much as the need to kill anything and everything, excise everything that didn¡¯t belong. She was a single point in space, and all this meaty stuff attached to her didn¡¯t belong. It was abhorrent. Tear off the hand, tear off the arm, bite off the legs, work the teeth through the flesh. Magenta¡¯s own warm blood was filling her mouth when she realized that her mouth wasn¡¯t a part of her either. It was part of this fleshy prison she was trapped inside of, and if she could just crack her skull open, she¡¯d be released from inside herself like a newly born chicken from an egg. Yes, tear off the mouth, drag it against the stone, peel it away like so much ¨C The ground interrupted Magenta when she slammed into it at terminal velocity, causing a white burst of lights to cover her vision. When she began to be able to have conscious thoughts again, she realized that the only thing she could move was her tongue. The rest of her damned prison was so badly broken she couldn¡¯t lift a single digit. Magenta whined in distress as she realized she was going to continue to be trapped in her own body, unable to make things right because the damned thing couldn¡¯t even move. This is the worst. At least I can get this¡­horrible tongue off of me. Magenta was delighted when she was able to saw through her tongue by running it across with her upper teeth, letting the disgusting, long red organ finally fall away from her. The experience was liberating, and she wept in relief. Finally dizziness overtook Magenta, and she welcomed being freed from the constraints of her flesh. ***several hours later*** That was the most horrifying trip I¡¯ve ever been on. Magenta thought, wiggling her regrowing tongue and scanning the surrounding cavern with her eyes. To be fair, it¡¯s the only trip I¡¯ve ever been on. Magenta admitted internally. From what she¡¯d seen, she¡¯d avoid drugs if possible in the future. Her lower jaw was over there, her left hand over there. Her right hand was missing some fingers, and she was pretty sure part of her skull was exposed. But¡­I¡¯m still alive. And I need food. She needed food, because she could feel the Warp inside her building toward another mutation. Just as she had that thought, a massive form lumbered above her in the darkness, sniffing at the mass of rotten corpses she lay on top of. Ah, just what I needed. Macronomicon Chapter 143: Instant Irony Learner¡¯s Notes: End of day 15. Irony is the word I was looking for. Curse irony. After being on my own for a few minutes I realized that I¡¯ve never actually seen a hooter in public without the strange cloth they wear to supplement their weak skin. I realized this after quite a bit of staring while we carried the insensate Kala back to the palace. Responses were¡­varied. I was also gently informed that ¡®bitch¡¯ was also a derogatory word. I had simply heard Ryan say it so often that It¡¯d gotten routine. Still so many things I don¡¯t know! Each one of them a dangerous trap I could fall into. Call the wrong person a bitch and they¡¯ll begin actively working against you. Strange that single words can turn people subtly against you, ultimately hampering your effectiveness. ¡®society¡¯ is strange. They seem to serve no other purpose than catharsis, which Ryan apparently needed a lot of. I will avoid them wherever possible. That begs the question: Are there words that can lead people to work in your favor? And if so, what are they? Finding the social levers of these hooters is tantamount to survival. Requires more study. ***Calvin*** The palace has sent word that they¡¯ve dealt with the assassin, Kurawe¡¯s mental voice echoed in the back of Calvin¡¯s mind. I¡¯ll receive a more specific report once I return. ¡°Do you need a replacement?¡± Calvin asked aloud. Calvin was still stuck in Mujenan, lending his powers to reconstructing the city. It¡¯s even better than it was before, if I say so myself. Calvin thought, arms akimbo as he studied the city slowly taking shape below him. ¡°You don¡¯t know a thing about construction, so don¡¯t pretend your summoned Knick knacks get their talent from you.¡± Andra said. Can this woman read my mind? Calvin thought glancing over at the general. More like your face. I¡¯ll definitely need a replacement soon. It¡¯s been six days already, and I need to be around when the army comes back with tales of monsters. Calvin glanced up at the wedge shaped mass of monsters spreading out toward the east. They were so thick they dyed the fields outside the city a dull red, the same color as their armor. All of Calvin¡¯s Nadias in Uleis were gone, and only Kurawe remained, and he was going to poof in a matter of hours. Once that happened, Calvin wouldn¡¯t have any knowledge of what was happening there, and no way to restore Bent. Other than naturally, I suppose. Damn. Technically Calvin¡¯s natural regeneration rate of one Bent every two hours was phenomenal, but it didn¡¯t defy what was considered possible. There simply weren¡¯t enough people here to use them as Bent batteries. Most of them were soldiers, and those soldiers hoarded their Bent jealously, as it was often the only lifeline they had in the middle of battle. Calvin had a brief thought of Andra gutting him for trying to leech off her. Guess I gotta pay a visit to Uleis. Windburn is gonna suck. Calvin could make it there and back in something like sixteen hours on a giant wasp with Atom Ant, but the sheer speed was going to cause a lot of discomfort. And sixteen hours wasn¡¯t including breaks to take a dump, stretch his legs, or sleep. It was likely gonna be longer. Should be able to spot the Uleisan army on the way past. Well, no time like the present. Calvin began stretching in advance. He was probably gonna cramp up over the next day. Might as well overnight in Uleis and break up the time spend holding onto a hairy wasp. ¡°I gotta make a business trip to Uleis,¡± Calvin said without preamble. ¡°Oh?¡± Andra asked. ¡°Think you can hold on for a day. I should be back tomorrow at about this time.¡± ¡°Uleis and back in a day?¡± She asked, raising a brow. Calvin thought about it a moment. He might have to do stuff when he got there. ¡°Make it two days.¡± ¡°As long as you¡¯re back here before the Uleisan army arrives.¡± She said. ¡°I want all hands available when something goes wrong.¡± ¡°You mean if something goes wrong.¡± ¡°When.¡± Andra reiterated. Calvin spent the remainder of the afternoon packing snacks and getting ready to leave. Soon enough, he had launched out above the city, chasing the setting sun. Calvin had pictured himself screaming through the air on his wasp, face stoic against the biting wind, but the truth of it was that he spent most of his time with his face pressed down into the blanket underneath him. How much Warp do I have? Calvin asked, bored out of his mind as the wind howled past. 12/34 Warp Remaining The city of Mujenan was still lousy with Warp, as vicious monster were still being spawned in the middle of the city, and still attacked anything else on sight, but at least they were under control, being pushed out into the wilderness through brute force and a lot of barricades. The question was, what to spend it on? If he raised Chained Spirit to level twenty-five, he would only have to re-summon every ten days, and he could potentially get a handy upgrade for the Skill. But¡­Calvin still wanted to experiment with Trait Doctoring, but he didn¡¯t have the Warp to¡­ Oh, right. Shadowboxing. I lose it for a week and I forget it¡¯s there. Calvin tied his hands around the wasp and buried his head in the blanket, as far away from the wind and sand as he could get, then closed his eyes. Shadowboxing. Calvin opened his eyes, standing in the center of Deinos village again. It seemed like even in his imagination it was windy, as the trees thrashed back and forth from the invisible battering. ¡°Let¡¯s see. I was interested in the Trait Doctoring spell.¡± Calvin grabbed a jug of water and some clay and began experimenting. The first thing he noticed: Trait doctoring had 100% efficiency as well as a sliding scale. If he wished he could accurately copy the exact same viscosity from one substance to the next, or switch to a sliding scale, making the object a hybrid of the two. All this without having to get this skill up to level twenty. Strength covered all the bases, tensile strength, compression strength and load strength, shifting over all the properties at once. If he wanted to, he could even separate the individual forms of strength and create something that could carry hundreds of pounds of weight, and yet crumble when pressed the opposite direction. Identity was a much stranger thing all together. Calvin didn¡¯t really have much of an idea how it worked, but when he targeted a beetle and then himself, he spent the next sixteen minutes trying to crawl under the gap between his floorboards and the cold earth. All while Karen laughed uproariously and gathered her friends. When he targeted the beetle with his own identity, the beetle had written him a note in sand that read: Identity seems to impart mental faculty as well. P.S. I crave oats. Give me some oats. - Beetle Calvin Interesting, Calvin thought as he fed the imaginary him-beetle some oats from the grains in his kitchen. Identity was a very nebulous concept but it seemed like any odd inconsistancies were taken care of by the System itself. His beetle identity obviously responded to the desires of a beetle body, yet had a mind that couldn¡¯t possibly be supported by one. Did the spell perhaps create a virtual brain that followed the body along wherever it went? Like a possessing ghost? And if the body affected the desires of the mind, would he be attracted to men in a woman¡¯s body? Signs pointed to maybe. If Calvin put his identity into a rock, would the rock be Calvin, able to think, but completely unable to see or feel? How would Calvin even test to see if that were the case? Calvin put his identity in a rock, and sure enough, there was no outward sign that his mind inhabited the lump of silicate. Perhaps if I gave the rock Bent, rock-me could make some kind of sign. Can I only shift over parts of someone¡¯s identity? Just like the Strength part of the ability? No better time to figure that out. ¡°Everybody!¡± Calvin shouted, gathering all the mental projections of the village. ¡°I need some volunteers!¡± There was some mild grumbling as they gathered close, curious, but with a healthy sense of cautiousness. Calvin was known for getting people into trouble. ¡°I¡¯ll pay you with bacon.¡± Calvin said, holding some up. ¡°ooh, meat-candy!¡± Baroke said, stepping forward, along with a few other young men from the village. ¡°Alright, this shouldn¡¯t hurt,¡± Calvin said, facing all of them. ¡°Let me know if you feel anything weird.¡± Let¡¯s see, proof of concept. I need a big demonstration that this works, so lets try for a tangible result. Trait Doctoring Trait Doctoring Trait Doctoring Trait Doctoring Trait Doctoring Trait Doctoring Calvin concentrated hard on the trait doctoring spell only transferring over irritability, temper, and triggers, from each of the six volunteers, to Baroke. ¡­nothing happened. The expected explosion of anger and disconcertion was nowhere to be seen. All in all, Baroke was apparently unaffected by multiple traits spliced into him simultaneously. Then Calvin backed up and tried splicing multipl identities into Baroke, and realized what the problem was: He could only shift one identity over to another person at a time. as soon as he targeted Baroke with a new identity, the previous one was erased. That makes sense. The reason he didn¡¯t get angry and bash someone else is that any one of them isn¡¯t particularly angry or irritable. As an experiment, Calvin tried to use trait doctoring to shift the Strength of multiple objects into a single one, and ran into the same problem. He couldn¡¯t create an object that was stronger than the base materials he had to work with by layering effects. Yeah, the System probably doesn¡¯t want you to blow up the planet by making something go nuclear on accident. Still, let¡¯s try something specific. Kort had a huge mother complex. Trait Doctoring Calvin moved it over to Baroke. ¡°Hey Baroke.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I talked to your mom the other day.¡± Baroke stepped closer, brows furrowed. ¡°About what?¡± he asked, looming over Calvin. Yet his gaze and his body language were defensive. ¡°Because you better not have done anything with her.¡± Eureka! Tangible evidence we can move individual identity traits. ¡°Baroke, your mom¡¯s dead.¡± Kort said, raising a brow. ¡°No, she¡¯s¡­¡± Baroke frowned, pointing at Kort. ¡°Your mom.¡± ¡°What about my mom?¡± Kort asked, crossing his arms in the exact same way Baroke had a moment ago. ¡°That¡¯s pretty fucked up, Calvin.¡± Baroke said, glancing back at him. ¡°So you remember Kort¡¯s mom as your own?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°No, she¡¯s my mom, she¡¯s just¡­Kort¡¯s mom too? Which would make Kort my brother, but he¡¯s not, and we don¡¯t live together¡­¡± Baroke frowned, the veins on the side of his head pulsing as he worked through the effect of the spell. Memories are being surgically altered to fit the criteria and make that part of his identity match Kort¡¯s. Very interesting. Calvin dismissed the spell. ¡°How do you feel about Kort¡¯s mom about now?¡± ¡°Hotdog down a hallway! Up top!¡± Baroke shouted, going for a high five before Kort interrupted him with a punch to the groin. The two young men, one dead, one living, both a manifestation of Calvin¡¯s Ability, began wrestling in the dirt and shouting obscenities at each other while Calvin thought about the implications. I wonder if I can take separate traits that don¡¯t overlap and mix them. As it turned out, Calvin could not. He couldn¡¯t add different kinds of strength from two different sources, nor could he modify multiple aspects of people¡¯s personality by drawing from multiple subjects. One per customer. That was the rule. Possible uses for Identity shifting: Well, maybe not that last one. Trait Doctoring has reached level 2! Trait Doctoring has reached level 3! Trait Doctoring has reached level 4! Trait Doctoring has reached level 5! +1 Intuition Please Choose an Ability or Mutation. Energetic traits: User may choose an energetic trait to add to Trait Doctoring. Energetic traits include, temperature, combustability, explosiveness, acidity, radioactivity. Selectable multiple times. Expanded Physical traits: User may choose a trait to add to Trait Doctoring. Further alter the physical traits of the target object. Expanded traits include conductivity, friction, pressure, Frequency, phase shift temperature, opacity, reflectivity. Selectable multiple times. Subtle Identity Doctoring: User can more effectively incorporate skills and memories from the donor into the target¡¯s identity without causing mental disconnect, increasing accuracy and decreasing possible side-effects and noticability. Extra sources: User may add traits from 1 extra source. Selectable multiple times. Extra Duration: Duration of Trait Doctoring improved by (Int)% Mutations: It¡¯s opposite day! User may at will, increase or decrease a trait in question proportionate to the difference between the target and the trait donor, inverted. Example: User may use a mirror to make another surface pitch black, or use a red hot poker to freeze a lake. Trait Condensation: 2 Bent: Rather than move a trait, user may condense it into a liquid contained in a self-generated glass. Liquid gives the trait to the first object it touches. 1 drop per hundred pounds. Liquid stores 1 hour per level of Trait Doctoring, effect follows Trait Doctoring¡¯s duration. Whoah. Calvin blinked as he looked over the abilities. That¡¯s some hard choices right there. He might have to sit down with a paper and pencil to figure out exactly what he wanted to take and when. It was a bummer that he could only add a single trait every five levels, but he could easily get another three before it started slowing down drastically. Opposite day is pretty appealing, Calvin thought, rubbing his chin. It basically doubled the versatility of the spell¡­but¡­ the spell could only do a handful of physical traits, so it wasn¡¯t super useful just yet. extra sources allowed more versatility in the source material, and of course all the physical and energetic traits looked like they could be incredibly useful in specific situations¡­ Except for explosiveness. If Calvin wanted a thousand pounds of boom, he could just summon it with Dupdomancy¡­except Trait doctoring had a cubic mass limit that would outstrip dupdomancy easily, all he would have to do is make a huge brick wall match the explosiveness of a tiny bit of boom juice, then throw a rock at it or something. From a long, long way away. Okay, so the explosiveness one has uses too. but I¡¯m probably never going to need to blow up something that big. Never say never. Calvin shook his head. I¡¯ll deal with this later. Calvin mentally told the wasp to come to a halt and unburied his head. Beneath him, the desert stretched out in every direction, the Gadvera ¨C uleisan road long since left behind in favor of sand dunes. Far in the distance, he could make out the shimmering light of Uleis against the soft purple of twilight. The rest of the trip was uneventful, and Calvin landed in the palace, immediately summoning Nadia and Kurawe upon landing. Chained Spirit Chained Spirit Chained Spirit Chained Spirit Chained Spirit Chained Spirit 12/35 Bent remaining Calvin sent them out on their respective tasks, and immediately headed for the council room. The guards that studded the palace doorways didn¡¯t bother trying to stop him or ask him where he was going. The huge glass doors swung silently out of the way as he entered the room. Seated at the table was Kala, Grant, Farren, Ussein, the Cobalt representative, Kala, and a handful of minor Uleisan nobility that had stepped up into administrative roles over the last week. Calvin blinked. Wait. He started at the left. Kala, Grant, Farren, Ussein, the Cobalt, and Kala. There were actually two Kala¡¯s at the table, and they were both looking at him. One watched him with adoration and an undercurrent of lust bordering on obsession, while the other watched him with hunger and an undercurrent of curiousity bordering on obsession. Well, at least I can tell them apart. The real Kala looked like she¡¯d gone a couple rounds in the arena. She had bruises on her face and bags under her eyes, a split lip and haunted eyes. ¡°What did I miss?¡± Calvin asked, rubbing his hands together. ¡°Whose ass do I need to kick for attacking Nadia?¡± ¡°We managed to fight it to a standstill and drop it down into the pit,¡± Grant said. ¡°Kala wasn¡¯t in shape to keep fighting, so we came back here. She¡¯s pretty lucid now, though.¡± ¡°What was it?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Some kind of monster,¡± Kala said. ¡°It had a mind, but it was controlled by a powerful will. It was hunting Nadia for some reason.¡± It would be too unlikely to assume it didn¡¯t have anything to do with you.¡± She said, eyeing Calvin. ¡°Hey, plenty people want to kill Nadia just for the sake of it.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°True, but she¡¯s not so well known in Uleis.¡± ¡°So is the creature going to be a problem?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I have a team watching the exit,¡± Kurawe said, taking his seat amongst the councilors. ¡°But I doubt anything will be able to escape. The book of prophecy says that only one with a Harbinger soul can operate the door to the filter. It¡¯s as good as gone.¡± The palace shuddered, then the floor began bucking, forcing everyone to hold onto the massive table as a cloud of dust spewed upward halfway across the city. Sand and rock was propelled skyward, raining down on screaming citizens. ¡°What about breaking the door?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°You need a Harbinger soul for that?¡± ¡°Sure, go ahead and make me look like an idiot.¡± Kurawe said with a sigh, resting his flabby chin on his huge palm, his ire directed at the monster rampaging through the streets. The creature¡¯s spiny back was occasionally visible above the shortest buildings as it made its way toward the palace. Macronomicon Chapter 144: The Blender Spell ¡°I¡¯m going to get some wasps to fly it out of the city,¡± Calvin said, raising his arms. Before he could cast Calvinian Summoning, Grant¡¯s hand grasped his shoulder. ¡°The damn thing has an aura that seems designed to ruin your day, kid.¡± ¡°Explain,¡± Calvin said, eyeing the monster barreling down the streets as terrified civilians dove out of the way. As it came closer, Calvin¡¯s eyes were able to make it out. It looked emaciated, with paled flesh sucked in tight against a lean ribcage with token breasts and a wildly extended torso. The creature had ungainly joints that seemed like they would have no chance of ever working, yet moved the creature along the ground with something deceptive agility. It was walking on all fours, and its gaze never left the palace as people scattered in front of it. ¡°It made Nadia pop like a soap bubble just by touching her, and it severed my connection to my swords, albeit with a bit more effort.¡± ¡°Well of course it took more effort, the aura color was magenta. Whatever color the connection to your blades was wasn¡¯t in direct opposition.¡± Kala said. Heads turned to look at the dark-skinned princess. ¡°Did no one else in the room notice that the green smoke of Chained spirit is the direct opposite of magenta on the color wheel?¡± Kala asked, brows furrowed. ¡°Everyone else in the room has a penis.¡± Grant replied. ¡°Yeah, why is that?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Umm¡­¡± ¡°Anyway,¡± Calvin said, clapping his hands. ¡°Monster running amuck? We will finish this conversation the moment it¡¯s taken care of.¡± He turned to Grant. ¡°What¡¯s my best option?¡± ¡°Good old fashioned muscle,¡± Grant said. ¡°It¡¯s not going to take any damage from your fancy tricks, so we¡¯ll have to find a way to lure it to a good location and ambush it.¡± ¡°Lure, like with bait?¡± Calvin asked, thinking. ¡°I¡¯m a master baiter.¡± ¡°Now who¡¯s off topic?¡± ¡°It attacks Nadia on sight, has the perfect counter to half my arsenal, and went straight for the Filter. Chances are damn good it¡¯s after me,¡± Calvin said. ¡°So I¡¯ll be the bait.¡± ¡°You think that¡¯ll work?¡± Grant asked. Master Baiter Calvin stepped outside onto the veranda and waved his arms wildly, shouting at the top of his lungs: ¡°Hey, I¡¯m Calvin Gadsint, look at me!¡± The monster below them stiffened, zeroing in on him. A haunting shriek filled the air, and the creature¡¯s speed redoubled, climbing over buildings to get to him. ¡°Right. I¡¯ll assemble the palace guard to the courtyard below. See if you can draw it in there.¡± ¡°On it,¡± Calvin said, jumping over the railing. Shifting. Mayfly/Celestial Body 11/35 Calvin¡¯s perception of time seemed to slow as his weight became a bit above thirty pounds, his weight distributed into the palace grounds. The four story drop didn¡¯t even bother him as he landed on the balls of his feet and launched himself up and over the fence, bounding through the air like a soccer ball. Alright, how do we deal with this? Calvin¡¯s first instinct was to get on a wasp and get out of the creature¡¯s range while taunting it. If it couldn¡¯t fly, it couldn¡¯t actually stop Calvin from going wherever he wanted. But that approach had a handful of problems. First problem: By all accounts the creature was sapient. Flying up and out of the thing¡¯s reach would simply encourage it to stop and think before it either burrowed underground to grow stronger, or took a hostage that Calvin cared about. Or found a way to reach him. Second problem: It made Calvin look cowardly and weak. Nevermind if it was the most efficient way of baiting the thing without getting injured, now that Calvin was in the politics game, he had to worry about Optics. He had to look brave, which usually meant doing something stupid. No time like the present. Calvin thought as he uncapped the Warp Tank. Calvin bounded up on top of the nearby manor and waved at the monster. It leapt over the building between them and landed in front of Calvin, snarling at him, skin retraction from an elongated muzzle with a human face attached to the front. It was unsettling. ¡°Hi there,¡± Calvin said, meeting its eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose I could interest you in not attacking anyone and just going away?¡± Mesmerizing eyes. Calvin felt a faint headache as his mutated eyes took effect. Calvin didn¡¯t get much opportunity to practice these, but this seemed like a good opportunity to get some information. Assuming the creature could speak. The creature let out a growl that raised the hairs on Calvin¡¯s neck, then it started to change. The arms folded, removing an entire joint, while the back folded downward, spines retreating back inside the corpulent flesh. In a moment, he was looking at something that could almost be mistaken for an old woman. At least, if she had clothes on. The folded spine and the lips that ran the length of her neck said otherwise. ¡°Calvin Gadsint,¡± She said with a smile. ¡°I look forward to tearing Origin out of you.¡± ¡°Origin?¡± Calvin asked, before his memory put the details together. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re with One. How is he doing by the way?¡± The headache grew a little more painful. ¡°He¡¯s a fool,¡± the creature said. ¡°He could grow far further, far faster, accomplishing his goals, if he wasn¡¯t dead set on regaining his soul. What good would ceding control to Origin even accomplish?¡± ¡°I thought you were looking forward to tearing my soul out?¡± Calvin asked with a raised brow. ¡°Of course, it¡¯ll be like winning a lottery, an orgasm, followed by decadent chocolate cake. Just because it¡¯s pointless doesn¡¯t mean I won¡¯t enjoy it. You humans enjoy pointless humping all the time, don¡¯t you?¡± Huh. I don¡¯t think you¡¯re gonna be able to talk her out of this. Elliot chimed in. I hardwired One to prioritize getting me back over anything else in the event that he could. Up until recently, he was unaware we existed, but now¡­it¡¯s on. Can¡¯t you just tell him to stop? Don¡¯t wanna. Hey Stretchy, you look like a slinky fucked a poodle and you suck at killing Calvin! The creature¡¯s forearm twitched reflexively. Why are you making it difficult for me? Calvin asked as his eyes began to sting. Holding the creature to passivity had gotten a lot harder. Tough love. Gotta make sure you grow up big and strong. That and I lose nothing in the event of your death. ¡°Son of a bitch,¡± Calvin exhaled. Every once in a while Calvin forgot that Elliot didn¡¯t actually care about him in the slightest. Calvin lunged backward, breaking eye contact with the creature. An arm unfolded and a serrated claw lashed out of the creature¡¯s palm, nearly severing Calvin¡¯s head. Calvin reflexively batted the arm upward, ducking under the strike and continuing to shuffle backwards, putting at much distance between himself and the monster as possible. Extensive training has increased your Attributes! +1 Kinesthetics 11/34 Warp remaining. It had a much better reach than Calvin, unfolding into its combat form in a split second and using its long arms to harry him off the side of the building. When Calvin felt his right foot step back onto open air, he allowed himself to fall backward, narrowly dodging another strike. He was weightless for a brief moment before he pushed off the roof with his toe, hurtling toward the opposite building. How did you know the Mesmerizing Eye would work? Elliot asked as Calvin gripped a windowsill with white knuckles and dragged himself through the air into the main street, barely outpacing the creature following him. I figured a mutation might work, seeing as it doesn¡¯t spend Bent. Ah. Calvin hit a street lamp and jumped off of it with every fiber of strength he could muster, barely able to keep his feet as he landed on the glass street. Extensive training has increased your Attributes! +1 Strength 10/34 Warp Remaining There were a few stragglers on the road, but they ducked into open doors and alleyways when they saw what was chasing him. It¡¯s catching up. Thing¡¯s a good sprinter over short distances. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and saw Elliot was right. He finally saw the magenta aura Kala had told him about, and it had compressed around the creature¡¯s limbs. The way the thick magenta smoke flexed and swelled reminded Calvin of muscle. As a matter of fact, I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s exactly what it¡¯s using it for. Calvin thought as it rapidly gained on him, even with his perception of time dialed all the way up. I need more speed. Me relative to the ground, my fist relative to me. That should do it. Calvin did a quick jab, like he was trying to pop someone in the nose before they could react, shifting the mass of the palace floor into his hand before it began to slow down. ¡°Whoah!¡± Calvin shot forward, his arm trying to wrench itself out of its socket as his three thousand pound fist kept travelling forward without any regard for his bones, dragging him along behind like a ragdoll. Air brushed the back of his head as the creature tried and failed to cut him. Once Calvin¡¯s body caught up, he managed to force himself into a semi-stable, semi-upright situation, all the muscles in his arms, chest and neck crying out in pain. Calvin¡¯s feet were hovering in the air, bracing for the moment they made contact with the ground again, and it was taking every fiber of concentration not to get flung around by the forces he was riding. +1 Strength +1 endurance +1 Kinesthetics 7/34 Warp remaining. Holy crap! Do it again, we can go faster than this! Elliot wasn¡¯t wrong. Calvin could punch forward with his left hand and switch the mass to it. The acceleration would be relative to the speed he was already going, guaranteeing an increase in speed. It was in theory unlimited speed as long as he kept punching. In practice, All Calvin would have to do is mess up the timing on a single mass switch and his body would literally tear itself apart. Or hit something. Or simply go so fast that wind pressure battered him to pieces. No, this was fast enough. We¡¯re going plenty fast. Calvin thought as he glanced behind him at the creature shrinking behind him. I¡¯m raising my Attributes more before I go any faster than this. And you¡¯re in time out. Boo. There was a whizz of displaced air as a needle shot through Calvin¡¯s shirt, missing his stomach by a fraction of an inch. Here¡¯s the gate! The gate to the palace courtyard stood open and apparently empty, but Calvin hoped that was just a fa?ade. I hope I didn¡¯t get here too quick, He thought, shifting the weight out of his fist. Once his hand stopped dragging him around, he juked left, diving through the gates and tumbling into the courtyard. It would really suck if Grant was still rallying the troops. Calvin sprinted for the fountain in the center of the richly appointed area, diving behind it a second before another round of needles embedded themselves in the ornate glass. Calvin peeked up to check out the situation. The creature took two steps into the courtyard¡­ peering around the low hedges. ¡°Uninpressive trap. I can see you. Hear you breathing.¡± It said. ¡°All of you.¡± The creature¡¯s skin seemed to shiver, and dozens more quills shot out into the low hedges. On a related note, how expensive do you think it is to keep a lawn in the desert? Gotta be expensive, right? The hedges burst into motion as several dozen palace guards launched out of their hiding places, meeting the creature with a clatter of sword against claw. Calvin glanced to the side and saw one of the men still behind the hedge, foaming from the mouth and convulsing, a quill in his arm. Oh boy, that¡¯s not good. He glanced over his shoulder and studied the fight. Things were going¡­not great. Men were being thrown around like rag dolls, only to stand up again, brandish their swords and charge back into the fray, bleeding from multiple injuries. They didn¡¯t seem to be wering it down very quickly, but there were a lot more palace guards than monsters in play, and the moment it seemed like it was going to end someone, another person stepped in to save them. Their teamwork was good, but it still amounted to little more than throwing their bodies at the problem until it went away. This is what separates Wizards from their underlings, Calvin thought. The monster was distracted from Calvin for the time being, and he mentally dismissed the effects of Master Baiter to make sure it stayed distracted as long as possible. He needed to think. It would make things so much easier if I could just make a few wasps with the strength of titans to go tear the damn thing to shreds. If only magic worked on the damn ting! Wait. Magic worked against it just fine. It hadn¡¯t canceled Calvin¡¯s Shifting spell because it had never come into physical contact with it, and the spell had certainly prevented it from killing him. I just need a way to kill it without touching it with the spell. Calvin thought. He glanced up at the brawl going on in the courtyard. The creature was lithely stepping around attacks, returning with her own. There were a few wounds in its torso and limbs, but they didn¡¯t seem to bleed very much, healing in front of his eyes. That doesn¡¯t bode well for a battle of attrition. Calvin glanced up at the massive gates that dwarfed even the ten foot tall creature. Thick glass, big around as an old oak tree. Idea. ¡°Calvin!¡± a harsh whisper yanked his attention over to where Kala was sliding in beside him, dressed in her leather armor. ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°Fine, but it¡¯s not looking good for the reinforcements,¡± Calvin said, glancing over at the ongoing battle. Grant was bludgeoned halfway across the courtyard, cracking the glass floor when he landed. ¡°What do you need?¡± Kala asked, meeting his gaze. Several hackneyed options flitted through Calvin¡¯s mind in an instant. Go get safe. Don¡¯t get kidnapped. Etc, etc. Kala was tougher than that. More useful than that. ¡°Help them. Try to push it closer to the gate.¡± Kala nodded and leapt to her feet, thin Abyssal Steel blade clattering on her side. Gods, I hope this works. Nadia, get me some Bent. From where? Nadia demanded. I¡¯m nowhere near a brothel. Improvise. ***Nadia*** Impatient bastard. Nadia thought as she sprinted through the hall, searching for a victim. Prove you can handle it. Elliot said, his voice wry. Nadia spotted movement out the corner of her eye, where a palace maid was carefully mopping the floor, trying to blend into the tapestries. Not today you don¡¯t! Nadia thought, jumping out at the woman. She gave a light squeak as Nadia skidded to a halt in front of her. ¡°How much for second base?¡± She demanded. ¡°Excuse me? I ¨C¡° To the Abyss with this, Nadia thought, grabbing the woman and dragging her into a kiss. The woman protested for a moment before relaxing into Nadia¡¯s arms. ***Calvin*** Calvin touched the Bangputty on his belt. Shaping. Shaping. Shaping. Shaping. ... Calvin was halfway setting up the trap when six more Bent came rolling in, allowing him to finish with a few to spare. There, you happy? Nadia demanded. Keep it coming. I don¡¯t know if this is going to work. Nadia grumbled and shut off the connection, presumably to ambush some chambermaids. Here goes nothing, Calvin looked over the battlefield. Kala had done as he¡¯d asked, rallying the soldiers and pushing the creature closer to the gates. He glanced up at the gates. They were laden with thousands of pounds of bangputty. It¡¯s dynamite. You¡¯re still in time out. Bah. Trait Doctoring. Calvin held the spell until he saw an opportunity. The creature flung Kala away from itself, and he took the shot. Calvin imbued a shell of air around the creature and the gate with the strength of the Abyssal steel marble in his hand, making a massive bubble containing the two of them, then went on to do the same to all the air around each of the fighters. Splitting. Calvin put his head down and triggered the Bangputty with God¡¯s fire, eyes squeezed shut. There was a rumbling detonation that shook the ground, but it wasn¡¯t nearly as strong as he¡¯d been expecting. Calvin had been expecting to be bleeding from the ears. Did it counter the spell? He peeked over the quill-studded fountain, and spotted what looked like an egg made of dust and blood, with boulder-sized chunks of the palace gates rebounding on the inside too quickly for the eye to see. Calvin dismissed the spell holding everyone in place, and noticed a few people were able to wiggle a little even before he let them out, namely Kala and Grant who were almost unaffected. Natural resistance? Could be something like Beli Ma in their aura makes it harder to affect things close to them. Gradually, the razor sharp glass boulders came to a halt. The glass must have had some flex that allowed it to bounce for so long. Interesting concept. It looks like you put a person in one of those bullet blenders. The creature was little more than a fine soup on the bottom of the egg. Once Calvin was sure there weren¡¯t going to be any pieces of glass flying out, he dropped the Trait Doctoring spell. They were met with the unpleasant smell of blood mixed with acrid smoke. Damn. Where¡¯d you get the idea for that? Your lecture on shaped charges. Ah. ¡°Grant. Grant!¡± Calvin said, grabbing the aging general¡¯s attention while the palace guards poked at the mulch. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Get our people down to the pit.¡± Calvin said. ¡°The people who control that pit control the city.¡± Grant nodded and broke off at a jog, aiming for the inner city. ¡°And Kala?¡± Calvin asked, turning to face the dusky skinned princess in time to see her curiously poke the mush of monster guts and lick her finger. ¡°Yeah?¡± Kala¡¯s voice come from behind him, where the princess was exiting the palace, wearing her usual yellow sundress. ¡°In the urgency of the moment, I forgot to ask you about your doppleganger,¡± Calvin said, pointing a thumb at who ¨C or what ¨C ever was taste-testing the souped creature. ¡°Oh right, her.¡± Notifications started catching up with Calvin as Kala started speaking. Dupdomancy has reached level 22! 484 pounds, 110 minutes Trait Doctoring has reached level 7! 343 pounds, 49 minutes, Strength, viscosity, Identity. 3/34 Warp Remaining Please Select an Ability or muta ¨C Not now, Calvin thought as he wiped the notifications away, refocusing on Kala. ¡°Wait, what did you say?¡± ¡°She¡¯s the Fractal mimic from the Filter.¡± Macronomicon Hey, sorry about the 3 chapters per week this week and last week. I''m just tired, physically and mentally. This may become the new norm until i can rally my attention and effort again. On a completely opposite note, I am closing in on 30 chapters ahead on Patreon! When that happens, I''ll launch a chapter flood to equalize the pressure. If my math works out, it should be a chapter a day for the first two weeks of June. after that, we may return to the ho-hum 3 chapters a weeks for a while, since chapter dumps take a lot of mental energy out of me. (which is weird because they''re physically easy to do.) Look forward to it! Chapter 145: Zoomed out ***Calvin*** ¡°So you¡¯re saying we shouldn¡¯t kill the monster?¡± Calvin asked. Kala sighed. ¡°Like I told Grant before, her experiences are currently shaping her personality, so be nice.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a she?¡± Calvin asked. Kala squinted and peered over at the doppleganger poking the meat slurry. ¡°¡­It¡¯s still up in the air, but she¡¯s leaning that direction, yes. She thinks women ultimately wield more influence than men.¡± Calvin scoffed. ¡°How did it come to that conclusion?¡± ¡°Probably watching children and their mothers.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Calvin said, nodding. That would do it. Trait Doctoring has reached l ¨C Your Princess is in another Castle has ¨C Calvin blinked away the two prompts. Oh right, I totally forgot about the princess kidnapping skill. There were the refugees right after the heist, followed by Mujenan¡­Which I have to get back to, and soon. Show me the choices for Princess. Please choose an ability or mutation. Stockholm Syndrome: YPiiAC correction now also applies to the emotional bonding of captive princesses with the User, as well as the resulting allegiance. Not Heavy at All: User automatically redistributes(Correction%) mass of princess to pursuers when attempting to flee with a stolen princess. ^ From Shifting. Max 98% Save the Last Dance: 4 Bent to begin a dance with a princess that cannot be interrupted. As long as both participants continue to dance, they are immune to physical attacks, physical restrictions, Bent abilities, mental manipulation, etc. True Love''s Kiss: 2 Bent, heals a princess of any curses, poisons, or afflictions, including foreign Bent, restores condition and heals similar to a week''s bed rest, potentially sealing otherwise lethal wounds. Consumes princess'' remaining Bent, but restores User''s Bent at level/10 efficiency. Mutations: Bloodline: Consume Princess blood to potentially gain access to Skills and Abilities unique to their bloodline. Wolf in Sheep¡¯s Clothing: User is able to adopt a role that make them appear to belong in a given setting, and behave in a way that draws no attention as they aim for the princess... From Playboy. Let¡¯s go with Save the Last Dance. It was situational, but Calvin liked the thought of literally waltzing out of trouble. As for the Trait Doctoring Ability, Calvin hadn¡¯t had time to think about it yet. After a few minutes discussing Kala¡¯s plans for her new pet, Grant returned, swooping down on a pair of swords. He¡¯d been flying, but he still seemed out of breath. ¡°Calvin, You¡¯re gonna want to see this.¡± he said, pointing over his shoulder. ¡°What, is the filter destroyed?¡± Thereby denying me access to its Warp in a cock-blocky sort of way? ¡°No, it¡¯s just¡­well, come look.¡± ¡°Wanna come?¡± Calvin asked, glancing at Kala. ¡°Go ahead,¡± Kala said, nodding gracefully as she scanned the scene of destruction. ¡°I¡¯ve got a mess to clean up here.¡± ***Calvin*** ¡°Aside from it being aboveground, I don¡¯t really see the problem.¡± Calvin said as they watched the crater in the ground. The explosion had ruined the building above it, and there was nothing but a rubble filled crater forty feet across with a black pit in the center. Aforementioned black pit was still radiating Warp, not completely gone like he¡¯d been afraid of. Maybe not as dense because they were on the surface, but it was still nothing to sneeze at. Then a blueish tentacle slapped the side of the wall, a single talon at the end digging into the stone and dragging the bulk of a Querda into view. The massive, blue-skinned tentacle monster let out a chuffing breath as it struggled to pull itself further into this strange new world above ground. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s a problem.¡± Calvin said, nodding. In a matter of seconds, the hundreds of Cobalts surrounding the pit lashed out with their spears, poking the thing until it lost its grip and fell back in the hole. ¡°Should we seal it up?¡± Grant asked. ¡°I am not a fan of having Warped monsters show up whenever they please. ¡°Let¡¯s view this as an opportunity.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Put up a notice that all the people from the Village of the Abyss are welcome to a job here fishing for and gutting these creatures. They¡¯ve got some very valuable alchemical parts, and I¡¯m sure Uleis would be glad to have another export besides glass.¡± Calvin was fairly sure that if they closed the opening, it wouldn¡¯t stop Warped monsters from wandering out of the rift in reality underground. They would simply pop up in places they weren¡¯t expected, having dug their way out. It was a much better plan to manage their population density, occasionally explore the cave, and profit from the alchemical ingredients ¡°Gonna have to build a warehouse over top of it to keep the Warp in and the animals out, else some children will get poisoned, and somebody¡¯s pet lizard¡¯ll eat them.¡± Grant said, chewing his lip as his hand rested on the pommel of one of his many swords.¡± Kurawe, Calvin thought, touching his mind to the didstant zealot. Yes, my lord? The thought came back in the space of a breath. Did you own the land above the Siphon? Yes, my lord. Make sure Murak puts it in my name. Of course, my lord. This looks like a great place to build the heart of the West Boles Trading Company. Calvin thought, hands on his hips. ¡­I¡¯m going to have to put up preserved spinner hands along the walls in case of Brain worm infestation. The rest of the day turned into a blur of clean-up and planning, with Calvin designing a warehouse/slaughterhouse with three stories to house all the workers it would need to stay safe. Once that was taken care of, Murak was more than happy to loan him the materials to construct the thing. After that it was just a matter of setting a sickening amount of knick-knacks to the task, and before the sun went down, Calvin was staring at the solid, humorless building. It had massive rolling doors to allow entire wagons in and out of the building with ease, space to store thousands of monster corpses and more besides, butchering stations, and the third floor was a giant lab entirely dedicated to rendering their corpses down into useable materials for the modern wizard. All the floors were connected by massive dumbwaiters on pulley systems that allowed men to haul tons of cargo up and down as needed with the strength of a single man. ¡°It¡¯s so beautiful.¡± Calvin said, eyes watering, his gaze tracing his company¡¯s name carefully stenciled onto the side of the building by his own hand. Drafting has reached level 8! Calvin couldn¡¯t wait to rush over to his new lands and eagerly anticipate the first shipments, months from now. He felt like a child waiting for his Brian¡¯s Day present again, the anticipation driving him mad. Sure, the only thing Karen had ever gotten him was practice swords and armor, but still, the hope never died. The hell is Brian¡¯s day? Elliot asked. The day Brian the Magnanimus defeated the Mnetetarch of Madness and chopped it into thousands of pieces and fed it to all the children of the land, the only ones immune to its mental influence. Every year the adults of the world give children organ-shaped candy to symbolize the act. And presents. It¡¯s times like these I remember how long I was out for. With Kala¡¯s help, Calvin was able to appeal to Loren and many of his followers to be the first generation of workers at the Warehouse. Quite a few of them showed a natural aversion to ever going near the pit again or having anything to do with the monsters that oozed out of it, but Loren understood that without experienced men and women running things, many workers would die to the unforeseen. Kala was also able to appeal to the man¡¯s sense of patriotism, and pointed out that Calvin had restored a large portion of the royal family¡¯s power in the city. Not all of it, but more than they had a while ago. The royal family now served in an administrative capacity, which worked well enough for all involved. Calvin didn¡¯t have any illusions that the royal family was perfectly content with this arrangement. He was sure they were gnashing their teeth behind closed doors, but as long as Calvin kept a tight leash on Murak, the economic fallout of opposing him was unacceptable. As for Kala, The dusky skinned princess was better at organizing, negotiating, coercing, and leading in general than Calvin could aspire to be. It was like she¡¯d been groomed for it her entire life. Wow, even your observations are laced with sarcasm. With her keeping everything running smoothly, Calvin didn¡¯t have to do nearly as much as he¡¯d expected. After the building and the lab were taken care of, Calvin set out to watch the doomed assault on Mujenan. He had to camp on the cold mountainside overlooking the road leading to Uleis for three days before he saw any sign of them. The Uleisan line looked like a dark brown snake winding it¡¯s way down the road, following the main aterty of trade toward the capital of Calvin¡¯s homeland. The brown helmets shimmered in the sun like the individual scales. He didn¡¯t expect the war would get out of hand, but stranger things had happened in the recent past. Shortly before the army arrived, Calvin watched from a distance as Andra¡¯s forces roused the monsters into a frenzy with noise and fire, pushing them further afield, forcing them into the faces of the marching Uleisans. Calvin ate some dense meat and fried dough on the mountainside, resting beside his watching the Uleisans receive their innoculation against One. It¡¯s really just a matter of how this is spun, Calvin thought. There were bound to be a few people who accused Gadvera of creating these creatures. The trick was shouting those people down or making them look like idiots. Politics isn¡¯t really my thing. Calvin though, idly chewing on the tough travel-pie. It all seemed terrifically pointless and self-serving, and his low Intuition was a major stumbling block. Still. Calvin would rather be the one on top. The Uleisan troops drove massive ballistae woven from thick glass in front of them, siege engines of glass, ropes and ladders of flexible glass, armor and weapons of tough glass. The mutant horde broke on them at first. Like animals, they attacked the humans in ones and twos, and the uleisan army was able to push them off without casualties of any kind, until the population grew thick. The advance slowed as the men at the front of the line met more and more resistance, while the ones at the back became anxious. Calvin could literally see word of the inhuman creatures ripple down the lines of the snake-like formation, front to back, as men turned their heads and whispered to each other, their words presumably growing more and more outlandish as the story traveled back through the ranks. Then people started getting picked off, one here and there as the groups of flesh-spawned creatures attacked in ever larger bands, totally heedless of their safety. Calvin watched closely for any sign that the creatures were once again under some kind of centralized leadership, but there was no sign. The strange creatures sent a visible wave of unease through the lines, and Calvin watched the ant-sized Uleisan commander decide to bring the heavy shields to the front and press forward against the steady hail of attacking creatures. Ant-sized, Calvin thought as he watched the slowly unfolding drama. That¡¯s a blast from the past. Of course, Calvin had always pictured himself on the side of the ants, because the ants always won against the beetles, through superior numbers and superior will. Those creatures do look a little beetle-like, Calvin thought. Albeit red. I¡¯ve been training for this my entire childhood. He wished the Uleisan commander hadn¡¯t made the choice to press on. You¡¯ve got more of these things in the woods on both sides of you. Did you think pushing deeper into them would make those ones on the side go away? The sad tale unfolded over the course of a grueling day and night, while Calvin watched from his mountaintop. The deeper the Uleisan¡¯s got into the creature¡¯s territory, the more One¡¯s soldiers attacked their flanks. The creatures weren¡¯t trying to be strategic about it or anything, they simply were attracted by the sound of fighting and smell of blood, rushing the first thing they saw. There was simply more flank than there was anything else with a snake of troops that big. After a few hours of random attacks and slowly degrading morale, the commander called a halt, and the Uleisans changed formation into something more closely resembling a fat square, with their shields facing outward in every direction. They pushed deep into the monster controlled territory, and set up a well defended camp, luring the creatures in with light and noise so that they could slaughter them by the thousands. Still, every once in a while, someone messed up and got themselves, or someone else killed, depleting their reserves just a little bit each time. Calvin was sure the fight was dramatic and meaningful on the ground, every moment a nail biting struggle against death, but sitting up here, it just looked like one blob of ants surrounded by a swarm of beetles that were trying to pick them apart. Similarly undramatic was the Uleisan retreat. After two days of watching them gradually advance on Mujenan, only to see the flesh-covered walls that were spawning the creatures, they lifted their shields, turned around and slowly cut their way back out of Gadvera. The losses were light, and the uleisans had a lot more fight left in them, but the commander made the right call: They couldn¡¯t siege a city while under siege themselves. One¡¯s creatures presented an unknown variable that any commander worth his salt would avoid like the plague. And I had the best seats in the house to this failed mission, Calvin thought, wrapping his arms around his knees as he watched the soldiers march back the direction they had come, tired and frightened at the monsters they had witnessed. They were going to go home and spread the story of the great evil that Iletha had allied itself with. Kurawe would make sure that was the narrative. Calvin put out his little campfire and stowed the last of his supplies, glancing over his shoulder at the mountain itself. Directly on the other side of the mountain he was on was the one that housed the Genosians. Calvin was absolutely sure he could wipe the entire mountain clean in an afternoon. Calvin was deeply conflicted on that one. There were a lot of women and children on those mountains, and killing them would just make him the monster. On the other hand, he had promised retribution. It doesn¡¯t serve any purpose. Calvin thought, turning away from the mountains. He could kill a bunch of Genosians on the side right now, which would make him feel better in the short term, but it accomplished precisely nothing in regards to becoming a wizard-king. No, what I need to do now is fly to Mujenan, get my title, get my land, and figure out who¡¯s in the race to marry Kala. Macronomicon Chapter 146: Birthday Party Extensive training has increased your attributes! +12 Endurance +12 Strength +12 Kinesthetics. +8 Stability Old Salt has reached level 14! 70% Correction Drafting has reached level 17! Chained Spirit has reached level 24! Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 12! Trait Doctoring has reached level 16! Calvinian Summoning has reached level 28! Bent Manipulation Has reached level 12! ¡­. ***7 Months later** The time passed quickly for Calvin, between literally cleaning up a war, being present enough to keep a firm hand on Uleis, preparing to lead an expedition into the jungle to literally found a kingdom, wrangling an army full of Legends, visiting Karen¡¯s baby ¨C he was ugly ¨C and preparing for Kala¡¯s birthday party, Calvin had barely been able to stay in one place for longer than a minute or two. It was an interesting dichotomy then, that while Calvin hated balls in general, he relished the opportunity to sit down. Calvin was enjoying his seat beside Ella when he spotted a dark haired Ilethan approaching Kala. Calvin tensed up a bit instinctively, but it didn¡¯t turn out to be that kind of assailant. ¡°Miss Entredez,¡± I am thrilled to make your acquaintance,¡± The tall, handsome princeling said, bowing deeply to place a peck on the back of Kala¡¯s gloved hand. ¡°I am Dorian Ilestar.¡± I¡¯ll bet you she¡¯s gonna want to burn that glove later, Elliot said as Kala met the suitor from Iletha. No bet, Calvin thought, sipping the expensive wine. He still wasn¡¯t comfortable with this kind of scene but he¡¯d gotten better over the last few months of non-stop attention. Now instead of feeling like an animal trapped in a cage and poked with sticks, he felt like an animal trapped in a cage and preforming tricks for Koben nuts. The key differences being an absence of sticks and abundance of nuts. ¡°I know my word carries likely carries little weight in your heart, but know that I am deeply regretful that the conflict between our people caused a mar on your childhood, and I hope you will tell me if there¡¯s anything I can do to help you or the people of Gadvera.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t regret the mar on my childhood,¡± Kala said, smiling as the man straightened in front of her a full head and a half taller than her. ¡°It was quite formative. I wouldn¡¯t be the same princess you admire today without it.¡± ¡°Um¡­really?¡± ¡°I regret the thousands of people who died.¡± Kala said succinctly. ¡°Oh¡­I¡¯m¡­um. Sorry?¡± The sheer panic on the young man¡¯s face broke through Calvin¡¯s defenses and he accidentally spat up some of the wine onto the white lace table and the puff under his collar before breaking into a coughing fit. ¡°Sorry, sorry,¡± Calvin said when the two of them looked over at Calvin curiously while a maid angrily tore off his tie and whipped the tablecloth out from under the fancy wine cups without spilling a single one. Ella, unable to enjoy the wine with them, made due with the longweed Kala had given her last year. there was only a little left, and she saved it for special occasions. ¡°You must be The Wasp.¡± Dorian said, focusing his blue eyes on Calvin¡¯s face ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s me.¡± Calvin said hoarsely, nodding. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a hard guess, with you being the only Malkenrovian in this gathering.¡± Dorian said, scanning Kala¡¯s eighteenth birthday party. The guests were about eighty percent Gadveran, ten percent foreign diplomats, five percent wealthy businessmen hoping to meet her father, four percent political cling-ons, and one percent friends and family. ¡°This is so exciting!¡± Dorian said, rushing to Calvin¡¯s side and clasping his hand, grinning from ear to ear. ¡°I heard that you invented an entirely new form of summoning magic that puts Malkenrovian demonology to shame, and you used it to bring the Ilethan offensive to a grinding halt! And only at sixteen!¡± ¡°Seventeen there towards the end,¡± Calvin mumbled, withdrawing from the beaming young man. ¡°And wasn¡¯t it your people I stopped?¡± ¡°Well yes, but not mine personally.¡± He said, ¡°I was spending most of my time putting the finishing touches on my education. Statescraft, etiquette and the like.¡± His eyes blazed with passion as he stared into Calvin¡¯s intently. ¡°It lit a fire inside me when I heard of a boy my own age not only participating on the battlefield, but excelling. A captain at that age, then a Marquis less than a year later?¡± ¡°If he can do it,¡± Dorian said, staring off into the distance. ¡°What excuses do I have? Stories about you really spurred me to be the best that I could be. I¡¯m a huge admirer.¡± ¡°Umm¡­¡± Calvin¡¯s jaw hung. He wasn¡¯t expecting one of the men on the short list of Kala¡¯s suitors to be¡­nice. Or a fan of his, even. Especially not someone on the opposite side of the most recent war. It was highly suspicious. Before Calvin was able to respond, Kala inserted herself back into the conversation and through some kind of verbal magic, detached him from Calvin and sent him out to make the rounds and introduce himself as the new Ilethan diplomat. ¡°That guy?¡± Calvin asked, thumbing over his shoulder as Dorian greeted one person after another with a smile, a firm handshake, and a look right in the eye, something that Calvin couldn¡¯t quite bring himself to do, as it was uncomfortable and struck him as disingenuous. Reluctance to socialize had earned him a bit of a reputation as a hermit, but Calvin thought that was a skewed opinion of him. He liked socializing just fine with people he already knew. ¡°I know,¡± Kala said, rolling her eyes. ¡°At least he¡¯s not thirty years older and my cousin,¡± she said, shuddering and taking a big gulp of Calvin¡¯s wine. ¡°That makes four thus far?¡± Calvin asked, glancing around the room. There were four men with the potential to marry Kala, and they were all present in the Ballroom. Dorian Ilestar was the black haired, pale skinned young man mingling and seemingly enjoying it, While Kala¡¯s traitor cousin stood on the other side of the ballroom, interacting with the older, richer, fatter crowd. ¡°One thing my father has guaranteed me,¡± Kala said, following Calvin¡¯s gaze, ¡°Under no circumstances will I ever be married to him.¡± ¡°Well of course,¡± Calvin said turning back around in his seat before anyone caught him staring at the man who¡¯d tried to kidnap her when she was twelve. ¡°Aside from the fact that I¡¯m obviously going to be the one who marries you, I¡¯m fairly sure that you would kill Lumentrias before he could get his pants off.¡± ¡°Oh, absolutely,¡± Kala half growled. She spotted someone across the ballroom and handed Calvin his wine back. ¡°Gotta work.¡± ¡°Have fun,¡± Calvin said, waving her off. Kala glided away from the table and intercepted a gaggle of older women, drawing them into a hushed conversation with what could only be some kind of sordid gossip. The how and why of it went completely over Calvin¡¯s head. ¡°Because she¡¯s the dowager duchess of the all the land southeast of Mujenan, which took a huge hit when the Hash¡¯Maje carved a chunk of her dead husband¡¯s lands away to grant you your title.¡± Ella said, her foot up on the table. ¡°She hopes to patch things up with the old hag so the woman doesn¡¯t carry a grudge against you in the future. After all, if you want to establish trade between Juntai and Gadvera, that woman will literally be standing between you and Mujenan.¡± Calvin glanced over at Ella, who was taking a break from devouring a plate of whole roast Tarka. ¡°How do you know all that?¡± ¡°Book club,¡± Ella said with a shrug. ¡°Ah. Well, I guess I¡¯ve got to get up and make the rounds.¡± ¡°Not me,¡± Ella said. ¡°You hate it enough for both of us. I¡¯ll be here nursing this,¡± She said, pointing at her pipe, another gift from Kala. ¡°Got it.¡± Calvin stood and took a deep breath before heading into the fray, forcing himself to smile and shaking hands, trying his damnedest to remember the names of the faceless goons attending Kala¡¯s birthday party. Most people knew who he was, and even a little of his relationship with Kala, but the most common gossip was who would be chosen as Kala¡¯s fianc¨¦e before her twentieth birthday. Most people were debating whether it would be Dorian from Iletha or Tzen Chu, from Boles, as either one would lead to a quick end in the hostilities between Iletha and Gadvera. Some said Dorian was the natural candidate since with Ilethan blood in the royal line, they would be able to come to terms with the ilethans far easier than before. Others said the balance of trade would shift toward Gadvera if Kala took Tzen¡¯s hand in marriage, ensuring that Gadvera had the money and manpower to stop any further wars before they even began. The point¡¯s moot though, because that princess is mine. If Calvin had learned anything about politics, it was that a royal marriage was carefully chosen based on what guaranteed the most good for the country. Boiled down to its simplest, Calvin had to prove that marrying him was the most beneficial, least damaging course of action for her dad. ¡°Oh, you must be Tzen,¡± Calvin overheard Dorian speaking, dragging his attention over to the middle of the room, where the two richly dressed young men were looking each other up and down. Well, Tzen was, regarding Dorian¡¯s outstretched hand with a haughty air and an impolite sniff. ¡°Please forgive my master, he may not touch anyone lower in station than himself. Please understand.¡± The man¡¯s servant said, sweating profusely as he bowed deeply to Dorian¡¯s confused mug. ¡°but¡­I¡¯m a prince.¡± Dorian said, looking genuinely confused. ¡°Your father is a king. Mine is an emperor.¡± Tzen said. Dorian blinked off his confusion. ¡°So if you can¡¯t touch anyone lower than yourself, how do you plan on¡­¡± he reddened. ¡°You know, seal the deal, so to speak.¡± Tzen waited impassively as the servant translated the euphemism for him. ¡°Concubines are an exception of course.¡± Dorian¡¯s knuckles tightened around his cup. ¡°Right. You came to Kala¡¯s birthday party to offer to allow her to be a concubine?¡± I¡¯m with this guy, Calvin thought as he felt the dislike radiating between the two princelings with Open Book. ¡°It¡¯s a perfect position for her status. The gifts I brought for her nineteenth birthday are not only appropriate for her new role, but also sure to impress upon her father why an alliance with our empire would be more beneficial.¡± ¡°What, silk?¡± Dorian asked. ¡°any gain to be had in trade with you would be regained twice over by peace with Iletha. My present isn¡¯t fancy silk and jade, but real connections with people that aren¡¯t half a world away, but practically neighbors. I bring blood, wood and steel.¡± ¡°Common,¡± Tzen scoffed. ¡°Now hold up,¡± Calvin interrupted, joining the discussion, throwing an arm around their shoulders. ¡°Why don¡¯t we have a gentlemanly wager?¡± The Bolesian servant¡¯s eyes nearly bulged out of his skull. ¡°You must stop touching my lord at once!¡± he hissed. ¡°I¡¯m not touching him, I¡¯m touching the silk on him.¡± Calvin shot back. ¡°Now don¡¯t make a scene, do you want to embarrass your lord?¡± ¡°Who is this plebian?¡± ¡°This is The Wasp,¡± Dorian began enthusiastically. ¡°He ¨C¡° ¡°I killed a lot of people last year,¡± Calvin finished the story for him. ¡°Now, I was more interested in this gift-giving idea. After all, it is Kala¡¯s birthday. I think a bet is in order?¡± ¡°If you wouldn¡¯t mind ¨C ¡° Dorian started. ¡°What bet you ask? How about whoever¡¯s present is the best has sole claim to Kala¡¯s hand in marriage?¡± ¡°Preposterous.¡± ¡°Absolutely not,¡± Tzen said. ¡°I guess you guys aren¡¯t as confident as I thought,¡± Calvin said, taking his arm away from Tzen¡¯s shoulder so the servant would stop pinching him. ¡°How about this then? The worst present-giver out of all her suitors has to admit he¡¯s out of her league and bow out gracefully?¡± Calvin glanced around at the onlooking suitors. Of course dozens of men wanted to marry Kala, but only a handful had any chance of making that happen. ¡°Come on, the math favors you two.¡± Calvin said, glancing over at Lumentrias. ¡°Make the bet. You¡¯d also have an excellent chance of humiliating her cousin.¡± Calvin glanced between the two suitors. ¡°She hates her cousin,¡± he said, pointing the fat man out. Dorian¡¯s eyebrows raised as he studied Lumentrias and his outfit. ¡°The man has stains on his shirt. ¡°Yeah, it hasn¡¯t been great for him recently,¡± Calvin said, following Dorian¡¯s gaze. ¡°The man¡¯s been holding onto the suitor title by a thread since the end of the war, when he started mysteriously hemorrhaging money.¡± Calvin mysteriously ran his finger around the edge of his wine-glass, wiggling his eyebrows. ¡°Alright, I¡¯m willing to take part in such a wager.¡± The Bolesian prince was silent for a moment as he deliberated. ¡°I will as well.¡± ¡°Excellent!¡± Kala said, emerging from behind Tzen, startling all of them. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to my father and make it official! I so look forward to the unveiling!¡± The Bolesian prince¡¯s servant held his hand over his heart while the dusky skinned princess trotted away, dress fluttering in the breeze as she went. The two princes, however, eyed him suspiciously, suspecting a set-up. Which it was. ¡°What?¡± Calvin asked innocently, drinking the rest of his wine and grabbing another bottle off the table next to him. His superhuman endurance was starting to make it difficult to maintain a buzz. A few minutes later, Kala¡¯s father made the announcement that there would be a competition for ¡®most impressive¡¯ present, and the least impressive of which would be the least fitting for her hand in marriage. Which, without saying, implied that the most impressive gift was from the one most suited to marrying her. Heavily implying something was good enough in front of an audience like this. Gods, I love it when a plan comes together. Unless you don¡¯t actually have the most impressive present. Nadia¡¯s voice echoed inside Calvin¡¯s mind. Nah, I got this in the bag. Hands down. Calvin Gadsint Body: 34 Strength: 24 Kinesthetics: 24 Endurance: 24 Mind: 45 Intuition: 30 Stability: 39 Will: 38 Bent: 40/39+5 Warp: 8/8 Skills: Stealth 7 Playboy 11 Old Salt 14 Sense-Grafting 20 Dupdomancy 22 Meditation 25 Chained Spirit 24 Calvinian Summoning 28 Your Princess is in Another Castle 18 Beli Ma 25 Genosian Language 5 Shifting 15 Abyssal Alchemy 12 Drafting 17 Bent Manipulation 12 Trait Doctoring 16 Macronomicon Chapter 147: The Birthday Presents Learner¡¯s notes, day 221: Birthday parties. I¡¯ve come to learn of something called peacocking from Kala, whereby a male flaunts his wealth or style in order to attract a female. She said that it¡¯s practically expected at her birthday parties, which make them tremendously dull for her. When asked what a Peacock was, Kala didn¡¯t know. Strange that the etymology of so many words in modern society are shrouded in mystery. This leads me to suspect some cataclysmic event in hoot - human ¨C history that destroyed everything but oral histories. I would ask Seymour the History Professor, but he¡¯s too busy plotting with Nadia et al. to stop Elliot/Calvin from destroying the world. As if he could destroy the entire world! A fair portion of the life on it¡­maybe, but by all accounts, but the world itself will be fine. There¡¯s simply too much of it. Still, I¡¯m not supposed to talk to Calvin about it, because then the bad man living inside him would see it coming. Big secret. On the subject of Birthday parties. I¡¯ve seen a handful of birthday parties for the young men ¨C that¡¯s the ¡®human¡¯ term for a flat hooter ¨C in Calvin¡¯s ¡®army¡¯. Mostly they involve drinking poison and unprotected mating. Which is why I was so surprised that Kala¡¯s birthday party didn¡¯t have any of that. Strange. Obviously I didn¡¯t understand enough about human birthday party customs, because I and the five whores I brought to celebrate Kala¡¯s birthday were all turned away at the gate, strangely. Even though I had an invitation. We even brought poison. Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have called it poison. They chased us for a while after that. I hope I can get my deposit back. Still, it wasn¡¯t hard to sedate one of the older women ¨C that¡¯s a flabby lumpy hooter ¨C drag her into a hedge and take her place before the rest of the group of gossiping women returned from cooling themselves off in the garden. For prey animals, these humans have terrible senses. ***Calvin*** Is it there something in the air that makes me want to yawn? Something about the way this is all handled? Calvin thought as they wheeled in Kala¡¯s presents, hidden behind a large white divider concealing the back half of the palace audience chamber from sight. Because we both know I could stand and watch paint dry for hours without so much as a yawn. That was magic paint. You had a vested interest. True. In the last few months of preparing for Kala¡¯s Birthday, Calvin had been doing a lot of experimenting with Alchemy, specifically Lure membranes, and getting them to read minds accurately. He¡¯d even stopped by Uleis to Consume a whole one, adding it to his list of summons. The idea had been this: Calvin had been searching for a way for the undifferentiated mass that Crystal Lattices created to have more than one form. While Calvin had figured out how to make a single blueprint, he¡¯d been in the dark as to how to fluidly change between one blueprint and another based on the user¡¯s desire. Which is when it struck him. If reading the user¡¯s desire was all he needed, then he could use the technique the Lure seemed to be so proficient at as the lever to switch between multiple blueprints. It had taken weeks of trial and error, and Goob had nearly killed himself more than once, but they¡¯d finally managed to make a working prototype a month ago, then a more polished, lovely version for Kala¡¯s present. Now Calvin got to see how he ranked compared to the other suitors. ¡°And now for the first present on our beloved princess¡¯s birthday,¡± the crier said, motioning to the man behind the curtain as he read the note. ¡°From our own Marquis Gadsint, a handmade moonstone Ampoule, with the contents described as ¡®anything you want¡¯. There was a smattering of halfhearted applause as they wheeled out Calvin¡¯s present on a red cushion, a little moonstone ampoule filled with liquid, the bottom set with a yin/yang symbol surrounded by two inscribed circles. Of course it was too small for anyone to really read it. The entire thing was actually about five feet tall and two feet wide, normally. The treatment with Lure membrane had turned the glass from clear to a soft blue, resembling a moonstone. Matter of fact, I didn¡¯t call it moonstone on my card, I called it Nem-laced Glass enchanted to sustain a microscopic barrier between itself and the highly compressed polymorphic substance it contained. And what it contained, was anything she wanted, with love, from Calvin. Well, someone screwed the pooch on that one, Elliot said. ¡°Thank you very much,¡± Kala said, taking the ampoule off the cushion and nodding at him before setting it beside herself. ¡°The next present is ¨C¡° ¡°What the Abyss?¡± Calvin whispered. They¡¯re moving on to the next one already? What part of anything did they not understand? ¡°It¡¯s a very pretty gift.¡± Dorian said, patting Calvin on the shoulder. ¡°Did you make it yourself?¡± ¡°Well, yeah.¡± Calvin said with a shrug as they wheeled out a set of diamond jewelry, which Kala set beside Calvin¡¯s little glass container. ¡°That¡¯s impressive! How did you manage to keep the whole thing in one piece and still keep a liquid inside while the glass was molten? Did you learn the technique from your time in Uleis?¡± ¡°Huh? No, I just turned the whole thing upside down and sealed the control panel on the bottom on with Crystal lattice goop before I shrank it.¡± Calvin answered, distracted as he watched his amazing gift get buried by the mediocre jewelry, oils, perfumes and books on the table. Matter of fact, Calvin¡¯s present was nearly identical to the perfume from the dowager duchess, Lady Estaine.¡± ¡°Shrank it?¡± Dorian asked, brows furrowing. ¡°Looks like they decided to get the chaff out of the way early,¡± Tzen said, conspicuously walking by.¡± ¡°But¡­My presents the best.¡± Calvin said, frowning as he waved his hand at the barrage of glittering trinkets Kala was forced to sit through. How do these people not see that? Tzen snorted and walked away. ¡°Umm¡­¡± Dorian glanced at the growing pile. The ilethan prince seemed to hesitate. ¡°I¡¯m sure it¡¯s nice, and you worked hard on it, but to be brutally honest, it doesn¡¯t look like the best present.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s pretty and looks like moonstone,¡± Calvin said, shaking his head. ¡°The proof of concept looked like a lead drinking flask a mad fisherman might use.¡± They don¡¯t grok what it represents, numbskull. You said anything, and they can¡¯t wrap their little heads around what that means. ¡°Oh¡­Oooohhh¡­¡± ¡°There are a lot of other pretty things here tonight,¡± Dorian said, wincing as he glanced at Calvin. ¡°No, I get it now. People need a demonstration of my power.¡± You just said that people need a demonstration of your power at a princess¡¯s birthday party. What are you gonna do next, put everyone to sleep until Kala receives true love¡¯s kiss? ¡°Why would I do that?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°That seems like a tremendous waste of effort under the circumstances.¡± Dorian edged away from Calvin. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry, that had nothing to do with you.¡± Calvin whispered over at the Ilethan prince. ¡°And now, from Duke Lumentrias Bolton, ¡®the Jungle Queen¡¯.¡± The audience gasped and applauded as the presenter wheeled forward a necklace made from pure Nem, with a golden chain holding the back together, studded with smaller Nem droplets hanging below the primary curved bar of Nem like a chandelier. It was beautiful to look at, the rare and expensive opalescent material flaring under the light of the room. ¡°This wonderful amulet recycles twenty percent of Bent used, and has been enchanted by master Nemworkers to keep the air around the user a constant, cool, seventy degrees, while keeping out insects and dust.¡± There was appreciate murmuring from the envious onlookers, especially the older ladies, who appreciated the value of comfort. Without missing a beat, Kala took the necklace in its box, gave a nod and a gracious thanks, not once revealing her loathing for the person who¡¯d commissioned it for her. Politics is weird. ¡°From our neighbor to the north, Prince Dorian Ilestar, a shipping manifest.¡± Out from behind the screen was wheeled¡­a folded letter. A piece of paper? Really? Kala took the letter off the presenter¡¯s cart and unfolded it, scanning the words before she began to read out loud. ¡°Miss, as enchanted gifts from Iletha have a rather poor reputation, I felt as though the Ring of Hands that was chosen as my present would not be a good ¡®fit¡¯, so I pawned it for an outgoing ship, The Bouncing Booty, which was loaded from stem to stern with raw steel from Iletha¡¯s mountains, to do with as you wish. The journey was long and ardous. The Bouncing Booty was dropped low in the water by the sheer weight of steel in its hold, and even a light storm caused the ship to rock up and down wildly, risking flooding. It shook so hard it nearly made us sick, but the effect was almost mesmerizing, watching the way The Booty rose and fell above the water.¡± Calvin could tell by the snickering in his head that Elliot was trying not to laugh. What is it? Booty means something else where I¡¯m from. Really? Here it just means butt. What? Then why is nobody laughing? Bunch of prudes, probably. Kala cracked a tiny grin as she went on to describe the motion of the ocean, causing some of the stone-faced nobles to hide their expressions behind their hands. While she spoke, Calvin nudged Dorian in the side, catching the prince¡¯s attention. ¡°Why do Ilethan enchanted gifts have a bad reputation?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a fairly discouraged, but common practice in Iletha for the one who makes the enchanted object to put in a secret back door that will allow them or anyone they tell about it to bypass many mental defences. Un-compromised magic items are actually rarer than ones that are.¡± ¡°Why would anyone buy a magic item that could let someone control you?¡± Calvin demanded. Dorian shrugged. ¡°As long as you buy it third hand at estate auctions, there¡¯s a good chance nobody remembers or cares about the backdoor. Of course this doesn¡¯t really apply to the rich and powerful. We just outsource our enchanted gear and rigorously test it.¡± He leaned closer and whispered to Calvin. ¡°Kala¡¯s great aunt got an enchanted ring rom my grandfather, and was compromised, which lead her to spying on her own people for decades before she was discovered. Her great aunt was put to death, and they¡¯ve had a ¡®thing¡¯ about accepting magical gifts from us ever since.¡± ¡°I wonder why.¡± Calvin whispered back. ¡°After that story, I think the only things I¡¯ll trust are the ones I can build with my own two hands.¡± Calvin tapped his fingers on the prototype flask attacked to his belt. ¡°I felt a funny story and some raw materials would be more useful to Kala than a ring that would get locked in the vault forever. I made the story, and the raw steel can be used to help restore some of the strength of Gadvera. Much better than a ring that was never given a chance.¡± ¡°How¡¯s the guy you traded the ring to?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°He¡¯s experienced a sudden, inexplicable surge of patriotism.¡± Calvin chuckled. This Dorian guy was funny, albeit Ilethan and the direct competition, which meant he was on the long list of people Calvin might have to kill someday. Kala finished the short story about the adventures of The Bouncing Booty, reading the ships manifest and tonnage before folding the paper once again and setting it aside. ¡°Finally,¡± The announcer said, motioning to the curtain. On que, it dropped, revealing a custom- made stand displaying a golden cloak made of¡­something. Calvin narrowed his eyes, trying to make out the ethereal golden fabric that seemed to fade in and out of existence like vapor. ¡°From the high prince of Boles, Tzen Chu. Silk made from the husks of evanescent beetle cocoons is among the rarest, most difficult to obtain substances in all of Boles, allowing the one who wears it to control the wind, and even fly.¡± Neat. Calvin thought, nodding his head. Another stand rolled out from behind the first, this one bearing a buckler seemingly made out of kin. The bucker was round around the edges, but the inside bulged and shifted as though some living creature were squirming around inside of it. ¡°The buckler of Life.¡± The announcer said, motioning to it. ¡°When worn, it will work as well as a typical buckler, and when the user suffers a mortal wound, that wound is transferred to the buckler. Simply bathe it in the light of a full moon to bring the buckler back to life.¡± Ooh, damn, I wonder how they did that? Calvin started thinking. They probably used a skill that¡¯s a cousin of Vodoo U, or transference, we know they exist. There¡¯s even the Ilethan disposables who soak up assassination attempts for their V.I.P.s¡­ but how did they put it in a shield and get it to come back to life once a month. Dorian beside him whistled. ¡°Ooh, That¡¯s almost as valuable as a Resurrection amulet.¡± Dorian whispered to him. ¡°You can only use them once, but they actually bring the dead back to life. I¡¯ve never even seen one.¡± Calvin had a brief thought about Jinnei¡¯s necklace turning to ash in Karen¡¯s fingers. ¡°Yeah, me neither.¡± ¡°And finally,¡± The announcer said as a strange ornate box was wheeled forward. ¡° with prince Chu¡¯s regards, a Companion.¡± The Box¡¯s gold pins holding it together were pulled out, and the brightly colored red wood fell downward in all four directions, revealing a Bolesian woman kneeling in the center. She wore a tight-fitting dress covered in gold embroidery, her hair pinned up in an elaborate design. ¡°I like the dress.¡± Ella said in calvin¡¯s other ear. Somehow the carnivorous Genosian savage had managed to sneak up beside him without him noticing and was busily admiring the companion¡¯s threads. ¡°You wear hides wrapped around your waist.¡± Calvin retorted. ¡°Oh, just because I¡¯m a Genosian savage I can¡¯t enjoy nice things? The slave¡¯s dress is just like the one Kala got for me. I like the compression and the way it made me look.¡± ¡°Companion,¡± Calvin said. Companion, slave, tomato tomahto The announcer swallowed some spit as he read the scrip, hesitating mid-announcement. ¡°The, um¡­ This bolesian Companion had been kept from seeing another face since her first Break. She has been graciously given a set of Skills that will permanently bond her to the first person she sees. She will be driven by a overwhelming need to um¡­please them in any way she can.¡± Calvin glanced over and spotted Kala swallowing and blinking nervously. I detect a clich¨¦, Elliot said as Calvin moved closer to Dorian. Way ahead of you. If something unexpected happened, like some rando crashing through the ceiling to reclaim his lost love cruelly kidnapped by Bolesian royalty for her pleasing face, Calvin was going to duck behind Dorian and use him like a human shield, because when that blindfold came off at an unexpected, dramatic moment, Calvin was not going to be standing around like an idiot. I¡¯ve already got enough to worry about with these three. So when Tzen¡¯s servant stepped up behind the beautiful woman, Calvin was ready. ¡°For the divine empire!¡± the servant screeched, presumably in Bolesian as he tore the blindfold away. Calvin grabbed Dorian¡¯s shoulder and hauled him in front of himself as beams of raw lightning began shooting out of the woman¡¯s eye sockets. The lightning seemed to crawl across the ground like a hungry animal before it pounced on another person, forcing its way into the dapper gentleman¡¯s eyes. Oh, that wasn¡¯t what I was thinking. In the blink of an eye, it jumped to three more bodies, burning its way through the guest¡¯s eyelids, then hollowing them out in a fraction of a second before leaving their smoking corpse for the next. I have to contain it, Calvin thought, his thumb touching on the steel of his belt buckle. If steel didn¡¯t work, he¡¯d have to use something less conductive and hope the time it took to burn its way out was long enough for him to come up with something better. Then the creature picked the wrong body to jump into. An older woman looking on curiously was leapt upon by the creature, and it sank its way into her eyes, releasing a bubbling hiss as it burned through the flesh. The woman jerked a couple times, but rather than hollow out, she simply seemed confused and in pain. A fraction of a second later, the lightning beast tried to claw its way out of her eyes again, but lost traction against the air, as though something were pulling it back inside. ¡°Ow. Is this what they call spicy?¡± She asked, glancing at Kala. ¡°Food that hurts?¡± ¡°No Learner, that isn¡¯t¡­you know what, sure,¡± Kala said as she stood up, setting her chair upright again. ¡°That was basically spicy food. What are you doing here, looking like that? Where¡¯s my cousin?¡± Learner burped smoke as her eyes grew back. ¡°She¡¯s napping in the garden.¡± ¡°Well, at least she missed this debacle.¡± Kala said with a sigh as she sat back down, picking up the ampoule Calvin had made and holding it above her head. ¡°I declare Marquis Gadsint¡¯s present the best. If you¡¯re wounded or need to mourn the passing of a family member, you¡¯re welcome to go home now. This party is over. *** ¡°Well that was disappointing,¡± Calvin muttered as he filed out of the palace, shoulder-to-shoulder with Dorian as they waited for their carriages to arrive. ¡°Why, you won, didn¡¯t you?¡± Dorian asked, frowning. ¡°When I got her to smile, I really thought I had a chance.¡± ¡°I had this whole plan,¡± Calvin said as they stopped beside a carriage with Ilethan colors. ¡°I was gonna make a castle spring out of a drop of liquid in the courtyard, along with hundreds of manned siege towers totally surrounding the city, along with the army of Legends that I smuggled into the palace without anyone knowing any better, to demonstrate that I¡¯m a good choice for her husband.¡± ¡°But that stupid suicide attack totally stole my thunder.¡± Calvin muttered, pulling out his prototype flask and pouring it out on the ground. He should probably let the guys out if the day was a bust. They didn¡¯t experience time while they were goop, but that was no excuse to keep them overnight. The clear liquid exploded outward in the blink of an eye, without any noise or disturbance, simply conjuring the shapes that had been saved inside the flask. A smattering of startled cries went out as the liquid congealed into people, filling the entire courtyard. Calvin was greeted by the sight of two thousand corpses, still in the regalia that Calvin had made for them. They lay still on the ground, their skin pale, lips blue, eyes bulging. What? Goob told me it was working! We did tests! Hundreds of tests! ¡°Baroke!¡± Calvin shouted, kneeling to the ground and slapping the musclebound archer on the cheek. His royal sniper couldn¡¯t die here, to a mistake. ¡°Are you alive!?¡± Baroke¡¯s unseeing eyes stared into the distance, his mouth hung open like it was desperately trying to take a last breath. His muscles were stiff from death. If Baroke didn¡¯t have the Endurance to survive, all the rest of the men were surely dead as well. No. this is horrible. Gods, I¡¯ve killed all my friends. All my men. With my own hubris, trying to impress people I care nothing for. ¡°Gotcha!¡± Baroke shouted into Calvin¡¯s face before breaking into guffaws. Nevermind. Calvin punched the man in his nigh indestructible face before climbing back to his feet, watching the First Mujenan stand up, wiping makeup off their faces and laughing, rubbernecking at the glory that was the palace. ¡°Alright, let loose the signal for the towers!¡± Baroke shouted. ¡°Wait-¡± One of the archers fired a white hot arrow into the sky before Calvin was able to stop them, and the next thing that happened was the city was surrounded by siege towers pressed up against the wall, rendering it temporarily useless, as anyone who wanted could enter the city now by simply using the towers. Far in the distance, a massive castle came into being at the edge of the forest, complete with looming gothic architecture and swirling clouds surrounding it. Calvin dragged his palm down his face as alarm bells began to ring throughout the city. ¡°Did we miss the timing?¡± Baroke asked hesitantly. ¡°Yeah, now they just think they¡¯re under attack.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Dorian said, clapping him on the shoulder. ¡°We thought it was impressive.¡± ¡°We?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over his shoulder. Standing at the stairs and up on the balcony above, every resident of the palace had come outside to gawk at the distant castle with the ominous lighting and swirling clouds, including Kala and her parents. ¡°Right, everyone! I am just demonstrating what Kala¡¯s present can do!¡± Calvin shouted to the crowd, pointing at his own flask. ¡°You¡¯re totally not under attack. While I probably could kill all of you and take the city for myself, this is simply a demonstration of how to use Kala¡¯s Ampoule. Just picture a tower, wall, castle, or army, tear off the lid and start dropping where you want it. Easy as pie! You can even use it to duplicate objects if you change the settings on the bottom of the bottle! I don¡¯t suggest using the freestyle setting, because it tends to end poorly without a lot of practice and focus!¡± Calvin took another deep breath, scanning the panicky nobles watching him with trepidation. ¡°Once again, to reiterate. Stay calm. Everything is under control. This is a demonstration, not a coup, as much as it might look like one!¡± ¡°Sir!¡±Goob shouted, running up the road, his curly mop of hair catching the wind behind him. ¡°The girlfriend/sandwich monster has escaped from captivity and I¡¯m sure it¡¯s hunting me down to finish the job!¡± Calvin held his fingers to his temple and rubbed. This was going much more poorly than he¡¯d hoped. ¡°Can I marry your daughter?¡± Calvin shouted, turning up to look at the Hash¡¯maje up on the balcony. ¡°My army of Legends and I would be really disappointed if you said no.¡± The Hash¡¯maje tapped his fingers on the railing, looking at Calvin and the scenery around the city, chewing on his lip as he debated internally. ¡°Fine.¡± The Hash¡¯maje called over clanging sound of the alarm bells. ¡°But first, clean up this mess.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 148: The Reception Freeform mode is dangerous. One day Goob was testing it while we were still working out the kinks, and his concentration slipped for just a second, creating a horrific monster that was half attractive yandere next door, half grilled cheese sandwich. The girlfriend/sandwich monster was born. Now it seeks to finish what it started, suffocating Goob in an avalanche of scalding hot cheese and kisses. Unfortunately for us, it wised up after the first couple times we nearly killed it, so it¡¯s learned to be more stealthy and judicious about when it strikes. ¡°And that¡¯s why Goob isn¡¯t invited to the wedding,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°That tracks,¡± Kala said, nodding as she sat beside him on the bed. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t want it to be interrupted by a giant cheese monster.¡± ¡°At this point,¡± Calvin said with a wave of his hand. ¡°We should probably focus more on a wedding capable of recovering from interruptions. Everybody knows there¡¯s going to be some kind of huge distruption, like an assassination attempt or kidnapping. Which is why we should have plainclothes ministers standing by in case the one at the podium gets vaporized.¡± ¡°How about body doubles? Sign the paperwork the night before and have stand-ins.¡± ¡°That could work¡­¡± Calvin said, rubbing his chin. Was it something worth the existential dread of ceasing to exist over? Maybe not. Effective for dodging the bureaucracy of the wedding and inevitable disruption, though. ¡°We would have a lot of free time,¡± Kala said, tapping her lips thoughtfully. ¡°I wonder what we would do with it all.¡± ¡°Yep, let¡¯s do it.¡± Kala whooped, spinning around in her golden robe, causing a miniature cyclone to manifest around her, scattering Calvin¡¯s letters from Uleis. ¡°You seem to be wearing that a lot.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my favorite present,¡± Kala said with a wicked grin. ¡°Whaaat? I thought I was the winner.¡± ¡°How on Marconen does being able to summon a measly squad of terminally ill veterans desperate for a last stand compare to the joy of being able to fly?¡± she asked, her feet floating up and off the ground as she leaned forward to kiss him on the forehead. ¡°You try convincing people to get into a bottle that renders you down into sludge.¡± Calvin said with a snort. Prefab objects were mostly limited to simple inanimate objects. Even castles were simple, as they were just stone organized into a repetitive shape. Living things¡­well, the accuracy of Calvin¡¯s prefabs weren¡¯t high enough to create something living, or particularly molecularly complex for that matter. Then there were the ethical questions of having prefab human soldiers. What would happen if Calvin took Steve the Soldier, brother of Paul, husband of Amy and supporter of his children, staunch supporter of XYZ, and gooped down a forest and made several thousand more Steves? The way Calvin had managed to store living things at all was by piggybacking on his own mutation that allowed blade storage, using Abyssal Alchemy to extract the Warped Mutation from his blood. You¡¯re Warped, Too: User¡¯s Mutations may be (correction) more easily be distilled from the User¡¯s own flesh and blood. They¡¯d gotten it to work on things other than knives, but the problem was the manner it stored the blueprint was such that reading the blueprint effectively destroyed it, and any attempt to change that to allow re-using a blueprint led to a drastic drop in fidelity. Not enough to bother a simple sword or building, but it only took tiny, imperceptible changes to make a living creature into a corpse. ¡°I literally bled to make you that present, and you¡¯re scorning it. I feel scorned.¡± ¡°D¡¯aww,¡± Kala said, pinching his cheek. Calvin glanced at the robe again, then back up to Kala. ¡°That reminds me, what¡¯s going to happen to Tzen? The guy was a bit of a prick and I want to indulge in some schadenfreude.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a Bolesian noble for you. They¡¯re pricks by default,¡± Kala said, rolling her eyes. ¡°But no, he¡¯s probably not going to get more than a slap on the wrist. It obviously wasn¡¯t his intention to try to kill me. More likely it was a brother of his who arranged the whole thing to remove his brother from consideration as heir. The servant already killed himself, so we¡¯re left with nothing. We can¡¯t afford to make enemies of Boles, so we¡¯re keeping him in house arrest.¡± ¡°House arrest?¡± Calvin asked with a frown. ¡°I assume in some palatial estate surrounded by maids.¡± ¡°Pretty much.¡± ¡°Boo. That¡¯s more like a vacation,¡± Calvin said, kicking his heels as Kala floated up to the ceiling, cloak fluttering around her naked body like an aura. ¡°What about Dorian? I hope I didn¡¯t crush his expectations too hard. He seemed alright.¡± ¡°He moved into the diplomat¡¯s mansion and hasn¡¯t been seen since.¡± Kala said. Her brows furrowed thoughtfully. ¡°Although I will admit that the shipment of raw materials from Iletha has been helpful in easing shortages around the city, gaining him a lot of public approval.¡± Nadia? What do you make of it? Calvin thought. I didn¡¯t spend a lot of time with Dorian growing up, but I¡¯d bet you damn near anything the nice-guy act is just that. Well, of course it is, this is politics, after all. Calvin reminded himself to not get reeled in by the prince¡¯s easygoing ways. Calvin hadn¡¯t felt anything untoward from the young man¡¯s gaze, but he knew his mutations weren¡¯t infallible. We¡¯ll figure it out sooner or later. Preferably sooner. Calvin mentally checked his itinerary. ¡°Am I going to have to take on any administration duties after we get married?¡± The gods knew Calvin wasn¡¯t well suited to it. ¡°No, you¡¯ll be my consort, not my king. I¡¯ll technically be your wife¡­and your boss.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you float down here and say that to my face?¡± Calvin asked, making Kala¡¯s mischievous smile break into a wide grin. She did not, however, float down and say that to his face. Ever since his Strength had begun to match hers, she¡¯d enjoyed baiting him into tussles. The minor issue of Kala dangling in midair wasn¡¯t too much of an impediment. Shifting. 40/44 Bent remaining. Calvin leapt up and plucked a squawking Kala out of the air, pinning the wriggling princess up against the ceiling, his fingers digging into the wooden support beams as he felt her warmth radiate through the clothes between them. ¡°Say that again.¡± Calvin said, feeling a smile growing on his face. ¡°I¡¯m your boss,¡± Kala said, her breath tickling Calvin¡¯s face, brown eyes locked with his, radiating desire like a red-hot furnace. ¡°On paper.¡± Calvin said, smothering her retort with a kiss. *** Oddly enough, the wedding went on without incident. Calvin had long since learned to expect high-stress, high drama situations, but strangely, there was no man in black swooping in from the rafters to liberate the princess, nor was there a peasant rebellion, or monster attack, sudden declaration of war, death in the family or ill-omened eclipse. Nothing other than the stress of a pompous ceremony, followed by sitting at a table being silently judged by distant relatives and offered awkward conversation. Most awkward being the conversation between Calvin and his new Father-in-law. Calvin was halfway through lifting his cup into the air when it stopped, something seizing it and holding it in place with irresistible strength. That¡¯s odd, Calvin thought as he glanced at his locked-in-place cup, giving it an experimental tug. That was when he noticed the silence, glancing up to take in the sight of the room around him. Everyone else in the room was similarly frozen in place. A few people were even locked into positions impossible to support. The light in the room seemed to have dimmed as well, dropping the light level from a brilliant banquet hall to a gloomy shadow of its former self. Calvin eyed the chandeliers, which were still burning just as lively as they had been a while ago, just¡­darker. Motion attracted Calvin¡¯s attention to Kala¡¯s father, who delicately slid out of his seat and literally swam through the air towards Calvin. The Hash¡¯maje¡¯s arms worked like paddles as he pulled himself through the air, his eyes narrowed, face deforming as though he were moving against a hurricane wind. That¡¯s interesting. Calvin thought to himself, not particularly worried. If the man wanted to kill him, he¡¯d probably be frozen too. ¡°Don¡¯t move,¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said as he glided to a halt in front of Calvin. ¡°You might hurt someone.¡± He glanced at Calvin¡¯s cup suspended in midair with a hint of amusement before locking his gaze on Calvin¡¯s face. ¡°I wanted to make some time to have an unchaperoned talk with you. Tell you a few things and give you some advice.¡± ¡°First off,¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said, picking up a spoon and scooping out a ball of wine from the cup next to Calvin¡¯s and biting down on it. ¡°If you ever betray my daughter I¡¯ll snuff you out like a candle.¡± ¡°As is tradition,¡± Calvin said with a nod. ¡°Indeed. Second. if Kala wasn¡¯t in your corner I would have let Andra kill you a long time ago. There are people out there who could take you down if they had to.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Now the advice.¡± The Hash¡¯Maje turned in midair and pointed at the prince of Boles, who sat by himself in the corner, looking incredibly bored and frustrated. ¡°Do you know why we didn¡¯t kill him?¡± ¡°Fallout from his country.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Exactly. If prince Tzen dies, his kingdom continues to function, and they take punitive action.¡± ¡°And?¡± Calvin asked, ¡°What happens if you die?¡± The Hash¡¯Maje asked, turning back to him. ¡°I come back to life as an undead and terrorize the living.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I¡¯m not kidding.¡± Me neither. ¡°When you die,¡± The Hash¡¯maje said, swimming closer until they were inches apart. ¡°Everything you¡¯ve built unravels. Uleis is held together by shoestring and a song. Two of your most capable advisors, the ones administrating over half of the city¡¯s affairs literally die when you do, another is a corrupt businessman who will use the opportunity to seize as much control as he can during the confusion. Kala has to focus on succeeding me, she doesn¡¯t have time to seek vengeance. That leaves those willing to avenge you a genosian savage and an archer. Maybe you have an army, but with the support of Uleis gone, they¡¯d gradually be forced to seek answers to more practical concerns, such as feeding themselves and their families. Life trumps lofty goals, almost every time.¡± ¡°So is your advice ¡®don¡¯t die¡¯?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Because I¡¯ll be honest, that¡¯s pretty good advice.¡± ¡°Plan on dying, so that you can avoid it.¡± he said, his brown eyes boring into Calvin¡¯s with a turbulent mix of emotions. ¡°That seems counter intuitive.¡± ¡°If the result of your death is that your threat goes away, that¡¯s incentive. If the result is retribution on a national level, then it¡¯s armor. He grabbed Calvin¡¯s face. ¡°Armor. Do you understand?¡± ¡°There are dozens of people who want to see you dead, Andra included, for rising so far above your station.¡± He cocked his head to the side. ¡°Well, Andra wants you dead because she thinks you¡¯re an unstable, chaotic liability. Not so much the station thing.¡± ¡°It warms my hear to know it¡¯s not for a petty reason,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Until you establish a legacy, there will be no reason for these people not to seek your death. After this wedding is over, I want you to immediately go to your lands and make something that will last long after your death. That¡¯s the best way for you to stay alive.¡± ¡°I think I understand,¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°Good. I can tell people to lay off you, but what I say and what people do are never the same thing.¡± ¡°I thought you were the Hash¡¯Maje. Don¡¯t people have to do what you say?¡± Calvin asked. Kala¡¯s father scoffed, floating backwards as he broke into guffaws, laughing until he began to cry, wiping tears out of his eyes. ¡°When they¡¯re in eyeshot, sure. But don¡¯t think for a moment that people don¡¯t do whatever the Abyss they want when they¡¯re in private.¡± Calvin considered the advice and boiled it down into the key elements. Make insurance policy. Remove target on back. ¡°Thank you for your kind advice.¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°You better treat my daughter well.¡± After that the leader of Gadvera swam back through the air, carefully gliding into place in his chair, straightening his rumpled clothes. Without warning, everything unfroze. The lights brightened again, the chatter flooded in. Calvin¡¯s wineglass flew upward, shattering on the ceiling along with a gust of wind that that slammed through the room, blowing ladies skirts up, causing a commotion. ¡°My apologies,¡± Calvin said to the staring nobles, wiping his face. ¡°I was unable to keep the sneeze in check.¡± What the hell just happened? Elliot asked. Kala¡¯s dad can stop time. Calvin thought. Cool. ¡°No worries, I understand how difficult it is to get used to high Strength,¡± Kala¡¯s father said jovially. ¡°I remember when I first broke twenty and kept tearing off my buttons.¡± Through the murmur of polite laughter, Calvin noticed Kala giving her father a suspicious look. So, it looks like Kala knows about her dad¡¯s Ability. ¡°So, Marquis Gadsint, Or I suppose I should call you Prince Consort, What do you plan on doing after this?¡± the withered Duchess, Lady Estaine asked, her neck wobbling under her chin like a waddle as she spoke. ¡°Now that the situation in Gadvera is beginning to calm down, I¡¯ll be visiting my lands for the first time. I intend to return to them for the forseeable future and throw myself into developing them.¡± Calvin leaned forward, matching the Duchess¡¯s gaze. ¡°I understand that part of that territory belonged to your husband, and forgive me if this is tactless, but I think I can provide more value to your remaining lands than letting them lie fallow.¡± ¡°More direct than tactless,¡± The duchess said, gently sawing at the slab of Grik larvae steak on her plate. Nothing was more tender than grik larvae, but they provided a lot more meat if they were allowed to grow, so larvae was a food for the nobility. ¡°Common for your age, really.¡± ¡°Kala painted a promising picture of the opportunity for trade between your new land and Sevela, my town.¡± ¡°Barges,¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°I intend to follow the Garavel river to the southeast until it meets with Juntai land and establish a three way trade route between Juntai to the east, Uleis to the north, and Gadvera to the west.¡± ¡°And these goods you intend to get from Juntai, what exactly are they?¡± ¡°I guess I¡¯ll have to go find out.¡± The duchess chuckled and gave him a conspiratorial whisper. ¡°Something tells me the price of copper is going to skyrocket. Iletha is going to be very happy with you.¡± ¡°What?¡± **** Calvin spent the next half hour talking trade with the duchess, surprised by the insight she had into the interconnectedness of all things. While Calvin wasn¡¯t directly establishing a connection to Iletha, the enemy nation produced the most copper on this continent, meaning that if Calvin Calvin established a solid trade route between Juntai and Uleis, Iletha would profit indirectly through demand on their copper rising drastically. The reception didn¡¯t wind down so much as it was declared over by Kala¡¯s father and everyone was excused in order of importance, leaving Kala and Calvin there by themselves, listening to the soft clattering of servants cleaning up the banquet hall. ¡°So¡­¡± Calvin said, glancing around the empty room (save for the servants) ¡°So¡­¡± Kala said, biting her lip. ¡°Right here or your room?¡± Calvin asked. The servants stopped picking up dishes, freezing in place and eyeing the two of them sidelong. ¡°I have no idea what you could possibly mean, Calvin.¡± Kala said. ¡°We should discuss this further in my chambers.¡± ¡°Sounds good to me,¡± Calvin said, pushing himself to his feet and taking Kala¡¯s delicate-seeming hand as she stood, guiding her around the chair, like a gentleman. Tomorrow Calvin had to leave for the mosquito-riddled jungle, but tonight it was his solemn duty to do unspeakable things to his childhood crush. Macronomicon Chapter 149: Jungle Love It¡¯s driving me mad, it¡¯s making me crazy! Elliot caterwauled in the back of Calvin¡¯s head as they trudged through the dense forest, smacking mosquitos off every couple seconds. How do you know so many songs? Calvin thought as he killed yet another biting insect. Oh, they don¡¯t have a crystalization of all human knowledge where you come from? Elliot clicked his tongue. Sad. It was times like this he questioned his decision to walk all the way to his land rather than fly there. Sure there were reasons, like laying down a simple trail with his knick-knacks, and experiencing the journey first hand so he knew exactly how difficult it was, the symbolism of being the first one to traverse the land, etc. etc. At this point, hot, sweaty, itchy and damp in places humans were never meant to be damp, Calvin was reconsidering all the logic behind that. I could have flown there, but noooo. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and spotted the massive caravan full of raw materials. The train ran so long Calvin couldn¡¯t even see the end of it, and that more than anything was what made up his mind. He only had the bare essentials for starting a¡­ What¡¯s the word for a marquis¡¯ land, specifically? Marquidom? I don¡¯t know. A Duke has a Duchy. So maybe you get a Marky? ¡°It¡¯s a March.¡± Kala said from behind them, looking just as uncomfortable as Calvin felt. ¡°A borderland wilderness granted to a Marquis to develop. While the title is minor, the distance from the country make you the final arbiter of the law in your lands. Almost a king unto yourself.¡± The only people who didn¡¯t seem bothered at all were Baroke and Ella who were too simpleminded to be uncomfortable, and used to the jungle, respectively. Is it just me or is it creepy the way she reads our thoughts? Elliot whispered. Nope. I¡¯m pretty sure she¡¯s reading your lips. Calvin glanced back at the train of supplies again, getting his thoughts back in order. He only had enough materials there to start building the hub of his March. Even then the wagon train trailed far out of sight through the winding jungle. He could fly himself there. He could possibly even fly the entire train there. But what about the next one? And the one after that? Calvin couldn¡¯t allow himself to continue being the lynchpin that held his entire territory together. Not to mention if his job became ferrying supplies back and forth with his summons every day for the rest of his life, that would suck. So instead he was building a makeshift road to the Garavel river in the middle of the woods, completely surrounded by mosquitos, his Knick-Knacks cutting trees in half and pounding them into the earth to create relatively smooth surfaces for his wagons to travel across. Then the boats. It took another day and a half to make it to the edge of the Garavel river. Calvin flew up into the air on a wasp with Kala beside him and marked the exact position that was ideal for a port, a bend in the river a bit further west where the river turned south, away from Gadvera. It was the closest the river got to Gadvera before it started turning away. Once they marked it and got the rest of the wagon train there, they started building. BAroke fell in with the giant knick-knacks and dumb labor easily enough. The giant archer carried tree trunks over his shoulder that should by all accounts have crushed him. Calvin¡¯s Strength was twenty-four, and while that was far outside the bounds of normal, it was still only roughly the strength of two and a half men. Two and a half men would find themselves unequal to the task of lifting those logs. Watching Baroke pass them back and forth to giant Knick-knacks as they dug massive holes and began filling them with cement, Calvin wanted to shake his head with disbelief. He still wasn¡¯t sure if the giant meathead had the better plan. The work went by incredibly quickly thanks to the knick-knacks, but some stages simply required that they wait, and Calvin didn¡¯t have any kind of magic that could make that go by faster. Although Kala¡¯s dad might. Calvin thought, watching the concrete dry around the poles. I¡¯ve been thinking about your description, and I think he was speeding himself up to a fraction of light speed, not stopping time. Elliot said as they watched the Knick-knacks put together the boardwalk. What makes you say that? If time had actually been stopped, nobody should have been able to move against the air in the room, but the biggest hint was the lights dimming. Light hits your eyes not in a steady stream, but individual photons that ping your retina one after the other, yea? If you were experiencing time at a greatly altered speed, the rate at which photons hit your eyeballs would be lower, relatively. So it would look darker. Yeah. This reminds me of that time I had the idea to turn Venus into a habitable farming planet by wrapping the planet in a time acceleration field, which would reduce the average heat and sunlight. This was before Warp and the war with the Harbingers, so there was no economical way to dick with time¡­at the time. Nowadays you could probably plug generators into siphons to accomplish exactly that. Wow, just imagine if all the siphons really are is wall outlets for assholes way more advanced than we are. Kala was busily writing in her notebook, tongue peeking out the side of her mouth as she concentrated on writing. After work was done for the night, Calvin clomped back to his tent, and stumbled into an intervention. Kala and Ella were sitting on his bed. Not in the tousled hair, just-had-fun way, or the we-were-Just-about-to-get-started-what-are-you-waiting-for way, but the straight spined, stern-faced disapproval kind of way. Ambush! ¡°Calvin, it¡¯s come to my attention that you¡¯re treating Ella like some common fling.¡± ¡°What?¡± Calvin asked, reflexively stepping backward. ¡°In Genosian culture laying with a girl for a year without offering to marry her is very disrespectful,¡± Ella said with a frosty look. ¡°Well how was I to know that?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°That¡¯s a pretty common sentiment for most women.¡± Kala interjected. I¡¯m not a woman. Calvin bit back the pointless retort and stopped for a second of introspection. He¡¯d reflexively stopped himself from feeling any kind of emotional attachment to Ella since the night he¡¯d had that Guya poured down his throat, and that of course precluded the notion of asking for her to stay with him forever. ¡°Ella, I think you¡¯re beautiful and courageous, and I feel like I love you and would do anything to protect you, but I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s me or a fucking drug your father rammed down my throat. No offense.¡± ¡°None taken,¡± Ella said with a shrug. Calvin took a deep breath and scratched the back of his head, pulling the chair away from the desk to face them in the oversized tent. ¡°So what now?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I¡¯m afraid if I drop my guard for one instant, that shit in my head is going to wipe every part of me away and there won¡¯t be anything left of Calvin Gadsint, just a lovestruck slave.¡± ¡°The Guya has long since left your system.¡± Ella said with a placating tone. ¡°How am I supposed to know that!? Calvin shouted, momentarily losing control of himself. ¡°What if we¡¯re still in that damn tug-o-war and giving a single inch is tantamount to losing!?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t work like that,¡± Ella said, her eyes shimmering. ¡°Please.¡± ¡°Calvin,¡± Kala said, putting a hand on Calvin¡¯s knee. The contact made the hair on Calvin¡¯s neck stand up. That¡¯s not right. I¡¯m stronger than that. Calvin wasn¡¯t going to give anyone or anything the satisfaction of allowing himself to lose his calm over this. Calvin took a deep breath and left Kala¡¯s hand where it rested, allowing the distinctly uncomfortable sensation to wash over him, temporarily filling him with a barely contained sensation of dread, wrongness, and prickling skin. He wanted to stand up and run, or slap her hand away from him, but he muscled past those feelings. Eventually the horrible sensation faded entirely, replaced with the warmth of the girl¡¯s skin against his own. Extensive training has increased your attributes. +1 Stability ¡°Calvin, focus on everything that¡¯s happened between now and then. Remember the order of events, how everything happened, one thing after another. You¡¯re here, now. With us.¡± ¡°Goddamn,¡± Calvin said between breaths, rubbing his forehead with his palm. ¡°Locked up some things tight in there.¡± he glanced over at the misty-eyed warrior on the bed and was flooded with the desire to make her feel better. He nearly hugged her before he clamped down on it again. I am not letting the Guya tell me what to do. ¡°Tell you what,¡± Calvin said, glancing between Kala and Ella. ¡°I¡¯ll propose if you can give both of us something that reverses the effects of the Guya, and still want to be my Uenha. ¡°That¡¯s not fair!¡± Kala said, scowling at him. ¡°There¡¯s nothing that ¨C¡° Kala stopped as Ella held up a hand. ¡°There is a way to accomplish that.¡± Ella said. ¡°And you waited until now to tell me?¡± ¡°I¡­liked being with you.¡± Ella said. ¡°Because of the damn drug!¡± Calvin said. Ella sighed and took a small corked tube out of the pouch at her waist. ¡°As my father¡¯s successor for the role of Maje, I learned many potions beyond simply Noeula and Guya, including a way to revert their effects.¡± ¡°Did you know I was going to react this way?¡± Calvin asked as Kala produced a pair of bowls and knives, setting them between them. ¡°Ella came to me for advice, and I can literally see all your buried baggage,¡± Kala said with a wink, ¡°Let¡¯s say I had a very strong hint something was holding you back.¡± First the genosian made something similar to Guya, bubbling green fluid, which turned pink when she added a ground up glowing tooth and their blood. Then she produced a separate bottle of the black gunk from the inside of the Genosian mountains. She took a single fingernail of the bubbling pink fluid and dripped one drop into the vial of black goop. The vial bubbled violently for a moment, then calmed down, turning a dark green. ¡°Just a sip will do it,¡± Ella said, taking a swig and grimacing before offering it to Calvin. Ah what the abyss. ¡°If I die, cut my head off immediately,¡± Calvin muttered before he tilted his head back and took a swig of the vile concoction. It tasted awful, acrid and burned on the way down, with flavors he didn¡¯t even know how to describe. Oh, god, I can taste it from here! it¡¯s like burnt plastic that a dog shat on! Calvin pushed aside Elliot¡¯s complaining and the retch-inducing flavor and concentrated on how he felt. Would the potion send him on another inner journey complete with tug-o-war? Was it a trick to make him even more enamored with Ella? Calvin wasn¡¯t even sure what made him say yes to taking a strange substance from Ella. Probably the other strange substance, Calvin thought with a chuckle. ¡°Is this thing even working?¡± Calvin asked, eyeing the vial. ¡°Guya makes an empathetic bond between the drinkers by sharing some of their most painful memories. Ones so painful they literally left an echo in the blood and shaped the person they were. It doesn¡¯t do much more than that.¡± she said. Ella glanced up at him. ¡°Can you remember what the pains that shaped me were?¡± She asked. Calvin thought about it for a moment, but drew a blank. He was absolutely sure he¡¯d seen something inside her when he¡¯d taken the Guya, but for the life of him, he couldn¡¯t remember it. All that seemed to happen when he thought of it was a foggy head and a vague suggestion of pain. Not particularly helpful. Also, he didn¡¯t desperately desire to make her feel better anymore. The sensation was muted, less visceral. Still there, but more¡­Calvin. I guess it worked. ¡°No I can¡¯t remember them.¡± ¡°And do you still think I¡¯m beautiful and courageous?¡± Ella asked with a hint of a smile. Calvin gave a grudging answer. ¡°Yeah, I still think that. you¡¯re pretty and you¡¯ve saved my life on multiple occasions by now, after all.¡± ¡°Good,¡± Then I still want to be your Uenha¡­.if you¡¯ll be my Poeor?¡± She asked hesitantly, glancing at the bubbling pink liquid in the center of the room. Go back to the way I felt before? Why would I do that? Calvin looked at the Guya. Because this time it¡¯s my choice, not a funnel in the mouth. Calvin thought, taking a deep breath. ¡°Oka-¡° ¡°Whoops!¡± Kala said, ¡®accidentally¡¯ cutting her palm with a shard of glass from her teacup and splashing it into the bowl. ¡°Anehua ga buenhe sa T¡¯chika!¡± Ella shouted, which roughly translated to ¡°By the powers, what are you doing, crazy woman?¡± albeit a bit more derogatory. Genosian Language had reached level 6! 30% Correction. ¡°Sorry, let me take care of that,¡± Kala said, grabbing the bowl before they could react and downing a third of it, reeling back with a chuckle as Calvin snatched it out of her hands. ¡°This was your plan all along,¡± The Genosian warrior woman accused, face scrunched into a scowl. ¡°No, I absolutely wanted to help you two get over the Guya thing, but in war and politics,¡± Kala said, leaning against Calvin¡¯s bed, head drooping as she bandaged her palm ¡°Never have just one¡­goal. Did I mention I love you guys?¡± Kala¡¯s head began to slump, the half-finished bandage soaking up the blood from her palm. ¡°Damn,¡± Calvin said, drinking half and passing it to Ella. Kala had the damndest way of forcing him to do what she wanted. Ella shook her head and drank the rest before kneeling on Kala¡¯s other side, helping Calvin tighten her bandage. Calvin was barely finished tying the knot before things started to get weird. Calvin found himself in a three way struggle in what he¡¯d come to think of as the Bridge of Eyes, assaulted by the pain of the death of Kala¡¯s mother and Ella¡¯s sister, once again finding himself unable to answer with a pain that could rival theirs. The only respite was that the bridge seemed to be jostling, shifting directions constantly, but he could feel himself being pulled painfully apart divided into two and consumed by the brown and green bridges that pulled him into themselves. For all that he¡¯d done in his life, personal tragedy had passed him by. He simply didn¡¯t have the same juice these two had in forming their personalities. Calvin ducked inside himself as he searched for something to offer, some defining moment, finding the same broken section of wall inside his mind that he¡¯d seen before. But this time it was different. Large black tubes emerged from the rough edge of the wall, sinking into the walls that housed the picture frames of memories around him. That¡¯s new. Calvin thought, the struggle to keep himself from losing the battle of wills, momentarily set aside. The cave broken into the walls of his mind was just as cold and forboding as last time, except the tubes running from the strange mirror in the center of the room, up and onto the pitch black ceiling, creating strings of blinking lights above him. Calvin stepped closer, ignoring the shadow figures around him as he approached the mirror. Once again the mirror seemed to be backed by a stone obelisk, but this time it was sporting strange black tubes, and the man standing inside it wasn¡¯t a man. The creature looking back at him was nearly seven feet tall, not including the strange circular crest atop its head. It had ruddy brown skin and digitigrade legs, wearing nothing but a few belts with pockets. It seemed to bear some kind of crossbow over It¡¯s shoulder. The scene behind it was much like the one he¡¯d seen before, strange crystalline buildings, left shattered and burning by some kind of cosmic war. The creature silently held out a hand, rough palm emerging from the mirror surface of the obelisk. Calvin took it. *** Harbinger year 6885 ¡°My lord, the Mad King¡¯s forces deployed the new weapon against Pelior.¡± Grethna¡¯s eyes widened. They finished it already? No, that wasn¡¯t supposed to happen. I stopped it! I stopped it! A wave of guilt began to crash over Grethna¡¯s body as the implications began to sink in. Pelior was the home of the rebellion. Where every Harbinger who opposed the Mad King could safely rest. Where their families lived. Where Jeneveve lived. It was supposed to be out of the empire¡¯s reach, but this¡­this had proven otherwise. ¡°There¡¯s no one left.¡± Grethna¡¯s assistant said quietly, while the ship full of Grethna¡¯s most loyal men and women watched, processing his words. ¡°What about their souls?¡± Koke, a massive paragon of Harbinger perfection asked, lifting the messenger off his feet. ¡°We can bring them back, right?¡± ¡°The weapon ripped their souls from their bodies and flung them to the far corners of the universe,¡± the messenger said, choking. ¡°Maybe further. We won¡¯t reunite with them in this lifetime.¡± ¡°Fuck!¡± Koke shouted, tossing the messenger aside. ¡°I¡¯ll kill every last one of them!¡± ¡°No!¡± Grethna shouted, casually bringing the others to their knees with his aura. ¡°I¡¯ll go. I¡¯ll turn myself in. I¡¯ll kill the mad king myself, and we will be free.¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Grethna took a shuddering breath and muscled past the mounting guilt at his terrible decisions and lack of foresight. ¡°I know that all of you have nothing left to lose right now, but it¡¯s my selfish wish that all of keep going anyway. You¡¯re all that¡¯s left of the rebellion. If you die¡­It dies with you. Koke struggled to his feet, barely managing to overcome the suppressive power Grethna exuded. ¡°My lord, please. Take me with you. ¡°Koke, you¡¯re the best friend I¡¯ve ever had. I don¡¯t want to subject you to this. there¡¯s no purpose to it. ¡°I¡¯ll follow you to death and beyond, My lord. The Mad king has nothing I fear.¡± Koke, said, saluting in typical Harbinger style, his fingers folded above his heart. ¡°I was afraid of that,¡± Grethna said, his heart sinking. He knew no matter what, there was nothing he could say to stop Koke without compromising everything he¡¯d worked for.¡°Come on then, let¡¯s face our end.¡± Together the two of them stepped through the teleporter, arriving in a dark and musty room, thick with the smell of rusting metal. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Koke asked, looking over his guard at the abandoned building they had found themselves in. The big man had obviously been expecting the silver halls of the King¡¯s city. ¡°You brought one of your rebel friends,¡± Emelior, Consul to the Mad King said, as he emerged from the shadows. ¡°A strong one too. That was stupid.¡± ¡°What is this?¡± Koke asked frowning. ¡°I gave you Pelior¡¯s location so you could inspire more people to join our cause, not gut us!¡± Grethna shouted. ¡°I did inspire more people to join your cause,¡± Emelior said with a sly grin. ¡°As a matter of fact, after the treatment of Pelior, discontent is spreading across the entire empire like wildfire. No less than a dozen planets have opted to openly declare our lord The Mad King and throw their lot in with yours, and even those that haven¡¯t harbor millions of malcontents who secretly support you. Your rebellion is assured to succeed now, whether you are around to see it or not. Which you won¡¯t.¡± More harbingers began to emerge from the shadows, melting out of thin air with their characteristic natural command of Bent ¡°My lor_¡± Koke choked off the honorific halfway through ¡°Grethna! What in Vashniel¡¯s name is this? You gave them our home!¡± There were no more words exchanged as Koke lunged forward, arms outstretched aiming to grapple Grethna¡¯s crest and break his neck. It was a brief but vicious struggle in which Grethna was forced to kill his best friend on the same day his home, his love, and his rebellion were stolen from him. *** ¡°Hey dude, the poles are done setting,¡± Baroke¡¯s voice drilled through the tent siding a moment before the flap opened. ¡°The guys wanna know if we should get started ¨C¡° The huge archer stopped in place as he saw the tangled mess of naked limbs sprawled around Calvin¡¯s room. The big guy paused, jaw hanging low as Calvin groaned, glaring up at him through bleary eyes and a pounding headache, feebly trying to drag the covers off the bed to cover the three of them. ¡°You know what? You seem busy. I¡¯m just gonna handle it.¡± ¡°Morning,¡± the slender princess muttered as the flap closed, plunging them back into comfortable darkness. Her eyes were red and puffy as she held her forehead, sitting up off the floor and pushing one of Ella¡¯s oversized arms off of her chest. ¡°Everyone still alive?¡± The disturbance woke Ella, who pushed herself up with a sharp intake of breath and a massive yawn showing off her razor-sharp teeth. ¡°Still alive.¡± Ella said, smacking her lips. ¡°And ready for the next part.¡± ¡°Next part?¡± ¡°Right,¡± Kala said, nodding. ¡°The tattooing the husband part.¡± Ella said with a wicked grin. ¡°It¡¯s not official without it.¡± Calvin thought back to all the Genosian men he¡¯d seen with intricate tattooing on their head and backs. ¡°Crap.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 150: You wouldn’t hit a baby, would you? Calvin¡¯s army of humans and Cobalts sat in a swath of land cleared by the knick-knacks as they constructed the dock and the barges. Calvin himself was eating breakfast on a tree stump and watching Karen¡¯s first lesson as he considered his Genosian breeding tattoo. Turned out Ella had bought tattooing needles from Mujenan, just in case she should she ever have the need. Calvin rolled his eyes at the thought and centered his attention on Karen, strutting back and forth in front of the assembled army, with her baby tucked in the crook of her muscle-bound arm, a swaddled little love-child with curly brown hair, and light brown skin at odds with his mother¡¯s blonde hair and pale, freckled skin. ¡°I look around, I see a lot of chubby cheeked babies calling themselves Legends.¡± Karen¡¯s voice echoed over the assembled crowd. ¡°Legends! Real legends, spend years on the battlefield drifting from one conflict to the next, honing their skills and surviving earth-shattering events no one has any right to survive. They discover unique skills and develop secret fighting styles to get an edge on the completition. One trick after another to help them survive.¡± There was a bit of muttering as Karen laid into them. ¡°You?¡± She said, her gaze scanning across the crowd. ¡°You all got where you are now by riding my son¡¯s coat-tails.¡± She singled out Gulad, the green-sashed engineer. ¡°What was your sixth break?¡± ¡°When Calvin killed the army outside Cobalt Castle.¡± Gulad muttered. ¡°And what about your seventh?¡± ¡°Working in the Warp Warehouse.¡± Gulad admitted. ¡°Oh? Any danger, any life-or-death situation between those two Breaks?¡± Karen asked. ¡°No ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°And how many of you have the exact same story?¡± Nearly everyone raised their hands. ¡°That¡¯s right. You may think you¡¯re an unstoppable army of epic proportions, but that¡¯s an epic load of Guar shit of unstoppable proportions!¡± ¡°A fifth-Break Veteran who¡¯s been around the block a time or two could beat you fools silly. Easily. Your limits have been raised by these last two Breaks, but you haven¡¯t had anyone to push you to explore them. Well, guess what? I¡¯m back from maternity leave, and that ends today. From now on, I¡¯m your wrathful god, and every whim is a command blasted down from the horns of the divines straight into your goddamned earballs.¡± One of the young men in Calvin¡¯s army raised a hand, Causing Karen¡¯s attention to lock onto him. The young soldier shivered a moment and swallowed before speaking. ¡°Are you sure you should be nursing while teaching us? It¡¯s kind of distracting, and the baby¡­¡± The man¡¯s words died in his mouth. Karen glanced down at the baby latched onto her boob and back up to the young Legend. ¡°Yes I am. He gets fussy if he doesn¡¯t eat between me brutalizing people. What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Hurt.¡± ¡°Oooh, that¡¯s unfortunate,¡± Karen said with a wince, ¡°Because you, Hurt, just volunteered for our first demonstration. You don¡¯t have to worry about this little cutie. You¡¯re not even gonna be able to make me move.¡± Karen motioned him to come to the front of the class then tossed him a wooden sword. ¡°So you don¡¯t hurt yourself,¡± She said by way of explanation as the man frowned a the wooden blade. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get this over with, I¡¯ve got more people to humiliate after you, you know. Attack.¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am, could you humiliate me after you set down the baby?¡± Hurt asked, glancing at the baby, then back up to her. ¡°I refuse to attack while you¡¯re holding one.¡± Hurt said, holding his guard up, but not advancing. ¡°Oh you do, do you?¡± Karen asked. ¡°I guess you¡¯re a dead end then. I personally knew sixteen men who died because they couldn¡¯t bring themselves to kill a woman or a baby. Consider this training for real-world warfare. I¡¯ve killed more women than I can count and dashed my fair share of babies against rocks because they were gonna starve otherwise.¡± Karen broke into a grin. ¡°You do know women and babies make up more than half of all people, don¡¯t you? Consider this a crash course in baby-murdering, Legend, and attack me.¡± ¡°Nevertheless.¡± Hurt said, shaking his head. ¡°I won¡¯t risk hurting that baby.¡± Karen sighed and looked up at the sky in exasperation. ¡°Nothing you can do is going to hurt the damn baby.¡± When Hurt didn¡¯t attack, Karen decided to take matters into her own hands. ¡°Okay, then we¡¯ll change tactics.¡± Karen¡¯s sword whipped forward and impacted against the tip of Hurt¡¯s with a resounding clack, sending the tip of his blade shooting backwards, impacting against his forehead, cutting open his brow. ¡°Stop hitting yourself,¡± Karen said with a smirk. Ooh, Calvin thought with a wince. The old ¡®stop hitting yourself¡¯ beating. She must be pissed. Clack. ¡°Stop hitting yourself.¡± She forced Hurt¡¯s blade down into his own thigh. Clack ¡°Stop hitting yourself.¡± Clack. Clack. Finally Hurt lost his temper and swung his blade back wildly with a sudden inhaliation of breath, aiming to bring it crashing down on Karen. Karen saw it coming a mile away, and held up baby Sacha, thrusting the squirming infant directly between herself and Hurt. Hurt hesitated, blade raised above his head. Karen¡¯s practice sword caught Hurt on the side of the chin and kneck, sending him tumbling down in to the soft dirt of the jungle. Karen leaned over and spat on Hurt¡¯s back as he groaned into the ground. ¡°And that¡¯s exactly how my first lieutenant, Abram, died. The lesson here ladies: Don¡¯t be Abram. When you pick up that sword you are a pitiless killing machine, and when you set it down you are a normal human with feelings, hopes, dreams and all that stupid shit.¡± ¡°While you¡¯ve got the sword in your hand, you bundle all those emotions that make you hesitate together, put a nice little bow around them, and don¡¯t unwrap them until you set the damn thing down.¡± ¡°Now,¡± Karen said with a malicious grin as she scanned the assembled soldiers. ¡°Who wants to go next?¡± The dirt beside Calvin crunched as someone approached, pulling his attention over to Maya, who was walking over to him from the main camp, the sound of Knick-Knack saws on wood covering her sound until that moment. ¡°Are you um¡­sure that Karen¡¯s the right person to teach them how to fight Legends?¡± Maya asked. The little ranger was taking a break between assignments to visit Baroke and watch the general infantry being trained by Karen. ¡°Karen taught me everything I know about fighting,¡± Calvin said. ¡°She¡¯s the reason I¡¯m still alive.¡± ¡°Did her lessons include using a baby as a shield?¡± Maya asked. ¡°No, this is new,¡± Calvin said, frowning as he worried about his half-step-brother baby. He wasn¡¯t going to say anything about it, though. Karen would beat up on him if he did, and Calvin was fairly sure Karen wasn¡¯t going to let Sacha get hurt or killed to prove a point. If she sparred with someone tough enough to cause a problem, she would put the baby down first. Probably. Calvin couldn¡¯t imagine Grant hesitating because there was a baby in front of him. ¡°C¡¯mon you spineless fucks!¡± Karen shouted. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the kid and attack like you mean it! I can just make more!¡± ¡°Wow.¡± Maya said, her jaw slackening as Karen continued her lesson. ¡°Yeah¡­ I think I¡¯d rather be somewhere else,¡± Calvin said. He knew Sacha was probably going to be fine, but this was causing a nervous tic in his legs. Calvin finished breakfast and went over to the docks, where Baroke was assisting with securing the prefabricated walkways onto the main supports buried deep in the riverbank. As usual, the archer was showing off, shirtless and singlehandedly passing chunks of dock up to the people on top of the poles, who began using their wooden hammers to pound the dock into place. The whole thing was tension fit by the Knick-knack¡¯s exacting woodwork, without needing a single nail. The nails were valuable, and Calvin didn¡¯t want to use them up on a dock when he didn¡¯t have to. The reason humans were doing that work was because of its unskilled nature. The hard stuff was being take care of by the Knick-knacks, namely taking apart the wagons piece by piece and converting them efficiently into boats in a matter of days. The jungle had a lot of different kinds of wood, but none of it was dry, with the sole exception of the wagons they¡¯d brought along with them. I bet we could come up with an alchemical way to season wood if we tried. Elliot said. A little beneath us, but we could do it. Speaking of alchemy, Calvin thought. I decided what I want to make the tattoo ink out of. Ooh, ooh, is it a damage absorber? Is it going to replace any flesh that gets damaged or blood that gets lost? Is it going to be a pre-packaged summon ready to burst out of your skin at a moment¡¯s notice? How about Mage Armor permanently inked under your skin? I was thinking a way to feel Ella¡¯s direction and emotions, like she has with me. I¡¯m pretty sure we could do it by mixing her blood with powdered Lure Membrane to make the ink. What? You want a Find My Friends app? That¡¯s boring. Also more thematic to a marriage tattoo. Fiiine, but I agree to this under protest. Permanent mage armor sounds like a good way to not be getting holes poked in you all the time. And we might be able to steal her Iron Skin ability. Now you¡¯re talking! Calvin walked to the back of the line where his personal wagon was. It was packed with jars filled with powders harvested from the Abyss, what some of the soldiers more affectionately called the Warp Warehouse. Since he¡¯d created it, it had taken a few weeks to get the hand of it, but under Loren¡¯s caretaking, the threat to the city had been contained and a new revenue stream for the royal family had been created. One that Calvin was unashamed to siphon off of. After all, he¡¯d created the damn thing. His company¡¯s name was on the side of the building after all. Now Calvin knew why Maruk hated taxes, though. A huge portion of his hard-won money ripped from his hands to fund his puppet government. Well, that wasn¡¯t so bad. But it would have sucked if it wasn¡¯t under his control. Calvin climbed up into the wagon and began rifling through the labeled jars of powders ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, allowing Abyssal Alchemy guide him as he picked out ingredient after ingredient. ¡°It¡¯s going to take Lure membrane, of course, And a bonding agent to fuse it with her blood¡­¡± Calvin picked out the Husker bonding agent, then a stabilizer to prevent it from mixing with Calvin¡¯s blood and diluting over time. Something like gluten to make it all bond into one solid piece once it¡¯s already in your skin. Elliot suggested. Huh¡­ or have it all communicate without touching. On the same wavelength you mean? What¡¯s a wavelength? Calvin asked. It described the frequency of a vibration. It ¨C you know what? We¡¯ll get into that later. Point is we might need more of the Husker long range Wi-Fi ability in there. Now we need a pigment. Calvin thought as he placed another jar in his satchel. Black¡¯s a good, solid choice. Elliot said. Black, black, black¡­ Calvin thought as he searched through the labeled jars for something that would do what he wanted. There were tens of creatures that lived in the Abyss that he hadn¡¯t seen due to his short time living there, so he was facing more jars than he could easily go through in a few seconds. I¡¯ve got liquid shadow and Primal Fear. Calvin thought, picking up two jars and examining them. One manifested as living shadow when it was reconstituted, while the other would terrify anyone who came into visual contact with it. No black, though. Oh wait, how about this one? Calvin thought, picking up a jar made of refined Bobber melanins. Bobbers were pole-ball sized flies whose skin ¨C shell? ¨C color rippled in a hypnotic pattern as they approached deceptively quickly, bobbing in the air like some kind of flotsam. When they got close a taloned tongue would grab its victim and yank it inside its bone-crunching beak. ¡°What do you think?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Get a little bit of motion?¡± As long as you don¡¯t try to fuse with Geena Davis at the end. Still don¡¯t know what that means, Calvin thought, putting the pigment in his bag. Macronomicon Today is cause for celebration, as it''s the first week I managed to complete a chapter every single work day without fail in like, a month and a half...maybe longer. Hope you''re still reading and still having a good time, if you feel the unfettered desire to help out, rating the story is a great way to do that! Of course Patreon is still ahead at 178 Chapters! (Not by, at). We''ll be chipping away at the lead this weekend. If you''re unable to contain your need for more shenanigans, come check it out! Chapter 151: Inked While Calvin¡¯s adoptive mother was busily scarring people for life, Calvin got busy making the ink, recalling the briefing on Genosian Tattoo rituals. ¡°In a Genosian bonding ritual,¡± Ella had said, ¡°The man chooses the ink and the pattern. The woman chooses the size and location. During the tattooing, the man must remain still and suffer through wherever his prospective mate chooses to apply it.¡± ¡°So you could put it on my face if you wanted to?¡± Calvin asked, hesitantly. ¡°Yes. Actually, many women who aren¡¯t particularly enthusiastic about getting married choose a large tattoo covering the face, eyeballs, or scrotum. Then if the man is able to sit through the whole process, everyone can at least agree that he earned it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not going to tattoo my face, eyes or scrotum, are you?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°You¡¯ll just have to trust me,¡± Ella said sweetly, her sharp teeth creating a jagged smile. ¡°The other role that the size of a tattoo plays is symbolic.¡± Ella continued. ¡°If a woman covers most of a man¡¯s skin with the symbol he¡¯s chosen for her, that¡¯s somewhat indicative of how possessive she is over him, and how likely she is to accept other tattoos besides her own.¡± ¡°How does that work?¡± Calvin ¡°I once saw a man from the Bounder tribe whose first wife covered every square inch of his body. Other women knew to stay away from him. Because if she could stomach doing that to her mate, what would she be capable of doing to another woman?¡± ¡°Poor guy.¡± Calvin muttered. ¡°Not being able to sleep around?¡± Kala asked, with a raised brow. ¡°Getting poked with needles every day for what had to be years.¡± Kala slammed her hand down on the table. ¡°I want in on this.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Please?¡± Kala said, looking up at Ella with misty eyes. ¡°Why are you asking her?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°Don¡¯t I get a say in this?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say no to that face,¡± Ella said, picking up the princess and setting the slender girl on her lap.¡± You can¡¯t say no to that face because I can¡¯t say no to that face, damnit. The effect of the Guya was strong as ever for Ella, and Kala hadn¡¯t divulged whether she¡¯d been affected. Calvin was pretty sure she had. For Calvin though, the Guya had taken a much less intrusive role in his mind, allowing his actual thoughts and feeling to take the reigns of his behavior rather than forcing him. Overall the effect was more muted, but much less worrisome. And Calvin didn¡¯t know if it had changed anything about his feelings for Kala. He already would have murdered people for her, so he didn¡¯t really feel that much different. ¡°You¡¯ve already consummated with Kala, so by Genosian tribal law you owe her a tattoo to symbolize your union.¡± Ella said, petting Kala as she spoke. The princess seemed to purr and melt into the genosian¡¯s lap. Calvin tapped his fingers and peered at them warily. They were teaming up against him, and it was at once amazing and horrible, to be constantly outnumbered and outvoted. He could bring up the fact that neither he nor Kala were Genosian nor were they bound by genosian tribal law. ¡°Sorry, Neither of us are bound by ¨C¡° ¡°Once you have a Bond tattoo from me, you are considered part of the tribe, and therefore an adulterer if Kala isn¡¯t included.¡± ¡°This is ridiculous.¡± Calvin said, holding up his hand with the wedding ring. ¡°If symbolism is all that¡¯s needed, this is plenty, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Oh, Calvin, I wouldn¡¯t want you to be visited by Genosian dignitaries one day and have them think you¡¯re an adulterer.¡± ¡°That¡¯s ¨C¡° ¡°I guess I can just stop having sex with him altogether. That should prevent any misunderstandings.¡± Kala said, tearfully. ¡°Now, now, don¡¯t cry,¡± Ella said, wiping away Kala¡¯s tears. I¡¯d be more than happy to warm your¨C¡° ¡°Fine.¡± Calvin said, throwing up his hands, ¡°I should have just given up at the beginning.¡± ¡°Probably,¡± Kala said, wiping away her crocodile tears. ¡°Make sure you choose a different pattern for both of us,¡± Ella said. ¡°It¡¯s bad form to give two mates the same pattern.¡± ¡°Fine,¡± Calvin said, rubbing his temples. This was worse than getting married in Gadvera, but there was nothing to do but power through it. ¡°So how are our tattoos going to fit together?¡± Kala asked, looking up at the shark-toothed girl while sitting in her lap. ¡°We won¡¯t know until he gives us the patterns, but we need to at least take up a significant portion of his back, to make sure others get the message that he¡¯s taken.¡± ¡°True,¡± Kala said, glancing back down at Calvin with narrowed eyes. ¡°He does have a nasty habit of collecting young women.¡± ¡°Since when!?¡± Calvin demanded, pointing at Ella. ¡°She wasn¡¯t my fault, and I don¡¯t even like Nadia. I made her a Chained spirit for information on Iletha and nothing else.¡± Calvin¡¯s lovers watched him with narrowed eyes and disbelieving frowns. ¡°You seem to have an awful lot of fun tormenting her,¡± Kala said airly. Calvin glanced out of the tent where Nadia had been tied to a pole and forced to catch rain drops in her mouth overnight. The leather-clad princess glared back at him with a furious blush in her cheeks. ¡°That¡¯s just maintenance.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°She gets unruly if you don¡¯t humiliate her a couple times a week.¡± ¡°Uh-huh. You sure are creative with your punishments.¡± ¡°You know what, I don¡¯t have to take this!¡± Calvin said, standing. ¡°I¡¯m gonna go have breakfast.¡± Calvin marched out of his own tent, the sound of giggling following him out onto the beaten dirt outside. He wasn¡¯t particularly mad, and they weren¡¯t particularly conspiring against him: It was just fun to go through the motions. *** ¡°And then I went and got the powders I needed, then set up my lab, and here we are,¡± Calvin said, glancing over at Nadia. ¡°Aaaaah¡± She said around the funnel in her mouth. ¡°Now, I realized that I¡¯m going to have to test these tattoos on someone to make sure I get their effects right. And I thought to myself, whose skin could I mess with a little without it being permanent?¡± ¡°Uuaahe.¡± Nadia said. ¡°Kurawe is a good answer, and while he¡¯d probably be happy to go through a little pain to help me out, I need someone with younger skin.¡± Nadia rolled her eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s get started.¡± Calvin took a drop of blood from Kala and Ella, filled a jar using undifferentiated mass, then spent the next few hours going through trial and error, trying to find the perfect mixture and perfect process to get the type of ink that he wanted. Sometimes it picked up Kala and Ella¡¯s feelings, but the ink didn¡¯t show on the skin, other times the reverse, sometimes nothing happened, sometimes it seemed to cause a painful mental feedback. After two hours and the thirteenth batch, Calvin was ready for a change of plans, and Elliot had a suggestion. Here¡¯s something I¡¯ve been thinking about for a while. Back when we were fishing for monsters, your fishing skill applied to the Knick-knacks. You think Abyssal Alchemy would work here, if you were in charge of them? Elliot asked. More hands, huh? Calvin asked, thinking. That could work. Chained Spirit Chained Spirit Chained Spirit Chained Spirit Chained Spirit ¡­ Calvin summoned an even dozen Nadias, creating a much larger testing sample. Chained Spirit has reached level 25! +1 Will Please Choose an Ability or Mutation Abilities: Bent: The Chained Spirit gains a limited pool to draw from to fuel Abilities. The effects of the abilities are extentions of Chained Spirit and not actual Bent. Pool is 1/5th the level of Chained Spirit. Chimera: The user may rearrange parts from any slotted creature onto any other slotted creature in any combination. Extended Summoning: Time limit is increased by (Sta)% Hijack: At will, user may fall into a meditative state to control the body of a chained Spirit. All senses of primary body are cut off for the duration. ^Make sure you left yourself somewhere safe. From Chained minds. Slanted Negotiations: User may sacrifice two Bent to allow a chained spirit to spend one without needing to manifest a physical form. The origin of the effect is the user. The Bent, once given to the Chained spirit, is out of the User¡¯s control. Mutations: Voodoo U: Damage taken by caster is absorbed by Chained spirit instead. Walk a mile in her heels: User¡¯s body may be subsumed by the Chained spirit Spell, allowing them to become the Chained Spirit at the moment of casting. User may exercise complete control over the Chained spirit, give instructions, or simply allow it to do as it wishes. ^from Heart of the Swarm. Heirloom Spirit: User¡¯s Chained spirits are duplicated and given to User¡¯s most direct descendants upon user¡¯s death. *no eating required! Calvin briefly scanned the options, then chose Chimera. The only ones that competed with the utility of Chimera were Extended summon and Voodoo U, and Calvin already was planning on making some adjustments to Nadia¡¯s form as necessary. Giving Nadia Bent was, of course, totally out of the question until Calvin was absolutely sure she couldn¡¯t screw him over somehow, and then even after that. Slanted negotiations was interesting in that it gave him limited access to Nadia¡¯s abilities in an emergency situation. As long as he put her in a situation where she had to cast the spell he wanted or they might die, it would work out just fine. Except that sounded like a giant pain in the ass and a slippery slope towards giving Nadia free reign to do whatever she wanted. So no, he chose Chimera. Now that he had Chimera on both Chained Spirit and Calvinian Summoning, he could move parts back and forth between the two Abilities on the fly. Let¡¯s face it, you were planning on putting Nadia¡¯s boobs on a wasp. Is that the second time you¡¯ve made that joke? Calvin thought as he summoned a swarm of Knick-knacks. Ummm¡­ maybe? Definitely not the first time I¡¯ve thought of it. Calvin rolled his eyes and duplicated the jars across a dozen different tables, lined with burners, filtered water, and fuel to boil each stage of the ink. Each of the dozen Nadias was strapped down to the table, and then Calvin¡¯s kncick-knacks got to work, mixing ingredients and communicating their findings with each other, then preparing new mixtures at a rate Calvin couldn¡¯t even hope to match. Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 13! 65% Correction. There we go, Calvin thought, sitting back on one of the stump as the knick-knacks narrowed in on the perfect ink preparation. It only took the knick-knacks another hour to come back to him with the ideal mixture, having tried more permutations of ingredients and preparation methods than he could have done in a week by himself. They focused on the trait they could perceive first, that of the ink being visible, then expanded on any preparation method that resulted in a tangible result, asking Nadia to verify if she could feel emotions coming from the tattoo. Knick-knacks weren¡¯t particularly vocal, so they developed a wordless system where they would poke Nadia and she would tell them if she felt anything. After three hours of work, Calvin finally had two jars of black ink ready to go, one keyed to Kala, the other to Ella. ¡°Wow, that was faster than I expected.¡± Ella said when Clavin proudly dropped the two jars of thick ink onto the table in front of them. ¡°Usually a man spends weeks harvesting blackroot and chewing it into a thick paste then rendering it down. This gives him time to come up with a pattern that matched his lover. Did you already have a pattern in mind for each of us, or are you just premature?¡± ¡°Am I¡­allowed to talk to you about what kind of pattern you¡¯d like?¡± Calvin asked with a frown. ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t you be?¡± Ella responded. That was a weight off his mind. Calvin had no idea what they wanted. ¡°So what patterns do you two like?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°We¡¯ve assembled a list of demands,¡± Ella said, passing him a stack of scribbles. ¡°Suggestions, Ella, Suggestions,¡± Kala chided. The drawings ranged from intertwined geometric shapes to animals and simple pictures of the girls themselves. ¡°Any of these would be fine, but you¡¯ve got to pick them.¡± Calvin scanned through them, his eyes settling on the water lotus and Nektor beetle. ¡°These look good.¡± Calvin said, pointing them out. ¡°Really?¡± Kala asked with a frown. Calvin was an instant away from reconsidering when he realized that they were just testing him. Thank you Intuition. ¡°Yes, those remind me of you.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Very well. We¡¯ll get started on the tattoo tomorrow morning.¡± Ella glanced over at Kala. ¡°First I¡¯ve got to teach this soft city-dweller how to do proper Skin-art.¡± Ella looked back at Calvin. ¡°Can we borrow Nadia for a while?¡± ¡°Knock yourself out,¡± Calvin said, waving them out of the tent. Macronomicon 7/15. Making progress! Enjoy, and I''ll see you guys tomorrow! Chapter 152: A day in the life of Goob ***Goob*** The life of a lab assistant is rough, Goob thought, yawning as he walked back to his tent after a long day of organizing research data from the knick-knacks. While the knick knacks were smart and coordinated, they often missed variables that were obvious to a living, breathing human being. For example one of the inks was accompanied by uncontrollable weeping, which Goob struck off the list of possibilities. It was also Goob¡¯s job to watch for opportunities that weren¡¯t obvious to a machine. Their task was solely to find an ink that acted as a psychic receiver tuned to a single individual, so when they accidentally made an ink that changed colors to the user¡¯s emotions, Goob had made a note of it beside the recipe they¡¯d used. Calvin had smiled when he read the description and called it a ¡®mood tattoo¡¯ and said there would probably be quite a market for it among the young and wealthy. My hero said I did a good job! Goob thought, puffing out his chest as he strutted down the packed earth of the camp. Most of the other students at the tower didn¡¯t see the opportunity Calvin represented. Why would I want to learn the way to fail like those old bags in the tower failed when I can learn the way to conquer kingdoms and especially princesses straight from the guy who¡¯s actually doing it!? When Calvin had left Mujenan, Goob had bowed and scraped, doing anything he possibly could to get permission to follow him out to his new city. Didn¡¯t think being a Master Wizard would involve so much paperwork¡­Goob felt a prick on his neck, smacking it reflexively. Or so many mosquitos. Goob was opening the flap of his tent when he realized he had to pee. Ah, damnation, the latrine¡¯s on the other side of the camp. He glanced off to his left, where the jungle sprawled out in front of him. I¡¯ll just pee in a bush. Humming, Goob stepped off into the woods, getting behind one of the oversized jungle trees, dropping his trousers and aiming at a nearby bush. Goob narrowed his eyes, glaring at the quivering wretch of a bush. ¡°You have offended Goob, Master of the tower. For this slight, you shall suffer the Golden Rain of Pe-Pe.¡± Goob relaxed his bladder. ¡°Fools, the Golden Rain of Pe-Pe is no ordinary rain. It is a hundred times more dense than water. Every single droplet weighs the same as a boulder, making each one a spear in my arsenal, an unending assault that penetrates your meager defenses with ease.¡± Goob was chuckling when he felt a prick on his neck. Slap. ¡°Damn mosquitos,¡± Goob grumbled. He pulled his hand away and glanced at it. Cheese. Rather than the speck of blood and the tiny ruined body of a mosquito, there was a spot of hot cheese and a bit of grease on his hand. ¡°Fuck.¡± ¡°Goob,¡± a voice crooned from above him. Fuck! Goob tried to make a run for it, but his pants around his ankles tripped him up, forcing him to collapse directly on the bush he¡¯d been punishing for its insolence. Goob didn¡¯t have time to think about the implications as warm, crispy bread clamped down around him, picking him up and turning him to face his attacker. ¡°How are you doing, Goob? I¡¯ve missed you so much! Have you been eating?¡± her tone sounded concerned, but there was a crazy glint in her eye when she mentioned eating. The grilled cheese monster looked like an exotic Malkenrovian girl only five years or so older than Goob himself, her brilliant blonde hair blending seamlessly with the cheese oozing out of her amorphous lower body. She had rich red lips, manic blue eyes and one of her arms dissolved into cheese, fused with her lower body, which was currently wrapped around him. The lower body was a masse of grilled cheese slices in a riot of various sizes and shapes. ¡°Hi Kim, I¡¯m not really hungry right now, so ¨C¡° Kim¡¯s warm smile vanished in an instant. ¡°You¡¯ve been eating someone else, haven¡¯t you!¡± She demanded, squeezing him tighter. Okay, I was totally wrong. This kind of girl is way less endearing in real life. If I get out of this alive, I want a nice girl who gives me plenty of space. ¡°No, I haven¡¯t eaten anything since last time, you visited, honest.¡± Goob babbled, struggling in her grasp. Goob felt the crust give way under his struggling and pushed harder, his elbow poking through the crispy bread with a tiny crack. Pain! Goob had briefly forgotten in his struggle, but under the bread was scalding hot cheese. Scalding hot cheese that was currently spreading over his elbow. Goob panted and held as still and possible, breathing through his teeth as the cheese spread, burning his arm. ¡°Really?¡± Kim asked. Touching her chest in a motion of concern, her heaving breasts momentarily distracting Goob. ¡°Uh, yeah, I haven¡¯t been eating anyone else, babe.¡± ¡°You must be starving!¡± she breathed. Crap. ¡°But why did you say you weren¡¯t hungry?¡± she asked, her eyes narrowing. ¡°When you haven¡¯t eaten for a long time, the body kind of gets used to it. It just fades into the background.¡± Goob knew this from bitter personal experience before he¡¯d been brought to the tower. ¡°Oh, goodness, you should take better care of yourself! Eat up!¡± Kim¡¯s left arm detatched from the main mass of her lower body, a hunk of grilled cheese sandwiches topping the cheese-arm like a mace. Kim shoved the mass of cheese and crispy bread into Goob¡¯s mouth, forcing him to take a bite. Despite this absolutely horrifying violation of his personal space and body, Goob had to admit that he could imagine a damn fine-tasting grilled cheese. Not that Goob had a lot of time to worry about that. One bite was followed by another, once again forced into his mouth with no regard for letting him breath or consideration for the limits of his mouth and stomach. ¡°AAAM!¡± Goob tried to shout through all the cheese in his mouth. ¡°You must really like it,¡± Kim said sweetly, her face glowing with happiness. ¡°Here, have some more, you handsome man. Oh, I just want to love you to death!¡± Nope. Noooope. Earth Shape 8/15 Bent remaining. Goob created a pillar of earth directly under his feet and forced it upward, shooting himself out of Kim grasp. Goob spat out the wad of cheese and took a grateful gasp of air, before shouting at the top of his lungs. ¡°HELP! KIM CURDASHIAN¡¯S BACK!¡± Kim clicked her tongue and sprinted out into the jungle, away from the camp. The cheese monster, dubbed by Calvin as an Angry Cheese, moved frightfully quickly, whipping a long strand of cheese up into the low hanging branches before hauling itself up into the canopy. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± one of the rank and file soldiers asked, trotting out into the woods moments after he¡¯d called out, discovering Goob trembling against the tree, his clothes covered in grease and cheese. Goob drew a small crowd as he struggled to pull himself together. ¡°Looks like the kid¡¯s had another visit from the Cheese Squeeze.¡± On guy said with a chuckle. ¡°That¡¯s way better than Angry cheese.¡± ¡°Well, are you gonna go get her?¡± Goob demanded, pointing so that the muscleheaded fighters knew which direction to march. ¡°Nah, Lord Gadsint said you should deal with her by yourself, and only step in if she¡¯s killing you.¡± ¡°It almost did kill me!¡± Goob said, aghast at the peon¡¯s Blas¨¦ attitude. The leader of the squad looked Goob up and down, and his expression softened somewhat. ¡°You¡¯re covered in cheese. Take a bath by the dock. Get yourself some extra soap from the quartermaster.¡± Goob glanced down at his stained shirt and his reddening elbow. Not really seeing anything better to do, Goob went and did as he was told. Getting cleaned up and a change of clothes improved his mood drastically, and he was thinking that even meathead non-wizards might have the occasional nugget of wisdom as he approached Calvin¡¯s tent. The leader of the company was sitting there by himself, thumbing his chin idly, playing with the thin beard starting to come in on his chin. ¡°Just got attacked by the Cheese Woman.¡± Goob said, drawing Calvin¡¯s attention to himself. ¡°Why won¡¯t they help me?¡± ¡°Because people grow by solving problems. This particular one was made by you, and hasn¡¯t proven disruptive to anyone other than you. this means I can ignore the problem for as I have to. If you want Kim Curdashian to stop bothering you, identify exactly what the problem is with her, and enact a plan to fix it. You¡¯ve find that when you do, you¡¯re one step closed to being a master wizard.¡± ¡°What!?¡± Goob shouted, his jaw dropping. ¡°That¡¯s so freaking deep!¡± It makes sense! He wants me to be the best wizard I can be! ¡°I¡¯m gonna get right on this!¡± Goob considered for a moment, the seed of a plan forming in his mind. ¡°Can I get the key to your wagon?¡± He asked. ¡°Why?¡± Calvin asked, looking him over intensely. ¡°I wanna make a spell to get rid of her. That¡¯s what a wizard should do, right?¡± Calvin¡¯s eyebrows raised, then he reached in his pocket and tossed Goob the key. ¡°Make sure you experiment far away from the wagon, Goob!¡± he called as goob left the tent. Goob stopped and snapped a quick salute. ¡°Of course, sir!¡± Then he broke into a sprint, hauling ass toward the wagon filled with goodies. ***Calvin*** Calvin watched the apprentice run away at full speed, shaking his head. Goob did everything at full speed. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve got the rest of the afternoon to kill,¡± He said, pushing himself up to his feet. ¡°This should be fun.¡± ***Goob*** Okay, so I need to identify the problem with Kim Curdashian. The problem isn¡¯t that she¡¯s a giant cheese monster, the problem is that she consistently tries to kill me through being loving to a creepy degree and constantly trying to smother me with grilled cheese sandwiches. Goob shook his head. I¡¯ll probably never like them again, damnit. Now that he identified the problem he had to come up with a solution to it. The most logical way to solve this problem was to pit it against something equal and opposite and let them cancel each other out. Ah-hah! Goob thought as he opened the wagon. The door swung open and the interior expanded to the size of a small house as Goob shrank, entering Calvin¡¯s storage wagon. A boyfriend is the opposite of a girlfriend. Pit them against each other¡­That¡¯s it! All I have to do is imagine the perfect boyfriend for Kim, then she¡¯ll love him instead and leave me alone! Goob rubbed his hands together in anticipation as he secured Calvin¡¯s iron flask. There was still plenty of mass left in here to make another imaginary monster. He clicked the selector on the bottom to freeform. ¡°Okay, gotta focus,¡± Gotta concentrate on the perfect boyfriend to get Kim off my case. Perfect boyfriend, perfect boyfriend. Goob was tilting the flask sideways when he realized he was doing something wrong. ¡°Oops.¡± Goob muttered, hastily stopping himself, nearly sloshing the undifferentiated mass out on the floor. ¡°Gotta do this somewhere else.¡± Goob took the flask out of the wagon, closed and locked it, then began searching for a nice wide space to create his secret weapon. ***Calvin*** Oh, man, he got lucky with that one, Calvin thought, using Sense Grafting to spy on Goob¡¯s progress. If the kid had failed to remember Calvin¡¯s one request, he might have to cuss him out, possibly reconsider the apprenticeship, depending on the damage. ***Goob*** This looks like a good spot, Goob thought, selecting a nice open area beside the cookpot. Since dinner wasn¡¯t for another half hour, he would have plenty of time to make Kim¡¯s counteragent. ¡°Alright,¡± Goob said, double checking the settings on the iron flask. Calvin said double and triple checking things was a good habit for a wizard to be in, if they wanted to live a long time. So cool. Goob pumped a fist, ignoring the stares of the Body specialists. They didn¡¯t understand what made Calvin so awesome. They just looked at surface things like kills and arm-candy. Goob was practically a kindred spirit. So Goob triple checked the flask, making sure it was secured and locked on the right setting before he enacted the plan he¡¯d only mentally checked once. Goob closed his eyes and focuse on his image of the perfect boyfriend. What do girls want anyway? Well, big and muscly, I guess, older, rich, nice, and eats her cooking no matter what¡­right? Goob¡¯s eyebrows knotted as he came closer to his dubious idea of the perfect boyfriend. After a few minutes of deep thought, finally the image was solidified in his mind. Once Goob was confident it was perfect he tipped the flask, eyes closed. When he felt the first drops come out of the flask, he inhaled sharply. That soup smells good. Oh, damn. Goob felt scalding hot soup wash over him for an instant before it withdrew, followed by a gurgling voice. ¡°KIIIM, WHERE ARE YOU GIRL!?¡± Goob hesitantly opened his eyes and spotter what looked like a red living fountain with an oversized jaw and a blonde toupe floating on top of what passed for a head on the misshapen thing¡¯s head. It looks like my distraction caused it to be made of tomato soup, but it looks like it still knows what it¡¯s supposed to do. I can still salvage this. ¡°Kim¡¯s that way.¡± Goob said, pointing to the jungle. ¡°She ran away after trying to smother me with cheese.¡± ¡°How do you know Kim? You bragging about her trying to smother you with cheese?¡± The soup-boyfriend demanded, leaning forward and sticking out his jaw aggressively. ¡°Kim¡¯s my girlfriend, she smothers me with cheese, so you better back off or I''ll have to pop you one.¡± If Goob wasn¡¯t so distraught, he might have made out Calvin in the distance roaring with laughter. Macronomicon 8/15. I think? Let me go back and double check that. *Edit: Yep, that''s the right number. Got work done early today so you get the chapter about an hour early. Patreon is 27 chapters ahead, so you guys are catching up, slowly but surely. Also if at any point the baby was named Sasha, that''s a mistake. His name is supposed to be Sacha Sa-Cha with a hard ''tch'' sound. Enjoy! Chapter 153: Swept Away And lo, one day it started raining, unrelenting for four months. We suffered every manner of rain there is. Stinging rain, Heavy, brooding rain, Rain that swept in sideways, and sometimes rain that seemed to rise from below. Forsooth, it even rained at night. Five days upriver, the expedition ran into its first major threat. It wasn¡¯t roaming monsters, or genosian ambush. It was rain. The godsdamned inanimate, mindless weather. ¡°We¡¯ve got to pull off the river!¡± Ella shouted. The genosian fighter had to raise her voice against the pounding of rain against the wooden deck of the barge. ¡°Why?¡± Calvin shouted back. He could harden the air above the barges into enormous roofs long enough for his knick-knacks to devise a more permanent solution. ¡°It¡¯s a flash flood!¡± she shouted. ¡°In a couple minutes, a wall of water is going to hit us from further down the river!¡± Calvin glanced upriver, then back down, looking at the long caravan of barges being hauled by oversized ropes connected to titanic Knick-knacks. Well, he tried to look. The pouring rain blocked all sight beyond two arms out. Calvin could barely see where the barge behind them was tethered to their own. If a sudden flood of water came downriver, they could easily get separated, and some of them might die. Maybe not many of them, considering they were Legends, but still, the lack of visibility combined with poor communications was a very dangerous mixture. ¡°Grant!¡± Calvin shouted, tapping the aging swordsman on the shoulder. The ex-general was wearing an oiled leather poncho with an oversized hood, the absolute picture of stoic misery. The temperature of the jungle had dropped from a balmy seventy degrees to a damp sixty once the wind and rain had set in. All told it was not pleasant. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Fly down to the rearmost barge and tell them to get ready, because we¡¯re getting off the river, starboard side!¡± Calvin said, pointing. ¡°Then work your way to the front!¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Grant said, nodding. Shink. Two of his blades unsheathed and he stepped onto them before the cloaked figure flew up into the dark rain and disappeared. As soon as Grant was gone, Calvin instructed his Knick-knacks to pull the boats in on the starboard side. The port side knick knack began fording the swift water, holding the rope above the water as it walked through the river like a man in a calm pond. Despite the speed of the water that would easily carry away a human, each of the knick-knacks were just over five tons, completely immovable by a little water. Until the flood sent a wave of water carrying a fallen log hurtling forward, smashing into the knick-knack¡¯s chest. Calvin didn¡¯t see what happened, but suddenly the rope on the port side went lack, causing almost everyone to lose their footing when the entire ship jerked, held by only one rope as thick as Calvin¡¯s arm attached to the staboard side. The barge turned sideways, pulled along away from the center of the river by the sudden current. The water that was unable to rush underneath formed a frothy mess against the side of the boat as the drag increased. Still, the Knick-knack upriver was able to resist the pull of the swift current, even reeling in the barge somewhat. A moment later, Calvin saw a large, dark shape emerge from the water, barely visible through the haze of heavy rain. It was a log half as wide as the barge itself and solid wood, weighing far more than the entire construction. It was whirling through the swelling river faster than a galloping guar, while their barge was heading in the opposite direction about as fast as a moseying old man. The weight differences were roughly the same too. What happens when a galloping Guar hits a moseying old man? ¡°Fu-¡° Calvin reached out an arm and did the first thing he could think of in that instant. Trait doctoring Trait Doctoring has reached level 17! 21/44 Bent remaining. Calvin gave as much of the log as he could the viscosity of the water surrounding it. Fully half the massive log broke on the side of the barge, liquid wood spraying up onto the deck, the force diffused without too much damage. Either Calvin missed something in the muddy water, or there was simply too much wood to change all at once, because an instant later, there was a crunch that once again threatened to knock everyone off their feet. Snap! Calvin held the railing in a white knuckled grip, trusting the wooden pole more than his own feet. He glanced over the side and spotted where the starboard tether had snapped itself free of the barge. We¡¯re floating free. Calvin thought, eyes narrowed. In the next couple seconds they would most likely hit the barge behind them and start a chain reaction, sinking innumerable valuable supplies and men along with them. Fuck that. Shifting 20/44 Bent remaining Mayfly¡¯s body Shifting has reached level 17! Shifting level 17: 82% shift, 17 minutes, targets limited to 4913 pounds in mass. Calvin made himself as light as possible without letting go of the railing, his knuckles white. He didn¡¯t want to fly away now that he was just about thirty pounds. The decreased weight brought with it a sudden reduction in perceived time. Everything seemed to be moving just a touch slower than it had before. Maybe one quarter slower? Eighty percent lighter, and I don¡¯t get an eighty percent reduction in perceived speed? Lame. Calvin shook off the off-topic thought, he needed every second to figure something out. Calvin touched the ball of Abyssal steel on his belt, considering re-establishing the rope. All he had to do was mentally select a ¡®rope¡¯ of water or air between him and the knick-knack and imbue it with the strength of Abyssal steel. It would create a strong rod fused to the boat and the knick-knack, which could then pull them in. Except he couldn¡¯t see the knick-knack, and while he could feel it and give it commands, he couldn¡¯t tell exactly where it was in the damned downpour. Chances were he¡¯d miss. Calvin glanced up. What about making an air dam? Calvin could make a narrow panel of air strong enough to hold off the water, then make it heavy enough to do its job by channeling mass from the surroundings into it. Except the topography isn¡¯t right to hold off all the water, and when the spell expired, it would be likely to drown half my men and upend all our cargo. I should just go with simple brute force. Let¡¯s try something. Calvinian summoning. 19/44 Bent Remaining Calvin focused the entire mass of the spell into a single summon, creating a ten-ton Knick-knack off the starboard bow. The metal man dropped out of the sky with a splash that soaked the crew of the barge, not that they weren¡¯t soaked already. The enormous construction machine stood waist deep in the torrential river, ignoring the water swirling around it completely as it directly seized the side of the barge and hauled. The sound of cracking wood permeated the barge, but nothing came loose as the knick-knack took a step backwards, then another, drawing them over to the relatively calmer water of the rapidly flooding jungle. ¡°Tree! Tree!¡± Calvin said as he saw a tree manifest out of the rain as the knick knack began dragging them up onto the bank. There simply wasn¡¯t enough room. The bank of the river wasn¡¯t a gradual thing like the creek in Deinos, instead the difference between the river and the jungle was a steep droop and a thick stand of heavy trees, some of which were leaning over their barge, one bad move away from falling on top of their rickety little barge. The steep drop wasn¡¯t so much of a problem because the flooding had already raised the water until they couldn¡¯t even see it, but the wall of trees was still a problem. A big, ugly, wooden problem. Before Calvin could do anything in particular, the enormous knick-knack reached backward and casually plucked one of the smaller trees out of the way with one hand like a weed, shoving the barge into the resulting gap, sheltering it neatly between two larger jungle woods. They were out of the thick of it, now. They could simply wait out the worst of the flood between the trees and assess the damage in the morning. Brute force is awesome, Calvin thought with a relieved sigh- The entire barge jerked to the side again, followed by the sound of tortured wood as a massive rent opened in the side. The barge was being pulled sideways between the two trees, like someone had decided to shove a knife in a door crack and twist. The rope to the barge behind us! Calvin thought, lunging back to his feet. Karen was faster. A flash of light showed from beneath the makeshift tarp they¡¯d set up to keep certain people dry, bisecting the arm-thick rope in the blink of an eye. Calvin kept running, glancing under the oiled leather tarp as he passed. Karen was holding her baby, making sure to keep the squirming little grub as dry as possible in the middle of the downpour. Out of all of them, Sacha was the most vulnerable. A little cold could be enough to kill him. Karen held up Sacha¡¯s tiny little baby hand, giving Calvin a playful wave as he leapt over the edge. ¡°Uncle Calvin¡¯s off to do something brave,¡± she said in singsong. Calvin briefly considered making a boat with hardened air, but decided against it. It would be exciting, but honestly, a waste of Bent. He needed a mode of transportation and a way to help the other Barges all rolled into one. Nadia, catch me! What? Calvinian summoning Chimera 18/44 Bent remaining. When Calvin had chosen the Chimera ability for both Chained Spirit and Calvinian Summoning, he¡¯d unlocked the ability to swap monster parts back and forth between the two spells. Which was, of course, extremely exploitable. Calvin Visualized his wasp as the primary summon, then wiped away all of it except the antennae, replacing all of that with Nadia. Twenty-one thousand, nine hundred and fifty two pounds of Nadia. Give or take a couple pounds of antennae. ¡°Eeep!¡± Nadia¡¯s voice was like the bellow of some gargantuan beast as she appeared, knee-deep in the swollen river. Calvin would have been amused at her voice if it weren¡¯t an emergency. Human bodies were much less dense than the metal knick-knacks, so she was much taller than the knick-knack of the same weight, perfect for traversing the river at high speeds. Nadia whipped her hand out and caught Calvin, her fist closing around him with suffocating strength, sending stars across Calvin¡¯s vision. ¡°Hurk!¡± Calvin gave an undignified grunt as Nadia accidentally squished the breath out of him. ¡°Oops, Sorry!¡± Just send me your thoughts from now on, Calvin thought, twisting his arm out of the thirty foot tall girl¡¯s grasp to point downriver. We need to go check on the other barges. Come to think of it, you look awfully cute like this, Nadia¡¯s mental voice echoed in the back of his mind as her oversized thumb came down on his head, putting enormous pressure on his neck as she stroked his hair. Like a little doll. I can and will turn you into a human centipede. Calvin thought calmly, waiting for Nadia to make the right choice. A second later, Nadia turned and began splashing through the river like a kid playing in a stream, chasing the rapidly vanishing rope. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure what her motivation was exactly, but a couple seconds later, she spotted a glimpse of white, reached out and snatched up the rope out of the raging river. Nadia staggered against the sudden weight, jostling Calvin around violently. I need both hands. Nadia thought toward him. Put me on your shoulder. Nadia obliged, depositing him on her shoulder, then gritting her enormous teeth as she tightened her free hand on the rope, beginning to haul the barge back upriver, towards him and his lead barge. In the middle of all of this hauling, Calvin made the mistake of glancing down. Okay, tell me you didn¡¯t get the urge to jump down there and make yourself a command seat between those enormous boobs, Elliot¡¯s amused voice echoed through Calvin¡¯s mind. No, that was my first thought, Calvin admitted. My second thought was that I am both busy and married. I didn¡¯t realize that was on my bucket list until just now. Maybe later? ¡­maybe. Calvin wrenched his eyes back up as the second barge came into view. The wooden vessel was half flooded and listing to the side with a huge chunk torn out of it¡¯s side. The crew was clinging to the side of the boat that was above the waterline, staring up in horror at the gigantic temptress hauling them in. Damn. Calvin thought as he spotted the slack rope behind the barge. The rest of the barges got disconnected. Calvin took a mental tally of the crew he could make out clinging to the side of the boat. They were missing three. Damnation. If I could strike down the weather itself, I would! The missing three might live, being legends, but it wasn¡¯t guaranteed. Plenty of cargo had slipped off the edge of the barge as well. ¡°Park them in the woods,¡± Calvin said into Nadia¡¯s head-sized ear. ¡°Then let¡¯s see if we can find the others.¡± Nadia nodded and obeyed, setting the barge somewhere it wouldn¡¯t get swept away before she began running down the river, both of them keeping sharp eyes out for the other barges. **** By morning, Calvin was exhausted, overlooking the hastily constructed camps hung between the massive trees to keep them out of the floodwaters. Of the two hundred barges, fifteen had been completely lost, tons of cargo had gone overboard, and no less than thirty eight men, women and Cobalts had been washed away downstream. Compared to the total size of the expedition, some twenty three hundred souls, it wasn¡¯t more than two percent lost. But that was unacceptable. Calvin¡¯s guts roiled with conflicting emotions. Guilt at being the reason those thirty-eight people lost their lives, roiling anger and humiliation at being defeated by goddamned water. People patted him on the shoulder wherever he went, thanking him for rescuing them one way or another, but the touches only seemed to put him on edge. It wasn¡¯t a win, by any stretch of the imagination. They¡¯d suffered casualties just in an effort to hunker down, stay in one place and survive. How stupid was that? The most infuriating part of it was that there was no one external thing to channel his anger. Get angry at the river? The sky? They had no will of their own, they would have flooded in exact the same way regardless of whether the measly humans were traversing the river at time. The one variable was him and his people. Calvin¡¯s grip tightened, and he bit his lip. Getting angry at yourself and sinking into a spiral of self-blame is a great way to make more mistakes. Don¡¯t be a miserable clich¨¦. Elliot said. Calvin thought about Elliot¡¯s words for a moment, then took a deep breath and tried to imagine letting the burning anger go, retaining only the lesson that had accompanied it: Mother Nature is an absolute bitch. We¡¯ll make adjustments. Macronomicon Chapter 154: Welcome Snot Learner¡¯s notes: day 256: on grieving. Death is what happens to these humans when a cascade failure in their specialized units leads to total unit shutdown. Some of these ¡®organs¡¯ are so delicate that a nick the size of the tip of my pinky can lead to cascade organ failure. Truly poor design, but I already knew this. Instead, what I have studied today is the social behavior of how humans respond when one of their own has died. In the city, I¡¯m sure there were plenty of examples of this behavior, but it was generally rare and hidden behind closed doors. With the sudden loss of thirty eight individuals, I was able to get a much better read on how to behave ¡®distraught¡¯. There appear to be many categories that human generally fall into when mourning: Leaking salt water out of their eyes in private, leaking in groups, drinking excessive poison, breeding, ignoring others, getting angry, hitting things and other people, and telling stories. The leaky ones are more women while men dominate the drinking excessive poison and getting angry categories, while breeding, telling stories, and ignoring others seems to be split relatively evenly between the genders. Should I be leaking, then? No, that¡¯s not a good idea. Last time I pretended to find something funny, I scared away everyone who was there, for some reason. Duration and volume were probably off. And I forgot to smile. Or move. For the purposes of successful integration, I should choose an option as close to neutral as possible, which is why I will temporarily distance myself from the others for a while, taking the role of one of those who ¡®bottle up¡¯ their emotions. Day 257: My ploy to simulate grief worked, but there were some drawbacks. A few people genuinely thought that I needed ¡®cheering up¡¯ and tried to get me to take part in group activities such as drinking poison and breeding. I refused the poison flat-out, but I considered the breeding offers for a moment. In the end I turned them down, as I don¡¯t wish to have a human explore my anatomy any more closely than necessary. They already find me odd enough. Although¡­Nevermind. Side Note: Consider diverting construction work toward the sex organs¡­just in case. On the subject of organs, my experiments toward accessing The System are coming along. The current plan is to create an entire body of specialized units, as relatively ¡®human¡¯ as I can make it. Inside this body I¡¯ll secrete away half a dozen pockets of ¡®myself¡¯, no bigger than a small tumor. I¡¯ve asked around and most people don¡¯t think a tumor would cause a problem with Breaking. If the body suffers cascade organ failure, I will simply reabsorb them into my mass through the packets of ¡®me¡¯ left behind. The work is tricky, as getting human units not to suffer extreme reactions to the presence of my units and visa versa is fairly difficult, as well as arranging the organ¡¯s makeup in such a way that they can quickly and easily be reconverted into my original form while at the same time being ¡®me¡¯. Each organ has to be modified seperately through trial and error, and each organ intrinsically depends on all the others in order to function, making this process extremely slow. each time I change one thing, there are near infinite changes in the way the other organs perform. On the other hand, I have a much greater understanding of the human body than a few months ago, and that has to be worth something¡­. Perhaps I can earn human ¡®money¡¯ as a surgeon? Explore the functions of more bodies and earn a place of respect among the humans while also obtaining this ¡®money¡¯ that so many of these humans seem to live their lives to obtain? I believe that is what Kala calls ¡®Killing three birds with one stone.¡¯ ***Calvin*** ¡°Gah!¡± A man groaned as Learner yanked a massive wooden splinter out of his leg. Her fingers were slippery with blood and a squirt of red followed the palm-length object, splattering against her face. She didn¡¯t seem perturbed by it one bit. ¡°Son of a bitch, woman, you could be a little gentler,¡± The soldier said, unscrewing the cap of his flask and taking a swig. ¡°That wouldn¡¯t change anything, and don¡¯t poison yourself, you¡¯ll compound your problems. The only real reason to have that poison on hand is killing foreign units.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Learner snatched the flask out of the man¡¯s hand and peeled the stab wound open before pouring the whisky over his leg, causing him to jerk and howl in pain. ¡°Be calm, it¡¯s nowhere near your femoral artery.¡± She said, shrugging off the man¡¯s screaming and thrashing as she cleaned out the wound with brutal efficiency. ¡°There we go,¡± She said once she was done binding the wound and patting him on the leg before sending the exhausted man him on his way. I gotta admit, she¡¯s fast. ¡°Who¡¯s next?¡± She asked as she scanned the waiting line, pink tongue darting out to her cheek and bringing a taste of the man¡¯s blood back to her mouth. Most of the people waiting to have various wounds cared for suddenly had something better to do. Learner seemed confused as the line evaporated, leaving a handful of the truly injured. After the night before last, many people had crushed fingers, cuts, splinters and broken bones. Learner had offered to care for their wounds, and given her beauty ¨C still remarkably similar to Kala¡¯s ¨C many people had taken her up on that. While she seemed to know more about the human body than Calvin had ever thought possible for an inhuman monster from another reality, she was completely ignorant of other social faux paus. Like tasting people¡¯s blood. Oh well, she¡¯ll get the hang of beside manner. She¡¯s the best thing we¡¯ve got at the moment, anyway. Calvin turned his attention to the surrounding environment, the sunny day, lively underbrush and air filled with the noise of songbirds made it seem like there had been no flooding of any kind the night before. Goob was at the prow of the barge, posing dramatically for some godsbeknownst reason, while Baroke was using an oversized sounding pole to make sure they weren¡¯t going to run aground on a hidden sandbar. It wouldn¡¯t be the worst thing in the world, but every hour delayed was another hour something could go wrong, so they tried to keep the fastest pace they could safely maintain. On the back of the barges, Knick-knacks were constantly seasoning wood by magically drawing all the water out with a combination of powders that aggressively absorbed water from anything they were sprinkled on. The resulting globules of ooze-weaver slime were scraped off with a spatula and tossed overboard into the river, leaving the wood as dry as if it¡¯d been sitting in the sun for a summer. The dust had been summoned using dupdomancy, so when it was dismissed, it would just leave the water in the river and a bit on the wood. No harm done. The reason Calvin was willing to use a little extra time and effort to fill up on so much wood was because he wanted barges that were designed from something better than torn apart wagons, and if they had to spend the night in the trees again, he wanted his floor to be made of wood, not wobbly rope. As they went, he could use the knick-knacks to create and swap out barges, until each of them was something that wouldn¡¯t get sunk by a little flooding, as well as having the ones that were hauling the barges choke up on the ropes, ready to pull them off to the side at a moment¡¯s notice. It he had gotten word out to get off the river one minute earlier, nobody would¡¯ve died. Lesson learned. Calvin thought, glancing up at the sky. He was sure someone would bring it to his attention if it looked like there was another rainstorm coming: they weren¡¯t idiots. But I still want to be the first one to spot any problems. ¡°Uh,¡± Baroke said, pulling his sounder out of the river. The extra-long wooden pole had a thick sheet of transparent slime hanging off the end as the muscly archer looked on curiously. ¡°Any idea what this is?¡± He asked, glancing over at Calvin. It looked like Ooze Weaver slime, which made sense, since they¡¯d been throwing a bunch off the back of the boat. ¡°Did you use the sounder off the back of the boat?¡± Calvin asked. Baroke shook his head. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Positive.¡± Well, that¡¯s odd. ¡°Calvin,¡± Kala whispered, tapping him on the shoulder and pointing. Calvin squinted, trying to make out what Kala saw in the woods. Her eyesight had always been better than his, for whatever reason. ¡°Oh damn, look at that,¡± Baroke chimed in, gawking at whatever Kala had pointed out, most likely distinctly aware Calvin couldn¡¯t see it yet. It was only after they¡¯d gone a hundred feet or so that Calvin saw what they were pointing at. At first he didn¡¯t see anything, but once his eyes adjusted, he realized that the underbrush downstream was under water. The bushes swayed gently back and forth as some quiet currents jostled them, showing the sluggish movement Calvin associated with being underwater. A gleam of light caught Calvin¡¯s eye where the sun reflected off a glossy, clear surface that bowed outward as it stretched between the trees, seemingly keeping the water contained and preventing it from returning to the river. ¡°That¡¯s, um¡­What is that?¡± As one they turned to look at Ella, who threw her hands up. ¡°Don¡¯t ask me,¡± She said, shaking her head. ¡°I¡¯ve never been this deep in the jungle, and I don¡¯t know anyone who has.¡± As they began to pass by, they realized that it wasn¡¯t one big reservoir of water, but many small ones, as evidenced by the subtle separation of their strange barriers. One of them even seemed to have collapsed, leaving a chunk of dry earth flanked on either side by submerged land. The dry section trailed clear slime into the river, possibly explaining where the stuff on his sounder came from. Is that slime holding in the water? Calvin thought, frowning. That implied a tensile strength that beggared belief, but he couln¡¯t think of a better explanation. They were in Ooze Weaver territory. Off to the side, Calvin saw a flicker of movement, and watched as a globule of mucus dropped from high above into one of the little artificial ponds. A second later, the snot-ball hauled up, carrying dozens of various sized fish embedded in the slime up into the jungle canopy. Seconds later, the smallest fish rained back down into separate ponds, while the biggest fish were never seen from again. It¡¯s a fish-farm! Calvin thought with a gasp. Ooze weavers must be intelligent! Ants farm aphids, and you don¡¯t see them competing for world¡¯s smartest. Don¡¯t make any assumptions just yet. Calvin nodded silently. Not making any assumptions was a good way to avoid stumbling into stupid misunderstandings. But when Calvin spotted an ooze-weaver standing on water ou in the middle of the river, gesturing toward the bank wildly with bright yellow flowers, It was a pretty easy assumption that they wanted them to dock Ooze weavers loosely looked like spiders crossed with water beetles, except they were about the size of a man, sporting a disgustingly lumpy carapace that seemed to have a fleshy throbbing give to it, and large, paddle-like flaps on their feet that seemed to be made of closely packed stiff hairs. Then cover the whole creature in a fine layer of slime. It was no wonder Calvin¡¯s Ooze weaver slime had been expensive. Between how dangerous it was to get here, and how horrifying they looked, the people who came back with slime probably stole it or fished it out of the river. ¡°What should we do?¡± Baroke asked, his hand groping for the bow he left against the railing. Calvin glanced backward, casting his gaze across both banks behind them. In the canopy, Calvin made out hundreds more insectile snot-farmers, practically dripping from the branches above them, chittering quietly as they watched the humans with naked curiousity and a smidge of apprehension. Calvin couldn¡¯t sense any overt hostility being directed toward him with Feel Intent, so he figured it was worth a chance. If their intentions were hostile, Calvin would find out quickly, and he could reverse the situation in a matter of seconds. Might as well see what they want, Calvin thought. ¡°Hold the other barges in place, we¡¯ll go over and see what the issue is,¡± Calvin said, sending word to the other barges. Maybe they charge a toll of one loogie per passenger. Maybe they do. Wha ¨C really? You¡¯re the one who said not to make any assumptions, Calvin thought wryly as their barge gradually approached the steep banks. Macronomicon Chapter 155: The Bigger they Are… ***Ykuingi, Daughter of the Chief*** The creatures were hideous: Skin dry as a desert, strange mosslike clumps growing on their crests. They had thick stumpy limbs, and they only used two of them, so they tottered around in an extremely ungainly manner as they stepped off their raft. They looked somewhat like a Guar, in number of limbs and ungainliness. ¡°Look at this guy,¡± Nynguik said, nudging Ykuingi ¡°Every step he takes, he looks like he¡¯s gonna fall over.¡± The farmer gave a burbling chuckle when one of the creatures actually did trip stepping off the barge. The brown-shelled creature climbed back to it¡¯s feet and studied the rocking surface of the raft as it brushed itself off, either studying the surface or planning to attack it. Nobody could say as their body language was unreadable. The leader of the humans finally stepped off the raft, bigger than the others in every way. Finally, Ykuingi thought rubbing her feet together anxiously. She¡¯d thought it would take forever. Who knew why her mother felt that warning them of the demon in the lake ahead was necessary, but she was getting tired of waiting for the procession of minions that served their chief to get off the raft and prepare everything for her arrival. Which is why when the small, weakly one took the lead, Ykuingi was taken aback. It toddled up to her mother and stopped a cautious distance from them before speaking aloud in their strange, guttural language, raising one of his chunky hands. It was obviously unimportant, being so small, especially compared to their chief. Why isn¡¯t their chief speaking for them? She thought, looking at the oversized human standing placidly off to the side, playing with a soaked piece of the People¡¯s binding between her¡­arm-legs. This is weird. Her sire didn¡¯t bother to respond to the small one¡¯s grunting, keeping her eyes on their distracted leader. Finally, after over half a minute of silence, the important human spoke. **** ¡°This is weird,¡± Baroke said, squishing the ball of slowly drying slime between thumb and forefinger. ¡°Squish, squish. Gods, I wish I had something like this back in Deinos. I could probably make a mint selling this to kids, because this is way too fun.¡± ¡°Something¡¯s off.¡± Calvin muttered, scanning the crowd of Ooze-weavers that seemed to hang on Baroke¡¯s every action. He glanced over at the archer goofing around with the slime, and once again had to remind himself that the man wasn¡¯t dumb. It was hard to tell the difference between stupidity and extreme confidence. Calvin had walked up to the delegation of creatures and felt¡­vague disinterest in their gazes¡­ a cold kind of dismissal. ¡°Eh?¡± Baroke asked, glancing up. The creatures seemed to get excited at this, their burbling language that felt like someone was pressing gently on his eardrums gained volume. Calvin glanced over at the delegation that met them at the edge of the forest, scanning them carefully. The biggest, meanest looking one was in front, followed by slightly smaller ones, diminishing in size following a chevron pattern until the ones in the back which were significantly smaller. Well, shit. Size equals authority to them. Calvin realized with a sigh. Extensive training has increased your attributes! +1 Intuition Calvin squared his shoulders, and did what he had to do. ¡°Baroke, stand up front.¡± ¡°What?¡± The archer asked, frowning. ¡°I don¡¯t wanna. What if they spit goop on me, man?¡± ¡°You were just playing with it.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t mean I wanna wash it off my clothes.¡± ¡°Now.¡± Baroke jumped and moved to the front of the pack when Calvin barked at him. ¡°Karen, you¡¯re there, Grant, there¡­¡± Calvin began organizing the group by size, and people started to understand what he was aiming at, forming a general chevron shape from biggest to smallest, leading to him and Kala being side by side. ¡°You think this will work?¡± Kala asked quietly, glancing over at him with a hint of a smile as they stood shoulder to shoulder. ¡°If not, we¡¯ll try something else,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. As long as they didn¡¯t accidently start a war, they should have as many opportunities as they needed. She gave him a smile and tucked her petite hand into his left hand. the skin contact sent a warm, comforting feeling up his arm, straight to his heart. Someone grabbed his other hand. ¡°Why are we holding hands?¡± Learner asked, holding his other hand up and studying it closely. ¡°We¡¯re not ¨C ¡° Calvin was interrupted by Kala pinching him in the side. Further up in the height-based chevron, Ella was giving him a dark look and shaking her head. ¡°Because it feels nice when people who like each other hold hands.¡± Calvin said, hoping that Learner would catch his meaning: They did not like each other. ¡°Huh.¡± Learner grunted, muttering to herself. ¡°Is there some kind of sympathetic nervous response? It does feel good, to an almost imperceptible degree.¡± Her hand tightened down around his, raising the hairs on the back of his neck, and all Calvin could think of was his wasps being eaten from the inside by this creature¡¯s tiny bodies. His flesh would be way easier to break down, and it was holding his HAND. ¡°This requires more study.¡± Learner said, leaning forward to look past him, studying Kala¡¯s posture for clues. Kala grinned mischievously and leaned up against Calvin, so Learner did the same. Being that close to what he knew was lurking inside the creature was disconcerting to say the least, his vision wobbling in a near-panic. ¡°This does feel nice.¡± Learner said, voice as emotionless as ever, inches away from his ear. ¡°More surface contact seems to enhance the effect. Is this to encourage pair bonding and breeding?¡± Calvin¡¯s goosebumps got even stronger at the mention of ¡®breeding¡¯. ¡°I¡¯ll get you back for this.¡± Calvin whispered to Kala. ¡°She¡¯s taking the path of dotting her I¡¯s with hearts, because of me.¡± Kala said. ¡°If anything, you should be thanking me for being such a good Seer.¡± ¡°Thanking you, huh? You¡¯re my wife now, so I¡¯m totally within my rights to be s¨C¡° Calvin¡¯s jab was interrupted when the leader of the Ooze weavers burbled something, taking a smooth three stepped forward, squatting down and raising its forelegs in what appeared to be a greeting. ¡°What do I do?¡± Baroke asked through his teeth. ¡°Copy it as best you can, obviously.¡± Calvin then got to watch Baroke shuffle forward in a crouched stance, raising his muscly arms in a long, graceful motion before setting them down again. ***Ykuingi*** Something was off, although it seemed like no one else could sense it. Tensions dropped drastically when the humans formed a normal Dignitary Formation with their leader in front. The strangest thing was the little sickly human seemed to be¡­telling the other ones what to do, even the big one. Ykuingi had noticed that the sickly one had spoken first, and it seemed to be very active in the process of setting them in proper diplomatic formation. Why does my gaze keep returning to that one, sickly, unimportant creature? It obviously couldn¡¯t build a nest as big as the large one, nor catch as many fish, nor even carry as much brain in its small chest. And yet, there was something nagging at the back of her mind, something that told her to pay more attention to that particular human. As the daughter of the chief, she had a duty to be particularly insightful, and there was something beyond their ken going on, there. Something involving the handicapped human. Her mother preformed the customary greeting of strangers, and the human leader attempted to follow suit. It was an admirable effort, but it looked something like a NiyuQui bird in heat fluffing out its feather while trying to attract a mate. No matter, no one expected the human leader to be able to perform it perfectly. That she tried was good enough. ¡°Greetings,¡± Her mother said, raising a single foreled. The leader said something, raising one of it¡¯s gross legs with many legs attached to the end, waving it in a belated attempt to copy her mother. ¡°We wish to warn you of the demon down river.¡± Her mother said, her thorax dipping forward and squirting out a bit of Binding into her paddles. Her mother knew words were unlikely to work, so she painted a picture, the master-weaver¡¯s legs working industriously to create a work of art even as she spoke. ¡°You are here,¡± her mother said, speaking slowly, so the savages could understand her better, tapping the map of the river she¡¯d created in a matter of seconds. ¡°Up the river you are on, is the demon Yninquiak.¡± She tapped the picture of the people-eating monster. ¡°It pushed our people off our ancestral lake many many moons ago.¡± She lifted up the next picture as her back legs finished, seamlessly moving on with her explanation in a demonstration of weaving talent that put the other People in awe of the chief¡¯s skill with Binding. ¡°This is Yninquiak. It demands a bride sacrifice from us every moon, or it will come down the river and attack us indiscriminately. We spent many moons trying to fight it, offering the greatest rewards to warriors who would brave combat with the creature, but to no avail, to a woman, they died ignoble deaths. In the end we were forced to accept its demands or leave the river. For our people, to leave the river is death.¡± She tapped the picture of the demon, then the picture of dead People, killed and eaten by the demon. ¡°This month my daughter Ykuingi was chosen as the sacrifice. Your presence here is a sign from the divine hagfish that it is not Ykuingi¡¯s time to die. She sent you here to that you may offer yourselves in Ykuingi¡¯s stead.¡± The chief tapped the picture of the humans offering themselves to the demon. ***Calvin*** ¡°Is it just me, or does that look like a giant Norlock?¡± Baroke asked with a frown. ¡°That looks like a giant norlock.¡± Calvin affirmed. ¡°What do you think they¡¯re telling us for?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fairly obvious,¡± Baroke said, rolling his eyes as he glanced over his shoulder at Calvin. ¡°They want us to kill it.¡± We could be heroes. Just for one day. Wrong. If anything, between the pictures and the intent he could feel in their gazes, Calvin was fairly sure they were asking them to feed themselves to the thing¡­ politely. Still. ¡°You¡¯re right. I can¡¯t be sure without eating one of their tongues, but that¡¯s what it looks like.¡± Calvin said, nodding. It would probably smooth relations between Ooze Weavers and Humans if this little misunderstanding were swept under the rug and casually ignored. He¡¯d be able to kill a giant animal easily enough, so the humans didn¡¯t need to know they¡¯d been asked to die. Calvin glanced over at the Ooze weaver that kept staring at him. The lumpy creature was dripping with slime, perched in the branches of a tree far above him, gazing at him with intrigue and suspicion, while the other ones seemed to favor Baroke. Interesting. I wonder what¡¯s different about that one? Just capable of imagining a power structure that doesn¡¯t involve size? Once the weaver in front of them stopped making slime-pictures, it then ate the pictures, watching them silently. ¡°Bring this to a close,¡± Calvin said, feeling that the weavers were expecting something. ¡°We,¡± Baroke said, thumbing his chest, ¡°Are going,¡± he motioned upriver, ¡°To destroy,¡± He smacked a fist into his palm. ¡°Your norlock problem.¡± He cupped his hand, fingers pointed up, then wiggled them like norlock tentacles. Now tell him to say ¡®capiche?¡¯ with his fingers together. The ooze weavers bobbed their bodies, awkwardly returning Baroke¡¯s grandiose bow before the humans filed back onto the barge and got back on the river, waving goodbye as they did. Who knew what waving meant in ooze weaver culture, but they didn¡¯t seem to be offended, at least. ¡°Baroke, first ambassador to the slimies.¡± The hulking archer said upon boarding the ship. ¡°Smile and wave.¡± He broke into a grin and waved at the gawking slime monsters as Calvin¡¯s summons tugged Calvin¡¯s barges, carrying Calvin¡¯s army. ¡°That can be arranged,¡± Calvin said, putting his forearms up on the railing beside Baroke, glancing up at his friend. ¡°Perhaps a diplomatic marriage between my ambassador and their nobility will stabilize the relationship between our two lands.¡± Calvin said. Baroke put his hand down, the grin fleeting like smoke in the wind. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Calvin said, patting his back. ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯ll be a marriage on the table when we kill their norlock.¡± ¡°Unless one of them was technically a princess,¡± Kala said, joining them on the railing, glancing at Calvin with a raised brow. ¡°We all know someone¡¯s got a Skill for it.¡± ¡°True,¡± Ella said, stepping up behind Calvin and ruffling his hair. ¡°He does have a tendency to seduce the chief¡¯s daughter.¡± ¡°Fuck,¡± Calvin said, thinking back to the snot-monster that kept staring at him. He distinctly remembered the excessive clear mucus dripping from its body and prawn-like mouth. ¡°Maybe we should go around the lake.¡± Calvin said. ¡°non-interference with native species and all that.¡± ¡°Nonsense,¡± Baroke said, laying a meaty hand on Calvin¡¯s neck, pinning him in place. ¡°We¡¯ve got to do the right thing, which is to liberate them from this monster¡¯s oppression. If you¡¯ve gotta score with a prawn-faced spider mucus monster to do it, then so be it.¡± ¡°Ooh, ooh, is this the human bonding ritual where we tease Calvin?¡± Learner said, shoving herself between him and Baroke. ¡°You could have saved those thirty-eight people, but you didn¡¯t!¡± she said, staring at him with a stiff, unnatural smile. Calvin¡¯s fingernails bit into his palm. ¡°Good try,¡± Baroke said, grabbing the eldritch horror by the shoulder and guiding her away from Calvin. ¡°Let me take you over there and explain to you how teasing works.¡± After a few minutes of quite conversation with Baroke, Learner shouted from across the barge. ¡°You¡¯re going to be forced by social pressure to breed with something gross and that¡¯s funny!¡± She glanced back to Baroke. ¡°Like that?¡± Macronomicon For some reason I really enjoy writing characters ribbing/hazing the MC. There''s so little of it in these power fantasies, ya know? For some maybe it lowers his perceived authority, but goddamn it makes it feel like he actually has friends instead of worshippers. Chapter 156: Fishing By The Lake ***Ykuingi, Daughter of the Chief*** Ykuingi led the way through the canopy, leaving a trail of Binding behind her, making a safe trail for the for the rest of the troop to follow, her hearts pounding as she moved. How could she not be nervous? The chief had told them to observe the humans in the case they balked in the face of Yninquiak. If they did, she would be required to fulfill her duty to the tribe. The cruel tyrant keeps demanding the largest of us, and sends its spies to confirm. If this goes on, we¡¯ll be nothing but dumb animals. To Ykuingi, it seemed personal, more than just the demands of an ignorantly gluttonous demon. It had a purpose. The intelligence of an ooze-weaver was directly related to its size, due to the way their think-meat grew in sync with their shell. Ykuingi was nearly larger than her mother now, and her shell showed no sign of slowing its expansion. In another month, her think-meat would be larger than her mother¡¯s and she would take her place as chief, exempt from the selection, which was what her mother was counting on. If Ykuingi were to spawn the next generation of leaders, they might stand a chance of lasting another generation. Maybe even find a way to escape the creature¡¯s clutches. Nothing lived forever, so the People had decided to use time as their weapon. They would outlast the creature. Ykuingi arrived at the lake four days later, just a day after the humans arrived in their strange rafts constructed out of tree. What she saw set her hearts to beating again, this time with a different sort of dread. ***Calvin*** Blood was dripping from the parasol. Now you¡¯re getting the hang of it. Ellliot said as Calvin sat in his oversized observation chair and let other people do the work for him, sipping on a bottle of Gadveran cider. It¡¯s what was expected of him as the calm and collected leader of the expedition. ¡°Haul, haul, you limp dicked sons of bitches! If you fuck as bad as you pull, you¡¯re gonna be the last goddamned generation out of Gadvera.¡± Karen stalked back and forth on the beach while the men hauled on the arm-thick ropes they¡¯d repurposed for norlock fishing, veins bulging in her neck as she screamed. Calvin bounced Sacha on his lap while Grant made a pass overhead. The aging sword-dancer was riding two of his blades while trailing a single sword behind him, dipping it into the water, making a long ripple like an oversized waterglider. True to form, another logic-defying mouth the size of a barge lunged out of the water, eager to snatch the annoying insect out of the air. Baroke whistled idly, standing next to Calvin with the pilot hook on an oversized steel arrow that looked like it must have weighed fifty pounds, nocked to his favorite glass bow. As soon as the norlock tentacle emerged from the water, Baroke pulled back the string, lined up the shot and fired in a single breath. The hook shot out, trailing arm-thick rope behind it. It slammed through the creature¡¯s tentacle, just below the pseudo-jaw it used to clamp down on prey. ¡°Haven¡¯t been norlock fishing in a while. It¡¯s actually pretty nostalgic. Feels like home,¡± Baroke said with a grin as other archers attempted to score with their own hooks attached to thinner ropes. ¡°N¡¯gui ini gyi iuya kmyigua!¡± The norlock tentacle they were hauling in bellowed between snapping at the people dragging it ashore and trying to bite through the rope. Unfortunately for the creature it¡¯s teeth were meant for snagging, not cutting. ¡°Pipe down,¡± Karen shouted, kicking the tentacle as it was dragged further ashore. ¡°You tried to eat us as soon as we got here, but now you wanna talk? Sorry, you¡¯re fucked.¡± She turned to the linemen. ¡°A couple more feet!¡± When the full length of the creature¡¯s pseudo mouth was on the beach, Karen jumped on top of it, Running down as far as she could before she unleashed a gleaming slash with her massive cleaver, neutering the tentacle as close to the monster¡¯s mantle as she could, rendering it useless to the Norlock. There was a rumbling near the center of the lake that spread to the banks and beyond, shaking the trees around them as the remaining stump of tentacle thrashed around above the waterline, churning the lake into a frothing red cauldron even as it spawned a rain of blood that came down from above. Calvin leaned back under the parasol, getting his younger brother fully under the protection as the blood spattered down around them. ¡°Tails, clean up your ropes and get them ready for the next tentacle! Everyone else, move to the next rope!¡± Karen shouted as they finished hauling the gushing hunk of meat up the bank. ¡°See that, Sacha?¡± Calvin asked, making idle conversation with the drooling baby. ¡°That¡¯s how you hunt a norlock. They¡¯re not normally this big, or this numerous, or capable of speech, but the basics are the same.¡± The trip upriver had been frought with norlocks the likes of which would have caused a huge stir back in Deinos. They were maneaters that had gotten old enough to have a gleam of intelligence in their beady eyes. Calvin¡¯s army got plenty of practice disposing of them on the trip up to the lake, and now they were being put to the test against the largest norlock any of them had ever seen. Possibly the biggest and smartest any human had ever seen. Calvin turned the baby around to face him, and the little grub gave him a vacant smile. ¡°Sacha, do you wanna know the difference between hunting something and fighting something?¡± Sacha babbled. ¡°The ability to fight back.¡± The water rippled ominously, forming a lump as something moved through it at tremendous speeds, heading for the shore. ¡°Back to the safe line!¡± Karen shouted, and the soldiers turned as one and sprinted back to the line marked far beyond the treeline. A second later a pair of tentacles lunged out and stretched for the humans, teeth as long as a man¡¯s leg bared as the norlock tried to get revenge for the pain inflicted on it. The tentacles stopped short just ten feet shy of the safe line, obviously straining to get ahold of the men and women of the West Boles Trading Company. Rather than wasting time thrashing mindlessly, the tentacles went for other tactics. One picked up a tree and yanked it out of the ground, trying to wield it like a club while the other one began worrying at the rope holding the newest tentacle. ¡°Oh, you want to lose another arm? If you insist!¡± Karen shouted with manic glee, rushing forward and jumping atop the protruding tentacle, aiming to sever these newest ones that the creature had decided to offer them. Ella ran forward as well, sliding under the wild swing of an entire fifty-foot long tree as the norlock tried to crush the offending humans. She jumped on top of the other tentacle and began ripping through it with her one-hander, looking like a burrowing insect digging it¡¯s way into the flesh of its prey. ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering.¡± Kala asked, sitting in the seat beside him. The princess glanced between the two fighters being tossed around by the thrashing of the enormous monster. ¡°Does Ella remind you of your mom, a little?¡± ¡°I hadn¡¯t really thought about it, but that seems pretty accurate.¡± Calvin said, nodding. Ella¡¯s skin was painted red with blood and viscera as she hacked her way out the other side of the norlock¡¯s tentacle, while Karen was able to sever hers completely, jumping out of the way of the geyser of blood before it washed over her, landing on the ground perfectly clean and using her thick-bladed sword as a makeshift umbrella. Ella, on the other hand, seemed to revel in the blood. ¡°In some ways, anyway.¡± Calvin kept Sacha safe from the monsoon of blood that followed as the giant norlock thrashed in pain before yanking the last tentacle out of the grip of the haulers and back into the water. Wonder if it¡¯s stupid enough to trick again. Calvin thought. Sadly that wasn¡¯t the case. Once there was only one confirmed tentacle remaining, the creature tried to hide out under the surface of the lake, not bothering to respond to any more of Grant¡¯s provocations. ¡°Get the big hooks set up.¡± Calvin said, Karen echoing him a moment later, instructing the soldiers to hook man-sized pulleys to a dozen of the thickest trees in the surrounding area. Then, one by one, they tossed the man-sized hooks up to Grant, who flew them high above the point in the lake where the norlock had made its home. ¡°I want that thing¡¯s tongue.¡± A norlock couldn¡¯t just get up and run, it would tear the flesh of its belly off if it tried. Instead, they took several days to dissolve the glue that held them in place before they began awkwardly swimming to their new hunting ground. Calvin didn¡¯t know about one this size, but he estimated that it couldn¡¯t flee sooner than a day or two, especially not while it was weak and bleeding. Grant dropped the hooks one at a time, ferrying them back and forth in a matter of minutes. Once they were all in the water, the assembled soldiers started hauling, hoping to snag the creature¡¯s flesh. There were some incidents of catching boulders, but no less than eight of the man-sized hooks caught their target and inch by inch, they began to peel it off the floor of the lake. The final tentacle came out and weakly assaulted them, but it was easily lopped off by Karen before they resumed hauling the beast up onto the shore. The going got much harder once they had half of the thing out of the water. Its main body was about the size of a three story mansion, and when it lost the buoyancy of water, it became much harder to haul. The enormous creature was still struggling weakly when Karen climbed on top of it and delivered a killing blow to its heart through ten feet of muscle and fat, creating a final geyser of blood. Old Salt has reached level 15! 75% Correction. +1 Stability ¡°It¡¯s just been one of those days.¡± Baroke said, wiping blood off his forehead, where it dribbled out of his hair. ¡°I¡¯m gonna need a bath.¡± Calvin glanced at the water, which had been turned red and frothy by the death of the monster. ¡°Probably wanna go upriver for that,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Aye.¡± Once the blood stopped raining from the sky, Calvin handed Sacha over to Kala before climbing down to the creature¡¯s beak, where his men pried the house-sized chitin open for Calvin to take a chunk out of the creature¡¯s tongue. I wonder If I have to eat the whole thing, Calvin wondered as he backed out of the enormous mouth with the bloody chunk in his hand. The logistics of that would be difficult. The logistics of how it got that big are impossible. It had to have some kind of energy saving or creating mutation, because it was simply too big to only eat a handful of ooze weavers a year. Calvin thought about that for a moment. Where would a mutation like that be? Either in the stomach, the fat, or the skin. Elliot replied after considering it for a moment. Hmm¡­ Calvin looked up at the massive creature. I wonder. ¡°Everybody back off a good twenty feet,¡± He said, placing a hand on the creature. Harvester 12/44 Bent remaining. The monster shimmered for a moment and reappeared in neat stacks of meat and organs, which spilled over Calvin like a tidal wave, nearly submerging him before finally settling down to about knee-height. Calvin turned around and saw the entire crew watching him. ¡°The only tasty part of a norlock is the meat just under the mantle! Normally there¡¯s only a pound or two of it, but as you can see¡­¡± Calvin said, pointing to several tons of soft, nearly translucent meat neatly packaged in strips of norlock leather. ¡°There¡¯s plenty for everyone, so let¡¯s party!¡± A rousing cheer echoed around the placid lake as the soldier went up and grabbed chunks of delicate meat and threw them over their shoulders, setting about getting the grills up and burning with the enthusiasm of a starving man. Calvin felt one gaze that hadn¡¯t left him when he announced the end of the work day. It watched him with equal parts awe and dismay. Now, who is that? Calvin thought to himself, tracing the direction of the gaze back to the upper canopy a few hundred yards down shore. He stared at the canopy intently, unable to make anything out at this distance, but whoever was looking noticed him looking back. There was a brief flash of panic, and Calvin saw a long, insectoid leg slip out of the shadows for an instant before the tree wobbled for a moment, and the creature was gone. Well, at least they know we mean business. If they were willing to sacrifice one of their own every month to keep this monster appeased, then the gods knew they wouldn¡¯t cross the people who made a relaxing fishing trip out of their tormentor. ¡°Hey cap,¡± Carl the Bannerman asked, stepping by Calvin as he helped a dozen other men lift the beak and carry it up to the trees. ¡°Think I can hang this on my wall?¡± ¡°Sorry to break it to you, Carl, but you¡¯re never going to have a wall big enough for that. if you wanna make a roof out of it¡­¡± Calvin glanced up at the beak looming over them. ¡°Probably gonna have to start a raffle.¡± Carl heaved a frustrated grunt, but they took it aside without complain. Calvin snagged a nearby footsoldier. ¡°Have the stomach, fat, and leather brought over there,¡± Calvin said, pointing to where his Knick-knacks were already clearing some land for him to experiment. Consume. 11/44 Bent remaining. ¡°ah.¡± Calvin said as his mind tingled with knowledge. What? ¡°N¡¯gui ini gyi iuya kmyigua means ¡®Honorless minnows, I will stack your bones.¡¯ More or less.¡± Whew, thank goodness he was an asshole. ***Ykuingi, Daughter of the Chief*** They killed it, they killed it! mother hagfish, they killed it, and they¡¯re absolutely terrifying! Ykuingi passed by the security detail following her trail of Binding without bothering to stop, nimbly jumping around them and continuing on to her mother. What will we do when they return? What if they¡¯re mad at us? Why is the sickly human obviously the leader? It has to be absolutely dimwitted compared to the larger specimens, and yet they seemed to be waiting on his every word. Nothing about these humans makes sense! We have to do damage control. We have to befriend these creatures with their tree-constructs and not-Binding Binding, and their weird strange shell-coverings, because if we don¡¯t they¡¯ll annihilate us! I know! We¡¯ll give them all the rewards promised to the warrior who slays Yninquiak! We¡¯ll treat them like legendary heroes. If anyone believes we sent them there to be eaten, we¡¯ll simply laugh it off. Yes. We will appease these new creatures with full force while we get a feel for their intentions. Ykuingi continued plotting, ignoring the questioning shouts of the smaller guards as she hurtled through the canopy towards home, the fact that a breeding contract was on the list of rewards promised to any warrior who killed Yninquiak, didn¡¯t even surface in her mind. *** ¡°Where¡¯s Ykuingi going?¡± the guard asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe we should check it out?¡± The other said with the People¡¯s version of a shrug. They followed her trail and spotted the humans hauling bits and pieces of something up the shore, toward dozens of firepits. They shuddered at the sight of fire, as the heat was unnatural for one of the People, causing their nice mucus layer to try and get clogged by smoke. They didn¡¯t quite understand what they were looking at until they spotted the enormous beak resting on the sand. A beak that large could only have one source, which mean the rest of Yninquiak was being¡­ritualistically burned and eaten by these demons. ¡°Sweet mother Hagfish.¡± ¡°We should head back.¡± Macronomicon Bonus! It just feels like one of those days, y''know whut''a''mean? Chapter 157: Peer Pressure ¡°Welcome, great heroes!¡± The matriarch of the Ooze Weaver tribe said, making the odd flag-waving motion as they approached. Norlocks didn¡¯t have their own language. They were asocial creatures and generally not intelligent enough to learn speech until they reached a size impossible by normal standards. The language must have come from the Ooze weavers, and Calvin was pleased to see himself proved correct. Eating the norlock¡¯s tongue had given him access to ooze weaver language Didn¡¯t do anything for body language, though. Rather than assembling into the same size-chevron as before, Calvin simply walked up, copied her salute, and greeted the chieftain in her own tongue. ¡°Greetings, chieftain, my name is Calvin Gadsint. In the week since we last parted, I¡¯ve been learning your language, which is quite a beautiful one, I might add.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve learned our language¡­In a week.¡± The chieftain said, forgetting her salute and dropping her forelegs to the ground. Now tell her you only know that sentence and this one explaining it. ¡°That can¡¯t be possible, you¡¯re¡­¡± ¡°Small?¡± Calvin asked, ignoring Elliot¡¯s bad advice. ¡°Yes, size and authority are often linked in human culture, but not in this particular case. I am the leader of expedition.¡± ¡°Size equates intelligence, actually.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Calvin asked, eyebrows raising. So the brain keeps growing with the body? Oh man, that sounds so exploitable. Can we dissect some of them? I need it for my biomancy studies. Please? Pleeeease? ¡°That¡¯s fascinating.¡± Calvin tapped his skull. ¡°Human thinkmeats are fixed in size, since our heads don¡¯t grow over time, so size isn¡¯t an accurate metric of intelligence.¡± ¡°Did I just call a brain thinkmeats?¡± Calvin whispered to himself before shaking his head. ¡°Anyway, we¡¯re getting off topic. I reviewed the conversation from a week prior once I had a firm grasp of your language, and realized that you asked us to feed ourselves to the Norlock.¡± The slime on the prawn-faced spider dripped as it flinched away from him. ¡°Um¡­that¡¯s not¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Calvin said, holding up a hand. ¡°As of right now I am the only human capable of speaking like the People, and I have told my men that you desperately requested their aid. I see no reason to complicate our relationship at this stage.¡± Calvin lowered his voice. ¡°I might ask you to perhaps rewrite history a little on your end, as well, to prevent future complications.¡± ¡°Already done.¡± The chieftan said, bobbing her body in agreement. ¡°So,¡± Calvin said, glancing up at the many shimmering, slimy mucus sacks full of fish, crude stone tools, and shiny river stones, all of which hung from the branches of trees, looking for all the world like dangling snot. ¡°Is all that for us?¡± ¡°Oh my, I was so distracted by your being able to speak that I lost track of¡­¡± The man-sized bug seemed to compose herself for a moment, then gave the same greeting wave as before. ¡°Welcome great heroes! Long have our people yearned for the death of the demon known as Yninquiak. Toward this end, we have offered the warrior who could vanquish the demon great treasure,¡± She raised a foreleg and pointed at the snot-bags full of fish and stone. Welp. Got a good idea of the tribe¡¯s wealth now, at the very least. They¡¯re about to get a whole lot wealthier, though. Once Calvin started selling their ooze internationally, anyway. I think they¡¯d be an excellent buyer for glass and steel tools, but I¡¯d have to find ways to use the ooze for more than a lubricant in order to raise their value. I can tell they¡¯ve been able to achieve unbelievable tensile strength with it. I should start there. ¡°I would be overjoyed to accept these treasures,¡± Calvin said with a formal bow. ¡°In addition, I am proud to offer a breeding contract for my daughter, Ykuingi, the finest specimen of breeding age in our entire village.¡± The giant snot-monster gestured to another, incrementally smaller snot-monster standing beside her, shifting around with apparent nervous energy. Calvin¡¯s eyes narrowed. I hate being right. ¡°Come here,¡± Calvin demanded, pointing to the ground in front of him, causing the chieftain to recoil momentarily before scuttling toward him. ¡°Are you serious?¡± Calvin whispered once the leader of the ooze-weavers was close enough. ¡°You should be well aware that I don¡¯t want to put my seedtooth anywhere near that, and vice versa.¡± Also did I just call my dick my ¡®seed-tooth¡¯?? ¡°I understand you confusion, but I discussed this with the other elders, and they believe that sending Ykuingi along with your expedition for the duration of a breeding cycle would be an excellent way to gain more knowledge about your people, and vice versa. We can honor the letter of our promise to give her first clutch to the heroes while accomplishing diplomatic ends instead.¡± ¡°How long¡¯s a breeding cycle?¡± Calvin asked quietly. ¡°Three months.¡± ¡°So let me get this straight. You don¡¯t actually want me to have sex with her, and are just taking advantage of the promise to establish a foothold in human relations?¡± ¡°Yes, well summarized.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just going to introduce her as a diplomat to my people. The nuance will be a lot better.¡± And I¡¯ll only get teased by my friends who already know about my princess stealing skill. ¡°That is fine.¡± ¡°Well then.¡± Calvin said, motioning for the chieftain to step back and raising his voice again. ¡°I accept the breeding contract with great enthusiasm! I look forward to breeding the beautiful princess. I¡¯ll breed her long, and I¡¯ll breed her hard. It will be my solemn duty to breed her so thoroughly that I miss not a single egg in her clutch.¡± If slimy insect monsters could blush, Calvin was pretty sure Ykuingi would be. The chieftain burbled a bit of nervous laughter, then cleared her speaking tubes. ¡°Ahem. jokes aside. We are very grateful for your gracious acceptance of our gifts. If you¡¯ll allow me to change the subject, how long to you intend to stay before you move on, and where do you plan on going?¡± ¡°To the far south east and over the mountain range is another tribe of humans,¡± Calvin said pointing. ¡°We plan on following the river, cutting a hole through the mountain and establishing a trade route connecting their people with my people.¡± ¡°Cut a hole through a mountain?¡± The chieftain asked, going still. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure, but that body language was probably astonishment. ¡°Yeah, why?¡± ¡°N-Nothing,¡± The chieftan said, her many mouthpieces wriggling like a human¡¯s fingers. ¡°We¡¯ll stay for a week before we head upriver,¡± Calvin added, realizing he hadn¡¯t given her a timeframe. ¡°I¡¯d like to avail myself of your hospitality while I finish replacing my barges with more sturdy ones and update some of my equipment.¡± The chieftain scanned the hundreds of humans with thousands more waiting in the barges. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to be rude, but we couldn¡¯t possibly¡­¡± ¡°We¡¯ve got our own food and places to sleep,¡± Calvin said. ¡°We mostly want the protection from Warped monsters that your borders offer.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± The chieftan said, bobbing. ¡°Then if you¡¯ll be departing in one week, we should arrange for your contract with Ykuingi to begin at that time. Of course you can speak to her before then.¡± ¡®Ykuingi¡¯ bobbed in acknowledgement. ¡°Is there anything else, before I return to explain our arrangements to my people?¡± the chieftain asked. Calvin glanced around and spotted the canopy of trees that were obviously groomed to provide a walkway above the fish reservoirs. ¡°Yeah, what¡¯s the closest place that your people would be comfortable with me cutting down a bunch of trees? An acre or two?¡± ***Calvin*** Calvin was overseeing the Knick-knacks as they constructed a new Flask to his specification. He couldn¡¯t simply add new prefabs to an existing one, he had to create a new one from scratch, as they were literally baked into the cap on the bottom of the flask. He was aiming to build a handy barging storage device, With things like iron nails, buckets, rope, hammers, planks of wood, and most especially, fully formed barges. Calvin pictured the imagery on the bottom as a barge on the water with a hammer and saw above it. That would prevent any confusion. What about a vial for mortally wounded men? Elliot asked. If you could scoop someone up and preserve them on the cusp of death, you could spit them back out when you reach someone like Matthis, who can stabilize the dying. There¡¯s a thought. Calvin thought, scanning the rapidly receding treeline as the knick-knacks cut and stacked a veritable wall of wood. Calvin¡¯s other summons were busily seasoning the wood with the dried ooze weaver mixture, scraping the resulting goop off into the river while still more were assembling the sturdier barges along with the prefabs he wanted in his new equipment flask. He glanced back down at the raw nem that a knick-knack was massaging into shape while another kept a white hot flame moving around it with inhuman accuracy. Most of the stones offered as ¡®treasure¡¯ had been shiny river rocks and a few garnets, but there was a single chunk of Nem that was about half a glimmer in size, the most valuable thing they¡¯d given them, probably without even knowing it¡¯s value. It gave Calvin the option of expanding his Flask collection. I guess I gotta bleed now, Calvin thought with a sigh, pulling out a knife and knicking his thumb, wincing as he dripped blood into a vial. You¡¯re Warped, Too Already coming in handy, Calvin thought as he started the process of filtering out the ¡®Blade Body¡¯ mutation. Once that was done he would have to ¡®uncode it¡¯ with weak acids, remove the acid, infuse it into a Lure membrane and ¡®bake¡¯ it into the cap by sandwiching it between two hair-thin layers of Nem. It was going to take a couple days at least. Glad I said we were going to take a week. ¡°So,¡± Baroke said, sidling up to him and throwing his oversized arm over Calvin¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Who¡¯s this Ykuingi person? I noticed you refered to her as a ¡®she¡¯.¡± ¡°She wouldn¡¯t happen to be the chief¡¯s daughter would she?¡± Kala asked, sneaking up to his other side. ¡°She¡¯s a diplomat. That¡¯s it,¡± Calvin said, rolling his eyes. ¡°Right, right, but she is the chief¡¯s daughter, right?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Technically yes. She¡¯s coming with us for a few months to learn about people, then we¡¯re sending her back home. That¡¯s it.¡± ¡°So¡­she¡¯s technically the chief¡¯s daughter,¡± Kala said with a knowing nod. ¡°You know what you must do.¡± Ella said, approaching from in front, finally boxing Calvin in. ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking, but it¡¯s not really that imp-¡° ¡°You¡¯ve got to kidnap her before we leave in a week,¡± Baroke said, jabbing Calvin in the side with his thick fingers. ¡°Sweep that eight-legged lumpy snot-monster off her feet.¡± ¡°They¡¯re called People,¡± Calvin said, enunciating the last word in Ooze-weaver language. ¡°Yeah, I can¡¯t pronounce that.¡± Baroke shrugged. ¡°Anyway, every little point of Body counts. You told me you were at thirty-four?¡± Kala asked ¡°What of it?¡± ¡°That means all your physical and Hybrid skills are one point short of an eventual Ability.¡± Kala said. ¡°Take the point while you can.¡± ¡°I only have like, one Skill gated by Body,¡± Calvin said, emphatically holding up a finger. ¡°It¡¯s not that big a deal!¡± ¡°You know how many people would kill to have a mutation that theoretically removes their Body cap?¡± Baroke demanded. ¡°You¡¯re just shitting all over the amazing opportunity you¡¯ve got.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve got literally unlimited potential,¡± Ella added. ¡°Why pass up on it?¡± Calvin took a deep breath. ¡°Alright, fine, I¡¯ll kidnap her and we¡¯ll see if I get the point of Body. It¡¯s gonna be tough doing it without drawing suspicion on the humans, though, and it¡¯s absolutely critical I don¡¯t blow relations between our people on a whim. Can I count on you guys to help?¡± ¡°Whachu talkin¡¯ ¡®bout?¡± Baroke said, taking his arm off Calvin¡¯s shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s not my mutation.¡± He sauntered off with his hands in his pockets. ¡°I promised I¡¯d help Learner with subtext this week,¡± Kala said apologetically, stepping away from him. ¡°Kala!¡± Learner called from the distance, waving. ¡°I need you for an excuse!¡± ¡°And there she is now,¡± Kala said, daintily dashing away. ¡°Traitors!¡± Calvin shouted after them. He glanced up at Ella. The savage Genosian took one of the fish they¡¯d been offered and bit its head off in one bite, swallowing without chewing. ¡°I¡¯ll help if you want.¡± She said between bites of raw fish. Calvin opened his mouth to take her up on it, then hesitated. ¡°Nah, it¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll do it by myself. Ella didn¡¯t do subterfuge well. Macronomicon P.S. PLanning on bonus chapters until we get to 15/15. Why? Because I can. expect the next one in a couple hours. Chapter 158: You Don’t Have These? Now, how to singlehandedly steal a slime princess I know nothing about, in an area I know nothing about, without the people who live here getting suspicious of the strangers in the area? Calvin opened up a leather bound case of vials, with each of his mutations clearly labeled on the glasses, running his fingers over it to remind himself of his options in a visual way and possibly spark some idea. Hmmm¡­ Mesmerizing Eyes, Heart of the Swarm. Calvin could turn into a Lure, actually. They had the ability to focus their effect on a specific creature, which would be perfect for luring the princess into an accident. And it would have to be an accident. Calvin had briefly considered manufacturing a way to turn into an ooze weaver and kidnapping her that way, to completely throw off the scent, but Calvin realized his ignorance about Ooze weaver culture and physiology would throw up red flags faster than anything. What if there were rival tribes of ooze weavers and he started a war? What if there were none, and everyone noticed an extra ooze weaver in a matter of seconds? A simple accident would be ideal. Witnessed by everyone would be even better. Can¡¯t blame the humans for her tripping and falling into the river can you? Calvin pulled the Mesmerizing Eyes mutation out of the case and sloshed the fine crimson powder back and forth in front of himself. Now this can cause some workplace accidents. ***Ykuingi*** ¡°You must be terrified,¡± Ykuingi¡¯s friend, Gyintingu said as they tossed Bindings out into the river, aiming to supplement their fish pools with more fish to eat, and extra nutrients for the algae scum. They were resting in the thick branches of the lower canopy perched out above the river, the murky water ¡°Don¡¯t remind me,¡± Ykuingi said. ¡°I haven¡¯t even spoken with their leader yet.¡± She hadn¡¯t spoken with him yet, but she had been present while her mother spoke to him, and he seemed¡­erratic, at best, his attitude changing on a dime. Promising to breed her. Ykuingi¡¯s shell itched uncomfortably at that. She sincerely hoped that was a joke, because humans were disgusting with their fleshy lack of carapace, bone dry bodies, and moss-heads. ¡°I heard they use fire.¡± Gyintingu said with an audible tremor in her voice. ¡°I pray to Mother Hagfish that you don¡¯t come back to us with yellow mucus.¡± ¡°That¡¯s just a myth. Yellowed mucus isn¡¯t permanent, as long as you don¡¯t actually get burned.¡± ¡°Thank the mother for the humans, though, even if their leader does look stupid. We can finally retake the shrine and properly worship once again.¡± Gyintingu said, making a habitual sign of obescience to Mother Hagfish. ¡°Don¡¯t forget the fish.¡± ¡°And the fish!¡± Her friend responded. ¡°I know the great Ynkingi invented the fish pools a generation ago because we were denied access to the lake, but now we have it back! Once those unnatural humans stop marring the air with smoke, we can retake the shore and finally stop making the pools.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯ll be the case.¡± A voice came from behind them with a strange, stilted accent. It couldn¡¯t be. Ykuingi and all the People for a hundred feet along the edge of the river turned to stare at the human standing on the branches, clinging to the branches as easily as one of the People with the little arms at the bottom of its lower arms. The leader of the humans looked quite comfortable in a tree. ¡°How¡­¡± ¡°I spent a lot of time in a tree as a child,¡± He said, baring his immobile teeth at them in a strange warping of his face. ¡°Although I never tried fishing from them. When you think about it it¡¯s a great way to avoid norlocks.¡± ¡°What did you mean by not thinking that¡¯s the case?¡± ¡°Your people spent a generation making ends meet in a horrible situation and you¡¯re about to have more food than you could possibly need. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if you experienced a population explosion.¡± Gyintingui gave a chortling laugh. ¡°You¡¯re not far off, human. I heard when Tiyingu got word the demon was defeated, she dropped a clutch, right there on the spot out of sheer surprise.¡± The human gave his own grunting laugh, baring his teeth again. Perhaps teeth baring is a good thing for humans? The human leaned forward, peering down at the river before he raised his eyes, scanning the opposite bank with an oddly critical eye. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you right now, you wouldn¡¯t get human fishers doing it like this, we¡¯re horrible swimmers, on average. Falling into the river would be half a death sentence.¡± ¡°The people are very strong swimmers,¡± Gyintingui said, waving one of her forelegs, bringing attention to the stiff paddles along the sides. ¡°I see.¡± The human said with a nod, raising his weird leg with legs. ¡°Us, not so much.¡± The human stayed there with the two of them for a few hours, chatting about all sorts of things, from competing over the number of times they¡¯d fallen from a tree, to a brief diatribe on human social structures. They were astonished and terrified at the sheer number of humans, mostly concentrated around the coasts. Millions? Ykuingi could comprehend a thousand, which was enough fish to feed someone for a year, requiring several pools to keep them fed. But a million? A thousand thousands? The number seemed to lose meaning entirely, becoming simply so large that she couldn¡¯t comprehend, so she shoved the information into the back of her mind. Her friend replied that there were no other tribes of People. They had come from the mother hagfish in the center of the lake upsteam, and none had ever left the cradle that was the river since the beginning of time. Their entire existence revolved around the lake and the river that ran through it, which was why Ykuingi was so terrified about being the first of the People to leave that safety. Her mother had the right of it, though. The aged People was wise with age and thinkmeat size. They needed someone to assess the risk that the humans posed in order to make more informed decisions about the fate of the tribe as a whole. The humans obviously had the power to destroy them if they wished, and it was Ykuingi¡¯s duty to make sure that never came to pass. After the conversation eventually ran short of topics, The human excused himself, preforming an odd motion with his arm before turning to go. ¡°Oh, I forgot. What¡¯s your name?¡± ykuingi asked. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s ¡®Calvin¡¯,¡± He responded. ¡°Kuaribin?¡± Ykuingi asked. It was an odd name, that was for sure, with an uncomfortable ¡®ah¡¯ sound right in the middle of the word that made it difficult to pronounce. ¡°Close enough.¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°Thank you for going out of your way to speak with me. It helped put my mind at ease regarding our trip.¡± ¡°No problem,¡± Calvin said, ¡°And thank you for your hospitality.¡± Following that, he swung down off the branch and to the beach, showing a strange sort of swing-y dexterity as he did, using the thick wood to create lurching momentum, rather than a People¡¯s smooth movements. Those creatures are odd, Ykuingi thought, twitching her teeth in a dismissive gesture before getting back to work. They¡¯d been distracted by conversation so long the other fishers had far outstripped them. ***Calvin*** Playboy has reached level 12! 60% Correction. Oh, look at that, it works with all sapient races. Calvin reviewed the information he¡¯d managed to pump out of the pair of fishers as he supervised the finishing touches of his Barge flask. Once that was done, they would start feeding undifferentiated mass into the creation. So, there¡¯s only a few hundred ooze weavers in the world, by their account. Definitely can¡¯t go in disguised as another. That leaves accidents. From what they told me, it¡¯s uncommon for one of them to fall, but not unheard of¡­ so that¡¯s looking like the way to go. Now, I don¡¯t know what the exact definition of ¡®kidnapping¡¯ that the System uses is, but I would wager it involves the princess being under my custody, the inability ¨C or unwillingness, in Kala¡¯s case ¨C to leave should she choose and an inability for her guardians to reacquire her. Now let¡¯s get to work. ***Ykuingi, Daughter of the Chief*** Two days went by uneventfully and Ykuingi was once again trawling her Binding through the river, when a subtle reflection of light caught her attention across the river. Just at the edge of the water, she could make out a fin. Not just any fin, the fin of what had to be an enourmous log-fish, so called because they liked to pose as bits of wood on the floor of the river. They were particularly tasty, and upon closer inspection she could tell that this one was pregnant, swollen with eggs. If she could bring it in with a male, she would be able to stock their pools for the remaining wet months. if not, well, the eggs were a delicacy. Win-win. Ykuingi weaved her Binding carefully. It would be difficult to make a throw across the entire river, but she had to try. She climbed out to the farthest limb, balancing precariously as she whirled her binding twice to get inertia before releasing it toward the huge log-fish. No such luck. Her Binding fel just a bit short of reaching the opposite bank. Others could see the fish too, and the surrounding People tried their luck at snaring the oversized log-fish, but Ykuingi¡¯s snare was the longest, a result of being the largest People, save her mother, who was too old to fish. Strangely, the log-fish didn¡¯t flee. Bloated with eggs as it was, it simply swam a lazy circle and returned to where it was when she first threw the Binding. Stupid fish. She thought, her teeth wiggling in derision at the dumb animal¡¯s inability to see it was being hunted and respond accordingly. She tried again. Miss. She tried once more. Still, Ykuingi wasn¡¯t able to get her Binding to cross the distance, falling just short of its target. Still the log-fish swam in lazy circles, taunting the People. You¡¯re not worth it, Ykuingi thought, glaring in irritation. Her mother had long ago taught her when to give up on something. That was when the male logfish approached. An adult male, seemingly interested in the gravid female. The chatter amongst the People redoubled. I have to try! Ykuingi clambered forward and stretched out, her claws clamping down on the slender branches as she precariously balanced over the river, cheered on by her people. She whipped her Binding around, aiming for the two fish, then released, sending the line of Binding out over the water. It sailed out, trailing the thin, strong trail of clear Binding wobbling behind it, ready for her to pull in as soon as the stickier Binding at the front snared her prey. It flew up and over, arcing in the air beautifully. This is it. She thought. This is the one! Crack! Ykuingi howled in dismay as the branch supporting most of her weight snapped beneath the tight grip of her claws, sending her tumbling down into the water. She slid into the water with ease, her mucus coating making the water part around her as easily as the air. Stupid fish, She thought as she tried to differentiate down from up in the chaos of churning water. I¡¯ll get you next time. Then everything went black. After fifteen seconds of watching the water, the People began to grow nervous. Why wasn¡¯t Ykuingi resurfacing? After a full minute, they became alarmed, fearful that she might be being attacked by a norlock. As such, dozens of People jumped into the river to search for her and fight the underwater creature if they had to... but they found nothing. In the confusion, nobody noticed the two log-fish blinking out of existence. ***Calvin*** Your Princess Is In Another Castle has reached level 19! 95% Correction Your Body has reached 35! ¡°Paydirt.¡± Calvin said, still wringing the water out of his clothes as he dried off far downstream. He took Ykuingi out of his pocket and nearly dropped the unconscious slime monster¡¯s body when his fingers slipped. Careful, careful. Calvin thought to himself as he cupped his hands under the unconscious creature, taking extra care not to damage her many, many, moving joints. Calvin laid her carefully on the ground and twisted off the wingnut on the shrinking bracelet, allowing the technical princess to regain full size. Calvin knew that his best bet for total anonymity was to simply leave her there, passed out on the side of the bank with no explanation, but that seemed¡­rude. Not to mention, it would leave an unexplained blank in the girl¡¯s memory, and holes like that had a tendancy to erode into larger ones over time. It wouldn¡¯t do to have damaged a princess in the process, even mentally. Is that my thinking or the Skill thinking? Calvin wondered to himself. And when did I start thinking of her as a girl? I could bust out the Captain Kirk Mutation for you if you get another level in YPiiAC. No thanks, Calvin thought, glancing down at the many mouth-bits the creature¡¯s had. Calvin didn¡¯t consider himself particularly appearance motivated, but that was far beyond the pale. Ykuingi began to stir as the Somnovore extract began to wear off, climbing to her feet and scanning the treeline, settling on Calvin as he twisted his shirt into a tight knot, dribbling river water over his knuckles. ¡°You fell out of the tree,¡± Calvin said helpfully. ¡°You must have hit your thinkmeats on a rock in the river or something, I saw you floating by, not moving. I fished you out of the river just a minute ago.¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible,¡± Ykuingi said, her mouth-parts tight and pointing down, almost like a mustache. ¡°If I had hit something hard enough to damage my thinkmeats, there would be a hole in my carapace. Also, the People have long since trawled away all the stones at the bottom of the lake big enough for a norlock to attach themselves to.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure I don¡¯t know what could cause a People to lose consciousness like that,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°Just throwing out ideas.¡± Ykuingi looked him up and down with an exaggerated movement. ¡°I find your presence here highly suspicious.¡± ¡°You try to be nice to someone,¡± Calvin muttered, shaking his head. ¡°Ykuingi!¡± one of the fishers cried as they barreled dowriver. ¡°There she is, with the human!¡± Damn. Calvin needed to get her on his side and make himself look squeaky clean in in the next couple seconds. ¡°Look, make an excuse and say I helped rescue you, and I¡¯ll pay you anything you want.¡± Calvin said quietly, pulling out the big cannons. ¡°I want one ¨C no, make that six ¨C gravid log-fish and a male to fertilize their eggs for our farming pools,¡± Ykuingi shot back. ¡°Deal.¡± Calvin agreed instantly. The bug princess turned and waved at her rescuers. ¡°here I am!¡± She said. ¡°My lung connectors got misaligned when I hit the water, but Kuaribin managed to fix them before I suffocated! I¡¯m fine now!¡± The big princess leaned back toward Calvin, studying his expression carefully. ¡°Humans don¡¯t have lung-connectors where you¡¯re from, do they?¡± ¡°Not as such, no.¡± Turns out a good bribe is just as good as doing extensive research on the target. If not better. Macronomicon Chapter 159: My boxed In Valley ¡°Huh,¡± Calvin grunted as the train of barges passed by the dozen or so ooze weavers standing on top of bubbles of snot in the middle of the lake, using their long strands of goop to excavate¡­something man-made. Calvin couldn¡¯t see exactly what it was through the water, but he could tell the edges were made of metal and perfectly smooth. That and the blinking blue light, reminiscent of the blue lights inside the Genosian freezer, and¡­Ritchie cool¡¯s bitching recharging station. Is there something down there from the time of the gods? Calvin though to himself. ¡°What is that?¡± Calvin asked their guest as they passed by. ¡°That¡¯s the shrine to Mother Hagfish, where all life came from.¡± ¡°riiight.¡± Calvin said, thumbing his chin. Part of him was tempted to go check it out, but...I¡¯m already a week and a half behind schedule. Not that a week was a sizeable delay in the scope of building his wizard-kingdom, but still, he had other places to be. ¡°Let¡¯s keep going.¡± Calvin said, waving away the thought. *** The barges kept going upriver for another week before they came across a short waterfall, complicating the passage. Of course, it wasn¡¯t on any of the maps, because nobody had ever gotten further than the edge of Ooze Weaver territory. It complicated things for a while, until Calvin built a dock and wooden elevator off to the side of the fifteen foot cliff. Once they got to the top, the view of the Garavel mountain sprung out at them, causing Calvin¡¯s entire crew to take a moment to absorb the view. The Garavel mountain was the head of a mountain range that spread to the southeast, effectively separating Juntai from Gadvera except for the occasional tiny caravan of gravity goats led over the mountain range by plainsmen to the north. It was Calvin¡¯s intention to take that wall and punch a hole in it, so the trickle of trade became a torrent of goods and services flowing back and forth. Wow, the things we do to become a wizard king. Calvin wasn¡¯t interested in trade, but he needed a kingdom, and it was more reasonable to build his own to suit his interests, rather than take some shitty, sub-par kingdom. However, every kingdom needed a product or service that it produced, allowing its citizens a certain level of sustainability. Of course, technically, he was a marquis-cum-prince-consort, and this was, on paper, a March, a borderland belonging to Gadvera, but whatever. When they started to outperform Gadvera, Calvin was fairly sure he could get the paperwork changed. I forget, have I told you about trains? No, why? Let¡¯s just say barges are for pre-industrial pussies, and if these Juntai guys really can make electricity at the drop of a hat, then they stand to profit in the shipping industry. I¡¯ll keep that in mind. The elevation gradually became higher and higher, the trees growing shorter and shorter, the river narrowing as they passed tributaries, until eventually they simply couldn¡¯t fit the barges in river any further and were forced to disembark. Calvin led the march up the side of the mountain, the Endurance of him and his crew allowing him to reach the top at a brisk, leisurely pace, reaching the summit with half the army while the rest guarded the barges. The whole hike only took an hour. Once Calvin made it to the highest point of his territory, he summoned Nadia and Kurawe so they could see the view stretched out beneath them with their own eyes. ¡°Looks like a boxed in valley in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere.¡± Nadia said with a sour look. ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s my boxed in valley in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere,¡± Calvin said, unable to keep a grin off his face. In his mind he was standing right on the very top of his tower, overlooking the glittering valley, complete with streets topped with liquid stone that aided walking, rooftops, topped with materials that gathered heat for stovetops, topless women¡­ All kinds of tops. ¡°Yes!¡± Goob shouted, motioning to the ground beneath them. ¡°This is where the tower will be, and I will be master of everything I survey! My magic inventions will gradually trickle down to the city below me, and they will acknowledge my value and power, and girls will have to be nice to me.¡± ¡°Sure they will, kid,¡± Baroke said, kneeling down to ruffle Goob¡¯s hair while the girls in the party gave him amused and slightly disappointed looks. Goob swatted Baroke¡¯s huge hand away from his head, glaring at the enormous archer. That hit little close to home. That kid¡¯s got your number. Is he some kind of empath tuned to your frequency or something? I¡¯m genuinely curious. Kala giggled, watching Elliot¡¯s dialogue with Calvin. ¡°Goob, C¡¯mere.¡± Calvin said, motioning for his apprentice to approach, glaring at everyone else reproachfully until they backed off. Once Calvin was sure everyone else was out of earshot, he knelt down until he and goob were less than a foot apart. ¡°Goob, I¡¯m gonna give you a lesson right now that can¡¯t be repeated to anyone.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Goob gasped, his eyes wide. ¡°I was thinking the exact same thing you were saying.¡± Calvin said slowly. ¡°Really?¡± Goob nearly shouted before Calvin shushed him. ¡°Yes, really. Did you notice how I didn¡¯t say any of it out loud and at the top of my lungs?¡± ¡°Oh, yeah, I guess that¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Developing an air of mystery is half letting other people do the work. Tell me, what did you think I was thinking?¡± ¡°I guess you looked like you¡¯d found the promised land, since you were crying a little. I thought you were already carefully planning the construction of the city in your head, making sure it was absolutely perfect.¡± ¡°Nope, I had a brief thought about outlawing bras.¡± Calvin said. ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Yep. For guys like us, Goob, voicing our unfiltered thoughts tends to do more harm than good.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Goob said, nodding. Do you, really? Calvin decided to let it go with that, though, standing up. Calvin walked up to a nearby boulder and cut it in half with the disembodied hand clipped to his hip, creating two perfectly flat tables where he could stretch out the sheep vellum he¡¯d brought out from Mujenan. Calvin narrowed his eyes and triggered the Drafting Ability: M*necraft Debug Menu. M*necraft Debug menu: this Ability allows the user to calculate the distance between every object in their vicinity, its mass, chemical composition, etc. the resolution of the ability is strictly in 1 meter cubes. Always in metric. WARNING: converting from metric to Federation Standard may cause the desire to punch random trees, animals and dirt. Suddenly Calvin¡¯s vision became crowded with partially see-through, and highly crunchy alphanumerical data that seemed to shift randomly wherever he looked. Distance was the easiest one to decipher, though, he¡¯d figured that one out right away through simple experimentation. ¡°The far peak is exactly 1219 meters away,¡± Calvin muttered, indeed irritated at the need to convert from metric as he began designing the map of the mountain chain that would become the main trade artery in his empire. ¡°Grant.¡± Calvin called as he began filling out details on the map with unnatural speed, Drafting guiding his hands to make more precise marks as he glanced back and forth to made sure his distances per perfectly accurate. Once he got the elevations and details notated on the map, he could begin to design the transport system. ¡°Yeah?¡± The old general asked, stepping closer. ¡°You¡¯re in charge of setting up our base camp.¡± ¡°On it,¡± Grant said with a salute. Has he ever saluted me before? Calvin thought to himself before Nadia interrupted his musing. ¡°You¡¯re going to put him in charge?¡± She demanded. ¡°When we¡¯ve got me and Kurawe here? We obviously outrank him.¡± ¡°Kurawe, I want you to start roughing out plans for growing the economy of the city. feel free to organize the scouts to search for mineral resources across the mountains as well.¡± ¡°As you wish, Ravager,¡± Kurawe bowed and went over to Calvin¡¯s pack of writing supplies and grabbed enough to get started. ¡°And Nadia.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Do you have any experience setting up a semi-permanent camp in the middle of the wilderness?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°How about building kingdoms from nothing?¡± ¡°No,¡± She admitted grudgingly. ¡°Then shut up and learn to do something more than being a manipulative bitch,¡± Calvin said, flicking her forehead with ink. ¡°Because as good as you are at it, we don¡¯t need one right now.¡± ¡°Kala, what can you do?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Most of my skills are geared toward leadership and administration,¡± Kala said with a shrug. ¡°I could help Kurawe or try my luck at Seering.¡± ¡°You mean getting high and seeing if you have a hunch.¡± Nadia said sourly. ¡°Try Seering,¡± Calvin said. Kala had seen Orson dying before she had any hint about how Calvin was going to do it. The possibility of lifesaving insight was valuable compared to the extra paperwork she might accomplish, even if she didn¡¯t see anything in particular. ¡°Baroke.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Stay here on the top of the mountain and keep an eye on the scouting teams. If they get into any trouble with Warped creatures I want you to bail them out. ¡°I can do that.¡± Baroke said with a nod. ¡°Ella, take a company of the more aggressive humans and go through the valley with a fine-tooth comb, kill anything that wants to eat you.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°Tell the Cobalts to explore the northern slope of the mountain, to see if there¡¯s any place they would like to settle down.¡± ¡°Got it.¡± Ella nodded and turned to leave. Finally, it was just Calvin, Nadia and goob. ¡°Still here?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at the dark-haired pale princess in her tight leather outfit. ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me to do anything,¡± She said with her arms crossed under her chest. ¡°Just some vague nonsense about improving my skill set.¡± ¡°Right. Goob, you¡¯re going to be my research assistant, as usual. Nadia, you¡¯re going to be the test subject.¡± ¡°The what?¡± Nadia asked, eyes widening. ¡°I¡¯ve got so many ideas on the backlog. I need someone to help me test them. You volunteered by being functionally useless in the wilderness and disposable. Congratulations!¡± *** Once Calvin had finished making the map, Elliot described the concept of a freight train at length. It was basically just a scaled up mine cart on a track long enough to stretch across an entire continent. That didn¡¯t seem too complicated. If we cut through here, Calvin thought, delicately tracing the mountainside on his map with sharpened charcoal. We can create a rail with the lowest possible angle that lands square in the heart of the Juntai land. Calvin traced the rail back up to the north, toward Uleis, then branched it northeast, toward the great plains which bordered Uleis and Boles. We¡¯re going to need a lot of Abyssal Steel for this. Thankfully Abyssal Steel was able to be duplicated by force-feeding a crystal lattice stone and wood and allowing it to process them into undifferentiated matter. Then it was simply a matter of shaping it with Trait Doctoring. The efficiency rate was poor, though, with only about fifteen percent conversion rate. Most of the mass simply ceased to exist, presumably bubbling into some kind of greenish vapor byproduct. Why not just duplicate valuable trade goods and ship them around and¡­oh, right. Elliot¡¯s mind caught up with his mouth as he pointed out the obvious. Calvin could use his magic to duplicate large quantities of valuable resources in exchange for valueless ones like common stone, but that only served to put a target on his back, like the Hash¡¯Maje had said. If he were the center of the entire economy, not only would he be constantly overworked, he would also be a key figure to assassinate. He needed to make himself less important to the operation of his kingdom, not more. Toward that end, Calvin needed to produce shipping rails that were replicable and repairable with techniques possessed by other people. Which meant Abyssal Steel rails were probably off the table. Nobody else that he knew of could fix or replace them easily. But using a Crystal lattice to replicate normal steel would be fine¡­ Except for the awful conversion rate it seemed like the perfect solution. There was an entire mountain range worth of raw stone that could be disposed of by a crystal lattice and replaced with s smaller amount of raw steel, waiting to be shaped. Oh! Calvin had a thought. This is exactly where Survival of the Fittest would help. With an effort of will, Calvin uncapped the Warp Tank, feeling the thrumming sensation build behind his heart as it merged and interacted with his body. He¡¯d been saving the Warp for an emergency or to help trigger another Break, but this was something he¡¯d been wanting to do for a while, and even spamming the spell in Shadowboxing was showing drastically diminishing returns. Breaking level 30 was hard. Calvin started summoning. Calvinian Summoning has reached level 29! Calvinian Summoning has reached level 30! 2 slots available! Calvinian Summoning level 30: 27000 pounds, 900 minutes (15 hours). 10/45 Bent remaining 14/35 Warp Remaining +1 Will Please Choose an Ability or Mutation Avatar: 1 Bent. Alternate casting which summons one (1) creature slotted in Calvinian Summoning. Avatar is limited in mass to that of the original slotted creature. User may perceive through the Avatar¡¯s senses at will and control perfectly it from any distance. User may cast Bent-based Abilities through the Avatar. ^Atom Ant and Chimera may still be applied to an Avatar. Bulk Summoning: Mass Limit increased by (Int) % Extended Summoning: Time limit is increased by (Sta)% Diversified Portfolio of Death: User may now divide summon¡¯s mass between any different combination of *options they have access to*. ^Not only size and slotted creature variations, but extras like Chimera and Atom Ant may be added to a fraction of the total summon. The summon will no longer be strictly homogenous. Mutations: Continuity: The Summon remembers time spent during each summon, is aware of what the user is aware of while it was unsummoned, and can learn or improve System and non-System Skills to the limit of Calvinian Summoning. ^Moved from Chained Spirit Bent: Summoned creatures gain a limited pool to draw from to fuel Abilities, provided they have Bent-drawing abilities. The effects of the Abilities are extentions of Calvinian Summoning and not actual Bent. Pool is 1/5th the level of Calvinian Summoning. ^Moved from Chained Spirit Voodoo U: Damage taken by caster is absorbed by Calvinian Summon instead. ^Moved from Chained Spirit Survival of the Fittest: All Calvinian summons experience occasional random minor mutations of the template creature. A creature from the swarm may be chosen to replace the old template creature or be added to a new slot, if one is available. I¡¯ll just Borrow That: For 1 bent, User may choose to incorporate parts from summoned creatures into their own physiology. Lasts for the duration of the spell or until dismissed, then the User¡¯s physiology is returned to the state it was in before the Ability was activated. Damn, That¡¯s a lot of options. Calvin thought as he perused the list. He picked out the two new ones, the borrowing one and Avatar. They were both interesting and highly useful, but he already had one in mind. I choose survival of the fittest. Calvin felt a twitching itch spread down his spine, slowly growing over time. User will be rendered unconscious while Mutation is taking place. Macronomicon Chapter 160: Jungles are moist ¡°This chafes.¡± ¡°Why, is something wrong?¡± Calvin asked, looking over the map. He didn¡¯t see anything that immediately jumped out at him as a horrible mistake, but then again, he didn¡¯t have enough experience to start looking for them, either. ¡°No,¡± Gulad said, adjusting his collar and itching his groin. ¡°I think I¡¯m getting a rash. It¡¯s this damn humidity.¡± ¡°You should raise your Endurance.¡± Calvin had wanted to start experimenting immediately, but there was work to take care of, namely consulting with Gulad the Engineer about septic and water systems. His first instinct was to start doodling the tower and let everything else situate itself around it, but that wasn¡¯t ideal for city building. Calvin¡¯s first instincts were rarely appropriate. The green-sashed, snaggletoothed young man with the chicken coop obsession had something Calvin didn¡¯t have. The Engineering Skill, and an extremely expedited course on civil engineering, which meant while Calvin could draw perfect examples of what he wanted, Gulad was able to tell him if they were shit or not. It was also the young engineer¡¯s idea to start with water systems and build everything else around it. ¡°The water system is the core of any city. You have to make that as robust and efficient as you possibly can, or you¡¯re welcoming disaster. Build it with the number of people you have in mind, not the number we have now.¡± Gulad said, pointing at the thin tributary winding through Calvin¡¯s valley. ¡°Five million.¡± ¡°You see, its ¨C¡° Gulad blinked, taking in that number. ¡°five million?¡± ¡°In a hundred years or so, yes,¡± Calvin said, sliding the copy of his map back toward Gulad. ¡°Design it with five million in mind.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure I can ¨C¡° ¡°Gulad.¡± ¡°Yessir?¡± ¡°Do you or do you not have an engineering Skill?¡± ¡°I do.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re preternaturally good at designing water systems, correct?¡± ¡°In theory, yes.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s time to flex it,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Bring that back to me when you have a design and we¡¯ll go over it. Do you need any knick-knacks?¡± ¡°Only a handful for surveying and finding the water table.¡± Calvin motioned and a dozen knick-knacks separated from the group on standby and followed Gulad out of Calvin¡¯s office. ¡®Office¡¯ was a bit of a stretch, but it did have the honor of being the only completely finished building. The town hall was a two story unpainted box that sat squarely in the center of the valley, albeit not on top of the water. ¡°Aaah,¡± Calvin half yawned, stretching his legs before standing and peering out the wooden slats, watching Gulad exit from the front, carrying a backpack full of surveying equipment. All around him, humans and knick-knacks were working together to assemble the temporary wooden shelters, putting the wooden boxes together at a blistering pace. Another three days and everyone would have a place to sleep. Maybe not their own, individual place, but it would at least keep the weather out. Some of it, anyway. The weather itself, was, for lack of a better word, moist. Ugh. That word. The heat and humidity was punishing, something Calvin would have to deal with before anyone would want to live here. Seems like water is my enemy, Calvin thought idly. Calvin was considering leading the charge in the abandoning of modesty. After all, the humidity was only a problem if you trapped it against your skin with clothing. Calvin hadn¡¯t been wearing pants behind his desk all day, so he¡¯d been largely immune. The only problem was that going freebird was a solution that most people would not be immediately comfortable with, and it still didn¡¯t change how clammy the air felt on¡­. Wait a second¡­ Calvin¡¯s thoughts sparked. Uleis. Uleis had a massive farm dedicated to stripping the tiniest hints of moisture out of the air to supplement the water supply. Why not do that here? Calvin thought, returning to the maps of the city as planned. He traced his fingers around the mountains covering them on three sides. Would it be more effective to make big ones in a crown around the city, Calvin thought, tapping the peaks of the mountains. Or small ones as part of the architecture? Calvin thought to himself, tapping the outlines of buildings in the center weighing the possibilities. The moisture in the air was immeasurably higher than that of the desert. Calvin wiped a hand across his skin, thumbing the damp sensation on his fingertips. It would stand to reason any system separating water from air would be many times more efficient on Calvin¡¯s land. If Calvin were to set up large towers around the edge of his land, that might put a dent in the humidity while supplying them with the equivalent of another river to work with. On the other hand, it might be more than they ever needed. I like the aesthetic of incorporating it into our building design more, though, Calvin thought. The humidity was omnipresent, and having moisture sinks in the city rather than outside of it was more likely to make a perceivable difference. Even though making the water strippers smaller would no doubt lead to a drastic reduction in efficiency, the humidity made efficiency an entirely different question. Calvin pictured buildings with glass wall and pillars, with water being pumped through crystalline veins starkly visible through the clear outer halves of the walls. That sounds practical and beautiful. Calvin thought. Now all he needed was the schematics. Kurawe, Calvin thought, brushing his mind against the zealot¡¯s. Yes, ravager? Kurawe answered instantly, his mental voice strong and attentive. I need details on how Uleisan water condensers function. Of course. On the other end, Kurawe began digging through the state-secret blueprints and theory behind them, relaying the information to Calvin. Should I have someone deliver the materials? Kurawe asked. Calvin had Uleis over a barrel in more ways than one. He didn¡¯t just have his name stamped on the deed to a large portion of Uleis, He had their Cobalts. A crucial ingredient for the finest glasses the desert city was known to produce. Glasses that bent instead of cracking, glasses as strong as steel, they all required Cobalt spines. Oddly enough, Cobalts had recently vacated the Cobalt Mountains. Uleis could still make glass, but without Calvin¡¯s permission, they couldn¡¯t make anything stronger than a brittle window pane. Calvin was letting the Cobalts set their own prices for their spines, which had drastically reduced the output and raised the price, but in twenty years or so, after the population of Cobalts had exploded, supply would increase. Uleis had simply gone about increasing production the wrong way. No, I have all the supplies I¡¯ll need. Calvin thought back. Good work. It¡¯s my honor. Kurawe replied. You gotta admit, Elliot said, It¡¯s nice to be treated like a god. I think this is what I was missing when I was alive. I doubt it. Calvin thought, rolling his eyes as he went to check on his other experiments. He had two he was currently interested in, one was up on the mountain, and the other was in the room next door. Calvin opened the door and strode in like he owned the place, which he did. Goob and a couple knick-knacks were watching two Nadia¡¯s do sprints, racing each other back and forth across the hall. ¡°Still can¡¯t fly yet?¡± Calvin asked Goob. Both Nadia¡¯s stopped and stared at him, panting desperately, sweat pouring down their temples. ¡°I didn¡¯t tell you to stop.¡± Calvin said, accepting the chart from Goob while both Nadia¡¯s got back to running. ¡°Actually the ¡®Enhanced¡¯ Nadia started off thirty-four percent slower than the control group.¡± Goob said, flipping to the third page for Calvin where a graph with a series of multicolored dots described their performance over time. ¡°Over time, the ¡®Enhanced¡¯ Nadia has managed to close the gap down to about three percent slower, on average.¡± ¡°So she¡¯s using the space warping organs?¡± Calvin asked, glancing up at Nadia. He¡¯d put the flight organs of a refraction spinner into her chest in the hopes that she could use it to fly. So far no such luck. ¡°From Nadia¡¯s testimony it appears she¡¯s only figured out how to turn them off so they aren¡¯t causing interference, the remaining three percent is mostly likely the physiological difference, the extra weight.¡± ¡°Nadia!¡± Calvin got the dark-haired princess¡¯s attention. ¡°Yeah?¡± She asked, coming to a halt. ¡°Turn them back on. You¡¯re supposed to learn how to use them, not ignore them. I don¡¯t care how much slower you are, you¡¯re not stopping until you can float.¡± ¡°This is guar shit,¡± Nadia panted. ¡°Do you want to be Nadia the Succubus or not?¡± Calvin knew for a fact that being a mythological devourer of innocence was right at the top of Nadia¡¯s list of ideal jobs. ¡°I do,¡± She admitted grudgingly. ¡°Then you¡¯ve got to learn to float.¡± Calvin turned back to Goob, handing him the chart. ¡°I¡¯m going to head up to the mountain, have her do high jumps. Maybe that will trigger something. Vary it up. With the Knick-knack¡¯s help, they were able to measure precisely who was jumping higher, or running faster. ¡°Yessir.¡± ¡°Why aren¡¯t you wearing pants?¡± Nadia asked. Calvin glanced down, noting the complete lack of clothing. He¡¯d gotten distracted by the sudden font of inspiration in regards to moisture control, and forgotten to put his pants back on before leaving his office. ¡°Getting a tan, obviously,¡± Calvin said, heading for the door. ¡°Obviously,¡± Nadia echoed, her voice laced with sarcasm. ¡°You know, that looks really comfortable, Can I ¨C ¡° ¡°No!¡± Nadia and Calvin shouted Goob down, causing the young teen to deflate. This is where Nadia asks to let her take her clothes off to fluster the kid, Calvin thought, rolling his eyes as he closed the door behind him. Wait a second. My overenthusiatic male apprentice left alone in a room with a manipulative, lusty demon wannabe. That¡¯s a recipe for disaster. Calvin ducked his head back into the room. ¡°Behave yourself,¡± Calvin said, pointing at Nadia before glancing over at Goob. ¡°What, him? gross.¡± Nadia shuddered. ¡°Human centipede.¡± Calvin said, motioning to his eyes, then to Nadia. Calvin pointed at the knick-knack in the corner of the room. ¡°Engage chaperone subroutines.¡± The little mechanical man saluted him with a clank. *** ¡°What did that mean?¡± Goob asked, frowning as Calvin left for a second time. The only one in the whole camp not suffering from swamp-ass because he gets to go without pants wherever he wants. So jealous. In my kingdom, pants will be a thing of the past. Goob turned his attention back to Nadia. ¡°Well, he told us to try different things. So what were those other exercises you said we could try earlier?¡± He asked, pen perched over the blank paper. Nadia crossed her arms under her chest, glanced over at the Knick-knack and gave an angry huff. ¡°Damnit,¡± she muttered under her breath. *** After a quick change of clothes, Calvin hurried out to check the progess of his other experiment. Up on the side of the mountain, hundreds of knick-knacks were feeding identical amounts of stone to thousands of crystal lattices. Each of them lacked the protective coating of crystal that came natural to them. Well, it had come natural. Calvin had already bred that out. It only took a couple castings of Calvinian summoning to find a mutant that was created without a crystal organ. He placed the resulting slug-monster in a new slot, labeled ¡®Calvin¡¯s Mass Converter¡¯. Now, Knick-knacks fed each of the CMC¡¯s a variety of raw materials, each carefully weighed and studied to control for variables as accurately as possible. The knick-knacks then noted the flowrate and total output of undifferentiated mass for each of the creatures. This was the fourth generation since last night, and they¡¯d already increased the mass conversion to a solid twenty-five percent, rather than fifteen percent for an unmodified lattice. In a few weeks, who knew how much better the rate would be? The knick-knacks guided him to the highest performing CMC, and calvin read the note in front of the slug, written in precise, mechanical script. 28% conversion. Highest flow rate, recommended as subjects are not permanent. Well, looks like you¡¯re going to be CMC version five, Calvin thought, about to re-slot the slug, when he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. One of the slugs had really big pores, visible to the naked eye. Each of the slugs was ¡®tapped¡¯ with tubes to allow the undifferentiated mass to come out of their organs unmixed, rather than mixing on their skin where it would become air faster than anyone could harvest it. But what about those pores? Calvin thought to himself, frowning. If he could ¡®breed¡¯ them to have fewer, bigger pores, he might even be able to change them into something reasonably similar to nipples. Then the organs could be milked instead of poked with tubes. Tubes were hard to come by and any idiot could figure out how to milk something. This was the exact reason why Knick-knacks were useful, but couldn¡¯t be counted on for creative thinking. ¡°Find me the top five producers with oversized pores.¡± Calvin said. A second later, the knick-knacks found him a handful of examples that fit the criteria he¡¯d given them. Calvin chose the one that fit his idea the best, a twenty-three percent-er with oversized pores, vaguely clustered around where the organs were. Calvin swapped it into the CMC slot, then recast the spell, making another several thousand CMC¡¯s with that one as a base. They erupted from his hands and flopped around pitifully while the knick-knacks picked them up and got them organized. ¡°Find me the top five with pores clustered around the organs in question,¡± Calvin said, pointing to the three areas on the slugs body where the three components of undifferentiated matter was created. ¡°The goal is to eliminate the need for puncturing the glands themselves. Understood?¡± The knick-knack beside him snapped a smart salute and dove into the mountain of slimy slugs. Without the knick-knacks to categorize them so efficiently, this wouldn¡¯t be possible at all. Calvin thought as they used alphanumeric labels for each of the thousands of slugs. I love unconstrained magical mad science, Elliot said. Yeah, it¡¯s pretty cool. Of course, as a byproduct of testing the efficiency of thousands of mass converters, Calvin was able to walked back down the mountain with three big-ass jugs of whatever the abyss he wanted. In this case, Calvin wanted Nem, glass, Cobalt spines and icefish bone¡­and Jinsei. The innovative and somewhat moody glassworker had been left without any kind of challenging project the last few months, leading to a gradual downward slide in the man¡¯s mood, and this was exactly the sort of task that would get him out of whatever funk he happened to be in. Or drive him crazy. You know, whichever. Macronomicon Chapter 161: You think the god will notice? Learner¡¯s Notes, day 271 On Romance Novels: I was introduced to something called Romance Novels by Kala today. My reading skills have come very far over the time that I¡¯ve been here, but I did have to clarify a few words with the princess, to her mild discomfort. Let me see if I can condense Romance Novels into a short sentence. Wacky hijinks that result in misunderstandings, that result in hurt feelings, that result in reconciliation, that result in breeding. Nadia drifted by our shady spot under the tree, her toes dragging on the dirt as she wasn¡¯t able to get enough lift. She scoffed at the book cover displaying the abdomen of a male specimen with low body fat, then called it ¡®dross¡¯. I¡¯m not¡­.sure I understand this reality better than Kala, but it seems to me that Kala might have been using this emotional rollercoaster of fictionalized drama to serve as a template for a normal marriage, which seems obviously wrong. I mean, if everyone were constantly killing out of jealousy, committing sexual blackmail, stealing each other¡¯s wives and dueling to the death over her favor, there wouldn¡¯t be anyone left, at all, would there? Kala¡¯s been married for almost a month now, and nothing even close to these scenarios has played out. It¡¯s just¡­normal life. I wonder if I should talk to her about this. Edit: I talked to her about it, and she says that she reads the stories about convoluted paths to breeding for fun, and is aware that they are in no way real or even advisable models for appropriate behavior. Still, I¡¯m not quite sure she understands. I expressed an interest in reading these wacky breeding excuses, and Kala went into her cottage and produced fifty pounds of imaginary breeding stories, dropping them in my arms. Ella came by around this time and gave a smile and a very slow nod, making heavy eye contact with Kala, most likely some kind of hidden message. ¡®I see you¡¯re corrupting the youth again,¡¯ she said. I may only have been around here for a few months, but I¡¯ve stalked my reality since the dawn of time. Now, to read these contrived breeding novels. Hopefully I¡¯ll figure out what makes Kala tick and also figure out what humans find so fascinating about trying to make more humans. Kala and Ella were trying to make humans with each other last night, even though everything I¡¯ve learned tells me that would have no chance of working¡­I don¡¯t get it. I spent the night reading the books, but they didn¡¯t explain a thing. It was just more convoluted breeding patterns following the exact same pattern as the others. Why on Marconen would a young girl read the same story over and over again like it was amusing? I¡¯m starting to fear for Kala¡¯s sanity. I went to Calvin and asked him why humans like making humans so much. His eyes glazed over for a few minutes as he had an internal dialogue with Elliot, the person living in his head. Once that was over, I finally got a decent answer. Since human¡¯s traits are often expressed in their children, an individual who likes to breed will have many children who also like to breed, eventually becoming the general population. In essence, sluttiness is a self-selecting trait, so humans are just naturally slutty. Good to know. Explains a lot. ***Calvin*** ¡°That was weird,¡± Calvin said as Learner left the workroom, leaving him alone with Jinsei. ¡°What¡¯s Dee Enn eeey?¡± The skinny glass smith asked. ¡°Damned if I know,¡± Calvin said, turning back to him. ¡°So,¡± Calvin said, flattening out the plans for the water condenser ¡°Air goes in, gets concentrated and pushed through this cylinder here, which is composed of layers of glass and air, as tight as possible to ensure the highest possible surface area we can manage without restricting the flow too much.¡± ¡°These leaves that the wind go between are made of crushed icefish bones mixed into the glass and worked at the lowest possible temperature to preserve the properties of the bone dust. This is technique is some kind of family secret but I¡¯m pretty sure you can copy it.¡± ¡°Each successful sheet is wrapped in nem-coated glass to preserve and moderate the effects. The glass has to have a precise ratio of icefish bone to nem. Too hot and it doesn¡¯t condense water, too cold and the whole contraption will gum up with ice.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Jinsei said, taking a bite of Kupa fruit as he spun the diagram around to face himself. ¡°This is kids stuff. I thought you were gonna come at me with something harder.¡± ¡°I want them shrunk. One in every home in the city, no more than ten feet tall. Still sound easy?¡± Jinsei winced. ¡°ten feet? This thing¡¯s supposed to be ten stories.¡± ¡°Oh, and I want you to increase the efficiency of the design.¡± Jinsei stared at him, his jaw slackening. ¡°If anyone can do it, it¡¯s you.¡± Calvin said, clapping him in the back. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yep, and if you find yourself wallowing in despair again, I¡¯ll be sure to send Nadia to cheer you up.¡± That was equal parts promise and threat. The man was infatuated with Nadia, but also terrified of her. Jinsei shuddered and clutched the blueprint to his chest like a frightened child with a stuffed bear. ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to do that.¡± He said hastily, backing away from Calvin. ¡°I¡¯ll get started on this right away¡­Is Nadia actually here? In the camp?¡± ¡°She¡¯s usually on the second floor of the town hall helping out with experiments, but I give her the nights off. She usually goes to the saloon.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Jinsei straightened his shoulders, nervously combing his fingers through his hair, coughing into his hand. ¡°I¡¯ll get started on this right away.¡± Jinsei said, his voice a touch deeper. That kid¡¯s got it bad. Don¡¯t you think you should tell him that it¡¯s hopeless? Not only is she a crazy sadomasochistic bitch who treats other people like toys, who¡¯s eager to abandon her humanity in order to distance herself from her previous shithole of a life, she¡¯s also not even really alive, in the classic sense. That¡¯s doomed to failure. Yeah, but it¡¯s better to let him figure that out on his own, don¡¯t wanna make him more crazy about her by telling him he can¡¯t be with her. Ah, the Romeo and Juliet paradox. ***** The city grew visibly daily, with construction constantly underway, reshaping the valley into the cradle of a new civilization. Knick-knacks dug the septic lines under Gulad¡¯s supervision, while others built wooden housing at an astonishing rate. Calvin¡¯s experience building his castle last year came in handy, allowing him to sidestep many of the setbacks that had plagued him last time, but there was still so much that was new about the whole situation. Luckily he had more people to cover for him this time. In a matter of days, Jinsei came back to Calvin with a prototype, a three foot tall cylinder of scintillating colors, constantly dripping water out the bottom, enough to fill a cup in a minute ¡°How much did this one cost?¡± Calvin asked, watching water condensate on the turbulent inner chamber. It seemed to house a miniature tornado inside of it that was spinning the water out like a man wringing a rag. Calvin watched the water drip down and fill a cup in real time. ¡°A couple dust, it shouldn¡¯t take more than two stone to scale it up to the size of a pillar.¡± ¡°Excellent,¡± Calvin said, holding his hand under the trickle of ice-cold water, reveling in the sensation of cool water under his fingers. Perfect. Three solutions in one. The answer to the humidity problem, a way to cool homes, and extra water to support our city without disrupting the Ooze-weaver¡¯s land. Calvin¡¯s territory was squarely situated on one of the primary tributaries of the Garavel river. If he went around diverting all of the water and shitting in it, his neighbors would notice, which was why he was looking for other ways to get water into the city. In another week, the water and septic was taken care of, with a tunnel leading to the septic processor and then on to the soon-to-be farms. The tunnel was big, wider than two grown men with their arms outstretched, fingers touching. The walls were several feet thick, all the way around, with pipes leading in from centers across the valley. The sewer was built to withstand a literal avalanche of shit. Far more than they would need with just a few thousand men and women. In a hundred years, though, it¡¯ll fit the valley just right. Once that was taken care of, Calvin was able to divert the Knick-knacks from septic systems to cutting the mountain into shape. Calvin had them excavate layer after layer off the mountain, peeling the top off like an onion until he had a nice, wide base to place his tower once roughly half of the mountain had been stripped away and fed to the CMCs. Once Calvin had gotten three stories built in the tower, people stopped asking him if his tower really needed to be that big. Not when they could see the monolythic structure beginning to take form. It was a skeleton of Abyssal Steel that jutted up into the clouds above, providing just enough of a hint as to the eventual shape of the tower, curled around itself at the top like a strange helix. The rest of it was going to be filled in with glass and steel, like the towers he¡¯d seen inside the window into Elliot¡¯s past. My kingdom will be greater than any seen before, on this world or any other. The gods will see my tower from space and envy me, Calvin thought as he looked up at the construction disappearing into the sky. He had to stand halfway across the valley before he was able to take in the scale of the entire thing. That¡¯s the spirit. There was the padding sound of bare feet on dirt and a second later, Goob flew by, gangly arms and legs flinging out at odd angles as he sprinted, head down and going for speed. ¡°Goob! Nobody will ever love you like I do! Eat all of me and we can be together forever!¡± Kim Curdashian shouted, rushing by Calvin without a second glance. ¡°Bro, I told you to stay away from my girl!¡± a deeper voice shouted, followed by a sentient geyser of tomato soup, chasing after the first two. ¡°Now you gotta die!¡± ¡°AAAIII!¡± Goob screeched as he ran. ¡°What did we learn about trying to play god?¡± Calvin shouted after his fleeing apprentice. Isn¡¯t that a bit hypocritical coming from you? After what you just said? Oh, it¡¯s quite simple. I already know I¡¯m better than the gods. He isn¡¯t. Attaboy. ***Tzen Chu*** Tzen Chu sat, staring at a rotting fruit he¡¯d placed on his desk nearly a week ago. Tzen Chu was no stranger to being a hostage. His whole family had been held hostage by his uncle until the old man had died without an heir at the age of fifty-two. He¡¯d been imprisoned from his birth until his well into his twelfth year. He sniffed as he looked over the room. The accomodations were ostensibly the best these western savages could afford as they haggled with his family over his return. It was pointless. His brother had set him up. Nobody would pay for his return. Not for years, and in the meantime, Tzen Fi would have free reign of the palace, able to grow his influence, and sway others to his side. Tzen didn¡¯t know how what hold his brother had on his most loyal servant, but it must have involved the man¡¯s family. Tzen¡¯s influence must not have been enough to keep all of them safe, and his power had crumbled from within. The thought of his failure to protect the dead man stung more than the betrayal itself. Just one more crime his brother would have to answer for. Tzen¡¯s hand snaked outward and plucked a fly out of the air, placing it gently in the jar with all the others. He needed to gain whatever power he could, however he could. If that meant turning to his mother¡¯s shameful Skill, then so be it. His mother had been a born Companion, a woman of such empathy that she had barely needed any training before being gifted to his father as a concubine. She was a gentle woman who loved her husband and her children to a fault. But, she was also good at keeping secrets. Her unrivaled talent as a Companion had lead to the growth of Skills that the emperor was unaware of. Skills that she¡¯d chosen to share with her youngest son once she knew she would never bear a daughter. It irked him to use the skills of a Companion, but it was the only thing he had right now. Tzen took the Tarak out of its container and held it aloft. The ugly flying mammal stared at him with beady, accusing eyes. Assist Break He thought, activating the skill as he plunged the cap of the jars downward, killing thousands of flies simultaneously. The flies had a miniscule amount of Warp within them, but Tzen was able to gather those tiny amounts and concentrate them for an instant, barely enough to trigger the Tarak. The creature fainted, still clutching his finger with its claws. Normally creatures were unable to access the System, but when he helped a creature Break, it got access to the System, and he got access to it. Senior Official Mind: 1 Intuiton: N/A Stability: 1 Will : 1 Body: 2 Endurance: 2 Strength: 1 Skills: None Warp: 3/3 Tzen waited patiently for Senior Official to wake up, then gave it a treat in a box with a latch. ¡°Here, Senior Official, get the treat,¡± he said, shaking the box in front of it, making sure the Tarak smelled what was in the box. The creature¡¯s eyes fixed on the box and it began struggling to get in. In a matter of minutes, it figured out the puzzle, undoing the latch and opening the box, gaining a point of Mind in the process. And everyone always wondered why the palace birds seemed to favor my mother, Tsen thought, a hint of a smile blooming on his face. It took weeks to raise the Tarak¡¯s Mind to the point where it could understand him, but Tzen had nothing but time as the scandal surrounding his imprisonment grew cold. Months into his capture, he enacted his plan to escape. That night, Senior Official and several rats went out to steal the keys to his cell and free him. They didn¡¯t come back. Tzen spent the entire night anxiously awaiting the return of the animals he¡¯d awakened, and befriended, yet not a single sound came to him from the long hall beyond the confines of his lavish room. Not until morning. A soft squeal of tortured metal sounded as something ripped the massive padlock off the heavy steel door of his silken cage, causing Tzen to rise to his feet. Had his plan been discovered? They couldn¡¯t afford to punish him severely, but that didn¡¯t stop his heart from quickening it¡¯s pace. The steel door swung open, revealing a figure cloaked in this black cloth, covered from head to toe. Even their eyes were concealed behind a thin cloth. Tzen couldn¡¯t tell if it was male or female, but it was big. Seven feet tall at least as it stooped to enter, scanning the room methodically. ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°Your mother could understand the animals too,¡± It said, tossing a small furry shape onto the floor in front of it. The limp form of Senior Official rolled once and came to a halt in front of Tzen¡¯s boot. It¡¯s voice was unnerving, deep, and thrumming with an underlying energy that reminded him of the wings of a wasp. ¡°I imagine that helped get messages across more effectively. This little guy panicked and got himself killed. The rats abandoned you.¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± Tzen asked, his heart pounding as he stared at this monstrous figure that seemed to move with an inhuman gait. ¡°I¡¯m looking for something, and I need someone unattached, resilient, and educated to¡­speak for me. I¡¯d ask the other one, but I don¡¯t work well with puppets. The other one? Tzen thought to himself. ¡°You seem to be mistaken,¡± Tzen said to the creature. ¡°As a prince of Boles, there is only one above me, I cannot play valet to someone beneath me.¡± ¡°Wrong.¡± The creature growled, raising a hand covered in black rags. Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 47 minutes Foreign Bent flooded Tzen¡¯s system, rendering him immobile. Tzen¡¯s heart began to beat madly, trying to leap out of his chest as the Bent continued pouring out of the creature, filling the room with a claustrophobic sense of suffocation. The Bent began to condense into black mist, visible to his very eyes. How much Bent does it take to fill a room, visible to the eye? A tiny part of Tzen¡¯s brain noted, behind all the screaming in terror. The painting of his mother on the desk yellowed and curled from the sheer weight of the Bent in the air. The entire environment was laden with the potential for change, and it began experiencing random shifts in reality, objects appeared and disappeared around him, the walls changed color three times before the paint began to simply melt away, exposing the bare stone beneath. The room was so suffused with Bent that it felt for all the world like a keg full of Devil Powder with a match hovering over it. The creature¡¯s fingers closed around Tzen¡¯s face, each one the length of Tzen¡¯s entire hand. The creature examined him for a moment, its strange spice-like odor filling Tzen¡¯s nostrils, before the cloth over its face warped, concealing a smile. ¡°I implore you to reconsider.¡± Macronomicon Been starting to play Factorio recently. Maybe that will start to show in the 180''s. Things from my daily life often influence it. I was watching Elementary during the 170''s, and I''m pretty sure there was an impact. Haha. If anything Factorio seems like a good game to play for a kingdom builder. Sooner or later I''ll get my belts clean. Chapter 162: E-Savages Drafting has reached level 18! 90% Correction. ¡°Muahaha!¡± Nadia cackled evilly as she swooped over their heads, finally able to control the warping of space accurately enough to fly with it. She swung an invisible blade from the tip of her finger and cut through a tree branch above them, dropping it on their heads. Baroke knocked the arm-thick branch away from them with an annoyed brush of his fingertips. ¡°Are you sure you should be giving her supernatural abilities?¡± Kala asked, riding on the wagon behind them as they trudged along the side of the mountain. They were following a team of Knick-knacks and refraction spinners cutting a flat path ten paces wide through the eastern side of the mountain. Big enough for traffic in both directions. The Refraction spinners were able to cut any substance merely by injecting extra space in the center of an object. Their blades didn¡¯t have actual mass, so there was no resistance as they sliced off massive, building-sized chunks of mountain ahead of them, simply by temporarily increasing the distance between one side and the other. The sharpest blade Calvin could imagine. The hundreds of oversized Knick-knacks following them then carried the resulting stone chunks away, measuring the angle and smoothing out any inconsistencies. ¡°The key here is that I can take those abilities away any time I want,¡± Calvin said, glancing up at the flying princess. ¡°In the meantime I want an idea of how difficult incorporating Warped mutations into humans is.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem that difficult,¡± Learner said, floating upside down and backwards as they made their way down the side of the mountain, creating the thoroughfare to Juntai lands. They were walking at a comfortable mosey as the knick-knacks cleared the land in front of them at a gentle decline. ¡°Sorry, but you¡¯re not exactly a good standard for what a human body can and can¡¯t do,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Oh,¡± Learner deflated somewhat, still floating in front of them upside down and backward, and showing no signs of stopping. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure if she were showing off, or completely unaware of what grandstanding was and doing it on accident. The small caravan, including Calvin¡¯s friends, experiment subjects, and apprentice, continued down the gradual slope for hours, until they finally reached ground level, gradually turning from South-East to straight East, clearing a path straight into the heart of the Juntai jungle. They were deep into the jungle on the opposite side of Calvin¡¯s mountain when Baroke spoke up. ¡°You think the Juntei will be happy about you carving a road straight to their land?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Not in the slightest.¡± Kala answered for Calvin. ¡°I learned in my studies a long time ago that people as a group are extremely resistant to change. There¡¯s going to be a huge uproar about this road, which is why we¡¯ve got to bring something to make the new road more palatable.¡± The princess patted the huge hunk of copper about the size of a head that they¡¯d pulled out of the mountain, weighing the cart she sat on down drastically. One of the first gains from the handful of ore veins the scouts had identified. Sandwiched around the copper boulder were fine silks from Boles, glass from Uleis, raw Nem pebbles and Lipia wood from Gadvera, various mother-of pearl artwork and a roll of lace. ¡°Ah, the old ¡®ask for forgiveness and follow it up with a bribe,¡¯ rather than ask permission.¡± Baroke said, nodding. ¡°Everyone knows the Juntai place a premium on copper,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I want to know what else they have a demand for.¡± Baroke sniffed at the jungle air, his expression thoughtful ¡°I would guess iron.¡± A moment later, Calvin felt his skin light up with gazes just as he heard men step out of the underbrush. They were in a loose semi-circle around them, watching Calvin and his summoned creatures with more than a little trepidation. Ah, we finally get to meet the Juntai. Calvin thought to himself. The first thing he noticed was the distinct lack of clothing. Like he¡¯d surmised earlier, clothes didn¡¯t exactly do any good in the humid heat of the jungle, and these men and women wore nothing aside from an overabundance of copper jewelry, along with thick copper coils around their forearms. They held what appeared to be iron tubes that stood about up to their shoulder. The iron tubes had coils of copper staggered up the sides of the weapon. Is it some kind of club? Calvin thought, frowning at the iron tubes. They leveled at them like a spear rather than gripping them at the base of the tube, though, but there was no point. Calvin couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of the thing. Looks like a rudimentary railgun, Elliot said. A what? Think of it as a super-crossbow. They probably use an Ability to power it. Details are unimportant: It¡¯s a ranged weapon, and it¡¯ll put holes in you. Good to know. Calvin thought. ¡°Do you speak Gadveran?¡± Calvin asked, staring at them without moving. They were pretty wound up, and Calvin didn¡¯t want to get off on the wrong foot. ¡°How about the trade tongue?¡± Calvin asked in Ilethan. ¡°How about Genosian?¡± Ella asked, giving them a shark-toothed grin. ¡°We speak the trade language.¡± Their leader ¨C Calvin assumed ¨C said, His gaze lingered on Ella for a moment before he rested his metal pole on the ground. The others didn¡¯t set their poles down, but they did seem to relax somewhat. ¡°What is your reason for carving a snake down the mountain and into our land?¡± the leader asked. ¡°We¡¯re humble traders,¡± Calvin said, peeling the oiled tarp off the wagon, revealing the goods jammed into the confines of the wooden shipping container. ¡°Kala, the copper,¡± Calvin murmured, prompting her to hand Calvin the lump of metal. Calvin turned and raised it above his head, with Ella and Baroke flanking him. ¡°We are establishing a way to move large amounts of good across the mountains, and this is a taste of what we have to offer.¡± The leader frowned. ¡°Humble traders? You bring an army of steel with you, cut through the mountain in a day, and call yourselves humble?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± Calvin said. The man chuckled. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not for me to decide whether or not to do business with you. Stop your construction immediately. You may bring yourself and two others to meet with our Elder. The rest of you must stay here. If you continue tearing a gash into our land, we will consider it an act of war.¡± ¡°Who wants to visit Juntai?¡± ¡°Ooh, ooh!¡± Goob said, bouncing up and down with his hand in the air. ¡°Just kidding, it¡¯ll be Kala and Ella.¡± ¡°The Juntai and the Genosians don¡¯t get along particularly well,¡± Ella said, shaking her head. ¡°It would be better to pick someone else.¡± Hmmm¡­ Nadia¡¯s sure to do something terrible whether I leave her here or not. But if I leave her here, at least whatever terrible thing she does will be far away from the main city of Juntai. Actually, come to think of it¡­ With a mental tug, Calvin dismissed the Chained Spirit, and Nadia was back in his head. Boo, she said sourly. You can come out again if I need chaos. Fingers crossed. That left Baroke, Learner and Goob. ¡°Come on, Baroke.¡± ¡°Whoop!¡± The archer shouted, pumping a muscled arm in the air while Goob sagged. ¡°You two,¡± Calvin said, pointing between Learner and Ella. ¡°Make sure Goob doesn¡¯t wander off and get killed. Make sure you don¡¯t get killed either.¡± ¡°Can do.¡± Learner said with a salute. Ella simply shrugged and climbed up to Kala¡¯s seat on the wagon, reaching under the seat and producing one of the princess¡¯s novels before beginning to flip through the pages, giving him an absentminded nod. ¡°I¡¯m good for a while,¡± She said, finding her bone marker and picking up where she left off. ¡°But we didn¡¯t bring more than lunch, so if you¡¯re out past sundown, We¡¯re eating Goob.¡± ¡°Sounds reasonable.¡± Learner said, nodding. Goob dove forward and caught Calvin¡¯s overcoat, staring up at him with desperation all over his face. ¡°Master, you can¡¯t leave me here with them!¡± he hissed. Calvin patted Goob on the head. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, they¡¯re just teasing.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Learner asked, brows furrowed. Calvin glanced up and spotted her confused expression. ¡°Well, Ella is teasing. Learner just doesn¡¯t know any better. I¡¯ll try to be back before dark. Try to keep yourself entertained while I¡¯m gone, catch some bugs or light something on fire.¡± Calvin glanced up and saw the scowling Juntai. ¡°Make sure the fire¡¯s contained, though.¡± ¡°Please take me with you!¡± Goob begged until Calvin trapped him in a bubble of air. Once that was taken care of, Calvin, Baroke and Kala followed the Juntai back to their village. The trek was tense, with mostly naked men looming in close behind and to either side. They had skin that was a touch more orange than the Gadverans, and an interesting rounded face with a pointy chin. The stares that Calvin was receiving were filled with apprehension, but more than a fair share of curiosity. They¡¯d rarely seen people like him, they were fascinated at his clothes, his boots, his belts, and especially his skin. They¡¯d seen plainlanders, men and woman with honey-colored skin with wavy hair. They¡¯d heard of Ilethans and Gadverans, but they¡¯d never heard of something quite like Calvin. Malkenrovia was so far removed from Juntai that they didn¡¯t even have stories, most likely. ¡°So, are you the one constructing the, erm¡­¡± The leader of the Juntai fumbled for the right words in the foreign language. ¡°Hair growing into the sky?¡± Calvin looked over his shoulder and spotted the skeleton of his tower in the sky through the canopy. at this distance, the Abyssal Steel supports looked like nothing more than filaments, or hairs, growing out of the scalp of the mountain. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right,¡± Calvin said, and hushed murmurs in Juntai rippled through the tribesmen walking beside them, using their steel and copper tubes as walking sticks. I really need to steal one of these tribesman¡¯s tongue. And raise Genosian Language. Calvin had forgot again. ¡°Are you a god?¡± The leader asked, followed by a hushed silence from the men walking beside him. I think you know the answer to this. ¡°No, I¡¯m a wizard.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I¡¯m from Gadvera.¡± The relief from the people around them was palpable. Calvin, if someone asks you, ¡®are you a god?¡¯ you say YES! ¡°You don¡¯t look Gadveran.¡± The leader said. ¡°I was born across the ocean to the west,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°There aren¡¯t many like me.¡± The leader absorbed that in silence as they continued walking, but eventually they came across the man¡¯s village. The buildings were made of mud and thatch, a step down from the homes Calvin had grown up in in Deinos, but not entirely unfamiliar. They were little more than places to keep the rain off of one¡¯s head, and they didn¡¯t really seem to need more than that, what with the overabundance of food and warmth of the jungle. One thing did stand out though, as Calvin was walking through the village. There was an odd rasping, grinding sound coming from a few huts over, and Calvin couldn¡¯t make out the smell of smoke. He smelled cooking meat, and he saw several women gutting the days catch, glancing up at him curiously as he was escorted by. But no smoke. Odd. Calvin tried to appear friendly and non-threatening as he walked through the village, trying to absorb all the information he could. It seemed as though not everyone wore an overabundance of copper. Those who had the most seemed to be warriors or perhaps hunters, carrying those¡­rail guns Elliot had told him about. Most people seemed to have a bit here and there, except for children under the age of twelve. Ones that hadn¡¯t had their first Break yet. I see. It looked more and more possible that they used an Ability that synergized well with copper. Calvin for one was glad he was wearing shoes as they squished through the mud that spanned the distance between each hut, but the respite was short lived as the murky and probably poop-filled water slowly began to invade his shoes, and stay there. He forgot about his shoes when he saw what was in the center of the village. It was completely at odds with the thing he saw in the very center of the village, the thing emitting that strange humming, rasping noise. In the very center of the village, there was an enormous flywheel spinning above their heads, made of solid steel with enough weight on the rim to keep it humming along for hours. It was supported by a clear crystalline structure studded with strange boxlike mechanisms. From the bottom of the strange machine, there were dozens of thick tubes covered in what looked like congealed tree sap, each tube leading to an individual house. ¡°Ah, it looks like the Hearth is low,¡± The leader of the warriors said, walking up to the contraption and putting his hand over it. There was a crackle as lightning streamed from the copper studs on his palms to the ¡®Hearth¡¯. In a matter of seconds, the flywheel above their heads began spinning much faster, somehow powered by the lightning. Calvin heard the sound of meat sizzling over a fire from the hut to his left, and traced the tube coming out of it all the way back to the flywheel, where it had something raised and interacting with the flywheel. A minute later, that thing dropped back down, nestling in with the others, and a woman came out with a steaming snack for one of the hunters. Hah, Elliot chuckled in the back of Calvin¡¯s mind. What a surprise. Savages that have harnessed electricity but none of the peripherals. Electro-savages. What interesting things magic can conjure. Hey look, you can see that guy¡¯s balls. Macronomicon Chapter 163: Llortan Plastics were crucial to life in the twenty-first century, but it was unsustainable, between diminishing oil and burgeoning landfills full of unusable crap that would sit there for an eon. We were at an impasse. That was until Don Eager invented EagerPlastic, a smart compound able to be adjusted to have any necessary traits through hypersonic instructions. It took on the role of plastic admirably. It could be hard, it could be soft, it make perfect drink holders, car seats, and toothpicks. We just called it plastic. All that was required to recycle it was a pulse from a Rosen emitter, turning them back into the slimy, primordial soup that they had begun as. They were non-toxic, one hundred percent reusable, with only a tiny amount of energy required. The plastic we deserved. In the twenty-fourth century, after the loss of Earth, supplies of this miraculous substance were in short supply, as Don Eager and all his progeny were conservative in the use of warp and teleportation technology despite being tech pioneers themselves, leading all the major suppliers of plastic to be lost with Earth. So many things were lost in that era, convenient plastic seemed like a drop in the bucket, mixaphorically. However, it was a serious problem, as Don¡¯s plastic was one of the basic materials that allowed humanity¡¯s expansion to other worlds. Scientists were assigned to reverse engineer Don¡¯s miraculous material. A man named Todd Spendle was exploring the possibility that Don had bioengineered the base material for his plastic by combining hagfish slime with industrious little proteins that could rearrange the long-chain molecules at a moment¡¯s notice. He was working on Marconen when Elliot Spencer took control of the planet, committing treason against the Federation. In the resulting struggle, Todd Spendle was lost, never to be seen again. Shortly afterward, another scientist cracked a recipe for plastic-like materials using Bent. With a solution to the plastic shortage solved, the matter was dropped. Don Eager¡¯s recipe, and Todd Spendle¡¯s work to recover it remain lost artifacts, buried in the sands of time. *** Fires, fires everywhere, Ykuingi thought as she navigated the ¡®camp¡¯. The sheer quantity of smoke was starting to tint her mucus an unhealthy yellow, making her look sickly and twice her age, at least. Thankfully there weren¡¯t any other People around to see how bad she looked. There wasn¡¯t even enough fish to go around. The humans ate things like jerky, bread, salted Guar, and fruits and vegetables that she¡¯d never seen or heard of before. Ykuingi tried them out of curiousity, but bread was a flavorless mush, fruits were bizarrely tangy, tasting of blood or metal, and the salted meat tasted like salt. Way too much salt. Cooked meat though¡­ that was something else. The flavor of the fish, which had been somewhat muted before, practically leapt off the meat and onto her tongue, and with just the tiniest dash of salt that the humans had carted in from the ¡®ocean¡¯ beyond¡­ Mother Hagfish, the stuff was delicious, and after eating it, she felt a steady rush of energy for the remainder of the day. There were still a few pieces of Yninquiak left, and Ykuingi took guilty pleasure in having someone burn the flesh of the monster that had caused her people so much strife before eating it. As Calvin¡¯s guest, she was given a stipend of human money, allowing her to buy this and that, dabble with human customs and currency. Over time, Ykuingi saw how they had reached such levels of power. They used tools for everything. Ykuingi grew faintly jealous of the legs on legs that these creatures owned that allowed them to grip objects tightly, allowing them to create tools for every purpose. While a People¡¯s Binding was useful for many different situation, Ykuingi had to admit that it wasn¡¯t perfect foer every different situation. Humans fished the river with nets, inferior to Bindings in portability and edibility, but more effective at catching fish. They hunted meat-creatures with bows, supplementing their food supply. Their saws, nails and guar-glue built structures stronger than ones made of dried Binding: The houses didn¡¯t rehydrate and come loose in a long rain, although their Guar glue wasn¡¯t as strong as dried Binding, at least not that she could tell. So many new thoughts, ideas and epiphanies tumbled through Ykuingi¡¯s thinkmeats that she knew for a fact that she was losing one huge discovery in the shuffle for every four more she revealed. We need tools, She decided, they needed saws, salt, nails, glass, steel. And the only thing they had to offer in exchange for these things were fish and Binding. And If they could find a way to cook fish without fire, that would be just¡­the best. Hmm¡­ ***Tzen Chu, Imperial Prince*** ¡°My thanks for freeing me from captivity,¡± Tzen said as he and the creature passed the perimeter of the palace, finally breathing free air again. It smelled like unwashed humanity. ¡°I agreed to aid you in exchange for my freedom. I am simply repaying a small debt, that doesn¡¯t mean I work for you.¡± The looming figure concealed in black cloth snorted disdainfully. ¡°So what are you looking for? The quicker I direct you to your quarry, the quicker I can put this farce behind me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m looking for a person. An individual who has enjoyed a meteoric rise in power over the last couple years. The first thing we¡¯ll need to do is check local organized crime, see if anyone has risen to the top of the heap in the last few years.¡± Tzen blinked, thinking about the upstart who¡¯d secured the princess¡¯s hand in marriage shortly after everything had gone straight to the Hoary Abyss for Tzen himself. He hadn¡¯t seen what happened personally, since he¡¯d been imprisoned minutes after the debacle, but he¡¯d heard the stories. The boy demonstrated attributes that matched a top-tier Legend with decades to grow into their power, and a summoning ability that put Malkenrovian Demonologists to shame. ¡°Actually, I think I know someone who meets those criteria,¡± Tzen said. ¡°One Calvin Gadsint, invented a new type of magic and went from shepherd to national hero and prince-consort in a roughly a year and a half.¡± ¡°That sounds like the one I¡¯m looking for. We¡¯re still checking with the local color before we leave this shithole. I need to make sure I¡¯m not missing any lieutenants.¡± The creature said, strutting out in front of him. Tzen, not to be lead, hurried to walk ahead of the cloaked creature, ignoring the monster¡¯s chuckling. ¡°Where are we going?¡± ¡°Where crime always congeals. The Docks. Failing that we¡¯ll just follow our noses to the smelliest part of town. Should lead us somewhere eventually. Lead on, prince.¡± The cloaked creature waved in front and nodded for Tzen to continue moving. ¡°What do I call you?¡± Tzen asked. ¡°Llortan is my name.¡± The creature said. ¡°Like the god?¡± ¡°You¡¯re testing my patience.¡± Tzen started walking, feeling a bit like a Guar being driven ahead of a harsh master. He could almost feel the overwhelming power of something huge looming over his shoulders as he walked, faintly resting a weight on him and studying his every move. It was oppressive, walking with his back turned to this creature. **** After a long night of looking for trouble in all the smelliest places, Tzen was amazed to discover that the creature¡¯s casual attitude towards crime had paid off. In one of the most wretched smelling places in the entire city, a short walk from the docks, there was a criminal empire that ran extortion, drugs and smuggling throughout the city. It was everything Tzen could do not to throw up as he tailed the smugglers into their abode, seemingly defended by a veritable wall of stench. He slipped into a large stone room filled with rough men and women, all of them missing teeth. In minutes, Tzen was surrounded by looming bruisers, most likely chosen for their high Strength. The large Gadveran men loomed over him, trying to intimidate him. Tzen could dispose of them in a matter of seconds. ¡°What¡¯s a silk-stuffer like you doing here?¡± A fat man at the far side of the room asked. He was sitting behind a desk, leaning back in his chair, his belly erupting from his jacket, nearly resting on the desk in front of him. The desk itself was laden with scales laden with different currencies, Nem stones and piles of different drugs. ¡°I am looking for information to pay off a debt.¡± Tzen said, keeping his eyes wide and ears tuned to any sound. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°I need to know if someone has risen to the top of your organization or experienced a sudden increase in power over the last year and a half,¡± Tzen said, mindful of the people who¡¯d positioned behind him. The man behind the desk barked with laughter, ringing through the silent room. ¡°Oh, of course! Let me just get my ledger that shows exactly who controls how much of Mujenan, and their respective influence over time in an easy to understand line chart.¡± ¡°Clever sarcasm is unbecoming a filthy drug-lord.¡± Tzen said. ¡°You should stick to what you¡¯re good at.¡± The fat man¡¯s eyes flickered over Tzen¡¯s shoulder, and he knew the conversation was over. From what Tzen understood, The people Llortan was looking for were unlikely to be killed in a fight, and Tzen was half convinced the creature intended to kill them anyway. Busting a few heads wasn¡¯t going to hurt anything. Tzen twirled as he took a step backward. The club meant for his skull overshot by a good foot, landing the man¡¯s wrist on Tzen¡¯s bone instead. Tzen¡¯s skull won, shattering the delicate bone even as the prince set his back foot in place, locking it to the ground with Beli Ma and shoving his palms into the man¡¯s chest. The man¡¯s ribs collapsed into his lungs before he was shot backwards, landing in a tangle of limbs along with several other of the ne¡¯er do wells, A dagger slid off Tzen¡¯s Bent and he broke the man¡¯s jaw before twirling and severing an unfortunate soul¡¯s spine with his foot. Seeing these three suffer such severe injuries led the others to reconsider their course of action. Some of the rogue¡¯s gallery vanished behind Stealth abilities, while others dropped out of Tzen¡¯s awareness, slinking through hidden exits, vacating the room in a matter of seconds. ¡°No, where were we- hold on ¨C¡° Tzen heard a scrape of boot against floor and felt the movement of air behind him. He dodged out of the way and elbowed the invisible knave in the spleen, dropping the woman to the ground. The other people in the room hidden behind Stealth abilities decided to test their luck elsewhere, the air currents in the room following their egress. When Tzen returned his gaze to the front, the fat man behind the desk was already gone. His chair was slid farther back than it needed to accommodate his girth. Muttering a Bolesian curse against the man¡¯s ancestors, Tzen leapt over the desk and kicked through the flimsy wood paneling under the man¡¯s chair, revealing a tunnel leading into pitch black. Do criminals use foul odors as some kind of primary defense mechanism? Tzen thought with a scowl as he plunged down into the hole, giving chase to the splashing sounds he heard further down the tunnel. Why did it have to be the sewers! The silks Tzen was wearing, worth more than any of these commoners lives, were being splashed with aforementioned commoner¡¯s shit as he sprinted through the underground, following the surprisingly fast fat man. The chase finally came to an end when Tzen came across a looming figure lit by the crackling energy around it. It was Llortan, holding a struggling figure up, his massive hands curled underneath her jaw. Her jaw. In the flickering light he could make out the faint outline of a slender woman. Gone was the illusion of a fat Gadveran man. ¡°Get the fuck off me,¡± She snarled, her voice that of a young woman, somewhere between sixteen and twenty. One arm was supporting her weight while the other stabbed the creature¡¯s arm repeatedly with the knife in her hand. It didn¡¯t seem to do much. ¡°Tzen, you flushed out the prey admirably. You¡¯ve got more of a future as a hunting dog than you¡¯d care to admit.¡± Tzen¡¯s skin burned from shame and anger, but there was nothing he could say to that power that washed over him, flickering bolts of lightning in what looked like a storm cloud that hung over the struggling pair. ¡°Now, let¡¯s see who we have here.¡± Llortan said. At his words, the young woman went limp in his grasp, whimpering with fright. The creature extended his other hand toward the limp girl¡¯s chest, and the random sparks of lightning in the turbulent cloud of Bent around him seemed to arrange themselves, joining like tributaries into a dozen finger-thick streams of bright light that entered the back of the creature¡¯s palm. Llortan pressed this hand into the girl¡¯s chest. This brought the light close to her face, and Tzen was able to make out a young woman with a scarred but lovely face, with soft lips and large eyes, wide with terror. The lightning went through the back of Llortan¡¯s hand and into the girl¡¯s chest, causing her to jerk wildly in the creature¡¯s hand. A moment later, the light redoubled as the lightning seemed to draw something out of the girl¡¯s chest. A bright ball of light, caged by lightning that seemed dull in comparison. Llortan tossed the girl aside and studied the orb in his grasp. Tzen could see by the staring eyes and gaping mouth, the unnatural stillness, that the girl was dead. ¡°Ah yes, Partheno, Grethna¡¯s acquisitions specialist. What are you doing here in the inner territories, my old ¡®friend¡¯? Don¡¯t you have trouble to brew at the edge of the empire?¡± The creature held the orb at arm¡¯s length, perched between his fingertips. ¡°System, Seed a Ravager.¡± The orb in the cage of lightning winked out of existence. The creature glanced up at Tzen, and in this light, the prince could just barely make out bright green eyes and rough, pebbly skin through the sheer fabric hiding his face. It was definitely not human. ¡°Finding a misplaced Ravager on the first day. Doesn¡¯t bode well for the rest of the hunt, does it, Tzen? Statistically? If I didn¡¯t know better I might think there was some kind of plot to put them here on Marconen.¡± ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about,¡± Tzen said, shaking his head. LLortan swept up to Tzen and put his oversized hand behind the prince¡¯s head, making Tzen¡¯s heart nearly jump out of his chest as he tilted Tzen¡¯s head towards his own. ¡°And that¡¯s a good thing. You won¡¯t have to handle the paperwork.¡± Macronomicon 15/15! Sorry the release was a bit late, (_Insert Excuses Here_) And then (_Extenuating Circumstances Here_), So I had to (_Menial, degrading task here_) So you can forgive me for being a couple hours late with the release, can''t you? Today''s the last day of the dump! As always, if you''re unable to wait for the slighty revised version and want the first crack at it, check Patreon is currently at Chapter 183 which is awesome, really dug into the patreon lead over the weekend. Don''t worry, you''re still getting a Bonus today, and I intend to release 3 chapters publically a week, starting Tuesday (tomorrow) so you should be eased gently into the concept of getting less chapters, so you''re less sore when you wake up in the morning without them. Crap, did I leave my boilerplate excuse up there? Chapter 164: Violence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder Learner¡¯s notes Day 283: Kala finally found my weakness: Thrillers where an aged crime fighter must battle some kind of monster with a very specific set of strengths and weaknesses. I love the process by which the human detective identifies the previously fearful creature¡¯s weaknesses and uses them against it to finally turn the tables on the monster, using only their wits and the environment. Creature features, Calvin called them, also commenting that my enjoyment of the genre was a little ¡®on the nose¡¯. To me, it reveals the story of human¡¯s oldest heroes. Before humans had walls, fires, spears and swords, they only had their brains, and every animal big enough to prey on them was a fearsome monster. At some point one man ¨C or woman, but probably man ¨C must have used their minds to defeat these fearsome predators and spread this knowledge far and wide, demystifying them for everyone. The whole moral of the story was about learning, about understanding something to make it less dangerous, to conquer it. That appeals to me greatly. I also like the ideas for extra specialized organs I can work on. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll need to burrow through the ground at tremendous speeds and consume those on the surface world, but if I have to, I at least have a few key ideas for what changes to make to my body plan. Creating a red mist that settles over a seaside village and impregnates all the women with killer babies is still beyond me, but I¡¯m working on it. ***Calvin*** ¡°Namkena!¡± Baroke shouted off to Calvin¡¯s left, bouncing a copper coin off a tree-stump into another villager¡¯s cup, forcing the man to take a swig out of the wooden mug. The crowd gathered around the enormous archer shouted in amazement at the man¡¯s thirteenth consecutive score. His opponent was starting to look a little green. Calvin returned his attention to the village elder, a prune of a man by the name ¡®Elder¡¯. In their society, Elders gave up their names when they took over the responsibility of guiding the village. ¡°What you suggest is simply beyond my ability to decide.¡± Elder said, giving him a toothless grin. ¡°We are but a small village in the corner of the Great Ones¡¯ empire. We already sent a Runner ahead to advise the Empire of your presence, we can expect their response by tomorrow night.¡± ¡°So they¡¯re close,¡± Calvin said, wondering whether it would be simpler to just use One of the Guys, take the form of a young Juntai woman and go ahead and scout out the empire personally. ¡°No, they are nearly a thousand miles distant, straight to the east,¡± the elder said, pointing. ¡°Our Runners are very fast.¡± Calvin remembered seeing a man with a strange contraption on his feet that looked a bit like an animal¡¯s digitigrade legs, with two lumps of coiled copper, one on the bottom of the mans feet, the other on the other side of the bend. How would that work? Calvin wondered. If they¡¯re making rail guns via magnetism, all they have to do is make opposing magnetic fields on their little foot-thingy, and BOOM, a little extra pep in their step. Give me a hard one. ¡°So, I¡¯ve been fascinated by the Ability your people have been demonstrating, making miracles happen with copper.¡± Calvin glanced around at the warrior¡¯s tightly wound copper bands. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, that knowledge is forbidden to speak of to outsiders.¡± The elder said, his expression icy. Tell him we already know they do it by using an Ability to generate magnetic fields inside their body and sweep them past the coiled copper at extremely high speeds. That should rattle his cage. ¡°I understand,¡± Calvin said with a nod. ¡°We don¡¯t mean to insult you, we¡¯re simply ignorant of your ways.¡± ¡°Yes, we wish no disrespect,¡± Kala said, bowing slightly, softening the old man¡¯s demeanor. Lame. Diplomacy is lame. ¡°If the meeting is tomorrow night, may I wait with the rest of my crew? They need to know I¡¯m unharmed.¡± Calvin glanced over to Baroke who was dancing awkwardly back and forth in a line with half a dozen warriors, beating their chests and hollering at the sky. ¡°You can have him as collateral, I guess.¡± The elder chuckled at that, taking a cube of something dark and popping it into his mouth casually, as if by habit. ¡°He¡¯s a great warrior, but we need to sleep at some point, and he doesn¡¯t speak the trade tongue so well, you¡¯re free to take him with you. ¡°Very well, I¡¯ll head back now,¡± Calvin said, climbing to his feet. ¡°I look forward to speaking with you tomorrow.¡± ¡°Oh, one more thing,¡± The elder said, holding up a hand, stopping them ¡°We have traded with the plainlanders from time to time, so most of us know a foreign woman isn¡¯t necessarily ¡®unclaimed¡¯ without her Brinda, but it might behoove you to make some for your wives lest someone take it upon themselves to claim them.¡± Calvin glanced at Kala¡¯s smooth face then, over at a woman with an oversized stud in her ear, connected by a chain to her nose and the circle of copper around her neck. He scanned the crowd and saw many variations on the same theme, marking them as married women. So he¡¯s afraid one of my party will get assaulted by horny warriors? ¡°I thank you for your consideration,¡± Calvin said, shrugging out of his shirt to reveal the top of his marriage tattoo. ¡°But I¡¯ve already followed a separate tradition and marked them in less¡­obvious places,¡± Kala blushed, her dark skin reddening. ¡°Please let your warriors know that they are in fact claimed, and that trying to do so would be unwise.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do so, but know that it¡¯s never possible to accurately predict what young men will do, and violence over a woman will not be tolerated from you.¡± ¡°What about violence from a woman?¡± Kala asked with a raised brow. Elder sat there and frowned at her, his bushy white eybrows furrowed together like he was trying to figure out the answer to some great puzzle. Calvin took Kala¡¯s delicate hand and helped her stand, waiting as she brushed dirt off the hem of her long dress. ¡°Attention everyone!¡± Calvin said, spinning in a circle as he attracted the attention of everyone in the village. ¡°This is my first wife, Kala, she loves and cherishes me dearly, more than any other man. Say hi, sweety.¡± ¡°Hello,¡± Kala said with a demure bow, a smile growing on her face as Calvin¡¯s mischievous anticipation was transferred to her through the Guya bond. ¡°Now kick me in the face.¡± Calvin said under his breath in Gadveran. Gotta demonstrate that Kala¡¯s not to be messed with, to head off trouble in the future. If They were able to scare any would-be rapists off with a little demonstration, then it was more than worth - Calvin was barely able to snap his guard up before the blade of Kala¡¯s foot caught him in the chin and catapulted him up into the canopy. Calvin¡¯s back hit the tree branch above him, causing the entire tree to sway. Calvin opened his eyes and saw stars and the upside-down, gaping faces of the villagers. ¡°You see,¡± Calvin said, short of breath, ¡°She¡¯s actually ¨C oh shit ¨C ¡° Calvin grabbed the thick branch and tugged himself out of the way as Kala shot through the air like she was fired from a crossbow, her fingers covered in Bent. She sent a clawing strike through the space his head had been a moment ago, her bent-covered fingers gouging deep into the wood. ¡°You can stop the demonstration now,¡± Calvin said, grinning as he clambered through the trees, trying to keep Kala from perforating him, admiring her figure as she whooshed by him. ¡°Do you actually want me to stop? Because something tells me you might enjoy getting bullied by a pretty girl!¡± Kick his ass! No, wait, tag me in! Nadia shouted in Calvin¡¯s mind. I¡¯ll do it! ¡°Preposterous!¡± Calvin shouted, dodging out of the way, using the whorls of external Bent to catch her attacks as he focused on navigating the trees. Her lithe form highlighted by the wind buffeting her dress. ¡°Why are you smiling then?¡± ¡°This is reflexive!¡± Calvin said, still smiling as he caught a branch with his leg. He caught both Kala¡¯s arms with the whorls of Bent from External Circulation, taking the opportunity to steal a kiss. Beli Ma has reached level 26! 130% Correction Kick coming on the left! Nadia shouted. Calvin raised his left arm to block and a heavy weight struck down on him from the right, sending him tumbling out of the canopy and crashing down into the soft earth of the jungle floor. Calvin thought for a second his soul was leaving his body before he realized the ¡®tunnel¡¯ was dirt encasing his buried head. Their was a glimmer of movement above him, and Calvin was treated to a nice sight before Kala landed on him feet first, slamming him even deeper into the soil. ¡°Urgh.¡± ¡°Do you yield?¡± Kala asked with a mischievous grin. Calvin could feel intense passion building behind her gaze. ¡°I call foul. Nadia did me dirty.¡± Calvin said with a groan. I never said whose left. Sophistry. ¡°Well, do you yield?¡± Kala asked, leaning over him, pressing her face close to his, filling his nostrils with her intoxicating scent. There was invisible energy between them, and he knew without a doubt that she was moments away from kissing him. ¡°Is this aggressiveness what you got from the Guya, or are we in some kind of feedback loop?¡± Calvin asked. Both, maybe? Kala opened her mouth, but Calvin interrupted. ¡°Not that it matters.¡± Multi-Split 24/45 Bent remaining Calvin selected the crystal component on his belt, then an area around Kala. In the blink of an eye, a cocoon of Bent resistant crystal appeared around Kala¡¯s arms, legs, mouth and waist, preventing the dark-skinned princess from speaking or controlling her movements. He could feel her trying to use Beli-Ma to peel the crystal off, but it was scattered by the properties of the silvery crystal binding her. Calvin carefully pushed her off of him, then picked up the futilely wiggling girl by the crystal handle jutting from her waist and throwing her over his shoulder while scanning the stunned onlookers. ¡°I asked her what was for dinner,¡± Calvin clarified for the audience. Baroke guffawed into the silence. ¡°Oh right, I forgot to mention that while my wives love me dearly, they are also volatile and dangerous. I scouted them from various prisons, you know. This one here bit off a man¡¯s penis and ate it.¡± Kala¡¯s protestations were muffled by the crystal gag, but her glare told volumes. ¡°Because I mean, what kind of man would be happy with a wife who couldn¡¯t challenge them?¡± The villagers seemed dubious, but Calvin was fairly sure that they now viewed Kala with a lot more apprehension than they did before. The sheer speed they were moving at spoke to more than five Breaks, and the village hunters were unlikely to have more than three. They had just given them a tangible demonstration that either one of them would have no problem pacifying the village. If that didn¡¯t ward off trouble with upstarts, Calvin didn¡¯t know what would. ¡°Anyway,¡± Calvin said, directing a bow at the wide-eyed elder, ¡°Thank you for hosting us, and I apologize for any startlement my man-killer wife might have caused with her outburst.¡± ¡°MMMff,¡± Kala said with a scowl. ¡°We¡¯ll make preparations to return tomorrow afternoon.¡± Calvin continued. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you¡¯d be willing to leave the woman behind when you come?¡± Elder asked. ¡°Sorry, she¡¯s so much better at talking to strangers than I am, so I have to take her.¡± Calvin said. Kala rolled her eyes as he mixed truth with fiction into a confusing blend that left the old man scratching his scalp. ¡°Just¡­make sure she doesn¡¯t bite anyone¡¯s penis off, okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll get right to work on that,¡± Calvin said with a salute, ¡°Me and her have to work out some issues tonight anyway. I¡¯m sure I can work not biting into it.¡± ¡°Baroke, you stay here, sleep under a tree or something.¡± Calvin said, hauling Kala over his shoulder. *** When Calvin broke out of the woods and back onto the road, he saw Learner and Goob playing a board game, making soft clacking noises as they shuffled their pieces across the board, vying to capture the last stronghold of the other player. Ella, on the other hand, was mysteriously absent, her book was folded on top of the wagon, and her pants and top were on the ground outside Calvin¡¯s oversized tent. Through Extensive Training, your intuition is high enough to see where this is going! Elliot said in a faux-system announcement. ¡°Goob, take Learner and check the angle of the road,¡± Calvin said, dropping Kala off his shoulder beside the tent. Ella¡¯s arm emerged from the tent-flap and dragged the Gadveran princess, wiggling into the darkness. ¡°Why? There¡¯s nothing but darkness and death out there, and the Knick-knack¡¯s work is always perfect.¡± Goob asked with an uncomprehending frown. ¡°Get the fuck outta here!¡± Calvin shouted, pointing back the way they¡¯d come. Goob jumped up, startled, before grabbing his surveying equipment and running in the direction he pointed. ¡°And don¡¯t come back for¡­¡± Calvin leaned next to the tent. ¡°An hour?¡± ¡°Make it two.¡± The tent replied. ¡°And don¡¯t come back for two hours!¡± Calvin shouted after them, shaking his fist. Calvin ducked his head inside the tent, dismissing the Dupdomancy spell and releasing Kala from her crystal restraints. ¡°Savages!¡± Kala said as Ella took the job of restraining the girl¡¯s wrists. ¡°Do as you wish with my body, but you¡¯ll never make my heart surrender!¡± Calvin met Ella¡¯s gaze, and they both shrugged. ¡°Fine with me,¡± Ella said. ¡°Fair enough.¡± Calvin echoed her sentiment, climbing into the tent. Macronomicon It wouldn''t be webnovelling without a shameless Patreon plug. They''re currently up to chapter 183 and in the middle of blowing shit up. That out of the way, Factorio is as addicting as everyone says, but I think I might have found a way to harness it''s power for good. I sat down in front of my computer with some tasty food and drink during the weekend, and didn''t touch them for HOURS. Foodhound that I am, I somehow forgot it even existed while I was busily crunching factory configurations in my head. Now I will use the game''s addictive nature as a diet aid, allowing me to avoid eating food for large swathes of time. Wish me luck. Chapter 165: I saved you a tongue Learner¡¯s notes, Day 284: On Fear Fear is one of the most primal, basic emotions a human can experience, and something wholly alien to me. I¡¯ve never before had the opportunity to study someone closely that was terrified, but I have to say, the effects are staggering. Fear seems to drastically lower a creature¡¯s decision making ability while at the same time forcing them to make one: Run or fight. Altogether, it seems to be a useless, vestigial emotion that serves little purpose but to cloud the minds of the humans who experience it, and yet¡­it¡¯s still baked into their bodies, so it must perform some critical service, else it would have atrophied away long ago in favor of some more powerful tool, like critical thinking, which is sadly not very deeply ingrained. One possible benefit of fear¡¯s intoxicating effects is that it seems to strip away superficial behavior and lay the quality of a human¡¯s altruism bare. I hear drinking poison has a similar effect. ***Goob*** ¡°Stand behind me, Learner,¡± Goob said, glancing behind him at Kala¡¯s pretty cousin. The girl looked nearly identical except certain¡­assets were exaggerated, straining against her dress. How the girl got a figure like that doing nothing but reading nonfiction, anatomy, and thrillers every day, Goob had no idea. Maybe it¡¯s because she doesn¡¯t do anything, Goob thought, finding his eyes wandering ¨C No, he thought, shaking his head, heart hammering in his ears. Can¡¯t get distracted, we¡¯re out in the middle of the jungle in the middle of the night. Calvin told stories about bugs large enough to eat a man in a single bite, and monsters made of smaller monsters, made of even smaller ones, so tiny they could infect you like a poison and hollow you out from the inside. Goob shuddered at the thought. ¡°You watch our backs,¡± Goob said, motioning behind them. ¡°I¡¯ll watch the front. That way we can cover each other. If we¡¯re gonna get through this okay, we¡¯ve gotta have eyes on the back of our head.¡± ¡°On it,¡± Learner said with a nod, crouching behind him in a similar manner as he crept forward, holding the surveying equipment like a weapon in front of him. Alright, bring it on, jungle, Goob thought as they stalked into the darkness. I¡¯m a wizard and I¡¯ll bury you in stone and slime, he thought, fingering the slime canister on his belt. He¡¯d of course picked up Dupdomancy in his last Break, so he¡¯d taken to wearing a belt similar to Calvin¡¯s, albeit not nearly as large or diverse. And no one let him have any God¡¯s Fire, either. ¡°Hey,¡± Learner whispered to him after they¡¯d covered a bit of ground. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Is your pulse elevated?¡± ¡°Doy,¡± Goob said, frowning. ¡°Do you feel the need to defecate or urinate? How about your pupils, would you say they¡¯re dilated?¡± ¡°What are you ¨C ¡° Goob glanced over his shoulder and saw Learner holding a gilded tome with the royal family¡¯s seal, with a big Anatomy stamped into the front. ¡°What the abyss is that?¡± Better yet, where did she get it? Learner didn¡¯t have that many places to hide a book. I think. ¡°I¡¯m studying physiology for a project of mine, and this seems like the perfect time to study the sympathetic nervous system. Tell me, are you currently having difficulty achieving an erection?¡± She watched him expectantly. Goob¡¯s jaw hung open as he stared at the crazy noble girl. They really do make them different. ¡°Why on Marconen would I want one right now!?¡± Goob demanded. Learner frowned for a moment, then made a note. ¡°Good point.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t have your nose in a book all the time, You gotta watch our backs, remember?¡± Goob said, scowling at the rich girl. ¡°I am. Eyes in the back of my head, remember?¡± She said without looking up from the book. Obviously she and I have different definitions of eyes in the back of the head, Goob thought, rolling his eyes and facing forward again. He¡¯d just have to pay attention for both of them. ***Learner*** I don¡¯t even know why Goob is so afraid, Learner thought as they crept along the road, stopping every hundred feet or so to take a measurement, always getting the same angle. The Juntai security detail walking silently alongside them in the dark jungle would certainly spot trouble long before it became a problem. Wait, I keep forgetting humans don¡¯t see well in the dark, Learner thought idly, watching the Juntai security detail creep closer as they walked along the road. They closed in behind them as well, registering in the large, enhanced eyes she¡¯d placed in the back of her head. What a useful concept. The gradual tightening of the circle of Juntai around them became intriguing. The movements reminded her of a predator encircling prey, which made no sense, because there was no prey anywhere in sight. Well, Goob, maybe, but he was most likely a stringy meal, not even containing much fat, really. I wonder if I should tell Goob about it? Nah, he doesn¡¯t need any more reasons to be frightened. A few minutes later, a light bloomed in front of them, a white hot light from a tiny filament perched between two coils on the lead hunter¡¯s bracer. The lead hunter wasn¡¯t the older, flabbier one that had led them during the day. This one seemed significantly younger, at peak fighting age and heavily muscled, while the rest of the hunters seemed to be composed of men younger than twenty-two, from their physiology. Interesting. Learner thought, calmly assessing the situation as the leader strutted forward. He said something in ILethan, pulling a copper collar off of his bicep and brandishing it. Goob responded by saying something back in Ilethan and putting himself between the Juntai man and Learner, striking a rather silly battle pose. A rock whipped out of the distance and knocked Goob upside the head. The scrawny apprentice toppled to the ground, bleeding from the scalp while the Juntai chuckled. ¡°hmm¡­¡± Learner saved the memory of the conversation as she bent down and made sure Goob was alive. Sure enough the skinny boy had enough Endurance. His brain was rattled around, but his skull was intact, and he was still breathing. The Juntai warriors approached her, chuckling, the swelling of their groins revealing that they obviously were expecting breeding to follow. This seems like an excellent opportunity to see if fear truly does prevent an erection. ***Calvin*** When Calvin got back to the Juntai village the next day, he stumbled across a massacre. The ground of the large square in the center of the village had been converted into an intensive care ward, where seemingly every young man between the age of sixteen and twenty-four had been subject to debilitating injury. Every single one of them was severely injured in multiple places, with broken bones, broken fingers, missing teeth, and deep gouges in their flesh. Learner was happily checking up on their injuries, while the young men did their absolute best not to flinch away from her where their friends could see. ¡°What happened here?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°Last night, our security detail was attacked by a rampaging Kugeya, nearly killed them before Goob stepped up and saved me with his earth magic. He drove the monster away, but not before a tree branch knocked him senseless. He kept at it until the thing was gone, then he passed out.¡± Learner leaned down and pecked Goob on the forehead. ¡°My hero.¡± Goob reddened, wiggling in his bedroll on the ground. He had a bloodsoaked cloth bandage wrapped around his head. ¡°After everything was said and done, I helped them back here, and took some supplies from our wagons to treat their wounds.¡± Calvin glanced around and saw that they had a stunning variety of wounds wrapped in expensive silks. One of them, the oldest, looked like a half-inch copper collar had been shoved through his nose and part of his cheek, then crushed, utterly destroying the cartilage. ¡°Is that really what happened?¡± Calvin asked in Gadveran. ¡°Idunno,¡± Goob replied with a shrug. ¡°I can¡¯t remember anything.¡± ¡°You were attacked by a Kuyega?¡± Calvin asked the wounded men in Ilethan. ¡°Yes! Yes, that is what happened!¡± he practically screamed, his voice breaking. ¡°Oh, and I saved you a tongue,¡± Learner said, tossing Calvin a pink chunk of flesh. Calvin caught the tongue, eyed it, then Learner, brow raised. ¡°Do you honestly expect me to believe one of them lost their tongue from a Kugeya attack?¡± Learner shrugged. ¡°Too late to reattach it, besides I don¡¯t think the man will miss it.¡± she glanced over at the one with the copper collar obstructing his breathing. Eh, Calvin thought with a shrug. Consume 36/46 Bent remaining. A moment later, the babble of the villagers around him came into focus, as if he¡¯d been listening to it through water up until this point. It all suddenly made perfect sense. ¡°don¡¯t know if he¡¯ll ever walk again ¨C¡° ¡°Such horrible wounds, how did the ¨C¡° ¡°Wonder if the outsiders had anything to do with ¨C¡° ¡°Bad omen for ¨C¡° Well, that certainly provides an advantage. Calvin thought. A crunch of dirt announced the presence of Elder, seemingly aghast at the field of moaning injured men laid out in front of him. ¡°How did it come to this,¡± he asked quietly in the trade tongue. ¡°Just like you said,¡± Calvin said in ilethan, turning to face him. ¡°You can¡¯t predict exactly what young men will do. None of this is your fault.¡± Calvin had noticed that most of those present had been off guarding his wagon during the demonstration of Kala¡¯s fighting ability, the rest he didn¡¯t recognize, possibly off hunting. Oh well, at least they¡¯ve learned their lesson. Calvin didn¡¯t for one second believe the Kugeya story, but it was the best option, politically. ¡°What happened here?¡± Calvin asked the young man again in the trade tongue. ¡°We were attacked by a Kaguya!¡± he said, trembling. ¡°What actually happened,¡± Elder asked in Juntai. The injured man glanced back and forth between Calvin and Elder in a fraction of a second, before he began spilling the beans, the story tumbling out of him in a choked sob. ¡°We were going to claim the big breasted one as a tribe-wife, but she¡¯s some kind of shapeshifting monster! She tore the collar through her own neck and shoved it through Bast¡¯s face, then unfolded into a nightmarish creature and began laying around with talons the size of swords! We broke and ran, but she hunted each one of us down and broke legs and knees, punctured lungs, making it impossible to run away from her. She tossed us into a pile and toyed with us all night, tempting us into running away before chasing us down.¡± ¡°We were never fast enough,¡± He continued breaking down into sobs. ¡°We were never fast enough.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Elder said. ¡°You were attacked by a Kugeya.¡± ¡°W-What?¡± ¡°You heard me. You thought risking the anger of a powerful wizard for a single woman was a good idea? What is our village going to do if it¡¯s caught squarely in the center of a conflict between the empire and this wizard? We¡¯re right on the gods-damned border. Why on Marconen would you risk starting a war with a power we obviously don¡¯t understand in the slightest, you foolish child? If anyone asks, The story is you were attacked by Kugeya and the young man saved you, is that understood!?¡± Elder¡¯s voice rose as he began shouting loud enough for all the injured warriors to hear him. ¡°The details match,¡± Elder said, switching to Ilethan as he faced Calvin again. ¡°It seems they were indeed attacked by a Kugeya.¡± ¡°I¡¯m so glad that that¡¯s the case,¡± Calvin responded. ¡°If you could do me a favor and bring your entire entourage with you when you negotiate with the Empire¡¯s envoys, that would be most appreciated. ¡°Why, do you think they might cause trouble on their own?¡± Calvin asked, struggling not to laugh. ¡°Let¡¯s just say the young can be unpredictable. I realized it¡¯s better to have everyone where the Elders may chaperone them.¡± ¡°I understand,¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°Very wise.¡± **** The envoys of the empire wore colorful hats, and slightly more clothing than the villagers, in the form of lightweight, bright green sashes over their shoulders. Their junk was still hanging out, though. The hats were made from the plumage of some enormous bird. Their copper bracers and the metal tubes they carried showed a quite a bit more heft and craftsmanship, implying better output and most likely a higher number of Breaks. That alone was enough to make Calvin pay attention when they arrived. They were preceded by a whooshing sound, followed by a troop of sixteen men wearing those curious iron shoes, carrying four palanquins. They burst out of the jungle and slowed to a halt in a smooth slide. The palanquins were made of dark jungle wood, some twelve feet long and four feet wide. Like watching a primal jungle limo. Elliot commented as the bearers came to a halt, setting down the palanquin and retrieving their weapons from racks on the side of the wooden boxes. They took up stances equidistant around Calvin¡¯s party, not aiming their weapons at them, but obviously ready to fight if needed. A moment later, the shades on the four palanquins were thrown aside and eight men stepped out into the light, donning their ceremonial headdresses. They assembled in front of Calvin and Co. Their eyes naturally landing on Baroke, who stoop nearly a foot taller than anyone else. They glanced around curiously, before the one in the lead leaned back to the one behind him. ¡°This is it?¡± he asked in Juntai. The Envoys were more than a bit dismissive of Calvin due to his age, and Kala, because of her gender, giving them the run-around, smiling and telling him his ideas for expanding trade were great to his face and laughing about him in Juntai, all in the space of a single breath. some of them even wandered off to mingle with the other villagers. They noticed the wounded men in the center of town, but didn¡¯t seem to pay it another thought. When they saw the road carved into the side of the mountain and far into the jungle though, their expressions lost all levity. When they saw the hair-thin struts of shiny metal rising up into the clouds, they seemed¡­concerned. ¡°How many months did this take, and none of these inbred backwater villagers told us?¡± one of them demanded in Juntai as they stared at the construction, their mouths gaping. Calvin wanted to inform them it was closer to sixteen hours, but he didn¡¯t want to reveal his ability to understand what they were saying behind the veil of the language barrier. Besides, they¡¯ll probably ask me sooner or later. ¡°It seems your country is serious about establishing a trade route, then?¡± ¡°Quite serious,¡± Calvin responded. ¡°Very well,¡± The man said, idly rifling through Calvin¡¯s wagon of offerings. ¡°We are open to discussing the logisitics of such an arrangement. We will wait here while you fetch your leader or one of his lieutenants, then we can return to Allast and discuss further.¡± Calvin opened his mouth to say that he was the leader, and they were ready to go immediately, then he paused. The Juntai obviously had a hard time taking someone his age seriously. Maybe a figurehead would be a good idea, and Calvin had a spare one. ¡°I¡¯ll go get him,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Wha?¡± Baroke grunted frowning. Understanding colored the oversized archer¡¯s face when Calvin came back half an hour later trailing Kurawe. The oversized demagogue looked every part the leader, if taken at face value. In a matter of minutes they were all packed up into the Palanquins and moving East at blistering speeds. The extra weight of Calvin¡¯s party didn¡¯t seem to have any effect on the men, who must have been Veterans, at least. While they traveled, Calvin plotted. Given his new fluency in the language and the object of attention being Kurawe, there was every possibility he could use One of the Guys to do some reconnaissance once they arrived. Chapter 166: F*ckin’ Doug ***Llortan*** Llortan¡¯s job as a Scrubber was simple, check a planet for signs of Ravager activity, then move on. He could check dozens of systems a decade and come up with nothing, but now¡­ ¡°That¡¯s the second one in as many days,¡± The Llortan said, tossing aside the body of the young human as he studied the glowing orb in his hands. ¡°They shouldn¡¯t even be on this planet, let alone in the same city. This reeks of treachery.¡± Only an Administrator or a Harbinger could reassign souls, and an Administrator had no reason to do so. It was far more likely a Harbinger with an old grudge had arranged for the Ravagers to congregate on a single planet. ¡°System Query: Who orchestrated the appearance of Ravagers on Marconen within the last twenty years?¡± The arrogant human princeling tried his best to conceal his discomfort at the apparent murder, which was somewhat charming. The identity of the soul was that of another one of Grethna¡¯s lackeys. A low level foot soldier, but still a Ravager by definition. The connection to the exiled traitor was impossible to ignore. Response: The Ravagers on Marconen were the result of a ritual performed by Elaine Entremond 17 years, four months and three days ago, local time. ¡°What ritual?¡± Llortan asked, frowning. System Subroutine ¨C Hero Summoning Alpha 0.0.4, Designed by Administrator Doug Henderson. The subroutine determined the quickest and most effective way to solve Elaine¡¯s request for assistance would be to summon the nearest Ravager soul and put it in a System-designed ¡®Hero¡¯ body. Then the subroutine¡¯s ¡®Hero Party¡¯ protocol engaged, drawing no less than two hundred and thirty-seven souls with similar potency and distributing them around the world where they might come into contact with the ¡®Hero¡¯ and join his or her ¡®party¡¯. ¡°Fucking Doug.¡± Llortan muttered, a tingle of ice going down his spine. Things were worse than he¡¯d thought. Ravagers rarely had any oversight because they were, by design, always just a bit beyond the edge of Harbinger territory. It was looking like this job was going to be more difficult than he¡¯d originally thought. ¡°Connect me to him.¡± ¡°Apologies, Doug Henderson has already chosen the retirement and reincarnation package for Administrators. Would you like me to connect you to his new body?¡± LLortan narrowed his eyes. ¡°When did Doug choose his retirement package?¡± Llortan asked. If it was seventeen years, four months and three days ago, he had a sure bet the human was directly involved. Thirteen years and eight months ago. Too close to be coincidence. Four years was a blip in time to a Harbinger. Maybe Doug thought he¡¯d thrown off suspicion by waiting four years, but the man must have been an idiot. ¡°What was his retirement package?¡± A charmed life, adventure, reunion with old friends, and the target of yandere affections. ¡°Where did he reincarnate?¡± Maronen. ¡°Yeah, go ahead and connect me to him anyway.¡± ***Goob*** A booming voice woke Goob out of his peaceful sleep, reverberating painfully through his skull. ¡°Doug, you stupid piece of shit! Your unfinished, half-assed System subroutine is responsible for a serious danger to all civilization, and when I find you, I¡¯m going to tear out your soul and shove it into a body that spends all day every day getting things shoved in holes that weren¡¯t meant to accommodate them! Do you understand me!? And if I find you had any part in concealing this, you¡¯re going to spend the rest of time suspended in that delicious moment of absolute terror before death! ¨C End of Message.¡± Goob gasped desperately as his ears rang, staring at the ceiling of his tent. ¡°By all the gods, what on Marconen was that?¡± he said quietly. It couldn¡¯t have been a hallucination. It was too specific, to concise¡­but maybe¡­it could have been. Goob remembered one of the lessons about mental disorders, where young men heard people shouting at them. Am I going crazy? Goob thought, heart beating madly in his chest. A drop of hot cheese fell on his face. Kim Curdashian loomed over him a lusty smile. O gods, no! Goob thought, his body paralyzed from sleep. The tyrade echoing in his mind until then was immediately forgotten in the face of looming death. Yandere Magnet has reached level 5! 25% Correction. +1 Stability Please choose an Ability. Goob opened his mouth to scream, but Kim smothered his mouth with warm cheese, shushing him softly. ¡°Shhh,¡± She said, her smile twitching spasmodically. ¡°We don¡¯t want that stupid soup-man or anyone else to ruin this for us.¡± Banish Yandere: 1 Bent, Intuition resisted by Stability ¨C A famously low attribute for Yandere ¨C User modifies the Yandere¡¯s perception of them subtly, making them no longer attracted to the User. Lasts up to level cubed minutes. This Ability only applies to a Yandere fixated on the user. Wife Her: User is (correction %) more capable of de-escalating and treating a yandere''s mental issues, focusing their fixation on the user toward healthier and safer activities. This Ability only applies to a Yandere fixated on the user. Oblivious Boyfriend: Correction is applied as a penalty to User¡¯s ability to discern a Yandere¡¯s deviant behavior. Correction is also applied to User¡¯s ability to avoid negative repercussions of Yandere¡¯s affections. This Ability only applies to a Yandere fixated on the user. Yandere Stalker: Yanderes fixated on the user are (correction) more stealthy and prone to assassination of perceived competitors. Fixated yanderes receive a (correction) boost to the acquisition and leveling of Stealth and Assassination related Skills. She¡¯s Just a Friend: User receives a (correction) bonus to recognizing, creating or removing a yandere¡¯s perceived competitor. ¡°Now, where were we?¡± Kim said, leaning forward, pushing her generous cleavage under Goob¡¯s nose. ¡°Just relax and let me take care of you, you lovely I can¡¯t breathe! What do I do! Goob ignored the death-boobies and focused on the Abilities. They weren¡¯t out in the wilderness anymore, instead staying in some kind of wooden hotel held off the ground by giant poles. Earth Shaping wasn¡¯t going to help much this time. At least not without having to go through the floor first. No, he needed to use the abilities. The first one looked very promising, but Goob¡¯s adrenaline-laced brain smelled a trap. Banish Yandere wouldn¡¯t work forever, and there was nothing in there saying that she wouldn¡¯t remember him using it on her. Sooner or later, Kim Curdashian would figure out what he was doing and that wouldn¡¯t end well. No, he needed something with longer term benefits. After quickly comparing the last four, Goob made his decision in a split second as stars began to shoot across his vision, his body running out of air. ***Calvin*** ¡°Goob, are you gonna be joining us today?¡± Calvin asked, knocking on Goob¡¯s door. No answer. Huh, maybe he¡¯s already elsewhere. Calvin ducked his head out and scanned the troop of Palanquins being slowly loaded by crotchety old men. No Goob. ¡°Huh.¡± Calvin went back inside and slid the door open, ¡°Goob, you need to ¨C ¡° Calvin stopped when he spotted Goob. His apprentice was staring back at him with bloodshot eyes, with Kim Curdashian draped over his body, sleeping peacefully on his arm, the rest of her cheesy body tucked under the young man¡¯s covers. ¡°Help. Me.¡± Goob gave a harsh whisper. ¡°We¡¯re leaving in ten minutes,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Sort your shit out before then.¡± Calvin shut the door, and went back, shaking his head. He¡¯d really thought Goob would have killed his abominations by now, not sleep with them. To each their own, Calvin supposed. But it better not impact his ability to take notes and fetch things. If he¡¯s not up in ten minutes, I¡¯ll light the place on fire, Calvin thought as he headed for the palanquin. Kurawe was already schmoozing the Juntai diplomats. The giant could speak fluent Ilethan, as was expected of a high ranking member of the elite, and he was picking up Juntai at a visible rate, although it was only basic stuff, like ¡®Where¡¯s the shitter?¡¯ and ¡®profit margin¡¯ If chained spirits ate, they shat, which led Elliot to ask if they could heal. He supposed that if they could eat, shit, and heal, There was a possibility that they could become real if they were in existence long enough. According to Elliot every miniscule part of a person¡¯s body is refreshed over the course of seven years, and he hypothesized that by that point your body might be entirely remade by real matter. This would all be well and good, except a bit of quick math was enough to show he¡¯d have to be level one hundred and fifty-four before a Chained Spirit would last seven years. Although if there were an ability for a permanent summon, that might be a different story. Calvin filed that information away to test later as he went about his business loading the palanquins under the watchful gazes of the men¡¯s guards. They were definitely Veterans, No mistake, with Bodies to match. Nothing else could explain how easily two men carried the weight of four or more people. Calvin caught himself staring at their copper bracers, wondering about the Skill behind it. It might be some a Body-based skill, perhaps Kinethetics or Endurance if it was in use by every strongman the juntai had available. Short while later, Goob ran out of the room, his hair mussed up with grease, clothes stained and reeking of cheese. ¡°You see Kala over there?¡± Calvin asked, pointing out the princess. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°She¡¯s got soap. Go get some. You¡¯ve got five minutes to get clean.¡± Goob broke into a run, tearing across the yard toward Kala while Calvin loaded the last remaining bags. Goob got back to the palanquin moments before they headed off for the second stage of the journey, his whole body damp, but significantly less greasy. The remainder of the journey took most of the day, arriving in Allast in early evening, as the sun began to set on the horizon. The city was spread out in a way that Mujenan couldn¡¯t hope to compare to. The Juntai had nothing but land, and no building taller than two stories, so their capital was a sprawling mess, seemingly interspersed with jungle at random. The sun was setting directly beyond the largest building, that the entire city seemed to orbit around. It was an enormous looking¡­cylinder, thing¡­ Calvin tilted his head, but couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of what exactly it was. The building itself seemed to be tilted just over fifteen degrees, the majority of it was buried deep in the ground, but over six stories of grey steel rose above the rest of the city. At the ¡®top¡¯ of the leaning building was a glass dome seemingly fused onto the top of the tilted cylinder. Inside the dome was another flywheel, although this hulking mass of steel not only dwarfed every single building in the rest of the city, It also seemed to be floating in midair. What am I looking at, exactly? Calvin wondered to himself. It¡¯s a highly modified engine for an ark-class supercarrier. She big. What¡¯s it do? It makes juice. Calvin glared at no one in particular. Electricity. Lightning. Power. Also referred to as juice in certain circles. I¡¯m guessing we¡¯re looking at the literal seat of power for the entire city and therefor the country as a whole¡­. You wanna blow it up? Yes, but let¡¯s try to avoid acting on my first instinct. That¡¯s gotten me into too much trouble over the last year. Calvin resisted the impulse to destroy what was no doubt a place of deep cultural significance, and instead focused on studying the people they were passing. He paid special attention to their clothes and bearing. What did Juntai in the heart of their most urban city wear? How did they act? Who was invisible? The muggy heat still precluded the widespread use of clothes, and while the Juntai city-slickers wore a bit more than the savages hundreds of miles hence, it wasn¡¯t a lot more. At least there¡¯s one thing to like about this place, Calvin thought, taking in the sights until Kala pinched his shoulder. ¡°What? You¡¯ve got a window,¡± Calvin said, pointing. ¡°There¡¯s a hot guy right there wearing little more than a thong.¡± ¡°Am I going to have to dress like them to hold your attention?¡± Kala asked with a raised brow. ¡°Ummm¡­¡± Calvin was unsure how to answer that question. ¡°I feel any answer to that question would entrap me.¡± Kala pinched him again. ¡°Let¡¯s be honest,¡± Calvin said, chuckling as he pried her fingers away from his arm. ¡°In my opinion, you could always stand to be wearing less clothes.¡± ¡°How about you, then?¡± Ella asked from across the palanquin, a smile blooming on her face. ¡°In light of the circumstances, it seems rude to deny us the pleasure of seeing you in traditional Juntai garb.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, you would look good, in a nice, tight loincloth.¡± Kala said with a mischievous grin. Calvin froze. ¡°Hold him down!¡± ¡°Shit!¡± Calvin¡¯s mind went into overdrive as he began a life-and death struggle against two pairs of overly friendly hands, using every tool at his disposal to stay fully clothed. Deflecting their hands with Bent and his forearms, all while keeping one hand on his belt, determined to keep his pants up. The onlooking Juntai diplomat simply stared at them with wide eyes, a piece of dried fruit hovering near his lips. ¡°What in Peylor¡¯s name is wrong with these foreigners?¡± he muttered, shaking his head. Macronomicon So the idea of using the addictive nature of Factorio to my benefit was Dumb. I stayed up way too late the last couple days in a row and have had a hard time getting up and gettting to work in a timely manner. I also see belts when i close my eyes. Who would have thought that addiction could be a bad thing? I''m seeing a lot of new series starting to fill up the Trending, and that''s always cool to see. Every once in a while I''ll find something genuinely good on there too, and that brightens my day. Other times, I''ll just yell at the screen, and that brightens my day too. Chapter 167: It’s Called the Parietal Lobe Carl Daley was once again sitting at his Admin desk, designing a sexy lady with his spork and a dollop of mashed potatoes. Ten year doctorate in System Engineering, a host of Skills taken to advance my career, and I turn out to be as useless as a screen-door on a space-ship. Even the benefit of being functionally immortal was largely pointless, as an Administrator was disconnected from the coming and going of the real world, stuck in their tiny satelites orbiting planets that didn¡¯t even know they existed. As always, the System kept everything in perfect balance. There hadn¡¯t been anything out of the ordinary, ever. The man he¡¯d replaced hadn¡¯t even had to do a single thing in eight hundred years, so Carl was understandably confused when his monitor threw up a big red alert. For the third time in the last five years. Relative to the last guy, this is an extremely busy decade, Carl thought, wiping his sexy potatoes off the desk and into the trash and taking stock of what he was looking at. It wasn¡¯t the emergency alert about the Siphon in the desert again, this time it was actually the Incoming Call signal. That¡¯s weird. Carl hit the Accept button. ¡°This is System Admin Carl Daley, ID Mx-0013FA9, to whom am I speaking?¡± Carl asked, just like he¡¯d been trained. Anyone who had the ability to call him directly through the System had a lot of pull. ¡°This is Llortan. I need you to relay a message interstellar. Copy?¡± The hair-raising voice of a Harbinger came through the speakers, and Carl straightened reflexively. Big fish on the line. Just do your job. ¡°Copy, recording for transmission.¡± Carl said, hitting the button. I grew up a Diocese, now I¡¯m a glorified switchboard operator. Carl thought, rolling his eyes. Interstellar FTL communication was a tricky thing, and it required a special compression before it could be sent out, requiring a technician to perform the compression and decompression on each end that was almost as much art as science. AIs were capable of it, but they were also highly illegal under Harbinger law. ¡°This is Llortan, urgently requesting the presence Z-quadrant inner fleet admiral Vashniel. There¡¯s a situation here and it requires his immediate attention.¡± Carl waited to make sure there was nothing more to the message. ¡°Understood. For that amount of data, expect a response within four years.¡± Carl said, as he began encoding the message, collapsing it down to the absolute smallest possible size, inscribing it on a single molecule, so he could send it through a micro-wormhole. An entire library of information could be distilled down to a droplet of condensation in the wormhole generator, but each molecule took an incredible amount of energy to shove through the artificial wormhole, and the size also caused drag in the wormhole, slowing the arrival. ¡°Wait. Change the message. I need it faster.¡± Carl sighed, but not loud enough for the Harbinger to hear it. ¡°Scrubbing the previous message. Give me your message.¡± ¡°Grethna¡¯s here.¡± Carl waited. ¡°That it?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll get the same reaction,¡± Llortan said. ¡°Alright,¡± Carl said with a shrug. ¡°Expect a response in a year.¡± ¡°Better,¡± the Harbinger said, disconnecting a moment later, Carl was finishing up the condensing and spinning up the wormhole generator when he heard a rapid clomp of foot against steel grate, then felt a hand on his shoulder, nearly startling him out of his seat. ¡°Bwah! What the he¡± ¨C Carl¡¯s Harbinger boss loomed over him, breathing heavily ¨C ¡°ck can I do for you?¡± Carl said, managing his expression carefully. ¡°Scrub that message.¡± the Harbinger said. ¡°Forget about it.¡± ¡°What, but it-¡° ¡°Do as you¡¯re told.¡± ¡°But I ¨C¡° Carl¡¯s entire body ground to a halt, paralyzed by indecision. He literally had Skills making it more difficult for him to breach protocol, and protocol dictated that he send the message. He also had a Skill that encouraged obedience towards Harbingers, which was conflicting with the other. It felt like every nerve in his body was at war with the other, tensing all the muscles painfully in his body, causing a full body cramp. Each muscle was painfully tearing itself apart as he struggled to resolve the conflict. While Carl was struggling, the Harbinger simply leaned over him and wiped the message with a flick of his wrist, spinning the wormhole generator down. ¡°Better?¡± the Harbinger asked with something approaching concern, it¡¯s head tilted, green eyes boring into his own. ¡°Um¡­¡± Carl raised a shaking hand and rubbed his aching shoulders, the cramp slowly wearing off. ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. If you get any more messages from the surface of Marconen, forward them to me immediately. Understood?¡± ¡°Ah, Yessir,¡± Carl gave an awkward salute from his seat. ¡°Good work as always.¡± His boss said, before turning and leaving. Carl sagged back into his seat, giving a long exhale as the tension drained out of him. He was caught right in the middle of some kind of Harbinger power-play, and that was an untenable situation. I need to get the hell out of here¡­Except I¡¯m locked in for the next fifty years. Damnit. ***Calvin*** ¡°No princesses? Seriously?¡± Calvin asked aloud, ignoring the passerby glancing at him curiously. They give any female children away the moment they¡¯re born. They might theoretically be out there, but so far, it looks like it¡¯s a pointless endeavor. Kurawe¡¯s voice came through Calvin¡¯s head. Maybe I can look through orphanages or just kidnap the entire city. I doubt it. The very act of giving them up disqualifies them from counting on your mutation. Elliot chimed in. It¡¯s so arbitrary! Calvin thought with a scowl. ¡°I hate this city already.¡± On the other hand, how are negotiations going? Oh, pretty typical. They¡¯re trying to get everything they can out of the trade route. They started the negotiation demanding a ridiculous amount of down payment, taxes, and control over the route itself, effectively neutering us while refusing to help build it. I¡¯m currently bringing the price down through a combination of vague threats and promises of rich rewards for the upper class. All normal stuff. ¡­Okay¡­ Calvin thought it didn¡¯t sound like normal stuff, but who was he to judge. Every time he threatened people they tried to kill him or became impossible to control. But Kurawe could nudge people in the right direction like a chess player nudges his pieces. What the Abyss am I missing? Restraint. Your threats are always too specific, and too extreme. Nadia¡¯s thoughts brushed against his. You¡¯re one to talk, Calvin thought, rolling his eyes. Now stop distracting me or I¡¯ll attach your lips to a Stalker¡¯s nutsack for the rest of the day. That right there. It was supposed to be a joke given the context of your previous statement, damnit. Calvin thought. Can¡¯t you tell when I¡¯m joking? It¡¯s tough when it¡¯s something you could actually do. Calvin rolled his eyes with a grunt. ¡°Something wrong?¡± Kala asked. She and Ella were browsing through the open market, with the princess acting as the translator, using the Ilethan trade tongue. They had a bag of copper coins that they brought along for the express purpose of sampling Juntai wares. They were currently going through the decorative steel and jewelry. There were myriad conveniences, from blenders to heating devices, but they all required a Juntai¡¯s Abilities with copper to activate them, so the pair were only able to appreciate a fraction of Juntai goods. ¡°Actually it¡¯s all going well, but this country irritates me,¡± Calvin replied with a shrug. ¡°Will that be all?¡± The merchant said, looking directly past the two girls standing in front of him with money in their hands, at Calvin, who was easily four feet further away and totally uninterested in jewelry with neat color-shifting properties. ¡°See what I mean?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at the man. Kala gave a small sigh and smiled before turning back to the merchant. ¡°He can¡¯t speak the trade tongue, and yes, he says that will be all.¡± Kala said. The merchant smiled and money changed hands, and Ella got a spiffy necklace made of tempered steel that looked blue-purple-pink. ¡°You don¡¯t have to like these people¡¯s culture to trade with them.¡± Kala reminded him. ¡°True. Calvin said, glancing around, trying to weigh up what would be valuable in other countries, and what Amenities they lacked here in Juntai. Sassy ladies, is the amenity they lack here in Juntai. Calvin thought sourly. ¡°I¡¯m going to do some recon,¡± Calvin said, ¡°Are you two good here?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Kala tapped Ella¡¯s elbow, which was close to her shoulder. ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone¡¯s going to give her any trouble.¡± ¡°Are you sure? I could find a man to chaperone you. Maybe Goob?¡± ¡°Get out of here, twat.¡± Ella said, shaking her head. Calvin left them to their own devices, scouring the city for a place where young men congregated. Calvin finally found a sports arena where young men were watching other young men beat a heavy ball back and forth to each other with their elbows and knees, trying to make goals on hoops set up on opposite sides of the court. The players and the audience were the ideal blend. Calvin ducked into an alley abutting the arena and triggered One of the Guys, his bones creaking, skin tingling as the coloring changed. Ten seconds later, an entirely different man stood where Calvin had once been. Calvin slipped out of his clothes, switching into a traditional Juntai outfit, along with some copper below average bracers and pair of earrings pinched onto his earlobes. Disguise complete, Calvin thought, shoving his clothes bag into a corner of the alley. Now to see what this city has to offer a native. Can I come too? Nadia asked. No. You¡¯re obviously a foreigner. You would draw way too much attention to me. I don¡¯t have to be with you. I can explore on my own and nobody will know where I came from. Nadia pleaded. Nope. If you don¡¯t let me explore and blow off some steam, I might go crazy and sing show-tunes in your head for hours. Calvin weighed his choices. Fine, just don¡¯t interact with me or anyone you know, understood? Yay! You see? That¡¯s how you threaten someone. Right, right. Calvin thought, Visualizing Nadia, every major organ laid out in exquisite detail. Wait, what are you doing? No time like the present to get some practice in, Calvin thought, zooming in on the brain. Adding in the Lure sense organ is going to be tricky, but¡­Calvin thought as he tried to arrange the Lure¡¯s focusing crystal and desire-sensing membrane somewhere it wouldn¡¯t turn Nadia into a drooling vegetable. How about you shrink them down until they¡¯re pin-sized and create a coating of them right here? Elliot suggested, making a particular upper slice of Nadia¡¯s brain brighten and flash. Why? Nadia asked. Why? Calvin echoed her. Trust me, It¡¯ll be funny. Wait, that¡¯s - Good enough for me, Calvin thought, mentally inserting the miniaturized Lure sensory organs into Nadia¡¯s brain and casting the spell. Chained Spirit Chimera 39/46 Bent remaining. Nadia burst out of the green smoke emenating from Calvin¡¯s hand, stumbling forward, holding her head and frowning. A second later, she took her hands away, still frowning. ¡°I don¡¯t feel anything.¡± Calvin shrugged. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not always going to be a rousing success. It took a bunch of tries to get the Refraction spinner channels to behave the way we wanted. Go explore and tell me if anything happens.¡± Nadia nodded and the two of them went their separate ways. Calvin spent the next half an hour casing the city, studying things like their water systems and toiletry, talking with strangers about politics, estimating their wood output, and basically angling to use the insider information to maximize the benefit he would receive once they started trading between the nations he intended to connect. Juntai had a lot of wood. More than Uleis would ever need, for certain. Juntai¡¯s wood exports could increase by several orders of magnitude, but would that devalue the wood, defeating the purpose? He was considering the price of wood and demand for the material in Uleis and Iletha when he heard someone running behind him. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and spotted Nadia. The princess grabbed him by the arm and attempted to drag him into a nearby alley, but Calvin stood his ground, watching her curiously. The girl was deeply flushed, her breathing heavy, twitching nervously here and there as people glanced at her curiously. ¡°People won¡¯t stop touching me.¡± She whispered, staring straight into Calvin¡¯s eyes, her whites bloodshot. ¡°At first it was fun, literally feeling men undress me with their eyes, but there¡¯s such a thing as too much of a good thing!¡± She said eyes wide. ¡°I can feel their every lustful thought being enacted on my entire body, and it¡¯s maddening!¡± ¡°Good job,¡± Calvin said, patting her hand. Nadia groaned and melted into a puddle on the street right then and there, panting desperately and staring at the sky. I told you it would be funny. I think I¡¯m gonna go somewhere else, Calvin thought, stepping away from the shivering mess in the dirt and moving on with his reconnaissance. I wanna go see how their loggers do their jobs. Calvin thought, heading off to the south. Unsummon me! Nadia¡¯s thoughts brushed against his, wobbly with desire. I can¡¯t¡­.her thoughts fuzzed out for a moment. I can¡¯t stay sane like this! I, oh gods, that¡¯s not where you¡¯re supposed to nngngg ¨C Calvin manually closed the channel to Nadia¡¯s thoughts, preventing her from contacting him again. She¡¯s the one who wanted to be a succubus. Calvin had every confidence that Nadia would overcome this particular hurdle, and if she couldn¡¯t¡­well, at this point in their relationship, the princess was more valuable as a test subject than anything else. So what part of the brain was that? Calvin thought. As he approached the lumber yards on the south end of the city. The one that processes touch, Elliot replied. So she¡¯s processing other people¡¯s desires as tactile input? Basically. Calvin chuckled as he walked down the street. You¡¯re right, that is funny. But seriously, don¡¯t mention any of this to Kala. I really don¡¯t want her ¡®volunteering¡¯ to be a Chained Spirit for stupid reasons. You think that would be a problem? Seems like a stretch to commit suicide so she could be ¡®Enhanced¡¯ by you. Stranger things have happened. I don¡¯t even want the thought to even cross her mind. It could introduce a moment of hesitation if she thought she would have a free pass to living again. My lips are sealed. At the lumber yard, Calvin was unsurprised to see men using their copper bands to power handheld steel axes with teeth that spun in place, gnawing through wood in seconds. There were larger ones wielded by obvious veterans, and smaller ones for de-limbing trees. All in all, they were very efficient at cutting trees, fastidiously replacing them with new growth as they went while teams of guar hauled the stumps out of the ground. Calvin struck up a conversation with the foreman under the guise of looking for a job, directing the conversation towards the number of logging outfits in Juntai and how much wood they could output. He then fed this information back to Kurawe in real-time, who used it to pierce the veil of secrecy that the Juntai negotiators were attempting to cast over their supply of lumber. The opponents were taken aback by Kurawe¡¯s ability to accurately gauge their production, and the oversized dictator used that to push the advantage, securing a sweetheart deal by dropping the price of lumber to more reasonable rates after the first twelve months of trading. The first twelve months would be a year, but the amount of time after that was potentially infinite. Macronomicon Chapter 168: The Killer +1 Mind! Carem Sageva sighed, rolling his shoulders as the pleasant tingling worked its way up from his fingers, all the way to the nape of his neck, into his brain. There, new ideas, new insights, and raw power swirled, expanding his self. At the end of his fingers, was the skull of Amela Kriss, drops of blood welling right at the tips of his fingers where his roots dug into her brain. Interesting fact about absorbing someone¡¯s Mind: You can¡¯t pump it out without pumping something back in. As Amela shuddered and twitched, her nose bleeding under his ministrations, Amela was slowly being drawn out, into him, and replaced with Carem. It wasn¡¯t being taken from him, though, more like copied into her. ¡°Uuuh¡­¡± Amela¡¯s jaw relaxed as she temporarily lost control of it. It would go back to clenching in a matter of seconds, as more of her was overridden. More and more of Amela spilled into him, a chaotic jumble of ideas, insights, preconceptions and ignorances. Sorting through them was somewhat akin to seperating truth from fiction with a sieve. Amela believed that men didn¡¯t have the capacity to weep, which was blatantly untrue, but she also had a few rare nuggets of insight into human behavior and many tricks geared toward making a poor person¡¯s life easier. Some of these were at odds with what Carem believed to be true, but when he examined his beliefs, he didn¡¯t find any strict evidence supporting them, whereas Amela had seen tangible proof. Carem opened his mind, carefully cataloging his mind before he replaced what was wrong with what was objectively right. He absolutely detested being proven wrong. +1 Mind! Two in one sitting, Carem thought, mildly impressed. This particular prey had been rather clever. It explained why she¡¯d tried to run so early into their ¡®date¡¯. Gods, I wished more of them ran. Carem thought with a faint smile. He¡¯d come to enjoy his little excursions, taking tokens from each of the women he¡¯d taken Mind from. The men he¡¯d absorbed, he just did out of necessity. Carem wasn¡¯t absolutely sure, because there was no information on his particular mutation, but he believed that each kill changed him a little, and in order to stay as close to himself as possible, he had to target the occasional male. Basically a palate cleanser. ¡°I¡­Can help you.¡± Amela began to groan. Ah, we¡¯ve almost reached the end of our time together. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this. I am you. I would never ¨C¡° Carem braced himself and twisted Amela¡¯s head all the way around on her neck, severing her spine. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what the first one said,¡± Carem muttered, the roots slowly retracting back into his fingers, the last fading moments of consciousness licking against the tendrils like a dying flame. Confusion. Fear. Sadness. He withdrew his fingers and wiped them on her shirt before fetching his saw. Now the tedious part, He thought with a sigh as he lined the blades up on her neck and began to saw her head off. He couldn¡¯t very well produce corpses with holes in the brain, could he? Headless women were far preferable, and harder to identify. If the corpses showed signs of their Mind being drained, the entire city would be up in arms, looking for a mutant. Very rarely, a child will fall asleep in the middle of their Forming Day, and mutate, and even rarer, it will be something beneficial rather than horrific. Fourteen years ago, Carem had been basically a slave to his father. Even on his Breaking day, he¡¯d been forced by his father to stay awake and do his chores rather than sleep when the Break began to show signs, until he was finally rendered blissfully unconscious. The next day had been no different. His father assaulted him mercilessly throughout the entire day, relentlessly tearing him down with words designed to make him feel small, weak, and dependent. Carem didn¡¯t know why his father was doing it at the time, but it created a tiny little fire of anger in his chest, that flickered and guttered under every insult, every casual cuff. But he didn¡¯t let it go out. He protected that flame, nursed it, and when necessary, he used it as fuel to go on when all other emotions weren¡¯t enough to keep him going. Carem knew now that his father had been hoping to trigger Obeisance, the Skill that made him more docile, more fit to cater to the old man¡¯s whims, treating him like a woman. Instead he¡¯d gotten a Cleaning Skill, Mental Fortitude, some Body, and when he¡¯d snuck off to the shed to catch a nap, he¡¯d gotten a Mutation. Carem didn¡¯t tell anyone. Everyone knew mutants were evil and would be cast out immediately. Luckily it didn¡¯t show visibly on his body. Carem hadn¡¯t even known how to use it at first. It only showed on his System as Mind Burrower, not giving him anything more than that. But he felt¡­a compulsion. Over the next few months, without realizing it, the fire that he¡¯d carefully nursed in his chest had grown so strong that sometimes, it reached his head, momentarily driving him to do things against his best interest. One day he snapped. It was nothing out of the ordinary. A normal strike upside the head for a perceived slight, followed by a rambling diatribe about how much of a whore Carem¡¯s mother was. All normal. But that fire inside him chose that moment to break whatever flimsy container he¡¯d been keeping it in, and he forgot about propriety, or consequences, and simply picked up a nearby length of steel from his father¡¯s workshop and began bludgeoning him. His father hadn¡¯t died instantly like in the stories, he¡¯d fallen, bleeding profusely from his scalp. He¡¯d fought, beating Carem upside the head and wrenching the steel out of his hand before beating him on the arm and chest with it. It made no difference to Carem. That pure anger wouldn¡¯t be put out by any physical injury. He bit deep into his father¡¯s wrist, resulting in a slackened grip and a torrent of blood before the old man pushed him off with a howl. Carem followed the man to the ground, screaming mindlessly and punching the old man with a broken arm, barely enough to bloody the man¡¯s nose, but he¡¯d take anything he could get at that point. Right there, at their most excellent moment together, Carem had cradled the old man¡¯s head and looked into his eyes, grinning as the coppery blood flowed out of his mouth, his father¡¯s and his own. This is what you made. You see? As he cradled the man¡¯s head, something tensed in Carem¡¯s fingertips, as something unfamiliar, but undeniably pleasurable ground its way out of his fingers, forcing its way into his father¡¯s skull. Carem didn¡¯t know it at the time, but it felt like molten climax, like the most satisfying lovemaking that forced it¡¯s way out of the shaft. As if each of his fingers had turned into a cock and he was currently raping his father¡¯s brain. Which wasn¡¯t too far off. That was when he¡¯d gotten his first extra point of Mind. And it was when he learned not to trust himself. His father had become him, terrified and confused at being stuck in his father¡¯s body, frantic and inconsolable. Carem couldn¡¯t think of a worse punishment than becoming his father, and so after the scuffle was over, he¡¯d done everything he could to make it right. They¡¯d come to an arrangement, decided to live as equals, sharing in everything. And yet, society saw him as lesser than this copy of himself, deferring to the apparently older one at every turn. At the same time, Carem¡¯s skill at smithing had grown by leaps and bounds after absorbing his father¡¯s Mind, while his copy in his father¡¯s body was exactly as unskilled as he had been before. It created a horrible dynamic. Carem was forced to work day and night, using the skills he¡¯d acquired from his father to care for an aging, talentless version of himself, constantly complaining about aching knees or back, and yet able to order him about in public without oversight. The relationship grew warped, as the Carem in his father¡¯s body grew jealous and demanding, slowly becoming the man he¡¯d been before Carem had changed him, but less. He forced Carem to work harder than before, inviting all manner of women over to enjoy their company and force Carem to act the child. But Carem put up with it. It was his fault that another him was stuck in his father¡¯s body after all. This went on for four years, slowly growing worse as Carem grew into his body. While the other him slowly aged, becoming shorter than him, fatter, and weaker. Eventually, the other Carem snapped, just like he had. Carem woke to hands around his neck one night, and the rest, as they say, is history. After that deadly brawl, he never, never, let himself stay in the body of one of his victims. The strangest part was that the copy always knew its fate and tried to beg for mercy, tried to appeal to his better nature in that single instant before he snapped their neck. This only served to hold a mirror up, displaying his own cowardice in the face of death, which infuriated him even more. You¡¯d think I would take it like a man. Alas, Mind was a woman¡¯s Attribute, so all his gains would never translate to courage. Even skilled craftsmen didn¡¯t bother to get more than a few points in it to make sure they could level their hybrid trade skill to ten or possibly fifteen. Magnetic Field Generation was based on Strength, and it was the cornerstone of their entire world, so a man raising their Mind was practically unheard of, except as a joke. But it was the reason Carem had risen from a smelter¡¯s son to the leader of a number of businesses throughout the city. He was smarter, more stable, and more driven than every other man or woman in the entire city, and he owed it all to the women whose Mind he¡¯d taken. Between his second and third break, he¡¯d packed on a dozen points of Mind. Upon his third Break during a deadly fire in his late teens, he¡¯d spent the resulting amount of Warp raising his Body, balancing his Attributes so that they were, on average, much higher than an ordinary man, rivaling that of a Veteran. When he¡¯d become a Veteran in the bloody riots that followed years later, he¡¯d ascended to something beyond what a Veteran should be, approaching the strength of a Diocese. He was no noble-born Diocese, but he held far more power than the average man, and yet, he was anonymous, the extent of his influence unknown except to a tiny few in the city. Carem knew for a fact that his hobby would be unsustainable were he ever to gain public recognition, and the Diocese would not look kindly on his power that rivaled their own. Were they to discover he was only a fourth-Break veteran, they would have him killed. Carem was not arrogant enough to think he could singlehandedly overpower the entire government, so he was happy to be quietly wealthy, and no more. Until he saw the foreigners. Carem cut through the last flap of the woman¡¯s skin holding her head on, then set aside the saw. He took the woman¡¯s severed head and inspected it for a moment, his thumb wandering down toward the woman¡¯s perfect teeth, as white in death as they had been in life. The only thing unchanged by his ministrations. Her mind was gone, her body dead, but her teeth were just as vibrant as they had been when she¡¯d smiled at him. With a wrench, Carem pulled out one of the woman¡¯s canines before he tossed the head in the smelter, watching it carbonize down to nothing but bone fragments under the extreme heat of the furnace. Carem cleaned the tooth off with his thumb and dropped it in the leather purse around his neck, listening to the soft click of teeth settling against each other. He might keep them all mixed up in the same place, but he could identify each and every one of them at a glance. What do the Foreigners know that I don¡¯t? Carem wondered, fondling the bag under his neck, feeling the teeth shift against each other under his grip. Carem knew Juntai like the back of his hand. Everyone¡¯s secrets had long since been laid bare to him, including the skills of many a hapless man and woman. But their scope was limited, their experiences and insights had grown stale. What once gave him six Mind or more had dwindled to one or two, if he was lucky. The foreigners on the other hand, could provide a completely different perspective on things. Perhaps they can give me something new. Carem normally waited for at least three months between hunts for the furor to die down, but he didn¡¯t know how long these foreigners would be here. He watched them for days, looking for some kind of weakness, but it quickly became obvious that they were not only capable of defending themselves, but also under the close supervision of the Diocese. Carem had been particularly put off when the young man in the group had turned around and stared directly at Carem¡¯s hiding spot before mouthing the words ¡®get lost¡¯ in Juntai. The young man was far more perceptive than he¡¯d supposed, and Carem had probably lost any chance he¡¯d had at getting close to them. He still didn¡¯t know how the young man had seen him, but he attributed it to a Skill. There will be other foreigners, He¡¯d consoled himself, briefly entertaining the possibility of leaving Juntai, willfully ignoring that he was too much of a coward and creature of habit to leave the comfort of his home. It was during one of his walks around the city where he warred with himself internally, debating leaving, or risking taking one of the foreingers, where he came across another foreigner. This one, he was sure was unaffiliated with the others. This particular woman was Ilethan by Carem¡¯s hazy recollection of other people¡¯s memories. He¡¯d never seen one personally, but he¡¯d absorbed some people who had. From what he understood, the Ilethan and Gadveran people ¨C of which the other party was mostly comprised ¨C were constantly at war with each other. collapsed in the middle of the street, breasts straining to escape the tight leather bodice as she panted, surrounded by a crowd of curious onlookers. Juntai women simply did not dress like that, and every man nearby was fascinated with her appearance. They could not see her skin, but could also make out every curve of her body. It was more alluring than if she had been completely unclothed, as it fanned curiosity. She was collapsed in the middle of the street, breasts straining to escape the tight leather bodice as she panted, surrounded by a crowd of curious onlookers, mostly men, whose gaze traveled up and down her body. Gods bless, opportunity knocks! ¡°Are you alright?¡± Carem asked, shrugging off the impropriety of touching a woman who wasn¡¯t his, putting her arm over his neck, bringing her to her feet. He might catch some fallout for this, but it was nothing compared to what he hoped to gain. ¡°It¡¯s a bleeeh,¡± the Ilethan girl groaned, peering at him, then the onlookers. ¡°Lezz pepple.¡± She said, her tongue twitching uncontrollably. ¡°Less people?¡± Carem confirmed in Ilethan. ¡°Yeh,¡± The girl nodded, her supple body sagging against him Right away. ***Calvin*** Calvin was in the middle of having dinner with Kala and Ella, when a loud noise, like a horn played by a tiny demon, resounded through his head, causing him to wince and clutch his ears. >> Chained Spirit Has suffered Data Corruption!<< Purging corrupted Data. Restoring Backup from last uncorrupted Continuity timestamp Backup Restored. Initializing. Repair Complete. Continuity has lost 8 hours 43 minutes and 21 seconds of unpackaged memory. Calvin blinked. ¡°What the Abyss was that?¡± What the hell was that? Elliot¡¯s voice sounded just as confused as Calvin¡¯s as Ella and Kala frowned at him. Okay, show tunes it is, Nadia¡¯s voice echoed in the back of Calvin¡¯s head before she began braying deliberately off-key. Forget your troubles, come on, get happy....wait, when did we get here? Macronomicon Chapter 169: Mind Break Okay, our job as exploiters is to identify any instability in the System, figure out how to repeat it, then see if you can find a way to exploit it for profit. It¡¯d be cool if you could figure out some kind of duping glitch when it dumps the data. I understood maybe half of that, Calvin thought. Oh, right. I Keep forgetting you savages don¡¯t have access to the internet. Don¡¯t worry, your grandkids are gonna love it. Calvin¡¯s tongue poked out the side of his mouth as he put the finishing touches on the last wooden sign, tapping the woood chisel over the last letter. Use your imagination! The two dozen signs prompted in Juntai script, which was an interesting, blocky language that easily inscribed in wood and stone via chisel. ¡°Okay, all of you ready?¡± Calvin asked, handing one sign out to each Nadia, each one bearing a Lure enhancement to the parietal lobe, allowing them to feel people¡¯s desires. Calvin imagined jabbing one of them in the side with his knuckles as vividly as he could. ¡°Eek!¡± All two dozen Nadia¡¯s flinched, nearly dropping their signs. ¡°Perfect.¡± Yeah, if there¡¯s no distance limitation between their experience sharing, she¡¯ll be overloading the System in a matter of minutes. Now that I¡¯m running a diagnostics program I can I.D. exactly what Nadia¡¯s limits are before the System goes kaput. Once we get that we can plan accordingly. ¡°I¡¯m not so sure about this,¡± the foremost Nadia said, rubbing her side where he¡¯d imagined poking her. ¡°That¡¯s too bad,¡± Calvin said, pulling a dozen knives out of his bag. He offered them to the assembled Nadias. ¡°Pair up. Every pair take a knife, and tear your partner¡¯s clothes provocatively. I¡¯d do it myself, but¡± ¨C Calvin glanced over at Kala, observing with a raised brow. ¡°The old battleax is watching.¡± Kala snorted. ¡°Once you¡¯re good and lewd, spread out onto each major street intersection with the sign. Should only take a minute or so.¡± ¡°What exactly is happening here?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°Oh right, I forgot, you don¡¯t remember. Last night you had so much psychosexual stimulation that the System itself couldn¡¯t account for it. We¡¯re going to try repeating that in a couple minutes.¡± ¡°Soo¡­I got mind-fucked so hard the system stopped working?¡± She asked incredulously, arm tucked under her chest, the other holding the sign over her shoulder. ¡°That¡¯s the working theory.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°I just want to know if it¡¯s possible,¡± Kala said with a grin. ¡°I swear to Kvothe,¡± Calvin said, pointing at Kala. ¡°If you think being a Chained spirit is a way to indulge your basest fantasies, I¡¯ll disabuse you of that notion right quick, wife! I¡¯ve seen the kind of shit you get up to in Shadowboxing when you know you¡¯re a copy!¡± Kala had the decency to blush a little before Calvin turned back to Nadia, who was busily working in teams to artfully rip her own clothes. Calvin averted his gaze, not out of any sense of propriety or wanting to honor his wife, but because Nadia was a crazy bitch, and lusting after her was like handing a known burglar the keys to your house. Once that was taken care of, they dispersed through the streets of Juntai, leaving Calvin, Kala behind. The two then climbed up on top of one of the nearby two-story buildings where they had a clear view of three streetcorners, and proceeded to watch three Nadia¡¯s devolve into a shivering mess on the hard-packed earth streets. ¡°Sliver jerky?¡± Kala asked as they sat on the roof, offering him a thin strip of meat. ¡°Ella and I found them when we were out shopping. One copper for ten pound of the stuff.¡± Calvin took the nearly black meat and inspected it, holding it up to the sun and admiring the way the light shone red through it for a moment before snapping off a bite. It was immediate punch in the face of meaty flavor, more intense than the smoked jerky back home in every way. Do they have some kind of salt we don¡¯t have or are slivers just that tasty? ¡°Unsummon me!¡± the Nadia beneath them managed to gasp between wordless vocalizations, surrounded by a veritable wall of man of every age, jostling to get a better view of the temptress. ¡°I give up! Please, I can¡¯t do this!¡± ¡°Sure you can,¡± Calvin said, taking another bite of sliver jerky. It wasn¡¯t like she was going to remember anything, anyway. ¡°This is really good,¡± Calvin said, patting Kala¡¯s head while his wife glowed from the attention. Below them, Nadia seemed to reach some kind of uber-climax, her back arching in a manner that seemed almost painful. Shouldn¡¯t be long, now, Calvin thought, idly kicking his heels while Kala wiggled beside him, angling for more pets. Gazes from more perceptive men and women landed on him every now and then, picking him out as an oddity, sitting atop the building above Nadia, overlooking the scene. Those gazes were all mixed of curiosity and inquisition. Except for one. In a split second, Calvin felt recognition, then fear, then alarm. He snapped his eyes to the side, where he felt the gaze coming from. Nothing but a rowdy crowd of cheering men, every one of them Juntai. Hmmm¡­ is there a Ilethan spy in Allast? Calvin wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the mind-mages had their tendrils all the way out here. Juntai was, after all, a major untapped consumer of copper and producer of wood. Iletha would eye this distant nation like Guar stud eyes a bitch. ***Carem*** I¡¯ve never had a woman explode on me. Carem thought as he walked down the street, still struggling to organize the wealth of foreign ideals, concepts, skills and ideals. Not literally, anyway. Right at their most excellent moment together, when the girl was close to becoming him, and he was close to having everything she could offer, she burst into green smoke, leaving his roots exposed to the biting chill, dry of the air. Exposed roots were painful, like having a raw nerve besieged by the elements, and it distracted him momentarily from the jumble of new information, allowing it to scatter through his mind with little oversight or acknowledgement. He¡¯d have to pick through his mind for foreign influences later, but for now, he simply marveled at the wealth of Mind he¡¯d managed to get from¡­whatever she was, before she¡¯d vanished. Eight points of Mind! More than I¡¯ve ever gotten before. More than he ever needed, to be honest. His Mind was now at a staggering Seventy-two, enough to put the greatest legends to shame. His highest mind Attribute, though, was Intuition, at thirty-seven, just over half of his limit. It would take decades to push his mental limits high enough for any of his attributes to reach seventy-two: He might even die of old age first. In the mean-time, he would most likely see his limits continue to rise to unattainable heights. Too bad there¡¯s nothing you can actually do with Seventy-two Mind. A flash of foreign memory triggered at the thought, causing him to stagger, nearly losing his footing. ilethan¡­mind¡­magic. A gale of foreign sensations and half-remembered knowledge swept over him. All of it was vague and disjointed, like facts he¡¯d known once and only recently remembered. It seems¡­It seems as though every other part of the world values Mind much higher than Juntai. Carem came to the conclusion as he weathered the storm of vague memories. The girl¡¯s half-memories gave him the impression of staggeringly powerful beings capable of terrifying feats using Mind attributes. Her father for example, controlled his family members through a web of strange¡­living relays for his will, mindless in their own right. The man wouldn¡¯t hesitate to tear someone¡¯s will away from their body from a thousand miles away and add it to¡­a chair? He half-remembered watching as an army choked on their own breath, had a vague impression of a man getting his head bitten off by a giant wasp. The foreigner¡¯s arts are the path forward, Carem thought, suddenly sure of it. He tried to focus his mind on anything the girl knew about gaining and utilizing mind-magic. It was trying to grasp at water. The knowledge was there, like a skill he¡¯d known once but hadn¡¯t practiced for decades. He could almost picture how to do it, but it felt just out of reach, almost like a dream. Carem never got all of someone¡¯s skills and knowledge, only a small fraction. And in this case, he got even less, because she¡¯d exploded before he managed to drain everything he possibly could from her. In this case, he¡¯d gotten the knowledge that such things were possible, and the barest inkling of how to begin, but most of the practice would have to come from him. Fair enough. He thought, mentally focusing himself as he resumed walking, heading for his tannery to retrieve the week¡¯s earnings. Carem was so absorbed in his thoughts of how to get started practicing the ilethan art without drawing attention to himself that he didn¡¯t even notice the crowd blocking his way until he was in the thick of it. What in Evern¡¯s Suckhole is going on here? he thought, jostling against dozens of other hollering men. Eventually he found he couldn¡¯t push further ahead without getting overly physical. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± He demanded of the man next to him. ¡°Some Foreign woman¡¯s putting on a show, I think!¡± the gap-toothed man beside him said with a wide grin. Foreign woman? Carem thought with a frown before using his superior Strength to force his way through the crowd, stopping about three layers back when he finally made out another buxum Ilethan girl wearing tattered leathers, writhing on the ground, iron coins pelting harmlessly off her body. Not another girl. The same one. How is this possible? Carem got the vaguest impression of summoning something, using Bent to create something from nothing. She¡¯s a creation! A foreigner¡¯s creation! Carem thought, glancing around. Sure enough, there was a pair of foreigners sitting atop the nearby building overlooking the chaos, a dark-skinned foreign girl and a remarkably pale young man. They were eating jerky, intently watching the foreign girl hump air beneath them. When Carem focused on the man¡¯s face, he experienced a rush of memories of the man tying him up, tormenting him, using him for¡­ Carem¡¯s mind began making associations at lightning speeds. That¡¯s the magician! That¡¯s the one who created her! It was also the same man who¡¯d noticed his gaze when he¡¯d stalked the group of foreigners earlier. The pale skinned Ilethan girl was with the other foreigners! He wants to know how his creation was destroyed, and this is a show to lure me out! This is a trap! A sudden brush of memory alerted Carem to something else. He can feel gazes! He can feel my gaze! A wave of ice-cold fear shot down Carem¡¯s spine as he instantly lowered his gaze back to the Ilethan girl on the ground. He forced a smile onto his face and began bouncing up and down, pretending to be another one of these stupid monkeys rather than a sliver caught in a snare. He went so far as to take an iron coin out of his purse and toss it at the girl, watching the show for a bone chilling minute before pushing his way out of the crowd, making sure not to let the foreign magician see his face or feel his gaze. I think he didn¡¯t notice me. Does he know what my face looks like? Does she know what my face looks like? The girl on the ground seemed a little too¡­preoccupied to recognize him, so that was a complete unknown, and the magician hadn¡¯t picked his face out of the crowd¡­possibly. There were just too many unknowns! This first thing he needed to do was get his emotions under control, then he could worry about whether or not a foreign Mind-User was hunting him. At each street-corner, Carem came across a similar scene, reinforcing the idea that these artificial women were set as bait for him to stumble across. Carem shuddered and briefly considered heading back to his home and hiding away from the word for a few weeks until everything blew over. No. Nothing out of the ordinary. I have to go about my day as usual. If they don¡¯t know who I am, I mustn¡¯t stand out, and if they do know who I am, four walls of flimsy wood aren¡¯t going to keep them out. Extensive training has increased your Attributes! +1 Stability The System seemed to agree with his course of action as he took deep breaths and calmed his mind. If they don¡¯t know who I am¡­then¡­this could actually be quite a lot of fun, couldn¡¯t it? ***Calvin*** Calvin glanced up at the sun, past its zenith and slowly losing altitude in the sky, gradually lengthening the shadows in the city. We¡¯ve been at this for hours and got nothing, Calvin thought as the Juntai equivalent of guardsmen picked up the drooping princess by her arms and hauled her to the local drunk tank for being a public nuisance. Opportunistic beggars were scooping up the iron coins she¡¯d been showered with, scuttling across the roads like scavenger crabs over a guar carcass. Odd. That should have crashed Nadia¡¯s System extension hard and fast. There might be a secret ingredient that we¡¯re missing, or the System already patched out the problem. Unlikely, given your tenuous connection. I¡¯ll try and see if I missed anything. Go ahead, Calvin thought, standing and stretching. I¡¯ll get back to work. ¡°Care to visit east Allast?¡± Calvin asked, holding his hand out for Kala to stand. He¡¯d visited the logging camps to the south, and now he wanted to see what the city was like on the east. Kala accepted his hand and gracefully rose to her feet. ¡°I¡¯m hardly suited for covert operations around here,¡± she said, glancing down at herself. ¡°I stand out like a sore thumb.¡± ¡°Call it a date, then.¡± ¡°What about..¡± Kala nodded in Nadia¡¯s direction. ¡°She¡¯ll be fine.¡± Calvin opened the mental connection Nadia. If anyone does anything you don¡¯t want them to, you¡¯ve got my permission to rough them up a bit. I?????????????? A??????????????m????????????????? D?????????????e????????????????s????????????????????i?????????????????r?????????????e?????????????????? I????????????n???????????????c??????????????a?????????????????r???????????n?????????????a???????????????????t???????????????e?????????????!?????????????? ¡°She¡¯ll be fine,¡± Calvin said again, this time reassuring himself as much as Kala. Macronomicon Chapter 170: Lightning 101 ¡°So I feel like an idiot asking you this,¡± Goob said, looking at Baroke up and down. The musclebrained idiot flexing with every movement he made as they walked down the hard-packed streets of the Juntai market. They both spoke passable ILethan, so they got along okay. ¡°-but what do normal girls want in a guy?¡± Baroke¡¯s eyes darted from the chewy shikva treats he¡¯d been eating to Goob, then down to himself, then back to Goob. ¡°Aside from seven feet of height and a body sculpted by the gods themselves?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s a lot of things, all jumbled up in a confusing web, but if I had to roll a bunch of the traits women like into a ball and slap a label on it, I¡¯d say¡­consistency.¡± ¡°Consistency? Explain.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Baroke paused as he picked a bit of sticky shikva out of his teeth. ¡°When someone tells you they¡¯re gonna do something, and you¡¯re relying on it, and then they don¡¯t do it, that sucks right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°So someone who consistently does what they say they¡¯re gonna do, someone who consistently gets their work done, someone who consistently works out four hours every day. That kind of person finds success with women.¡± ¡°That last one seems pointed,¡± Goob said, nodding at Baroke. ¡°I¡¯d be a beanpole if I didn¡¯t work out every day. Or fat.¡± Baroke said. ¡°I think I get it.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Sooner or later you¡¯ll run across a non-imaginary monster who likes you for you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m afraid of,¡± Goob said, shuddering. He needed to get rid of the Yandere magnet skill somehow. Sure, the skill seemed to offer ways to improve his survival and gain a modicum of control over the situation but it was still scary dangerous. If Tom found out that he¡¯d spent the night with Kim, the soup elemental would beat him up, scald him to death, or drown him¡­possibly all three. But everyone he asked said you couldn¡¯t get rid of a skill, only counteract it. Goob needed a Yandere Repellant skill, he needed it higher than Yandere Magnet, and he needed it soon. But you¡¯re already fifth Break! He thought to himself, bashing his head to Baroke¡¯s surprise. Goob had his limits expanded rapidly as part of a wartime effort to repel the creatures invading Gadvera, and it didn¡¯t leave much room to learn new Skills and choose a different path in life. He would have to get involved in one or more full-scale national battles just to have a chance of fixing his horrible Skill. In the meantime, it keeps going up. Yandere Magnet has reached level 6! 30% correction. Goob¡¯s eyes widened, and he glanced around the crowded marketplace. There! skulking from rooftop to rooftop was the particularly curvy silhouette of Kim Curdashian. There! A fraction of a second later, Goob glanced down and made eye contact with a Juntai woman who seemed to be staring at him. Crap. Goob closed his eyes and turned away, doing his absolute best to prevent another stalker. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t let anything bad happen to me, would you?¡± Goob asked Baroke. The looming older teen took a street skewer out of his mouth to respond. ¡°As a general rule, no, but why? Did you do something bad?¡± ¡°Not bad, per se, it-¡° Goob felt a hand land on his shoulder and a woman¡¯s voice in his ear. ¡°Excuse me, are you-¡° Goob felt his body give a strangled squawk and start running before he¡¯d even had time to process the input. Goob used every ounce of his power speeding down the street at full speed, as the sounds of combat and pursuit began to bloom behind him. ¡°You don¡¯t touch him, you hussy!¡± Slap! ¡°-Bro, fight me for Kim¡¯s honor!¡± Goob didn¡¯t remember anything after that. ***Baroke*** ¡°Huh,¡± Baroke grunted as the scrawny dweeb bolted as soon as a woman touched him. That running thing is gonna be a problem for finding a normal girl. Shortly afterward, Kim Curdashian jumped down off the roof above them and pounced on the woman who¡¯d tapped Goob on the shoulder, laying a solid slap on the woman¡¯s face, and angling to do more. In the meantime, Tom Soup launched a sneak attack, trying to chase down Goob and challenge him to a duel for Kim¡¯s honor. ¡°Huh.¡± Baroke tucked his skewer in his mouth, freeing his hand to fling Kim off the hapless civilian. He put his palm on her center of gravity, and with bit of effort, the furious abomination was sent tumbling into the sky. If Baroke¡¯s aim was good, and it was always good, She would land in a pile of Tarak guano he¡¯d seen on the way into the city, just outside of the city itself. Baroke took the skewer out of his mouth, dragging the meat off with his teeth before flicking the wooden spike at Tom Soup. The skewer exploded through the elemental¡¯s body and buried itself in the hard-packed earth, disappearing from sight after leaving a gaping hole in Tom¡¯s side. The wound wasn¡¯t critical, matter of fact, it was closing up already, but it served his purpose. It got the man¡¯s attention. ¡°Get outta here,¡± Baroke said, pointing his thumb westerly, in Kim¡¯s direction. Tom considered his wound for a moment, then the tiny hole in the earth, before the bright red geyser of steaming tomato soup ran for it. ¡°You haven¡¯t seen the last of me, bro!¡± Sheesh, Baroke thought, rolling his eyes before glancing down at the woman who¡¯d been assaulted by Goob¡¯s creation. There¡¯s a limit to letting kids deal with their own mistakes, Calvin. You can¡¯t claim that Goob¡¯s ¡®problems¡¯ aren¡¯t affecting anyone else now. Baroke glanced up from the slapped woman, gaze trying to pick out the scrawny kid in the crowd. It wasn¡¯t hard. Goob had run head-first into a Juntai guardsman, noticeable by the green sashes over their shoulders, fine weaponry and copper bracers. Like the civilians, though, they didn¡¯t wear a whole lot of clothing, or armor, meaning their hearts were unguarded. In a fraction of a second, Baroke considered and dismissed a handful of different ways to kill these people involving simple household objects: a habit that was beginning to form from a life fraught with violence. Goob was lying in front of one of the guardsmen, with another six approaching. The mood in the market froze over in an instant, going from lively trade to tense silence in the space of a hushed comment. Now, Baroke thought as the market began to empty around him. It everyone hiding because of the abominations or because of the guardsmen? There had been an altercation moments ago. Baroke¡¯s eyes narrowed as the Juntai guardsman helped Goob to his feet while the other ones approached Baroke. The crowd was all but gone, retracting from the guardsmen like a living thing shies away from fire as they approached. ¡°Friends,¡± The lead guardsman said in fluent Ilethan with a slimy smile. ¡°While in Allast, feel free to see the sights, avail yourselves of the local cuisine and culture. We¡¯re rather proud of it, after all. But please, refrain from starting pitched battles in the center of the city. If it happens again, we¡¯ll have to hold you somewhere you can¡¯t disturb the peace until our leaders finish talks.¡± Baroke chewed the last bit of his skewer meat and swallowed, clearing his mouth. ¡°You got it, boss. Won¡¯t happen again.¡± Baroke glanced down at Goob, who was holding a bloody nose from where he¡¯d run into the man¡¯s washboard abs. Come on, Goob.¡± ¡°just you,¡± The Guardsman said, putting a hand on Goob¡¯s shoulder. ¡°This young one will spend the night in lockup.¡± He pointed at Baroke. ¡°You stopped it, and quite gracefully at that, so you get a warning, but this one, This one started it, and struck an officer of the guard, and so requires a bit more than a warning.¡± Baroke raised an eyebrow as Goob¡¯s expression turned fearful, glancing back and forth between the Juntai guardsmen and the towering archer. ¡°I don¡¯t mind if you want to put him in a cell for a night to teach him a lesson,¡± Baroke held up a finger. ¡°But, he¡¯s our leader¡¯s apprentice, so use a light touch.¡± The guardsman raised a brow ¡°how does your master feel about caning?¡± ¡°Use a light one to keep the damage minimal, avoid the eyes, ears and genitals, and release him the next day, I¡¯m sure he¡¯d be fine with it.¡± ¡°Baroke!¡± Goob shouted, aghast. ¡°Goob, your crazy stalker lady, who you made, got someone hurt.¡± Baroke said, pointing at the woman with the slowly bruising cheek who ducked behind a wooden table as their attention focused on her. ¡°I¡¯ve gotten a beating from my dad for a lot less.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t understand, it¡¯s not my fault it¡¯s this stupid Skiiiilllll!¡± Goob¡¯s protests faded away as goob was hauled away by the guardsmen to meet his fate. Goob would survive a caning. Baroke didn¡¯t want any more trouble than necessary, so he watched until the men had turned the corner before facing the nearest market vendor, grabbing the man¡¯s attention by looming over him. Maya said he was really good at looming. ¡°Why everyone fear of them? Baroke asked in ilethan. ¡°Why ask that?¡± the man said in ilethan, ¡°No fear them. they good.¡± The man started scrubbing his grill. ¡°Keep order, make juntai strong. Without them we suffer greatly.¡± Baroke glanced down at the mostly clean grill that the man was currently sawing away at with manic intensity while he babbled about how good the guardsmen where. ¡°Right. Understood,¡± Baroke said with a nod. Calvin wasn¡¯t as socially dull as he used to be, so he¡¯d probably notice something was seriously uncomfortable about this country right away. Unless¡­ Baroke sighed. Unless he discovered a new kind of magic. ***Calvin*** So how does the Juntai lightning work exactly? You said a single Juntai warrior could probably power a train. I want to know if there was a way I could do it, too. You want the long answer or the short one? Scratch that, I don¡¯t have time to give you a six-month course in the basics. Electricity is the flow of charged electrons, every substance in the world has electrons, but copper has electrons that are particularly easy to¡­get flowing, if you¡¯ll pardon the oversimplification. Now, when a magnetic field ¨C that¡¯s lodestone for you savages ¨C passes by copper, it forces the electrons to flow, which is what creates electricity. So lightning is from copper in the air passing by lodestone? What? NO! I said there¡¯s electrons in everything, even the air. The water in the air, specifically. That¡¯s static electricity, which is a whole different ball of wax. For now let¡¯s just focus on magnetism and how it creates electrical current. Elliot continued to lecture Calvin on the properties of electricity, but most of it didn¡¯t make any sense to him, as the only ¡®electricity¡¯ he¡¯d even seen was lightning, and everyone just called it Vashniel¡¯s Arrow. For the love of ¨C you know what? Take that guy¡¯s bracer. Calvin used Dupdomancy, manifesting an identical creation in his palm, effectively stealing it without actually doing so. Wuss. Alright. You see how the whole bracer is actually one coil of wire? Elliot asked. Yeah, Calvin thought, tracing the coil with his finger, locating the hidden coil tucked on the inside where the end was drawn up from the back to meet the lead wire, the two of them almost touching. These two wires here and here at the corners of the palm are where the electricity is gonna come out and work is going to happen¡­ Elliot continued talking at length about the details of the bracer and how they worked. As Elliot spoke, Calvin had a niggling idea. Bring up Trait Doctoring, Calvin thought. He had been sitting on three choices for his Trait Doctoring Skill for months now, unwilling to commit to anything that might wind up being useless. In Juntai however, being able to control ¡®Electricity¡¯, or more accurately, the physical properties of the objects they were using to generate electricity, meant being able to shut them down at a moments notice. Calvin reviewed his options, which had grown to be almost too many to list since he¡¯d achieved level 15 in Trait Doctoring. Magnetism is the lodestone one, right? Yeah. I choose Conductivity, Magnetism, and It¡¯s Opposite Day. Calvin blew all three of the points he¡¯d been holding onto, grabbing Conductivity and Magnetism for their syngergy with each other, and Opposite day because it would allow him to use opposite properties to stand in for ingredients he might not have. The back of Calvin¡¯s head felt like it was crawling with ants for a moment before the world started fading around him. User will be rendered Unconscious during the Mutation. Calvin opened his eyes again, habitually checking the sun overhead. Only a few minutes for that Mutation. He was still a little leery of mutating, but nothing bad had happened since the eye-debacle, and he made sure Elliot double checked all of them before he took each new mutation. So what are you planning on doing? Elliot asked, Making a generator out of wood or something like that? Something like that, Calvin thought, slipping the palm-sized bar of lodestone from his belt. Trait Doctoring. It¡¯s Opposite Day! Magnetism. 45/46 bent Remaining. Calvin chose the leather of his belt as the donator of magnetism, and The lodestone in his hand as the recipient. Normally this would make the lodestone cease to be a lodestone at all, suddenly as nonmagnetic as a scrap of leather, but Calvin¡¯s mutation made something entirely different happen. The mutation measured the difference in magnetism between the two, then pushed the recipient in the opposite direction. The scrap of leather had significantly less magnetism, so the lodestone received significantly more. Uh, what are you doing? Trying something out. Calvin fished out a copper coin and repeated the process with its conductivity, giving the copper coin the opposite of the difference in conductivity between it and the leather of his belt. The copper coin took on a strange, shimmering hue. Calvin, If you¡¯re thinking about doing what I¡¯m thinking you¡¯re thinking about doing, you¡¯re scaring me. It¡¯ll probably be fine, Calvin thought Trait Doctoring. Calvin changed the conductivity of the air in front of him to match that of the enhanced copper coin, then he hauled back on the palm-sized lodestone, aiming to throw it through the enhanced air. Wait, wait wait! Calvin threw with everything he had. The lodestone shot out three feet before it impacted something, creating a tiny web of lighting for an instant before it began to slowly fall to the ground, tiny bolts of crackling lightning easing it gently to the ground. Oh right, I forgot. Magnetic dampening. What¡¯s that? Well, when you¡¯re making the electricity, the energy has to come from somewhere, right? In this case, kinetic energy is being turned into electrical energy. The force of your throw is dampened, in exchange for the electricity it creates. It looks like a little forcefield, doesn¡¯t it? It sure does, Calvin thought, his mind soaring with ideas. What if we ¨C Make an enchantment that magnetizes attacks and puts them through a barrier of copper-ed air, converting their kinetic energy to electrical energy and serving it back to them as lightning? I¡¯m already working on it, dude. Nice, Calvin thought, picking up the lodestone, hauling back to throw it again. Shifting. 43/46 Bent Remaining Wait, Wai- Calvin threw the lodestone forward and unloaded every ounce of weight from the earth around him into it. The lodestone flew forward in the center of a crackling nimbus of lightning that sent seeking tendrils of lightning in every direction, scorching trees and bushes in the area until the lodestone plowed through a thick jungle tree. Calvin was able to remove its mass just in time for it to come out the back of the tree, before it buried itself dozens of feet of soil. If it were any stronger, you might¡¯ve killed yourself, and if it were any drier in this damn jungle, you would have started a forest fire. Elliot grumbled as Calvin retrieved the lodestone. It was hot to the touch, nearly scalding as it rested in his hand. I¡¯ve got another idea. Trait Doctoring. Trait Doctoring. Shifting. 40/46 Bent remaining. Calvin breathed in and exhaled with all the force he could muster, making the roiling air he exhaled a potent mixture of magnetic, conductive, and weighing several tons. A bolt of lightning erupted from Calvin¡¯s mouth, impacting the same tree with a blow that was at once physical and energetic, burning the wood to ash while simultaneously bowling it over from the sheer force of the heavy air. Trait Doctoring Has reached level 18! Shifting has reached level 18! Shifting level 18: 84% shift, 18 minutes, targets limited to 5832 pounds in mass. Ella, sparring with Grant behind him, picked herself off the ground, brushed bits of flaming wood off her hide shirt before staring at him with a gaping jaw. ¡°You just breathed lightning.¡± Ella finally spoke the obvious for the rest of Calvin¡¯s onlooking army, obviously expecting some kind of answer. ¡°AA UUU A AAa.¡± ¨C I burned my tongue - Calvin responded. Hahahah! Awesome! Nobody is as crazy as us when it comes to being irresponsible with magic! Now I need to teach you how to make a stronger magnet, not that baby lodestone! Macronomicon Enjoy! Last one until next Tuesday, sorry to say. Hope you enjoyed! Some of these ideas about mass manipulation and weird electromagnetic interactions have been rattling around in my head for years now. Chapter 171: A Banal Sort of Romance Carem sat beside the playground doing his best not to look sketchy as he observed the children while he whittled on a toy. The toy was for cover, in case someone asked him why he was sitting at a playground. He¡¯d already given away several of them in the last couple days since he¡¯d begun practicing ilethan mind-magic. In just a few days, they had come to know him as ¡®the toy guy¡¯. Children adapted quickly. Empathy had been easy, simply copying other people¡¯s behavior as closely as possible while trying to use Bent as a sail to catch and experience their emotions, understand why they felt the way they did. Carem had plenty of experience handling other people¡¯s thoughts and beliefs, and he was able to make significant progress on just the first day, prodding his Bent out of his body into the patterns that felt like old habits. They were complicated, to be sure, but he felt like he was uniquely suited for them, imagining impossible shapes in higher dimensions with¡­Well, not ease, but certainly not terribly difficult. Now he was trying to build on empathy and branch out to mind-reading and implanting emotions. There were a few drawbacks to this. Mind reading was simply an advanced version of empathy, very difficult to do with any accuracy starting out. It would be best for him if he was trying to read the mind of someone whose thoughts weren¡¯t exactly kept under wraps. i.e. A child. Additionally, implanting emotions, the first step to mind control, was insanely difficult without a Skill on anyone with a System, and if the target¡¯s Stability was high, not only would the spell not take, the System would have time warn them of external influence. The perfect solution to both problems lay in the chubby-cheeked little brats running back and forth at full speed, flinging dirt and rocks at each other while their mothers took a much-needed break. The copper-collared matrons spoke to each other about hopelessly mundane subjects, making Carem want to bit his tongue in frustration as the babble flowed over him like a wave of pointless. He wasn¡¯t here to get insight into these women; he already had plenty of that. Carem¡¯s hand unconsciously went up to his bag of teeth, lingering there for a moment before he returned to the knife, carving the scales on the wooden sliver. Carem eyed two brats playing peacefully with dirt and one of his wooden figurines, a large fish with a gaping mouth and big, jagged teeth. They were playing some kind of sea-going adventure. Carem built the sail, an invisible Bent construct shaped a bit like a slightly bowed disk, the concave side pointed toward the closer brat sitting in the mud. No,~~~ got to ~~ ~~~~~~~ last ~~~~ ¡°No, you got to be Allastan last time!¡± one of them screeched at the top of their lungs, a fraction of a second after the scrambled thought echoed through his mind. Another one of the benefits of working with children. They immediately pronounced their thoughts at the top of their lungs, allowing him to verify the accuracy of his reading and adjust his practice. It would be nearly impossible if he were trying this on an adult who often weighs the result of their speech before speaking. To be sure, there were adults who spoke exactly as they thought, but they ywere still adults, and far more perceptive than children. Carem folded up the invisible sail and brought it back into his body, hiding his black Bent veins beneath his other hands, his mind aching slightly from the effort of manipulating Bent without a Skill to assist. Now, let¡¯s try a something a little more intrusive. Carem packaged up all his frustration and anger, folding it over and over, massaging it into a package of undulating Bent that seemed to leech the color out of it like a piece of paper sucking up water. I don¡¯t know exactly how this works, but let¡¯s try it like¡­this. Carem wrapped the colored writhing Bent shape into a tight arrow of energy, pointed his finger beneath his concealing palm, and let the arrow fly toward the temple of a little girl playing house with a friend. ¡°What are you doing?¡± A woman¡¯s voice interrupted Carem¡¯s concentration, making him flinch. The invisible arrow went wide, and with a soft pock, there was a thumb-sized hole in a nearby tree just past the little girl¡¯s face. Carem reigned in his disappointment and looked up into the face of a lovely girl, unmarried, and young. She looked at him curiously, eyeing the half-finished sliver in his hand. ¡°My sister and nephew died recently.¡± Carem lied, simultaneously setting up his primitive mind-reading sail. No time like the present to get some practice. Oh ~~, ~~~~~ terrible! ¡°Oh no, that¡¯s terrible!¡± She said with a gasp. ¡°I wasn¡¯t particularly close at the time, but it woke something in me, I suppose,¡± Carem said, glancing down at the unfinished toy in his hands. ¡°I felt like I wanted to get to know him, but it was already too late. Before I knew it, I was sitting at playgrounds, making toys.¡± He waggled the unfinished wood with a self-deprecating grin. Intimate details shared, bonding initiated, engage reciprocal sharing, Carem thought, bored and resisting the urge to roll his eyes. ¡°My father died when I was eight,¡± she said, tears welling in her eyes. ¡°I think I can understand what you¡¯re going through, just a little.¡± I killed my father, then myself in my father¡¯s body. I doubt it. Carem half-chuckled, half scoffed. Engage disbelief, prompting her to push more forcefully. ¡°No, really,¡± she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. Her hands were warm. ¡°I spent years trying to find a way to replace the¡­¡± Her monkey brain struggled for the words. ¡°The potential that I¡¯d lost.¡± Ah, so that¡¯s why she¡¯s comfortable approaching older men. ¡°My mother died in childbirth,¡± Carem said with a shrug, sprinkling in bits of truth in his tale. ¡°My father in a brawl when I was fourteen.¡± ¨C technically true ¨C ¡° My sister was my last relative, and I hadn¡¯t seen her since she was given away when I was four. Hearing about her existence and her death in the same sentence,¡± Carem hung his head. ¡°It was just a blow to realize how alone I am.¡± I Want to ~~~~ him ~~~~ better. The girl¡¯s thoughts tumbled through Carem¡¯s mind haphazardly, and Carem suspected that if he hadn¡¯t had so much practice drawing the line between his own thoughts and those of other people, he might not even be able to parse that much, they came so fast and laden with emotional baggage. ¡°I guess that¡¯s what got me thinking about children,¡± Carem said, struggling mightily to maintain three lines of thought: carving the sliver, maintaining the spell, and maintaining the lie he was feeding the credulous young woman. ¡°Have you thought about settling down, marrying, having kids?¡± she asked, sidling closer to him on the bench. ¡°No, I ¨C¡° Carem began to reflexively refuse before he caught himself. He honestly had never even considered such a thing. It was beyond the pale. The idea of himself in the role his own father had played¡­ The thought made all the hairs on his neck stand up in disgust. But¡­ He glanced over at the young woman invading his personal space, then out at the matronly women scowling at her and whispering to each other. A family would be the perfect practice dolls. They would be dependent on him, and he would have dominion over them. The government would side with him were his wife ever to claim any wrongdoing. A sharp pain interrupted his thoughts as his knife caught a knot and his wrist carried through, flicking the blade forward and through the meat of his thumb. He hissed in pain and clamped his palm down over the wound, blood oozing out between his fingers. That¡¯s a gusher! Carem¡¯s father¡¯s words echoed through his mind, forcing him to recall his father proudly demonstrating how far his nicked finger squirted. She must have interpreted his grimace of disgust as a need for assistance. ¡°Here, let me help!¡± she said, tugging a small cloth loose from her garb and prying his hand away before binding his thumb, stopping the bleeding in a matter of seconds. ¡°Much appreciated, miss¡­¡± ¡°Erina Toren¡± She said with smile. ¡°Carem Sageva.¡± He said, introducing himself. One of the children tumbled to the ground and started bawling, and she stood up with the speed of experience, brushing the child off and setting him back on his feet. The little boy got over the pain and continued playing as if he hadn¡¯t just been bawling his eyes out. ¡°My younger brother Seeva,¡± she said apologetically as she came back. ¡°Mother simply can¡¯t watch all of them by herself.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Carem said, glancing at her, then out to her brother. Now there¡¯s a way to get rid of this annoyance. He painstakingly recreated the Bent contruct, dying it in the the emotions of frustration and anger. This time, however instead of a sharp, hard image, like an arrow, he settled on something penetrating yet gentle, like a vapor. A mist of anger. He pushed it forcefully toward the boy playing with her brother, and allowed it to seep into the boy¡¯s skull through his eyes, ears, nose and mouth. A moment later, the boy picked up the wooden toy and struck her brother over the head with all the force a child could muster, sending the little boy to the ground with a bleeding scalp. Seeva wailed at full volume while the other boy¡¯s mother pulled him away and spanked him mercilessly, Erina pulling him away from the playground and wrapping his head with makeshift bandages before apologizing profusely to Carem and hauling her brother away. In a matter of seconds she was gone, and Carem could now honestly say he¡¯d successfully used mind magic to manipulate a situation. Carem glanced down at the bandage on his thumb, rubbing it and enjoying the sharpness the pain brought to him as he irritated the wound. Children, huh? ¡°You seem like a nice man,¡± One of the older women said, sitting down beside him, her jowels drooping on the side of her face as she met his eyes. ¡°Stay away from that girl. She¡¯s used goods.¡± ¡°And does everyone believe that?¡± Carem asked raising a brow. ¡°Everyone knows that. Her whore of a mother sold her first Forming Day to Debian Gor to act as his Trial Wife, but the man didn¡¯t claim her. Don¡¯t be fooled by that pretty face, if he didn¡¯t claim her after that, there¡¯s something deeply wrong underneath. She¡¯s definitely not a virgin, and most likely got something wrong in the head.¡± ¡°Good to know, thank you.¡± Carem said with a fake smile, his list of information about Elina growing, although gossip was to be taken with an enormous grain of salt. Carem ran through the list of traits that made her an ideal wife candidate, and was surprise when it largely matched the list of traits he looked for in a woman to absorb. She¡¯s likely got poor self-esteem, habitually seeks out older men to ingratiate herself with, so they take care of her. Docile, helpful. Spurned by others, increasing reliance on me as her connection to the outside world. She¡¯s beginning to seem like the perfect prey. The jowel-y woman nodded to herself and moved away, returning to her tittering friends. Carem made sure thank her by driving her brat to bite her leg until she bled when she retrieved the child from the field. The sight of the woman screaming and trying to detach the rabid boy was the first thing to get a genuine laugh out of him. A few hours later as the sun was going down, Carem retired back to his home. He spent hours sitting in his rocking chair, running his fingers through the teeth in his bag as he rocked back and forth, staring out at nothing as he sank into deep thought. He stood out, being his age, as wealthy as he was, without a wife. Standing out was a good way to get noticed. Carem need the camouflage of a family, or sooner or late, someone would start to pry. Carem couldn¡¯t exactly pretend to be gay, plenty of women from the pleasure quarter knew him intimately, and he didn¡¯t want to adopt a successor as part of a ruse. **** To Erina it must have seemed like a whirlwind romance, but to Carem, it was a banal slog. Over the course of several weeks he ¡®swept her off her feet¡¯, proving that he didn¡¯t care about the rumors about her ¨CHe actually didn¡¯t, but not for the reason she thought ¨C he courted her in person and bought a house for her mother and her myriad brothers and sisters, taking on the burden of supporting all of them as a gesture of good faith after she¡¯d already promised to become his. Why did he go that far for a woman when he could simply purchase a trial wife during her Forming Day like Debian Gor? He certainly wasn¡¯t lacking the funds. It was the beaten down, harsh life experience that tasted the best on his Roots, and so he must have unconsciously decided that was best for a wife as well. Everything he did was calculated to cause this girl to fall in love with him, and deepen her perceived debt to, and connection with him. Finally, when she trusted him completely, she told him about her Forming Day. When she¡¯d been taken as a trial wife by Debian Gor. She¡¯d actually already had her System since she was nine and snuck off to play near a slaughterhouse. She lied to everyone about it, concealing that she¡¯d gotten a Break, because if people knew her first Break had been spent, her value as a wife would be greatly diminished. And so when she had taken part in the Breaking Day with the other children her age, and Debian Gor expressed an interest in her, she¡¯d been terrified. The older man had expected her to pick up cooking and cleaning and nightly services quickly and easily, but she¡¯d been clumsy and panicking, so the man had sent her back to her mother, spreading a rumor that she was useless as a woman. Well, that was nothing a second Break couldn¡¯t fix. Sure she had a Skill for Hide and Seek and higher than average Body for a woman, but Carem didn¡¯t see the problem, from a cold, analytical point of view. He arranged another Break for her at their wedding, taking advantage of one of his properties that handled slaughtering livestock. They gathered everything they had and some livestock from beyond, and killed the lot of them, raising the Warp concentration in a little miniature Breaking day party. A few of the men who worked for him even reached their third break, to much celebrating. Elina fainted with a smile on her face. During her second Forming Day, she passionately devoted herself to learning the Skills her husband requested of her, all the normal Skills a married woman would be expected and more besides. Skills such as Bent Manipulation, Support, and Mental Conduit, allowing him easy access to her mind. She showed no hesitation when he asked her to learn the Mental Conduit skill, shrugging and joking that she had already trusted him with every other part of her, so why not? It took weeks of sustained effort, but with a willing subject, Carem was able to master the basics of ilethan Mind magic, using them to shape his bride into something more than she used to be. I can honestly say she¡¯s not unhappy, Carem thought, idly running his thumb over the ridges and peaks of Elina¡¯s teeth as she knelt beside his rocking chair, her mouth held open for him, storing longingly into his eyes, while her mother and siblings busied themselves cleaning his home, sparing not a single glance for their oldest sister. They didn¡¯t remember her anymore, but it didn¡¯t feel right separating them. ~I love this. ~this is right. ~Feels so good ~So wonderful It gave him a chuckle every now and then, listening to their happy thoughts while he caressed the hard ridges of Elina¡¯s teeth. The only part of her he wouldn¡¯t change. I think¡­I think I¡¯ve come as far as I can without some kind of a challenge. Carem thought to himself, frowning in thought. He needed to try meeting the foreigners. It had been weeks of lying low to avoid the attention of the foreigners, but if they hadn¡¯t come after him by now, they most likely either didn¡¯t know his face, or didn¡¯t care if he¡¯d killed the Ilethan girl. ¡°Bent.¡± Elina obediently held out a hand, and he put her fingers in his mouth, watching her shudder in expectation as she used Bent Manipulation to condense Bent inside his mouth. 26/32 Bent remaining. 27/32 Bent remaining. ¡°Good girl.¡± He said, sending her a pulse of primal pleasure through the connection between them, causing her to shake slightly. A man¡¯s gotta train his animals, after all. Macronomicon Chapter 172: Prison Rules What is this stuff? Calvin thought as he rubbed his finger along the white bench. It had no texture, per se, except for a slight sense of granularity. Calvin rapped his fingers against it, and marveled at the sound it made. It sounded light, like there wasn¡¯t much there, and yet, it was holding up his entire body. Calvin wanted to stop and study the material, use dupdomancy on it and test its weight to strength ratio and durability, but that would probably attract too much attention. Instead, he licked his finger and rubbed it on the furniture. Completely waterproof. And it seems like minor stains wipe right off. Huh. It obviously wasn¡¯t wood. There was no grain. I wonder how it responds to heat. Unfortunately Calvin couldn¡¯t just burn the bench he was sitting on in a fit of curiousity, so he forced himself to pay attention to what was going on between Kurawe and the three exhausted diplomats. ¡°I understand your desire to make a profit here, but the tariffs you¡¯re suggesting are going to actually reduce the total revenue by an order of magnitude. If you make your exports more expensive than something other countries could get themselves or go without, they¡¯re going to do it, and leave you with nothing.¡± Kurawe was sitting in front of a thoroughly exhausted Juntai man, rapidly wearing him down with unceasing reasons why they should lower the price of lumber. Calvin had to clamp down on the urge to yawn just looking at it. The Juntai diplomats seemed to have realized that something was seriously wrong with Kurawe, as the giant of a man didn¡¯t seem to need to eat, sleep or crap, zealously wearing down their defenses through superior endurance. They had responded by taking eight hour shifts, but that left each negotiator alone in the room with Kurawe, and the man was overwhelming when taken one-on one, so for the last stretch, they had rallied all three of them. ¡°We¡¯ll always have a minimum sale price, and we understand the street value of copper in Gadvera and Uleis is low, so don¡¯t think to cheat me out of a good thing. We won¡¯t go any lower than an eighth of a pound of copper per ten thousand board-feet.¡± Kurawe sucked on his teeth for a moment, seemingly debating while Calvin was screaming internally for him to take the deal. Uleis would pay huge amounts of glass for just a thousand board feet, and Boles, Iletha and Gadvera would pay huge amounts of copper for an equal amount of glass. Iletha needed wood, too. It was a perfect profit triangle, but Kurawe acted like he was signing away his firstborn child when he signed the final papers. All three Juntai negotiators loomed, watching with bags under their eyes as the giant signed it, the pen tiny in his meaty fingers. He finished the document, with two copies scrawled on vellum, written in the trade language, outlining in no uncertain terms, the details of the trade agreement between Juntai and Calvin¡¯s March. Finally, Calvin thought releasing a sigh he didn¡¯t realize he¡¯d been holding. The country had been wearing thin on all of them for some time now. Kala was severely perturbed by the customs, Ella was avoiding the city, Goob wasn¡¯t talking to Baroke since the incident, and Learner had disappeared. Hopefully whatever mayhem she was perpetrating wouldn¡¯t reflect poorly on him. Calvin rubbed his temples. Staying in a place like this for over a month was wearing on his nerves. ¡°There we go,¡± Kurawe said, passing the document back to the diplomats, who made one final pass. ¡°Well, now that we¡¯re all done,¡± Kurawe said, standing. ¡°Wait.¡± The lead negiator, a thin man with a patchy beard spoke. Calvin didn¡¯t bother to learn their names, because that was Kurawe¡¯s job. ¡°We don¡¯t have the authority to commit this to law. We must send word to the Diocese.¡± After he said that, he went to the nearby door, raised a hand and held his copper bracer to the wall. The wall hissed and blipped for a few moments with a flicker of light. What was that? Broken intercom. They seem to be using it to send a signal like morse code. What in the abyss is that? ¡°The Diocese of Trade will join us soon.¡± The wrinkly man said with a slight bow. Soon came and went, and Calvin started pacing in back of the room as minutes turned into hours, bored out of his mind while Kurawe and the Juntai diplomats had a seemingly friendly chat. If Kala were here, she would probably tell him to stop pacing as it presented impatience, which was a form of weakness, then she would probably sweeten the pot by offering to sit on his lap to keep him in one place¡­But Godsdamnit, women weren¡¯t allowed in the palace and he was impatient! A month of sitting on his hands, resummoning Kurawe in secret as necessary, living in a city that had long since lost its charm, under an enormous steel cylinder that was constantly humming at him, and now some a-hole was going to make him wait another couple hours? Calvin just wanted to move on. Calm down, Nadia¡¯s thoughts echoed through his mind. This is a normal tactic by those in power. And it¡¯s not like you can spend your time hopping instantly from engagement to engagement and stay sane if you¡¯re a leader. Royals need down time too. Bah, Calvin thought sourly. Give it a year, and we¡¯ll see who¡¯s waiting on who. It was good to hear a coherent thought again from Nadia, though. I can sit on your lap if it¡¯ll help. She offered. This channel is for emergencies and timely advice only, what did I say about reading my thoughts? I think it involved sewing my lips to my own asshole. Calvin huffed and sat down on the couch in the corner, completely ignored by the four old men in the room. I think I¡¯ve overused that threat. Probably. Tell you what, if you behave and provide me with timely advice, I will reward you with another Lure-brained manifestation. You can spend the evening out on the town, doing whatever you want as long as it doesn¡¯t cause me problems. I¡¯m on the job! Calvin got the impression of Nadia snapping a salute somewhere inside his own mind. A moment later the door slid open on it¡¯s own to reveal a¡­young man, bedecked in copper and gold, svelte and maybe two years older than Calvin himself. The Diocese was trailed by no less than a dozen men, scurrying behind him with quick steps. The first thing Calvin noticed aside from the young man¡¯s apparent age, was his arrogant walk, almost a reverse sashay, followed by the strange set of his eyebrows. Are those drawn onto his face? Don¡¯t stare, this seems like the sort of kingdom that will have you executed for staring, Nadia advised. Calvin could see how that could be counter-productive to establishing a trade deal, so he found something else to look at. ¡°Rise in the presence of the honorable Vender Penson, diocese of Trade.¡± Kurawe stood, so Calvin followed suit, waiting until the man himself had taken a seat to sit again. The Juntai royalty scanned the room, dismissing Kurawe with a scowl. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with,¡± he said in Juntai, presumably to keep his conversation private from Kurawe. He snatched the document off the table and complained about having to read a foreign tongue for a moment before he fell silent, concentrating as he read. He crooked a finger to summon one of the nearby diplomats. The leader crouched nearby, looking over the agreement beside him. ¡°What can I ¨C¡° The man¡¯s voice caught as the diocese snatched his earlobe and dragged him closer. ¡°Why are the terms so poor?¡± the diocese demanded. ¡°Explain it to me.¡± ¡°The profit is greater in bulk,¡± the man said, surprisingly composed for someone getting his ear wrenched on. ¡°Once we begin exporting more than a hundred tons of unseasoned lumber each year, the economy of scale will begin to favor us, via being paid for every single board, regardless of whether it succumbs to rot before reaching its destination or not.¡± That was another of Kurawe¡¯s little tactics. What they said would be true if it took weeks or months to move the wood from place to place, but Calvin was fairly sure he could arrange for it to be transported in days. The diocese¡¯s gaze flicked back down to the agreement, and scanned it again. ¡°Ah.¡± He glanced up at Kurawe, his expression neutral. ¡°On behalf of the people of Juntai, I am happy to enter into this trade agreement.¡± The diocese said, holding up his hand and placing it on top of the vellum scroll beside Kurawe¡¯s signature. A wisp of smoke rose for an instant before the man pulled his hand back, revealing a clear burn in the exact shape of his hand, down to the most minute detail. ¡°It¡¯s been my honor to be a part of these groundbreaking proceedings,¡± Kurawe said, bowing with no hint of sarcasm. ¡°I¡¯ll tell my master of your hospitality when I give him his copy of the agreement. Once that¡¯s been done, you can expect trade to begin flowing before you know it.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± The Diocese said with a polite smile as he rolled up Kurawe¡¯s copy of the trade agreement. He pulled out a crystalline vial of clear goop and dribbled it on the edge of the paper before pushing a stamp down into it. Calvin could swear he felt something from the decorative circle on the back of the man¡¯s hand for a moment before the diocese lifted the stamp. The goop had become white and hard, containing the symbol of a square-headed dragon. Calvin glanced down at the bench he was sitting on. The two substances looked the same, but he needed to be sure. Give me the scroll. Are you sure, Ravager? Yeah, I¡¯m sure. ¡°Give your master our heartfelt thanks for the opportunity for mutual benefit.¡± ¡°I will,¡± Kurawe said, standing. ¡°I hope this fat fuck leaves soon, I want to get back to my game with Selera.¡± The diocese muttered in Juntai to the diplomats hovering behind him. Kurawe stood, turned to face Calvin, walked over, and handed him the rolled up trade agreement. ¡°The Diocese of Trade gives his heartfelt thanks for the opportunity for mutual benefit, ravager, and the accommodations provided were splendid, although I didn¡¯t see much of them.¡± Kurawe said in Ilethan, handing Calvin the scroll. Calvin glanced up and spotted everyone in the room watching him, frozen in place. ¡°Good work, thank you,¡± Calvin said, dismissing the spell, his eyes on the white seal holding the scroll closed. Kurawe burst into green smoke which vanished into nothingness in the blink of an eye, leaving Calvin alone in the room with the Juntai. Are you sure that was a good idea? Nadia asked. I got the agreement, and now I have their attention. This time, I¡¯m fairly certain it¡¯ll play out okay in the long run, Calvin thought, putting his thumbnail under the white material fused to the fibers of the vellum. With a quick pry, Calvin popped it off and held it between thumb and forefinger, examining it closely before twisting it between his hands, flicking it with his finger and dropping it onto the bench and listening to the clatter. Very interesting. ¡°You don¡¯t happen to have more of this, do you?¡± Calvin asked, holding up the seal, which was decidedly not wax, and most likely identical to the strange material his bench was made out of. Nobody spoke. All the Juntai present simply stared at him with varying degrees of astonishment. ¡°Huh. Shame. Well, if we¡¯re done here, I¡¯ll be going,¡± Calvin said, standing and heading for the door. ¡°Stop him,¡± The diocese ordered in Juntai, and three of the man¡¯s attendants hustled to block the door. See, bad idea. No, this is gonna be fine, Calvin thought as he came to a halt in front of the stone-faced Juntai blocking the door. He¡¯d had plenty of practice escalating things. Now he¡¯d like to try brining a situation to a simmer and leave it there. ¡°Did we miss something?¡± Calvin asked innocently. ¡°You must be Calvin.¡± The Diocese said in fluent Ilethan. ¡°your¡­advisor spoke very highly of you in the past weeks. It¡¯s my mistake for not inquiring your identity when I saw you today.¡± ¡°No harm done,¡± Calvin said, turning back to the Diocese, giving his most polite bow. ¡°I didn¡¯t introduce myself, either. My name is Calvin Gadsint, Prince-consort and Marquis of the eastern March, and Juntai¡¯s closest neighbor to the west.¡± ¡°Prince-consort. Does that mean you¡¯re married to a princess, and she has a higher rank than you?¡± a brilliant white smile bloomed on the man¡¯s face. ¡°Technically.¡± Calvin gritted out. The diocese gave a short chuckle, then schooled his expression. ¡°Would you be interested in spending the remainder of the day accompanying me?¡± ¡°I¡¯d hate to take up your precious personal time.¡± Calvin attempted to refuse. After all, the diocese was complaining about getting back to his ¡®game¡¯. ¡°The great thing about personal time is that I can spend it however I want. You seem like an interesting young man, and I would relish the opportunity to get to know my neighbor.¡± ¡°Sounds good to me.¡± Calvin said, relenting. After all, he¡¯d pulled the rug out from under them, so they deserved a chance to save face. ¡°Excellent.¡± The diocese said with a grin. ¡°What do you know about Forceball?¡± ¡°Never heard of it.¡± ****** ¡°You won¡¯t find a sport like this anywhere else in the world, Calvin,¡± the Diocese said as they watched men competing over a lodestone ball the size of a man¡¯s head, drawing it in and shoving it away from themselves with special bracers that Calvin could only assume were powered by the same Ability that every other Juntai seemed to be capable of. It was very interesting to watch as the two teams competed to put the heavy iron ball through hoops set up sideways on either side of the court, all without touching the ball at all, which seemed to be a penalty. Watching the heavy ball bounce around as if was weightless was indeed amusing, especially when the diocese tagged in and began diving into the crush of bodies, elbowing and being elbowed in turn in the brutal sport as they sought to score. ¡°Come down and play!¡± The diocese yelled up to him after a few minutes for Calvin to get the rules of the game. ¡°You know I can¡¯t use those!¡± Calvin said, pointing at the bracers on the man¡¯s arms. ¡°let me touch the ball without penalty and I¡¯ll play!¡± The Diocese grinned playfully. ¡°No deal! You can¡¯t touch the ball, but how about this, use any Ability you want as long as you yourself follow the rules of the game! Calvin rested his elbow on the bannister overlooking the arena. ¡°trying to sound out my Abilities?¡± Calvin asked with a raised brow. ¡°Maybe!¡± Well, it was better than subtle threats and an interrogation, calvin thought as he stood up straight again. The man already knew he was a summoner, so Calvin would stick to summoning. The Juntai knew he could summon, and the extent of his abilities would soon be revealed as he constructed the railway through the country, so that would be the one he would use here, revealing as little information about himself as possible. The fact that he could disable the bracers they based all their technology and weapons on simply by reducing the conductivity of copper to match leather¡­that was something he¡¯d keep under his hat. Calvin leapt over the bannister and landed in the arena, eyeing the two teams of Juntai, who watched him curiously, with more than a little disdain thrown in. ¡°I apologize in advance for¡­playing the game wrong and most likely offending you.¡± ¡°Seva, you¡¯re out,¡± the diocese said, pointing out one of the more exhausted looking players. ¡°Calvin you¡¯re in his spot. Show us what you can do.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, taking the man¡¯s place in the center left of the field, right behind the two who¡¯d compete for the serve. ¡°Start!¡± The lodestone flew up into the air, spinning rapidly as the two men in the center jumped high into the air, turning their bracers toward the iron ball. Meanwhile, Calvin made his move. Calvinian Summoning Chimera. 42/46 Bent remaining. Calvin¡¯s palms flooded the arena with green smoke, and out of the mist, Nadia after Nadia ¨C with a tiny bit of Lure as the base ¨C appeared, manifesting from skeleton to flesh and blood in the blink of an eye. Suddenly a crowded arena was positively packed with Nadia¡¯s leaving absolutely no room for anyone to maneuver. ¡°Ow!, you stepped on my foot!¡± ¡°Hey, you¡¯re rubbing up against my~¡± ¡°Wow, you¡¯re really strong~¡± Nadia¡¯s voice echoed across the arena, easily falling into her role and stupefying the two dozen or so men she was pressed up against from every angle. In the meantime, the other Nadias who weren¡¯t preoccupied with the honeypot distraction grabbed the ball and passed it over toward the enemy team¡¯s goal, handing it to each other in rapid succession. Calvin was moments away from scoring when a bolt of lightning tore through a couple Nadias and knocked the ball out of their hands. The lighting moved like a dragon, picking up the ball and bringing it back to the Diocese, hovering in front of him like a living thing. ¡°Prison rules!¡± The diocese crowed. Oh, it¡¯s on. **** ¡°Don¡¯t feel bad,¡± The diocese said, bowing slightly as Calvin left the palace. ¡°It was your first time playing with prison rules. There¡¯s no shame in losing to someone who¡¯s been playing for over a decade.¡± ¡°It was my first time playing at all,¡± Calvin muttered. ¡°Sadly the only format you can participate in.¡± the diocese said with a grin. ¡°Seeing your Abilities and your competitive streak has given me a great deal of confidence that you¡¯ll be able to deliver on your proposed rail system.¡± ¡°Again, I¡¯m deeply sorry about the burns,¡± Calvin said. ¡°And that guy¡¯s eye.¡± ¡°Prison rules,¡± the young Juntai leader said with a shrug, as if that explained everything. ¡°Come on back if you ever want to try again¡­but not too soon. It takes time to heal.¡± He offered Calvin a hand, and Calvin shook it, to the murmuring of the onlookers. ¡°Your business with the diocese is finished. You may now take that agreement to the local businesses and barter with them.¡± He lowered his voice. ¡°I¡¯ll also let you in on a little secret, in exchange for a night with that ilethan summon of yours.¡± He winked. Gross. Calvin thought, keeping his face neutral. Sounds like fun. I¡¯m up for it. Unlike you, he¡¯s got abs. ¡°Deal.¡± Calvin said. You¡¯re not getting anything extra for this. Fiiine. Chained Spirit Chimera. 32/46 Bent remaining. In a flash of green smoke Nadia appeared at the tip of Calvin¡¯s fingers. Nadia gave a coy, calculating smile designed to inflame a man¡¯s passion, meeting the young diocese¡¯s gaze, and Calvin got a strange sensation from Open Book. There was a relationship there but it was strangely¡­off, like two pieces that didn¡¯t quite line up. Calvin didn¡¯t have time to think about it, as the Diocese turned his gaze back to Calvin and started speaking. ¡°There¡¯s a fellow by the name of Carem Sageva, owns a good deal of the businesses in Allast. He¡¯s a major force in the city¡¯s industry, though not many people at all know of him. He values his privacy and runs his businesses through intermediaries, but the name on his taxes, though, that doesn¡¯t lie. He would be a good first person to talk to when you get started working with local businesses tomorrow.¡± ¡°Much appreciated,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Have fun,¡± he nodded to Nadia. ¡°Oh, I will,¡± She said, pressing up against the diocese in a way that the young ruler seemed to appreciate very much. Where¡¯s your dignity? Eh. This is more fun. I¡¯m keeping the channel closed for the rest of the night, Calvin thought to her as he said his goodbyes and left, heading for his temporary housing on the edge of the city. If he left it open there was a seventy percent chance Nadia would think it was funny to contact him mid-coitus. When Calvin made it home, he spent an hour or so venting about spending an entire day suffering through listening to old men negotiate to Kala and Ella¡¯s amusement, until it was time to go to bed, moving on to the next leg of his work here in Allast. Just a little longer and he¡¯d be able to go back to his March and see how far people had come in his absence. Calvin was launched out of bed in the middle of his dream by a violent horn, blinking sand out of his eyes and trying to locate the source of the godforsaken sound. It sounded like someone or something was blasting a horn at full volume into both ears. Where¡¯s the bastard! What¡¯s going on! There was nothing in the room but his bed and his wives, spooning in the corner, grumpily yanking the covers back over themselves and blinking at him in confusion. >> Chained Spirit Has suffered Data Corruption!<< Purging corrupted Data. Restoring Backup from last uncorrupted Continuity timestamp Backup Restored. Initializing. Repair Complete. Continuity has lost 5 hours 28 minutes and 43 seconds of unpackaged memory. Macronomicon Enjoy! I am staggered with how universally hated Carem is. That''s good, because he''s not supposed to be liked, but damn, I also don''t wanna drive anyone off with his POV''s. A real conundrum. Anyway, have fun! Chapter 173: Brainpower Learner¡¯s notes, day 316: Liver tests, and human Aberrations. Human stomachs are terribly sensitive, reacting poorly to the tiniest change in it¡¯s environment. While I admire this specialized organ¡¯s ability to provide nutrients to the rest of the human body and provide the first line of defense against poisons, the act of vomiting, while good for the body as a whole, is rather undignified, and extremely unpleasant. Why so many humans drink until they vomit, is beyond me. I have recently finished construction on a stomach and liver, and decided to have a stress-test on their poison-cleansing ability. While my original Units die off in droves, human Cells are uniquely resistant to this particular brand of poison, and after isolating my backup unit packets behind walls of human liver filtration, I was able to reach a state of ¡®inebriation¡¯, whereupon I noticed the human information processing cells in my head operated at a significant decrease in efficiency. Coordination and inhibitions were especially diminished. At the request of several similarly inebriated locals, I changed my appearance several times in rapid succession, to a standing ovation from the room, until I turned my head into a giant spider. Humans have a strange distaste for spiders. It¡¯s doubtful that I would do that were I not poisoned. Interesting. Prior to the incident that caused the people in the bar to flee, I picked up chatter about a ¡®serial killer¡¯ who¡¯d claimed another victim, in between betting about forceball and inebriated business deals and the purchase and sale of nubile young women. They called him ¨C presuming he¡¯s male ¨C The Head Thief, due to each of the bodies over the last five years showing up oddly bereft of a head. Presumably the man collects them for some reason. A lot of presumptions. Requires more study. A ¡®serial killer¡¯, according to them, is a human who kills other humans for sport, and in a highly specific, compulsive way. Humans do not naturally prey upon each other in that way, and thus serial killers are viewed as an aberrations, as it is generally abhorrent for one human to kill another. Strangely the talk was subdued and distant, as if it didn¡¯t have any bearing on them personally, despite the fact that they were all equally at risk. They seemed to achieve some kind of mental disconnect between themselves and the victims of the killer, assuring themselves it could never happen to fit young men despite the fact that by their own admission many of the victims had been fit young men. Is it perhaps the aversion to death and mortality manifesting itself in a rather self-detrimental way? I wonder if a brain capable of these kinds of strange mental contortions is a requirement for unlocking the human¡¯s ¡®System¡¯? Requires more study. After causing mass hysteria at that particular bar, I changed back into my favorite form and began to search the alleys for any dead beggars to dissect. While I could probably hunt humans and cut off their heads, landing the blame squarely on the head thief, something about that plan didn¡¯t¡­feel right. ¨C Gasp ¨C I was quietly celebrating my developing human brain¡¯s newfound aversion to killing humans ¨C a sign of a well-made brain ¨C while digging through an alley full of trash, when I spotted Nadia walking by, navigating the dark street under the light of Soscath, heading for the outskirts of the city, where our main camp was. Everything about her gait and posture spoke, ¡®sore, yet satisfied.¡¯ I wonder what ¨C ¡°You there!¡± a Juntai guardsman¡¯s voice interrupted Learner¡¯s thoughts as he aimed a brilliant filament on the back of his glove toward her, illuminating the entire alley, along with Learner¡¯s body. ¡°What are you doing in this alley, foreigner?¡± the man behind the glaring bright filament asked, his features hidden by the glare. His voice was hoarse, as though he¡¯d spent the entire day coughing. ¡°Looking for dead bodies to study.¡± Learner responded. ¡°That¡¯s¡­probably illegal.¡± ¡°Are you sure? I¡¯m not making them, just looking for them.¡± ¡°Are you here with that caravan from the west?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The silhouetted figure at the end of the alley regarded her for a long moment that stretched out awkwardly between them. ¡°¡­I¡¯m going to let you off with a warning. If I catch you rummaging through trash again, you¡¯ll spend the night in jail, understood?¡± According to Goob, jail was a horrific place where they beat you with thin sticks for the most minor infractions, things that weren¡¯t even your fault. Being beaten with thin sticks didn¡¯t sound like the most constructive use of her time, so Learner decided to . ¡°Understood. I¡¯ll go back to my people.¡± ¡°See that you do,¡± The guardsman moved out of her way, allowing her to pass. Learner walked past the man, aiming for the street. She would simply change her appearance and try an alley further away. When learner turned onto the alley, she stopped for a moment, sniffing the air. Underneath the overwhelming smells of a city full of humans was something¡­different. Odd. Learner headed west, following Soscath, the satellite looming bright above the main road. A man passed by her, wringing his hands, seemingly massaging his fingers and palms as if there were some kind of ache in them. Learner caught a whiff of the strange scent rolling off the man. It was acidic, vinegary, and though faint, it was easy for her to make it out against the tapestry of human filth. She turned to glance after him, and found him staring back at her. He looked her up and down, his gaze calculating. It was a strange look. Learner had come very far in her ability to glean intentions behind human ¡®body language¡¯. Typically, when someone looked at her like that, it was a sign that they found her human form physically appealing, and wished to breed with it. This one, however, while his eyes wandered her body, his stance, expression and the way he held his arms was all wrong. It spoke of a different kind of desire. Learner stepped closer, curious to know more about this anomaly. ¡°You smell odd,¡± Learner said, inhaling, picking up the strange acrid scent again, emanating from the man¡¯s hands. He wore leather gloves with holes poked in the fingertips, exposing the pad of his finger. ¡°Oh?¡± He asked, glancing over at the guardsman beside the alley who was leaning up against the streetcorner, keeping an eye on the two of them. Learner saw his jaw clench, a subtle indicator of frustration. ¡°Are you by any chance related to the foreigners? This might sound racist, but you look nearly identical to Kal¡± ¨C the man bit his tongue ¨C ¡°To the gadveran woman.¡± ¡°She¡¯s my cousin,¡± Learner responded, the cover story flowing off her tongue easily. ¡°My name¡¯s Carem Sageva,¡± He said, making a small bow. ¡°My name¡¯s Learner,¡± ¡°That¡¯s a lovely name, what does it mean?¡± He asked, head cocked. ¡°Learner,¡± she translated into Juntai. ¡°What.¡± ¡°I learn. It¡¯s my name because I enjoy picking things up very quickly.¡± ¡°I imagine most people would enjoy picking things up quickly,¡± Carem said with a chuckle. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with your hands, is it some kind of mutation?¡± Learner asked. Carem stiffened, glancing at the nearby guardsman, almost too fast to register. Looks like I got it right. ¡°What does it do? Can I see it?¡± ¡°Ummm¡­¡± Carem hesitated for a moment, body language and subtle facial expressions indicating strong desire conflicting with extreme caution. ¡°Sure. Just not here¡­ Juntai aren¡¯t very tolerant of mutations. I¡¯d be happy to show you at my home.¡± ¡°Excellent!¡± Learner said, a bright smile blooming on her face without even forcing it. She was always happy to learn something new, and her human brain was starting to display emotions without even being prompted to do so. All the better to gain access to The System. Learner tucked her arm around the man¡¯s and told him to lead the way. Together they sauntered off toward the east. It looked like she wouldn¡¯t be making it back to camp today, but that was fine. Learner listened to him tell stories of his childhood as they walked, but she strongly suspected that they were fake, as they didn¡¯t have the bouquet of emotions that usually accompany these things. This Carem fellow was strange. Finally they made it back to his house, an above average villa on the northeast side of the city. He took her to the living room and proceeded to demonstrate his mutation. ¡°Alright, hold still. It¡¯ll take a moment to read your thoughts.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Learner said, obliging as he placed his fingertips against her skull. He heaved in a shuddering breath. There was a sudden pain in the skin outside her skull as four little roots grew into her human brain. Learner frowned as she felt the chemistry of her human brain begin to shift, chemical and Cell-based information turning into soup around the roots, beginning to rearrange themselves into an unfamiliar pattern. Ah, that must be where the vinegar-scent came from. ¡°I was pretty suspicious of you at first, but by the gods, you¡¯re dumb,¡± Carem said with a half chuckle. ¡°Learner, my ass.¡± ¡°So the mutation is a direct connection to the subject¡¯s brain? That¡¯s quite interesting,¡± Learner said. ¡°Shhhh¡­ it¡¯s all fine,¡± the man said, and Learner felt something wash over her human brain, slowly shutting it down from outside even at it was reconstructed from inside. Her human amygdala gave a flutter of activity, sending a bolt of panic through her human organs, feeling like a jolt of lightning through her core. The sensation lasted a second before it too shut down, leaving her whole body slack. Most interesting, Learner thought, opening an eye on the side of her head to inspect the man¡¯s hand, and sending several of her units inside her atrophied human brain to directly investigate the roots emerging from his fingertips. Learner¡¯s jaw went slack as her human brain was completely disabled. Dead, in other words. I just got that brain feeling emotions properly, Learner thought, a bit miffed at the man¡¯s callous treatment of her mindmeats. Still, it¡¯s providing a lot of interesting information about brain chemistry that I wasn¡¯t aware of. With information like this, Learner estimated that she¡¯d be able to make an even more accurate human brain and edit it in mid-use rather than having to regrow one every time it did something she didn¡¯t want. I suppose I should be thankful. Then things got weird. Her brain started waking up again, to her surprise, only it wasn¡¯t her brain anymore. It was vastly different, and it was rapidly establishing connections to the various organs and muscles of her human body. ¡°¡­YYyou don¡¯t have to kill me,¡± She felt herself say, a passenger in her own skull. ¡°I can help you with the other foreigners. It was quite amusing to have someone else¡¯s brain in her body, making the decisions for her. Hi there, cutie. She thought, making a biologic bridge between her units and the strange brain in her skull. Who are you, taking residence in here like a hermit crab? Give me one reason I shouldn¡¯t convert you back into biomatter. She felt her eyes go wide, along with another jolt of fear as the other brain¡¯s amygdala sent panic signals throughout her entire body. ¡°Wait, Carem, She¡¯s not ¨C¡° Carem pulled the roots out, accompanied by a squirt of blood, grabbed her head and wrenched it all the way around, snapping the spinal column. ¡°Freaking retard with a six-year-old mind,¡± Carem muttered. ¡°Didn¡¯t know a damn thing I didn¡¯t except some anatomy.¡± He ran a hand through his hair. ¡°Gods, if I knew she was that badly off, I wouldn¡¯t have brought her here in the first place. it wasn¡¯t worth the risk.¡± Learner watched and listened with fascination as the strange brain inside her head died, vicariously experiencing the confusion, a rapidly dwindling thoughts, mostly revolving around his father and guilt about some thirty women. It was a fascinating opportunity to literally be inside the head of a dying person, in a way she¡¯d never thought to do. She was learning so much about consciousness and the death process. This Carem fellow was a veritable Nem mine of information when it came to the brain. Finally after some three minutes of confused fumbling, the last vestiges of thought flickered out like a candle. Then she ate the brain, reconstructing it as she went, trying to use some of the new techniques she¡¯d learned. ***Carem*** Carem was pissed as he dragged the girl¡¯s body to his workshop. Nothing. NOTHING of any importance. Thoughts about birthdays and why they¡¯re important. Social commentary from an outsider¡¯s perspective, where boys pee from. Why old people are saggy. On and on it went, these memories equal in importance to advanced medical techniques to this¡­fucking moron. He¡¯d learned a little bit about blood vessels and organs, but what use was it to him? He¡¯d fired a shot that couldn¡¯t be taken back, unable to stop himself from taking the tantilizing prey right in front of him. Kala was going to notice her cousin¡¯s disappearance, for sure, then her husband would notice, and then Carem was going to be in a tight spot. He¡¯d learned more about Calvin this evening, through Nadia¡¯s memories. The boy was much more dangerous than he¡¯d thought, and even though Carem knew ¨C he knew! ¨C it would draw him into conflict with the wizard, he had still been unable to resist the compulsion to steal the tantalizing memories of a foreigner. How disappointing, Carem thought, laying the girl¡¯s corpse on the bench and searching for his saw. Now it was just a matter of cleaning it up. He¡¯d have to be far more thorough this time. There was only one corpse in the city with that skin tone, making it trivial to identify. He¡¯d have to bury her outside of the city once he was done destroying her skull, rather than toss her body in the river. Carem braced his knee against her shoulder-blades with a familiar ease and set the teeth of the saw against the back of her neck. He didn¡¯t like looking into their faces when he removed the head. The head swiveled around to look at him, facing directly backwards. ¡°That was interesting,¡± she said. ¡°Gah!¡± Carem shouted and jumped away from the girl, slamming into the workstation behind him and sending tools clattering onto the stone flooring, creating an awful racket that pierced through the night. Shit! The girl¡¯s body rose and gracefully spun off of the bench to face him, her head staying unnaturally fixated on him until her body matched the orientation of her body. ¡°I learned a lot.¡± She said with an unnatural smile, her cheeks twitching like they were having a cramp. ¡°What are you?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think I¡¯m human? Learner asked with a frown, before nodding. ¡°No, that makes sense, actually.¡± The sound of clattering tools had woken Carem¡¯s neighbors, who shouted at him to keep it down. Carem didn¡¯t bother to respond, his whole attention focused on the abomination he¡¯d brought into his home. ¡°Where is that thing¡­¡± Learner muttered, searching the folds of her dress for a moment. ¡°Aha!¡± she reached into her dress and pulled out a thick card. ¡°Calvin told me to give this to anyone who found out I¡¯m not a real person.¡± Carem took the card and read the fine script, one eye on the unnatural creature watching him curiously. So you¡¯ve met an eldritch abomination. You may be confronted with several conflicting emotions. Wet pants, a desire to run, the urge to try to kill it before it kills you. Strangely aroused, even. All normal things to be feeling. This helpful card will tell you everything you need to know to survive contact with the Fractal Mimic. ¨C A.K.A. Learner ¨C Read Other Side --> Carem turned the card over, blinking at the message he found there. Give her the card back and walk away. Don¡¯t fucking fuck with Learner and she won¡¯t fucking eat you, you fucking idiot! -Calvin Gadsint. Carem sat there, staring at the name at the end of the letter. Calvin Gadsint. It took him a moment to realize that he was biting his lip. ¡°So,¡± The voluptuous, ebony-skinned monster said, clasping her fingers around her knee as she sat back on the workbench, dangling her other leg off the edge. ¡°I couldn¡¯t help but notice that you called me retarded.¡± Macronomicon I did enjoy writing the punchline of this chapter. Hope enjoyed reading it! Patreon is up to chapter 193! Baroke is currently in a pickle due to unauthorized bathroom breaks. Signing off until next week, see you then! Chapter 174: Detective Calvin Calvin leapt off the bed, landing in his pants and tugging them up in a matter of seconds. What the abyss. What the abyss did you do!? Calvin thought, opening the channel to Nadia as he snagged his shirt off the floor and threw it over his head. What are you talking about? Wait, where¡¯d the cute rich guy go? Nadia¡¯s voice echoed in the back of his mind. Did it happen again? ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Kala asked, sitting up and rubbing the sand out of her eyes, pulling her slender body out of Ella¡¯s arms. The Genosian savage, for her part, was still snoring softly. ¡°It happened again. Something¡¯s wrong with Nadia.¡± ¡°Is it something you have to deal with right now?¡± ¡°Gotta figure out what happened while there might still be a trace of it.¡± Calvin said, slipping into his shoes and heading for the door. ¡°Right, well¡­I¡¯d offer to help, but¡­I don¡¯t wanna. Good luck,¡± Kala said, snuggling back up against Ella and drawing the thin covers over them. Calvin ducked out of the house and craned his neck, glancing up at the brilliant light of Soscath¡¯s Scowl before he got onto the street, heading for the humming steel palace. I can¡¯t believe those mines are still on fire. Elliot said appreciatively. Did you get anything more this time around? Calvin asked as he sprinted through the warm night air, navigating through the dark like a ghost, his enhanced night vision allowing him to run at full speed without worrying about bumping into anyone or anything. Who the hell do you think I am? Of course I got more this time. I installed a logger on her Continuity so we would be able to check it next time this happens. Normally the error log goes back to the System, but since we¡¯re flying under the radar, it just gets deleted. Don¡¯t understand what half of that means. Okay, the point is it tracks Nadia¡¯s thoughts and behavior in fine detail and reports any events of note back to me. I¡¯ll skip telling you about all her self-hate and orgasms and get right to the point. Two minutes and thirty two seconds ago, she experienced minor damage to her head, followed by something attempting to forcibly overwrite her manifestation¡¯s brain. The disconnect between the new identity and hers caused Chained Spirit to suffer a fatal error and reboot. Someone tried to change who she was? Yeah, basically. Like, a mind mage? Bitch, I don¡¯t know! I was locked in a room for eight hundred years while Iletha was developing. I know System engineering, regular engineering, and bio engineering, and guerilla terrorism, and that¡¯s about it. Mind magic is outside of my purview. But if I had to guess¡­probably not. She had minor damage to her skull and brain, remember? That¡¯s indicative of a physical intrusion, so a trepanning or something of that nature. Gross. And she just sat still for that? Calvin thought with a frown. According to my log she didn¡¯t really see it coming. It wasn¡¯t the lure enhancements? Definitely not. How do we know this isn¡¯t some weird ploy by Nadia? Calvin thought. I have it on good authority that she¡¯s enjoying her new life a lot more than her previous one, all protesting aside. It¡¯s not impossible, but it would have to be arranged before I installed the logger, then never acted upon again, which I find unlikely. How do I know you¡¯re not doing something? You can¡¯t see it, but I¡¯m giving you my most innocent smile and puppy-dog eyes. I already told you I don¡¯t know what a dog is. Calvin focused his mind as he sprinted through the streets, the information organizing itself in his head. ¡°Somebody¡¯s trying to overwrite her personality, perhaps trying to create a spy?¡± Seems like a good assumption. Somebody like the Diocese? Calvin thought as he ran. Maybe, but let¡¯s not forget the first time she got poofed. Last time we saw her that day she was out in the middle of the street making a spectacle of herself. Doesn¡¯t mean the diocese didn¡¯t know about her. One thing was for sure. It wasn¡¯t a user error with Chimera, and it probably wasn¡¯t Nadia doing it to herself: she didn¡¯t even remember doing anything. That meant it was most likely an outside force. A person. The thought was strangely comforting. A person was something Calvin could deal with. If it were the System misbehaving, he didn¡¯t have any real way of fixing the problem, and was at Elliot¡¯s mercy. Gee, a little trust here. Not even a little, Calvin thought as he ran. First thing to check is the diocese. He was the last person we know of that was with her. in the unlikely event that he¡¯s not the culprit, we can trace her steps from there. Chances are good it was someone in the palace. Someone with a motive to spy on me. Look at you, putting on your deerstalker hat and everything! That seems like common sense, Calvin thought pondering what kind of monster a deer might be. If they were anything like Breeks, they were fearsome. You¡¯d be surprised. Calvin shot past a guardsman patrolling the dark streets with a brightly glowing filament on his bracer. ¡°Hey!¡± the man shouted in juntai, but Calvin was already gone. A minute later, Calvin skidded to a halt in front of the huge humming palace that Elliot claimed was an ¡®engine¡¯ to the chariots the gods had used to travel between worlds. That¡¯s how you interpreted it? You and me are gonna have to have some history lessons, starting tomorrow. Calvin walked up to the massive gate, flanked by two of what appeared to be Veteran soldiers. The lightness of their stance spoke of superhuman strength capable of defying gravity. The furrowed brows and ribbing spoke of average intelligence. Above and behind them were as least four more men on top of the gate looking down at Calvin with their iron clubs ¨C Magnetic Crossbows, Elliot corrected ¨C held easily by their sides. ¡°Good evening, is the Diocese available to speak to?¡± ¡°Which one: Edict, Bounty, Cleansing, Pleasure, Force, Sweat, or Trade?¡± Calvin blinked. ¡°Trade.¡± ¡°Hah, look at this fool! Trick question! None of the diocese are available right now. Come back during the day and apply to entreat with one like everyone else.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a fairly urgent matter.¡± Calvin said patiently. ¡°Come back later,¡± the man gritted out. Well, I didn¡¯t honestly think they¡¯d let anyone in this late at night. Calvin wasn¡¯t particularly surprised or upset, but it was always a good idea to do things the nice way first: then you could say you had the best of intentions later. ¡°Right, I¡¯ll come back when it¡¯s more convenient, but first, have any of you seen a girl ¨C¡° Calvin raised his hand, brilliant green smoke pouring out of it. Chained Spirit 34/46 Bent remaining. Nadia manifested under his palm, skeleton then flesh and clothes in the blink of an eye, causing the assembled guards to flinch and half-level their iron pipes toward Calvin. One of them swore to a Juntai god and made a superstitious warding sign. ¡°She¡¯s about this tall,¡± Calvin said, dropping his palm on Nadia¡¯s head. ¡°Black hair, buxum, looks exactly like this.¡± Nadia posed, tilting her head and spinning in place as Calvin motioned to her. One thing about the Ilethan princess: She can take things in stride. That¡¯s not all she took tonight, if you know what I mean, am I right? Up top! ¡°Did anyone here see her leaving the palace in the last few hours?¡± Calvin asked, ignoring Elliot entirely. ¡°Why not just ask her?¡± the guard asked, pointing at Nadia. ¡°She doesn¡¯t remember.¡± ¡°Probably because she got her brains fucked out, am I right? Up top!¡± one of the guards on top of the wall shouted in Juntai before high-fiving another. Ah, high-fives. With how ubiquitous they are in human culture, imagine how surprised I was to hear they were invented so late in human history. ¡°What did he just say?¡± Calvin asked, still playing the fool who couldn¡¯t speak Juntai. ¡°Ah, he said he didn¡¯t see her.¡± The guard said, being particualarly unhelpful. The lewd comment meant the men were at least aware of Nadia¡¯s sleepover with the Diocese, but it didn¡¯t guarantee that they¡¯d actually seen her. ¡°You¡¯re absolutely sure none of you saw her leave the palace?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°She could barely walk!¡± one of them shouted. ¡°What did he say?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°That we are absolutely sure.¡± The lead guard said while the rest of them chuckled at Calvin¡¯s ignorance. Calvin put a hand to his temple. Dealing with these idiots was giving him a headache, and he was much more comfortable giving other people headaches, but¡­trade deal with an entire nation¡­damnit. He now knew they were aware of Nadia¡¯s existence, and they had seen her post-rendezvous, but nothing that absolutely guaranteed that they saw her leave. Hmm¡­ Calvin hooked his thumbs in his belt and stroked the shrunken Stalker organ canister, with its bumps for the catalyst. I could use the Complacency aura and walk right in, godsdamnit, and none of these assholes could stop me. The complacency aura was a simple multi-part Dupdomancy spell. By copying the organ, and the catalysts along with a bit of blood from the tip of a finger, he could make a lump of flesh that forced everyone to ignore him (the bearer of the blood) for a good thirty seconds. A lot longer if he used the Gradual Split Ability to keep the ingredients humming through the organ for over an hour. With that he could probably walk right up to the diocese and question him in person, but something told him that these men had seen her leave, and they were just being enormous dicks. Is it morally defensible at this point to use mind-magic? Calvin thought. As long as you¡¯re responsible with it, Elliot responded. But if you wanted to make them thing that they¡¯re streetwalking harlots on a corner instead of guards for the night, I wouldn¡¯t tell anyone. Calvin rolled his eyes. While that would be tremendously cathartic, it would have reprecussions. He needed an option that was more cathartic. Calvin was able to augment Baroke¡¯s memory with Kort¡¯s memory of his mother. You think she¡¯ll poof again if I use Trait Doctoring? Worth a shot. Trait Doctoring: Identity 33/46 Bent remaining Calvin mentally selected the man¡¯s memory of, relationship toward and opinion of Nadia, then copied it over to Nadia. An invisible thread of Bent shot out of Calvin¡¯s fingers and bounced off the head of the man in front of him before settling into Nadia¡¯s skull. It¡¯s so weird to be able to feel Bent moving around now. It was still near-instantaneous, but Calvin¡¯s reaction speed was much higher than when he started, allowing him to somewhat perceive the spells in action. Thankfully, when the spell hit Nadia, she didn¡¯t poof, and those fiendish horns didn¡¯t sound again, perhaps because Calvin was the originator of the spell, or perhaps because it wasn¡¯t a large change, but in any case, it had done its job, now all he had to do was ask. ¡°Did you see a young woman about yay tall, buxum with black hair leave this gate?¡± Calvin asked Nadia in Gadveran. ¡°Heck yeah,¡± Nadia said, adopting a somewhat masculine pose, her voice unconsciously deepened. ¡°She was all mussed up and sweaty, but those curves! I don¡¯t even care if it was sloppy seconds, I would have ¨C¡° ¡°Enough.¡± Calvin dismissed the spell, leaving Nadia blinking in confusion as he turned back to the gatekeep. The man¡¯s brows were furrowed, glancing down. ¡°My Stability was¡­¡± He glanced back up at Calvin, his expression thunderous. ¡°What did you ¨C¡° Mesmerizing Eyes. Calvin focused on his eyes for a moment, triggering the mutation, causing the man¡¯s expression to go slack. According to the description, Mesmerizing eyes caused memory lapse, and that would be especially handy when people realized you were copying bits and pieces of their memory. I didn¡¯t realize copying someone¡¯s identity counts as a hostile action to be resisted with Stability. Calvin thought. It¡¯s subjective. Your friends didn¡¯t have that because they were actively participating. An unwilling subject is always gonna get a saving throw¡­for lack of a better word. ¡°Leesuk? Something wrong?¡± the other guard asked, glancing over at the guard whose gaze was still locked with Calvin¡¯s. ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Nothing¡¯s wrong.¡± Leesuk echoed in monotone. Well, that¡¯s not going to stand up to close inspection. Gods, I hope that was long enough. ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Calvin said, glancing away and breaking the mutation¡¯s hold on the man. ¡°He probably just felt faint there for a second.¡± ¡°N-No, fuck you. I don¡¯t faint. I was just¡­thinking.¡± Leesuk said, straightening, glaring at Calvin. He was still mad, but it was more embarrassment than suspicion and righteous anger. ¡°This is such a lovely country,¡± Nadia said, leaning up against Calvin. ¡°You would have never gotten away with that in my home.¡± ¡°Alright, we¡¯re confident you left the gates,¡± Calvin said, turning and pointing down the street. ¡°We can talk to the diocese tomorrow to double check, but for now let¡¯s proceed under that assumption.¡± Nadia stood there silently as Calvin Calvin stared at her. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Retrace your steps. Show me where you would go after a night of debauchery.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Nadia tapped her finger against her lips, pouting a bit for Calvin¡¯s benefit. ¡°sooner would be better than later.¡± ¡°I need to get into the mindset,¡± She said, wiggling her brows. ¡°Nope. Move.¡± ¡°Well, I probably would have gone home, stopping here and there on the way to check on my investments around the city.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have any money.¡± ¡°That you know of,¡± she said, strutting down the street in front of him. She stopped here and there, checking apparent dead-drops she¡¯d set up with people around the city. How she¡¯d done it under Calvin¡¯s nose and with very little free time, he had no idea, but it was something he¡¯d have to keep an eye on, even if it risked catching her at an inopportune time. ¡°And why are you showing me these?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Two reasons.¡± Nadia said, holding up her fingers. ¡°First, because I¡¯m just as curious as you about why I keep losing my memory, and second, because all of my machinations have served your interest ever since I fell hopelessly in love with your callousness.¡± ¡°Guarshit.¡± ¡°Mm, there it is,¡± Nadia said with a smirk and a wiggle. After several empty stops between the palace and the camp, she pulled a scrap of paper with some kind of code written on it, looking at it with a frown. ¡°Huh,¡± She said, flipping the paper back and forth. ¡°You know what this means?¡± She asked, showing Calvin the paper. Calvin glanced at the code. ¡°The Diocese of Cleansing is into guys, and you must have been kidnapped somewhere between the last empty dead drop and here?¡± Nadia pouted. ¡°You¡¯re no fun.¡± ¡°I try not to be, for you, anyway.¡± Calvin said, turning back to face the main road. ¡°We should check the alleys between here and the last drop and look for signs of a struggle, or anything out of the ordinary.¡± Calvin said, leading them back out onto the street. Calvin cast a curious look left, then right, seeing nothing but dark streets in every direction. If there were any eyes nearby, they weren¡¯t on him, either. Calvinian Summoning. Heart of the Swarm. Atom Ant 32/46 Bent remaining. Calvin burst into a swarm of wasps, raining out of the sky and falling to the ground, sounding like nothing more than a soft patter of rain. He didn¡¯t want to wake anyone up with the sound a swarm of millions of wasps would make. Once the entire swarm was out of the air, he directed them to crawl, spread out through the alleyways, radiating outward like a wave of hyperfocused perception. In a matter of minutes, he could see, smell, taste and feel everything in a two block radius, as the swarm spread silently through the city. It was absolutely vile. Only the knowledge that the various tastes of the city weren¡¯t actually in his mouth stopped him from losing control of the summon and poofing back into existence right then and there. It only took a few minutes before he found something out of the usual. In an alley two blocks off the path, there was the sign of a bit of a scuffle, and an acrid, vinegary scent on the ground. One of his wasps tasted it, and suffered from some kind of writhing death shortly before it poofed. Whatever it was was dangerous. There was no sign that Nadia had been in the alley, of course, as anything she left behind, be it blood or scuff marks from her shoes, would vanish along with her, but the knocked over barrel and disturbed trash was suspicious. Plus, Calvin had never smelled anything quite like that vinegary concoction anywhere in Allast before. Calvin reformed into his own body in the center of the alley, picking through the remnants of the area with his own eyes and ears, trying to spot anything he might have missed as a collective of wasps. Sometimes things were so much bigger than the wasps that they didn¡¯t translate well. A smear of lipstick would appear to be the size of a king¡¯s bed. Calvin summoned Nadia to him and began pouring through the alley for anything he could find. He scoured the alley for a few minutes until he noticed the dent in the knocked over barrel. Calvin ran his thumb over the dent. There was no sign of what had caused it, and that may be a factor in itself. Any normal object colliding with a piece of wood that hard would leave evidence of itself behind, unless that evidence vanished into thin air. ¡°Nadia, I need you for an experiment.¡± Calvin said, motioning for her to come closer. When she was close enough, he grabbed her hand and formed a fist, pressing it up against the dent. ¡°No, give me your foot.¡± He took her booted foot and lined it up with the barrel, making a perfect match. Calvin stood the barrel up and set it in the ring of filth it had previously been sitting in, before tonight. Calvin took special care to line up the gunk so it matched the place it had just been seamlessly. ¡°so I just kicked this barrel for no reason?¡± Nadia asked, tapping it with her foot, leg raised and knee bent. The dent was fairly high, knee height at least. ¡°I don¡¯t think it was like that,¡± Calvin said stepping behind her. I¡¯[ll bet the assailant lifted her off the ground. ¡°What-¡° Calvin grabbed her by the neck and lifted her off the ground. Sure enough, Nadia reflexively kicked out, denting the barrel again as she struggled to escape his grasp. ¡°What¡¯s going on here!?¡± A voice demanded as a brilliant light shone on the two of them, Calvin with his hands around a woman¡¯s throat, and the woman struggling to escape. Wow, this is awkward. Elliot chose that moment speak again. Macronomicon Chapter 175: It Can’t Be That Easy ¡°Unhand her this instant!¡± The patrolling guard demanded, his rail gun leveled at Calvin¡¯s torso. Something in the way he acted made Calvin think the wrong twitch might result in a big hole in Calvin¡¯s torso, and that just wasn¡¯t how he wanted this night to turn out. ¡°I¡¯m putting her down,¡± Calvin said, slowly lowering Nadia to the ground and taking his hands off her neck. Maybe I can render his metals non-conductuive. That should work, but then they¡¯ll have some idea of what I can do. I want to save that particular ability for an emergency. I could make a wall of air in fornt of him? No, then the sound wouldn¡¯t carry. A semi-wall? No, he might bump into it and shoot out of reflex. I know, I¡¯ll make armor out of air. That way he can¡¯t see it, and doesn¡¯t know that it¡¯s there. it will only come into play if he tries to shoot me with that tube. -Railgun- Whatever. Calvin was about to armor himself up to give himself time to think of his next step, but Nadia, being her usual self, had other plans. She broke away from Calvin at full speed, sobbing piteously as she threw herself on the well-meaning Juntai man. ¡°Officer, Officer, you have to help me!¡± she wailed, clutching at his hand and dropping to her knees, the sudden proximity giving the man pause. ¡°It¡¯s all going to be fine now, you should ¨C¡° ¡°He wasn¡¯t choking nearly hard enough!¡± Nadia said, putting the man¡¯s hand on her neck and forcing him to squeeze. ¡°I¡¯m desperate!¡± The guardsman yanked his hand away from Nadia¡¯s neck like it was made of cherry-hot iron. Nadia¡¯s lips curled in a smile as the man¡¯s jaw gaped, glancing between her and Calvin. Calvin shrugged. Don¡¯t look at me. She¡¯s the crazy one. ¡°What, umm¡­are you doing here?¡± he asked, forcing Nadia away from where she was trying to cling to the juntai man¡¯s scantily clad waist. ¡°I¡¯m looking for someone, and it seems they were in this alley. If you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯d like to keep looking for clues.¡± The guard scoffed, finally peeling Nadia off of him and sending her stumbling back toward Calvin. He saw her deliberately trip towards him and shifted his weight out of the way at the last second, causing her to topple to the filthy ground with a squawk. ¡°That¡¯s not the strangest thing I¡¯ve heard tonight, but even so, I do mind when a couple crazy foreigners get up to illicit and downright disturbing sex acts in the middle of the city. in public no less.¡± Calvin glared at the whimpering princess who threw him the occasional sly smirk. Now I¡¯m going to have to figure out a way to manage this. maybe now would be the perfect time for a Complacency Aura. He would dismiss us and go on his way. He would have to do it in a way that didn¡¯t evoke suspicion, preferably without alarming the man, and so he¡¯d have to hide his movements. ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll go, just let me grab my coat,¡± Calvin said, half-turning to conceal his other hand heading for his belt. Wait a minute. Calvin straightened and turned back to the guard shining light on them. ¡°What was the strangest thing you¡¯ve heard tonight?¡± Unlike the guards at the palace gates, this one was particularly good natured, Calvin supposed. ¡°Some dark skinned foreigner woman was digging through the trash, said she was looking for bodies to dissect.¡± Learner? Learner was around here tonight? ¡°When was that?¡± Calvin asked, stepping closer to the man, who lowered his railgun a bit reflexively. ¡°Hey now,¡± The guard said. ¡°Keep your distance.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt you,¡± Calvin said in his most calming voice, which was possibly not that calming, but it seemed to work a little. ¡°I just want to know how long ago she was here and where she went,¡± Calvin said triggering the hypnotic mutation in his eye. He felt a brief resistance as an ache in his temple, before it was swept aside, and the man¡¯s jaw went slack. ¡°She left here¡­about ten minutes ago. Left with some man, acting like a harlot.¡± ¡°Flirty?¡± Calvin prompted. ¡°She put her arm around his.¡± The guard responded, ignoring Nadia¡¯s antics completely. Because only a harlot would do that. Calvin thought, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Maybe in Allast that¡¯s true. Put her arm around his? That doesn¡¯t really sound like learner but there isn¡¯t more than two women who match that description and one of them¡¯s in my bed. Calvin¡¯s eyes narrowed. Learner better not be the one in my bed. Nadia tried getting a rise out of the man again before giving up with a huff and getting off her knees. ¡°Why do you always try to solve your problems with magic?¡± She asked. ¡°I could have gotten him to talk for free. I could¡¯ve gotten the guards at the gate to talk for free, too.¡± ¡°My way¡¯s faster and involves less fellatio. Which direction did they go?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°That way, towards the residential district.¡± The guard said, pointing, his gaze still locked to Calvin¡¯s ¡°You¡¯ve been very helpful and you should feel proud of being the most tolerable guardsman I¡¯ve come across during my stay here.¡± Calvin said, breaking eye contact. ¡°Really, what¡­was I doing?¡± He asked. ¡°You were telling us not to loiter.¡± Calvin supplied. ¡°Right. Move along,¡± the guardsman said, waving them away. These are not the droids you¡¯re looking for. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s find Learner before she eats whatever unfortunate soul thought she was a catch,¡± Calvin said, nodding to the guardsman as they left the alley. ¡°What makes you think Learner has the guy we¡¯re looking for?¡± Nadia asked. ¡°Nothing in particular,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°It¡¯s just that preventing Learner from committing violence is higher in priority than finding whoever tried to trepan you. If she¡¯s eating the guy who did it, than that would just be a lucky coincidence, wouldn¡¯t it.¡± ¡°At least we found out one thing about the guy we¡¯re looking for.¡± Nadia said with a solemn frown. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°The kick mark in the barrel was three inches higher, at least, so he¡¯s probably taller than you. Not that that¡¯s uncommon.¡± ¡°You want me to see if I could alter your summon to give you a permanent wedgie?¡± Calvin asked, raising a brow. ¡°Seems a lot tamer than the human centipede threat.¡± ¡°True, but this one I fully intend to follow through on.¡± ***Later*** Calvin and Nadia followed a trail of witnesses whose heads had been turned by Learner¡¯s exceptional beauty, and with a bit of canvassing the area, they narrowed in on a small neighborhood for more affluent artisans. After that, locating Learner wasn¡¯t hard. She was sitting in front of a house, drenched in blood, heels tapping against the boulder she was sitting on in the man¡¯s front yard. ¡°Took you guys long enough.¡± She said. Calvin took in the scene and breathed in his anger and bottled it down until they got out the other side of this. he didn¡¯t know all the facts and yelling at the eldritch abomination wouldn¡¯t serve any purpose. One thing Calvin was deathly afraid of was that she would get a taste for mayhem, and he would have to put her down. The creature¡¯s abilities grew at a visible rate, meaning the longer they delayed, the worse it would be. Every time he brought the subject up with Kala, the girl told him that she was too important. ¡°Learner. You have to know how bad this looks.¡± Calvin said, approaching her. ¡°Oh, no, this is fine,¡± Learner said, glancing down at the blood on her dress. ¡°Totally justified. I caught a serial killer.¡± Calvin frowned. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You know, the serial killer that¡¯s been hunting Allast the last decade?¡± She cocked her head to the side. ¡°Cuts off people¡¯s heads?¡± Nobody had said anything about it to Calvin. ¡°Here.¡± she tugged a leather bag out of her cleavage and tossed it to him. The bag had the muted clicks of something hard inside. ¡°The guy had a bag of human teeth. I¡¯m pretty sure they¡¯re from people he killed. Unless he likes collecting teeth from all his friends and family. He also tried to kill me after he used an interesting mutation to restructure my brain.¡± Learner made a drilling motion at her temple. Calvin notived there were four spots of dried blood on each side of her head. Minor damage to the skull, rewriting Nadia¡¯s personality¡­ Calvin dropped the bag and glanced at Nadia, who shrugged, looking back at him. No way it¡¯s that easy. ¡°Is he still alive?¡± Calvin asked, glancing back up at the abomination. ¡°Mmmostly?¡± she said hesitantly. ¡°Learner, I need to see.¡± ¡°Right this way.¡± She said, hopping off the boulder and motioning for them to follow. She led them to a shed off to the side of the house, where a lantern revealed a small pool of blood and red drag marks where he¡¯d dragged himself into the house proper. ¡°Huh,¡± Learner said when she spotted it. ¡°I was pretty sure I got his tendons.¡± They followed the blood and got to the back door of the ornate wooden house. Locked. ¡°That¡¯s weird. Pretty sure he wouldn¡¯t be able to lock the door in the state I left him in.¡± Learner said with a frown. ¡°Go away!¡± a woman¡¯s voice shouted from inside the house. ¡°Go away! We¡¯ve already called the guard!¡± Calvin put one hand on the handle and the other over it to muffle the sound and pulled, tearing it right out of the wood. There was a scream and the clatter of furniture in the next couple seconds as Calvin dismantled the door and walked in. There was furniture pressed up against the door that he crunched out of the way, revealing an entrance hall smeared with blood, and an older woman wielding a knife, her eyes bloodshot and teary, hands trembling. Behind her were three children, a boy and two girls, attending to a man¡¯s wounds in the living room. ¡°Get out, get out, get OUT!¡± She screamed, her voice nearly stopping Calvin in his tracks with sheer force. A moment later, she lunged at him, her lips curled back in a snarl. Calvin caught the knife by the back and tugged it out of her hands. She wasn¡¯t particularly strong or fast, making it an easy task. The difficult task was getting past the woman without hurting her or getting his eyes gouged out as she went feral, trying to bite or scratch him any way she could. Finally, Calvin settled for spinning the woman around and grabbing her by the back of her neck, wrenching both arms behind her back with the other. It didn¡¯t make him feel like an especially good man, but something was off here. the three children stepped between him and the man on the floor. ¡°Get away from that man or I¡¯ll hurt your mother.¡± Calvin said, expecting reluctancy obedience, or at least hesitation. ¡°Get out of here! leave him alone!¡± They shouted at the top of their lungs, veins bulging on the sides of their heads as they strained their voices beyond what one would reasonably consider a safe volume for a human child. Then they leapt at him, the biggest daughter carrying a heavy piece of furniture while the others had smaller knives. Not one iota of concern for their mother. ¡°Okay, this is stupid.¡± Calvin muttered. Trait Doctoring. 32/46 Bent remaining. Calvin turned the air around their limbs solid as steel, freezing them in mid-feral leap. That didn¡¯t stop the screaming however. Their eyes rolled in their skulls, their faces turning red as they struggled to escape the bond he¡¯d formed around them. Calvin sealed the family in soundproof bubbles of air and tiptoed around them, finally able to get a good look at the man in question. He was shredded, with several larger lacerations on his chest that had been hastily patched, along with surgical incisions on his arms and legs that seemed designed to hobble him. He was Juntai handsome, with a well-defined jaw and decent musculature. Well-fed. On first glance, everything about the man on the floor panting in front of him spoke of a life of relative ease and affluence. The glare of pure loathing he was getting from the man, however, was something he¡¯d never encountered before. There was such visceral blame, greed, and desire to do harm, that Calvin could almost feel the saw on the back of his neck. ¡°Hi there,¡± Calvin said, squatting down beside the hobbled man with a grin. No way on Marconen was he going to let mean thoughts drive him off. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t mind answering some questions, would you?¡± Calvin said. The man just stared at him, skin pallid, breathing erratically. ¡°Nadia, c¡¯mere.¡± Nadia made her way past the frozen family, frowning as she glanced over the struggling woman and children. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Look at him.¡± Nadia obliged, and in the moment the man looked at her, his eyes widening, Calvin got the whole story through Open Book. To Nadia, the man was a perfect stranger, but to the man, she was the juiciest prey, and keeper of a thousand priceless secrets of arcane knowledge. I think we have a winner. Calvin thought, standing. ¡°Calvin, can I talk to you?¡± Nadia whispered. Calvin frowned. It was unlike Nadia to be discreet. Might as well humor her, then. ¡°Make sure he doesn¡¯t go anywhere,¡± Calvin said, pointing at the man to Learner. Nadia dragged him away, leading him to a small library before she came to a halt and began whispering, glancing around suspiciously as she did. ¡°Calvin, those people are under the effects of mind magic.¡± ¡°Obviously.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Yes, but it¡¯s the kind of mind-magic that they¡¯re under.¡± Nadia said. ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°Okay, there¡¯s two different broad categories of mind magic. Soft and hard.¡± ¡°So he hit them with hard mind magic.¡± ¡°Shut up for a sec,¡± Nadia said. ¡°Hard mind magic achieves a specific result by temporarily flooding a person¡¯s Stability, overwhelming their control. It¡¯s the kind of spells you see cast every day in Iletha. It¡¯s the core of all of our sorcery. Concrete spells linked to a Skill that can be handed down from person to person easily, with a repeatable, predictable effect. Soft mind magic involves little dollops of Bent, so small that the System accommodates them without alerting the victim. These changes pile up to create larger changes.¡± Calvin frowned. ¡°These people were turned into raving fanatics over the course of what must have been a month or so.¡± ¡°And? What does that mean to the uninformed.¡± ¡°Two things: First, that¡¯s incredibly fast for soft mind-magic. If the man down there is the one who did it, he¡¯s either a grandmaster or a savant. And it looks more like the second.¡± ¡°And the second thing?¡± ¡°The second thing is that soft mind magic is only taught in certain high-prestige Ilethan academies.¡± ¡°Obviously he didn¡¯t go to those,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Obviously. So where in the Abyss did he learn how to turn a mother and her children into rabid bodyguards?¡± ¡°You.¡± Calvin said, booping her nose. Nadia went pale. ¡°Elliot told me the man had been trying to change your mind via trepanning, but I think he got some memories out of it too. I saw it when he looked at you.¡± ¡°You have to kill him.¡± Nadia whispered. ¡°There are things in my mind that simply shouldn¡¯t be known.¡± ¡°Relax.¡± Calvin said, patting her head. ¡°I wasn¡¯t planning on leaving him alive.¡± Calvin went back out into the main hall, where the man was resting against the wall, still glaring at him. ¡°Sorry, buddy,¡± Calvin said in perfect Juntai as he squatted down beside him, pulling a knife out of his belt. ¡°You picked the wrong people to fuck with.¡± The man coughed and gave him a bloody smile. ¡°You do what you have to, Calvin, because if you don¡¯t kill me tonight, I¡¯m going to do much better next time.¡± ¡°How do you know my name?¡± Calvin asked. The wounded man glanced at Nadia again. ¡°Ah.¡± Calvin lashed out with the dagger, sinking it deep into the man¡¯s eye. The Juntai killer twitched violently on the end of the knife as Calvin scrambled the man¡¯s brains for a moment, making damn sure he wouldn¡¯t be a problem later down the road. When the twitching stopped, Calvin drew his blade out and cleaned it on a clean patch of the dead man¡¯s shirt, peering at the man¡¯s face. ¡°Did anyone get his name?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°He told me it was Carem Sageva.¡± Learner supplied. ¡°Son of a bitch!¡± Calvin shouted, slapping his forehead. ¡°I was supposed to meet this guy tomorrow morning!¡± ¡°Not anymore, I guess.¡± Nadia said with a shrug. *** When Calvin finally climbed back into bed he was dead tired and full of conflicting emotions. It wasn¡¯t easy to kill someone, even if there was a decent amount of evidence that it was the right thing to do. He¡¯d spent the rest of the night cleaning up and erasing any sign of their presence, and now he just needed the comfort of his wife. Some good hugs from Kala, possibly with the addition of Ella, and lots of sleep. Maybe he¡¯d get to sleep in because the man they were set to meet today was dead. Calvin shucked himself out of his clothes and crawled into bed, snatching the covers away from the greedy cover-thieves. He crawled over to Kala¡¯s body, which was radiating heat like a furnace, her lovely skin nearly hot to the touch. He was tired, but there was always time for kisses. Calvin planted kisses up her shoulder until she woke up, groaning as her brows knitted together. ¡°Was he missing a tooth?¡± Kala asked, turning over in bed, her eyes tightly shut. ¡°What?¡± ¡°What?¡± Kala said, prying her brown eyes open to look at him. ***Carem*** Carem ran through the night as fast as Elina¡¯s body would take him, rubbing the keepsake of his former body between his thumb and forefinger as he decided on his next move. Circumstances had forced him to reconsider his position on copying himself. Thankfully Elina had gladly given herself to him. Her complete lack of resistance had¡­triggered something in his mutation, and even now, he could feel the dull ache as the Roots grew down from Elina¡¯s brain through her arms. Maybe I am the Roots themselves? Macronomicon Chapter 176: Pity Outing ¡°Shhhit.¡± Calvin said, peeling back the corpse¡¯s dirt-covered lips, revealing a hollow where Carem¡¯s canine used to be. ¡°Any chance you knocked this out when you were roughing him up?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at Learner. ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± She said with a shrug. ¡°I probably would have noticed.¡± Oh man, tell me we don¡¯t have a body hopper. Body hoppers are the worst. Elliot grumbled. ¡°I think we have a body hopper.¡± Nadia said, standing behind Kala. ¡°Ilethan royals do it all the time. My aunt tried to take my body when I was twelve. I kicked her in the nuts.¡± Fuuuck! There was a clattering of chairs in Calvin¡¯s ears as Elliot made a scene. What are you so upset about? This guy totally stole my thunder! Calvin chuckled, standing up and glancing around, seeking some idea of where this hypothetical copy might have gone. I¡¯ll have to start searching for him immediately. If I turn into a massive swarm, I can cover the whole city in just a few - Calvin felt Kala¡¯s touch on his arm, drawing his attention to her. ¡°He¡¯s gone to ground,¡± Kala said. ¡°He could be out of the city or even the country by now, and even if he wasn¡¯t we don¡¯t know who might be. You¡¯re not going to find him until he wants to be found. You¡¯d be better served taking care of your business in Allast and preparing yourself for dealing with him when he tries to hurt you again.¡± ¡°That man knows royal secrets of Iletha!¡± Nadia exclaimed. ¡°He¡¯s got to be killed as soon as possible!¡± ¡°And how will you find him?¡± Kala asked ¡°He¡¯s got puncture wounds on his head,¡± Learner said, motioning along her temple. ¡°He knows that too, and will take every measure to conceal them or recreate them on unsuspecting victims, probably both.¡± Kala frowned, looking into Calvin¡¯s eyes. ¡°What I¡¯m saying is, a city wide manhunt comprehensive enough to find a body hopper performed by a single foreign wizard will unsettle the populous, endanger trade between your city and theirs, probably incite a military response, and exhaust time and effort that could have been spent more effectively.¡± Calvin groaned. ¡°Politics.¡± ¡°Politics,¡± Kala echoed with a hint of a smile. ¡°And Nadia. I don¡¯t know precisely what secrets the man knows, but¡­¡± Kala glanced at the corpse. ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s the type to share them with anyone.¡± ¡°What do you see, when you look at him?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°A withered, rotted root, winding around thirty skulls.¡± Kala said before tearing her eyes away from the corpse. ¡°You don¡¯t need to chase him. You need to prepare. On that note, I want you to spend some more time with Ella, she wouldn¡¯t say anything, but she¡¯s been feeling neglected lately.¡± ¡°What, are you my boss?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Oh right,¡± Calvin frowned. He wasn¡¯t a wizard king yet, he was a Marquis who happened to also be a wizard, and his wife outranked him. Not quite there yet, Calvin thought, shaking his head. ¡°I could take her to see the Diocese.¡± Calvin needed to warn the people in charge that they most likely had a body jumping madman who liked to slurp people¡¯s brains, let them organize their own manhunt. Kala¡¯s lips twitched in a smile for an instant before she quelled it again. ¡°That would be acceptable.¡± ¡°Really? I was under the impression the Juntai and the Genosians weren¡¯t on the best of terms.¡± Nadia said, frowning. ¡°That¡¯s what makes it fun.¡± *** ¡°What prompted this?¡± Ella asked as they walked through the bustling streets, her gaze lingering on the stalls selling raw meats. The huge Genosian woman was drawing all sorts of stares as she walked through the crowd, a full head above anyone else. ¡°Kala prompted this.¡± ¡°So what, is this a pity outing for the second wife?¡± Ella asked, and while Calvin couldn¡¯t detect any bitterness from her tone, the words carried their own venom. ¡°I could see how it might seem that way.¡± Calvin said, appreciating the way the crowd seemed to part around them as they walked. ¡°But I was informed I was lacking, and now I want to discuss it with you. Are you happy? What can I do better? What do you want?¡± ¡°I want a pity outing,¡± Ella said with a mischievous grin. Calvin glanced over at her, blinking. ¡°You forget I¡¯ve got Kala keeping me company most hours of the day. If Kala said I was lonely, then she¡¯s lying, and that means she probably has an agenda beyond our mortal minds to comprehend¡­Or maybe she wants more spankings for her dishonesty when we get back, I don¡¯t know.¡± Calvin¡¯s jaw hung loose for an instant before he closed it. ¡°Wives can have ulterior motives?¡± Calvin asked, ¡°Isn¡¯t that against some kind of¡­marriage rule?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not a very subtle person are you?¡± Ella said. ¡°I never said I was!¡± Calvin protested as Ella laughed, Her voice cutting through the surrounding din of the busy streets. They came to a halt in front of the palace gates, the guards staring down at them suspiciously. ¡°I need to speak to the Diocese of trade. It¡¯s important.¡± Calvin said. ¡°And who are you?¡± The guard asked, eyes narrowed. ¡°Seriously?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at himself. He was tired of dealing with asshole gatekeepers, and that frustration was beginning to bubble out. People should be falling out of their way to open doors for him. ¡°There is only one person in this entire country that looks like me. You know exactly who I am, and I swear to Kvothe, if you don¡¯t let me in, I¡¯ll destroy this agreement¡± ¨C Calvin pulled out the trade deal ¨C ¡°Right here and now, costing your country tons upon tons of raw copper. I think the diocese of Trade would take offence to that.¡± ¡°Do you think he would take offence to that?¡± Calvin asked Ella. ¡°Definitely.¡± Ella said, nodding. ¡°Umm¡­We¡¯ll send a runner.¡± ¡°No, you won¡¯t send a runner, you¡¯ll open the damn gate and get out of my way.¡± There was a pregnant pause as the guards stared at him. The door clicked open, and the guards stood out of his way. Playboy has reached level 13! 65% Correction. Calvin marched through the gate, not bothering to look to his sides. ¡°Need to get some kind of I.D. that says ¡®open the damn door.¡¯¡± Calvin muttered to himself before he heard a soft clink behind him. Calvin glanced behind him and saw exactly what he thought he would. The guards had crossed their steel tubes in front of Ella, barring her from entry. ¡°We¡¯ll not allow a damn flesh eating monster into the palace.¡± One of the guards said, spitting to add emphasis. Calvin considered arguing with them, threatening the trade agreement some more, or resorting to magic to replace their identities with that of the mewling infant he spotted a mother carrying down the street. Calvin was just tired of it. ¡°This is on your heads then, I guess,¡± Calvin said, drawing the trade agreement out of his back pocket and tossing it onto the ground, grinding it into the mud as he continued on into the palace. A few seconds later, Ella arrived behind him, carrying the trade agreement, covered in mud and slightly ripped. ¡°I can¡¯t believe that worked.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not in a mood to fuck around,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Over the course of our adventures, I¡¯ve discovered that I detest palace gatekeepers and their ilk. My kingdom will have none of them. instead, if someone wants to see me, they¡¯ll simply have to donate an organ.¡± ¡°That¡¯s way more convenient.¡± ¡°Right?¡± He dismissed the copy of the trade agreement in Ella¡¯s hand and replaced it with a new one, drawing off the shrunken document tucked in his belt, resting in a scroll case made with Unqua beads. 35/46 Bent remaining ¡°Ah.¡± Ella said, handing the scroll back to Calvin. There were many double takes and the resounding footsteps of people scrambling to stay ahead of them as they strode through the constantly humming palace. Ella gawked at the steel halls and strange flickering lights covered by woven mats made of soft plant fibers as they walked, marveling at the strange juxtaposition of familiar and alien. Calvin found the room they¡¯d been in the day before, then sat down in the center of the room and waited. This tiem it only took an hour for the Diocese to arrive. Progress. The manner in which he arrived left a bit to be desired. The Diocese of trade arrived flanked by a dozen men who seemed to be Veterans at the very least, with grim, scarred faces, and fantastically intricate oversized copper bracers leading to shorter, more compact railguns. They weren¡¯t pointed at Calvin, but the distinction was minor. The Diocese was radiating irritation and displeasure as he sat down in front of Calvin, his scowl somewhat mollified by Ella¡¯s presence. ¡°I hope you have a good reason for dragging me away on such short notice and trampling the agreement our people worked so hard to create.¡± ¡°Your gatekeepers are stupid, and they don¡¯t know what they saw,¡± Calvin said, putting the document on the table in front of him, in apparent perfect condition. ¡°No, I needed your attention because you¡¯ve got a serious problem, and it needs your attention immediately.¡± The diocese glanced from Calvin to the trade agreement and back again, visibly relaxing. ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°Were you aware your city had a serial killer?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your city has a serial killer. Did you know?¡± ¡°I heard of no such thing, but if there were one, that would be a matter for the Diocese of Edict.¡± ¡°Did the diocese of Edict know there was a serial killer?¡± ¡°How would I know that?¡± the diocese snapped. ¡°I already told you I was unaware. And besides, why are you bringing this to me? It¡¯s hardly a matter that affects the country as a whole.¡± ¡°Well, he¡¯s not just a serial killer, he¡¯s got a mutation that we think allows him to jump from body to body. He targeted members of my caravan, extracted information from them, and we think he¡¯s going to use that information to make life difficult for both of us.¡± The diocese went quiet. ¡°A mutation?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Do you have any evidence of this man¡¯s existence?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got a bag of human teeth I found in Carem Sageva¡¯s home,¡± Calvin said, tossing it onto the table between them. ¡°I promise I didn¡¯t bring it with me.¡± The diocese gave a halfhearted smile. ¡°You got these from Carem Sageva?¡± he asked, his face incredulous. ¡°Believe me, I have nothing to gain financially from outing Carem as a killer. It¡¯s going to take months to untangle the bureaucratic clusterfuck and get goods flowing smoothly. I¡¯m doing it because it¡¯s the right thing.¡± ¡°And where is Carem now?¡± ¡°Buried in a hole outside the city,¡± Calvin said. ¡°And possibly also hiding somewhere in Allast in someone else¡¯s body, waiting for pursuit to die down.¡± ¡°I see.¡± He motioned one of his guards to lean closer before whispering in the man¡¯s ear. The guard nodded and trotted out of the room. ¡°I¡¯ll inform the Diocese of Edict and the Diocese of Force,¡± he said, standing. ¡°And you will give me the location of Carem Sageva¡¯s body. If there is any sign he had a mutation, we will be much closer to taking you at your word.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± Calvin said, holding out his hand and waggling his fingers. ¡°Map.¡± A moment later one of the Juntai men put a map of the city in his hand, and Calvin marked the location of the corpse on it. ¡°I hope you understand that if we don¡¯t find any sign of mutation, Juntai will visit consequences upon you.¡± ¡°Juntai is welcome to try,¡± Calvin said, giving his most insolent smile. ¡°Well, then I suppose our business here is completed.¡± The Diocese of trade said, glancing at Ella for the first time since he¡¯d arrived. ¡°Is she another of your summons? I¡¯d be interested in ¨C¡° ¡°Stop right there,¡± Calvin said, holding up a hand to interrupt the man before he could prompt Calvin to slug him. ¡°She¡¯s my wife.¡± ¡°Ah¡­is that a no, then?¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s fairly obvious.¡± ¡°Worth a shot. Shame. Your wife is...talented.¡± ¡°Go find your own Genosian, you horndog.¡± Calvin said. ¡°You know,¡± Ella said, matter of fact-ly in genosian ¡°It is a common custom for tribe leaders to exchange the favor of their wives for the night with visiting chieftains as a gesture of accord.¡± ¡°WHAT!?¡± Calvin demanded, heart rising into his throat. ¡°No.¡± He emphatically pointed a finger at her. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Fuck that. Fuck that.¡± Ella burst out laughing. ¡­And she¡¯s messing with me. Calvin thought, his skin tingling from the sudden wash of adrenalin filtering out of his system, leaving his limbs weak. She¡¯d gotten more of a reaction than he¡¯d care to admit. ¡°Excuse me,¡± The Diocese said, leaving the table. ¡°I¡¯ve got a lot of work to do, one way or another.¡± The guards filed in behind him with nearly mechanical precision, leaving them alone in the room. ¡°Well, the Diocese are as warned as possible without scaring the shit out of them and provoking the wrong reaction.¡± ¡°I agree, so far you¡¯ve comported yourself much better than in Uleis,¡± Ella glanced off to the side. ¡°From what I¡¯ve heard.¡± Calvin rolled his eyes and laced his fingers together, glancing over at the Genosian girl sitting next to him, her body straining the leather hides wrapped around her. ¡°Right. So what do you want to do now?¡± ¡°Pity outing?¡± She asked, raising a brow. Genosian Language has reached level 7! 35% correction. Ah, Calvin thought to himself, realizing Kala¡¯s hidden agenda. There was a possibility there was a hostile mind mage in the city, and Calvin had no excuse to leave his mental defenses to chance anymore. ¡°I¡¯ll take you on a pity outing,¡± Calvin said, turning to face her. ¡°If you teach me some Genosian tongue twisters.¡± Macronomicon If you do not need light-hearted silliness, you probably don''t need it. Chapter 177: Camping Trip Learner¡¯s Notes, day 318: Human bonding rituals. Humans have many ways of social bonding, and my new and improved human brain is picking up on them splendidly. I must thank that evil body swapper If I see him again before the Manifold Predator kills him. Through careful growing and rearranging with a facsimile of the man¡¯s mutation, I¡¯ve been able to grow a human brain with denser tissue that outperforms a normal one by an estimated sixty-seven percent. A sizeable fraction. The key is balancing for maximum average performance, rather than devoting too many resources to any one aspect. Its advanced social que processing has allowed me to identify and conform to the expectations of others far better than before. Of particular interest are human bonding rituals, something I was incapable of understanding up until recently. Human bonding rituals involve a shared experience that creates a commonality between the humans in question. These shared experiences are usually segregated by gender, with male bonding rituals involving intense, life-threatening situations of shared misery ¨Cbecause they¡¯re dumb ¨C while women will often simply get together in large groups and discuss their lives, creating shared experiences through storytelling. Kala showed me a locket with a painting of her when she was young and she was so cuuuute! ¡­The new human brain has trouble being objective, sometimes. But yes, Kala was cute, objectively. ***Calvin*** Genosian Language has reached level 8! 40% correction. Genosian Language has reached level 9! 45% correction. 12/35 Warp Remaining. ¡°I feel like my tongue is gonna fall off,¡± Calvin complained, stretching his mouth. He was standing at the edge of the jungle, about to embark on his pity outing with Ella. ¡°Keep it up, you need the practice.¡± Ella said. Calvin got back to his genosian tongue twisters. ¡°Amenahe he huahe heban behan behayhe¡± Calvin chanted, trying to get all the syllables in the correct order as quickly as possible. The phrase roughly translated to: ¡®my son slunk sneakily into the woods and got eaten by a large blue tree.¡¯ To his left was Baroke, and to his right was Goob. Each person present was clad in a loincloth and bearing a single obsidian knife. The mosquitos were having a field day. ¡°Now,¡± Ella said, stepping in front of them, pacing back and forth like a drillmaster, seemingly immune to the effect of the biting insects. ¡°It came to my attention that none of you have ever heard of the Menahua be huame, or ¡®one knife challenge¡¯,¡± She said, scanning them critically. ¡°It is a challenge where young hunters enter the woods with nothing but a knife to make the tools they will need to catch as much food as possible. The history of this challenge is that a pair of young hunters, a brother and a sister, decided to challenge each other to a test of skill, and so they devised the rules that we use to this day, then went out into the forest with only a knife to see who could bring down more prey.¡± She met Goob¡¯s gaze. ¡°They both died.¡± Goob swallowed loudly. ¡°Why do all your Genosian legends end with the subject of the legend dying?¡± Baroke demanded. ¡°Every one! The huntmaster¡¯s wife, the kugeya rider one, the guy who figured out how to fly¡­on and on.¡± ¡°Did you expect anything less from the people who had to devise a way to bring the dead back to life to offset the staggering mortality rate?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Fair enough,¡± Baroke motioned to the Genosian girl. ¡°Carry on.¡± ¡°The rules are this: Time limit is one week. You each get one knife,¡± She said, holding it up. ¡°You may not use any Abilities that cost Bent, you may not catch things with your bare hands, and you may not use the knife by itself as a weapon. Using it as a spear head is an acceptable example.¡± ¡°Can we use the loincloth?¡± Goob asked, drawing Calvin and Baroke¡¯s attention. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The object of the game is to use everything at your disposal,¡± Ella said. ¡°Not protect your modesty. I¡¯ll let you figure out the rest.¡± Calvin glanced over and spotted Baroke eyeing his leather covering thoughtfully. Damnit, he¡¯s going to make a bow with the leather string. The giant archer only had one way of solving problems, but he was so damn good at it, it hardly mattered that he was a one-trick guar. Calvin immediately ran through a list of his skills and came up lacking. The closest things he had to hunting skills were Harvester and Stealth, but neither of those helped him seal the deal, so to speak. But, master baiter, combined with Drafting means¡­traps. Calvin would be vastly better at making lures and traps than he would stabbing things with spears or shooting them with bows, due to the confluence of his fishing and construction based skills. Alright. Let¡¯s do this, Calvin thought, stretching as they prepared. ¡°Are you ready?¡± Ella asked. ¡°Ready,¡± Baroke said, bouncing on the balls of his feet. ¡°I guess?¡± Goob muttered. ¡°My son slunk sneakily into the woods and got eaten by a large blue tree,¡± Calvin said, nodding as he triggered his Ability. M*necraft Debug menu The forest exploded into numbers. At a glance, he could tell which trees were rotted on the inside and which were healthy, what breed they were, his exact position on the globe, the time of day, the direction he was facing, and a dozen other bits of information. At the very least it¡¯ll keep me from getting lost, Calvin thought as he noted his global position. Doesn¡¯t cost Bent, either. ¡°Go!¡± There was a crack of thunder above their heads, and the sky opened up above them, marking the beginning of the competition. Unphased, Baroke exploded into motion, turning into a dark streak as he bulled through the forest, disappearing in a second to the sound of snapping branches. Friggin Body Junkie, Calvin thougth as he sprinted through the forest, keeping his eyes open for useful plants. *** Goob watched Calvin and Baroke disappear into the forest faster than a human should have any right to move, while he and Ella stood there and watched. ¡°Hah, amateurs,¡± She said, hand on her hips. ¡°We¡¯ve got all week.¡± ¡°You know what?¡± Goob said, glancing up at the rain pouring down from above them. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to head back to camp. Coming along on this was a bad idea, and spending a week in the jungle wearing little to nothing is not my idea of a good time. And I know I¡¯m not gonna win.¡± ¡°Wise decision,¡± Ella said, nodding. ¡°But before you go, I¡¯ll be having that knife and loincloth.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Stealing from competitors was never expressly forbidden.¡± The genosian girl said, giving a predatory smile. ¡°Why do you think I brought you along?¡± ¡°That¡¯s cold,¡± Goob said, with a sigh. Might as well get this over with. He wasn¡¯t looking forward to the naked trudge back to camp, but it wasn¡¯t as bad as whatever Ella would do to him if he didn¡¯t give her his stuff. ***Day 1*** ¡°You get your own bait!¡± Calvin shouted, shoving the feral archer off him. ¡°My knife broke, I¡¯m hungry, and bowmaking is hard!¡± Baroke shouted back, reaching for Calvin¡¯s Krupe nut shell bowl full of wriggling crawlers, his face smushed up against Calvin¡¯s foot. ¡°You made a bow out of a bunk bed! You expect me to believe you can¡¯t make one now!?¡± ¡°That was a clean piece of flexible glass and high quality silk thread! Green wood has no spring to it, it¡¯s misshapen, and did I forget to mention my knife broke!¡± ¡°You¡¯re just gonna have to try harder, aren¡¯t you!?¡± Calvin said, feeling a malicious grin welling up inside him at his friend¡¯s suffering. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m gonna make some traps, so give me some bait.¡± ¡°Like I said, get your own damn bait. They¡¯re coming out of the ground in droves because of the rain!¡± Baroke glanced downward and spotted the forest floor that was covered in burrowing insects escaping the flood of water. ¡°Oh.¡± There was a flash of purple-grey skin in the distance, and Ella¡¯s form resolved out of the downpour. She was wielding a spear with an obsidian knife at the tip, securely fastened by a thin strand of tough leather, along with another obsidian knife at her waist. On her head was the hollowed out skull of a massive insect, its razor sharp mandibles twisted outward in their sockets to protect her jaw. Behind her, a massive chitinous body trailed along where it was connected to a tendon cord in her fist. ¡°You guys are still fooling around?¡± She asked with seeming disbelief laced with amusement before she disappeared back into the rain. The two stared after the huntress¡­transfixed in the center of their wrestling match over the bowl of grubs. ¡°Truce?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Yeah, that sounds good.¡± Calvin said. ***Day 2*** ¡°Agh, my back.¡± ¡°Keep it there.¡± Calvin said, baiting the snare, using Master Baiter to make it as appetizing as possible. When a small predator went after the bait, they would use it¡¯s corpse to bait even bigger creatures. Tiny bait to get small bait, to get large bait to catch the biggest bastards in the jungle. ¡°It friggin¡¯ hurts,¡± Baroke said, his face turning red as he held the tree in place, bent over at an unnatural angle while Calvin hooked the snare into its stirrup. ¡°I thought this was a warm up for you!¡± Calvin hissed. ¡°Not after sleeping in a godsdamned tree while soaking wet all night.¡± Baroke whispered back. ¡°You didn¡¯t make a shelter first?¡± Ella¡¯s voice caused Calvin¡¯s hand to slip, tugging the snare out of the stirrup. The sudden extra pressure snapped the leather twine out of Calvin¡¯s hand. Baroke lost his grip, and the leather loop whipped upward, catching calvin across the face before snagging a nearby branch and tugging it right off the unfortunate tree. Calvin glanced over and spotted Ella watching them from the branches of a massive Guveya tree, wearing some kind of armor made of freshly scraped out bone plated with chiton. Where does she even find the time to do that?? Calvin thought dourly. ¡°I don¡¯t know what I was expecting from a couple village boys. I guess they just raise them soft in Gadvera.¡± She leapt off, fluttering through the canopy like a Tarak before either of them had a chance to respond. ¡°Sooo¡­¡± Baroke said as Calvin rubbed the stinging side of his face. ¡°More traps?¡± ¡°Yes, but first we¡¯re making you a bow.¡± ***Day 4*** Stealth has reached level 9! 45% correction. Calvin, smeared with mud and wearing dozens of leafy branches and clumps of grass, stalked his prey, hunger burning a hole in his guts, and demanding that he jump on the prey, Right NOW. No. Calvin thought, holding perfectly still, breathing as slowly as his body could tolerate. He¡¯d jumped out at these skittering little bastards enough to exhaust himself and succeeded in nothing but destroying the surrounding shrubbery. No. This time he was going to wait for the damn thing to practically bludgeon itself on his cudgel before he moved. Calvin¡¯s flimsy obsidian knife had long since shattered, and he had made due by lining a club with the sharpest pieces of the volcanic glass. Who knew they took skill not to break? Aim for where they¡¯ll go, he thought to himself as the glubber skittered closer, a strange creature with six legs, a thick carapace on its back, a soft, fleshy questing nose that picked smaller insects off the ground, and an air sac bellow that that seemed to inflate and deflate according to it¡¯s whims. Just a little closer, come here so I can eat you, you little bastard. Calvin thought, trying carefully not to twitch and scare it away like he had the time before, when his arm twitched a moment before he decided to strike, sending the skittish beetle scurrying away. A little closer¡­.NOW! Calvin whipped down with his cudgel, aiming to split the hapless insect open in a single strike, preventing it from escaping and taking its delicious meat out of reach of his stomach. I¡¯m gonna cook and eat you! Calvin hadn¡¯t considered that he¡¯d have to make a fire too. That was second to the gaping hole in his stomach. There was the sound of breaking air, and an arrow with a bit of obsidian at the tip punctured the hapless insect, bowling it out of the way of Calvin¡¯s strike. While Calvin was processing this, a leather rope attached to the arrow drew it and the squirming glubber through the air into the waiting hands of Baroke. Baroke stood there, grinning with his stupid perfect teeth, while he held Calvin¡¯s squirming meal. He was wearing a loincloth made of oversized leaves woven together, having long since cannibalized the leather in his loincloth. ¡°Thanks for helping me with the bow,¡± He said, shrugging to emphasize the bow over his shoulder. ¡°I can take it from here.¡± ¡°So,¡± Calvin said, turning to face him, rage tunneling his vision. ¡°It¡¯s finally come to this. The truce was meaningless to you, huh?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Baroke said with a grin. ¡°You were so blended in I didn¡¯t even see you there.¡± Calvin¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Give me the glubber.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you come and get it?¡± Baroke said, bouncing the dying insect in his palm. Oh, it¡¯s on! Before Calvin could take a step forward, a massive pink rod of muscle slammed into the animal on Baroke¡¯s hand, tearing it out of his grip and into the mouth of a towering monster with an elongated head and dozens of clear sacs filled with air on its back. The creature¡¯s legs were disgustingly long and thin, eight feet at least, and the clear air sacs on its back were big enough for a man to climb into, were he inclined. The tongue must have crossed a good thirty feet to reach them as well. Needless to say, it was a pretty big creature, and it was overlooking Calvin and Baroke curiously, trying to determine if they were food or threats. It was probably pretty dangerous. Not that Calvin was thinking about that at the time. My FOOD! A gut wrenching howl of despair rose from somewhere, and Calvin was surprised to discover that it was him, screaming at the top of his lungs as he launched himself toward the food-thief, brandishing his cudgel. ¡°I¡¯m just gonna¡­go¡­¡± Calvin heard Baroke¡¯s words, but they blended into the seething background of rage as he thwacked the creature over and over, chopping at its legs like a lumberjack while the creature danced out of the way, trying to defend itself with it¡¯s tongue. ***Day 7*** Genosian Language has reached level 10! 50% correction. +1 Stability Calvin didn¡¯t hesitate to take Language Barrier, as it provided the single best reinforcement to the sanctity of his mind out of any of the Abilities he¡¯d ever been offered. Stealth has reached level 10! 50% Correction +1 Kinesthetics Please Choose an Ability or Mutation. Abilities: Active Stealth: Become invisible for 1 hour/Bent. Effect fades if you attack. Unseen affinity: Active abilities used from a hidden vantage are treated as 2 levels higher. (Trans: Spell Sneak attacks) Sneak Critical: Attacks from a hidden Vantage are significantly more lethal, automatically seeking vital spots. Mutations: Vein-Sight: When using Stealth, the Veins of living creatures glow brightly from beneath their skin. (May Cause Slight Vampirism) Camouflage: When using Stealth, the skin actively redirects light around the body, nearly disappearing. (Much less effective when wearing clothes.) Touch-Grip: At will, finger tips and toes become able stick to objects, with a force equal to your endurance squared. (May cause super-heroism.) Calvin considered all of the options for Stealth seriously. He hadn¡¯t had very much Bent when he¡¯d first had the option, but now that he did, the simple invisibility from Active Stealth seemed very attractive. On the other hand, unseen Affinity would always make his opening spells much more powerful. Touch-grip was attractive, but Calvin wanted to keep his mutations manageable. I choose Unseen Affinity. Trait Doctoring could cover invisibility with the right choice of traits, so Calvin didn¡¯t feel like he was missing out on too much, and with Shifting, he could hang onto ceilings improbably anyway, so he chose Unseen Affinity. Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 14! 70% correction. Calvin walked out of the jungle on the last day, bearing the severed head of the unnamed leggy-tongue-monster on his arm. When he¡¯d crafted a tongue-launcher out of it, his Abyssal alchemy had come in handy, nudging him in the right direction, and Harvester and his M*necraft Debug Menu had allowed him to identify not only every part of it, but the exact materials he needed to made it reflexively shoot out it¡¯s deadly tongue, which was mildly poisonous. He¡¯d used the creature¡¯s tongue to hunt a modest amount of creatures, keeping himself fed and clothed until the end of the seven days, when they came together and decided the winner. Calvin¡¯s entire body was covered in aches and mud from head to toe, with a rotting skull strapped to his arm and few clothes to speak of, aside from the withering plants strapped to his body. His hair was caked with dirt, standing straight up, and he felt like he¡¯d lost weight, his stomach seeming to touch his spine. People shied away from his gaze as he walked back toward camp, crossing to the other side of the street as he passed. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he almost tongue¡¯d the offending party, whirling in place and brandishing his skull. ¡°You did good,¡± Ella said, patting him on the shoulder, looking exceptionally proud. ¡°Who won?¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t about winning or losing,¡± Ella said, wearing her homemade armor. ¡°It was, what was the Gadveran word¡­Hazing?¡± Baroke was off to the side, grinning from ear to ear. ¡°That was fun. Wanna do this next year?¡± ¡°NO!¡± Macronomicon Enjoy! Chapter 178: We’re Not Rewarding this behavior! Learner¡¯s notes, Day 319: On pets. Humans have a strange practice of caring for useless animals. At first I didn¡¯t understand why a person would own an animal without any specific purpose, such as labor or meat, but my new brain was able to divine the meaning behind this: Humans have a strong bonding instinct, and these animals can fill a need for companionship when normal human relationships may be unrewarding or impossible. Human use these mindless animals as a blank canvass upon which to paint their desires. I have seen people abuse their animals out of a buried urge to abuse others, and I have seen others treat them like their own children out of a deep-seated parental instinct that never bloomed. Oftentimes, these desires are not obvious to the people experiencing them, buried deep in their subconscious. Interested in this practice, I decided to get my own pet to see if there were some kind of hidden desires in my subconscious, so I went looking for a particularly smart and well-behaved animal to take care of: Something easy for a first-timer. Edit: Kala told me humans can¡¯t be pets, and forced me to return the girl to the orphanage. Boo. ***Kala*** The language in Learner¡¯s book was slowly including more and more human words and phrases, as well as a script that was softer and more rounded. Aside from the low-key kidnapping and the extreme violence when provoked, she was doing remarkably well. Excellent progress, all things considered. Kala set down the teacup, mind considering all the possible courses the day could take. I could go to the palace and see if I can wrangle some advantages for Gadvera out of Allast, but something about it feels¡­pointless. I can get the same advantages from Calvin in a much more enjoyable way, anyway. Alternatively, I could go shopping for ¡®talent¡¯ around the city, find some people to become the patron of, recruit into my circle over the next few years. One of the advantages of being able to perceive people¡¯s true nature at a glance was being absolutely confident in your staffing choices. Kala hadn¡¯t had a hairbrush stolen or a bungled delegation since she was fourteen. Allast was a well of untapped potential, especially with their women, So she might have to spend a few afternoons finding some of them with some buried spunk and setting them on the path to riches. And yet, that too felt like it would be largely fruitless. How about aiding in the restructuring of local business in the wake of Carem¡¯s passing? Kala didn¡¯t think they¡¯d be happy to welcome a woman into the planning, especially a foreign one. She briefly considered If I won¡¯t be able to get work done today, I might as well relax, she thought, taking a sip of her tea across from the rapidly evolving monster. What can I do to relax? Take a nap? Play a game of cards? Read a smut? Kala released her tight control over her mind, letting her eyes drift wherever they wanted to. Her gaze landed on the magical glass pipe sitting on her dresser. Hmmm. That does seem like fun. Juntai has to have something new and interesting. Kala could feel that pursuing this path would turn out best in the long run. ¡°Learner, I need someone to go shopping with me.¡± ¡°Oh? What are we shopping for?¡± ¡°A wretched hive of scum and villany. I¡¯ve been in the city for over a month now, and my supply of smokeables is running low. I want to see what the biggest city in Juntai has in store.¡± ¡°Ah, are we going to meet more aberrant humans? I¡¯ve been wanting to speak to more examples of those who¡¯ve either made poor life choices or been drawn into a life of crime via circumstances. The serial killer was quite informative.¡± Learner seemed particularly enthusiastic. Kala frowned. ¡°You¡¯re not going to dissect any of them.¡± ¡°Unless they attack me and I¡¯m forced to kill them in self defence, right?¡± Learner asked. ¡°Going into a situation where you know they will attack you so that you can kill them in self defence is the same as murder.¡± ¡°Oh. Oooh¡­I get it.¡± Kala stood and grabbed her purse full of copper, along with her pipe. ¡°If you want to become an ideal human, you should first seek to resolve any situation peacefully if possible.¡± Kala said, sliding her purse over her shoulder. Together, the two of them went out onto the street. Kala was used to attracting lots of attention from her time as a princess, and Learner really didn¡¯t know enough to suffer from social anxiety, which was good, because the two lovely, nearly identical foreigners attracted a lot of attention from everyone. Children would stop playing with each other to gawk at them, while young men would crane their neck and elbow each other once they thought they were out of eyeshot. Women tended to cast furtive, somewhat envious glances at them before moving on with their business. At least in Gadvera, their looks wouldn¡¯t particularly stand out, but in Juntai, they were an absolute rarity. ¡°Are people looking at us more than usual?¡± ¡°You noticed that?¡± Kala asked, glancing over at learner. The more buxom reflection of her glanced around and nodded. ¡°It¡¯s my new brain. It doesn¡¯t like it because it implies being differentiated from the rest of the group.¡± ¡°It¡¯s harmless,¡± Kala said, adjusting her estimation of Learner¡¯s ability to blend in with humans. ¡°Besides, nobody who blended in with the crowd ever made history.¡± Kala took Learner to the market, then began to shop around for a good target. ¡°What are we looking for?¡± Learner asked. ¡°Someone¡­like¡­¡± Across the marketplace, Kala spotted a group of rough looking men sitting around a table, gambling with bone dice, draped in sashes that seemed above their means and shoving Iron coins back and forth with practiced hands as they bet. The civilians around them gave them a wide berth. ¡°Them,¡± Kala said, pointing. ¡°Can I make the approach?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Kala said with a shrug. Kala followed behind Learner as they made their way through the crowd, until she came to a halt in front of the table. The Eldritch horror put her hands on the table and cleared her throat. ¡°Excuse me, I¡¯d like to buy some drugs, please.¡± She said above the din of the market. ¡°Kala?¡± came a familiar voice from the back of the table. Ella was sitting at the back of the table, her body previously hidden by the angle and the crowd. It didn¡¯t help that the large woman was slouched in her chair, further reducing her height. The savage had a rather impressive stack of iron coins in front of her, with a few copper thrown in too. ¡°Ella?¡± Kala asked, frowning as she approached beside Learner. ¡°I thought you were on some kind of sacred Genosian camping trip.¡± ¡°What? Nah, I just visit the boys every couple days or so covered in mud and bones I bought from the market to get them fired up. The one knife challenge is for gullible young warriors.¡± ¡°What¡¯s this? one of the gamblers asked, a man with a scar just outside his eye. ¡°The bone-sucker has friends? With more money to lose?¡± ¡°Say what you want,¡± Ella said, patting her pile. ¡°You¡¯re the one losing.¡± ¡°Big talk from a triangle-toothed draft animal of a woman.¡± ¡°Hold up,¡± a skinnier thug said, hold up a hand. ¡° Let¡¯s go back a moment. I¡¯m not completely sure, but my Ilethan is pretty good. Did that one just offer to buy drugs?¡± he pointed at Learner. ¡°Yes. We¡¯re looking for a hive of scum and villany.¡± Learner agreed nodding. ¡°Let me just check my loincloth, I remember there was at least a kilo in there¡­¡± A third one said, reaching into the weathered fabric around his groin. ¡°Nope,¡± He said, shaking his head as he took out his hand. ¡°Just my cock. You can have that if you want, but it won¡¯t come for free.¡± The group of thugs burst into laughter, giving each other high fives and chortling as they passed the dice back and forth. Learner glanced over at Kala curiously. ¡°They¡¯re being obscene and sexually aggressive to put us on the defensive in this interaction.¡± Kala answered. ¡°Wut?¡± the first thug grunted, frowning, his bushy eyebrows furrowing at the dispassionate, clinical response. This time it was Ella¡¯s turn to chuckle, a small smile forming at the corner of her mouth. ¡°Can I do that too?¡± Learner asked. ¡°I don¡¯t see why not.¡± Kala said, motioning to the table. ¡°It¡¯d be a shame if you couldn¡¯t help us,¡± Learner said, turning back to the table. She leaned forward, affording them a generous view of her cleavage. ¡°It¡¯s been too long since I had a big strong Juntai man¡­inside me.¡± They broke out laughing and crowing until Learner smiled, her lips splitting apart down the sides of her neck to reveal teeth all the way down. ¡°Hersus, FUCK!¡± the closest man to Learner bolted out of his chair, hitting the ground and scrambling away in a crabwalk until his skull hit the edge of the next table over. The others rose to their feet in an instant, eyes wide. ¡°Good use of a double entendre,¡± Kala said, petting Learner on the head. ¡°Are they on the defensive now?¡± Learner asked. Kala scanned the group of men, their body language tinged with fear and alarm. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You get that mutant away from our table, and out of the city, if you know what¡¯s good for you.¡± the leader with the scar said, doing his best to look intimidating. ¡°I¡¯d be happy to¡­¡± Kala said. ¡°If you could tell us where to buy some of Allast¡¯s local specialties.¡± Kala said, jingling her purse, laden with copper. He hesitated. ¡°Get it? Inside me, implying both breeding and that I¡¯ll eat you?¡± Learner asked. ¡°Three blocks to the south, there¡¯s a warehouse with a red brick path leading to the entrance and bouncers outside, just leave us alone!¡± the man stammered. ¡°I¡¯m all in,¡± Ella said into the ensuing silence, shoving her pile of money toward the center of the table and rolling the dice. ¡°Oh, no, a seven, it looks like I lost all my money,¡± Ella said in monotone, standing up from the table and hopping around to the street side to stand beside Kala. ¡°This looks like it¡¯ll be more fun, anyway,¡± she whispered into Kala¡¯s ear as they left, sending a thrill down her spine. A hand roughly gripping her butt elicited a yelp, and Kala jumped in place before she smacked Ella¡¯s hand away, heart hammering. ¡°Not in front of the child and nameless thugs,¡± Kala chided, the sensation slowly spreading through her hips. ¡°I¡¯ve already observed the two of you breeding on several occasions. That wasn¡¯t enough to shock me.¡± Learner said from ahead of them. Girl¡¯s got eyes in the back of her head, Kala thought as she noted the faint shimmering concealed by Learner¡¯s hair. ¡°If I catch you doing that again,¡± Kala said, pointing at her, ¡°I¡¯ll send you to your room. Do you want to be sent to your room?¡± ¡°¡­No¡­¡± Learner said, her shoulders slumping slightly. ¡°You¡¯ve both got to learn to respect people¡¯s boundaries. Now let¡¯s go find those drug dealers and entrap them into giving us their product.¡± The three of them meandered to the south, passing the time with idle chat about their lives and what they¡¯d been up to recently. Ella stole the show with stories about Baroke and Calvin¡¯s aimless suffering in the wilds outside of the city, while Learner tried and failed to use human language to describe her childhood. They walked until the bustling marketplace gave way to warehouses near the south of the city. Most of them were for holding lumber and dry goods, but one in particular had rather serious looking bouncers sitting in front of the door, playing a similar dice game to the one they¡¯d left previously. This particular warehouse had a red brick path set into the hard-packed earth, making the comings and goings of wagons less likely to get stuck in their front yard, presumably. ¡°Can I try again?¡± Learner said, turning to face Kala and unconsciously bouncing with excitement, her entire body jiggling with unnatural perkiness. ¡°I don¡¯t see why not, but try something a little more understated than ¡®we¡¯d like to buy some drugs. Try a cover story this time.¡± ¡°Yay!¡± Learner turned and approached the table. The men were far more wary than the ones in the marketplace, and they stood as she approached, hands inching toward their weapons. ¡°What you want?¡± the man on the left demanded, eyes narrowed. Learner crossed her arms under her chest and subtly pushed up, putting her finger in her mouth as if in thought while cocking her hips. The stance looked highly difficult to pull off with actual bones, but Learner made it work. ¡°My sister and I took a tour of the pleasure district last week, and there was this¡­stuff? that made us feel sooo good! We¡¯re heading back to Gadvera in another week or two and we were hoping we could take some home with us.¡± Learner reached over and fondled Kala¡¯s purse, grinning at the bouncers as the copper tinkled inside the bag. ¡°And who¡¯s she?¡± ¡°She¡¯s my sister¡¯s bodyguard, obviously.¡± ¡°Huh. You with the guard?¡± ¡°Look our faces,¡± Learner said, gesturing between them. ¡°I mean, duh.¡± The left hand guard chewed on his lip for a moment, before shouting a single word at the top of his lungs. ¡°Boss!¡± There was some clattering and a middle aged Juntai man stuck his head out of the warehouse, glaring at the bouncer. ¡°They wanna meet with you!¡± the bouncer shouted, pointing a thumb at the group of women. The man scanned the three of them, his eyebrows rising. ¡°Come on in.¡± he said, standing out of the way. ¡°Yay!¡± Learner pranced through the door, followed by Kala and Ella. A moment later, the man closed the door behind them, dropping a heavy steel bar over the entrance, locking them inside. The meeting went just about as well as Kala anticipated. In short: incredibly sleazy and predictable. ¡°This the stuff you were looking for?¡± The dealer asked, offering her what she assumed was something highly addictive that would render her senseless so that she and the others could be taken advantage of. ¡°That¡¯s exactly the stuff! She said wide eyed. ¡°How much for a brick, about yay?¡± she asked, motioning with her hands. ¡°Why don¡¯t you try some, make sure it¡¯s the right stuff?¡± he said with a grin, the smell from his rotting tooth making it difficult not to gag. ¡°I don¡¯t want to fall asleep here.¡± Kala said with her sweetest smile. ¡°No offense.¡± ¡°None taken, but you¡¯re not leaving here without trying some.¡± He said as more men gradually filled the space of the warehouse. A couple of the bigger ones stepped forward and seized Ella¡¯s arms. Two more grabbed learner, and another seized the back of her head. ¡°And once you do, you¡¯re never gonna wanna come back to reality,¡± he said with a chuckle, leaning forward with a spoon full of flaky orange powder aimed at her nose. ¡°You¡¯re not gonna care where you are, or who you¡¯re with.¡± Kala no longer had any doubt that the stuff was exactly what she didn¡¯t want to smoke. ¡°Is this the part where we beat them up and take their stuff?¡± Learner asked. ¡°Indeed it is.¡± Kala used Beli Ma to fling the spoon up into the man¡¯s eye while her other hand grabbed the wrist in her hair and crushed it between her fingers with a crack. Ella¡¯s skin turned silvery-red and she shrugged the men holding her off and punched through one of their heads. Learner grew spines out of her back, skewering the two men restraining her before insectoid legs burst out of her chest, lifting her rapidly changing body into the air. They hewed through the surrounding thugs like a sharp scythe through wheat, breaking their morale in a matter of seconds. Ella tore through man after man, painting herself in blood while Learner did similarly. Kala didn¡¯t agree with their level of violence, but it was the best way of making sure no one came after them for revenge. She didn¡¯t end them as violently as the other two, but the men who attacked Kala were left in no position to retaliate. Ella was cornering one of the thugs with her steel fists, preparing to take his life, when Learner made one of her typical timely observations. ¡°So, let me get this straight. It¡¯s emotionally far easier for humans to hurt other humans when they don¡¯t know their names, correct? That¡¯s why neither of us asked, right? Because we were planning on hurting each other?¡± ¡°My name¡¯s Berack!¡± the man in front of Ella shouted, cowering as he guarded his face. ¡°I¡¯ve got a wife and two children!¡± Ella hesitated, putting her fist down with a frown. ¡°I¡¯m Treva! My house is a lovely green! ¡°My name¡¯s Andur! I don¡¯t wanna die!¡± More and more names echoed around them, causing Kala to sigh. Sometimes it surprises me how observant she is. ¡°My name¡¯s Kala, this is Learner and Ella,¡± She said, picking up the chair she¡¯d toppled when the fight started. She set it back down in front of the table and sat in it. ¡°Now, would anyone like to deal with us in good faith?¡± Macronomicon Chapter 179: Back to Business After Calvin got clean and began feeling like a human again, he started noticing things. In the week he¡¯d been gone, there had been some subtle and some not-so-subtle changes in the city of Allast. One of the not-so-subtle changes were the guards stationed at every street corner, giving peope the stink-eye, while random passerby where stopped and their temples and hands checked. ¡°What¡¯s all this?¡± Calvin asked Kala as they walked to the meeting. This one wasn¡¯t so annoying as to have a ¡®men only¡¯ restriction, so Calvin was planning on taking full advantage of Kala¡¯s presence. ¡°It¡¯s the Diocese response to word of a mutant killer potentially at large,¡± Kala responded, a sour look on her face. ¡°The Diocese¡¯s surgeons found undeniable proof the man was a mutant, and with Learner¡¯s testimony, they were able to create a profile of traits to look for.¡± ¡°Now they¡¯re searching everyone for signs?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Pretty much.¡± Crude and ineffective. Calvin thought, but he didn¡¯t have a better suggestion that didn¡¯t involve him stepping in and taking care of Juntai¡¯s problem personally. At least the guardsmen were businesslike and dispassionate as they checked citizens for signs of mutation. Kala and Calvin put their heads down and kept walking, but it was only a matter of time before they were stopped and checked. Calvin restrained himself from rolling his eyes as the Juntai guardsmen gave them a once-over. He was seething when the same thing happened at the second streetcorner. At the fifth one he was already dead inside. ¡°We stand out.¡± Kala said with a shrug. ¡°Get used to it. People see us standing out and naturally think they¡¯re the first ones to notice.¡± She gave him a wry smile. ¡°You know just how to say things to help me understand other people¡¯s dumb.¡± Calvin said, linking arms with her as they walked. ¡°It¡¯s my pleasure to bridge the gap for you,¡± Kala said with a brilliant smile. At least until they got stopped at the next streetcorner. As a random Juntai man that Calvin didn¡¯t know clamped his rough, dirty fingers around Calvin¡¯s skull and turned his head from side to side, looking for trepanning holes, Calvin was slowly cementing his plan to make a get out of my way I.D. card I¡¯ll use Lure dust mixed with trait doctoring, stealing the identity of other I.D. card until the lure dust¡­ learns it? Maybe consult with Jinsei on some Nem glass to create enchanted glass. Calvin had no idea how to infuse the complacency aura into glass but now would be a good time to try. Speaking of which, Calvin thought, waiting for the guard to let him go and motion for the next victim. ¡°Take my hand so you don¡¯t wander off.¡± Clavin said, grasping Kala¡¯s hand with his own then putting his thumb on the Complacency component. He wasn¡¯t sure how the spell would affect their ability to keep track of each other. ¡°Ah,¡± Kala nodded in understanding. Multi Gradual Splitting. 36/47 Bent remaining. The catalysts and a bit of Calvin¡¯s and Kala¡¯s blood began passing through the shrunken, preserved Stalker organ, converting from matter into complacency. Suddenly no one cared about them. They walked past the checkpoints on the corner of every street, the eyes of observers simply sliding off them. Totally worth a Bent, Calvin thought as he saved an estimated hour and a half getting to the lumberyard. The man who replaced Carem Sageva was neither handsome nor particularly intelligent. He was, however, old, wealthy, and respected, which¡­kind of made up for it? Gunder Pine was fat, with a bulbous nose and balding head, but while his appearance was appalling, the energy he conveyed in his movements and the genuine smile made him actually somewhat attractive. He was wrapped in a single bolt of cloth that protected his modestly, standard fare for the jungle, but the bolt itself was obviously an import from Boles: Rich green silk embroidered with gold thread to boot. Calvin could only imagine the pains that must have been taken to make that cloth, embroider it, transport it throuands of miles through monster infested wilds only to wrap it around a fat man. Life was funny sometimes. ¡°Welcome, Welcome!¡± the man, one Gunder Pine said, the overweight man spreading his arms jovially as they approached. ¡°I¡¯ve been anxiously awaiting the opportunity to meet you! The savant of negotiation who established the first major trade agreement between our nation and another.¡± ¡°If anything,¡± Calvin said, shaking the man¡¯s proffered hand. ¡°When it comes to people, I¡¯m frankly the opposite of a savant, Which is why I rely on the strengths of other savants.¡± ¡°I see. I see,¡± he said with a grin. ¡°And who¡¯s this?¡± ¡°This is my wife, one of my stable of people specialists.¡± Kala raised a brow at the ¡®Stable¡¯ comment, but simply nodded gracefully, not offering her hand. In juntai shaking a married woman¡¯s hand was tantamount to adultery, so no one ever really appreciated being offered a handshake. Except for a few creeps. ¡°I can tell just by looking at you that you¡¯re genuinely excited to see this business underway,¡± She said before cocking her head, her eyes looking through Gunder. ¡°I can also tell you have a consistent, longstanding reputation for enriching your friends and punishing your enemies. So I suppose the blunt question should be, how can we become your friends, Mr. Pine?¡± ¡°Ooh, she is good,¡± Gunder said with a grin. ¡°Come in, come in, let¡¯s talk sitting down and have something to drink. ¡°I¡¯m sure the walk over was exhausting, what with all those checkpoints.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not wrong,¡± Calvin said, following him inside a rough-hewn log cabin that showed signs of being picked up and moved from site to site. Inside was a round table composed of a single cross-section of a tree that must have been gigantic. Calvin could lie down on the polished wood with no hope of reaching either end. Calvin sat down and graciously accepted some tea, and that was the end of his involvement in the process, aside from the occasional nod and thoughtful noise. In the end, Calvin simply sipped his tea while he watched Kala charm the pants off the man. Not that anyone present was wearing pants. It was too hot for that. *** After witnessing what was no doubt a masterclass in ingratiating yourself while extracting the best deal possible, Calvin reviewed it mentally and found that there were some logic leaps that had been made in the fluid, rapidfire conversation that his skill simply couldn¡¯t let him parse, like he¡¯d missed out on parts of the conversation. Were they body language, like at the market with Kala and Ella, or cultural exchanges unique to Juntai natives that he was totally unaware of, and Kala somehow was? She had a lot of free time recently. Perhaps she¡¯d dug into local culture. Calvin had no idea which it was, or if it was some foreign people concept that he had no idea even existed. Well, that¡¯s why I brought her along, anyway, Calvin thought to himself as they left the meeting. The terms of the deal were as such: Calvin would take over the burden of constructing a both a railway of steel the eight hundred and forty-two miles between Allast and Calvin¡¯s territory, and a contraption that could navigate between them. In exchange, Gunder would take on the burden of maintaining all the rail lines between Juntai and Gadvera, as well as grooming and employing railway operators to navigate between the two. Both of them would receive a sizeable fraction of the final profit of goods moved back and forth between the two cities via the trains. You¡¯re gonna help with designing that, right? Please. I could design a simple DC motor in my sleep. Plus I think the Knick-knacks could do it even easier. It¡¯s gonna take a lot of copper though. Calvin glanced around at all the copper everyone was wearing on the street. Although copper was highly valued as a material, on par with gold, it didn¡¯t mean they were lacking it. Calvin was concerned with how much steel it would take, though You want an approximate number? A metric fuck-ton. After a bit of math, Calvin discovered something. No nation in the known world had enough iron to simply bridge the gap between Juntai and Gadvera. It was unfeasible. Literal tons upon tons of iron to simply go a few hundred feet. Well you are trying to use magic to skip a few crucial steps of the industrial revolution. Might as well lean into it. Once the rails are up, maintenance will be affordable and within the realm of a pre-industrial nation, the sheer quantity of wealth generated by the trains will allow for that. Alright. Let¡¯s make this happen. Calvin and Kala travelled to the north-western side of Allast and began setting up the trainyard, where good would be loaded and offloaded. Calvinian Summoning. ¡­. 30/47 Bent remaining. Calvin set the first group of oversized Knick-knacks on clearing the land. He made six enormous knick-knacks, each one weighing in at twenty-seven thousand pounds, which was the absolute limit of the spell¡¯s mass. Fun fact. The average farm tractor weighs six thousand pounds. The gigantic metal men lumbered from place to place, shaking the very ground as they tore trees out of the jungle floor like a gardener plucks weeds, tossing the huge lengths of raw wood idly aside as they created an ever-expanding clearing. The trees shook the ground and hurt the ears as they landed, adding to the chaos Calvinian Summoning. 26/47 Bent Remaining. The next group, smaller in size, but larger in number, followed behind and cleared smaller shrubs, filled holes left by trees and stamped down the earth to pack it tighter. They also swarmed over the growing pile of trees, stripping tree branches and slicing wood, converting the pile into raw lumber, which they transported to a separate, pile, where¡­ Oh right. Calvin touched the canister of drying powder on his belt. Shaping 25/47 Bent remaining. Calvin created a large bucket containing four hundred and eighty pounds of the specially prepared Ooze-weaver slime, but he was almost positive that wasn¡¯t going to be enough to treat all the tons and tons of raw lumber. I¡¯ll create more as I need it. Calvin considered his Bent stores. This may not be enough. I¡¯ll have to dispatch Nadia to collect more Bent. If I have to I guess¡­ Nadia said in his mind, her tone studiously bored. But then again, she¡¯s been successfully targeted by a mind-slurper twice, so a better choice would be Kurawe. It would be an honor. No, godsdamnit! You can¡¯t make me a prisoner because some shmuck got lucky twice! If someone tries to get up close and personal with me I¡¯ll stab him and that¡¯ll be the end of that. Nadia said. You realize getting up close and personal is exactly what I need you to do to get Bent? You can¡¯t just stab everyone. I was hoping you wouldn¡¯t realize that. Calvin rolled his eyes, about to summon Kurawe again. About that, Elliot interjected. Why not use Master-baiter on her and Chimera to make her skull impenetrable? He¡¯s already gone for her twice, so she¡¯s obviously attractive to him. You use Master-Baiter on her with the proper setup and we could get this guy without having to do a city-wide sweep. Not a bad idea, Calvin thought, nodding. Okay, Nadia, you¡¯re going to get your wish. You get free time in the city in exchange for Bent production. Yuss! Nadia gave a grunt-like exclamation with what felt like a hand-pump However, I¡¯m going to have to make some¡­minor changes to your physiology. ¡­I don¡¯t like the sound of that. Don¡¯t worry, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem unless someone tries to eat your brains. And I mean, if you¡¯re at that point, it¡¯ll probably be preferable to getting your brains eaten. You make a solid argument. Let¡¯s see Nadia¡¯s body. Visualize. A perfect representation of Nadia¡¯s body appeared in his mind¡¯s eye, sans clothes. Calvin ignored it and changing the transparency of everything except for the brain, nervous system and modifications. Load up all the modifications we¡¯ve listed as successful. Tubes appeared, beginning in her forearms and leading to her fingertips, where the Spinner goop made reality warping blades. On her parietal lobe, a thin film of Lure sensory nerves interfaced with her brain. In her ribcage and hips, several clusters of Spinner flight organs appeared, attached to the relatively sturdy portions of her frame. Remind me to make it so she can breathe fire, Calvin thought, thinking of the Fire-Worm as he made Nadia¡¯s lungs and trachea visible again. No promises. It would probably be better to situate the gland in her mouth or¡­perhaps have the nozzle under her tongue? Would that make it harder to breath out the fluid if her tongue was obstructing the pathway? Calvin thought to himself as he made everything clear except for her jaw, tongue, and windpipe, pulling the image up close to himself and rotating it so he was viewing it from under her jaw. I would need to make sure there was enough momentum before it cought fire outside her face, else she¡¯s burn it off or explode every time she tried to breathe fire¡­Unless one of my summons is fireproof, which I doubt. You¡¯re getting distracted. Oh, right. Put a pin in it. Calvin changed the view to Nadia¡¯s skull and immediately began booby-trapping it. He accomplished this by turning her skull into swiss cheese and replacing it with packets of unactivated crystal Lattice catalyst. There, right there! You can¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t know what swiss cheese is. A kind of cheese that¡¯s got a lot of holes. Yeah, but why is it called Swiss? Because it¡¯s full of holes? That¡¯s what swiss means. Ugh, whatever. If anyone tried to poke one of the packets residing in the many, many holes in Nadia¡¯s head, it wouldn¡¯t go well for them. Namely an eruption of razor-sharp, magic-resistant crystal to the face. This isn¡¯t going to be a standard change, Calvin thought, directing the words at Nadia. You¡¯re not always going to be hunted by a brain sucker, but in the meantime¡­try not to scratch your head too hard, m¡¯kay? Got it. Once Calvin was done with Bait Nadia, he made Stealth Kurawe to keep an eye on her. Calvin was briefly considering giving Nadia the role of supervising herself, then realized that was stupid. Kurawe was reduced in size from seven feet to five, made thinner and more inconspicuous by replacing his copious fat reserves with Nadia¡¯s and given several additions from a Stalker, giving him a small Complacency aura of his own, as well as a matching booby trap on his own skull: No way the brain-slurping bastard was getting another of his summons for free. The demagogue zealot wasn¡¯t bad looking once the modifications were in place. A short, slender, somewhat handsome older man. Calvin didn¡¯t trust either of them as much as Kala, but he trusted Kurawe¡¯s blind devotion just a bit more than Nadia. Chained Spirit Chimera 24/47 Bent remaining Calvin held out his hand and Nadia materialized out of the green smoke, hesitantly touching her skull. ¡°try not to play with it.¡± Calvin said, holding out his other hand. Chained Spirit Chimera 23/47 Bent remaining. Midget Kurawe appeared in front of him, kneeling. ¡°You two know what you need to do,¡± Calvin said to the two of them. ¡°Observe her with the complacency aura on at all times. If she¡¯s attacked, don¡¯t interfere, just report it back to me. And of course this goes without saying, but if she tries to undermine me, I¡¯d like to know about that too.¡± ¡°As you wish, Ravager,¡± Kurawe said, lowering his head even further. ¡°Why¡¯s he gotta spy on me?¡± Nadia demanded scowling at the midget giant. Kurawe turned on the complacency aura, fading from concern. ¡°Well, whatever. I guess it¡¯s fine.¡± Calvin straightened Nadia¡¯s collar, activating Master Baiter. ¡°Go do your jobs.¡± The two summons turned and trotted along the dirt path leading back to the city, drawing Calvin¡¯s attention to where Gunder Pine was exiting the treeline, trailed by several dozen fit young men with lumberjack equipment. ¡°Good evening,¡± Calvin called over the din of trees landing on the ground, saws cutting through wood and mechanical muscles whining with effort. He walked up to where the aging businessman stood, his jowels quivering under his open mouth. ¡°I thought¡­I thought you might need some help, since it¡¯s going to be years¡­before¡­we can get started.¡± Gunder said, staring at the massive metal men plucking ancient trees out of the ground with zero apparent effort, their weight so unbelievably massive that they sanke deep into the ground as they walked. ¡°Years?¡± Calvin asked incredulously, chuckling. ¡°I¡¯ll have this done in a month. Why do you think we incentivized you with better returns the faster we finish? We wanted to establish goodwill.¡± Calvin had a thought. ¡°There is one thing you can help with.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Any of you have any good, high quality steel?¡± Calvin asked. Calvinian summoning. 22/47 Bent remaining. Calvin summoned a Calvin Mass Converter, causing the people assembled to reel back in surprise as the enormous slug-monster manifested in front of him shortly before one of the nearby metal giants picked it up and moved it to the side of the recently cleared land. ¡°I¡­ah, what?¡± Gulder¡¯s attention snapped back to Calvin as the CMC began being fed wood and stone while being energetically milked by the nearby smaller knick-knacks. ¡°Good, high quality steel, as close to perfect as you¡¯ve got,¡± Calvin said. ¡°preferably non-tarnishing.¡± Gunder glanced up at the slug monster making whole strees disappear, then back to Calvin¡¯s face, shaking himself out of his stupor. ¡°I¡¯ve got this blade,¡± he said, pulling out a thin knife from his belt. It was obviously worn from time and multiple resharpenings, but the steel looked absolutely fine. ¡°It was my grandfathers, been in the family forty years. Never a bit of rust.¡± Calvin accepted it from the man and turned it back and forth in his hand. ¡°Gunder, would you do me the honor of allowing me to use your grandfather¡¯s blade as the first rail of the line that will connect Allast with the outside world?¡± Gunder¡¯s face slowly broke into a smile. ¡°I like you, kid.¡± ¡°I like me too.¡± Calvin said, handing the knife back. ¡°Kneel down and hold the knife at ankle-level.¡± Calvin said, his Intuition telling him it was better for Gunder to do this part himself. Gunder needed to feel like a part of what was happening. Gunder did so, and watched with unconcealed wonder as a dozen smaller knickknacks took the undifferentiated matter and began carefully piping it to the tip of the dagger, creating a large swell of fine steel at the tip of the knife where all three liquids intersected. They moved with unnatural precision, piping an enormous, perfectly straight and smooth metal beam using the gush of fluid milked from the CMC, occasionally cleaning up a bump too small for Calvin¡¯s eyes to make out with grinding wheels. In a matter of seconds, they had the first rail completed, and Gunder broke his knife away from the rail with a twist of his hand. The disconnect left a small chunk torn out of the blade¡¯s tip, which he stared at in awe. ¡°I can have them clean that up for you if you want.¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ll keep it.¡± Gunder said with a smile, slipping the pitted blade back into its sheath. ¡°Something tells me my family heirloom is gonna be famous.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 180: General Electric Okay, so this is how an electric motor works: Elliot then went into a long and convoluted explanation that for the most part, went over Calvin¡¯s head, including when he got to Lorentz Law, talking about magnetic fields that he¡¯d never seen nor heard of, forcing the copper rotate to align with it, along with anograms Elliot obviously expected him to understand and didn¡¯t bother explaining, such as back EMF. You know what, just give me a second, I¡¯m gonna load something in Visualize. A minute later, a picture popped up in Calvin¡¯s mind¡¯s eye. One of Elliot¡¯s ¡®motors¡¯, a simple ring of tightly wound copper hovering above a lodestone. Now, when electricity goes through here, it follows the path of the copper, -this copper is insulated, by the way, so the current can¡¯t jump straight to the end ¨C forcing the electrons to go in a circle like this forces the magnetic field of the copper wire to align, lusting after the magnet. This process causes the loop of copper to turn, then the other side wants to go after the magnet, causing it to spin. I¡¯m extremely dumbing this down for you considering you¡¯re all spear-chucking savage. Lusting? Shaddap. Anywho, this single loop is slow and only has force exerted on it at odd intervals, making it turn at variable speeds, the solution is to add another loop. The loop doubled, making two loops perpendicular to each other. Then you want an even smoother turn, add another loop. And another. In Visualize, the loop of fine copper with a single magnet was replaced with a snarl of fine copper tightly wound like the thread around an old woman¡¯s awl, held together with rounded iron plates. Now, since there¡¯s no single magnet big enough to run a train ¨C barring magic, of course ¨C we¡¯re going to use an electromagnet. The outside of the motor was filled in by a massive set of iron plates threaded with even more copper, making a downright confusing snarl of copper and iron. Now all you have to do is scale it up - The motor increased in size in front of Calvin¡¯s eyes, becoming larger than a man. two bundles of copper wires jutted out either side, connected to both the exterior and interior. Have one of your E-Savages feed lightning through these two ends, and Blam, a simple, lightning powered train engine. A fan appeared at the back of the motor. Maybe add a fan to deal with overheating. Calvin rubbed his hands together and glanced over at Kala, who was scribbling desperately in her journal, tongue peeking out the side of her mouth as she concentrated. ¡°Did you get all that?¡± He asked. ¡°mmmaybe?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll understand it better after we try it a couple times.¡± Calvin said. Calvinian Summoning. 42/47 Bent remaining. Just under a hundred Knick-knacks coalesced out of green smoke, adding even more of the metal men to the already bustling scene. ¡°Alright, today we¡¯re going to be building a train,¡± Calvin said, hands on his hips. ¡°Something I have very little knowledge of, except for the basics¡­¡± I wonder if I could use Lure parts that make a train that runs off of greed. That would work really well. ¡°Focus,¡± Kala chided. ¡°Right.¡± Visualize. Calvin pictured the train¡¯s wheels, designed to cling tightly to the track, then the system of gears to provide them with power, the base of the trains¡¯ floor, resting above, then the cargo container walls. Then he went back and meticulously made sure the gears all connected back to a single space in the front of the train that would provide all the force, where the motor would lie. Calvin spun the wheels in his imagination, watching as they behaved exactly as he intended to them. Then he mentally pushed the Visualization across the link between him and the Knick-knacks. The knick-knacks immediately got to work making his vision a reality. Drafting has reached level 19! 90% Foreman, the third Ability that he¡¯d chosen for Drafting, allowed his Knicknacks, or anyone else working on his behalf, to receive a bonus equal to his correction to their attempts to make his design a reality. It was an excellent Ability for the leader of a construction company to have. Oddly enough, he didn¡¯t notice a terrific difference with Kncik-knacks, but that was likely because they were already so fast and precise. Doubling their accuracy most likely made a difference, only the difference was so small as to be imperceptible. On sloppy humans though, it made a huge difference. The Juntai men hammering iron spikes into the rails with heavy iron mallets were working like a well-oiled machine, their motions quicker and more coordinated than they might have been otherwise. They had wanted to stay and help lay track, and Calvin had allowed it, despite the fact that Knick-knacks could¡¯ve done it faster and likely better. Still, it was free labor, and the more they worked on the track, the more they felt like it was theirs. Calvin glanced over the track itself, stretching back toward the city, and the track going forward, where giant knick-knacks were ripping up trees in a straight line toward the mountains, followed by two giant slugs eating aforementioned trees, all while a bucket relay of knick-knacks fitted with little piping mechanisms ran back and forth between the slug¡¯s teats and the rails, working seamlessly to create new bars of steel one after the other, cutting them apart when they grew too long. Calvin could have made the entire track a single piece of iron but that would have made repairing the thing damn near impossible for anyone but him. Calvin wanted repairing the track to be something a nation could do. Something his nation could do. Twenty-seven miles so far today. Calvin thought, glancing up at the slowly lowering sun. his minions were laying track at about a walking pace, or three miles an hour. His summons lasted fifteen hours exactly, allowing him to do approximately forty-five miles of track per group of summoned creatures. A full group was six large knick-knacks to remove trees, 5 summons worth of smaller ones to clear brush, strip trees and pack earth, and two huge Calvinian Mass Converters to convert raw mass into the steel rails that they needed. That was thirteen Bent per day. Calvin regained just over twelve Bent daily, so he was operating at a net loss, not including Nadia¡¯s contributions. If he included her contributions, that meant he had enough spare to see to the construction of the first train to take everyone back to the city for the night. Calvin was briefly tempted to summon another group of knick-knacks and CMCs to work through the night while he slept, but he didn¡¯t feel comfortable letting them lay track all night without human supervision. Construction of the train¡¯s body went smoothly, albeit in a sort of shower of sparks as they used the saws built into their hands to cut rough-formed globs of steel grown off a nearby rail into wheels, machining out areas where the additive sculpting method of piping in undifferentiated matter was ineffective. They took the wheels, stood them up and created a pole between them in a matter of seconds, then welded them together using undifferentiated matter, then started on the next set of wheels. Huh, I never thought to use it as a welding material, I wonder where they got the idea. In a little under a half hour, the knick-knacks had created the head of the train, then began rapidly building simple open platforms behind it at Calvin¡¯s instruction, neglecting the box-like side walls. They could sit out in the open on their way back. As the train was shaping up, Calvin set another team of Knick-knacks to the task of creating a motor for it. A little backstory: According to Kala, the Juntai believed that their control over lightning was a gift to their people specifically from the gods, and it was taboo to tell outsiders how to gain the Skill. Which is why Calvin had her do a little asking around to see how well received a gigantic engine designed to harness aforementioned divine power might sit with the natives. They had those massive flywheels dotted throughout their cities, designed to store the Bent of their warriors from day to day, to be used as heat for women to cook, to heat houses and dry laundry, fry criminals, smelt iron and bake clay into bricks. It was the strangest thing that they had the technology to spin a flywheel, but not apply it to anything except heat generation. Calvin couldn¡¯t quite figure out what the barrier was that prevented them from reverse engineering those flywheels to create transportation. Until he understood the role the Diocese played in their society. Only the Diocese understood the divine gift enough to use the relics of the ancients. Or in other words, they¡¯re the only ones with a basic education on electricity and they¡¯ve used it to become god-kings. Nice. Which was why, when people asked him what the Knick-knacks were making, Calvin pretended to be receiving divine instruction from the Diocese of trade to create the engine. One thing Calvin had come to realize in his lifetime was that if someone repeats something emphatically and with enough conviction enough times, people will believe just about anything. Especially if they¡¯ve already been trained to believe it. The hardest part of the motor had been finding an insulator. Good iron was plentiful, good copper was plentiful, he could grab a sample of either and have the knick-knacks grow more as necessary. The plates were easy, springs were easy, the brushes were easy, but making the damned insulator was a struggle. The Juntai used a certain tree-sap as an insulator, but it refused to apply in thinner quantities, and it was lumpy and impure. Calvin was forced to assign a seperat unit of knick-kacks to the task of finding a good insulator, boiling and filtering the sap of the tree before applying several different alchemical ingredients to it. It had modest success, but they were unable to find something that could be applied in a coat invisible to the naked eye, like in Elliot¡¯s picture, and the coats had a tendancy to flake or chip. I need to somehow raise the durability¡­ Calvin blinked. I¡¯ve got something exactly for that. He thought, hand touching on the Mage Armor component on his belt. Why not mix the sap with refined Toad glue? The three headed toad from the abyss had a mutation that allowed it¡¯s skin to be more resilliant than common sense dictated that it should be. Calvin flew back to his wagon, dug through the jars until he found Toad skin powder, then flew back, all in front of gawking Juntai workers. When he got back, he instructed the knick-knacks to make new mixtures with the addition of toad skin powder. The resulting substance was an unbelievably fine mix that seemed to drip off the wire it was coated on, yet just enough of it clung to prevent electricity from jumping from one wire to another. Try as he might, Calvin couldn¡¯t bend the wire in such a way that the coating came off, provin git¡¯s effectiveness under strain. It held up well to heat as well, only burning off once the wire itself took on a cherry red hue. Excellent. Once Calvin had his mix, he set the Knick-knacks to assembling the motor that would power the train. The motor was about three paces wide and nine paces long, a massive array of coiled copper wires, and it grew at blistering speeds in the center of the head car as the knick-knacks coated and wound wire, assembling the plates at high speeds, tack-welding them in place with tiny dollops of undifferentiated mass. The creatures weren¡¯t slowed down by the apparent complexity of the task. If anything, the knick-knacks seemed to be enjoying the challenge, swarming over the hulking steel construction at full speed, some porting matter back and forth, others cleaning and polishing rough edges, while others produced and coated lengths of copper wire, handing them off to the winders who created tightly sandwiched bundles of copper the width of Calvin¡¯s thigh. Still other knick-knacks measured every aspect of the motor repeatedly, with zero tolerance for deviation from the blueprint. As the sun went down and the human workers grew tired from a long day of nailing the rails to the treated wood underneath, many of them stopped to admire the construction forming on the tracks. ¡°We¡¯re gonna head home for the night,¡± Gunder said, approaching Calvin with a heavy iron mallet over his shoulder. ¡°If we jog back, we can get back to Allast in time for bed.¡± Gunder chewed his lip, glancing over the tracks. ¡°I never would have thought this kind of speed was possible. Makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.¡± ¡°From the potential profits?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°What else? I was expecting to sit on this investment for over a year before anything came of it.¡± He glanced back the way they¡¯d come. ¡°We¡¯re gonna have to start porting stuff out to the workers starting tomorrow. They¡¯re going to be too far away from the city to get back to their own beds by tomorrow night.¡± ¡°That should be easy.¡± Calvin said, pointing at the train, where the Kncik-knacks were putting the finishing touches on the motor, connecting it¡¯s shaft to the gearbox. ¡°We¡¯re pioneering a way to transport large amounts of product. I don¡¯t see why we couldn¡¯t use the very same thing to help in its own construction.¡± ¡°Is it ready to use?¡± Gunder asked. ¡°Give it fifteen minutes, then one of you can be the first man to drive it.¡± Fifteen minutes later, the Knick-knacks had assembled the basic skelton of a train. The walls were missing, and it was essentially a motor on a platform with wheels, but once they put up the siding, it would be a complete product. It didn¡¯t need walls to move, though, and so it was with great anticipation that every human present hopped aboard and waited for Gunder to get the machine moving. The balding fat man slipped an oversized copper bracer onto his wrist, lined the studs on his palm up with the receivers on the motor, then unleashed a wave of lightning. Nothing happened. ¡°Whoops,¡± Calvin muttered, going over to the gearbox and manually switching to the lowest possible gear. ¡°Try again.¡± Another bolt of lighting shot out into the motor, and the entire train lurched forward, to a general shout of enthusiasm. While everyone¡¯s spirits were high, Calvin was panicking. I thought this was supposed to be reverse! They were inching forward with only a few hundred feet of track built in front of them. Calvin ran forward before slamming the break lever down, then running over to the gearbox and putting the gear in forward. A moment later he lifted the break and nodded for Gunder to continue. A moment later, the entire train was moving backwards, slowly picking up speed until they were moving at the speed of a trotting Guar, the wind beginning to tickle through their hair. At their fastest speed, some of the Juntai warriors were standing at the back of the train and screaming for the sheer joy of it. They weren¡¯t going faster than a trained Veteran could run, but they were carrying several tons of equipment like it was nothing, with the power of a single man. Kala hugged Calvin across the chest as they began the smooth journey back to Allast, the only sound the train making was a soft clicking as the wheels went over the tiny gaps between individual rails. ¡°Your gearbox is backwards.¡± She said, nuzzling into his neck. How was I supposed to know which pole was north and which was south? I can¡¯t see the damn thing. ¡°Easy fix,¡± Calvin said. A moment later, a knick-knack crawled up and cut the stenciled ¡®forward¡¯ and ¡®Backward¡¯ off their respective positions above and below the lever, switching them and then welding them back in place. Problem solved. Macronomicon Good times. Chapter 181: Use of Force Carem walked down the street with complete confidence. Anything less would get him stopped by the guard for a screening. They picked up on subtle cues, targeting people who were hesitant or nervous about the armed security at every corner. Carem was both, but he didn¡¯t let it show in his mannerisms. That would be self-defeating. The wounds on his temple had long since healed, likely thanks to the roots, and the guards searching for the hard cancerous lumps in his forearms were always hesitant to really press down hard on a woman. One of only a handful of benefits. Carem thought with a scowl. Ever since taking residence in Elina¡¯s body, it was as if he¡¯d become invisible overnight, and that grated on his ego. No, he needed to get a new body as soon as possible. His operating theory was that he needed to subordinate another¡¯s will until they were at his complete mercy before moving over to them. Maybe you didn¡¯t move. Maybe you¡¯re just another copy. Like dad. That means you¡¯re stuck in this body. Carem shuddered, physically brushing off that thought with a wave of his arm, disguised as adjusting his shawl. No. I have the roots. None of the copies ever had the roots. Dad never had the roots. Maybe some of them would have, if you hadn¡¯t killed them. Carem suddenly realized his posture was devolving to a slump as the nagging voices chased each other around the inside of his skull. A slumping posture would give these brutes a reason to ask questions. Shut the fuck up and pay attention! Carem scolded himself with every ounce of his control, standing up straight moments before one of the guards glanced at him. Their eyes met, and Carem gave the man a hesitant smile and kept moving on. He walked on, dreading that the man might call him back, but thankfully the idiot hadn¡¯t taken the smile as an invitation. Carem rolled his eyes. He could be comatose, drooling on his chin, and some idiot would see it as an invitation, so he¡¯d gotten lucky just now. The place he was heading was even tougher to avoid ¡®that¡¯ kind of attention. His feet took him toward the Pleasure district, where women sold their time to men with money and no need of a wife. He wasn¡¯t planning on selling his body, though. The thought of a sweaty man hovering over him, abdomen flexing like a sliver swimming, eyes dull and unfocused, staring straight ahead¡­filled him with a deep-seated, visceral hatred that seemed to well up from nowhere. He¡¯d absorbed over thirty women¡¯s memories. He knew what he was missing out on. No thanks. No, he wasn¡¯t in the pleasure district for fun or money, He was in the pleasure district to find a man. A man¡¯s body, more specifically. Carem had certain standards of living that he¡¯d grown accustomed to over the course of his life. To meet those standards, he needed money, and he needed a penis. Preferably attached to someone handsome, but at this point Carem might be willing to compromise on that one. Carem tucked his shawl tight around himself and took up a position in a hidden nook overlooking the pleasure district, watching the coming and going of the flood of stupid. It took him only an hour to find his ideal candidate: Kethro Pine. The son of Gunder Pine, Carem¡¯s main business rival. The boy was rich, young, athletic, handsome. Everything Carem had been, and everything he would be again. If his father was any indication, the young man would go to fat and lose his hair in his late thirties. I can live with that. Carem needed a body too urgently to be that picky about it. Kethro was sauntering down the street, shoulders swaying from side to side with an exaggerated, preening stride, his entourage of young men fanning out behind him. I think melting this fool¡¯s brain would be doing him a favor at this point, honestly. Carem carefully dropped out of his hiding spot and began stalking the rich young man. He wasn¡¯t the only woman there who had eyes on Kethro though, as the young man had a rather heavy sack. Of copper. Between his money and his father, many women considered ensnaring Kethro to be a ticket to an easy life, and Carem found himself swept up in a crush of whore groupies chasing the young man for one reason or another. This is humiliating, Carem thought to himself as he elbowed a particularly aggressive woman out of his way, edging closer and closer to his target. A little Mind magic, and he would gain the man¡¯s attention, make himself all the boy could see, then when they were alone, he would go about systematically destroying the man¡¯s personality, making him completely reliant on Carem. Unfortunately, there might be some sex involved in the beginning. Carem shuddered, but pressed on. He needed a new body. Carem was closing in on Kethro who had stopped to chat with an older-looking whore. Carem flared out a Bent construct, getting ready to sink his first hooks into the boy when he heard a familiar voice through the crowd. ¡°Isn¡¯t it odd how all weapons are phallic?¡± A shiver ran down Carem¡¯s neck, and his head was twisted to the side by a force more powerful than reason. There, off to the side, his prey was seducing a warrior, leaning toward him and smiling, her chest nearly squished against his. ¡°Spears, swords, even these casters of yours,¡± She said, reaching out and laying a hand on his caster. ¡°They¡¯re all long, hard, instruments of brutal conquest, aren¡¯t they? All of them designed to penetrate someone. I wonder where they got it from?¡± Rather than snatch his caster away like a sane person, the warrior simply flushed crimson as she began stroking the shaft of his weapon up and down suggestively while maintaining intense eye contact. For Carem, the man¡¯s stammering response faded from his perception entirely, as his vision seemed to dim, until she was the only thing he could see. Even his hearing seemed to tune into her words and actions, letting everything else diminish into the background. That girl right there had given him several fragmented pieces of the puzzle of Ilethan magic, and if he could get to her just one more time, he might be able to fill in the blanks of some of the more complicated techniques, some of the darker secrets. What if it¡¯s a trap? Like last time? A tiny voice in his head prompted, sending a little spike of fear through his heart. If it¡¯s a trap, there will be signs. Carem glanced around as casually as he could, his powerful Mind cataloging and sorting the hundreds of people present in seconds. A few men glanced at Nadia with envy, but kept moving. There was no one on the roof watching like last time either. He spotted a short, middle aged Uleisan foreigner with greying hair leaning against a building across the street from Nadia and watching her closely, but that was fine, he wasn¡¯t important. Mind made up, Carem pushed his way through the crowd, angling towards his prey, arriving beside her at the moment she sent the young warrior on his way, visibly drained. ¡°You¡¯re pretty.¡± he said, giving her a shy smile. ***Calvin*** Calvin was sitting on the rear of the train, watching the wooden struts keeping the rails in place passed by underneath him as they gradually glided along behind construction, at about walking speed. The thirty cars had been filled with food, water, beds and toiletries, along with basic utilities, like oiled tarps and cookware. The train concept was being field tested as they went, and results were highly promising. A single Juntai man could drive a train over four hours and a hundred miles before feeling fatigued. A Veteran could likely take it even further. Get a team of say three of them, and they would be able to take shifts, sending hundreds of tons of product from country to country in a matter of days, rather than months or years. It¡¯s all coming together, Calvin thought, resisting the urge to rub his hands together evilly. As long as a Kugeya doesn¡¯t try to mate with the damn thing. The size and shape of the train somewhat reminded him of the enormous man-eating insects that wove through the canopy. Maybe a little bigger and heavier, but close. The train was a little over two hundred miles away from Allast and counting, and the sun was beginning to go down, marking the second day of the human workers spending the night; bundling up on the train and sleeping inside the safety of the iron boxes. Another two weeks and he¡¯d be spitting distance from his March, creating the first link in the journey between Juntai and the rest of the world. Calvin intended to create another trainyard on his land that would split the track three more ways, heading west to Gadvera, north to Uleis and northeast to Boles. The train to Boles would be more practical if he simply added Uleis as a leg in the journey from the eastern collection of city-states, but Calvin knew that giving them a straight line to Boles would weaken his position personally. If he had a direct connection to every country nearby, his nation would become the center of the world. Uleis might be geographically closer to Boles, but if people could come to Calvin¡¯s March to get goods from Boles cheaper and faster, then that minor distinction was meaningless. So much to do. Connecting his city to others was poised to consume the next couple years of his life, unless he could find a way of speeding things up. Some might say that producing close to fifty miles of track a day is pretty fast, Elliot said. Yes, well, I¡¯m not the most patient guy. Who wants to wait until they¡¯re old to rule their wizard kingdom? Calvin blinked as another Bent flowed through his connection to Nadia. 46/47 Bent remaining. That¡¯s enough, Nadia. Calvin thought. I can let natural regeneration take it from here. Any sign of the target? No, mostly just gullible savages¡­wait a moment¡­hello there. What is it? Calvin thought. A cute little Juntai girl has a crush on me. Let¡¯s see where this leads. Keep me informed¡­ Calvin rolled his eyes. But not THAT informed. Boo. New possible target spotted, ravager. She seems intent on taking Nadia somewhere private. I¡¯m moving to observe. Calvin kicked his heels against the back of the train, having already gone through dozens of interactions just like this. The desire to get Nadia alone wasn¡¯t an uncommon phenomena, apparently. Wow, she¡¯s really frisky. Kissing noises and the soft moaning of women transmitted through the link between them, most likely because Nadia had somehow deemed it relevant information. Umm, her fingers are going through my hair. That¡¯s kind of normal, ri- The connection with Nadia was severed instantaneously. The target showed himself! Kurawe¡¯s voice echoed into Calvin¡¯s mind. Calvin shot to his feet, heart hammering. He¡¯s in the body of a young woman, about five three, hundred and ten pounds, age maybe twenty years old. No marriage jewelry or trepanning wounds on her skull. The explosion wounded him and prevented him from getting access to Nadia¡¯s skull. I¡¯m currently following him. Do you want me to engage? No, I want to know if there¡¯s more than one of him. Calvin thought. Follow him back to wherever he thinks is safe, and be sure to keep that aura up as strong as you can get it. I¡¯ll be there in a few minutes. Understood, ravager. I¡¯ll ¨C Kurawe¡¯s voice cut out as Calvin lost connection with him too. Something got me. Kurawe said in Calvin¡¯s head. My apologies, ravager, I didn¡¯t see what did it. That little bitch tried to drill holes in my head! Nadia cried, sounding deeply offended. Damn. Calvinian Summoning Chimera Atom Ant Heart of the Swarm. Calvin burst into smoke, replaced by seven man-sized wasps with Spinner movement organs inside of them. Calvin took control of them as one and used his experience piloting Refraction spinners to squeeze an inordinate amount of speed out of the giant insects. Between their boosted Attributes and the refraction spinner organs literally warping space around them, they were able to reach the fastest speed Calvin had ever experienced. Land seemed to slide by effortlessly beneath him as Calvin rushed back to Allast at his top speed, his only restrictions seemed to be the way the air compressed in front of him and threatened to shred the wings of his wasps, even with their drastically improved attributes. Calvin arrived back in Allast in just under fifteen minutes. Where was it? Calvin asked. We were in the pleasure quarter, Nadia said. Toward the West entrance. It didn¡¯t take Calvin long to find what he was looking for: A massive smoking hole in the ground, with a charred corpse at the center and wounded civilians with varying burns being tended to around it. Did the Diocese take matters into their own hands? Calvin thought, his wasps circling the scene from above. ***Carem*** Even before Carem opened his eyes, the pain was there, like a steady friend. He¡¯d lost a hand and gotten a hole in his shoulder biting at that carefully prepared bait, like a stupid mindless fish. He even remembered dismissing the obvious watcher in the heat of the moment. He remembered being consumed by the desire to take her like he had before. He remembered the explosion, then the desperate flight from the brothel, trying to stem the flood of blood and ichor by clamping down on his mutilated wrist. Then a flash of light. Then nothing. ¡­ Carem opened his eyes. He was in a steel cell, both of his arms and legs strapped to a heavy hardwood chair reinforced with steel bands. His stump of a right arm was bandaged, as was the hole in his shoulder and the cuts along his chest and face. Someone wanted him alive. Interesting. In the distance, Carem heard the squealing of ungreased doors, and the sound of footsteps on steel as someone approached. Multiple someones, even. He didn¡¯t have to wait long before the door to his cell swung open, and a grizzled man covered in lean muscle walked through, trailing three similarly dour looking fellows. Carem recognized the one in the lead instantly. He was the commander of the Jutnai military. The Diocese of Force. a man who could literally ride lighting and send it hurling downwards at unsuspecting targets like the gods themselves. ¡°Are you the mutant?¡± he asked, scowling as he looked over Carem¡¯s injured body. ¡°I am,¡± Carem said. It was a little late to be playing coy, and he¡¯d rather not be tortured any more than he could help. The Diocese of Force glanced back at his followers. ¡°Doesn¡¯t look like much.¡± He turned back to Carem and leaned forward until Carem could smell the man¡¯s breakfast. It had a lot of spices. ¡°Mutant. I heard you can suck a man¡¯s secrets straight out of his skull. I also heard the foreigners were looking for you, and that made me think you have some information they want.¡± The Diocese reached out and pinched Carem¡¯s cheek. ¡°You tell us everything you know, you suck all the secrets we tell you to, and you get to keep breathing for as long as we want to keep using you, sweet cheeks. Sound good?¡± ¡°I much prefer being alive, if that¡¯s a good answer.¡± Carem¡¯s vision exploded into stars of light as the Diocese smacked him upside the head. ¡°Keep your answers to yes or no unless I tell you, understood?¡± Carem spat out a mouthful of coppery blood and met the Diocese¡¯s gaze. ¡°Yes.¡± You fools have no idea what I¡¯m going to do to you. Macronomicon Enjoy! Expect Carem scenes to be Light for the next 20 chapters or so. Chapter 182: Cold sandwich ¡°Why do you look so down?¡± Kala asked. ¡°Your sandwich got cold.¡± Calvin glanced down at the sandwich, which had stopped steaming in the morning air. ¡°The way Carem was killed bothers me,¡± Calvin said. ¡°How so?¡± ¡°Bolt of lightning from a clear sky, implies a high level Juntai warrior was hovering above Nadia at that exact moment. In addition, they destroyed Kurawe, despite having his Complacency aura up. Calvin glanced over at Kurawe. ¡°Would a normal bolt of lightning kill you?¡± ¡°Not unless it hit me directly.¡± He replied. ¡°See?¡± Calvin said, pointing at his summon. Kala frowned. ¡°It¡¯s not beyond the realm of possibility.¡± Nadia said. ¡°If that mutant was born in Iletha, she¡¯d be locked up and used to pry secrets out of traitors and dissidents.¡± ¡°I thought Iletha was already plenty good at prying secrets out of people¡¯s heads.¡± Calvin said. ¡°There are some minds that can¡¯t be cracked through magic, some techniques people can use to completely seal themselves off from any kind of reading. But¡­¡± Nadia held a finger up. ¡°The girl¡¯s mutation would bypass mental protections, since it¡¯s physically interacting with the brain.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re saying people in power would see him as an asset.¡± Calvin said, taking a bite of his sandwich. ¡°How can I tell for certain if he¡¯s still alive or not?¡± ¡°Other than seeing with your own eyes, there¡¯s really no way to tell,¡± Kala said. ¡°Don¡¯t you know?¡± Calvin asked with a raised brow. Kala looked at him with a neutral stare, considering something. She took her purse off the bench beside her and set it beside her, manifesting her pipe with a twirl of her wrist. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Let¡¯s find out.¡± She said, pulling out an orange-ish paste from her purse and lighting it with the tip of her finger. ¡°Wazzat?¡± ¡°Calm mixed with sliver oil.¡± Kala said, pursing her lips around the pipe and inhaling. Little bubbles filled the oversized pipe with shifting movement, scattering the morning light and making the thing a living work of art. She exhaled, sending a whirling cloud of smoke above her head. ¡°Calm dulls fear and allows objectivity. Sliver oil gets you fucked up. ¡± ¡°Here¡¯s a question.¡± Ella said as Kala went through the process of activating her Seer Skill. ¡°What has this Carem guy done to us, personally? He poofed Nadia a couple times, but there¡¯s a fairly long list of people who¡¯ve done that. He might be a killer, but he¡¯s either dead or locked up for the rest of his life. Why bother?¡± ¡°Because he knows things I can¡¯t allow outside the royal family.¡± Nadia said. ¡°Who cares?¡± Nadia clenched a dainty fist and waggled it in Ella¡¯s direction. ¡°He did threaten to ¡®do better next time¡¯¡± Calvin said, making quotation marks as he spoke. Ella was half right, though. Calvin really didn¡¯t care about Nadia getting poofed, nor did he care about Nadia¡¯s secrets ending up in the wrong hands. As far as he was concerned, the entire Ilethan royal family was ¡®the wrong hands¡¯, so how much worse could it get? Calvin wasn¡¯t personally affected by any of it. Kala, sitting across from Calvin, shivered, starting at her head and working its way down to her hips, catching Calvin¡¯s attention. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± he asked, glancing at her. Kala deliberately set her pipe aside, exhaling a trail of smoke onto the table. The smoke formed a diorama above their meals. The grey clouds coalesced into a slight woman dressed in rags and missing a hand. She was strapped to a chair, surrounded by a smooth-walled cell. ¡°He¡¯s still alive,¡± Kala said, bringing her pipe back to her mouth and idly nibbling on it. ¡°And obviously contained.¡± Ella said. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you could do that.¡± Calvin said, studying the slowly dissipating image. ¡°One of the abilities of the Smoking Skill,¡± Kala said. ¡°Comes in handy sometimes.¡± Calvin tapped his fingers on the table, debating whether or not to pursue this stranger that had it out for him. He was obviously not going anywhere soon, but¡­ ¡°You ever hear the tale of Almende Cappa?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°The crime lord?¡± Kala asked with a frown. ¡°Yeah. The man died in his old age surrounded by family and friends. Very unusual for a crime lord. When his son was asked why that was the case, he said it was because his father had no enemies.¡± ¡°Because he killed them all.¡± Nadia said, nodding. ¡°Right.¡± Calvin pointed at the stick figure strapped to the chair. ¡°That right there is an enemy. Don¡¯t matter how pitiful his situation is now, there¡¯s no guarantee it¡¯ll stay that way. I already tried to kill him once, and half-measures will only burn us. Now or later, I¡¯m gonna have to kill him.¡± Calvin glanced at Nadia. ¡°And loyalty is a two way street. According to Kurawe you haven¡¯t plotted against me in weeks, and I think that should be rewarded.¡± Nadia blushed. ¡°So yeah, I¡¯m going to go kill someone in cold blood, because it¡¯s going to save us a lot of trouble down the road.¡± ¡°Need any help?¡± Ella asked. ¡°Nah, I need this to be as unrelated to us as possible.¡± So far as the Juntai were aware, Calvin was a summoner. This was the reason he¡¯d avoided using other forms of magic in public. ¡°My feet are like weird misshapen hands.¡± Kala said, putting her foot on the table and inspecting it closely. ¡°That¡¯s so strange.¡± ¡°Actually, could you keep an eye on Kala for an hour or two?¡± *** After breakfast, Calvin wandered off to another side of the city, ducked into a cramped space between two buildings, then triggered his mutation. One of the Guys. Calvin¡¯s breath hissed through his teeth as he took on the average form of the people nearby, his bones stretching and grinding against each other. It wasn¡¯t exactly painful, but it was definitely uncomfortable. He was in a commercial area, so the population within a hundred feet was mostly young laborers. In a matter of seconds, Calvin¡¯s height raised by an inch and a half, his skin tint became more orange-ish brown to match the others. In ten seconds, there was just another laborer standing there, loosening the belt on his chest. Calvin had debated leaving his components behind, but that idea had eventually been scrapped. If they were to catch him and inspect them closely, they¡¯d be able to tell they belonged to Calvin, but if that happened, Calvin had bigger problems to deal with anyway. It was best to have more tools at his disposal. He¡¯d swapped out his typical leather belt for a sewn canvas shoulder strap, to blend in with typical Juntai dress. When Calvin stepped back out into the street and returned to the main thoroughfare, no one spared him a second glance, having gone from foreigner to a perfect specimen of Juntai masculinity. The only thing off about him was that he wasn¡¯t wearing any copper. It was unusual, but not too unusual. Calvin reminded himself to speak in nothing but Juntai from here on out and headed for the palace. He pictured two ways of getting into the palace without permission, and they both had their drawbacks. He could fill the Complacency component with juice, and walk right past the guards, or use Heart of the Swarm to sneak into the palace as a hundred and sixty pounds of wasp. Oh, third way, Calvin realized. Alternatively, he could form a ring of Nadia¡¯s around the palace in heart of the swarm mode, then dismiss them to teleport directly into the center of the ring. But without eyes inside the palace, he had no idea whether he would land in the middle of people, or get bisected by a wall. Can that even happen? I dunno. We¡¯d have to experiment by getting partially perforated by something. you up for it? Not right now. The downside of walking in with Complacency was that they would remember him sneaking in, and possibly raise the alarm when they realized that they should rationally care about strangers walking into the palace. On the other hand, insects were individually tiny, but Calvin¡¯s weight in insects was literally millions of bugs. That would get noticed, and even if he gave them their own complacency auras, they would still be remembered. Calvin was beginning to consider some kind of elaborate tunnel-digging scheme featuring a crystal lattice with a spinner¡¯s ability to slice up matter when movement caught his attention. A large group of dignitaries and their followers were heading for the gate, their elaborate head-dresses and proud walk screaming that they expected to march right through the gate. Sometimes the simplest answer is the easiest one, Calvin thought, heading for them while he activated Complacency. Multi Gradual Split. 46/47 bent remaining. Calvin joined the very back of the procession, walking quietly in the blind spot of the man in front of him. To all appearances, Calvin was just the last in a long line of servants. The guards waved the procession through, not even bothering to look at him. If it had just been Calvin being ignored as he brazenly walked in alone, the guard might have noticed something suspicious in their memories, but when he was playing a role they expected in a large group of others, he was unmemorable. The stairs leading up to the palace were worked stone until they got to the gaping hole in the side of the enormous humming construction. The transition was stark as the outsight light cut off, replaced with pale white light emanating from the ceiling. The floor under Calvin¡¯s bare feet changed from stone to mirror-smooth steel, and the constant humming faded into the background, becoming part of the very air. Alright, Calvin thought, breaking away from the procession as they marched somewhere or other. the Complacency aura offered a lot of protection, but people still remembered his behavior, so he limited his contact with people as much as possible. If I was trying to hide my ill-gotten mutant, where would I put him? Calvin thought, glancing around. The entire building seemed to be built like a gigantic wheel, with straight spokes heading for the center of the building and curved paths that would circle around the circumference. Calvin glanced down the center path and saw the enormous glass filled with crackling lightning that lived at the center of the palace, directly below the floating flywheel that adorned the palace¡¯s ceiling. If nothing else, these are some good ideas for things to do with my wizard tower, Calvin thought. ¡°First time in the palace?¡± A voice asked behind him, nearly causing Calvin to jump. ¡°Third, but still getting lost,¡± Calvin said, turning to face the man. He came face to face with a grey haired man at least four inches taller than him, with a dour expression. An awkward silence passed between them. ¡°Do you¡­not recognize me?¡± Shit, shit shit! Calvin¡¯s cover was blown as soon as it started out. Honesty is the best policy. Lying will just get you tangled up and make him suspicious. ¡°No sir,¡± Calvin admitted. ¡°Hah,¡± The old man grunted. ¡°I¡¯m not terribly surprised. It¡¯s been a long while since I was in the spotlight. I¡¯m the Diocese of Force. Put¡¯er there.¡± he said, holding out a hand. Calvin fell to his knees like he¡¯d seen servants doing before, putting his head down. ¡°Forgive my impertinence!¡± Calvin said into the floor, adopting the role as the most effective way to get rid of the man. ¡°Knock it off with that shit. It gets irritating after the millionth time.¡± The Diocese of Force growled. Calvin obliged, climbing to his feet. ¡°Don¡¯t leave me looking like an idiot with his hand out,¡± The Diocese said, his hand still extended. ¡°I couldn¡¯t-¡° ¡°That¡¯s an order,¡± The Diocese said, his tone gravelly, as bits of lighting began to lick up the sides of his arms with a harsh crackling sound. Is he going to try to shock me? Calvin thought, his mind recalling the charred corpse that had been left in the center of the crater in the street. The only answer he got from his instincts was ¡®maybe.¡¯ Calvin extended his hand, prepared to cut of the conductivity of the man¡¯s bracers in a second. The Diocese took his hand and shook it. The man¡¯s palm felt like rough stone against Calvin¡¯s, and he clamped down on Calvin¡¯s hand with enough force to make Calvin¡¯s bones creak. Calvin responded in kind, but couldn¡¯t quite match the Diocese. ¡°That¡¯s a lot of Strength for your age,¡± he said appraisingly, eyeing Calvin¡¯s hand without letting go, extending the handshake into a test of endurance. ¡°What do you do here?¡± the Diocese asked, his grip growing stronger. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You heard me. What do you do here? I haven¡¯t seen your face before, so I¡¯m wondering if perhaps you¡¯re a spy. Some kind of rebel perhaps? Or turned by Iletha?¡± The diocese tilted his head, studying Calvin. ¡°I had trouble noticing you at first, so either you¡¯re under some kind of spell, or you¡¯re just naturally boring. So which is it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a translator,¡± Calvin said, thinking as fast as he could through the pain in his hand. ¡°Since the establishment of a trade route to Gadvera, the Diocese of trade wanted someone gifted with languages at hand to facilitate smooth negotiations with more foreigners, so he made the position of Translator. I¡¯ve been learning Gadveran and Ilethan since I was young by studying the writings of ¨C¡° ¡°So,¡± The Diocese of Force said, releasing Calvin¡¯s hand. ¡°You are boring.¡± ¡°My apologies.¡± Calvin said, bowing. ¡°No, it¡¯s a reasonable measure. Let me show you where the clerk¡¯s office is. Follow me.¡± Don¡¯t. Follow him. Obviously. ¡°I was instructed to ¨C¡° ¡°Ignore a Diocese¡¯s orders?¡± The old warrior asked. ¡°Follow me right now.¡± Godsdamnit. Calvin put his head down and followed after the aged warrior. They went about a third of the way down one of the ¡®spokes¡¯ of the palace before taking a sharp left and stoppe din front of a metal door. The Diocese held his hand to it, and a bit of crackling energy flew out of the studs above his palm, prompting the door to slide open. The open portal revealed a steel staircase leading deeper into the bowels of the palace. ¡°Here we are,¡± the old man said, heading down the stairs. At least it¡¯s well-lit, Calvin thought, following behind the aged warrior, keeping mental track of his progress through the palace, hairs raising as he realized they had gone below ground level. Calvin was about sixty percent sure this was a trap. They finally made it to the bottom of the stairs, where a brightly lit hallway was spread out in front of them, with several identical steel doors on either side of the hall in a drab grey. ¡°Second to last door on the left,¡± The Diocese of Force said, pointing down the hall. ¡°The people there will take care of your paperwork and show you where you need to be.¡± ¡°My thanks, Diocese,¡± Calvin said, nodding gratefully as he passed by the old man. ¡°It¡¯s my job to keep things running smoothly,¡± Force said with a shrug. Calvin had taken three steps when he heard the heavy steel door at the bottom of the stairs hiss closed. He glanced over his shoulder and spotted the Diocese still standing there in front of the closed door, regarding him thoughtfully. Godsdamnit. Calvin¡¯s exit was cut off, but he couldn¡¯t show any sign of nerves. He didn¡¯t know the act was up yet. ¡°Before I go, can you translate something for me, Mr. Translator?¡± Force asked. ¡°Of course,¡± Calvin said, bowing. ¡°Tell me,¡± The Diocese said, switching to Gadveran. ¡°What does, ¡®The Diocese of Trade doesn¡¯t have the authority to create new government positions,¡¯ Mean in our tongue?¡± Fuck me. Macronomicon This is one of my worst chapter names. Enjoy! Chapter 183: Don’t Stop Me Now Calvin¡¯s mind raced as he sought an exit strategy. Of course there was always through Force, but that strategy had several inherent risks, including but not limited to death by lightning and being subject of a manhunt. Killing a ruler in private where no one could see you do it was the absolute worst way to do it. ¡°It means, ¡®The Diocese of Trade doesn¡¯t have the authority to create new government positions,¡± Calvin said, cocking his head curiously. ¡°Why do you ask?¡± He could feel the tiniest doubt in Force¡¯s gaze, and he was hoping continuing to play dumb would at the very least buy him time while he considered his escape plan. Boxed in, limited mobility¡­ are any of my spells effective enough to take down a monster with that much Endurance without killing him? By the Diocese¡¯s very job description, he was likely the most experienced fighter of the ruling class. ¡°You can give up the act, spy,¡± The diocese said, pressuring him by taking a step forward, arms flexing. Calvin put his hands up and backed away, not really having to fake alarm and caution too hard. ¡°Please, Diocese, forgive my slip of the tongue. If The Diocese of Edict made a new position on behalf of the Diocese of Trade, wouldn¡¯t ignorant commoners such as I attribute it to the latter?¡± The tiny spark of doubt in Force¡¯s gaze was still there, but it was overwhelmed by suspicion and a cold-hearted pragmatism. Calvin couldn¡¯t tell exactly what was in the old man¡¯s mind, but it probably amounted to some light torture, background checks, and interrogation to make absolutely sure Calvin was who he said he was. Since Calvin wasn¡¯t who he said he was, that was an unacceptable result. Boxed in. Calvin glanced at the steel walls that made up the cage he¡¯d found himself in. Or maybe not. Don¡¯t forget to lower their mass too, or else you¡¯ll go splat. Elliot chimed in helpfully, intuiting Calvin¡¯s idea. ¡°You go ahead to the door I pointed out,¡± Force said, motioning. ¡°We¡¯ll find out if you are what you say you are.¡± Nah. Trait Doctoring. It¡¯s Opposite Day! Trait Doctoring. 45/47 Bent remaining. Calvin reached down to his belt, touching a copper stud and his Abyssal steel marble. First order of business is countering the reflexive bolt of lightning. Calvin could try for the man¡¯s bracers, but if he had an ability like Karen¡¯s that allowed him to resist changes to his gear, Calvin would get destroyed in the next second. Seeing his movement, Force flung up his hands, lighting crackling over his fingers. Calvin felt Bent move through the man¡¯s frame, a fraction of a second after his own. Calvin infused the air between the two of them with opposite of the difference between the conductivity of copper and air, and the strength of Abyssal Steel. Calvin felt the man¡¯s Bent cross the distance between the two of them in the very next instant, and all of Calvin¡¯s hair stood on end as the spell forcibly filled him with some indescribable Charge that made his skin prickle. Shit, you¡¯ve been Ionized. A fraction of a second later, a bolt of lightning leapt across the hall between them. It hit Calvin¡¯s wall of air and scattered along the surface in every direction, crawling along it in a fraction of a second like an animal trying to sniff it¡¯s way past a fence. The lighting disappeared a fraction of a second later, absorbed into the steel walls surrounding them. At the same time, a white hot bolt of energy about the size of Calvin¡¯s pinkie lanced out from his right elbow and made contact with the wall, burning a coin-sized patch on Calvin¡¯s arm. Damnit, Calvin thought, crouching down and clutching his arm. It wasn¡¯t as bad as it could have been, most of the force of the blast was lost in the wall. Force charged forward, accelerating his body at an impossible speed to close the distance between them. A fraction of a second later, he struck the invisible wall of air and came to a sudden, brutal halt, reeling backward with a split eyebrow and broken nose. Now was the time to prepare his escape, a concoction of several spells. Multi gradual Split Mass Shifting. Mass shifting. Trait doctoring. 41/47 Bent remaining. Calvin touched his bottle of compressed air and used gradual split to put some under each palm and his feet. Calvin felt the air expanding against his palms, like a stiff wind pushing his hand back. Then he dumped as much of his own weight as he could into the floor, reducing his weight to under thirty pounds, split between his torso and extremities. He switched on Mayfly¡¯s Body, slowing his perception of time slightly. Low weight is better for defense and escape. The Diocese slowed by a small fraction as he recovered from the impact with the wall of air, glaring at Calvin. Calvin used Shifting to pull the mass out of the ceiling and deposit it in the walls, rendering the patch of steel forming the floor between him and the next floor extremely lightweight. Thanks for the tip. No problem. With the last spell, Trait Doctoring, Calvin made the steel patch above him have the same viscosity as the air in the room. He could raise the viscosity, but if it were still the same weight as normal steel, he¡¯d smack into it and come to a halt instantly, no matter how fluid it was. In the slowed view of the world, the suddenly gaseous metal began to flow down from above him, functionally a liquid because of its mass. Eighteen percent is still plenty. Calvin jumped upward, opening up the flow of Gradual Split to produce a burst of compressed air underneath his hands and feet. A fraction of a second before he hit the ceiling, Calvin pulled all the mass from the floor back into himiself, to carry his momentum through the dissolving floor. He glanced down an instant before he went through the ceiling, spotting a gaping astonishment on Force¡¯s face. Take that, punk. The ceiling yielded to him as he punched through the metal easier than a man diving through water. Calvin cut his mass back down when he burst through the other side, reducing his momentum in midair. He flicked his hand downward to stay still in midair as he moved, loaded the floor¡¯s mass into it, then used his suddenly massive hand to change his direction, hurtling through the steel halls. He was currently in one of the circle hallways. He needed to get to a spoke and fly out and disappear. Didn¡¯t even manage to find the guy I was looking for, Calvin thought sourly. Calvin was flying down the curved hall, looking for a spoke hall when his clothes began to be tugged sideways, toward the wall. What the - Your Stability has resisted a - Invisible force grabbed Calvin by the belt and slammed him up against the steel wall, sending a flash of pain through his side. Damit, what¡¯s going on? Calvin thought, struggling to push himself off the wall, his fingernails scratching against the pitiless steel. He magnetized your belt! Reset it with the air! Trait Doctoring. 40/47 Bent remaining. For the first time since he¡¯d discovered the spell, Calvin felt Trait Doctoring come into conflict with Foreign Bent clinging to the belt and clothes around his shoulders. It was the strangest sensation of pushing through some kind of stiff resistance that inhabited the material and components adorning his clothes. The two effects waged war with each other for a moment. Gnawing away at each other like hungry Kerator, before Calvin¡¯s spell won, eliminating the other effect and flooding through his clothes, evidence that perhaps either Calvin¡¯s Skill was more powerful, or his Will was higher. His clothes rendered nonmagnetic, Calvin was dropped unceremoniously to the ground. Need to extend Stability¡¯s protection to my clothes, Calvin thought with a gasp, rolling to his feet as the steel floor beneath him began to bulge upward like a bubble of scum on a swamp lake. Calvin dialed the Gradual Split on his palms way up, creating a burst of air that shoved him away, flitting down the hall. A second later, the bubble popped as polished steel bent out of the way of the levitating Diocese, revealing the lighting-covered man. Force braced his body and accelerated at ridiculous speeds, tackling Calvin in midair. The two tumbled through the steel hall in a tangle of limbs without touching the floor, floor and ceiling swapping places above them at a sickening pace. In a desperate bid to separate himself from the man, Calvin flung his arm forward and slammed thousands of pounds of mass into it for an instant. Calvin was wrenched out of the Diocese¡¯s grip in a fraction of a second, slammed into the unforgiving steel of the hall. There was an explosion of stars in Calvin¡¯s vision as he collapsed to the ground, his forehead crying out in pain. Lucky your Endurance is so high. That would have brained you a year ago. Only weighing thirty pounds helped a lot too. Calvin forced his hands underneath him and tried to push himself to his feet, but his right arm was tingling and numb as his body began to register the amount of damage that had been done in the first lightning strike. Through the flashing lights of Calvin¡¯s impending concussion, he saw Force gracefully stop tumbling through the air some thirty feet away, coming to a perfectly smooth and controlled stop in midair. No fair. Although I suppose I should have known he¡¯d be able to fly. The bolt of lighting that ¡®Killed¡¯ Carem Sageva had come from directly above, after all. If all Diocese could Fly, Calvin could see why the peasants might worship them like gods. Flight was something that captured the imagination, a deep seated primal urge to be powerful and free. Focus. He¡¯s trying to kill you. Right. Force raised a hand with a grim expression, and Calvin felt the Bent inside the man wind itself up tightly, ready to burst forward, aiming to direct another bolt of lightning toward him. The lighting that had been the size of Calvin¡¯s wrist before grew as it swirled around the Diocese, growing brighter and thicker, white-hot bolts of electricity coalesced around Force, reaching the size of his thigh. Waitaminute, Calvin thought through the fog of his concussion. I¡¯ve got something specifically for this. The Iroh Special 39/47 Bent Remaining. Calvin held up a hand and triggered the Ability. A cloud of sensitive Bent exploded in front of Calvin just as Force unleashed the most powerful bolt of lightning Calvin had ever seen a Juntai conjure, aimed right at his chest. ***Ella*** A bolt of lightning burned through the side of the palace, melting it¡¯s way through the steel before branching up into the sky, momentarily lighting the entire city of Allast from above. A fraction of a second later, thunder assaulted the ears of every single onlooker. Many people clapped hands over their ears, wincing in pain as the wave of sound rolled over them. Ella could only imagine how bad it was for someone trapped in the center of it. She turned to Kala. ¡°That can¡¯t be good,¡± she said. She didn¡¯t think Calvin was going to die, surely. The young man was far too resilient for his age or species, but it might prove troublesome down the line given the damage he was causing to the Juntai city. ¡°I really hoped he¡¯d find Carem,¡± Kala said with a frown, then sighed. ¡°Come on, we should start packing. Allast isn¡¯t going to be safe much longer.¡± *** The world turned white. All Calvin could hear was a high pitched ringing in his ears. If used on a lightning based Ability redirect it for free and instead Bent is used to amplify the redirected Ability. Elliot read off the final details of The Iroh Special, his voice just a bit too smug. Not even getting his eardrums damaged could stop the spirit from talking if he wanted to. Which way is the Diocese? Calvin thought, teary eyes trying to blink out the sheet of black afterimage dominating the center of his vision. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the glowing hole in the ceiling, and a flicker of movement traveling away from it. That doesn¡¯t make sense, lighting shouldn¡¯t actually shove him away, but it seems like that¡¯s what it did here. I wonder if that has something to do with his flight Ability? Calvin didn¡¯t have time to listen to Elliot pontificate. There was an exit, and he meant to take it. Calvin opened up the Gradual Split on his hands, shoving himself up towards the glowing hole in the ceiling. He plunged into the orange-hot hole in the ceiling, feeling the hair on his head and arms stand up from the latent energy and then get burnt off by the latent heat. A fraction of a second later, Calvin shot up into the sky. The hot jungle air seemed like a cool balm by comparison. ¡°Good news,¡± Force¡¯s voice carried through the air, and Calvin was able to focus on him, floating in the distance. He couldn¡¯t see the man¡¯s expression because of the black streak running through the center of his vision, but he could definitely see the smoke rising from the man¡¯s scorched clothes. ¡°I no longer think you¡¯re a spy,¡± Force said, tearing the smoldering wrap off his shoulders. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen spells like that in¡­ever. Now let¡¯s see, what other powerful wizards with novel magic do I know visiting our city?¡± Force tapped his chin, still hovering in midair. ¡°If you think you know who I am, then you might think you know who I¡¯m after.¡± Calvin said, balancing on the compressed air pushing against his palms and feet as it was released. ¡°Carem Sageva, mutant and vicious murderer, is dead and gone. His body was burned two days ago. That is the end of it.¡± Force said, his tone unbending. ¡°I think we both know that¡¯s not true,¡± Calvin said. ¡°He needs to be erased or he¡¯s just going to rear his head again. It¡¯s far wiser to end his threat right now.¡± ¡°He¡¯s dead,¡± Force repeated. ¡°Any further action against a nonexistent enemy will result in the deaths of innocent men and women. For no reason.¡± ¡°This is, of course,¡± Force continued. ¡°In a hypothetical fantasy land where I don¡¯t shove you into a cell and tear your mask off before rounding up every single one of you foreigner scum and send their remains back in jars. You¡¯ve already done more than enough to warrant your death, Calvin. Did you think there would be no repercussions for stealing divine providence with your train?¡± Are they upset about a motor? Who kills people over a motor? ¡°I¡¯ve never met this Calvin fellow, but he sounds like a cool guy,¡± Calvin said with a grin. ¡°You know what I think Calvin would say, where he here? Which he definitely isn¡¯t.¡± The diocese raised a brow. ¡°What happens when the gods bleed?¡± Calvin asked. Trait Doctoring. Macronomicon Enjoy! Chapter 184: ‘Cuz I’m having a good time ¡°What?¡± Force grunted, scowling. ¡°You wound a god,¡± Calvin said, pointing at Force, who sported several burns, a split brow and a bleeding nose. ¡°And people start thinking maybe they aren¡¯t as powerful as they say. If one man can do it, why not another?¡± Force¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°If you pursue me, I¡¯ll drag this fight down into the streets, and people will see that you bleed. They might even see you lose,¡± Calvin said, raising his brows. ¡°That wouldn¡¯t go over well, would it?¡± Force scowled at him for a moment, seemingly considering his offer. Calvin felt another gaze on the back of his head, full of grim intent. From it¡¯s rising angle, Calvin could tell the person viewing him was most likely a flyer. The gaze wasn¡¯t friendly, harboring the cold determination he might feel in someone killing for business or status, leading him to think it was a Diocese. A zealot would feel angrier. Two legends is too much! Calvin played it off like he wasn¡¯t aware of the man rising up behind him, continuing to press Force. ¡°Bring me Carem and give him to me, and I won¡¯t tear the veil away from the eyes of you people,¡± Calvin said. Force, for all his lack of tact, did a damn good job of keeping his eyes on Calvin, never once letting his gaze wander to the person behind Calvin¡¯s back. There was the spike in emotion as the person behind him made the decision to kill. Calvin whipped around, hand extended. This time he had the sense to narrow his eyes against the light. Iroh Special 38/47 Bent remaining. This time, with his senses heightened, and eyes narrowed against the glare, Calvin was somewhat able to make out what happened. The cloud of sensitive Bent exploded out in front of him, and when the first tracer of lightning struck it, the shield swallowed the bolt up, drawing the lighting forcibly out of the caster, before collapsing down on the compressed ball of electricity. An instant later, the thunder exploded against Calvin¡¯s ears, but this time he closed his eyes, sparing his vision. When Calvin opened his eyes again, there was a tiny figure tumbling backward through the air, impacting against the glass ceiling on top of the palace. Calvin felt three new gazes full of murderous intent moments before a wasp flew past his ear too fast to see. A fraction of a second later, there was a loud cracking sound, like someone had snapped an arm-thick tree branch. That¡¯s not a wasp, it¡¯s a bullet! The railguns I was telling you about. Calvin snapped his head toward the new gazes and saw two more men in midair lowering their weapons toward him, while the first one pulled the iron tube up, fumbling with his belt for something. Shit. Calvin had never seen the weapon before, but if Elliot was concerned about it, Calvin had to take it as a credible threat. Calvin didn¡¯t have time for fine control, as the other two were lowering their weapons toward him. Trait Doctoring. 36/47 Bent remaining. Calvin selected everything around and including the three flying men, copying the magnetism and conductivity of air onto it, rendering it inert. The Bent inside the men bucked and kicked like a living thing as Calvin¡¯s Trait Doctoring fought against it, trying to assert control over their bodies. The men who had been flying so unnaturally smoothly until a moment ago began to wobble in place, flailing around like someone teetering on the edge of falling. Looks like their flight is magnetic in nature, Elliot mused at the sight. Your Ability failed to exceed the target¡¯s Stability. Trait Doctoring has reached ¨C The voice in Calvin¡¯s head was cut off by a brutal punch to the side of the face as Force re-entered the fight, dropping the lightning attacks in favor of a more direct confrontation. After all, the man knew Calvin wasn¡¯t as physically strong. Only weighing thirty pounds, Calvin was catapulted away from the sucker punch, the right side of his face suffering a pulsing ach in time to the beat of his heart. Karen punches harder, Calvin thought, spitting out the blood collecting in his gums. He didn¡¯t have time to keep thinking as Force followed him, staying up close and personal to prevent Calvin from getting any breathing room, harrying him through the sky. Punch, punch, kick. Calvin took two to the gut and a kick to the neck before he was able to get his bearings, but when he finally figured out what was going on, there was a fist less than an inch away from his nose. Calvin used the Bent whorls granted by Beli ma to shove the old man¡¯s attack to the side. The old Diocese¡¯s muscled arm flew past his face, wind whistling through his hair as it flew over his shoulder. Calvin, feeling particularly spiteful, took a bite out of it. With Interest triggered, and the counter-attack boosting Ability allowed Calvin¡¯s teeth to slice through the old man¡¯s arm like butter. ¡°Gah!¡± Force grunted and reflexively pushed Calvin away from him. Which was exactly where he wanted to be. Calvin spat out god-king. Genosian Language has reached level 11! Really!? Calvin didn¡¯t have time to dwell on the idiosyncrasies. He shot a Trait Doctoring at the grizzled Legend, aiming to make him non-Magnetic and interrupt his flight. Open the Warp Tank, Calvin directed his System, flooding his Body with the remaining Warp. Until the Warp ran out, Calvin was going to be a savant. If this isn¡¯t an emergency, what is? Trait Doctoring. 35/47 Bent remaining. Your Ability failed to exceed the target¡¯s Stability. Trait Doctoring has reached level 20! 11/34 Warp Remaining Calvin mentally shoved aside the rest of the messages, eying the flailing old man. While the forces of the two Abilities were at war with each other, Calvin launched himself forward, aiming a punch at the man¡¯s midsection. Force caught the blow easily despite his lack of balance, shoving his hand into Calvin¡¯s face. A high pitched noise pierced through Calvin¡¯s skull, turning his vision white and overwhelming him with nausea. Force¡¯s hand grabbed Calvin¡¯s hair and the high pitched noise redoubled, the pain making it difficult to even think. Calving reflexively tried to knock the man¡¯s hand away from his skull, but when his arms were above his head, Force took the opportunity to drive a haymaker into Calvin¡¯s ribcage. Ow. Calvin coughed, vision white, mind reeling, lungs seizing up. When in doubt, kick ¡®em in the nutsack. Calvin¡¯s leg lashed out, a knife made of Abyssal Steel jutting out of his sole. ¡°Fuck!¡± The ringing in his head stopped as Force threw him away again. Calvin¡¯s vision cleared, and he spotted the man clutching a gash along his side. The extra length of the blade due to Beli Ma must have caught him off guard. Next time why don¡¯t you have the knife come out of your scalp? Calvin blinked the last of the white out of his vision, glancing at the Diocese¡¯s right hand. The bracer he was wearing had a round addendum on the back of his hand, similar to the one Trade had used to seal letters. Didn¡¯t know it was a torture device, too. Calvin thought before pressing the advantage. Trait Doctoring. Calvin made his fist as hard as the Abyssal steel in his belt, then Shifted thousands of pounds of mass into it from the floor of the palace. 34/47 Bent remaining. Force saw it coming, and put his palm out again with a cocky grin, aiming to catch Calvin¡¯s strike while he tried to balance himself. There was some kind of invisible barrier between the two of them that sapped the force out of Calvin¡¯s strike. It didn¡¯t do much. There was a satisfying crunch as Calvin¡¯s fist carried the man¡¯s palms into his ribcage, then shattered both, sending the Legend tumbling into the distance, his body scintillating with lighting. Calvin shifted the mass out of his fist again so he didn¡¯t go tumbling along with the Diocese, pulling it back to his chest in a defensive position and sweeping his gaze over the four remaining men. Dimly, Calvin realized his hand was numb. Calvin looked down and tried to open his hand, finding it locked into the fist he¡¯d just delivered to the Diocese. Calvin dismissed Trait doctoring on his hand, returning it to normal hardness. Sensation rushed back into his fist. He unclenched and shook it, studying the Diocese surrounding him as his hand gave an alarming tingle. Yeah, I don¡¯t think using Trait Doctoring on your body is healthy. Noted. I was considering making myself immune to Lightning. Don¡¯t do that. Your body has a very delicate balance of electricity in it. A tiny bit too much or too little and you¡¯re dead. I had an inkling that might be the case. ¡°What about the rest of you?¡± Calvin asked, turning back to the rest of the Diocese. The one he¡¯d returned the lighting to was approaching, his hair and clothes ravaged by the lighting but functionally unharmed. The other three were discarding their useless weapons and approaching with grim expressions. Calvin could feel apprehension in their gaze for the first time since he¡¯d started. He was riding the razor¡¯s edge here. If he had missed one of the lighting returns or the first Diocese with a railgun hadn¡¯t missed, Calvin would be dead or dying right now. ¡°Is killing me worth proving your fallibility to the masses?¡± Calvin asked, cocking his head to the side, affecting ease. They don¡¯t have to know they almost killed me three times. Playboy has reached level 14! 70% Correction! 10/34 Bent remaining. ¡°Your words betray your origin, foreigner,¡± A fat Diocese said, attracting Calvin¡¯s attention. He¡¯d never met that particular one, so he had no idea whether he was Cleansing, Pleasure, Bounty, Edict or Sweat. He did seem a little sweaty. ¡°We are not gods, merely their vessels. We can be replaced.¡± ¡°Potato, Potahto,¡± Calvin said, waving it off. ¡°We both know you keep tomes detailing the physics of Magnetism and electricity, and you sit on it, pretending its of divine origin so the rabble will listen to you. The secret of creating lightning got out of your hands a long time ago and you¡¯re paranoid the secret of harnessing it will slip out of your hands too. First its motors to make mills and carriages to make life convenient for everyone, but then people start experimenting with magnetic fields and before you know it, everyone can fly. You become normal. Nothing.¡± The men stiffened, and Calvin could tell he¡¯d guessed right. ¡°Give me a reason not to kill you.¡± one of the Diocese spoke, his jowels trembling with rage. Calvin noted that Trade was particularly quiet. It was possible that seniority was by age, and Trade was one of the lowest positions, discouraged from voicing his opinion. ¡°Because,¡± Calvin said with a grin. ¡°Those secrets aren¡¯t only in my head,¡± he said, tapping his skull. ¡°They¡¯re written down, sitting in a nice big stack, waiting to be disbursed at first light tomorrow morning, unless I stop it. You think I came here without a plan?¡± He hadn¡¯t. In reality, one of Calvin¡¯s greatest foibles was a dearth of planning. Since he was able to solve most problems without forethought or by following a guide, he¡¯d become rather poor at approaching things systematically throughout his childhood. But they didn¡¯t need to know that, either. The Diocese eye¡¯s narrowed, and Calvin could feel the emotions in his gaze, caution, suspicion and anger at war with each other. The Diocese pulled out a peculiar curved blade, looking a bit like an L with a hole in the center braided with copper. He pointed it at Calvin. Calvin¡¯s heart leapt in his chest as he focused all his attention on the old man¡¯s gaze, ready to defend himself should the man choose to attack. ¡°Seditious writing such as that could set off a civil war, resulting in the deaths of thousands. Tens of thousands.¡± He said, pointing directly at Calvin. ¡°Are you the kind of man who would lead those people to their deaths if we let you go?¡± Calvin glanced down at the city beneath him, with people crawling back and forth like ants, gawking up at the people flinging lighting at each other. Calvin wanted steady trade, not to cannibalize another country. ¡°No.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I have no desire to see this country destabilized.¡± Conquering Juntai or forcing it into civil war ran counter to his end goal of creating a legacy that could back him up. He wanted a strong alliance with Juntai, not a puppet that would die with him, nor a neighbor in complete turmoil. ¡°You have my word that I will not distribute them, should I return alive and well.¡± ¡°How can we trust this,¡± Another Diocese asked, this one was stocky with greying hair, without as much fat as the others. He pointed at Calvin. ¡°We don¡¯t even know who or what he is.¡± ¡°True,¡± the Diocese with the knife said, eyeing Calvin. ¡°Show us your true form and we¡¯ll know you can be trusted.¡± Calvin considered it a moment. Couldn¡¯t get much worse. One of the guys. Calvin dismissed the spell, his bones compressing, follicles tingling as his hari straightened and lightened, skin shrinking down around his smaller form. The diocese¡¯s eyes widened, including Trade. ¡°Edict, we should remove this foreigner from existence.¡± One of the Diocese said, glaring daggers at Calvin. It wasn¡¯t hard to guess where that guy stood on the ¡®trust¡¯ scale. ¡°Our neighbor to the East.The foreigner¡­with the train,¡± Edict said, his knife lowering a bit as he studied Calvin¡¯s face. ¡°That explains a lot. It would be unusual to find two people who¡¯ve unraveled the deeper mysteries of lightning, after all.¡± Edict rubbed his chin, and Calvin could feel the man¡¯s thoughts slowly turning darker and more clinical as he surveyed Calvin, leaning toward violence. ¡°We were set to have a meeting about how to deal with the man who stole our divine knowledge when he created the train this evening, but I think now would be a good time.¡± ¡°I think he¡¯s trustworthy.¡± Trade jumped in for the first time, attracting everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°Oh?¡± Edict asked. ¡°By all accounts, he attributed the inspiration for the engine to divine intervention. I believe that demonstrates a certain willingness to work with us.¡± The Diocese glanced around at each other thoughtfully, and they seemed to come to an unspoken accord. ¡°Yes, I think you¡¯re right.¡± He returned his attention to Calvin. ¡°I will pen for you a scroll containing instructions in how to present your knowledge of the Divine. Follow them exactly, and we will continue to have an accord.¡± ¡°And Carem Sageva?¡± ¡°Carem is ours. He is a citizen of Juntai and the murderer of some thirty others. Our right to punish him supersedes your own.¡± Edict raised a brow. ¡°Unless you¡¯d rather try to cut your way through us?¡± Well, this outing was a waste of time. Calvin thought, gritting his teeth. Welcome to politics, Nadia said in the back of his mind. ¡°No, I think this has gone far enough.¡± Calvin said, relaxing his shoulder. The Diocese similarly relaxed their grips on their weapons. There was no guarantee that he could beat all of them. ***Carem*** Carem was surprised and pleased to know that not only did his mutation work with one hand, but that Genosians were close enough to human for him to be able to absorb their memories. The sensation of pleasure crept up his free arm as the heavily tattooed warrior shuddered underneath his ministrations. ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough,¡± His captor said, smacking Carem upside the arm with a club, knocking him away before he could finish implanting himself into the Genosian, leaving little more than a shuddering mass of flesh rather than a copy of his ego. They never let him finish. Damn you, he thought, directing his ire at the guard. ¡°I need longer than that,¡± he said, scowling at the drooling moron as he unfolded the Bent form that allowed him to read the man¡¯s emotions. ¡°That¡¯s all the time you get. Diocese¡¯s orders. Now, why is the Seeker tribe pushing into the northern range so aggressively?¡± ¡°I-¡° The club came down and struck him across the mouth. ¡°Why?¡± The club came down, splitting his scalp. ¡°Why are they ¨C ¡± The club hit him in the shoulder, sending a spike of pain through his arm and chest. ¡°Coming into the northern range?¡± Another strike. ¡°Something bad, okay!?¡± Carem shouted through the pain as he curled into a ball on the floor, his scalp tickling as blood flowed through his hair and onto the ground. ¡°Something is pushing them out of their home!¡± The guard gave him one last hit with the club then stood up, panting with exertion. ¡°Excellent work.¡± He said with a nod. ¡°I¡¯ll report it to the Diocese now.¡± The guard left the room, and a couple seconds later, another guard took his place. Carem¡¯s heart sank when he realized that this was another new guard. He¡¯d gotten a different guard every eight hours for the past two weeks. The constant march of new faces made it impossible to twist one of them around his fingers like he¡¯d been planning. I¡¯ll kill every last one of you bastards, anehua se habaeh kuahe. Carem grimaced, holding his hand over his scalp wound and setting about the task of picking through the foreign memories and discarding them to maintain his identity. He touched upon a memory and stopped in mid-wince as he came across knowledge of several Genosian spells. Interesting. Macronomicon Chapter 185: Slime Salesman Sent from the desk of Tom Spendle **Error, receiver not validated!** Cooper! I finally fucking did it! I found the other half of the recipe! For the longest time I was looking at spiders as the other ingredient, because everyone knows how famous they are for it, right? It was a mental blind-spot. Well, something about this whole rebellion must have jostled something loose, because I started comparing my samples against anything I could get my hands on, and I finally found it. Spittlebugs. Yeah, those gross little bugs that make spit-bubble houses. I had a sample from a defunct generation ship¡¯s conservatory. Some of the only ones that still exist at all, since Earth went boom. I compared the spittlebug proteins to the sample, and Bam! My Bioengineering Skill lit up like a Christmas tree. I could see Exactly how to make the spittlebug proteins react the way I wanted them to. I spent the night in a goddamn fugue state, and by the time I was done, I had a couple thousand eggs tweaked. I¡¯m absolutely sure that when they hatch, these little guys are going to start producing Don¡¯s formula. In the morning, I¡¯m going to hop in my plane and swing by the wreck to the east to see if I can borrow one of their Rosen emitters. I don¡¯t know when the military cordon of the planet is going to end, so I¡¯m putting my process on the cloud. When you get this message, don¡¯t wait for me, just get started on a way to industrialize it. We can¡¯t be reasonably expected to milk beetles for the rest of our lives. -Document Attached. ***Calvin*** ¡°This is beautiful,¡± Calvin said, overlooking the train. Every car was filled to the brim with Juntai wood. Wood that was nearly worth its weight in gold to the Uleisans far to the north, and possibly it¡¯s weight in copper to the Ilethans even further above them. Each car was fifty-five feet long, eleven feet wide, and twelve feet tall. Calvin had to crane his neck to see the massive logs that were poking their out above the train car, precariously stacked nearly sixteen feet in the air. People could, and had, climbed up to the top of the pile to get a view from above. Standing atop a pile of logs on a moving train was stupid and dangerous, but damned if it wasn¡¯t satisfying. There were one hundred and five cars, and seventy of them were packed entirely full of lumber, literal hundreds of tons of wood. Enough to launch a fleet. Twenty more held specialty goods that Calvin wanted to see if he could find a market for in Uleis and Iletha. They were unlikely to make very much right away, but there might be some surprises in there. The last fifteen cars held the logistics. The personal effects of the train car operators, their families, etc. It took an estimated ten Juntai men working two hour shifts to keep the train going nonstop. Elliot commented on an actual train only needing one operator, but it was still a good number for the sheer quantity of freight they were moving. A caravan capable of moving that much would be closer to a wandering nation. The price of ten men¡¯s salary was negligible by comparison. Ten of those cars looked like little houses, with beds and tiny little kitchens, while the last five had dry foods, tools and huge barrels of clean water. It¡¯s like the Oregon trail up in here! My Great, great great grandad loved that game when he was a kid. I got bored after I figured out the horse bartering infinite money glitch. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s head out!¡± Calvin shouted, pointing forward. The train was slow as the helmsman unloaded a crackling bolt of energy into it, but gradually the train began moving forward, the massive iron spokes on the wheels beginning to turn. Slowly at first, then faster, and faster, until the rods were spinning nearly too quick to see and wind was beginning to tickle Calvin¡¯s scalp. Now the proud owner of way too much lumber. Next step, build tracks to Uleis, get someone else to handle the haggling over details, and I can go back to researching Warped Monster parts. Calvin frowned. That being said, I wonder what Learner¡¯s Warped ability is? She can obviously copy other Warped creature¡¯s abilities rather easily¡­so some sort of supernatural mimetic effect? I would ask for a sample, if I wasn¡¯t pretty confident the sample would try to eat me. SCREEECH! Calvin winced as the train took a gentle turn, the socket connecting the cars he was sitting on top of letting out an ungodly noise, threatening to pierce his very brain. The sun was just starting to go down, and the shadows were getting longer, the last of the days sun playing off of the red-tinted bark of the ¨C SCREECH! ¨C The couplings across the train screeched again as they straightened out, working their way up the gradual slope Calvin had carved into the mountain. Okay, that¡¯s intolerable, Calvin thought, hopping off the log he¡¯d been riding and climbing down into the space between cars, glaring at the couplings with ire. Let¡¯s see if you can keep making that noise with some lube. Calvin thought, leaning down, one hand on the safety rail, the other tapping his Ooze Weaver slime component. Gradual Split. 39/47 Bent remaining Calvin knew that Ooze weaver slime would dry eventually, so he arranged for it to have a gradual split, forcing more slime into the space between the steel as it dried out. That should last the rest of the day, Calvin though, nodding. If it didn¡¯t he could try coming back with Toad fat from his personal car. That stuff might work even better, given how tough it was, without the hassle of drying, seeing as it was fat. Calvin listened, waiting for a squeak. They gently turned a corner, the cars slightly shifting relative to each other, steel silently sliding against steel. Excellent, no ear-piercing screech, Calvin thought with a nod, aiming to stand and go back up to his seat atop the wobbling log perched sixteen feet in the air. Calvin cast one look back at the coupler before he began climbing up the ladder. There was something¡­white¡­oozing from the steel bits. What¡­the¡­heck? Calvin took his hand off the ladder and went back down to the steel platform, balancing precariously on the tiny bit of steel as he leaned down over the edge, reaching out to put a finger on the coupler. Calvin ran a finger over it, and brought it up to study. There were¡­white lumps suspended in the ooze weaver slime. They were half formed and kind of mushy, reminding him of cheese curds or overcooked oats. The heck? Calvin smelled it, but couldn¡¯t make out anything in particular other than the smell of wood and steel. The slime didn¡¯t have a smell, after all, and whatever was suspended in it didn¡¯t either. Was there something living in there? Calvin thought, eyeing the coupler. He turned the speed of Gradual Split up, and watched in awe as more and more lumpy white bits were pushed out. More than could have ever fit in the tiny space between the couplers. That means the lumpy white is coming from the slime component. Calvin thought, standing and tugging the shiny steel vial out of his belt. At first glance it was the same as ever, but under careful inspection, Calvin could see where the steel walls of his oldest component were bulging outward ever so slightly. Interesting. Calvin tucked the component back into its bandolier and climbed up onto the train, settling down on his wooden seat and preparing an area to work on. Trait Doctoring. Shifting. 37/47 Bent remaining. Calvin selected a flat area of the log in front of him, along with a slight dip into the material, making them all the viscosity of air and light as a feather. Calvin blew on the surface of the wood, and the grained wood dissolved away, floating off and mixing with the air before settling back down on the ground behind him. What remained was a nice clean, flat wooden surface with a wooden bowl in the center, and places to put his filters. Normally, Calvin wouldn¡¯t be doing this atop a moving train with wind and contaminants blowing through everything, but he wasn¡¯t patient enough to wait until he got back home, and he wasn¡¯t impatient enough to leap into the sky and fly back posthaste. Plus the sensation of motion and wind was nice. Splitting. 36/47 Bent remaining. Calvin pulled out the slime component and replicated about a pound of the material into the bowl What he got was a thick, soupy mess riddled with white chunks from the size of a fish-egg to about as big as the tip of his finger. It definitely wasn¡¯t eggs, though. Nothing could survive that pressure, for that amount of time, then suddenly decide to start growing out of nowhere. Then how did my slime get riddled with this stuff? Calvin thought, squishing a bit of white gunk between his fingers. It was in little hard nodules with slimy, half-formed gunk around it, seemingly in a transitory state between ooze-weaver slime and something else. Frowning, Calvin put the ooze in the filter and washed several rinses of water through, scrubbing meticulously to get all the slime out of it. Once Calvin was sure he¡¯d rinsed as much slime out as possible, he dismissed the water, leaving a sort of white sand in the bottom of the bowl. The heck is this? he thought, pulling out a few grains and rolling them between his fingers. He scooped up the scraping at the bottom of the bowl and hefted it in his hand. It¡¯s really light. Also fairly white¡­Wait a minute. Calvin fished out the seal that Trade had stamped on the trade agreement¡­using a very thick, clear substance. Calvin compared the two. Calvin¡¯s lightweight sand was off white, more of an ivory, compared to the seal¡¯s bright white. That could be due to impurities, Calvin thought, considering. Trade had used a little metal circle on the back of his hand to solidify the seal. Force had used a similar circle on the back of his bracers to scramble Calvin¡¯s brain during their fight. I wonder¡­ *** 1 week later*** ¡°Can I ask you to do something?¡± ¡°Depends on what it is.¡± Trade said with a shrug. The young man was currently being attended by several young women, being fed fruits by hand. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure if this was a regular thing or if he was just trying to impress Calvin. Probably the latter, considering Trade wasn¡¯t fat. ¡°Can you make this goop solid like the seal earlier?¡± Calvin asked, pushing forward a glass jar filled with Ykuinge¡¯s slime. The ooze-monster was reluctant to give it to him at first, but when Clavin explained that someone might actually be interested in buying it, the ooze weaver was more than happy to fill a jar for him. In private. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure it the giant bug-lady was shy or secretive. Both? Who knew? ¡°Huh.¡± Trade glanced down at the vial before tapping one of the serving wenches on the hip. The only thing he could reach from his vantage. ¡°Could you fetch my emitter, please?¡± The woman nodded and hurried off to retrieve the ¡®emitter¡¯, while Trade studied the jar. ¡°Well, it looks kind of similar to our Godsbone, but it¡¯s a little thin.¡± He held it up to the light, peering through it for a moment before breaking out in a smile. ¡°So how¡¯ve you been?¡± Trade asked. ¡°Annoyed,¡± Calvin admitted. ¡°Following the ¡®rules¡¯ for talking about electricity is an enormous pain in the ass. Like ten chapters worth of history and digressions into niche topics that could be summed up in like, two sentences.¡± Calvin held up two fingers to illustrate. ¡°Attribute everything other than lighting to disturbances in the force, and motors are a gift from the gods. It¡¯s a pain in the ass trying to follow the minutia.¡± ¡°Better than the alternative,¡± Trade said with a shrug. ¡°I know for a fact they were probably going to decide to kill you in last weeks meeting if you hadn¡¯t showed them how bad of an idea that would be.¡± ¡°Thanks for that, by the way.¡± Calvin said, taking a drink of the Diocese¡¯s wine. ¡°I had my own agenda. I want you to remember me as the nice one when favors are being thrown around.¡± Trade said with a cunning smile. Calvin chuckled. The servant woman returned, bearing the metallic disc attached to a copper bracer. I need to take one of those apart. Maybe the Knick-knacks would be able to recreate them. ¡°Thank you,¡± Trade said, taking it from her and sliding the glove onto his hand. He reached over the table and picked up the jar, inspecting it for another moment before a look of concentration crossed his face. A moment later, there was an inaudible hum that Calvin felt in his gums. Tiny little crystals of white began to form inside the jar, growing outward like salt crystals before stopping once they had exhausted some unknown resource in the clear medium. ¡°Would you look at that,¡± Trade murmured before glancing back at Calvin. ¡°Where did you get this? I assume this isn¡¯t the seal I gave you rendered down.¡± ¡°Trade secret.¡± Calvin said with a smile. ¡°We¡¯d be willing to buy more.¡± Trade said, appraising the contents of the jar. ¡°We could probably refine this easily, given the nature of the material.¡± ¡°I could refine it for you, if you gave me one of those emitters.¡± Trade smiled in a way that let Calvin know that suggestion was never going to happen. ¡°I¡¯ll write up up a list. The producer of that¡± ¨C Calvin pointed at the jar ¨C ¡°would rather barter.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 186: The Shifting Bazaar The people of Uleis were more than happy to have access to a sudden source of cheap wood, especially given the recent tightening supply of their national specialty. Calvin made out like a bandit, Exchanging bulk wood for normal glass from Uleis and ores from the mountains of Iletha, even a little lace from Boles, albeit in exchange for glass, since the Bolesians had no need of wood. In a single season, Calvin made more money than most people could conceive of. Except maybe Murak. The old man caught wind of Calvin¡¯s trip to Juntai and sold promisary notes worth huge quantities of raw lumber a month before Calvin even arrived. When Calvin arrived, the price of lumber plummeted, and Murak made a profit equal to the difference as he bought several cars worth to fulfill his obligations. Sneaky fucker. The train became a wonder of the world, and hundreds of merchant approached Calvin, clamoring for a way to rent a car and set up a shop on the train itself. After thinking about it for some time, Calvin agreed. Rather than handle the loading, unloading sale and trade of goods between the five nations, it would be far easier for him to lease individual cars to travelling merchants. While it wouldn¡¯t net him quite as much profit, it also meant he wouldn¡¯t have to oversee everything himself. He could route the profit from the train back to his city in the form of raw materials He assigned Grant and his mercs to making sure people paid their rent on time and preventing robberies. The sheer quantity of wealth on the train at any given time was a juicy lure for the occasional bandit crew. Grant was very efficient, capturing the attackers and selling them back to their country of origin for a little bit more profit. These events led the train to shift from primarily a bulk goods carrier to a travelling bazaar the likes of which the world had never seen. Every car housed a trader with specialty goods from all over the continent, each of them jealously hoarding their own contacts and suppliers. It was something to see when the train first rolled to a halt in the nearest Bolesian city-state, sliding the car doors to reveal the smiling faces of a hundred Uleisan merchants and their wares. The bazaar had come to town. As the train made its rounds, Calvin¡¯s five reserved cars began to slowly but surely fill up with his cut of each merchant¡¯s earnings, taken in the form of raw silks, glass, gold, drugs, rare monster parts ¨C Calvin was particularly interested in those ¨C silver, copper and iron. Once Boles, Iletha and Uleis had all been visited, The train made its way back to Calvin¡¯s March, laden with treasure from every corner of the continent. The final stop was Gadvera. Learning from Murak¡¯s example, Calvin tipped off the duchess whose land he was building tracks through, along with Kala¡¯s father, allowing those two to capitalize on the sudden abundance of trade. Was it unethical? Calvin had no idea, but it sure made those two happy, and that was what mattered. When the train arrived outside of Mujenan, there was a throng of people crowded around the tracks. For a few hours it seemed as if the entire population of Gadvera had assembled to gawk at the behemoth of steel that silently pulled up parallel with the city. The doors slid open, and the wealth of nations began to slowly but surely spill out into the capital of Calvin¡¯s country, in exchange for small bits of Gadvera¡¯s national specialty: Mnemetite. Watchign Dust and Stones, and even the rare Glimmer exchange hands by the thousands, Calvin took satisfaction in knowing that one in ten would find their way into his cars, filling his city¡¯s coffers. Calvin¡¯s march was starting to reach the limit of what they could do by themselves, and they would need to ship food and raw materials to the march for a while, until they could create enough farmland to sustain the city. The profit would have been even better if Malkenrovia wasn¡¯t a horrifying nightmare country filled with people with worms in their brain, then Gadvera could stand to make even more shipping this haul across the ocean in exchange for pelts and exotic monster parts. Alas, the shipments from Malkenrovia had consistently diminished over the last eighteen years, and now everyone knew why. The city of Mujenan had changed drastically from a couple years ago. The invasion of the combined forced of Malkenrovia and Iletha had been a wake-up call. The walls had been reinforced and studded with iron. The towers designed to fight off an invasion by sea were now duplicated several times over, with a dozen trebuchets capable of shredding any approaching fleet. The ocean of young men wearing glimmering steel and marching around the edge of the city was telling as well. The Hash¡¯Maje had significantly increased Mujenan¡¯s military might in the time Calvin had been gone. Calvin had to wonder about the logistics of it. Armies took a lot of money and food to keep going. Every man marching under the hot sun in sweaty armor was one less man laboring under the hot sun in a sweaty tunic to make food. Bigger army = less food production as well as a higher demand. When Calvin asked the Hash¡¯Maje about it, the response stunned him. ¡°I want you to bottle them,¡± The man had requested under a veil of secrecy. ¡°I saw what you did for Kala. And I was hoping you would do the same for me.¡± That solved the food problem, that was for sure. As far as Calvin was aware, time ceased to pass for people who¡¯d been reduced to undifferentiated mass and a blueprint. ¡°As long as you¡¯re not pointing them at me, I¡¯m happy to oblige,¡± Calvin told his father-in-law. The man chuckled and waved him off. ¡°No, no, there are other people much higher on my list,¡± He¡¯d said. ¡°I¡¯m still on the list though?¡± Calvin asked, but didn¡¯t get an answer other than a smile from the ruler of Gadvera. *** Later that month, the Gadveran army marched East, aiming to take the land route through Uleis up into Iletha. A few days out from the city, Calvin Isolated and primed his blade Body mutation and had the soldiers mix their own blood with it, delineating them by squad before binding their blueprints to bottles created by the perfectionist Knick-knacks. With a simple twist on the bottom of the bottles, each squad was rendered into undifferentiated matter and sucked into the bottles. Calvin did all of them at the same time because he didn¡¯t want anyone to panic when they saw their buddies getting turned into slime. That was generally panic-inducing, Calvin had learned from his first prototypes. Once that was done, Calvin was left with a pallet of enchanted glass bottles, compressing an army of fifteen thousand into an area of about a hundred and twenty-five cubic feet. He delivered the bottles to the Hash¡¯Maje that very night, and where they went next, Calvin got no word, but he had a few ideas. There were only two countries with tensions high enough to elicit an armed response. Iletha and Malkenrovia. Malkenrovia couldn¡¯t really be considered a ¡®country¡¯ by normal standards, but it was true the threat there was real, and had to be dealt with. The Hash¡¯Maje had the responsibility of reducing the number of threats against himself, either by destroying them or allying himself with them. Given the number of soldiers he¡¯d just packaged up for transport, Calvin wagered the Hash¡¯maje had chosen the former option. The Hash¡¯Maje didn¡¯t request any further assistance from Calvin, telling him that what happened next required him to keep secrets. Calvin didn¡¯t particularly mind, as long as they weren¡¯t being used against him, of course. Someone somewhere was about to get a faceful of soldiers. *** ¡®Hurry up,¡¯ Ameuah signed to his companion following behind him. The Genosian hunter had the unenviable task of scouting the forest ahead of the women and children. Over the last few months, people had begun to disappear from the frozen mountains of their home. Slowly at first, then with alarming regularity. Even when the Maje declared and emergency and used his Chained Spirit to watch over them while they slept, people still went missing, just from a moment¡¯s inattention, even mothers clutching their children would vanish without a trace. It quickly became clear that something was hunting them, and if things stayed as they were, there would be no tribe members remaining in a matter of weeks. So they decided to leave. Taking women and children through the Kugeya-infested forest was dangerous. It was always dangerous, but the slow and the weak were especially in danger. The Maje had devoted all of his Bent to creating a sturdy circle of protection of their ancestors around the children, while the hunters took on the task of navigating the tribe through the jungle. They didn¡¯t know where they would go at first, but after some deliberation, they realized they only had one choice: Northeast. West meant Gadvera, and the relations between their people was particularly strained. The same applied to the Juntai to the east. South was the Deep Jungle, home to thick Warp and an overabundance of Warped creatures. An Eohea like their Maje¡¯s Chained spirit might be able to survive, but the strange creatures that dwelt there would easily pick off their weaker members, so the Deep forest was out of the question. Ameuah glanced to the south, his yellow eyes unable to pierce the darkness. A sense of foreboding washed over him as he gazed that directions, a subtle raising of the hairs on the back of his neck, a coldness in the pit of his stomach. Ameuah had no proof, but he suspected that whatever preyed on them had come from the Deep. He glanced away from the south and to the north. North was the great desert. A land where the only thing to eat were the occasional insect and Grik foraging on scrub. East of Uleis and north of Juntai was a plainsland, where large animals roamed, each one big enough to feed an entire tribe for a week. If they could make it to the forests abutting those plains, they might have a chance to survive. Ameuah froze as he noticed the oppressive silence. The insects of the night were silent. The movements of small burrowing animals had gone still. His companion behind him wasn¡¯t making a sound. Dreading what he would see, Ameuah glanced behind himself and spotted¡­nothing. His companion was nowhere to be seen. Had he been taken in the few seconds Ameuah been distracted by his thoughts? There wasn¡¯t any sound! He thought, spinning around and scanning the treeline, his vision unable to pierce the deepest darkness. He didn¡¯t dare call out to his companion and risk discovery by whatever had taken his companion. Likely it already knew where he was, but he wasn¡¯t taking any chances. I have to warn the others. Tell them this way isn¡¯t safe, He thought, heading back toward the camp. A few minutes later, He saw the light of the camp piercing through the darkness ahead. Eager to reach the perceived safety, Ameuah picked up the pace, but never failed to keep his senses heightened, looking an listening as hard as he could in every direction, including up. More hunters died from carelessness on the path home. Thankfully he reached the camp without incident, but what he saw there froze him to the core. No one was at the camp. The fire burned merrily, there was a half-finished hide shirt sitting beside Ameala¡¯s tent. She¡¯d been working on it when he left. A lump rose up in Ameuah¡¯s throat and he finally spoke. ¡°Hello?¡± he asked, glancing around the abandoned camp. ¡°Is anyone left?¡± The brilliant orange fire seemed to lose some of it¡¯s luster, greying as his heart sank. Everyone¡¯s been taken except for me? What is there to live for at this rate? ¡°Ameuah?¡± A voice called out of the darkness, causing his heart to leap with joy. Someone else is alive! Out of the trees, Melanua stepped into the light of the fire, and his heart fell into the pit of his stomach. ¡°Melanua,¡± He said, taking a shaking step toward his wife. ¡°You¡¯re here. But..you were taken.¡± Melanua glanced at the fire, and her eyes widened, then she held a hand over her mouth, and used hunter-sign. ¡®do not speak.¡¯ Ameuah clenched his jaw shut despite desperately wanting answers. Melanua had been missing for weeks, taken by whatever was stalking them. Or at least he¡¯d thought she¡¯d been. Where was she? What had possessed her to sneak of on her own? Did she see some advantage to being on her own. Why hadn¡¯t she included him? Ameuah would have left the tribe with her. The fire beside Ameuah flickered, turning from orange to grey, attracting his attention. The light that was cast outward bathed the entire world in shades of grey in a display that bathed his body with a cold sweat as something moved through the clearing, draining the color out of the area. He felt as though a great and deadly beast was passing by, within arm¡¯s reach of him. He couldn¡¯t feel it, but some primal part of his brain knew it was there, filling in details with no rational reason. The creature he couldn¡¯t see, hear, or smell, stopped. It¡¯s massive head turned toward him and he knew it was inhaling, smelling him. Tasting him. Ameuah fought through the panic with the experience borne of years of hunting, keeping his body still and mind as calm as possible in the face of certain death. As suddenly as it approached, the¡­thing hovering just out of sight moved on, leaving him be. The fire turned from grey to orange, once again bathing the clearing in bright orange light, revealing his wife¡¯s purple skin. The creature didn¡¯t just take entire tribes all at once. it had never done so before. It only took people one at a time. It had taken Melanua. He was with her now. A horrifying realization began to gnaw away at the back of his mind. Ameuah glanced around the abandoned camp and noticed the shirt had gained a few more stitches since the last time he¡¯d looked. He glanced up at Melanua and spoke to her with hunter-sign. ¡®are we dead?¡¯ She shrugged. ¡®I don¡¯t know.¡¯ she signed. Macronomicon Chapter 187: Exterminator ***Tzen Chu, Imperial Prince*** After weeks of killing their way through Mujenan and the surroundings, Llortan had finally declare the country ¡®clean¡¯ and moved on. The next stop had been Uleis, which was sparsely populated, with only one or two rising stars to snuff out. After that, they turned north, hiking all the way to Iletha. Tzen¡¯s ornate palace shoes had long since been traded for sensible, pebbly guar leather boots and a thick overcoat. They were welcomed with open arms when they arrived in Ilestar, and at Llortan¡¯s urging, he had accepted a guest room at the castle. Which was where they were currently preparing for their next murder. ¡°I¡¯ve been doing this for longer than your little collection of bickering city-states has existed,¡± Llortan said as he wound the rags that disguised his identity around himself. Llortan had pebbly, thick skin, digitigrade legs with thick toenails just shy of being hooves, and brilliant green eyes. His face swept back and upward into a strange, circular crest. ¡°Ravagers don¡¯t just stay on the farm they¡¯re born. Well, one did, but she¡¯s the exception.¡± Llortan snorted in amusement at some distant joke. ¡°No, Ravagers gain power at an alarming rate. Which means they have to move to where the power is. Every government has several seats of power, and by inspecting them closely, you can flush out an infestation in a fraction of the time it would take to search through everyone individually. List the seats of power.¡± ¡°Ah. Government, Military, monetary, criminal, Bent.¡± ¡°Right. So we check each of the seats of power, and when we¡¯re sure all of them are clean, then we¡¯re done. It¡¯s not as good as running the entire population through a scanner, but we¡¯re on a budget.¡± Llortan finished winding the rags over his body and stood. ¡°Today we¡¯re going to the Bent seat of power.¡± Llortan said, then cocked his head. ¡°You¡¯re more familiar with this country than I am. What¡¯s the Bent seat of power in Iletha?¡± ¡°That would be the Den of iniquity,¡± Tzen responded. ¡°Where the next generation of mind-mages are created.¡± Llortan scowled. ¡°Ugh, mind mages. There are idiots out there that say a tool can¡¯t be good or bad, but honestly, how many good uses are there for a guillotine? Sure you can use it to split melons for people¡¯s amusement, but its true potential lies elsewhere.¡± The towering creature glanced out of their window and paused his ramble as he spotted something gleaming on the horizon. Tzen followed his gaze and made out some kind of caravan train made of glimmering steel traversing the countryside, half of its cars seemingly laden with wood. Tzen watched as Llortan tracked the train¡¯s progress outside Ilestar. The tracks most likely weren¡¯t allowed to be built within half a mile of the city itself, for fear of an enemy using them to transport troops straight into the city. ¡°Come here.¡± Llortan said, pointing to the ground beside him. His heart stuttering in his chest, Tzen approached, trying not to flinch when the towering, inhuman figure covered in beggars rags grabbed him by the shoulder and drew him close. He aimed Tzen toward the metal construction moving along the track, pointing to make it absolutely clear before he spoke. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°It looks like a series of steel wagons on a rail¡­moving themselves.¡± ¡°Yeah, it does, doesn¡¯t it?¡± Llortan said, glancing at him. ¡°How about this?¡± The creature asked, waving a hand in front of them, splaying his fingers. Tzen had to bite back a wave of nausea as the scene seemingly flew towards them, expanding a hundredfold in a matter of seconds. A pinprick on top of the train expanded into a young man with light brown hair riding it, kicking his heels as he watched goods flow off of, and onto his wagons. Tzen recognized him instantly. ¡°Is that the young man you were thinking of?¡± LLortan asked. Tzen nodded. ¡°Good. Now I know what he looks like.¡± Llortan pinched his fingers together then shook them out, and the view returned to the distance it had been before. ¡°Are you going to kill him?¡± Tzen asked. ¡°Obviously, but not right now. If that person is who I suspect he is, I want to be absolutely sure I get him. Hence the backup. And after, Vashniel will want his soul. If he¡¯s lucky, Grethna will end up in a museum, reliving a highlight reel of his greatest failures for the masses for all eternity. Depends on what the reader manages to pry out of his soul. But that¡¯s neither here nor there.¡± ¡°You know what I like about The System?¡± Llortan asked changing tracks as he, glanced at Tzen. ¡°No.¡± ¡°It keeps civilizations below a certain tech level there indefinitely.¡± He said, looking at the train. ¡°What use is inventing a steam engine to remove water from a flooded mine when a Water-Shaper could do it at a fraction of the cost? Why would anyone need a tractor when they can rip tree stumps out with their bare hands? Why invent chemical fertilizers when a spell will do?¡± Llortan held up his hand, holding his thumb and forefinger a tiny bit apart. ¡°That first tiny advancement in technology that outperforms flesh and blood is nigh impossible with System-Empowered people running around. The idea of outperforming the body with non-living machines is ridiculous.¡± He pointed out at the train again. ¡°And then you get this shit. People are going to look at that, and they¡¯re going to get ideas. Do you know how long it took humans to go from steam engines to space exploration?¡± Tzen didn¡¯t know what a ¡®steam engine¡¯ was, the same for ¡®space exploration¡¯. If humans were doing it somewhere on Marconen, he¡¯d never heard of it. He said as much. ¡°Lookit this guy, thinks he¡¯s on humanity¡¯s first world,¡± Llortan said, ruffling Tzen¡¯s hair. That struck a little closer to home. All across the world were stories of how humanity came to be stranded on Marconen during a war between the gods, during which humans were cast out of their homes in the sky and seeded on Marconen. Tzen thought it was just a myth, but after the things he¡¯d seen and heard this creature named after the god of Vengeance say and do¡­he wasn¡¯t so sure anymore. ¡°Just shy of three hundred years, is the answer, by the way. It took Harbingers fifteen thousand between the invention of the steam engine and space exploration because we¡¯re so amazing. Isn¡¯t that just the funniest thing?¡± We actually got most of our advanced tech from the Iralupe. Weak, small creatures with big brains, like you. They only took a hundred and fifty years, you know. It seems like there¡¯s a direct correlation between a species¡¯ weakness and their technological advancement. Pretty intuitive when you think about it. Once the System installed on everyone else, though¡­well, they¡¯re still on their home planet, if that tells you anything.¡± ¡°Pardon, but do you memorize the length of time that every society takes to advance from ¡®steam engines¡¯ to ¡®space exploration¡¯?¡± Tzen asked. Llortan stared at him for a moment. ¡°Yes. I call it the Llortan Resurgance Threat Scale.¡± Llortan raised his hand, seemingly about to say something, when he froze. ¡°What?¡± He demanded, venom lacing his buzzing voice. He stared off into space as he began talking to the System. At this point Tzen wasn¡¯t going to argue whether such a thing were possible. ¡°Well, why didn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Who¡¯s in charge of this sector?¡± ¡°G¡¯rzitKe X¡¯vit Na Gya!¡± Llortan shouted into the air, reality warping around him as Bent seemed to roll off of him like steam. Tzen instinctively warded it away from him with Bent Manipulation and Beli Ma, doing his best to avoid growing a third limb as raw Bent crashed over him like a wave, lensing reality like a lumpy piece of glass. Llortan took a deep breath, and the Bent sucked back inside him, disappearing in a fraction of a second as the creature got a hold of himself. ¡°Well, Looks like we know who the traitor is, Mr. Chu. On the other hand, that means we can kiss any notion of backup goodbye.¡± Tzen was tempted to correct him, tell him that it was ultimately disrespectful to address an imperial prince by his first name. But¡­ Llortan didn¡¯t appear to be in the mood to suffer corrections lightly. ¡°Connect me to the shop.¡± Llortan spoke into the air, commanding the System in ways Tzen had never heard of. ¡°I need a Failsafe, and a Soul Save.¡± Llortan said, arms crossed. The creature tapped his oversized feet on the ground, the creature¡¯s blunt nails tapping the wooden floor of their room in the castle. ¡°Hundred years down the drain ¨C Yes, I¡¯ll pay the cost.¡± Llortan said, irritated. Tzen was forced to take a step back as the world seemed to compress around Llortan¡¯s hand, a wave of Bent sweeping past his skin from all around, as if reality itself had shifted at the creature¡¯s words. Which, Tzen supposed, it had. The Bent coalesced in Llortan¡¯s hand, turning into a strange metal device that looked something like the handle of a crossbow, without the rest of the weapon. It was shiny black steel with intricate details wrought into the sides. It would be highly prized for the sharpness of its lines, showing no hint of forging or welding. Llortan caught Tzen staring at the strange object. ¡°What did you think it was gonna be?¡± He asked, tucking the shiny black metal into a leather pouch at his waist. ¡°A magic wand?¡± ¡°I¡¯m beyond expectations at this point,¡± Tzen said, shaking his head. ¡°Good. Can I get some extra magazines? I¡¯ve got a serious infestation to deal with, and help¡¯s not coming. Yes, I¡¯ll pay the damn cost.¡± Once again, reality warped around Llortan¡¯s hand, depositing a strange rectangular box into his hand, which he promptly shoved in his belt. ¡°May I ask,¡± Tzen said. ¡°What that is?¡± ¡°Targeter,¡± Llortan said, picking up his tattered robe from the chair in the corner of the room and throwing it over his shoulders. With the piece of fabric hiding his arms and legs, he could almost pass for human in a very large crowd. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The Failsafe marks a specific entity in spacetime for the System to do a deep scan. If that entity is a Ravager, the System turns them off.¡± Llortan swiped his fingers across his throat. ¡°Off.¡± ¡°No more Ravager problem.¡± ¡°One more question?¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± Llortan asked, turning back to Tzen. ¡°Why are you so willing to share all this information with me? Aren¡¯t you concerned it will get out?¡± Tzen fully expected this creature to end his life when he was no longer useful to it. it was a tactic commonly used among the highest rank of nobility, who viewed people as little more than disposable game pieces. Llortan snorted, a strange noise given his buzzing voice. ¡°Five hundred years from now, your account of these events will be being busily eaten by scavenger beetles, given you savage¡¯s predilection for storing sensitive information on organic materials... And I like the company. Helps me think to vocalize things, you know?¡± As it turned out, Tzen Chu, Imperial Prince and heir to the throne of Boles, was not a disposable game piece, he was simply beneath the creature¡¯s notice. ¡°Now come, you got us a date at the Den of Iniquity. Let¡¯s not be late.¡± Llortan limped along behind him, disguised as a leprous giant as Tzen lead the way to the Den of Iniquity, the affectionate name the sorcerers of iletha had for the ivory tower in which all the greatest Ilethan Sorcerers were trained. That was what the public believed anyway. Tzen would hazard a guess that it was where all the greatest Ilethan sorcerers were mind-slaved before they could become experienced enough to become a threat. Only the truly exceptional were perceptive enough to fake mediocrity long enough to protect themselves. As a non mind-mage, taking a step into the Den was like visiting all the whorehouses in all the docks across the country. He was bound to come away with some nagging infection. But, it wasn¡¯t as if Tzen had much of a choice. He could only keep his head on as straight as possible and keep himself attentive for any kind of mind-fuckery. His naturally high Stability would help, but only to a point. Tzen marched through the courtyard, eyes forward as he aimed for the base of the tower, ignoring the curious eyes of the student body who lounged around the grass in twos and threes, resting in the shade of fruit trees, caressing each other affectionately, affecting a life of indulgence to the outside observer. He glanced over his shoulder and spotted Llortan cast his gaze about the sprawling people, but Tzen couldn¡¯t see his expression. If Tzen knew anything about Iletha, it was this: None of it was real. They passed under the ivory arch of the tower, carved with detailed vines crawling up toward it¡¯s zenith, disguising the enchantments buried in the portal. Tzen felt a wave of peace and calm sweep over him, rendering him relaxed and unhurried as he passed inside. Perhaps those tales of my father¡¯s were a bit outlandish, Tzen thought as he inspected the lights dotting the mural-covered ceiling in wonder. This place is lovely. There was a gentle push at his back, forcing Tzen back into motion. Oh, right. Our business. He ambled toward the receptionist, a young blonde woman in a white silk shirt sitting behind an ivory desk, blending in with the rest of the tower¡¯s pale asthetic. She looked at them curiously, frowning a bit with her lips pursed just so. She¡¯s cute. She¡¯d make a fine concubine. I¡¯ll come back here later and ask if she¡¯s interested. Y???????????????????o????????????????u??????????????r????????????????? S?????????????t????????????a???????????????b?????????????????i??????????????l??????????????? Tzen blinked. The System was saying something but he couldn¡¯t make it out. It wasn¡¯t important anyway. ¡°Hello, how may I help you?¡± She asked, giving them a radiant smile. ¡°My friend and I seek an audience with the High Sorcerer.¡± Tzen said, thumbing over his shoulder. Tzen was having a hard time paying attention to anything but the young lady¡¯s cleavage, but he still saw the woman¡¯s stance shift, Her expression flickering unnaturally. Extensive Training has increased your Attributes! Your perception has reached level 25! What was that? Tzen thought, glancing back up to her face, but not spotting anything different. Did I imagine it? ¡°Ah, you must be Prince Tzen Chu of Boles. It¡¯s an honor to receive you.¡± She said with a gracious bow. ¡°And who is your friend?¡± she asked, cocking her head and gazing up at the bandage-wrapped giant. ¡°Good morning Trevor,¡± Llortan said, tapping the side of his head. ¡°Tell me, have you ever had sex with a girl in a manner that didn¡¯t involve mind-rape? Have you gotten bored with your toys yet? Make them start playing with each other like dolls? Have you made them fight yet? Act out dramas? Kill themselves? Maybe you¡¯re too young to see where the path you¡¯re on leads, but I suppose that¡¯s irrelevant now.¡± The girl at the front desk went pale before her lips drew back in a snarl. ¡°Who do you think you are?¡± ¡°Allow me to introduce myself.¡± Llortan said, reaching into his leather case and pulling out the strange metal weapon. He pointed it at the young woman and squeezed the handle. For a fraction of a second, the lights dimmed around them, and it felt like some unknowably powerful entity had focused its entire attention on this particular room. In a blink of an eye, the phantasm of a young man was torn from the girl¡¯s body, surprise and disbelief written across his face. Then the lights brightened, and the perky receptionist¡¯s eyes rolled back in her head, collapsing like a puppet with her strings cut. Her forehead smashed into the table and she fell to the ground, bleeding profusely from her brow. ¡°Aaand we¡¯re done here. I could feel the bastard watching me through her eyes. I didn¡¯t want to use the Failsafe since it doesn¡¯t give me the option of capturing the soul or seeing who it was, but we don¡¯t really have that luxury anymore,¡± Llortan said, shoving the weapon back into its case and spinning on his heel, aiming to leave the tower. ¡°What ¨C but ¨C ¡° Tzen hesitated for a moment, mind reeling as he tried to keep up with the giant creature¡¯s pace before jumping over the desk and kneeling down beside the wounded girl and checking her pulse. He immediately noticed two things: One, her pulse was strong and steady, so she likely had enough Body to survive the wound, Two, she wasn¡¯t nearly as attractive as he¡¯d thought at first glance. Simply cute, with a button nose and freckles, rather than stunning, as he¡¯d thought before. Younger than he¡¯d thought, too. Damn illusionists. Still, she was wounded, and a woman. Tzen¡¯s upbringing wouldn¡¯t allow him to let her bleed. Tzen ripped a bit of his shirt and tied it around the girls¡¯ head wound before he chased after Llortan, who was already halfway through the courtyard. As he ran through the courtyard, he noticed the previously luxurious scene of youthful dalliance had been wiped from existence. Girls wept openly into their palms, while some boys rocked back and forth, hugging themselves, fingernails dragging into the skin of their arms, leaving bloody furrows. Still others were in the process of harming themselves, bashing their heads against the jostling fruit trees, or searching for any sharp object they could find to cut themselves with. Each and every one of them must have been under some kind of compulsion, broken the moment Llortan used his mysterious ¡®failsafe¡¯. ¡°How did you know his name!?¡± Tzen shouted after Llortan as he ran. ¡°How did you know any of that?¡± ¡°System tells me things. Names are easy, even if someone is possessed. As for his behavior, all mind-controlling tyrants follow a similar path of absolute degredation, starting with rape and ending with blood orgies. He was near the beginning of his reign. Now come on, we¡¯re on a tight schedule.¡± Llortan said as Tzen caught up with him. ¡°We need to follow our noses to the underworld next before any Ravagers controlling it get wind of today¡¯s events. I know that¡¯s out of order, but I hate mind mages. Ravager mind mages even more. Ninety nine out of a hundred times they turn into absolute monsters.¡± ¡°How many mind controlling tyrants do you know!?¡± Tzen demanded. ¡°Too many.¡± ¡°Wait!¡± a voice called from behind them, causing Llortan and Tzen to turn. A blonde woman in a scanty silk robe chased after them, coming to a halt at their feet, chest heaving with exertion. She was sumptuous and beautiful for a foreigner, but at this point, Tzen was taking these things with a grain of salt. ¡°The Den owes you a debt.¡± She said, offering them an ivory coin with the image of a tower stamped on it. ¡°No one even knew Trevor was controlling us. Without you, the consequences would have been too terrible to contemplate.¡± Llortan grabbed the coin and waved a hand over it. The coin crackled with energy for an instant before letting out a fine line of smoke. Then Llortan shoved it into his pocket, his brilliant green eyes peering down at the blonde-haired mind mage from above. The woman paled and shied away from the creature¡¯s intense scrutiny. ¡°Someone else will take his place, I¡¯m sure. It¡¯s the nature of a place like this. Judging by the speed of your recovery, you¡¯re likely thinking it will be you, Charlotte.¡± ¡°Besides¡­don¡¯t thank me yet,¡± Llortan said, pointing northwest, toward the ocean. A second later, there was an eruption of fire from the distant docks, barely visible as a mushroom of smoke above the Den¡¯s walls. Alarm bells began to toll. ¡°You¡¯ve got more important things to do right now than consolidate power.¡± Macronomicon ENJOY!!!! Chapter 188: A Bloodied Nose ***Prince Bekvah, Kala¡¯s Uncle*** Bekvah had grown up around the smell of the ocean. In fact, next to reading, his favorite pastime was riding the gentle swell of the waves with a line in the water, a wide brim hat protecting him from the harsh glare of the sun. The air of the ILethan port, however, smelled nothing like home. It had the tangy smell of copper, choking clouds of smoke from coal fires rising above the city. It was expected for the largest manufacturer of steel on the continent, but still¡­It smelled nothing like home. There had been two options floating around in the closed council meetings. Gadvera had to retaliate. They had to deal a blow that was strong enough to put their enemies on the back foot. Their country had been severely weakened by the recent war, and Iletha and MAlkenrovia had suffered no damage to their infrastructure. If they sent another army of the same size. Bekvah didn¡¯t know if their people could deal with it. The reinforced walls, the expanded standing army; all of it was the ruffled feathers of a prey animal trying to make itself look bigger and meaner. If they were attacked again in earnest, the food, weapons and bandages would all dry up in a matter of days. No, they could not defend. If they couldn¡¯t defend, then the only option was to attack. The two options of attack were Iletha and Malkenrovia. Now that they knew what they did about Malkenrovia, the land could be considered uninhabited by any reasonable man¡¯s standards. No one was willing to accept those black worms and the monsters they carried with them as a nation of people. So, option one, send the army to Malkenrovia and slaughter them wholesale, try to establish a beachhead, then a colony to trade with. It was a long, slow plan, with high risk and high reward. Repopulating Malkenrovia would give them another trading partner while simultaneously cutting the monsterous support out from under the Ilethan nation. The risk was that the expedition was Malkenrovia was significantly further away, and populated by brain-infesting monsters. Anything that went wrong could lead to a cascade failure, losing the entire expedition with no profit, and no word of their failure for possible years to come. It was an entire shot in the dark. Still, it appealed to Bekvah more than the alternative. The alternative was to strike back at Iletha itself, and render them incapable of posing a threat over the course of the next few years, giving Gadvera time to recover. It sounded simple, but what it basically meant was that they would have to storm the docks of Ilestar, burn down the docks and the shipyards while putting thousands of men and women to the sword, if not outright burning them to death. It was a solid plan with much lower risk, but only temporary relief. Innocent men and women weighed against inhuman monsters¡­ His brother had struggled mightily with the decision to send his army to Iletha rather than Malkenrovia. The final tipping point of his decision: There were too many unknowns about the army of monsters who¡¯d attacked them. They knew Iletha and what it was capable of. They knew next to nothing about this other threat, and that raised the odds of the entire expedition being wiped out. So they, when faced with the threat of inhuman monsters, Gadvera chose to attack innocent dockworkers, smiths and shipbuilders. Bekvah understood the reasoning, and he couldn¡¯t fault the king¡¯s decision. Were he the older brother and standing in his place, he might have chosen the exact same course of action for the exact same reasons. But a nagging, intrusive thought kept whispering to him that he might have chosen a different path. Bekvah chewed on his lip, idly itching the stump of his wrist. Gadvera couldn¡¯t afford for him to be noncommittal, and so he would do his duty, without fail. But he wouldn¡¯t enjoy it. Bekvah let out a shiver as the ship passed within the radius of the towers. A slippery feeling caressed the outside of his consciousness, as unwelcome as a tongue in the ear from a hated enemy. They were scanning the boat. Every single sailor on The ¡®Surprise!¡¯ believed this was a normal delivery of goods and passengers to Iletha. And why wouldn¡¯t they? That¡¯s what they¡¯d been told. The deception was necessary, as Bekvah was the only one whose mind was too strong to be read by the underpaid mediocre sorcerers guarding the docks from spies. If their exact plan was given away before they even made the docks, the entire ilethan guard would meet them. It was noted, of course, that someone with a wizard¡¯s Stability was coming into port, and Bekvah was unsurprised when he was met with a delegation of some four sorcerers in the typical blue silk robes they were known for. ¡°Good evening, Prince Bekvah,¡± The leading Sorcerer said, bowing deeply, even as Bekvah warded away the slimy thoughts and feelings trying to worm their way into his mind. ¡°To what do we owe the honor of your visit?¡± ¡°Diplomacy,¡± Bekvah said, his stomach churning despite the steadiness of his voice. ¡°Gadvera seeks to create common ground. A reason for your association with the creatures hailing from Malkenrovia to come to an end.¡± ¡°I see.¡± The lead sorcerer said, piercing Bekvah with his bright blue eyes. ¡°The king would be overjoyed to welcome such a distinguished guest,¡± he said, pointing toward a nearby palanquin. The squeaking of a cart caught Bekvah¡¯s attention, and he glanced over at Holth, the sailor tasked with retrieving Bekvah¡¯s luggage from the bowels of the ship. The pallet of bottles dominated the cart wobbling toward him. ¡°Where do you want your luggage, milord?¡± Holth asked. ¡°Right there is fine.¡± Bekvah took a deep breath. I guess we¡¯re doing this. ¡°Apologies.¡± Splitting. 47/50 Bent remaining. Bekvah tapped the god¡¯s fire component under his sleeve, aiming three separate bursts at different points in space in front of, above and behind the sorcerers. They raised their hands, Bent entangling with his own to annul the effects, managing to stop two, but the third one behind them went off, singing them to the bone and killing them instantly, leaving only the surprised expressions on their faces as they toppled forward. The detonation of ultra-hot air caught the nearby buildings on fire and sent a massive plume of smoke up into the sky. ¡°Milord, wha-¡° Holth asked, staggering backward from the sudden wave of heat. ¡°I swear to the gods,¡± Bekvah muttered as he tore the wrapping off the pallet and opened the first jar. ¡°Whoever named this vessel had no idea of the irony.¡± The first jar opened, and clear slime erupted out of it, spattering around the ship seemingly at random. The slime grew and swelled, taking shape and color, until Andra and her squad of Legends stood around him. The mere presence of the vanguard was a weight off Bekvah¡¯s shoulders. Without hesitating, Andra reached out and seized another jar, barking orders as she twisted the top off of it. ¡°Take the docks! Lock everything down between here and the ship!¡± The Legends clomped down the gangplank in full armor, swords drawn as a squad of rosy-cheeked young men staggered out of the next jar, looking down at their arms in a stupor. One of them gagged, forcing back a violent reaction to being rendered into soup. Andra didn¡¯t wait for them to get comfortable though. She snatched jars and tossed them to the soldiers. ¡°Come on, you brats! Your squad¡¯s on jar-opening duty! Send every squad down to the front as soon as they stop being snot. Today¡¯s the day we give these Ilethan scum a bloodied nose! The squad was propelled into motion, and they began opening jars, creating a neverending stream of armored boots that rushed down the gangplank, overwhelming the docks and flooding directly onto the streets of Ilestar. Bekvah¡¯s heart sank as he spotted a woman being cut down as she ran, just a bit too slow to survive the assault. I wonder who she was. ¡°Hey!¡± Andra said, jostling his shoulder with her gloved fist, her greying brows furrowed. ¡°Yes?¡± Bekvah asked, prying his thoughts away from the burgeoning guilt. We need you to ash the shipyards and topple the smithies! If it¡¯s made of wood, it burns! If it¡¯s made of stone, blow it up! We have to do it before they get organized and start trying to snipe you! Can you do that?¡± Bevah drew himself to his feet. He didn¡¯t know exactly when he began kneeling. ¡°Sure, use the wizard with a lifetime of studying Bent as nothing more than expensive artillery,¡± Bekvah muttered, trying to distract himself from the ongoing loss of life with humor. It worked, a bit. Bekvah did as he was instructed, immolating building after building, burning them to the ground in an ever-expanding ring outward from the port, moving at the ground-eating pace of a wildfire. He kept himself topped off with Bent potions he¡¯d filled himself, saving up in secret for this day. Andra provided him with her personal protection, acting as a wall of steel between him and the Ilethan archers who tried to pick him off as they marched through the smoke-filled streets, digging deep into the very heart of Ilestar. The resistance was far weaker than they¡¯d come to expect, which Bekvah attributed to a unusual level of disorganization from the Ilethan Sorcerers. This allowed them to push beyond simply crippling their enemy¡¯s ship production, moving on to looting the trade district. Thick lines of men formed behind the front lines, hauling goods back to the port, where Gadveran soldiers had swiftly taken control of every piece of wood that floated. If all went well, they would come home with a new fleet and the plunder from an entire city, putting them back in a position of strength. Their mission was to create as much devastation as possible, loot, and retreat without directly engaging the Ilethan Royalty. It soon became clear why as they neared the center of the city. The previously fearful panicking civilians suddenly shifted, like a liquid turned solid in the space of a single breath. Out of nowhere, a ragged line of survivors fleeing the Gadveran offensive stopped in their tracks, formed a perfect line, and created a makeshift barricade, creating a solid line of defense by seizing stalls, wagons, pillars, fences and furniture and piling them up, laying spears and makeshift weapons atop them to create bristling impediments. They moved with the speed and alacrity of people who¡¯d done this exact thing a thousand times, obviously under the direct control of a Ilethan Royal. Bekvah immolated them, allowing the Gadveran soldiers to march through unhindered. We¡¯ve got their attention now, I¡¯d best advise Andra to start moving out. A presence shifted its attention, settling on Bekvah and his surroundings. It felt as though a mountain had pressed its weight down on top of each and every one of them, causing the soldiers to cry out as one, many staggering, or dropping to their knees under the mental pressure. Your Stability has resisted the effects of the Ability. Bekvah felt a spike of pain bloom in his side, causing him to gasp in pain. He glanced over and spotted a young man with a spear, a crazed look in his eyes, his lips twitching in a gruesome smile as he jabbed the business end into Bekvah¡¯s side. Andra let out an angry shout and shoved the boy away from Bekvah. The spear hurt more on the way out, causing him to stagger backward, hand clutched over the wound as he leaned against the smoking rubble of a nearby smithy. ¡°Are you alright?¡± She asked, turning back to Bekvah. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine. We¡¯ve got to ¨C¡° Bekvah¡¯s heart leapt into his throat as he barely dodged a vicious thrust from the Gadveran general, the white hot sword shearing through the stone behind him, bringing Andra¡¯s face inches away from his own. ¡°Bekvah.¡± She growled through gritted teeth, her expression one of absolute fury as her shaking arm drew her sword up again. ¡°Your diplomatic message has been received.¡± ***Calvin*** Calvin kicked his heels off the side of the rearmost car, enjoying the wind beginning to blow through his hair as they set off to the south. Grant was unwilling to guard this leg of the journey through Iletha, as the aging general was considered a traitor, and had been promised with a gruesome end should they ever catch him. To that end, Calvin and Baroke took the man¡¯s place ¡°Is it just me or does it look like Ilestar is on fire? Baroke asked, peering into the distance as the train slowly picked up speed in reverse, carrying tons of raw iron and copper away from the city. Calvin glanced over and squinted. Baroke¡¯s eyesight was far better than his own, but Calvin could easily tell that the smoke rising over the trade city had increased a hundredfold. Calvin glanced around the bare mountains that surrounded the city, filled with metals and coal, but not a tall tree in sight. ¡°Good. We¡¯ll charge them tenfold for the next batch of lumber.¡± ¡°Yeah, fuck those guys,¡± Baroke said, giving the city the finger as the train drew them further and further away from the enemy nation. Macronomicon Chapter 189: The Wealth of Nations Murak sat at Calvin¡¯s desk, going through the shipping ledger, written in transit by Grant. Calvin had asked him to provide advice and an estimate on whether or not Calvin was making enough profit to push forward on the whole ¡®making a nation¡¯ front. ¡°The latest shipment included thirty tons of glass.¡± ¡°Uhuh,¡± Calvin said, peering at Nadia¡¯s throat. It was a difficult proposition fitting the spitting glands there without making it swell or damaging her voice. ¡°Three tons of raw silks.¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°One ton of precious metals.¡± ¡°¡¯kay¡¯,¡± Calvin turned her head to the side and traced her jawline. Maybe he could fit them further back, behind the jaw, where the lymph nodes lived. It¡¯s not like a summon could get sick. At least, not in the short term. ¡°Five hundred pounds of goat jizz,¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Open.¡± Nadia opened her mouth, and obligingly raised her tongue, showing him the nozzle hidden under her tongue. Calvin was experimenting with Nadia while he was listening, trying to give her the ability to breath fire. It was honestly a small thing, given what she could already ¨C Wait a minute. ¡°Goat jizz?¡± Calvin asked craning his neck to peer at the old bastard. ¡°Making sure you were listening.¡± Murak said without remorse. ¡°I¡¯ve never met anyone quite as nonchalant about this amount of wealth as you. When I was your age I would have spent all day going through the numbers over and over until I¡¯d committed every bit to memory. that was five hundred pounds of Nem, by the way. Although there is a market for goat studding.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Several hundred pounds of various regional substances, from medicinal to recreational.¡± ¡°Your drug-addled whore will appreciate that, I imagine.¡± Calvin glanced over and spotted Nadia smirking at him in a grand show of defiance, but Calvin couldn¡¯t help but notice she was wiggling in place on her seat. If she were a dog, she¡¯d be wagging her tail. I don¡¯t know what a dog is. Build a spaceship right fucking now. This lack of man¡¯s best friend will not stand. Calvin reached over to Nadia and gently closed her mouth, stopping her from spitting any more inflammatory words. Not gonna rise to the bait that easy. Splitting. Calvin tapped his Undifferentiated Mass component and created an ultrafine line of undifferentiated matter along her lips, creating a flesh bridge that sealed them together. Nadia¡¯s eyes widened in alarm when she realized she couldn¡¯t open her mouth again. ¡°You were saying?¡± Calvin asked, glancing back at Murak as Nadia began to paw at her mouth. Splitting. Calvin fused her hands to her mouth, and the Ilethan fell onto her side, suffering a moment of intense panic before she focused on breathing through her nose, hands and mouth incapacitated. ¡°Ah, yes, we¡¯ve got the drugs. Fifteen tons of iron and iron tools. Twenty tons of grains from Boles, several tons of minor sundries, and one¡­¡± He pulled a painted wooden figure out from under the desk. ¡°Action figure.¡± The doll was about two hands tall, carved from wood, and an uncanny likeness to Calvin. Calvin picked up the doll and found he could wiggle the arms, as they were fixed with a ball join at the shoulder. ¡°Seems too high quality for some kid to send this,¡± Calvin muttered, ¡°Tell me it¡¯s not a spell focus and someone¡¯s going to light me on fire from a thousand miles away. I met a sorceress who could do that.¡± Well, maybe distance is a factor, since I¡¯m fairly certain she would try to light me on fire, given our history. Maybe she¡¯s already tried. ¡°No, it came from Kala. She said it would be good propaganda if you wanted to raise public awareness.¡± Calvin raised a brow. ¡°No time like the present to have children learn to worship you. Use your Knick-knack summoning spell to make tens of thousands of these and hand them off to children all over the world and you¡¯ve ¨C¡± ¡°It needs monsters.¡± Calvin said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Something to fight. You can¡¯t honestly expect a kid to play with a single doll by itself and enjoy themselves?¡± Murak raised a brow. Calvin sighed. ¡°You¡¯re too old and Kala¡¯s too rich to understand. I literally played with bugs and water when I was growing up. I know a thing or two about playing make believe. This doll needs an opponent.¡± ¡°You¡¯re taking this more seriously than I expected.¡± Murak said as Calvin looked over the doll. ¡°I take my goofing off seriously.¡± Calvin said with a straight face shortly before waving it off and setting aside the doll. ¡°It was just an idle thought.¡± Calvin clasped his hands together. ¡°So. Do we have enough?¡± ¡°Do you have enough for what?¡± Murak asked. ¡°To build a kingdom.¡± Murak stared at him for a moment, before setting his pen down. ¡°Have you never studied economics, infrastructure? Governance?¡± ¡°I¡¯d never seen toilet paper before going to the capital, if that tells you anything.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°Oh, gods,¡± Murak muttered, burying his head in his hands. ¡°No wonder.¡± ¡°The short answer is, yes, you have enough. You can make a kingdom with what you have collected.¡± Calvin pumped a fist. ¡°The long answer is that there¡¯s no minimum price on a,¡± He made air quotes, ¡°¡¯kingdom¡¯. You can make a sand-castle on the beach and declare it a sovereign nation.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the local magistrate smash it?¡± ¡°Yeah, they would. Which is why if you want a sovereign nation, you need others to acknowledge it. The price of this is negotiable. You can either achieve it through military might ¨C¡± ¡°The magistrate wouldn¡¯t smash my sandcastle if there were an army standing behind it.¡± ¡°Yes. Or you could simply buy such acknowledgement from your neighbors. Most of them would demand a cut of your profits in exchange for recognizing you as a sovereign nation.¡± ¡°How is that any better than paying them tribute?¡± ¡°Hence why most countries have their own military rather than paying off their neighbors. Generally it¡¯s a combination of the two.¡± ¡°Got it.¡± ¡°Your goal is to find the balance. The maximum amount of land you want to acquire and defend with the amount of money and manpower available to you. you might opt for a large army with lots of land, allowing you to farm easily, or focus your attention on your burgeoning city-state and the trade flowing through it, sacrificing a bit of self-sufficiency in exchange for a drastically smaller area you have to defend, and therefore a significantly smaller cost to defend it, in terms of manpower, equipment, etc.¡± Calvin could see where Murak was going with this. Calvin¡¯s city was placed in the center of a valley, and if he were to run a wall along those mountains, it would be pretty quick and easy to defend the city itself. But if he were to claim the jungle outside as farmland, he would have to set up farming villages, similar to the one he¡¯d grown up in. Those villages had to be defended too. Interesting problem. ¡°Excuse me if this sounds amateurish, but how do I change raw wealth into soldiers, villages, walls, and so on?¡± ¡°Delegation. Lots and lots of delegation,¡± Murak said. ¡°You need to task someone with managing your military power base, then hire someone to organize the spending of money, someone to organize building new villages. They¡¯re going to need surveyors for the land and scribes to write up writs of ownership along with fliers for town criers, They¡¯ll need to work closely with your money man to offer new homesteaders incentives to move onto your land. ¡°You¡¯ll need your own magistrates to manage the villages, and someone to manage them, tax collectors to recoup a bit of your losses, who¡¯ll answer to your money man.¡± ¡°Daaaamn.¡± Calvin breathed. Murak chuckled. ¡°Or you could have someone you trust arrange things for you, like you already did.¡± ¡°I did what now?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°You had Kurawe organize things when you first arrived, did you not?¡± ¡°Yeah, but are you telling me ¨C¡° ¡°Yes, Kurawe has already arranged most of the basic details of your government. He had difficulty attracting talented men and women to your March until word of your train¡¯s profits began to circulate. The dearth of supplicants with problems only you can solve hounding your every step is a testament to the fat man¡¯s bureaucratic talent.¡± I heard that. Kurawe¡¯s voice rumbled in the back of Calvin¡¯s mind. I want a comprehensive report on what you¡¯ve gotten done. Calvin thought. I feel distinctly uncomfortable having people under me that I¡¯m not aware of. It would be my honor, Ravager. ¡°All that being said, how much do we have left after Kurawe took care of everything?¡± Murak gave a sigh. ¡°Young man, a government is more of a process than a goal. It requires constant tending. Think of it as a constant flow of time and money to maintain it¡¯s existence. As for how much you have left¡­I think it would be more informative to show you than read dry numbers off a piece of paper.¡± Murak got to his feet and headed for the door, Calvin following behind him. ¡°Be right back,¡± Calvin said to Nadia, who was struggling to get to her feet. They walked down the dark stone hall until they reached the elevator. It was another piece of machinery suggested by Elliot that involved pulleys and counter-weights. After a bit of experimenting, Calvin was able to have the Knick-knacks build one and install it into his tower, powered by simple nem-based enchantments baked into the gears. The materials to enchant the elevator were expensive, given that Calvin had no way of reproducing the Nem that went into them. When he tried to copy it with undifferentiated matter, the material fizzed into a choking cloud of black smoke that smelled horribly. There was obviously some kind of Bent interaction between Nem and undifferentiated matter that prevented it from working properly, but Calvin had no idea what that was. Still it was comforting to know that glimmering stone would continue to serve as the only currency that could not be replicated via magic. The expense of making the elevator was worth it, though. Every wizard needed a tower, and the contents of aforementioned tower were just as important as the outside. He couldn¡¯t let his tower seem pedestrian, could he? If Calvin found a way to instantly teleport between floors, he¡¯d upgrade to that. Remind me to do more experiments with Refraction Spinner flight organs. Calvin thought. If he could simply draw two spaces close enough together with spinner flight organs, it would be functionally identical to teleportation. Non-euclidian space is fun. Elliot commented as they rode the elevator down, dropping below the level of the mountaintop deep into the sub-basement floors that bore deep into the mountain¡¯s core like the roots of an enormous tree. The entire mountain had been hollowed out, then reinforced with ribs made of Abyssal Steel, making at least a dozen floors with ceilings fifty feet into the air. It was where Calvin had directed them to unload his share of the train¡¯s profits since they had quickly overwhelmed the temporary storage shed he¡¯d made outside the tracks. The elevator came to a smooth halt on the lowest level, the largest layer of the hollowed out mountain. ¡°Whoah.¡± Goosebumps traveled up Calvin¡¯s neck. Stretched out in front of him was pile after pile of goods of every shape and sort, rigidly organized by kind, volume and quality. It didn¡¯t quite stretch as far as the eye could see, but under the softly glowing lamps, it almost seemed infinite. They rested both on the ground and on towering shelfing made of carefully mashed Abyssal Steel. There were pallets with bars of steel about waist high in a double row that seemed to march out into the darkness. Calvin walked up to them and peeled back the oiled canvas covering the top, revealing the glint of steel. The entire row was literal tons upon tons of steel, worth dozens of glimmers, far too heavy to stack on top of each other for fear of crushing the pallets under their weight. This is unbelievable. The sheer amount of steel here would last the entire village of Deinos¡­lifetimes. It was practically infinite. Not that much after you equip an army, though. Elliot said, trying to keep the sheer wealth in context for Calvin. Calvin¡¯s brows furrowed. Once Calvin mentally divvied out the steel to ten thousand individual soldiers, he found that it was more limited than he believed. It was still a lot, but it wasn¡¯t infinite, like his village-raised mind initially believed. Calvin walked past the steel, and six short pallets wrapped in rough burlap caught his attention. Each pallet was little higher than his knee. They were taking up a lot of space for relatively low height, compared to the lighter materials, which were often stacked on top of each other, separated by six-foot Abyssal steel shelves. You need to get yourself a magic forklift. Calvin knelt down and drew open the burlap covering of the knee-high pallet. His heart skipped a beat. Is this¡­all Nem? Calvin reached a hand into the tightly bound pallet and drew out a handful of Nem, the opalescent material sparkling with multicolored fire in the lamplight. Usually, a Stone was a small gold piece, redeemable at the bank for a piece of Nem of a specific weight. Nem didn¡¯t make good currency, as it was somewhat easy to break, and was difficult to reconstitute. It¡¯s value lay in it¡¯s beauty and being impossible to fake, as well as its use in enchanting and Bent-containing glass. In Calvin¡¯s hand was four Stone sized pieces of Nem, with a bunch of Dust settled in between the larger chunks. Little flakes and particle sized pieces of the prized material. Each one of these could be traded for silver, or ground down into an enchantment, or made into a reservoir for Bent¡­or¡­. Calvin was trying not to hyperventilate as he opened the next pallet and the next, each of them full to his knee of coarse, freshly mined Nem. Intellectually, Calvin knew he was rich ever since he¡¯d seen the journals detailing the gobs of freight from across the continent, but seeing it in person was nearly enough to cause a breakdown. Calvin gasped when he opened the fourth pallet and uncovered Glimmers. A Glimmer was a solid bar of Nem a little bigger than a hand long and about the thickness of a man¡¯s palm. These solid pieces of Nem were insanely valuable, and could be used to make the highly enchanted gear that kings would have in their arsenal. The size of a piece of Nem determined it¡¯s effectiveness at trapping and returning Bent to the user, which was why Calvin had contemplating stealing the enchanted bracers from Kala¡¯s father so often. Powdered Nem mixed with glass worked too, but not as efficiently. With this many bars, he could make¡­.anything. Gods, the things I could make. I¡¯ll have to take a few bars for testing, summon some tiny knick-knack to do the detail work. I wonder if I could a way to combine them? Calvin clutched two bars to his chest, instinctively desiring to carry everything he could in his hands. He needed to get these somewhere safe, somewhere he could keep an eye on them¡­ As far as Calvin knew there wasn¡¯t any way to combine Nem, but a throne made entirely of the stuff wasn¡¯t sounding too bad. That way he could sit on it to prevent anyone from taking it from him. Murak¡¯s weathered hand snapped his gnarled fingers in front of his face. ¡°What!?¡± Calvin said, jerking his head up. ¡°Hi,¡± the money lender said with a raised brow. ¡°Welcome back. I figured you might not have built a tolerance for wealth, given your age, but this is silly.¡± The old man pried the bar of Nem out of Calvin¡¯s hand and set it back on the pile before grabbing Calvin¡¯s shoulders with wiry hands and hauling him to his feet. Calvin, without realizing it, had been hunching over the Nem like a beast-man. I was really hoping you¡¯d say ¡®My precious¡¯ at least once. ¡°Let me try to put things into context.¡± Murak said, pointing out the sea of wealth that spread out in front of him. ¡°This is not your money. This is your Kingdom¡¯s money. Everything here is to build, maintain and preserve your nation. If it¡¯s not being used for that, it is being wasted.¡± ¡°Altruistic words coming from you,¡± Calvin said with a raised brow. The moneylender was quite possibly the most tight-fisted man he¡¯d ever met. ¡°Wasted money doesn¡¯t pay dividends,¡± Murak said, nodding sagely. ¡°Growing your kingdom does.¡± ¡°You¡¯re invested in my kingdom¡¯s success somehow, aren¡¯t you?¡± Calvin asked, peering at the old man standing next to him. ¡°I might have bought some land that will grow a thousandfold in value should you succeed,¡± Murak said, patting him on the shoulder. ¡°But the lesson you should take away is the first one. Sooner or later, all this wealth will seem commonplace. You¡¯ll get numb to it, and won¡¯t have the desire to clutch it to your chest like a Gurek with a Kope fruit. In the meantime it¡¯s best if you try to frame this in your mind as your nation¡¯s money and not yours. It will help with compulsive, stupid spending.¡± ¡°Even though it is mine.¡± ¡°Even though it is yours.¡± Calvin glanced down at the pallet full of Glimmers and forced himself to close the burlap flap, covering the shimmering stone slabs once again, his heart aching as he did so. ¡°Good job,¡± Murak said, nodding. Remind me to grab some to experiment with when Murak leaves. Roger. I have to frame this as something that would be good for my nation¡­ ¡°Do you think the doll of me should have an enchanted circuit in there that allows it to summon and unsummon a little wooden wasp?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Not unless you want to give other nations the technology behind it.¡± Murak said. Damn. I would have killed for a toy like that six years ago. Maybe as few as three. Oh well. The two of them surveyed the rest of the goods, then took the elevator back up to Calvin¡¯s office, Where Ella was waiting for them. The Genosian girl was sitting on Nadia¡¯s former chair, her heels resting on Nadia¡¯s back. Her face was clouded with worry, which seemed to brighten as soon as Calvin walked through the door. As soon as she saw him, the girl stood, her magical flail dangling at her hip. ¡°Poeor, I have a request of you,¡± she said, stepping forward until she was looming over him. ¡°Oh?¡± Calvin asked, glancing up at her. ¡°My Father needs your help.¡± She said, pointing to the side. Alerted, Calvin noticed the ambivalent gaze from the corner of the room and snapped his gaze onto it. There was the man who¡¯d captured him years ago, the Maje of the Iron Skin tribe, wearing his fancy bone hat, and looking for all the world, identical to the last time he¡¯d seen him. Calvin¡¯s hand flew down to the components on his belt, intending to scour the man from existence. A quick vaporization seems appropriate. Gods fire and nothing but ash remaining, Calvin thought. He touched the Fireball component with one hand and stretched out the other, summoning his Bent as he did. Ella¡¯s hand flew down and locked around Calvin¡¯s wrist, Her Bent disturbing his own while it was still flowing through his arm. ¡°I can feel how angry you are with him, but I would prefer he live. You¡¯re not in the same position as you were back then,¡± she said, her yellow-green eyes boring into his, full of empathy. ¡°You don¡¯t have to have the same reaction.¡± Calvin met her gaze, and glanced back at the man who¡¯d done so much damage to his childhood. Forcing his anger down was like shoving a wild animal into a cage two sizes too small. It bit, scratched, and squirmed the whole way down, and once it was under control, it still felt like it was straining the seams of its cage. ¡°Fine.¡± Calvin gritted through his teeth. ¡°What do you need?¡± ¡°My people are disappearing in great numbers.¡± The Maje said. ¡°Something in the jungle is hunting us, and we are helpless before it. We need help or we¡¯ll cease to exist.¡± Calvin broke into a laugh. Macronomicon Chapter 190: Helping Those You Hate ***Calvin Gadsint, Marquis, Prince Consort, Ravager**** ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Calvin said, not even a little bit contrite as he wiped tears from his eyes. ¡°The thought of something hunting you just hit me right in the funny bone.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not taking this seriously.¡± The Genosian shaman said, scowling. ¡°Of course not,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I hate you.¡± Calvin glanced between Ella and Nadia, frowning. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever pretended not to. Have I?¡± Ella sighed, leaning against the wall. ¡°No. you haven¡¯t.¡± ¡°Alright then, convince me to help a people I have a deep, abiding dislike for.¡± Calvin said, crossing his arms. ¡°Seven generations of service.¡± The Maje said, prostrating himself in front of Calvin. ¡°We are as good as our word. If you can sure the land of this evil, we will serve you. Our children and their children, until the seventh generation.¡± Calvin yawned. ¡°Please. The lives of my tribesmen are depending on me. There are no other allies to turn to.¡± ¡°Because you alienated all of them by eating them.¡± The shaman deflated. ¡°We pride ourselves on self-sufficiency. I¡¯m sure to be ridiculed for coming to you. I brought my people here on false pretenses simply to ask for aid. I¡¯ll lose my position. I¡¯ll be cast out and unwelcome, but the thing that is stalking us is simply beyond any of us. It takes people in the night, it takes people in the day. A moment of inattention and a child can vanish from the arms of their mother.¡± The Shaman ran out of words, shaking his head, seemingly lost in thought and sorrow. ¡°Did you say vanish?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Not ¡®get dragged off¡¯ or ¡®eaten¡¯, but ¡®vanish¡¯?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Calvin¡¯s interest was piqued. ¡°Has anyone seen it?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Or perhaps remembered seeing it but didn¡¯t think it was important until later?¡± ¡°No one has seen anything. There is no evidence to mark its passing. No memory of it.¡± ¡°Then how do you know it¡¯s a living thing?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Could it be an Ability or spell seeking out and vaporizing people, or some kind of tear in reality that people keep falling through.¡± The Genosian Maje raised his eyes and met Calvin¡¯s gaze. ¡°I hope you¡¯ll trust me when I say that we know when something is stalking us. Evidence or no, we can feel its presence, hovering at the edge of perception. We¡¯ve seen many Warped monsters find their way out of the south, but never anything like this. Think it could be a Brain Worm? Nah, they would definitely have seen it, unless it¡¯s doing some real time-janky shit. Carefully avoiding people¡¯s gazes doesn¡¯t feel like it¡¯s M.O. ¡°We can feel it¡¯s corruption spreading from the south. Your own land, and that of Gadvera, aren¡¯t much further away from the Deep Jungle than ours.¡± I can¡¯t help but feel like he put capital letters on deep jungle. ¡°This Deep Jungle,¡± Calvin asked with a frown. ¡°Regularly spawns monsters?¡± ¡°Widowmakers, Kugeya and stranger regularly venture forward from that place.¡± Is there another Siphon in the deep jungle? Calvin thought. It wasn¡¯t as though humans were wagin war and killing each other by the tens of thousands in the remote jungle, leaving few reasons why the Warp concentration might be high enough to spawn monsters on a regular basis. Siphons were an incredibly valuable resource, both for the Warp the generated, but also for the monster parts. If there was actually a monster capable of vanishing so many people without being spotted, or if there was a siphon buried somewhere in the jungle, it would be more than worth Calvin¡¯s time to find and kill/claim it. Calvin tapped his finger on his arm as he contemplated. There was, as ever, a very real possibility that he could die seeking profit, right here on the cusp of something great. Balanced the possibility of losing everything he¡¯d already made against an opportunity to get a new source of income and some new spell components while making some friends¡­ Calvin wasn¡¯t sure which way he wanted to go with that decision until he glanced into Ella¡¯s eyes. The feeling of her sister dying in her arms briefly travelled across the link between him and the towering genosian. Ah, damnit. ¡°This whole seven generations thing doesn¡¯t work for me,¡± Calvin said, waving his hand. Ella could feel through the Guya link that he¡¯d already decided to help, and broke into a wide grin. Her father didn¡¯t know it, though, and Calvin wanted to get everything he could out of them. ¡°Instead I want your word that your young people will spend their Forming days learning some new Skills. Chief among them Fishing and Animal Husbandry.¡± ¡°You want us¡­to become farmers?¡± Ella¡¯s father said, the words dripping off his tongue with no small amount of disgust. ¡°I never said anything about farming. You don¡¯t have to plant crops, I know you can¡¯t eat them. You don¡¯t have to clear land, either. I just want you to start breeding animals specifically for you to eat, and to aid in your daily lives. You could even breed something to help you hunt. Between that and increasing your options for food via fishing¡­ Can you imagine if some genius years from now uses an Ability to create a creature that practically drips with meat created from consuming nothing but weeds, and your tribe is the only one that has it?¡± ¡°I¡­suppose those terms are acceptable.¡± He said. ¡°Oh, and I think this could¡¯ve gone without saying, but I want to be absolutely clear. You don¡¯t eat any of my people, ever again. Seven generations and beyond. If I see evidence of it, I¡¯ll wipe the iron skin tribe from the face of Marconen.¡± The shaman held his gaze for a full minute, his gaze roiling between emotions, uncertainty, fear and the desire to protect his people boiling against Calvin¡¯s skin. ¡°Those terms are acceptable, but I won¡¯t be able to convince them to accept them until after we¡¯ve been saved. They are not in a mood to accept aid from humans, and until my gamble pays off, they will mock me for it.¡± Calvin broke into a grin. ¡°I¡¯m fine with that.¡± What Calvin didn¡¯t say was that he could easily enforce the bargain, whether they wanted him to or not. He¡¯d be more than happy to do so. Calvin debriefed Ella¡¯s father until he knew as much as he did about this mysterious creature hunting them: not much. He knew where the disappearances started. He knew that the disappearances were following them as they travelled northeast. The fact that it followed them from place to place implied the creature or localized hole in space or whatever it was, was capable of moving. So more likely to be alive¡­or maybe they carried it with them? ¡°Just to be sure,¡± Calvin asked, holding out a hand. ¡°None of your people recently found any mysterious artifacts and took it with you when you left your mountain?¡± Calvin asked, digging through his somewhat limited knowledge of clich¨¦ before he would believe for sure it was a monster no one had ever seen before. No one even could see, according to the Shaman. ¡°I¡¯ve neither seen nor heard of anything like that, and we¡¯re travelling with nothing but our clothes and weapons, killing our food as we go. If someone had something unusual it would stand out.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin said, holding out his hand. ¡°It¡¯s a deal.¡± The aging Maje shook his hand and shortly returned to his people, leaving Calvin there with his thoughts. Part of him still wanted to make the man into a smear on the stone floor of his tower, while the other part of him was looking forward to eviscerating this elusive creature and harnessing it¡¯s abilities. A very small part of him was pleased at his restraint and diplomacy. Or maybe that was just Ella, through the Guya bond. ¡°A creature that grows meat and eats weeds?¡± Ella asked, draping her arm around his shoulder. ¡°Isn¡¯t that just a goat?¡± ¡°Hmm,¡± Calvin grunted, staring at the wall. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± She asked, cocking her head. ¡°Which of my friends are the most disposable.¡± Calvin said, thumbing his chin. If the creature was that hard to detect, there was a good chance it would snatch up someone before they could pin it down, which was unacceptable. Calvin was pretty confident about his own chances, between Third Eye and his Tarak skin, he could probably pinpoint it fairly accurately. Other people though¡­Lambs to the slaughter. Definitely can¡¯t have Kala come along. Goob either. Nadia¡¯s replaceable so she can come¡­Baroke¡­.Hmmm¡­maybe he can come. Baroke was practically indestructible. ¡°I¡¯m coming,¡± Ella said, her tone steely as she looked down at him. ¡°Hm.¡± Calvin grunted agreement. He didn¡¯t want to risk her life, but they were her people. Trying to stop her from helping them wouldn¡¯t go well. Now, how do I convince Kala not to follow me into the deep jungle, and convince her to take care of my legacy if I die? He said as much to the Genosian savage who looked anxious to leave, pacing back and forth and grabbing her weapon. ¡°That¡¯s an easy one,¡± Ella said with a shrug. ¡°Just knock her up.¡± Calvin tried, enthusiastically, but it didn¡¯t work. ***Bekvah, Kala¡¯s uncle, Prince*** ¡°You signed up for the fun part,¡± He muttered, nursing his wounded leg. Between the broken glasses, gash on his thigh and the missing hand, he was practically an invalid, but despite all that, he was incredibly valuable as second in line to the throne of Gadvera and a powerful wizard. ¡°Damn right I did,¡± Jinnei said, the young woman peering out across the water at the port of Surrak, ¡°I grew up at the feet of Surrak, why wouldn¡¯t I want to take it back?¡± Bekvah, having dealt a serious blow to Iletha¡¯s industry not a week before, was planning on following up the first surprise attack with another. For this purpose, they had bought out Jinnei¡¯s crew. The stolen fleet was sent home with skeleton crews along with the wounded and dead, while the remaining soldiers were given a single night to rest and sleep off the Break before they were bottled up again during their Forming Day and moved over to Jinnei¡¯s vessel. Thousands of young men had reached third and Fourth break in the attack on Ilestar, and Bekvah hoped to preserve their single day of accelerated learning for the attack on Surrak. Such a thing had never been done before, as the timing of a man¡¯s Forming day was never guaranteed, and it couldn¡¯t be preserved for more effective use. Until Kala¡¯s wedding gift. I hope my charges get Skills like ¡®City Liberating¡¯, Bekvah thought, a ghost of a smile on his face. Hopefully freeing a city of innocents would be a good palate cleanser after the massacre at Ilestar. Surrak was still under heavy guard, and while Iletha had been willing to let Gadverans dock for trade on account of their size and defences, Surrak would use the port trebuchets to sink any vessel that sported a crew of the dark skinned folk. Jinnei¡¯s crew were primarily Malkenrovian, with a few islanders and press-ganged ilethans thrown in for good measure. A Malkenrovian had lighter hair than An Ilethan on average, but with head wraps being common among sailors to ward off the hot sun, they looked exactly like Ilethans from a distance. It was for those reasons that Karen¡¯s Folly was allowed to dock. The ship bumped up against the dock, and Bekvah heard the gangplank make contact with the wood, the soft hiss of ropes sliding against each other. Without wasting time, Bekvah held a squad container to his chest with his stump and twisted off the top of the first jar, then the second, unleashing the first two squads from their gooey prison. ¡°I¡¯m not an eloquent man by any measure,¡± Bekvah said, scanning the tired men. ¡°Not good at speeches and raising morale. But in this case, I don¡¯t think I have to be.¡± He pointed his ruined arm at the familiar docks of Surrak. ¡°That¡¯s your home.¡± ¡°Go take it back.¡± What followed next was a battle for the history books, both in how short, brutal and exceptionally one-sided it was, and ultimately in how I marked a turning point in the longstanding rivalry between the two ocean nations. The citizens of Surrak were not saved. The citizens of Surrak were not there. Upon breaking into the office of the man responsible for overseeing the city and reading his journal, Bekvah learned the horrifying truth: the citizens of Surrak had been shipped off to Malkenrovia to work as ¡®slave labor¡¯. Even that would have been somewhat palatable were the distant country not teeming with inhuman monsters eager to burrow into a man¡¯s brain. They had been consigned to a fate worse than death by their captors. I should have killed more of them, Bekvah thought, his anger briefly overriding his logic as his fingers whitened around the damning, half-burnt ledger. Macronomicon as always, Enjoy! Chapter 191: Expedition Well, at least I managed to leave Goob behind, Calvin thought as they trekked through the jungle, looking for the most elusive monster he¡¯d ever heard of. Other than that though, all of Calvin¡¯s close friends had been more than eager to follow him into a potential death trap. Calvin could understand Baroke¡¯s decision making process, given the guy¡¯s justifiable overconfidence, but the others¡­ Calvin glanced over his shoulder, noting that Kala, Ella, Nadia, and Learner were all still in place, trudging behind him with various degrees of discomfort. When did it become such a taco fest? Calvin wondered. Not that I mind, but still¡­ That¡¯s normal for your age and how central you are to the plot¡­ My plot! Calvin ignored Elliot¡¯s slowly growing laughter and double checked that everyone was there before he faced forward again. It was noted that the monster had vanished people when those around them took their eyes off them for a second. Which was why Calvin had placed everyone, in no uncertain terms, in order of how disposable they were to him. Learner was at the back, of course, but she didn¡¯t seem to mind being first in line to be eaten. Aoehe, Ella¡¯s tall, thin father was next, marching along behind them without any sign of discomfort, at ease in the jungle. His Chained spirit flanked either side of him, making sure the aging Maje was protected. Baroke was in the middle, a bit irritated at being labeled more disposable than Calvin¡¯s wives, but also utterly confident that he would be fine. Next was Ella. Rather than bicker over who was more disposable, she simply shrugged and said it was good it gave her a chance to protect the little princess and her poeor. Kala¡¯s relationship to the two of them had subtly shifted since the three of them had taken the Guya together. Calvin and Ella were driven by instinct to be protective of the slender princess, while she was more than eager to please both of them. Okay, it¡¯s not that much different. Kala just enjoyed being able to know how both of them were feeling when she was away dealing with statescraft, bustling back and forth between Mujenan and Calvin¡¯s March. And finally, Calvin took up the lead, his fine-tuned senses hopefully able to spot danger before it reared its ugly head. He wasn¡¯t taking any chances, though. Calvin had also used Chimera to create a swarm of floating Nadias, each about the size of a Tarak by wrapping a Nadia body around a Refraction spinner¡¯s flight organs. He also added antennae, lure sensors and the sensitive fingers of a Spinner, including the respective lumps of brain that processed those inputs, otherwise she¡¯d probably just devolve into a twitching mess on the floor. The Scout Nadia was born. The wasp-antennaed swarm of sadomasochistic fairy-looking women had the role of roaming ahead while also keeping watch on the five of them. This was because of the reports that no one had ever seen the monster take anyone, implying that it either wouldn¡¯t or couldn¡¯t kidnap people while they were under observation. Hence Calvin put them all under Nadia¡¯s observation. Thousands of eyes at once. The chance of everyone present blinking at once was practically nil. Quantum monster. Elliot said with a chuckle. It¡¯s not there if someone is observing it. You know something about it? Calvin asked. No, no, I just thought it was a funny idea¡­Although if that were the case, if would make it very difficult to pin this creature down. Hmm¡­. Calvin retreated into his thoughts as they clomped through the woods, periodically checking in with Nadia. If Elliot¡¯s joke is spot on and we can¡¯t directly engage with it due to some kind of weird dimensional fuckery, how do we engage it? The most obvious answer seemed to be traps. Traps weren¡¯t observers, per se. the question was, how to trap something that vanished like that? Either it was invisible, it teleported, or it shifted between dimensions. Calvin¡¯s thoughts came full circle, back to the Brain Worm. That was fairly good at shifting between dimensions, and the Refraction spinner¡¯s blades messed it up pretty good. Some kind of bomb, perhaps? Calvin thought, eyeing a nearby Nadia flitting past him. the one-foot tall girl caught him looking and stuck out her tongue, giving him the finger before flying away, joining the Swarm of Nadia. His first gambit could involve packing Nadia¡¯s summon with enough raw dimensional juices from the Spinner¡¯s glands that when she detonated, she would mince everything in a twenty foot radius. Similar to what he did with the serial killer, but vastly more powerful. I¡¯m sure Nadia doesn¡¯t mind being used as ordinance. She¡¯s special like that. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure what the trigger might be, though. Perhaps some kind of trigger based on the sensitive skin on a Spinner¡¯s fingertips. Those fingertips could feel fluctuations in space, after all, which meant the explosion could be keyed to trigger in the teleporting or shifting scenario, but not the invisible scenario. Honestly an invisible creature would be the easiest to deal with, anyway. Invisible implied it was still in existence, and if they put shrapnel through it, it would die. No, the dimensional shenanigans were the problem to deal with. Calvin was beginning to ponder a design for a Nadia-Bomb when a tap on his shoulder caught his attention. He glanced over a spotted Nadia settling down to perch on his shoulder like a pet bird. ¡°Big ugly a quarter mile that way,¡± Nadia said, pointing off to the left. ¡°Coming towards us. Looks like it¡¯s got Baroke¡¯s scent.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Baroke said, scowling. ¡°Strongest Body, strongest scent,¡± Nadia said, another one of her bodies wrinking her nose as she poked Baroke on the shoulder until he waved her off. ¡°What¡¯s it look like?¡± Calvin asked, brows furrowed as he ran through the list of monster he knew inhabited the jungle. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s about a hundred feet long, armored, segmented, with big old pincers at the front.¡± ¡°A Kugeya?¡± Aoehe asked, his grip on his obsidian club tightening. The Maje¡¯s Chained Spirit took position between the Genosian and the oncoming apex predator, the two identical bodies raising their bows, eyes scanning the surroundings. ¡°Does your party have the strength to ward it off?¡± Aoehe asked, his hands raised cautiously. ¡°I need to know before I use more Bent.¡± ¡°Oh right, you haven¡¯t seen me for a while, have you?¡± Calvin said, glancing back at the shaman. What¡¯s it been, a year and a half? ¡°You want me to handle it?¡± Nadia asked. Strictly speaking, Nadia probably could handle it. Her fingers were capable of making blades of dimensional force that would shear apart any solid flesh, no matter how armored, because it wasn¡¯t cutting matter so much as it was separating it. A swarm of Nadia¡¯s could probably reduce the Kugeya to chunks before they even saw it. ¡°No, I want to try something first. Can you guys step back? Nadia make sure you don¡¯t look away from anyone.¡± They took a few dozen steps back as the sound of the approaching Kugeya began to become more and more apparent. Thunderbolt cracks of overloaded branches and the hissing of leaves shaking against each other by the thousands gave away the Kugeya¡¯s approach. ¡°Baroke, can you spot me?¡± Calvin asked. It would be incredibly stupid if this failed miserably and he wound up getting smeared on the forest floor. ¡°Sure,¡± The seven foot tall archer stepped forward and unslung his weapon, putting a single Abyssal Steel arrow on the glass bow¡¯s string, holding it there with a relaxed grip. The crashing through the forest became louder and louder, until it sounded like they were in front of an approaching tornado, trees thrashing against each other violently. The Kugeya burst through the treeline as Calvin placed one finger on the copper stud on his belt, another on the loadstone Elliot had showed him how to make. I hope this thing¡¯s mass isn¡¯t too high¡­oh, right. Lightning Breath. 38/47 Bent remaining. This wasn¡¯t an actual Ability, merely a combination of two castings of Trait Doctoring and one cast of Shifting, In essence mimicking a true Ability at the cost of three Bent. Calvin had asked Elliot to make the System report the use in a more concise way so his mind wasn¡¯t being overwhelmed with notifications every time he did it. It wasn¡¯t helpful in the thick of combat. Assuming this works and I ever want to do it again. Last time, Calvin had presumably only kept his tongue intact because of his super-human Endurance. The massive insect didn¡¯t hesitate, plowing forward at terrifying speeds, heedless of the fact that it had suddenly gotten a bit lighter. Calvin drew mass out of the ground, and out of the Kugeya itself, blowing the air in front of him with all the force his lungs could muster, before selecting the air in front of him and applying the effect of all three Abilities. He had to lighten the Kugeya, because otherwise the creature might not even flinch when sixteen thousand pounds of electrified air slammed it in the face. It was that big. The whirling cloud of crackling air caught the massive creature across the mandibles, mere feet away from Calvin¡¯s body, it¡¯s claws nearly disemboweling him. Then the sheer weight of Calvin¡¯s breath slammed into the creature and send it tumbling backwards, lighting coursing around the creature¡¯s thick shell as the insanely heavy air swirled around the hapless creature. While its face was sent backwards, the rest of the huge monster¡¯s body maintained momentum, continuing mindlessly forward and tangling up with the rest of the creature. More and more of its body coiled up around it as its head writhed in the center of the slowly dissipating cloud of lighting. When the cloud was completely gone, the humongous Kugeya was rolled up into a smoking ball, curled around itself in a defensive position, not moving a muscle. The ball of muscle was massive, standing over twenty feet tall, and partially charred, especially around the head and eyes. Calvin couldn¡¯t see much of the head area, but what he did see what black and sloughing away. The creature was obviously dead. A streak of light reflected off of Baroke¡¯s arrow as it shot outward at mind-boggling speeds, penetrating the center of the Kugeya¡¯s death-coil and exploding the creature outward in every direction, showering the two of them with warm bits of insect goop, muscle and chiton. It rained viscera down like a fall shower, beginning suddenly and ending just as quick, leaving Calvin standing there, plucking a tiny bit of the creature¡¯s shell out of his hair and glaring at Baroke, who looked as cheerful as ever. ¡°Boom, saved your life.¡± Baroke said, putting his fists on his waist and overlooking the damage he¡¯d wrought with a bright smile. ¡°It twitched. You didn¡¯t see it from where you were standing, but it was getting ready to jump ya.¡± Gradual Multi Shaping 37/47 Bent remaining. ¡°I¡¯ll take your word for it,¡± Calvin said before dunking himself in a stream of conjured soap and water, then dismissing it a moment later, leaving himself relatively clean and dry. ¡°Hey, what about me?¡± Baroke said, holding his gunk covered arms out. ¡°We have to disguise your natural musk,¡± Calvin said with as much seriousness as he could muster. ¡°Can¡¯t have you luring in maneaters from far and wide, so covering your odor with the scent of an apex predator should go a long way towards keeping the local wildlife away from all of us us.¡± Baroke¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Touche,¡± he said with a scowl. ¡°But seriously, give me the damn soap and water.¡± ¡­ ¡°Please?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s worth a Bent.¡± ***Aoehe, Genosian Maje*** Ella¡¯s father watched the friend¡¯s antics, his jaw slowly hanging open in amazement. He had heard of what the Juntai could do from other tribes, but while it looked similar to the description, it was also vastly more powerful, dealing lethal damage to a charging Kugeya and bringing it to a halt in an instant. Last he¡¯d seen, the boy could only make copies of things that already existed, but¡­watching the black-clad girl emerge from green smoke in greater numbers than any Maje could possibly summon¡­and the way she floated, those antennae that reminded him of an insects¡­ This boy was doing things Aoehe had never dreamed of, and he was fairly sure it involved Chained Spirit. But the number of summons¡­ The lightning¡­ Aoehe was overcome by ambivilant feelings: He had to admit the boy was stronger than any Maje he had ever seen before, most likely he was an Aiaka. His strength might actually be able to deliver his tribe from the clutches of whatever nightmare stalked them. On the other hand, he¡¯d obviously stolen the Genosian¡¯s sacred Ability, reserved for Maje and passed on from father to son for a thousand years. Calvin had changed it until it was barely recognizeable, but Aoehe could tell by the way the tiny flying woman behaved that there was a thinking spirit in there, rather than a summoned puppet. He had also obviously taken the role of Ella¡¯s Poeor, and yet he was taking advantage of the Guya dynamic to two-time his daughter! Three timing, if you considered his lusty Chained spirit, who seemed eager to sexually assault anyone around her who showed weakness. Aoehe was a logical man, though, and the opportunity to save the tribe was not outweighed by his disapproval of the young human leading them. So he kept his mouth shut, and only spoke up when they needed directions to the Genosian camp. ***Carem, Brain Sucking Parasite*** ¡°What do you mean there could be more of you!?¡± The officer kicked Carem in the side, scowling. The man might seem to be angry, but he was actually experience a rush of pleasure and satisfaction from beating on the helpless mutant. Carem could tell. His mind-reading dish was picking up the emotions clear as a bell. The emotions were mostly natural, too. About eighty percent of the man¡¯s sadistic satisfaction arose from believing that Carem deserved whatever punishment he got. The rest was prompted by Carem. He needed a way to get repeat customers, and while the rotation of officers tasked with watching him were very much on guard for any sudden sympathy any of them might show towards their captive, the opposite was not true. That¡¯s where Carem found an opening. He inflamed the satisfaction the man felt when hurting him until it neared sexual pleasure. All the while the other guards ignored the man¡¯s wild excess, even going so far as to allow this particular officer to stay a little longer, volunteer a little more often so he could get in there and really hurt the butcher of so many defenseless women. Idiots. Maybe he couldn¡¯t make the officer submit to him, but he could make him believe a lie wholeheartedly, if the man was afraid it might be true. ¡°It¡¯s true,¡± Carem coughed, tasting blood in his mouth as he struggled to speak. He didn¡¯t have to act that struggle out, either, the beatings had been over the top recently. Carem was half afraid the man would get carried away and wind up killing him, but even more afraid he¡¯d spend the rest of his life in this hole. ¡°I might have¡± he heaved in a shuddering breath. ¡°Dabbled a bit when I was younger, back when I wasn¡¯t sure the people I ate became copies of me. I let a few of them go until I realized I¡¯d been fooling myself¡­literally.¡± The Guardsman¡¯s gaze turned murderous, and for a moment, Carem thought he would simply snap Carem¡¯s flimsy neck and be done with the whole mess. ¡°Tell me everything,¡± He said, peering down at Carem with a scowl. Carem started lying his ass off. If the guard could feel Bent, he might have noticed the trail of invisible energy rear up behind him like a snake with a splayed hood, focusing all of its energy in the back of the man¡¯s brain. The amygdala, Carem knew from his tiny snippets of foreign knowledge he¡¯d peeled out of the Ilethan princess¡¯s brain. Seat of fear and anxiety. Carem dampened the man¡¯s desire to use a lie-detecting Ability, boosting his credulity while simultaneously inflaming his guard¡¯s fear and paranoia, carefully doing a little bit at a time, in such small amounts that his System didn¡¯t immediately shut it out. All the while, he spun a carefully crafted tale of dozens, possibly hundreds of mutants living in Allast, preying on the citizens therin. Fear and paranoia did the rest. ¡°Son of a bitch!¡± he shouted, smacking Carem hard enough to loosen his teeth, flooding his mouth with even more blood. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell us earlier!?¡± ¡°You never asked?¡± Carem said, raising a brow. The officer brought his hand up, considering striking Carem again, before he thought better of it. ¡°Damn. I¡¯ll be back.¡± The guard muttered, standing and leaving the cell, presumably to tell his masters what he¡¯d learned. And now, we wait, Carem thought to himself as he relaxed in his chains. He made deliberate eye contact with the next guard who walked in, gathered up all the blood and saliva in his mouth and pursed his lips before he jetted it out of his cell. The red liquid traveled an impressive six feet before landing squarely on the man¡¯s boots. Nice shot! Carem chuckled to himself as this newest guard went for his cell door, presumably to pick up where the last man had left. Macronomicon Enjoy! Chapter 192: First Contact Learner¡¯s notes, day 415: On war Humans are similar in behavior to a social insect, as they will come into violent conflict with other on a semi-regular basis as the edges of their territory begin to abut each other. These violent conflicts can have many reasons, but resources seem to be one of the most common ones. According to flabbier ¨C older ¨C humans that I¡¯ve come across, a war is where thousands upon thousands of humans come together to kill each other en masse so that they can claim the resources of the other group. It also seems to serve as a mode of population control and natural selection culling a fair number of the weak and stupid while also reducing the number of mouths to feed and total breeding potential of a generation. The interesting thing about war is the way it seems to bypass human¡¯s natural aversion to killing their own kind. A man who kills thirty enemy soldiers on the battlefield is a celebrated hero, while a man who kills thirty civilians is a serial killer and reviled. I¡¯m not trying to draw some false equivalence between the two, I¡¯m sure the soldier had a much harder time with it, and was acting in the interests of his group at the time, which is commendable. The point that I bring up is that context seems to be paramount in the interpretation of morality, rather than an objective plainly written code of laws to dictate what is right or wrong, as some people would have me believe. Interestingly, I entered this reality during a lull in the warfare, a dry spell that has lasted over a year, owed to the excesses of the previous one. The old humans tell me that it¡¯s just a matter of time until another war ignites somewhere. My body is nearly ready. Her name is Learner, and she is slowly assuming more and more responsibility for engaging with this reality, and I am gradually decreasing my active units, making a seamless transition between mimic and human. She likes ice cream, walking barefoot and squishing mud between her toes, as well as a natural curiosity to understand her world. Just as planned. Once she¡¯s ready to assume control, I¡¯ll fully wake her up, put my Units into hibernation, and trigger the process of flushing the body of Warp and resetting her immune response. Not long now before I have access to the System. Hopefully the negative reaction from witnessing humans slaughter each other won¡¯t be damaging to her mind. From my studies of human growth, damage in childhood is incorporated and magnified in adulthood. Perhaps I should simply ask Kala to arrange a Break for her. the first two are easily accomplished through mundane means, after all. ***Calvin Gadsint, Monster Hunter.*** So the important question is, how did Don Cheadle¡¯s character fit into an ironman suit if they were all sized for Tony Stark? A lot of people wave this off and say that the suits can size up and down a bit with gears or whatever, but that¡¯s just lazy writing. They never showed it! Calvin ignored Elliot¡¯s inane chatter as they approached the campsite. It had taken them the better part of three days to reach where the Genosians were supposed to be, and the ancient soul had run out of things to talk about, and was simply talking for the sake of talking. ¡°I see the camp,¡± Nadia said from where she rested his shoulder, pointing ahead and slightly to the right. Calvin nodded wordlessly and adjusted his orientation, taking them toward the scent of fire. Most predators were warded off by the scent of fire, but not all of them, apparently. When they arrived, Calvin was expecting to see over a hundred Genosians, the wideset people wrapped in skins and giving him confident grins. Last he¡¯d seen of them, they¡¯d had nearly a hundred and fifty people in their little village. Not a staggering amount, but enough to call it a village. This, this was a camp. Calvin scanned the twenty or so people huddled around the singular fire, their guard turned inward, watching each other carefully. Half of them were struggling to stay away, with sickly bags under their eyes revealing their utter exhaustion, while the others were trying fitfully to sleep under the observation of friends and family members. They looked tired, beaten, sore and hungry, and Calvin felt the tiniest well f sympathy for their plight. ¡°Mehuaneha!¡± The Maje cursed, emerging out of the jungle behind Calvin and rushing to the center of the camp. There were collapsed, discarded yurts off to the side, as if someone had tried to put one up and thought better of it. Ella¡¯s father scanned the people and grimaced. ¡°Four more are missing,¡± he spat. ¡°That¡¯s a staggering rate of attrition.¡± Calvin said, scanning the jungle. ¡°You would be entirely gone in three weeks.¡± ¡°Why do you think I came for help?¡± Aoehe demanded. ¡°When do people disappear?¡± Calvin asked, glancing at the aging genosian. ¡°It mostly comes at night¡­mostly.¡± Elliot chuckled. ¡°Alright,¡± Calvin clapped his hands. ¡°Everyone stand up! We¡¯re getting you out of here!¡± Several thousand yard stares were directed at Calvin, while still others struggled out of fitful sleep to gaze at him with hopeless eyes. They seemed curious, but not entirely hopeful. ¡°Line up, take all your clothes off, and toss that shit in the fire. don¡¯t take anything with you, especially not any cursed or smelly objects. The goal here is to break the creature¡¯s interest in you and get out of its territory.¡± Nobody moved. ¡°Get your clothes off right now, you lazy Amehau!¡± Ella bellowed over his head ¡°We¡¯re getting your scent out of the creature¡¯s nose, so hurry up!¡± The starving genosians leapt to their feet and rushed to comply. Calvin used gradual multi summoning to create a soapy shower above all of them, washing away whatever scent or contaminant they might have come across. Calvin wasn¡¯t absolutely sure, so he wasn¡¯t taking any chances, blowing a bit of Nem dust across their skin as they came out of the shower, coating them with a fine sprinkle of the Bent disrupting material. Were they under some kind of tracking or curse, it might help sever the connection, or make the creature¡¯s ability to locate them via Bent have a much harder time working than before. It was a damned lot of money to spend on helping people Calvin wanted nothing to do with, but Karen always told him it was always better to overperform than the opposite. Calvinian Summoning. 40/47 Bent remaining Calvin held up his hand, and the green smoke billowed out and up, and up, manifesting into bones twelve feet in height, followed an instant later by flesh and black leather. Calvin glanced up at the ten Nadia¡¯s that had appeared around the clearing. The one directly in front of him put her hand on her hips and stared down at him contemplatively, an amused smile blooming on her lips. Calvin¡¯s height just barely reached her thigh. She reached down, presumably to pet his head. ¡°Nadia, port them to the city,¡± Calvin said before she could act upon the urge. ¡°Fiine,¡± she said, rolling her eyes before picking up a naked villager in each hand and leaping into the sky. The nine other copies did the same, with some startled cries echoeing through the jungle as they oriented themselves on Calvin¡¯s spire in the distance before they began flying away, cruising above the jungle at an unnatural speed. ¡°The idea to get away from the monster was a good one,¡± Calvin said, meeting Aoehe¡¯s eyes. ¡°You just didn¡¯t have the power to move them all fast enough. Now your people should be a hundred miles out of its range in a matter of hours. If nothing else happens, they should be safe.¡± The Maje glanced after the fleeting sight of enormous Nadias flying away as fast as birds. ¡°That¡¯s all I really needed. Thank you. If we kill this thing, that would be the fat on top of the jerky.¡± ¡°So what now?¡± Baroke asked, nudging a loincloth with his toe and making a disgusted face. ¡°Now, we set a trap.¡± Calvin said. ¡°We have until nightfall, probably, so I need to get as much information as I can between now and then. I¡¯m going to see what I can see, the rest of you make yourselves comfortable.¡± Calvin sat down in front of the fire and closed his eyes. ShadowBoxing. Calvin opened his eyes, and noted the surroundings were totally different than just a moment ago. He was seated at the fire as it had been last night, including the people sitting around it, desperately trying not to fall asleep. The Genosians flinched in alarm when they spotted him. ¡°There it is!¡± one of them shouted, standing up, picking up a nearby spear and hoisting it over his shoulder. The cry was taken up in a matter of seconds as everyone sprung to their feet. Calvin tapped the Abyssal steel marble on his belt. Trait Doctoring. Calvin made the air harden around the alarmed Genosians before someone got stabbed. ¡°Calm down,¡± Calvin said, holding his hands up as the six remaining warriors strained against the bindings while the remaining women and children trembled in terror. ¡°I¡¯m obviously not whatever¡¯s been taking you,¡± Calvin said, spinning around so they could see him from every angle. ¡°See?¡± ¡°But you appeared from nowhere!¡± one of the warriors shouted. ¡°I¡¯m a Maje, Aoehe arranged for my help. I just got here.¡± They glanced amongst each other curiously ¡°Wait, I recognize you. you were the boy who kidnapped Ella!¡± the kid who calvin had shoved into a pee-covered yurt yelled, struggling in his confines a little bit harder. ¡°The kidnapping part is debatable, But we can at least agree I¡¯m not the creature, correct?¡± They hesitated. ¡°Right?¡± Calvin asked, staring them down. ¡°Calm down Goeha,¡± one of the older warriors said. ¡°There¡¯s more important things going on here.¡± The young warrior didn¡¯t look particularly eager to forgive and forget, but he didn¡¯t get the opportunity to say anything, as the night was already going to the Abyss in a handbasket. ¡°Meria is gone!¡± one of the women shrieked, drawing their attention to her. Calvin glanced over and noticed that one of the women toward the edge of the circle was gone, the hardened air still forming a capsule around where she had been. ¡°huh.¡± ¡°Damnit! Let us go!¡± Goeha shouted, his struggled renewed as the others seemed to relax, strangely enough Calvin did so, and Goeha barely touched the ground before he sprinted off in the vanished woman¡¯s direction, shouting her name at the top of his lungs. Damn. That was sneaky. Calvin thought, eyeing the empty stop around the fire. His skin hadn¡¯t picked up any mass that wasn¡¯t the villagers, and if the monster had eyes, it wasn¡¯t using them to look at him. We probably only looked away from her for a fraction of a second, Calvin thought, tapping his fingers on his elbow. The fact it had managed to steal someone out of a cocoon of hardened air without damaging it or the person, suggested dimensional shenanigans. Calvin glanced back to the Genosians, and they were¡­laying down to sleep? ¡°What are you doing?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°Getting some shuteye,¡± the aging warrior said, pulling a skin over himself. ¡°It won¡¯t come back for another one of us for at least twelve hours. We need sleep now so we can get a full day¡¯s march tomorrow.¡± It was a pragmatic course of action, but Calvin didn¡¯t know how exactly they¡¯d be able to sleep with something out there hunting them. Just as he thought, there was a fair amount of shuffling in place and extra-quiet crying, but not a whole lot of sleeping going on under the Genosian¡¯s covers. Hmm¡­ let¡¯s try this again. Calvin blinked, revisiting the same campfire an hour earlier and a dozen yards further away. He arrived in the jungle, where he couldn¡¯t immediately set the Genosians off. Let¡¯s see if we can pin this thing down, Calvin thought, raising his hands. Calvin created a swarm of Scout Nadia, each of them with an extra pair of Spinner hands, doubling their sensitivity to warped space. ¡°Whoah, when did it turn night-time?¡± Nadia asked, one of her teeming swarm taking her favorite post on his shoulder. ¡°We¡¯re testing the creature¡¯s defenses in Shadowboxing,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I want you to spread out and use those extra hands to see if you can feel any kind of dimensional instability.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Nadia said, giving him a brisk salute before spreading through the jungle, creating a huge net of Nadia¡¯s with four hands hovering above the jungle, their fingers splayed. It took most of the hour, but Nadia managed to catch a glimpse of the creature when it took Goeha this time. She said it felt as if something rose up out of a serene lake, gulped its prey down in the blink of an eye before swimming back down into the depths, leaving nothing but ripples on the surface. She wasn¡¯t able to track its movements, because it seemed to enter, snatch and leave in one smooth motion, retreating back to wherever the Abyss its home was. Well, that¡¯s terrifying. Calvin thought, dismissing Shadowboxing and opening his eyes. They only had a few hours until night-time, and Calvin wanted to get started on making a Nadia-bomb. It seemed like that was their best shot at killing this fucking¡­mockingbird. Karen¡¯s slapdash monster organizing system coming in handy again. ¡°I didn¡¯t get a lot of information on it, but it definitely looks like we could bait it out and blow it up, Calvin said, making an exploding motion with his hands.¡± ¡°Let me guess,¡± Nadia said, crossing her arms. ¡°I¡¯m going to be the bait?¡± ¡°I thought you¡¯d be used to it by now,¡± Ella said with a shrug. ¡°I am, but¡­ I wanna bitch about it sometimes, you know?¡± Calvin scanned the camp. There was someone missing. ¡°Where¡¯s Baroke?¡± ¡°He went behind that tree to take a dump.¡± Nadia said, pointing with her thumb. ¡°Did any of you go with him?¡± ***Baroke, Archer Savant, Not Completely Stupid*** Baroke wiped with a hopefully non-poisonous jungle leaf, buttoned up his pants and climbed back through the underbrush to the camp, coming to a frozen halt at the edge of the clearing. Calvin and company were gone, leaving the fire crackling in the center of the clearing. In their place were half a dozen people with sunken cheeks, pale grey skin, and sharp teeth. They looked like starving, unhealthy Genosians, but the way they moved¡­they sniffed around the fire like some feral animal, tasting the air and groaning wordlessly, saliva dripping from their blackening lips. ¡°Well, that can¡¯t be goo-¡° A clammy hand slapped itself over his mouth. Macronomicon Missed release yesterday on account of voting in the primaries and a general funk. I''m back and in a much better mood because reasons. Enjoy! Chapter 193: Not Completely Stupid? ***Baroke*** Baroke reflexively elbowed the person with the hand around his mouth. The weight behind him was propelled backward, crashing through the underbrush before slamming into a tree with the smack of flesh against wood. ¡°Hey bro, I don¡¯t swing that-¡° He glanced over his shoulder and spotted a woman collapsed against the tree, her arms and legs bearing the scratches of flying through the underbrush. Her face was scrunched up in pain and she was wearing a basket full of dead bugs on her back. The basket full of squishies seemed to have broken her backward momentum, but she was still clutching the rib that he¡¯d caught with his elbow, face contorted in pain. Baroke inhaled thought his teeth, a sudden surge of guilt kicking him in the stomach. Hitting girls wasn¡¯t Baroke¡¯s style, not even if they were into it. ¡°Sorry about that, are you o-¡° The genosian girl let out a panicked gasp with blood-soaked lips, raising her hand to point behind him. Oh, right, Baroke was brought back to the situation at hand when he heard snarls from the campsite behind him. Baroke glanced over his shoulder, spotting the six ghoulish Genosians charging toward them, teeth gnashing on air. They were about halfway there already, only about twenty feet remaining between him and their razor sharp teeth. Baroke glanced back at the young woman. ¡°This¡¯ll just take a sec,¡± he said, putting out a placating hand. Best thing to do is project a calming aura of confidence. When he heard the twig about three feet behind him snap, he drew and arrow from the waist quiver and whipped it around in his hand. One thing I really like about these new arrows, is that they can handle my levels of torque. The Abyssal steel arrow caught the leading creature along the side of the head, then exploded through its brain before Baroke flicked the arrow downward, ripping off the creature¡¯s jaw and catching the next one between the eyes as it impaled itself on the weapon. Baroke started whistling as he unslung his bow from his shoulder, flicking the second corpse off the arrow. Four left. Asshole number three was crouched low, charging on all fours, mouth gaping as it ran straight for his nards. Baroke fed the creature his knee, shattering its teeth and jaw before sending the monstrous genosian flying backward into its friends like a rag doll. Well, not literally feeding it my knee, that would be silly, Baroke thought, unslinging the bow one-handed and whipping it around three hundred and seventy degrees into a draw position in a sweet-ass motion he¡¯d spent his early teens practicing. Baroke gingerly drew back the bow with minimum effort and shot creature number four in the face. The silvery arrow leapt out of its rest like a Toku with an assfull of salt, exploding out of the creature¡¯s skull and burying itself to the fletching in the loamy floor beyond. Nice, I can still see the fletching! Good job, me. Creature five and six seemed to get the idea and tossed number three off themselves, springing to their feet and scrabbling to run toward the jungle on the other side of the clearing, desperately trying to get away from him. They lined up. Baroke whipped out another arrow and pinned the two of them nut-to-butt against the towering jungle tree that loomed above the opposite edge of the clearing. ¡°Right.¡± Baroke said, scanning the tableau to make sure none of the creatures were going to get back up. Okay then, now the hard part. Baroke turned and walked back to the genosian, kneeling in front of the wounded woman. ¡°Do. You. Understand. Me?¡± Baroke spoke in halting Ilethan, making sure to speak extra loud, to help her understand better. He pointed at her, then himself, then his ears, wiggling his eyebrows to get the point across. ¡°Where. Do. You. Bed?¡± He asked, pointing at her, then pantomiming walking, before making a simple hut with his left hand and sliding his index finger in and out of it. ¡°I¡¯ll. Take. You. Bed.¡± Hopefully she got the message, Baroke thought, before frowning, mentally reviewing his words and pantomime. Maybe not. ¡°SSSHHHH!¡± the genosian woman hissed, putting her fingers to her lips in the universal sign of ¡®Shut up, damnit!¡¯. ¡°The weird things are gone, I don¡¯t see why ¨C ¡° The world around them went grey, all color leeched out of it in an instant. Baroke¡¯s mind snapped into focus and he snapped his teeth together, wincing a bit as he chomped down on his tongue. More importantly, there was something right behind him. He could feel it pressing against his skin like a bad touch. He had a gut-wrenching feeling that something was about to molest the shit out of him if he stayed in place. Baroke rolled out of the way, and the hairs on his arms stood up as some invisible thing passed by him and engulfed the wide-eyed woman leaning against the tree. The genosian woman was pressed violently into the tree, causing the leaves to shake above him. A for an instant Baroke thought she might be standing up, but then he realized whatever was there was dragging her up the side of the branch. Pain and horror flashed across her face an instant before she threw her head back and gave a gut-wrenching scream. The scream was not a human one, as it seemed like it was being physically dragged out of the core of her being. The glowy blue stuff doesn¡¯t look that good, either, Baroke thought as blue mist began pouring out of the woman¡¯s mouth, rising into the air. Her body seemed to wither away, her cheeks hollowing like the creatures sniffing around the campfire earlier. Rather than floating up into a mist or a cloud, the glowing blue stuff seemed to follow a pattern, forming a sinous line as the blue mist condensed and- Oh shit, that¡¯s the creature¡¯s digestive tract! Baroke realized, whipping out an arrow and sending it through the line of blue mist. Nothing happened. His arrow didn¡¯t even disturb the blue energy that the creature was seemingly gulping down. It seemed like both the creature and the energy it was stealing were immaterial. Nothing that can¡¯t be solved by a whole fuckton more firepower, Baroke thought, planting his feet and drawing another arrow. He kissed the arrowhead before stringing it, muscles straining as he pulled his enchanted glass bow to full strength. Force Amplification. Assassinate. Called Shot. Penetrating Shot. Sirfen¡¯s Prey Pierce the Veil Godslayer Arrow. 0/8 Bent remaining. Bye bye, motherfucker, Baroke thought, releasing the arrow. ***Calvin*** ¡°Why the fuck didn¡¯t you keep watch over him!?¡± Calvin demanded, holding a tiny scout Nadia by the neck and glaring straight into her eyes. ¡°I just glanced away for a second¡­¡± She said, her voice strained, face turning red, ¡°I¡¯m not really into watching men crap in the woods. I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Godsdamnit.¡± Calvin said, running his hand through his hair as he tried to digest the facts. The first few minutes into their hunt and they had already fallen behind the creature they were supposed to be cornering. Now Baroke was either dead or some other godsforsaken plane of existence, and in damn good need of a rescuing. Even if he was alive, how long could Baroke hold his breath in the belly of some interdimensional creature? Maybe half an hour, due to his insane Endurance. Half an hour isn¡¯t long enough, godsamnit, Calvin thought, Calvin¡¯ first instinct was to visit terrible retribution on Nadia for letting the giant archer slip away long enough to get swallowed up by the thrice damned creature spiriting people away. He thought of several creative ways to inflict pain and hopelessness on the Ilethan princess, but he reigned his anger in. The damage was done, it was half the lumbering lug¡¯s own fault, and rewarding the masochistic princess with torment was the exact wrong response to her carelessness. And I don¡¯t have time! Calvin took a deep breath and schooled his voice to be as even as possible. He wanted Nadia to understand how serious he was. ¡°Remember what I promised you would happen if you got Baroke killed?¡± Calvin asked. Nadia¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°If we don¡¯t get him back, you¡¯re spending the rest of my life locked in the black room, so I hope you¡¯ll take this seriously.¡± Calvin let Nadia go and scanned the remaining party members. ¡°Alright, we¡¯re going to kill this thing and get Baroke back,¡± Calvin said, projecting as much confidence as he could. He had to convince himself and the others that his friend was going to come out the other side smelling like Meera flowers, because the alternative as too gut-wrenching to deal with in the middle of a haunted forest with a supernatural predator stalking them. The alternative was pointless to contemplate right now. Calvin held up his hand. Calvinian Summoning Chimera 39/47 Bent remaining A massive Kurawe manifested in front of him, nearly thirty feet tall. The giant cultist was draped in his usual red cloak and armed with a massive, throbbing sack of flesh replacing his right hand. It was the extra-large flight organ of a refraction spinner, with a few of Calvin¡¯s personal tweaks. ¡°Kurawe, if you wouldn¡¯t mind punching a hole through time and space behind that tree over there.¡± Calvin said keeping his voice level as possible, pointing over to where Baroke had disappeared. I hope this works. It¡¯s gotta work, because this is the best I have right now, and Baroke¡¯s running out of time¡­ ¡°I¡¯ll try, ravager.¡± Kurawe said. He brushed the tree aside and lifted his throbbing organ-fist up in the air before slamming it down on the bare earth. The world lensed as reality seemed to bend around the giant¡¯s fist as space itself warped around the summon. From Calvin¡¯s perspective, the giant¡¯s fist expanded and brightened while everything else in the world seemed to become small and dark, fading away like tiny little toys shoved in a dark closet. This altered perception grew until all he could see was a blazing fist that threatened to engulf the world. The view in front of him began to expand and contract at the pace of a minstril¡¯s guitar. It began to thrum with energy as Calvin felt a tearing sensation that seemed to start at his scalp and travel down his spine, setting every hair on end. Then, just as suddenly, it was gone, the thrumming vanished, and light was able to touch things over than Kurawe¡¯s fist, uncloaking the surroundings. Ella was clutching her stomach warily, Kala was frowning, pushing herself to her feet. Ella¡¯s father was backing away and making warding signs. Nadia looked a little green around the gills, but she kept up her job of acting as the universal observer, keeping several set of eyes on everyone. Calvin reached up to his scalp and touched the spot he¡¯d experienced the tearing sensation. Nothing. ¡°Do it again.¡± Calvin said. A faint voice told him if one wouldn¡¯t do it, a second strike wouldn¡¯t do anything. A point in spacetime couldn¡¯t be replicated because they were constantly moving through the fourth dimension. Extra force couldn¡¯t be applied to the same spot by a third dimension creature. And the movement of the planet itself¡­ Calvin shut that voice up. ¡°Do it again.¡± Kurawe did it again, slamming his reality-warping fist down on the ground with diminishing results. ¡°Do it again! Calvin shouted at Kurawe¡¯s hesitant expression. They didn¡¯t have time to wait for twelve hours to try and bait the damn thing. He needed to get Baroke out of there now. What else can I do? If I had a sample of the creature itself, I might be able to make a bridge between here and wherever it is. Damnit! What do I have that can alter the Spinner¡¯s space warping? What would be able to re-open that bridge? Calvin was dragged out of his spiralling thoughts by Kala¡¯s hand on his shoulder. ¡°Baroke will be fine.¡± Kala said, meeting his eyes, speaking with the unshakeable confidence that Calvin had failed to imitate. The possibility of losing his last friend from his childhood felt like he would lose all connection to who he had been before his life became a madhouse. ¡°How do you know?¡± Calvin snapped, immediately regretting it. Her brown eyes searched his for a moment, her lips quirking up in a smile as she noticed his contrition. The slender, dusky princess wordlessly took him by the hand and pulled him toward her, drawing him two steps forward. Calvin stiffened as she wrapped him in a hug, slowly relaxing into her embrace. Yeah, I need to calm down, He thought, suitably chastised as he idly patted her head. A bolt of crackling green energy blasted out of nowhere. At its center was an arrow made of solid, silvery steel. The green bolt of energy traveled directly through the space Calvin had been standing, before hitting a nearby tree. The tree was warped outward by the green energy burning a white-hot hole through it before it exploded into smoking wooden shrapnel. The arrow never even touched the wood. The streak of green and silver continued, heading upward into the sky, bowling the clouds aside before disappearing into the blue vastness above their heads, possibly to wreak havoc on some distant world thousands of years from now. ¡°That¡¯s how I know,¡± Kala said once the splinters of wood settled, resting her cheek on his chest A few moments later, Calvin started getting antsy. ¡°Okay, you saved my life, you can let go of me now.¡± ¡°No. More hugs. Your life depends on it.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 194: Smart Enough to Stay Dumb ***Baroke, Legendarily Quick Shot*** And I¡¯m spent, Baroke thought with a chuckle as he lowered Betty, Bent dry as a bone. He¡¯d spent a week¡¯s worth of Bent on that, but damned if it wasn¡¯t effective. Whatever was giving the cannibal lady the suck had been thoroughly nailed. The omnipresent grey that had invaded Baroke¡¯s sight was blown away in an instant, followed by a thrashing sensation in front of him that Baroke could only track by the shifting goosebumps on his skin. The creature, or whatever it was, withdrew, dropping the woman in midair. Oops, Baroke lunged forward and caught the woman with one hand, putting his bow away with the other. Blue light coalesced and drew itself back into her body from all around, her features slowly¡­un hollowing? So the thing the creature was taking out of her was something she needed to-not¡­be a monster? Then her breathing stilled. Whatever. I¡¯m not the weird blue mist expert, Baroke thought, patting the woman¡¯s cheek. ¡°Hey, you alive?¡± Baroke asked before gently flicking her nose. The genosian woman¡¯s eyes opened as she inhaled with a harsh gasp. She immediately began wriggling in his grasp, trying to get away, smacking her elbows and fists into his arms and torso, scratching ineffectually at his eyeballs. Baroke decided to let her go before she started going for his sensitive bits, dropping her to the loamy forest floor. She hit the ground and immediately began crabwalking backward, babbling Genosian at a rapid clip. Baroke couldn¡¯t quite make out anything, so he simply assumed she was marveling at how amazing he was for defeating an incorporeal enemy in a single strike. The first shot doesn¡¯t count. That was a probing shot. She seemed to get a handle on her emotions then, glancing back and forth with wild eyes as she panted. ¡°So¡­You have any idea where my friends went?¡± Oh right, trade tongue. ¡°I. Make. Bad¡­umm¡­Gravy, Gone.¡± Baroke said, peering at the woman. ¡°Is any of this getting through to you?¡± ¡°Where You, um, Make¡­ Bed?¡± Baroke asked. The woman¡¯s eyes lit up with understanding, and she drew herself to her feet. Well, she tried. Her broken ribs put a stop to that damn quick. She folded over herself, hissing in pain, sending another pang of guilt through Baroke. Breaking a girl¡¯s ribs then letting her get sucked on by a blue-stuff sucking abomination was not Baroke¡¯s style. ¡°How about this?¡± Baroke asked, kneeling down and picking the slight woman up. ¡°Where bed? Show.¡± She seemed to get the message, putting her finger over her lips to warn him to be quiet again before pointing off into the distance. Baroke set off that way. None of his friends were here, so he might as well check in with the locals, see where they might have gone. They set off into the distance, and after about ten minutes at a light trot, Baroke arrived at the other camp. There were about twenty Genosians sitting around the fire, and they rose to their feet, grabbing their weapons as he approached, only relaxing when the woman in his arms started throwing weird hand-signs at the others like crazy. It was like they were part of some kind of weird secret club doing air handshakes. Whatever, if you guys wanna be childish about it. Baroke thought, rolling his eyes. Shortly after he arrived, a young man came up and took the genosian girl off his hands, giving him a bit of a scowl. ¡°Sorry about the ribs,¡± Baroke said halfheartedly in Gadveran, not quite knowing the proper Ilethan terminology. Everyone in the entire camp glared at him suddenly, putting their hands over their mouths, eyes burning with fury. One of them even drew an obsidian dagger, glancing meaningfully between it and him. Huh, they want me to stay quiet¡­ Well, when in Uleis, do as the Uleisans do. Baroke shrugged and sat in front of the fire, pointing his muddy feet at the flames. It was fun to dry out the mud on them and flake it off by wiggling his feet. Not being able to speak severely limited his options. Baroke didn¡¯t know their gang signs, nor their written language¡­if they even had one. This left only one option: Amusing stick figures drawn in the dirt. Baroke picked up a stick and drew a campfire, then sketched a group of stick figures with pointy teeth sitting around it. Then he drew a group of¡­ Me, Kala, Learner, Ella, Calvin, Umm¡­Ella¡¯s dad¡­ Six stick figures, approaching the campfire from the side. baroke was in the lead, his stick figure had big muscles drawn onto it, and a bow. He drew a big mean monster leaning over the campfire and terrorizing the Genosians. Then he drew himself shooting it with an arrow, indicating their purpose here was to murder the thing. Now how to tell them I¡¯m looking for the other people¡­Ah. Baroke drew an X through Kala, Learner, Ella, Calvin, and Ella¡¯s dad¡¯s stick figures, indicating that they were missing. He glanced up at the Genosians watching his drawing with interest. The nearest one, a young man, held up his finger, settling closer and taking the stick out of Baroke¡¯s hands. Maybe he¡¯s gonna tell me where they might be. Or draw a dick. I have no idea if they understood any of that. The hunter wiped the dirt clean over Baroke¡¯s party and redrew Kala, learner, Ella, Calvin, and Ella¡¯s dad. That¡¯s weird. The young man motioned up, caught Baroke¡¯s eyes meaningfully, then drew an X through each and every one of the Genosians around the campfire, then drew an X through Baroke¡¯s muscle-y figure. Baroke frowned, scowling up at the hunter. The heck is he trying to say? Pictograms are a shit medium. The hunter saw Baroke¡¯s confusion and rolled his eyes. Suddenly his expression brightened with inspiration, and he drew a line from the monster Baroke had drawn looming over the camp, to each and every one of the figures with an X. Including Baroke. Hmm¡­ Baroke thought, thumbing his chin as he studied the drawing. It seems to imply the monster got them, and me, but it obviously didn¡¯t get me¡­Hmmm¡­ Yeah, talking through pictures might be a dead end, Baroke thought giving the guy a helpless shrug. The young warrior choked back a curse and shook his head before he wiped everything clean and started over. He redrew the campfire, he redrew the genosians around, it, and added Baroke¡¯s stick figures, muscles and all, sitting next to them, then he redrew the monster looming over them, putting X¡¯s through all of them. All the same so far. I don¡¯t know how he expects to get any kind of point across. Then the young man did something Baroke wasn¡¯t expecting. He walked a distance away and squatted down, taking Baroke¡¯s stick with him. Hey, that was my favorite dirt-drawing stick! The hunter started drawing, shuffling backwards as he drew¡­some kind of larger oval, surrounding the entire campsite as the other genosians watched with interest. The Abyss is he drawing? Baroke thought, standing up and following the guy. He couldn¡¯t quite make sense of it, though, it just looked like some line that occasionally turned from side to side and had a few lumps, generally forming an oval around the camp. Once the hunter came back to where he was before, he put some finishing touches on the drawing then, in a strange turn of events, immediately jumped onto the nearest tree, climbing up into the canopy. He waved for Baroke to join him. Baroke shrugged and climbed up into the lower branches, some fifteen feet off the ground. Once he was perched on the branch next to the hunter, he glanced down, taking in the scale of the picture. It was a pretty good recreation of his monster looming over the campfire, only much, much bigger, engulfing the entire campsite, and especially the little drawing of X¡¯ed out people, right in the middle of it¡¯s stomach Ooooh, we¡¯re inside the damn thing. Duh. Baroke resisted the urge to slap his forehead. That seems obvious now¡­Kinda. Did my arrow poke a hole in it? That could explain why the arrow disappeared but still seemed to hurt the damn thing. How does that work? It¡¯s here, but we¡¯re also inside of it? Baroke shook his head when it started to ache. No sense overthinking things. That was Calvin¡¯s job. His job was to poke holes in stuff until it died. Baroke unslung his bow and glanced down at the black Bent sloshing around in the reservoir built into the handle. Maybe I can kill this thing from the inside? He thought, inspecting the enchanted glass bow. The System stepped in and interfaced with the creation. Betty has 22/22 Bent Stored for User¡¯s activated Abilities. Baroke did some rough math. Betty saved somewhere around half of all the Bent he used on Abilities, give or take, up to its limit. He¡¯d been saving up for a special occasion. A full reality-piercing Godslayer Arrow was 8 Bent, Betty would recycle about half of it, reclaiming it through whatever arcane process Jinsei had enchanted into it. Twenty-two divided by four was just shy of six. So, five more shots, huh? He thought, hopping back down to the ground and unslinging his bow, aiming it upward. Let¡¯s poke some holes. ***Calvin, Too smart for Optimism*** Suitably calmed down, Calvin pried himself out of Kala¡¯s grasp despite her protests. Okay, obviously Baroke is still alive. Images of his friend being assaulted on all side by nightmarish creatures, or being unable to breathe in the gullet of an interdimensional creature relentlessly tried to creep into his thought-space, but Calvin mentally swiped it away with a scowl. He couldn¡¯t afford to panic again. The burden of being able to vividly imagine every single way things could go wrong was a blessing and a curse. Sometimes he thought Baroke avoided raising his Mind just so he could remain blissfully ignorant. Thinking of Baroke being smart enough to stay stupid put a wry smile on Calvin¡¯s face. Calvin knelt down in the underbrush and combed his fingers through the flora directly beneath the point Baroke¡¯s arrow had come through, his fingers coming up with slimy residue. The way it felt cold on his skin implied it was rapidly evaporating. in another ten minutes it might not be there anymore at all. It smelled faintly¡­fungal. Like those big poppers Karen forced him and Jinnei to eat. Hmm. Chained spirit. 38/47 Bent remaining. Thousands of palm-sized knick-knacks suddenly coated the jungle floor. Harvest it, Calvin thought, pulling his lab out of his belt. In the past months, Calvin had realized that carrying around an entire wagon full of Warped monster parts and alchemy paraphernalia was tedious. In an effort to remedy that, he¡¯d turned the entire thing into about a tablespoon of densely packed undifferentiated matter. NASA would have killed to be able to do that. Actually, now that I think about it¡­they might still kill for that. His wagon now sloshed around comfortably in an ornate glass vial on his belt with a wagon and a book raised onto the surface by Jinsei, their resident master glass-smith. Calvin scraped a bit of jungle floor flat with his foot and poured out a drop of clear fluid, mentally selecting his alchemy kit. The Lure membrane embedded in the glass read his desires and triggered his refined Blade Body mutation, similarly baked into the glass. The glass tubes, filters, scrapers, droppers, and various other tools bloomed out of the ground, bubbling out of a single drop of fluid, building on themselves like magic. It kind of is magic. It¡¯s totally magic. The Knick knacks snatched up all of Calvin¡¯s droppers and scraped with inhuman coordination, carefully scraping up the material from every blade of grass and leaf in the area, running droppers back and forth and depositing it into his choke-necked jar. Once Calvin was sure they were grabbing the fluid faster than it could disappear, he directed his attention back to the people surrounding him, a plan already starting to form. Baroke wounded it. Or punched a hole in the dimension so hard that a bit of it turned into slime. Either way, that was exactly what I needed to build a bridge between the two areas. Now I just need someone to poke a hole in both places at exactly the same time and place¡­ That doesn¡¯t seem too hard. ¡°What are you going to do with that?¡± Learner asked, leaning forward curiously, as was her wont. ¡°This is a piece of the creature, or a piece of where they are from,¡± Calvin said, pointing at the goop slowly filling up. ¡°With this, we¡¯ve got something to go on. We¡¯re going to have Baroke shoot an arrow through to us at the exact right time and place, and we¡¯re going to use that to build a bridge to wherever the Abyss he is.¡± Learner glanced back and forth between Calvin and the greyish fluid accumulating in the jar. ¡°How?¡± Calvin grinned. ¡°That¡¯s the fun part. If I know Baroke, as soon as he noticed his arrow poked a hole in the monster, he¡¯s going to try to poke some more. He¡¯s not going to be able to help himself. There¡¯s a possibility that something very small and very fast could follow the arrow¡¯s trail before the hole closes up. This goop here had time to come through the hole with the arrow. That implies there¡¯s time to shoot something back through.¡± ¡°How are you going to be able to know where he¡¯s going to shoot through the barrier again?¡± Kala asked with a frown. ¡°For that, overwhelming manpower.¡± ¡°Nadia,¡± Calvin said, pointing at the nearest chained spirit scout. ¡°That¡¯s your job. You showed an ability in Shadowboxing to sense the creature moving between Dimensions a fraction of a second before it did.¡± ¡°I did?¡± Nadia asked with a frown. ¡°I¡¯m gonna need to take your eyes out, though. We gotta maximize your sensitivity.¡± The foot tall Nadia froze in place, hovering in front of him, her skin turning paler. ¡°What?¡± ¡°All right,¡± Calvin said, clapping his hands together. Thank the gods, Baroke¡¯s flailing gave me a plan better than trying to smash a hole through where he disappeared. ¡°Let¡¯s get started!¡± ¡°Now, I¡¯m going to be spending a lot of Bent.¡± Calvin said, pouring his component wagon out of the vial. ¡°You might wanna stand back.¡± Elliot, would you mind designing a Nadia with no eyes? Sure, I¡¯ll even reroute her visual cortex to process the Spinner finger inputs, which is the intention of what you were going for. Yes, please. Calvin threw his hands out and summoned another several thousand knick-knacks, Calvinian summoning. 37/47 Bent remaining Trait doctoring. 30/47 Bent remaining. Calvinian summoning. Calvin used one of his spare vials of undifferentiated matter to grow a tower-sized lump of Abyssal steel, hundreds of tons of the material. Then he softened it to a clay consistency with several castings of Trait Doctoring, instructing the knick-knacks to create bullets with his message inscribed, along with slingshots sized for a very small person. Now the part that¡¯s going to take a lot of Bent. You done? Oh, yeah, it was a simple swap. Elliot said, pushing him a Visualization of the Nadia in question. The girl looked more than a little spooky with hands where her eyes should¡¯ve been, but Calvin wasn¡¯t going to argue. Hey, it was the easiest way to reroute it. I said I wasn¡¯t gonna argue, Calvin thought, holding his hands up above his head. Calvin dumped every single point of Bent into Calvinian Summoning. Calvinian summoning Chimera. ¡­. 0/47 Bent remaining. Ella yelped and scrambled backward as a cloud of green smoke roiled out of Calvin¡¯s hands, pouring up into the sky and spreading out out in every direction, choking out the sun and drenching them in green-tinted darkness. Tiny skeletons were wrapped in flesh and clothing as roughly sixty thousand Nadia with fingers for eyes floated out of the cloud of green smoke obscuring the sun. Each one was about the size of a cat, an estimated fifteen pounds. Ella and her father turned pale and warded themselves with Genosian signs against evil. Kala looked a little green around the gills at the sight of her contemporary so grossly altered. ¡°Neat! Did you have to change anything to repurpose the visual cortex or is it just kind of doing it on its own through neuroplasticity?¡± Learner asked with a brilliant smile. Tell her it¡¯s neuroplasticity, and that was a good guess. It¡¯s like putting on those upside-down goggles for half an hour, your brain just figures out how to interpret it after a few minutes of bumbling. ¡°This feels really weird,¡± sixty thousand Nadias murmured, her voice seemingly coming from every direction at once, sending shivers up Calvin¡¯s spine. Whispers on the wind. ¡°You¡¯ll get used to it.¡± Calvinian summoning has reached level 31! 29791 pounds, 16 hours 1 minute. ¡°Alright Nadia. Each of you take a slingshot and a bullet and spread out. We¡¯re gonna brute force this solution. Kurawe, if you wouldn¡¯t mind recharging me. I want Nadia focused for this. Already headed to the brothel, Ravager. Good man. Tip them extra from the state treasury. Thy will be done, Kurawe said before he cut contact. See, having zealots is awesome, Elliot chimed in. ¡°In the spirit of our errant friend, let¡¯s brute force this solution.¡± Calvin said with a grin. Calvin watched the cloud of Nadia-bominations spread across the sky, armed with slingshots. And now, we wait. They didn¡¯t have to wait long. Baroke was charmingly predictable, after all. About half an hour later, a bolt of green shot up into the sky in the distance, about ten minutes jog to the west, disappearing into space like the one before. You get it? Calvin asked. Yessir, Nadia said. Four bullets unaccounted for. ¡°Excellent,¡± Calvin said, steepling his fingers with an evil grin. ***Baroke*** ¡°Fuck, shit, ass!¡± Baroke flinched as some kind of backspray nailed him in the forehead and shoulder. Okay, maybe that wasn¡¯t the best idea. Godsdamn, that stings, Baroke thought, rubbing his aching forehead, something actually hurting him implied it had quite a bit of force behind it. Through watery eyes, he glanced down at the jungle floor, where he¡¯d felt the shrapnel fall. On the ground were two gleaming marbles of Abyssal Steel. What the Abyss? Baroke certainly hadn¡¯t made them. He knelt down and picked up the marble. Inscribed on the thumb-sized marble was tiny script, so small as to be nearly illegible. Payback¡¯s a bitch, isn¡¯t it? You almost took out my godsdamned liver with that first shot, you bastard. Tomorrow, high noon, poke another hole at the exact location of our firepit. Advise if possible. One shot for yes, two for no, three shots if in immediate need of assistance. As far as Baroke was aware, there was no threat left at the original campsite, so that shouldn¡¯t be too hard. One shot it is, then. Baroke was unslinging Betty when the world went grey, and goosebumps rose across Baroke¡¯s body, warning him that his cursing had attracted the wrong kind of attention. Macronomicon Chapter 195: A Matter of Scale Learner¡¯s notes day 418: On Learner¡¯s Development Bravery: The quality or state of having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty : the quality or state of being Brave: Courageous. Brave: Having or showing mental strength to face danger, fear or difficulty. Having or showing Courage. Courage: Mental or moral strength to venture persevere and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty. Strangely, Kala¡¯s dictionary does not do a good enough job defining this word, as it poorly describes a concept that humans hold in awe, with especially strong moral connotations. People would never call a man who faces great fear and danger in order to perpetrate evil deeds ¡®brave¡¯, and they seldom call people who engage in this poorly calculated risk-taking for their own benefit ¡®brave¡¯. ¡®Foolhardy¡¯ if they fail and ¡®enterprising¡¯ or ¡®lucky¡¯ if they succeed. No, the term bravery is strongly linked with altruism, and the fastest way to earn this most distinguished moniker is to face great risk to aid another. Why do I bring this up? Because Learner (my human brain), well designed as she is, is turning out rather selfless, altruistic, and ¡®brave¡¯. And despite being largely unconscious, she pushed me to volunteer for something that I would normally never consider. I¡¯m both proud and irritated. If this behavior gets her killed, I¡¯ll perhaps make a slightly less than perfect human brain. ***Baroke*** Baroke whipped around and put one of his god slayer arrows through the invisible thing making his hair stand on end. It exploded, just like the previous one, dropping a handful of grey-white slime onto the jungle floor as it faded from his senses. Hah! Got¡¯cha bitch. And then the trees began to shake violently around him, as the dark spaces between trees were filled by increasingly inhuman forms, surrounding the genosian camp. The formerly genosian creatures showed various states of mutation, changing into skeletally thin creatures with overwide mouths dripping with cloudy drool. The further gone ones were over nine feet tall, with patched of pale fur and faces that seemed to be stretched out by some sadistic sculpter. The fresh ones simply looked like they were about to die of starvation. It¡¯s just a couple hundred mutants, Baroke thought idly, pulling out another arrow. These bad guys had a glaring weakness that Baroke could exploit: They existed. Anything with a physical form is my bitch, Baroke thought, putting an arrow between the eyes of one of the ten-footers. Baroke¡¯s hair stood on end as two more incorporeal things seemingly descended on them, causing either side of his body to cover with goosebumps. He leapt aside as the world snapped into greys. There was no indication he¡¯d dodged anything save the rapidly shifting goosebumps on his arm. It took him a moment to realize the two invisible baddies were¡­shifting back and forth to confuse his senses. That implied a level of intelligence that made Baroke wanna nope right outta there if he could. It was one thing to fight mindless soul-sucking creatures that hunted by sound and made mutant monsters. That was kinda fun. It was entirely another thing to realize it was some kind of malevolent entity controlling them, patiently and rationally pursuing your destruction. They don¡¯t pay me enough to think about this kind of shit. Perhaps a second and third arrow are in order. Baroke whipped out two more arrows and aimed to pop the offending creatures. After this, Betty is gonna be down to six Bent. Not really enough to send a message. Oh well, I¡¯ll figure something out. Calvin gets Bent back by boning, maybe it could work for me too¡­except Maya¡¯s back at home. Damn. Force Amplification. Assassinate. Called Shot. Penetrating Shot. Sirfen¡¯s Prey Pierce the Veil Godslayer Arrow 4 Bent reclaimed Betty has 10/22 Bent remaining. Baroke sucked the Bent out of the bow through his palm and repeated the feat, aiming at the other fluctuating sensation in the distance. Third shot. At least he¡¯ll know I¡¯m in trouble, I guess. Baroke loaded the arrow with eight Bent and launched it, hoping to take out the third creature and make its hair-raising sensation vanish like the other ones. Unfortunately, without a strong indicator of where it was, like when it was sucking on the genosian lady, it was a little difficult to pin down. Baroke might¡¯ve only hit the other one because there were two. The arrow hissed out, missing the invisible creature by a narrow margin as Baroke was immediately hit in the forehead with a steel marble about the size of his thumb. The marble exploded into a pair of feet, solidly planted on Baroke¡¯s face and blocking off all of his vision. The feet pushed off of his face, causing him to rock back slightly, and he spotted a rather buxum young Gadveran woman twirl gracefully in midair before landing lightly in front of him. Her center of balance was pretty low, allowing her to get away with that sort of thing. ¡°Good afternoon, Baroke,¡± Learner said, holding a box full of vials in front of her. ¡°Do you need breathable air,¡± she said, pointing to the first one, then moving on to the next, and the next after that. ¡°Emergency medical intervention, combat assistance, shelter or food? I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d declare an emergency over food over the course of an hour, but Calvin said you might.¡± ¡°I need Combat Assistance, duh!¡± Baroke shouted, kicking a gnawing bastard off of him, desperately trying to keep track of where the prickling goosebumps on his skin were telling him the invisible monster was moving. ¡°Right,¡± Learner said, scanning the surrounding mob of inhuman creatures pouring into the camp. ¡°That seems fairly self-evident.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t make fun of me for this afterwards,¡± Learner said without an ounce of shyness, ¡°My brain is embarrassed by our physical differences, and if you made fun of them, she would just die.¡± Before Baroke could wrap his head around that weirdness, Learner¡¯s head sprung open, splitting along jagged lines that wrapped all the way to the back of her skull, revealing something that looked a bit like a starfish lined with teeth. Watching the man-eating Genosian mutant come to a screeching halt in front of Learner was actually mildly amusing, the creature panicked and flailed as it tried to reverse course and back away from her elongating face. She leaned forward and bit off the creature¡¯s entire head, her face closing it around it like¡­well, like nothing Baroke had ever seen before. The creature fell to the ground, limp, as Baroke watched the whole head make its way down Learner¡¯s throat and into her stomach, distending her flesh all the way down. Her stomach rapidly shrank back down to taut ebony flesh as the head in there went¡­somewhere. ¡°Ah, I¡¯ve got to admit, having a dedicated stomach is pleasant,¡± Learner said, rubbing her tummy. ¡°Don¡¯t you agree?¡± ¡°Y-¡° Baroke hesitated. Must not upset her brain. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s pretty good. Most people like having one.¡± Another mutated Genosian leapt at him and he bashed it over the skull with an arrow. ¡°Baroke, are you afraid of me?¡± Learner asked, cocking her head as she studied him, the flood of monsters parting around her. ¡°That makes my brain upset.¡± ¡°Goddamn it,¡± Baroke muttered. ¡°Apologies to your brain,¡± Baroke said, sniping a mutant that was about to get the upper hand on one of the womenfolk. ¡°It wasn¡¯t exactly something I could control, but how about your brain and I have a nice long heart to heart after this is over? I know I¡¯ve got nothing to be afraid of, and I wanna continue being her friend.¡± ¡°Really!?¡± Learner asked, her ecstatic smile brilliant against her skin. There was no sign of where it had split open moments before. She waded through the field of gnashing monsters and threw her arms around Baroke, squishing herself up against him in a combat-hug. Friend-zoned myself with the eldritch creature while avoiding her wrath. Exactly where I wanna be. I always was better with girls than Calvin. ¡°Okay, fight baddies now, hug later,¡± Baroke said, poking her shoulder. ¡°Oh, right,¡± Learner said, whipping around, her arms strangely pale, hands misshapen. She formed her fingertips into a cone-like formation, and lazily waved her hand. There was a flicker of warped light, and all the mutants within ten feet of them fell to the ground, severed in two. You were hugging me with those!? Baroke bit his tongue and didn¡¯t say anything. He didn¡¯t want to upset Learner¡¯s ¡®brain¡¯ any more than he had already. With Learner mincing the creatures closest to them, Baroke was free to provide support to the struggling circle of Genosians, braining every single mutant he spotted, starting from the ones who were winning and working his way back to the ones hovering around the edge of the battle, waiting for their turn. Every single one of them had volunteered to get an arrow through the skull. The hairs on his left arm stood up. Bad touch sucky-monster! Baroke leapt to the side, but Learner was unresponsive. Maybe she couldn¡¯t feel the creature with the same sensitivity? He yelled a warning, but the eldritch abomination was dragged into the air at practically the same time. Learner¡¯s human form was dragged into the air, and faint blue mist began being sucked out of her mouth. ¡°Baroke, this is highly uncomfortable,¡± She said, squirming in its grasp. ¡°Don¡¯t let it suck ya!¡± Baroke said, leveling his arrow at the faint trail of blue. He knew the monster¡¯s throat was right there. ¡°I¡¯ll get ya down from there!¡± Learner closed her mouth, but faint blue continued to seep from her nostrils. She closed her nostrils. The invisible creature seemed to shudder and redouble its efforts, causing blue mist to leak from Learner¡¯s eyes and skin. Force Amplification. Assassinate. Called Shot. Penetrating Shot. Sirfen¡¯s Prey Pierce the Veil Godslayer Arrow. Betty has 6/22 Bent remaining. The creature exploded, leaving a splotch of gunk on the jungle floor, and dropping Learner into it. Learner sat in the center of the clearing, her face covered in the creature¡¯s grey-white fluids, blinking. She scraped a bit of the thick, milky gunk up with her finger before licking it off, expression pensive. ¡°I¡¯ll have to come up with countermeasures for the¡­¡± she glanced at him. ¡°Suck-monster,¡± Baroke supplied. ¡°For the suck-monster. Its cells should help with that.¡± She extended an extra long, bright red tongue and began lapping up the fluid on her face and the front of her low-cut shirt. Getting extra thorough as she went, making sure no crevice was uncleaned. I¡¯m just gonna look over here, Baroke thought, diverting his gaze as his pants began magically shrinking. ¡°Right, just¡­be quiet,¡± Baroke said, dropping his voice to a whisper as the surrounding genosians glared at them. ¡°The invisible ones seem to hunt by sound.¡± Once Learner was done, she picked up the box of supplies from where it had fallen and pulled out a pen and paper from the corner. So, what¡¯s our plan now? She wrote. ***Calvin*** ¡°The plan is, we wait.¡± Calvin said, holding up his fingers. ¡°Two days. We know the care package got sent through, and there was one more arrow after that. He¡¯s launched six shots. Between Betty and Baroke, the guy is down to 6 Bent. He¡¯ll get another two back in just under forty-eight hours. With Learner¡¯s help, he should be able to make it back to camp with no problem. When it comes to sheer survivability, Learner edges out Baroke by a small margin.¡± Calvin was still somewhat taken aback that the eldritch creature had volunteered to get gooped and shot through the hole in space to come to Baroke¡¯s aid. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure if it was bravery or calculated politics intended to win him over. Neither would have particularly surprised him. Learner sometimes seemed of two minds about things, recently. ¡°They should realize that their only chance of rescue is to follow the original plan and meet us here.¡± Calvin said. ¡°In the meantime, let¡¯s make preparations to head toward the south,¡± Calvin said, pointing as he peered into the ominous woods. Something about the deep jungle just felt¡­off. Calvin unconsciously wanted to avoid going that direction. If the creature they were pursuing had a nest, turf, or a point of origin, Calvin was fairly sure it would be there. There was even the possibility that the constant aversion to going south wasn¡¯t actually Calvin¡¯s sense of self-preservation, but the creature¡¯s desire to prevent people from seizing on it¡¯s weakness. Visualize. Calvin created a non-physical map of the land between Gadvera and Juntai, with the Genosian mountains smack dab in between the two. From what I¡¯ve heard, these tribes are having disappearing problems. Calvin thought, mentally drawing big red X¡¯s on the tribes Aoehe had told him were also being attacked. Many of the more northerly tribes weren¡¯t being attacked, but the ones that stretched to the southeast and southwest were, nearly reaching Gadvera and Calvin¡¯s March. I¡¯d hazard a guess and say the only reason Gadvera isn¡¯t seeing disappearances is because no one in their right mind would wander into these woods anyway. Calvin took his finger and drew an arc between the affected Genosian tribes, then he continued the arc, describing a circle that dominated the Deep jungle, abutting Gadvera and his own territory. Calvin scowled as he inspected the circle, putting a dot in the center. What do you wanna bet that¡¯s where the Siphon is? Calvin thought. No bet. Elliot dismissed the offer. Wait, which side are you betting? The circle was not only pressed uncomfortably close to Calvin¡¯s city, it also sat directly over the last leg of his trade route to Gadvera. Calvin could neither expand his territory west into the deep jungle, nor trade safely with Gadvera without addressing this problem. It had already proven that it was willing to suck up more than just Genosians, after all. Knowing Baroke, he¡¯d probably call it a suck-monster. Calvin glanced up at the sun overhead. ¡°Looks like I¡¯ve got two days to create a reality-warping bridge instead of one.¡± Calvin oriented himself on the estimated dot in the center of his map and summoned his Knick-knacks. Calvinian Summoning. 29/47 Bent remaining. Is that all the Bent you could get? Apologies, Ravager, the women of the brothel are tapped out. I could ask for volunteers, but it would likely be only moderately successful while reflecting poorly on us. It¡¯ll have to do, Calvin thought. The line of giant knick-knacks began carving a straight path through the jungle, boring deep into the oppressive woods. Calvin¡¯s aversion to going south lightened just a bit as sun began penetrating through the canopy. ¡°Nadia. By all reports, we¡¯ve got twelve hours until the creature comes back, but you¡¯re going to be spending the whole time watching us to make sure we¡¯re not taken. If anybody needs to take a bathroom break, let everyone know and find yourself a half-bush so we can keep an eye on you.¡± Calvin pointed at Nadia. ¡°No more respecting people¡¯s privacy, alright?¡± ¡°I can do that,¡± the closest Nadia said with a shrug. ¡°Ella, see what you and your dad can do to prepare us for a trip through the Deep Jungle, any kind of lore you might have would be helpful.¡± ¡°Kala?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Yes?¡± Kala asked, fiddling with her pipe. Multi shaping. 28/47 Bent remaining. Calvin recreated the map he¡¯d Visualized, using a bit of ink and a scrap of paper from his belt. ¡°Can you use your Seer skill to narrow down where the creature is currently, or where it might be nesting?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at the Deep jungle they were currently at the edge of. He left the circle of its suspected range and the dot at the center blank, not wanting to influence Kala¡¯s instincts. Kala looked at the map for a moment. ¡°Sure, give me a minute and an inkwell.¡± He did so, and watched as Kala took a draw from her pipe and closed her eyes, holding the ink and quill over the map. She slowly exhaled a plume of smoke that curled playfully up her face as her hands seemed to weave above the paper, searching for the right place to make a mark. A moment later, Kala frowned, dipping the quill in the inkwell before lowering the quill toward the paper. Her hands started trembling, the quill not quite touching the paper. With a moan, Kala¡¯s other hand upended the inkwell on the center of the map, creating a massive blot that dominated the deep jungle. The porous nature of the paper allowed the ink to spread further, sucked up to the genosian mountains by capillary action. The giant blot of ink described the circle Calvin had created, fairly accurately. Kala, her eyes still closed, leaned forward and began scratching on the map, creating tendrils of ink stretching out beyond the reaches of the deep jungle, reaching outward like vines questing for something to latch onto. Kala¡¯s brows furrowed, and she picked up the back of the feather and smacked it down into the ink multiple times before flicking it across the paper, making thousands of tiny little dots beyond the primary splotch, mostly leading back toward Gadvera. Kala went limp with a sigh before she pushed herself back up, blinking her brown eyes groggily. ¡°Did I get it?¡± She asked, muffling a yawn. ¡°Yeah,¡± Calvin said, studying the map with a sinking heart. ¡°I think you did.¡± ¡°Oh my,¡± Kala said, looking down at the mess. ¡°That doesn¡¯t look good.¡± Kinda looks like bacteria taking over a petri dish. ¡°I think we¡¯re going to have to adjust our strategy,¡± Calvin said. They weren¡¯t fighting a single creature. Not exactly. Macronomicon Chapter 196: Excitement* The ten ton Knick-knack slammed the sampler down into the earth, the tube of Abyssal steel cutting through loamy earth and tough branches with the same level of ease. Once the ten foot tube reached its lowest point, the giant knick-knack gave a twist of the handle, cinching the bottom down tight. The knick-knack pulled the tube back out of the ground, then pushed the sample out with the plunger, ejecting a perfectly round cylinder of dirt and roots. ¡°Damnit.¡± Right in the middle, about six feet down, was a layer of slimy white fungus, about six inches wide. Same as everywhere else they¡¯d checked. Calvin dipped a stick in it and smelled the gunk. Yep. It¡¯s the same stuff that¡¯s in my jar. Calvin wrinkled his nose and tossed the stick in the fire. ¡°So, what is it?¡± Ella asked. ¡°Home field advantage.¡± Calvin said, wiping off his hands as he stepped away from the sample. ¡°What?¡± Kala frowned. Despite giving Calvin the hint that he needed to actually find the problem, she didn¡¯t fully understand why Calvin was so agitated. ¡°Whatever took Baroke, it either is this stuff, or it¡¯s using this stuff, to create a pocket dimension about the same size and shape of the fungus,¡± Calvin tapped Kala¡¯s map. He¡¯d had a knick-knack transcribe it permanently onto canvas on account of its importance. ¡°Whenever the thing gets bored, it takes someone to the pocket dimension to hunt them at its leisure. There might be some kind of energy limit, given that it seems to wait at least twelve hours between kidnappings.¡± ¡°Can you clear the land?¡± Ella asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± Calvin said, tracing the edges of Kala¡¯s finger-painting. ¡°This thing¡¯s got a diameter of eight hundred miles, meaning the circumference is approximately two thousand five hundred and thirteen miles. If this stuff spreads a foot a day, it would be adding half a square mile of total area per day. I might be able to stem that tide.¡± Calvin glanced at Aoehe. ¡°But it¡¯s not going at a foot a day. How long was it between your first disappearance in the jungle, and your first disappearance in the village?¡± ¡°Two weeks.¡± Calvin¡¯s skin went cold. He put his hand just under the genosian mountains. ¡°This is your hunting ground, right?¡± Calvin asked. Aoehe nodded. ¡°And this is the village.¡± Calvin pointed out the ironskin tribe¡¯s location with his other hand. ¡°The distance between these two, at minimum, is half a mile. That means our fungus is spreading, at it¡¯s slowest, a hundred and eighty-eight feet per day. Probably faster.¡± ¡°At that rate, I¡¯d have to clear over a hundred square miles of land, per day.¡± You could always design a bacteria that eats it like crazy and breaks it down into raw sludge. Lure it up to the surface by promising to write a book about it, then stab it with the concoction. No, wait, that¡¯s a movie I watched one time. Would that work? Eeeeh, yeah, you could probably pull it off, but I wouldn¡¯t waste a slot from Calvinian summoning on a bacteria. I don¡¯t know if the system would even register a bacteria. You¡¯re eating them every time you swallow, after all. Calvin directed his gaze back at Kala. ¡°The scale of this is mind-boggling,¡± Calvin said. ¡°We probably only have a few months until this hits Gadvera and my March, and by then it¡¯ll be adding so many square miles every day that we won¡¯t ever be able to choke it out.¡± ¡°I felt Warp emanating from the samples I was standing next to,¡± Ella said. ¡°Perhaps the creature is using the Siphon as fuel for its growth.¡± Calvin glanced at the center of the enormous inkblot, representing the heart of this thing¡¯s territory. ¡°You know what? I think you¡¯re right. I can¡¯t contain all this.¡± Calvin said, motioning to the overwhelming amount of land. ¡°But if it¡¯s drawing Warp from a Siphon, I can definitely take control of an area that small. If that works, It¡¯ll either kill the fungus or slow it to a crawl.¡± ¡°More likely the second. Ambient Warp is fairly high in the deep jungle, after all.¡± Ella said. Hmm¡­ Calvin needed a way to automate the removal of the strange layer of fungus beneath them. Like Elliot had suggested, if he could breed some kind of living creature to eat the fungus, he wouldn¡¯t need to spend a single Bent on it, they would simply consume and reproduce. The possibility of dealing with a plague of vermin afterward wasn¡¯t quite as harrowing as a creature that covered the entire planet and spirited people away at an alarming rate. Calvin was fairly sure the one every twelve hours rule was going to go out the window when the thing got big enough. He didn¡¯t really have the weeks or months it would take to find or breed something that was anathema to this creature. That didn¡¯t mean he wouldn¡¯t try, it only meant he wasn¡¯t going to lean on that as his only plan. He needed a way to accurately target it without being able to see it. The fungus was never quite at exactly the same depth, and sometimes it had multiple layers. Simply digging up the top ten feet of earth and burning it was far too work intensive. Calvin briefly considered shrinking the knick-knacks down to thumb-size and sending millions of them down one of his bore-holes, letting them burn their way through the layer of mold. That¡¯s better than turning over the entire forest, but it¡¯s still far too dependent on me to keep it going. I need to delegate this to someone else. I need to somehow arrange for tens of thousands of people to dance to my tune, surrounding the fungus from every side and pushing back it¡¯s expansion. But there¡¯s no way I could ever¡­ ¡­Oh wait. I¡¯m obscenely rich. Calvin smacked his forehead. ¡°I totally forgot about that,¡± he said with a chuckle. Calvin took the original map Kala had made and rolled it into a tight cylinder, then stuffed it in the inkwell. When he dismissed the duplicated paper, the real ink fell straight down, refilling the inkwell. Calvin dipped his quill while Nadia placed his writing paper in front of him. Calvin¡¯s tongue poked out of the side of his mouth as he tried to keep his penmanship elegant and swooping, like a prince consort¡¯s writing should be. Dearest Charlotte, I find myself in need of a greedy bitch who would debase herself for money, and I couldn¡¯t help but think of you. There is a task down here in the deep south that I could use your assistance with. I¡¯d rather not speak of the task in a letter, seeing as you Ilethan scum are constantly spying on each other. I will, on the other hand, speak of the reward. If you preform the task to my satisfaction, you will be further burdened with the challenge of transporting a pallet bearing seventy-five cubic feet of Nem back to your home. Calvin read over the letter a couple times, making sure it was perfect. All right, nothing misspelled, and it gets the message across perfectly. ¡°I have some notes,¡± Kala said, putting a hand on his shoulder. Crap. *** After a lengthy lesson on how to write a letter like a proper noble, Calvin finally penned an entirely acceptable, yet entirely boring letter to the blonde witch, requesting her assistance with an undisclosed task in exchange for monetary compensation. Once Kala looked away, Calvin jotted a quick post-script. P.S. Alright, listen up you hag. I know the letter sounds weird, because we both know we hate each other, but apparently there are standards I have to follow, even if you are an evil bitch. I just want to point out that this isn¡¯t a trap. Seriously. Show up, do your job, earn money, then get out of my life. Calvin wrote the post script down quickly, then set the letter aside, waiting for the ink to dry while he started on his second letter. Do you seek adventure? Accomplishment? Have you always wanted to systematically murder a continent-spanning fungus-monster? Well, now you can! Calvin Gadsint, The Wasp, Prince-Consort of Gadvera is putting out a call for adventurers and homesteaders to tear the Deep Jungle a new asshole! One hundred Stone per month of labor! Food and board already included! This is your chance to make your fortune and make something of yourself! Join the new nobility of Calvin¡¯s March! Any land you clear is yours, on top of your pay! Excitement* and opportunity await! *Excitement may include, but is not limited to: being eaten by giant insect monsters, sucked into a pocket dimension to be slowly digested for a thousand years, scurvy, gangrene, tetanus, loss of life and limb. ¡®Excitement¡¯ is inversely related to the number of applicants, as the giant monsters can only eat so many people at once. ¡°See what you can do with that.¡± Calvin said. I¡¯ll draft legislation to that effect immediately, ravager. Kurawe said in his head. Do you¡­wish to keep the asterisk? ¡°Nah, I just thought it was funny.¡± Calvin said, setting the letter aside. ¡°If you can make it more compelling, do so. We need as many feet on the ground as possible.¡± As you wish. Calvin then penned a letter to Kala¡¯s father, informing him of the situation, and his reasoning. This time he made sure to follow Kala¡¯s advice about formal letters as closely as possible. The Hash¡¯Maje still had a substantial amount of influence over Calvin¡¯s future as a wizard-king, and Calvin didn¡¯t have any particular dislike for the guy, either, so it wound up being a simple greeting, followed by his warnings of certain fungus-y doom, followed by ¨C The guy generously plowing your daughter¡¯s mound, Calvin Gadsint. There, Calvin thought as he set the quill down. Perfect. Fingers pinched down on his right ear and wrenched it up and to the side, forcing him to follow the direction or lose the cartilage. ¡°Ow, ow, ow..¡± ¡°You can¡¯t help yourself, can you?¡± Kala demanded while Ella laughed at them. ¡°I struggle with self-control, a little bit.¡± Calvin said with a shrug, his ear still in his wife¡¯s vice-like grip. Ella¡¯s braying was the only sound echoing through the jungle. ¡°I noticed, write it again.¡± She said, scowling at him. ¡°You don¡¯t think he¡¯d find it funny?¡± ¡°Write it. Again.¡± ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± Kala hovered over his shoulder until Calvin finished the revised letter to her father, folded it up and sealed it with his house symbol. Once that was done, Calvin created some Messenger Nadia¡¯s Calvinian Summoning Chimera Atom Ant. 27/47 Bent remaining. Calvin made three normal-sized Nadia¡¯s with two sets of wasp wings on their butts ¨CNadia¡¯s center of gravity ¨C each of whom was thirty-one times stronger, faster and tougher than she should¡¯ve been. In their chests, they had tweaked Spinner flying organs. In short, they were designed to be faster than a Toku with an assfull of salt, and tougher than a shit after Keroll beans. Those expressions don¡¯t translate. Elliot said. ¡°This one to Kala¡¯s dad, This one to Charlotte at the Den, and put this one in Kurawe¡¯s hands for posterity,¡± Calvin said, handing each of the Nadia¡¯s a letter. The three summons tucked the letter into their clothes before leaping into the sky. The three messengers cut through the sky like shooting stars, gone in a blink. ¡°That¡¯s fast.¡± Ella said, shading her eyes. ¡°Indeed.¡± Now all Calvin had to do was isolate the mutation the fungus was using that created a pocket dimension and find a way to reverse engineer a key to open aforementioned pocket dimension on command. No big deal. ***Baroke*** Damn, I hope this works, Baroke thought, standing in the center of the empty firepit, arrow aimed at the sky. If it didn¡¯t he¡¯d be out of a life-saving shot, and they¡¯d be in the same situation. It was practically a miracle he¡¯d been able to stay quiet two days in a row, forcing Baroke to keep his mouth shut for a week was nigh impossible. Oh well, here goes nothing! Force Amplification. Assassinate. Called Shot. Penetrating Shot. Sirfen¡¯s Prey Pierce the Veil Godslayer Arrow The arrow shot up into the sky, disappearing like it always did, about fifty feet above the the ground. This time though, the sky rippled, before bursting at the seams, creating a massive rounded portal in the sky seemingly lined with dirt, spilling open to reveal another canopy, massive in scale, each tree towering hundreds of feet into the air. In the center of the portal, was a giant who looked suspiciously like Calvin. ¡°He¡¯s here!¡± The giant above him shouted, looking down at him in excitement. The creature reached a hand through, it¡¯s humungous arms bigger than all the nearby trees, the pressure of it¡¯s passing pushing away the surroundings. ¡°Take my hand!¡± he shouted, his voice bellow-y and ponderous. ¡°Let¡¯s get you guys out of there! Learner wasted no time, jumping on top of Calvin¡¯s hand, and Baroke was forced to follow suit, clinging to Calvin¡¯s ring-finger with everything he had. ¡°I got him!¡± Calvin shouted an instant before the hand began rising into the air with a horrifying speed, triggering Baroke¡¯s fear of heights as they quickly rose above the treetops. Don¡¯t look down, just don¡¯t look down, Baroke chanted to himself, content to keep his eyes shut and get reeled to saftety by whatever giant clone Calvin had summoned. Until he started slipping. Baroke opened his eyes and realized in horror that the finger he¡¯d been clinging to was rapidly shrinking as they raised up into the air. He glanced up and saw the tunnel between him and the giant lengthening and shrinking in scale at the same time, a strange sensation that nearly made him lose control over his stomach. ¡°Ah, damnit!¡± Baroke cursed as his knee slipped off Calvin¡¯s palm. It was suddenly too small to support his entire body. He wrapped his arm around Calvin¡¯s wrists as everything stretched, then finally he and Learner¡¯s palms overlapped as they struggled to maintain their grip on Calvin¡¯s rapidly shrinking hand. Baroke looked down and wished he hadn¡¯t. The ground beneath him was shrinking, giving the illusion of hundreds of feet of distance, but he felt like if he reached out with his toes, they would crush the tiny jungle woods. He glanced up and realized that the tunnel above them was shrinking faster than they were rising. It was going to close on them! The sky above them let less and less light into the hole as the earthy sides of the tunnel pressed in on them. Baroke tried pulling harder, tried reaching up, but nothing seemed to speed them up. Finally the hole closed in on them completely, dirt crushing him from every side. Is this what death is? Baroke thought for an instant as the pressure made him feel weightless, powerless, his need to breath slowly driving away rational thought. The hand in his own gave a tug. No, fuck that! I¡¯m not stopping cuz of some dirt! Baroke pulled with everything he had, muscles straining. ¡­. Baroke breached the surface of the jungle floor with a gasp, overjoyed at sucking in real air. Right above him, Calvin was pulling on their hands as he and Learner climbed out of the earth. Baroke had to shove and kick huge clods of dirt out of the way as Calvin helped him drag himself up above ground level. Once the two of them had it under control, Calvin let them go and sat back against a nearby tree, panting and working his arm like it¡¯d fallen asleep. Why were we in the ground? Baroke wondered, coughing up dirt as he crawled out of the hole and flopped onto his back, happy to breathe free air again. ¡°Thank the gods,¡± Baroke said, brushing dirt out of his hair as he climbed to his feet. Learner was calmly grooming herself, shaking off dirt on the opposite side of the hole. ¡°Hey, listen Calvin, there¡¯s like a dozen or more Genosians trapped in there. We gotta find a way to get them out, too. Nobody deserves to have the suck monster suck out their blue stuff.¡± Calvin nodded with a grimace before climbing to his feet. ¡°We¡¯ll figure something out for them soon. In the meantime, we should give your dimensions some time to adjust.¡± ¡°What do you mean, adjust? I¡¯m fi ¨C¡° Baroke peered up at Calvin. ¡°Waaait a minute. Why are you taller than me?¡± Macronomicon Chapter 197: Don’t Get Short With Me ***Charlotte, Senior Mistress at The Den Of Inequity*** Thank the gods I kept my head down, Charlotte thought, leaning against the wall, cold sweat dripping off her nose. When the explosions from the docks had begun, she¡¯d been forced to decide between organizing a heroic effort to ward off the invaders, and coverin her ass. She¡¯d chosen to cover her ass, waking Michelan, the Den¡¯s headmaster from his Trevor-induced fugue state, then offloading the responability onto him. He¡¯d performed admirably, using his substantial talents to organize the Den into something resembling a resistance, faster than sh¡¯ed given the old man credit for, and certainly faster than she could¡¯ve done it. It hadn¡¯t been enough. The king had been furious at the Den¡¯s paralyzed inactivity, and the excuse that a single inexperienced student had rapidly surpassed all of his teachers, one by one put each of them under his control and used them like puppets to act out childish fantasies¡­ The excuse was almost comically bad. Especially because the student in question was found dead in his room, unable to substantiate any of the headmaster¡¯s claims. The king did what the king historically did to people with bad excuses. He drew the Michelan¡¯s mind out of his own body and added him to The Throne, leaving nothing but a crumbling husk in the old headmaster¡¯s clothes, directly in front of the senior staff of the Den. Those twelve men and women were what Charlotte would consider extremely jaded, but feeling the headmaster¡¯s flickering confusion and agony surface every once in a while from the hurricane of lost souls that swirled about inside the throne filled their hearts with existential dread. The only thing that stopped them from being added to the maelstrom of captured egos was a sense of restraint atypical of an Ilethan king, and the knowledge that killing all of them would harm the power of Iletha as a nation. Instead, Jonathan Ilestar had cast his gaze over each of the remaining senior instructors of the Den of Inequity, the force of his will driving each of them to their knees, using their Leashes to infiltrate their minds without any kind of resistance. Charlotte had been second to last, and when he met her gaze, she had experienced years of miserable captivity and degradation in a fraction of a second, toppling her to the floor just as surely as the rest of them. ¡°Upon review,¡± The king said, patting the throne like a faithful hound. ¡°The Headmaster believed himself to be telling the truth. Imagine that. Upon searching the memories of several of your students,¡± Jonathon glanced at Charlotte momentarily ¨C ¡°I detected an outlier. A slant-eyed Bolesian prince, accompanied by a creature wrapped in rags and composed of inhuman will.¡± The king set his scepter on the floor in front of him and folded his hands over it. ¡°I want the twelve of you to decide amongst yourselves who will take his place,¡± The king said, pointing at the pile of ash on the floor ¡°And the rest of you will be tasked with learning more about this creature, and the ¡®Ravagers¡¯ it spoke of.¡± Now she was locked in her study, trying to find a way to calm her nerves, sorting through the harrowing experiences that the king had forced into her, trying to fix the mental wounds he¡¯d caused with a single glance. The pet cockroach named Anton¡­ False. Charlotte dismissed the memory. Fingernails peeled off¡­ False. Not only did she have to pick up the pieces of her broken mind, she had to chase after the creature with the Bolesian brat and ingratiate herself with him somehow. I¡¯ve done it before, She thought with a shudder as she touched upon a particularly violating memory, choking it out with her will until it was done away with. Every graduate of The Den had to reconstruct their personality to some extent. Charlotte a bit more than others. One could even say she was proficient at it. There was a flutter at her window, followed by a soft gust of wind as something unlatched the uleisan glass panels from the outside. Messenger bird or attack? Charlotte thought, tensing as she spun. She spotted a human form clambering in her window, and she had her answer. Charlotte charged over to the lamp on her desk, flinging the gently flickering light source at the ground between them In a fraction of a second, flames leapt into the air between the two of them. Transference 24/38 Bent remaining Charlotte linked the fire to the intruder, funneling the heat of the spell into the hapless fool Plenty of people had tried to kill Charlotte before, but they found she was far from defenseless in the innocuous sanctuary of her room. The light Flared momentarily before winking out, leaving a warm floor covered in half-burned lamp-oil. Charlotte¡¯s eyes adjusted for a moment until she made out¡­Princess Nadia ilestar, or at least, what was left of her after the Gadveran summoner had somehow trapped her soul. Nadia was little more than singed, eyeing Charlotte with a scowl. She gave a halfhearted cough, a bit of smoke leaving her lungs the only sign that she¡¯d taken any kind of damage. ¡°Talk about a warm welcome,¡± Nadia muttered, taking a step forward, strange insect wings hanging from her hips like one of those vanity capes. Charlotte raised her hand, aiming to try a different tactic, when Nadia spoke. ¡°I¡¯ve got a letter for you.¡± She said, tugging the paper out of her leathers. ¡°Oh,¡± Charlotte said, mollified as she dropped her hand. ¡°Well, why didn¡¯t you say so? Don¡¯t you know it¡¯s the height of rudeness to barge in on a lady¡¯s Sanctum Sanctorum?¡± ¡°Good thing you¡¯re not a lady.¡± Nadia said with a snort, holding the paper outstretched. Charlotte extended her senses out to the paper, finding it free of any kind of magical traps. She took the message, opening it and reading the contents all the way down to the bottom line, before breaking into a laugh. ¡°I almost didn¡¯t think it was real until I read the post script,¡± Charlotte said, shaking her head before holding the letter over a candle to burn. She didn¡¯t want anyone reading her missives, after all. ¡°Amusing, but I¡¯ll have to turn the offer down. You can tell your new master that I¡¯ve got more important things to worry about than fixing the mistakes of someone whose balls haven¡¯t dropped.¡± Charlotte waved a dismissive hand, expecting the creature to leave. Nadia cocked her head, studying Charlotte¡­assessing her weaknesses. The gaze of a predator. Shit! Charlotte readied herself to cast a spell, but the girl was fast, closing the distance between them faster that an unblinking eye could register, appearing in front of her and cinching a steel hand around Charlotte¡¯s wattle neck. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a request,¡± Nadia said, her voice suddenly carrying an inhuman resonance as she stared into the sorceress¡¯s eyes, the wings on her hips slowly raising. For a split second, the lamplight reflected from Nadia¡¯s pupils, a brilliant blue. ¡°Gods,¡± Charlotte choked, beating her fists against the unyielding arm. ¡°What has that man done to you?¡± ¡°He¡¯s helping me be what I¡¯ve always wanted to be,¡± the former princess said with a deranged smile. BUZZZZ! The next thing Charlotte knew, she was being hauled through the air at an incomprehensible pace, ground sliding beneath her hundreds of feet away. ***Calvin*** The group was walking south, following the straight trail hacked through the jungle by Calvin¡¯s knick knacks, Nadia keeping an eye on all of them along with their surroundings, while Calvin tried to explain how he¡¯d gotten Baroke out of the pocket dimension. ¡°For the last time,¡± Calvin said with a chopping motion, ¡°You weren¡¯t inside the fungus. You were in a bubble of altered space created by the fungus. You weren¡¯t technically anywhere, because the direction you were in doesn¡¯t exist. ¡°Oh yeah,¡± Baroke said, glaring up at him, ¡°Then why was I shrunk down in a little cave inside the ground, which you literally pulled me out of!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t pull you out of -¡± Calvin grabbed his aching forehead. Gods give me strength to explain pocket dimensions to this bonehead. ¡°You were shrunk because of dimensional lensing, not because there was a miniature terrarium under the ground. Our XYZ dimensions don¡¯t translate on a one-to-one scale, and the ¡®shrinking¡¯¡± Calvin said, making air quotes. ¡°Was your body adjusting between realities.¡± ¡°The reason I pulled you out of the ground was because, as the emanation point of the bubble, the fungus was the closest thing to a contact point between the two realities, and the easiest place to create a bridge between them.¡± ¡°So you admit that the place you pulled me out of¡­was the fungus layer.¡± Baroke said with a smug smirk, crossing his bulky midget arms. Calvin opened his mouth to give yet another well-constructed, rational argument designed to enlighten Baroke on the difference between coming out of something and using that thing as a medium to create a portal. Then he thought better of it. ¡°You¡¯ll understand when you grow up,¡± Calvin said, tousling Baroke¡¯s curly hair. The tiny giant swatted his hand away, scowling furiously. ¡°Maybe Maya won¡¯t feel so lonely, now that there¡¯s another person in the midget squad,¡± Calvin said, chuckling. Baroke gasped, eyes wide, holding up a finger as though he¡¯d had an epiphany. ¡°You know what? You¡¯re right. This is actually an opportunity in disguise. Maybe I¡¯ll finally lose my virginity.¡± Baroke said, nodding with a look of slowly dawning realization on his face. ¡°Excuse me?¡± As far as Calvin was aware, there was no way Baroke was a virgin. Baroke hooked his thumb into his waistband, glancing down into his pants. ¡°My dick¡¯s finally small enough to have sex with a girl.¡± He gave Calvin¡¯s crotch an appraising look and raised an eyebrow. ¡°Maybe.¡± Calvin punched Baroke¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Fuck you.¡± ¡°Eat my ass.¡± Baroke gave him a friendly jab to the ribs that nearly sent Calvin tumbling into the jungle. ¡°Behold,¡± Kala said, making an exaggerated sweeping gesture in front of Ella, ¡°Male bonding rituals of young men in their teens, too steeped in machismo to admit their primal attraction for each other.¡± The princess gave them a wide grin, flexing her claws around the word ¡®primal¡¯. ¡°Like that one book you gave me?¡± Ella asked, ¡°About two young men captured in a raid and forced to fight in gladiatorial combat, all while trying to come to terms with their budding romance? That was the one with a lot of butt stuff, right?¡± Calvin glanced over at Baroke, and the two of them shifted just a bit further apart. ¡°You ever think maybe you let your wife read too much smut?¡± Baroke asked once the laughter died down, giving Kala a salty look. Calvin considered it for a moment, head cocked. ¡°Better too much than not enough. I mean¡­¡± It seemed pretty self-evident. ¡°Aye, that¡¯s fair.¡± Baroke said, nodding sagely. ¡°No one likes a cold fish.¡± Calvin. Charlotte¡¯s agreed to help. Where do you want her? Excellent. Wait, you¡¯re bringing her back? I was there. Nadia¡¯s voice came with the feel of a mental shrug. Alright, even faster than I was hoping. Drop her off near Calvin¡¯s march, outfit her with a big wagon of thermite from the treasury, and a couple dozen laborers to dig out her samples. Samples? She¡¯s going to use her wacky power of destroying similar objects to accurately target all the fungus in an area by using one chunk of it as a representative sample. Ah, I see. Is she going to be the primary cutter, then? No, she¡¯s too valuable to put where she can get sucked up. We¡¯re going to use her to sweep in behind the line of homesteaders and make sure every ounce of the fungus, including the stuff that¡¯s out of sight, has been incinerated. I¡¯ll get her there. I¡¯m sure Kurawe is already working on getting her started. Nadia said. Indeed. It is but the work of an afternoon, Ravager. Good. This is the biggest thing I¡¯ve ever delegated, and I¡¯d like for it to go off without a hitch. I¡¯ll make sure our laborers understand the importance, Ravager. Yeah, I¡¯ll get it done. ¡°You had a blank look,¡± Baroke said. ¡°like you were taking a shit.¡± ¡°Remind me why I saved you again?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. Baroke¡¯s chuckling was cut off by a wailing cry in the distance, followed by a rumbling that soaked into the earth itself. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Calvin asked, glancing up at one of the Nadia tasked with keeping him observed. ¡°It¡¯s a bit outside my range. Let me ¨C¡° Nadia¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°They¡¯re coming out of the ground!¡± Dozens of lanky creatures with patchy fur tore themselves out of the earth, charging suicidally toward them. Baroke might be smaller, but he was every bit the same ungodly strength as he was before, sending arrow after arrow streaking through their numbers, punching holes through the entire formation. Calvin drew his backup knife and flooded it with Bent, making the invisible extension reach nearly the length of a sword. Calvin was holding his blade tucked in close so as not to let his teammates fumble into the invisible blade, when he heard a flutter of wings above them. Shit. ¡°Up!¡± Calvin said, looking up at the incoming threat. It was far too late, as the rounded creatures, that looked like inflatable bladders on Tarak wings, opened tiny mouths which erupted with a thick yellowish mist, deflating as they spewed the toxic mixture. The vapor descended all around them in a fraction of a second, and Calvin immediately felt the effects as his eye began to burn like fire. Tear Gas! Elliot shouted, as if that should mean something to him. They¡¯re trying to break up our formation! Calvin thought, tears obscuring his vision as he tried to stop himself from closing his eyes. If enough of them closed their eyes from the pain, someone would get lost in the shuffle. The creature could take people in a fraction of a second of inattention, after all. Calvin burst out of the miasma, coughing and wiping tears out of his eyes. One of the wide-faced creatures howled at him, trying to rake its claws across his face. Calvin interposed his knife, allowing the creature to cut off its own claws. He dodged a swipe coming from behind him before gutting the bewildered creature. When the choking finally cleared, Calvin was standing at the center of a pile of dead foot soldiers, while Baroke had similarly mangled his attackers. Ella, Kala, and Aoehe were nowhere to be seen. Learner was still with them, glancing around curiously between dainty bites of one of the monster¡¯s calves. Damn. Looks like it¡¯s serious about killing us now, Calvin thought with a scowl. It had thrown the twelve hour limit out the window now that it realized they were coming straight for it. ¡°Did we get got?¡± Baroke asked, glancing around ¡°No, we¡¯re still topside.¡± Calvin said, his knuckles turning white on the handle of his knife. Both his wives were in a pocket dimension. He couldn¡¯t fault Nadia this time around: that attack had been designed to make them blink long enough to snatch half their party away. ¡°How do you know?¡± Baroke glanced around the forest. ¡°I couldn¡¯t tell last time, at all.¡± There¡¯s an intelligence behind this, and it¡¯s trying to avoid a repeat of our escape. It took everyone who didn¡¯t escape the bubble last time. It¡¯s trying to keep you and me on the same side of the bubble so we can¡¯t make a bridge like last time.¡± Calvin glanced at Baroke. ¡°That and you¡¯re still short. If you were back in the bubble, you¡¯d be tall, but you¡¯re not tall, you¡¯re short.¡± ¡°Goddamnit Calvin!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get short with me.¡± The two of them burst into bellowing guffaws. ¡°Aaaah, I hope my wives don¡¯t die. I¡¯m gonna murder this thing.¡± Calvin said, wiping more tears out of his eyes with the back of his hand. ¡°Your levity is good,¡± Learner chimed in. ¡°It relieves tension, and the fear of death.¡± Macronomicon Second chapter of the make-up chapters. Enjoy! Chapter 198: Naming the Wildlife ¡°Alright, this thing¡¯s trying to slow us down and wear us out by splitting us up,¡± Calvin said, raising a hand. ¡°We¡¯re not gonna let it.¡± Calvinian summoning. 27/47 Bent remaining. Thumb-sized knick-knacks poured out of the smoke and covered the ground like an ocean of tiny metal men. ¡°What about Kala and them?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Taking care of that right now,¡± Calvin said, eyes narrowed as he concentrated on the instructions he was giving the tiny workers. Calvin glanced up, double checking the angle of the sun. Right¡­there. ***Kala*** ¡°I can¡¯t feel Calvin anymore,¡± Ella said with a shudder, glancing around the jungle with a shudder, torn and broken bodies of the ambushing mutants at her feet. ¡°Do you think-¡° Kala had to stand on her tippy-toes to slap a hand over Ella¡¯s mouth, Any other day and she¡¯d enjoy the feel of her lips, but right now was not the time. Ella stiffened. Baroke¡¯s debrief had covered how talking in the bubble was a big no-no, and the suck monsters that turned the world grey were drawn to speaking. Not sound in particular, but the utterances of sapient creatures. He¡¯d figured this out after Calvin had asked a few pointed questions. If Kala was right, they were the ones who¡¯d been taken. The transition had been nearly seamless, but Kala had noticed the positions of their attackers flicker ever so slightly between one blink and the next. Whatever was trying to kill them had gone through a lot of effort to conceal the fact that they¡¯d been taken. Probably to put them off guard for those crucial extra moments. Kala glanced at Aoehe and put her finger over her lips. The aged Genosian shaman nodded and wordlessly raised his hand, releasing a gout of roiling green smoke from his palm. A fraction of a second later, his protector coalesced out of it, casting a suspicious eye at their surroundings. The old man repeated this three more times, creating a loose circle of disposable warriors between them and the jungle. A moment later, the jungle turned grey as a massive pseudopod drooped down from the sky itself and began questing around the clearing. It was pinkish and covered with veins and splotches of sickly color. All in all, something that she could have happily gone her entire life without seeing. Kala glanced at Aoehe and Ella and noticed their eyes were wide with terror, skin covered in goosebumps. They stared straight ahead, and though they seemed like they were trying to look at the strange fleshy thing, their eyes were slipping off of it. Is this the invisible thing? Kala thought, glancing back to the pseudopod that was feeling around for its prey, coming dangerously close to Ella. Kala took a step forward and wordlessly tugged her savage out of the way, allowing the creature to pass by unhindered. Ella shivered as the creature passed by them, pooling up against a tree like a thick fluid. The father and daughter pair looked at Kala with dawning realization as they watched Kala¡¯s eyes track the beast. When she pointed, they moved, without hesitation. Kala had the feeling that she might feel differently about the unpleasant tube of flesh if she didn¡¯t possess an Ability from her Seer skill that made her immune to mental damage and fear from Seeing the true form of things. As it stood though, whatever aura the creature projected seemed to slough off of her, simply becoming an ungainly blind tentacle descending from the sky. Easy to step around. Except when it wasn¡¯t One of Aoehe¡¯s summons was directly on the other side of the creature, so he had a hard time making out her movements telling him to get out of the way. He finally got a mental instruction from his summoner, but it was just a bit too late, and the pseudopod made contact with the warrior¡¯s elbow. The pseudopod move like a coiled snake. Gone were the fumbling, somewhat silly movements dragging around the jungle floor, replaced with a deadly, strangling speed. The bulky Genosian was lifted into the air in a fraction of a second, the pseudopod coiled around him. A disgusting sucker formed at the base of the pseudopod, hovering over the summon¡¯s face. To his credit, the Genosian warrior winced, but didn¡¯t make any noise as he began leaking green smoke. A moment later, he began to leak blue mist, and the other three genosian warriors began to sway on their feet, toppling over like dolls with their strings cut. Aoehe¡¯s eyes widened, and he reached into his mouth and yanked a tooth loose, throwing it up at where his bodyguard was being sucked out of it¡¯s container. The tooth seared into the side of the pseudopod, cutting and burning the creature, distracting it long enough to drop the warrior to the ground, where he inhaled with a pained gasp. The pseudopod began to flail wildly, sending up goosebumps every time it came close to touching one of them. Kala watched this and punched the shaman on the shoulder to get his attention. When he looked at her, she pointed at the chained spirit underneath the thrashing pseudopod and made an X with her hands. She didn¡¯t know if it meant the same thing in genosian, but Aoehe got the idea. He nodded and with a wave of his hand, the summon in the danger zone turned back into green mist and sank into the ground. She pointed away from the creature. No sense hanging around if it could only detect the sound of creatures talking. They dove silently into the woods and put as much distance between themselves and the thing as possible, Kala checking over her shoulder every now and then to make sure it wasn¡¯t following. It wasn¡¯t, but that didn¡¯t mean they were out of hot water yet. The strange fleshy protrusion behind them rose up and merged with the sky. A moment later, three more of the strange pseudopods descended from the sky, encircling them, snuffling around the jungle floor, their soft-looking bodies bumping into trees and passing through bushes in their search for humans to suck on. Kala was considering how to get all of them safely past the suck-monsters, when the situation resolved itself. The earth bucked under their feet, and the pseudopods whipped up into the sky as something began carving on the surface of the sky itself. Light from the sun caught reflections in the sky, creating a message that appeared to blaze with fire, burning the pseudopods that couldn¡¯t retract into the sky in time. Kala and Ella, I¡¯m headed to the epicenter. Meet us there for extraction. I¡¯m fairly sure we need to kill this thing from both sides, and your assistance would be greatly appreciated. Love, Calvin ¨¤ At the end of the message was an arrow pointing to the south. I can do that. Kala thought with a nod. She met Ella¡¯s gaze, and the six of them began sprinting through the jungle, following the path the Knick-knacks had cut. ***Calvin*** ¡°I don¡¯t get it.¡± Baroke said, shaking his head. ¡°Nearby fungus will have to take over maintaining the bubble where it was wounded, creating a weaker portion of bubble. This weaker portion will catch the light differently and carry my message with it.¡± Baroke frowned at him. ¡°I get it!¡± Learner said. ¡°I¡¯m writing on the fungus and they¡¯re gonna see it.¡± ¡°Aaah!¡± The three of them put their heads down and began to charge through the jungle, Calvin setting the pace he thought Kala and company would be able to achieve. *** Resistance got heavier the closer they got to the deep jungle. Aside from the occasional Kugeya and a half dozen times Baroke had almost been eaten by a widowmaker pretending to be Maya, whatever intelligence was controlling the fungus laid traps for them, ranging from simple pits and snares to blades and darts. Learner had fallen for each trap precisely once, stopping to study each of them with fascination, deconstructing them and hypothesizing how they worked, glancing at Calvin every once in a while, seemingly seeking his approval like a young child. Baroke on the other hand had managed to fall into the same pit-trap a second time while waiting for her to finish studying it. the archer had been trying to walk and juggle arrows at the same time and tumbled into the hole in the ground, his ridiculously dense body shattering the hardened wooden spikes at the bottom. There were even less man-made traps, like trees with tiny bristles on their bark that would lock tight to a creature¡¯s skin and refuse to let go. These spindly trees had the bones of dozens of small animals littering their roots, which curled around their hapless prey. Baroke leaned up against one of them for a moment and was forced to tear a chunk of the tree¡¯s bark off to get his arm free. Once he¡¯d accomplished that, of course, the archer immediately started playing with it. ¡°Stick, unstick. Stick. Unstick.¡± Baroke said, poking the tree with his finger before tearing it away. The formerly huge archer¡¯s skin was tougher than the tree bark, as it turned out, pulling off a patch each time he drew his hand away. Learner on the other hand was able to unstick from the tree by allowing her skin to flow out from the tight weave of hairs, curiously studying the effect and also examining the bones a the base of the tree, presumably for new ideas of forms she could take. The tree bark was tough, causing the entire tree to shudder and sway as it tried with all it¡¯s might to hold onto Baroke¡¯s finger before finally ripping off. Calvin finally had to drag Baroke away from the tree, refocusing them on the trek just in time to come face to face with the second part of the trap. It was a creature that walked on four limbs like the gardor, but with none of the lumbering clumsiness, looked at them, perched sideways on a nearby tree. The creature seemed mammalian, with oversized slaws on both its front and back limbs. It was using these wicked looking claws to cinch into the sticky bark and hold itself aloft, along it to remain at eye level while it stared at them. Maybe it¡¯s an herbivore. Like a sloth. The creature opened its mouth and hissed at them. it had a round, rigid tongue with a hole in the center that looked almost like an animal¡¯s dick, and big-ass, sharp canines. Welp, definitely not an herbivore. The creature sprung off to Calvin¡¯s side, forcing him to turn to meet it. It landed, still sideways, on another tree and propelled itself upward to a branch before bouncing off with its massive claws and coming straight down at him, hissing all the while, it¡¯s jaw practically unhinges to face those long fangs straight toward him. Calvin raised his blade and waited for the creature to split itself it half, and that¡¯s where things started going poorly. The spigot in the center of the creature¡¯s mouth shot out a clear fluid straight at Calvin¡¯s eyeballs. A good rule of thumb is when something that¡¯s trying to eat you spits a substance at you, you go out of your way to avoid getting any on you. Calvin used his whorls of Bent to brush the fluid off to the side and dodged at the same time, letting the spit go past, landing in the bushes where it began to smoke. Calvin could feel the creature¡¯s approach on his skin even though he couldn¡¯t see it, ducked as he was. He whipped his dagger up to bisect the creature, and he felt a ghost of resistance before the monster reeled away, hissing in pain. It glared at him for a moment, favoring its bleeding front paw. The two shared a moment of mutual disdain before it hopped off and fled into the jungle. ¡°Huh,¡± Baroke muttered, lowering his bow. ¡°Maybe that was just an animal.¡± Animals and Warped creatures had a vastly different level of aggression. Animals prioritized their lives, and tended to avoid humans and run away as soon as they were injured, while Warped creatures were far more willing to approach people with the intention of making a meal of them and ignoring pain. Soon, the trees around them began shaking as hundreds of the creatures flooded into the area, rapidly surrounding the three of them on all sides. The one with the wounded foreleg, far from the largest of the creatures, pointed an accusing paw at Calvin and hissed. Well, that leans them toward Warped, Calvin thought to himself. ¡°I hope you¡¯re resistant to acid,¡± Calvin muttered to Baroke. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± Baroke said, holding an arrow loosely between his forefingers. ¡°What about your sickly ass? I know you haven¡¯t been toughening yourself up a lot recently with your desk job.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I don¡¯t like acid. I may need more neutral elements in my epidermis if we¡¯re to continue fighting creatures with access to it,¡± Learner said, pulling her dress up to cover her skin a bit more than before. ¡°As the discoverer of this species I hereby name them Dicktongues.¡± Baroke said with a grin. The dicktongues did not seem to appreciate Baroke¡¯s naming sense, launching themselves out of the trees, proceeded by a hail of acid. Calvinian summoning Heart of the swarm. Chimera Atom Ant 26/47 Bent remaining. Calvin hid his real body inside Heart of the Swarm, bursting into green smoke and resolving as a single modified Kurawe before assuming total control over it. This was an excellent opportunity to put to test the ¡®battle form¡¯ concept he¡¯d been working on for a while. By replacing Kurawe¡¯s fat and skin with Nadia¡¯s, he was able to make a body that was generally humanoid and male without being gross, warty, and obese. After shrinking the summon down a bit, it was pretty much the same size and shape as Calvin. Why can¡¯t I be the base for a battle form? I feel discriminated against! Nadia exclaimed.. Because you¡¯d make a joke about me being inside you, Calvin responded coolly. Nadia clicked her tongue. Calvin was also less than enthusiastic about turning into a girl to fight. Calvin would do it if he had to, but having Nadia¡¯s big boobs attached to his front, having wide hips, and no tackle between them was weird. I knew it! Calvin clicked his tongue. The cobbled together body had a bunch upgrades that he¡¯d been prototyping on Nadia. For example, Calvin thought, flicking his hand toward a charging dicktongue, squeezing the little muscles nestled in his forearm. A stream of reality warping goop ran down the veins in his fingers, mixing right there on his fingertip before lancing outward. A flicker of light was the only indication anything had happened before the charging creature fell in half, split asunder by a ripple in spacetime. This ¡®battle form¡¯ wasn¡¯t without its problems, as Calvin no longer had access to his sensory mutations. His back received a spatter of acid on his back an instant before a dicktongue landed on him. Against a legend¡¯s skin boosted to thirty one times its usual toughness, the creature¡¯s oversized claws did little more than sting. Calvin reached back and grabbed the creature, throttling it with one hand while he glanced over at Baroke and Learner. Baroke was, similar to him, simply ignoring the acid, his skin too tough to receive much damage. That archer¡¯s gonna get hit with something his Body can¡¯t handle one of these days, Calvin thought, shaking his head. He was comfortable criticizing Baroke for doing the same thing as him because Calvin wasn¡¯t actually risking his own hide. Learner, on the other hand, was demonstrating remarkably fluid transition between mutation after mutation. She snapped her fingers, and her body was covered in a bright blue crystalline layer that scattered the acid away from her. She held up a hand and it began glowing with a flickering light that caused the creature charging her to go slack, staring directly into her palm. She then punched it in the skull, her crystal-covered fist caving in the creature¡¯s face. Learner¡¯s actually pretty cute. I mean, she does look like Kala, and the way she turned her eyes up at me after each hypothesis was so excited and innocent. It really flipped my Teacher switch. I could see¡­ Wait, NO! Calvin shook his head. Thou shalt not lust after Eldritch abominations. What is it about watching girls murder things that lowers my guard? Shouldn¡¯t it be the opposite? No, I totally get it, Elliot said. I¡¯m right there with you, bro. Macronomicon Enjoy! Today was not a caffinated day, which makes me even more surprised that I managed it. But manage it I did. Patreon is up to chapter 225 for those who wanna see how Carem gets killed. I would never stoop so low as to kill hated characters for profit, but seeing the vitriol he recieved, I thought I''d at least give people an opportunity to find out. Chapter 199: Of course it’s an ambush It took several days of cutting through the deep jungle, Calvin¡¯s Bent gradually draining away as his summons were burned through. Thankfully he had the Bad Penny Ability, allowing his summons to last a lot longer than they might have otherwise. In a moment of exhaustion, Baroke asked him why he hadn¡¯t simply flown them into the center of the jungle. Although it would have been faster, There was a better chance of them getting split up en route, and moreover¡­ When Calvin made a Nadia fly above them toward the south, she veered off suddenly and crashed into a tree. The next one was caught in some kind of clear webbing, then she got chewed on by glass spiders, nearly invisible against the blue sky. Calvin didn¡¯t have the breath to speak at the time, so he simply waved his hand dismissively. ¡°Yeah, I got it. This thing¡¯s got a brain.¡± A few minutes later, Baroke spoke up again. ¡°Does the sun look¡­ off to you?¡± Calvin glanced up, expecting a giant eyeball, or blood red. He was a little disappointed when it was normal and simply not where it should be. They were on the equator, going north to south, so the sun should be moving perpendicular to the long line of cut trees they were trekking along in a perfectly straight line, following behind Calvin¡¯s Knick-Knacks. Unfortunately, that didn¡¯t seem to be the case. The sun seemed to be slightly behind them. Calvin glanced at the Knick-knacks industriously creating their path, ignoring the various monsters that sprung up around it, their teeth and claws proving to be little impediment to their progress. He followed the path that they¡¯d carved, the straight line allowing him to make out the place they¡¯d started a few days ago easily. He had a clear line of sight, every tree perfectly lined up, his gut was telling him. Except the shadows on the ground. Far in the distance, the shadows were all pointing to the left, but over the last twenty feet, the shadows of the trees slowly began to diverge from each other, pointing this way and that, even overlapping each other at times, which was a sight so unsettlingly unnatural that it made the hair on Calvin¡¯s neck stand up. Calvin looked up at the sun and took a step backward. The sun shifted further behind them, but the forest remained the same. Calvin took two steps forward, and the sun swung up and to the left, nearly blocked out by the trees. Yep, we¡¯re in a non-euclidean maze. Elliot said sagely. The Abyss does that mean? Calvin demanded. You¡¯re in a maze not composed of walls, but of tangled up space. Left is straight, straight is straight, down is left, etc. Basically your perception of direction and real direction are at odds with each other in here, and you gotta find a way to get through it. We could spend a lifetime in here, getting progressively more and more lost as you struggle to find your way to the center. Once you grow old and weary, you¡¯ll want to leave, but you¡¯ll be so deep in the Maze¡¯s clutches that you¡¯ll never see your home again! MUAHAHAHAH! ¡°Ooor,¡± Calvin said, glancing up at the sun then back down at the trees, mentally summoning the knick-knacks to him. ¡°Cut me a path of anything whose shadow matches that angle.¡± Calvin said, pointing to one of the trees from twenty feet back that had uniform shadows. And make sure to adjust as time goes by. Oh, you think that¡¯ll work? ¡°I hope so,¡± Calvin said. If a tree had the same angle from the sun, they had to be facing it from the appropriate direction. Theoretically. It was just a matter of getting from tree to tree with the right angled shadow. What if you¡¯re facing the wrong direction? We¡¯ll figure it out. And figure it out they did. Knick-knacks were incapable of creative thought, so they saw the shifting shadows and never bothered to stop and ask why, they simply kept going in what they perceived to be a straight line. They understood the request and did their best to accommodate it, but their intuition and critical thinking weren¡¯t quite enough to piece together the problem. As it turned out, using the shadows to navigate was a dead end, as soon as their winding path was out of sight of the entrance. Since moving changed not only someone¡¯s position but also the direction they were facing, the shadows seemed to shift wildly as they walked, leaving them totally confused about which one was at the right ¡®angle¡¯. Where logic failed, Intuition filled the Gap. Dozens of tiny clues, like footprints ahead of them where they¡¯d already been, the apparent angle of the sun above them, the tendancy for the trees to lean to the south, and so on, allowed Calvin to crunch out a generally southern heading, creating a nonsensically winding trail as he went. None of those clues by themselves meant anything, but all of the tiny little facts put together gave Calvin a fairly accurate roadmap of where he was going and where he¡¯d been. It didn¡¯t help that whatever controlled this nightmare jungle didn¡¯t stop throwing creatures at him that were seemingly immune to the disorienting effects of the jungle. He had Baroke and a knick-knack follow behind him, step for step, the Knick-knack using it¡¯s torch to lay down a squiggly line of burned earth, hopefully allowing Kala and the others to follow his path. ***Kala*** A hand clapped, grabbing Kala¡¯s attention. Kala blinked. Ella was facing east, frowning at her questioningly. Her dad was similarly wandering off in the wrong direction. ¡®This way south.¡¯ Kala signed, pointing. Ella frowned and shook her head, pointing at Kala and making a wobbly line with her hand. That¡¯s interesting. ¡°Come to me?¡± Kala signed. Ella shrugged, heading towards her. The Genosian started out straight then turned sharply north, her head turning to stay fixed on Kala. The look of surprise and disbelief on Ella¡¯s face didn¡¯t need translation. Hmm¡­ Kala frowned, then motioned for them to stay put. Ella and Aoehe stayed in place, watching with increasingly amazed eyes and Kala walked toward them in a straight line. She took Ella¡¯s hand, and Ella took her fathers, and together the three of them resumed their trek through the jungle. Seer for the win! Kala thought with a smile, marching ahead of Calvin, whose burnt line on the ground was forming at a slow, halting pace. They were still attacked by monsters regularly, but between Ella¡¯s shiny blood-red skin and Aoehe¡¯s Chained spirits, they were able to fend them off. The supply of mutated Genosians had run out a long time ago, and the Suck-monsters were easy to avoid as long as they didn¡¯t say anything. All they had to contend with were the occasional warped creatures that the bubble threw at them, but they were by and large disoriented by the transition between realities. ***Calvin*** ¡°What does that look like to you?¡± Calvin asked Baroke. ¡°A popped pimple,¡± Baroke said, eyeing the crater ahead of them. It was perfectly round and smooth, carpeted in that strange fungus, seemingly having risen up to ground level. In the center of the crater was a hole. Tiny from this distance, but easily big enough for several adults to go inside. ¡°I know what it looks like, It¡¯s a lens! The focal point of the effects!¡± Learner said, looking up at him with expectant eyes. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Calvin said, and Learner beamed, unconsciously wiggling in place and leaning toward him. Calvin reflexively raised his hand, almost patting Learner¡¯s head before he snapped out of it. Whew, Pretty dangerous there for a moment. ¡°Still looks like a whitehead to me.¡± Baroke said with a grunt. ¡°Well, let¡¯s go burn it to the ground,¡± Calvin said, heading for the hole in the center of the. ¡°It¡¯s already on the ground, though?¡± Learner asked, falling in behind him. ¡°It¡¯s kind of an expression in this case, Calvin said, covering his face with a cloth and stepping out onto the white fungus layer. It had the strangest texture. Brittle, and yet when it gave under his feet, the broken fungus turned sandy before collapsing into a tougher substance. If he weren¡¯t sure it was a bad idea, Calvin might want to take his shoes off and see what it felt like crumbling between his toes, imagining that would be what snow was like. As they walked into the massive fungal crater, the forest began to rise up around them. Not simply because they were lowering in altitude, either. The forest rose up and warped, rising high above their heads until the last bit of sky was choked out by jungle canopy directly above their heads. ¡°Well, that¡¯s pretty fucked up,¡± Baroke said, staring up at the jungle above their heads. ¡°I know, right?¡± Kala said from a couple feet away, fading into view, dragging Ella and Aoehe along behind her. one second she wasn¡¯t there, and the next she was, like stepping through some kind of invisible doorway. ¡°So the bubble overlaps here,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Seems like it.¡± kala said, nodding. ¡°Good, because that saved me hours of figuring out a way to bring you back.¡± Although if both realities overlap here, it¡¯s not exactly the defensive position I thought it was. Calvinian summoning. Chimera 15/47 Bent remaining. Calvin created a massive, enhanced fireworm directly on top of the hole in the ground. No sense taking any chances. They could explore it after every piece of organic matter inside was reduced to carbon. At his direction, the Fireworm placed its butt over the hole and started convulsing, it¡¯s shiny pale white exterior convulsing rhythmically. ¡°Hah! It looks like a guy taking a dump,¡± Baroke said, pointing. It kind of did. Then the fireworm exploded into a green mist as something shot through it, sucking in the green smoke and regarding them with a hateful stare. It was vaguely humanoid, rail thing with oversized rib cage¡­ Calvin¡¯s eyes widened as he recognized the creature. ¡°Magenta.¡± Obviously it wasn¡¯t the same exact creature, but it was the same body. The same passionate hate. The brittle fungus around them began to shift and crack as hundreds of creatures began to stir, breaking out of the white surface like spiders out of an egg sac, even where they¡¯d walked to get here, their footprints in the crust were shrugged off by the creatures that had been hiding directly under their feet. I mean, I¡¯d be pretty dumb if I wasn¡¯t expecting a trap, Calvin thought as the ground beneath him erupted, even more Magenta-colored creatures pulling themselves out of the ground. Calvin threw himself into the air, pulling out his Abyssal steel knife and lopping the creature beneath him in half before landing on it again. Kala led her group of three to a relatively thin part of the mob, and between her, Ella and Aoehe, they managed to create a solid formation, although the old man¡¯s Chained Spirit was whisked away, he managed to preform admirably with his obsidian blade, slowing down his attackers long enough to allow hid daughter to assist him. Ella¡¯s powers being so diametrically opposed to Calvin¡¯s, the Magenta swarm wasn¡¯t really that much of a threat to her. The creature¡¯s claws slid off her iron skin like a knife on glass. They simply were a poor match. Even then, she struggled, because while she could toss any individual creature around like a ragdoll, they came at her like ants, locking onto her limbs and trying to restrain her long enough for the others to get their jaws around her neck. Even if her skin couldn¡¯t be penetrated, she could still be suffocated. Kala came to the rescue with a magic that Calvin had never seen. She took a deep draw on her pipe ¨C Is this really the best time? ¨C and exhaled a thick cloud of smoke. That smoke hung in the air, whirling in place and shooting out white spikes of smoke given solid form, piercing the mob of attackers. It didn¡¯t stop there though, as the spike seemed to come alive, turning into soldiers made of white vapor. These featureless men joined together to create a living wall, slowing the approach of the Magenta swarm. Calvin was having more trouble than them. Shaping 14/47 Bent Remaining. He didn¡¯t try his summons, since his first experience with Magenta had made an impression. When he tried to use Dupdomancy to create a bomb, the creatures ignored the attack entirely, the bits of shrapnel bursting into vapor like drops of water on a hot stove. With his summons and dupdomancy handicapped, Calvin resorted to a combination of hand-to-hand combat and Shifting. Shifting. We¡¯re gonna have to start calling Shifting Old Reliable. Calvin made himself light and jumped above the rabble while Baroke was buried in a sea of gnashing teeth and retractable talons. He didn¡¯t have time to worry about Baroke as the flying Magenta made a beeline for him. Calvin put weight into his hand and spun around it, dodging the speeding flier in midair as she crashed into the mess of bodies below. Calvin took the opportunity to reach into his belt and pull out an eyeball sized ball of Mage Armor. He took the blue putty and smashed it against his chest. In the blink of an eye, his entire body was covered in blue crystal, rendering his skin far more resilient than it had been a moment ago. It was a good thing, too, because the creature came back strong. Soaring up towards Calvin at blistering speeds with a howl of rage. Calvin whipped out his Abyssal steel knife, complete with extra twenty-five inches of invisible blade, aiming to bisect the approaching creature. Magenta warped around the blade like an image seen through bubbled glass, hitting Calvin in the neck and stomach with her hand blades angled to seek out his heart and jugular. Calvin¡¯s light weight saved his life, as his Mage armor softened the blow, sending him reeling across the sky. How did she dodge the attack? Calvin recalled his own words. Home field advantage. She¡¯s using the space warping to make herself untouchable. Calvin slammed into something soft in midair. He glanced up and saw Learner grinning back at him, having cushioned his uncontrolled fall through space. She was similarly coated in Mage armor, although she made hers on demand. When Calvin glanced around he noticed the forest had bent upward even more, until the white of the fungus field was all he could see, sky and ground. Ah, now we¡¯re in a real bubble of space, Calvin thought, looking around. Up was limited to about fifty feet in the air, and after that, every direction was down. Well, if they¡¯ve got the home field advantage, take away the home field, Calvin thought. Magenta didn¡¯t give him any more time to think, rushing toward him with murderous intent. ¡°Give me a push,¡± Calvin said, stepping off air to negate his falling momentum. Hands at his back flung him forward, and Calvin drew all the mass of the earth into his body, making himself a heavyweight missile. Magenta¡¯s eyes widened when, instead of splattering Calvin like she¡¯d expected, His momentum overwhelmed hers easily and carried them violently forward. Dodge this, Calvin thought grabbing her arms and putting all of his weight into his swinging legs, then transferring it up his body into his arms as he swung her around. ¡°Son of a bitch!¡± Magenta flew away at high speeds toward Learner, who flicked a hand, creating a ripple of reality-warping blade to bisect her. Magenta gave him a feral grin and space warped, Her body creating a noodle-like line while Learner suddenly looked like she was under a lens. Shit! Calvin lunged to the side as fast as he could as Learner¡¯s reality ripple put a cut in his side, a couple inches deep. ¡°Oh no!¡± Learner shouted, her eyes wide and brimming with tears. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, are you okay?¡± She clutched her hand to her chest. Calvin raised a brow at her behavior, but didn¡¯t have time to say anything. Assuming they lived, it was such a clean cut it would doubtlessly heal just fine, and he was too busy to sling blame. Calvin tugged the thermite out of his belt. ¡°Kala!¡± Calvin shouted, glancing up at where Kala and the others were holding off an army of mooks. ¡°Yeah!¡± ¡°Need distraction!¡± Calvin said, pointing at Magenta. ¡°Got it!¡± Kala said, Calvin Shifted his weight and pushed off the air, charging through the air with fine control of Shifting, aiming for Kala. Hopefully she would be able to brush his attacker off of him long enough to setup the surprise. Kala warped in front of him, replaced with the grinning face of Magenta as space was warped, turning Calvin completely around. ¡°Hi,¡± She said, catching him in midair in a gardor hug, pinning his arms to his sides. I call hax! Magenta¡¯s face split open, revealing mandibles aiming to crush Calvin¡¯s head. Calvin used Blade Body to suck his knife back into his palm before jutting both of them out of his temples, catching Magenta¡¯s mandibles. ¡°Agh!¡± Magenta shouted, drawing her head back, bleeding form the face. ¡°You sneaky fucking ¨C ¡° Learner landed on Magenta¡¯s shoulders and wrapped her arm around the creature¡¯s neck, her fingers turning into odd tentacles that shoved themselves into Magenta¡¯s mouth. Calvin pulled the knives back in and pushed them out of his abdomen, stabbing into the creature holding onto him. She screeched in pain and shoved him off, scratching at Learner over her shoulders, while a growing cloud of smoke began whirling around her, following Learner¡¯s example by forcing itself inside the monster. Calvin fell to the ground, shifting all his weight out of his body as he impacted the ground, weakening the damage to almost nothing. As the other Magentas gathered around him, Calvin tore open the carefully packaged rust and feathersteel combination with his teeth, then popped the top off one of his vials of undifferentiated matter and shoved the entire vial into the package before launching himself back up. The results where almost instantaneous. An enormous pile of thermite began growing out of control, until it was the size of a wagon. The best part was, it was one hundred percent real, not Bent construct. Magenta couldn¡¯t do a damned thing about it. ¡°Turtle up and get ready for some heat!¡± Calvin shouted. He¡¯d made magnesium filled with God¡¯s fire a thousand times. Multi-Shaping A white hot light bloomed in the center of the white splotch, and the entire curved space they were trapped in jerked, like a man who¡¯d touched a hot stove. Then it started tearing itself apart. The forest became visible, then chunks of sky here and there. It wasn¡¯t open, exactly, but it wasn¡¯t under her control anymore, either. ¡°GYAAA!¡± Magenta screamed, throwing Learner off her back, coughing blood as she charged toward him, her gaze filled with hate. She¡¯s got Learner inside her, probably. All I need to do is stall and I can win this. But first let¡¯s see if she can handle being bisected. Calvin drew the mummified Spinner knife off the back of his belt and with a wave of his hand, put the dimensional blade through Magenta¡¯s torso, splitting her in half. Magenta exploded into brown sand. What? The sand wrapped itself around Calvin, smothering him from every angle, his sight and senses restricted. There was a bubbling sensation against his skin as his Mage armor started dissolving on contact with the claustrophobic brown sand. This could be bad. Macronomicon Enjoy! Make-up chapter coming in an hour or so. By the way, I read somewhere that vitamin D mitigates the more dangerous symptoms of COVID. It doesn''t stop you from getting it, of course, just makes it less deadly. You know what that means! That''s right: Public nudity. In order to soak in as much of that vitamin D as possible and help protect yourself from the worst of the illness, you gotta Get Nekkid and strut your stuff. This will also give you the opportunity that you''ve always wanted to shame people for wearing clothes. Side effects may include eye-strain and brain-scarring from dangling eighty-year old bits. In other news, I''m starting a new small 1-per-week serialization that should come out...This weekend maybe? I learned my lesson after juggling Outer Sphere and WotR, so this one is only gonna be 1 per week. Reviews have been good so far, but I''m aware they''re from people who already like my stuff. It''s patterned after Rising From The Depths, a system apocalypse where people are shunted into ''tutorials'' and the MC chooses the hardest one. Except MC is a magic user instead of a spear-hucker. Because this is me we''re talking about, and who doesn''t choose magic given the opportunity? WHO!? Nothing against Rising From The Depths, Guy''s a pretty good writer, I just can''t stand it when the MC isn''t a magic user. And I''m not talking about those magic/fighting hybrids who reinforce their bodies and put lighting in their punches. That''s dumb. Or even those elemental mages who can only do elemental attacks and that''s it. Also Dumb. Naw, I''m talkin'' bout real, creative, thinking man''s magic. That''s my drug of choice. Anyway, next chapter should be up in an hour, support me on Patreon if you''re not the waiting type. Generic System Apocalypse has 12 chapters available. Due to them being weekly they''re pretty beefy chapters, too. Chapter 200: The Bicentennial Calvin tried to move his hand to his belt, but the sand was pressed in around him like a vice, so tightly packed against itself that he couldn¡¯t move a single finger. He couldn¡¯t see, closing his eyes against the assault of sand. He could feel his body falling out of the air, but that was honestly less important than the sizzling sensation he could feel transmitted back through the Mage armor. Whatever was surrounding him was eating through the thin coating of crystal. Now, how do I get out of this? Calvin thought, If I could just reach the shrink button on my belt. He¡¯d long since made a device that could shrink him using the Unqua¡¯s Warped mutation. He summoned his list of choices for Trait Doctoring. He¡¯d been sitting on the newest acquisition for an emergency, and right now was starting to look pretty bad. Energetic traits: User may choose an energetic trait to add to Trait Doctoring. Energetic traits include, temperature, combustability, explosiveness, acidity, radioactivity. Selectable multiple times. Expanded Physical traits: User may choose a trait to add to Trait Doctoring. Further alter the physical traits of the target object. Expanded traits include friction, pressure, Frequency, phase shift temperature, opacity, reflectivity. Selectable multiple times. Complex Biological Traits: Healing, Nerve Signal Strength, Gender, Means of Locomotion, Defense Mechanisms, Complex Social Traits: Affiliation, Fame, Duty, Love, Prestige, Social Contract. Subtle Identity Doctoring: User can more effectively incorporate skills and memories from the donor into the target¡¯s identity without causing mental disconnect, increasing accuracy and decreasing possible side-effects and noticability. Extra sources: User may add traits from 1 extra source. Selectable multiple times. Extra Traits: User may add another Trait from the same source. Selectable Multiple Times. Extra Duration: Duration of Trait Doctoring improved by (Int)% Mutations: Trait Condensation: 2 Bent: Rather than move a trait, user may condense it into a liquid contained in a self-generated glass. Liquid gives the trait to the first object it touches. 1 drop per hundred pounds. Liquid stores 1 hour per level of Trait Doctoring, effect follows Trait Doctoring¡¯s duration. Hmm¡­This is a conundrum. Calvin would cross his arms and tap his feet if he weren¡¯t cocooned by some kind of acidic sand bubbling away at his Mage Armor, rendering him immobile. If Magenta was preventing his Bent from escaping his body ¨C which would be absolutely dumb not to do ¨C then Calvin could only cast spells on himself. Or possibly Magenta¡­except she showed quite a bit of resilliance against magic. We¡¯ll call that plan B. The major problem was, most of the Trait doctoring abilities weren¡¯t conducive to being alive. Making your body a superconductor does not mean it can continue to function normally and be a superconductor. Calvin had realized that when he¡¯d nearly lost feeling to his hand after making it hard as stone for a couple seconds. So what does that leave me with? Friction wouldn¡¯t do much¡­ If I matched the pressure of one of my compoonents, I would literally explode, temperature and combustibility are fun¡­but not on my body. So if he wanted to cast something on himself, it would have to be one of the complex biological traits. Healing was attractive, but what if he couldn¡¯t use Magenta as the base for the spell? Unless¡­ Hey Elliot, could I copy a rock¡¯s healing ability and use Opposite Day to supercharge my own? Let me run a sim¡­ Nope, it would fail, because rocks didn¡¯t fall in the category of having biologic traits. Sizzle! Yeah, I should probably hurry this up. Let¡¯s try our opening gambit. Trait Doctoring Sense of self 14/47 Bent remaining Calvin copied his identity onto everything around him. if he could assume control over Magenta for even a moment, this fight would be over. ***Copy Calvin*** Calvin found himself unable to see, suspended in a whirling, formless chaos of anger. I must be the copy, Calvin thought glumly. Having a fifteen minute timer on the rest of his life was a bitch, but if he didn¡¯t to work immediately, Calvin Classic? would be dead in a matter of minutes. He didn¡¯t exactly have time to get philosophical. Okay, listen up, Calvin thought, spreading himself through that chaotic amalgam of hatred, replacing it with himself. You¡¯re me. You don¡¯t want to kill me. We should just back off and give me a chance to catch my breath. He felt the formless mass move around him for a moment, but just a moment, before a face manifested in front of him, composed of whirling bits of rage. There was no way to describe what it looked like, only how it felt. The lips were turned down with disgust, and Calvin could feel the retching abhorrence radiating off of them, little flickers of disjointed memories of awful sensations flickering across their face. ¡°What are YOU doing in here? What are you doing INSIDE ME? YOU¡¯RE INSIDE ME!? NO! NONONONO!¡± The entire world began pressing in around Calvin from every direction, smothering him with overwhelming force. Ah, crap, this isn¡¯t gonna work. ***Calvin*** The sand pressing in around him shuddered for an instant before he felt it¡¯s strength return. The connection Trait Doctoring had made between the two of them popped like a soap bubble. It was worth a shot. Calvin thought, praying for the unfortunate Calvin that had been so rudely created and destroyed in a matter of seconds. Calvin felt a stinging pain on his arm as the first bit of sand made its way through the Mage armor. Ow, shit! Healing¡¯s not gonna work, there¡¯s no subjects that heal fast enough, Gender¡¯s right out, locomotion too. Defense Mechanisms would work, but only if I could copy Magenta¡¯s which she wouldn¡¯t allow. Damn, What about Bent Manipulation? Calvin thought Abilities: Ghost hand: Manipulate Bent stored by Beli Ma as hands with physical attributes mirroring User¡¯s mental Attributes. Increases range of Beli ma by 1 inch per level of Bent Manipulation. Bent Interference: Bent Manipulation correction applies to attempts to interfere with other user¡¯s Abilities. Bent Reclamation: User¡¯s Abilities have a (correction)% chance to reclaim Bent spent on them when countered. Bent Condensation: Condense 5 Bent into one hundred grams of black liquid Bent. One hundred grams restores 1 Bent. Spell Penetration: User¡¯s Abilites and Bent Constructs are (Stability)% more difficult to dispel. Sliding Scale: Add up to (level)% To one numerical effect of an Ability while taking the same percentage away from another numerical aspect. ^ Ex. +5% Duration, -%5 Mass Mutations: All Seeing Eye: User can physically see Bent. Warped Bent: User¡¯s Bent is now closer to Warp in the way it interacts with the environment. More difficult to counter, more difficult to control. May cause mutations. Shit, nothing in there! His spare Ability in Drafting didn¡¯t even bear mentioning. What about Frequency? Wait, that could work! I choose Frequency! Calvin thought. The System Acknowledged his choice and the technique was adding, making his brain tingle, just as the holes in his Mage Armor were starting to widen. Trait Doctoring Frequency 13/47 Bent remaining. Calvin linked his vocal chords to the rest of his body. ¡°MMMM!¡± Calvin hummed. He hummed good. The link between his body and his vocal chords made sure the rest of his body hummed along with him. Oh, gods this feels weird! Calvin thought as his entire body was suddenly assaulting by violent vibration from his Scalp, eyeballs, and tongue, down through his crotch and into the soles of his feet. Everything was buzzing and the sensation nearly made him black out. On the other hand, the sensation of his skin being eaten away by Magenta¡¯s acid was good motivation for continuing what he was doing. Calvin used Shifting to move mass into his body, making his body feel like it was about to tear itself apart. The extra mass didn¡¯t slow down the vibrations in the slightest, and since Force was Mass times Acceleration, the force of behind the vibrations became significantly stronger, shaking the sand off of him in droves, while simultaneously making his body feel like it was going come apart at the seams. Calvin bulled through it, focusing on moving his hand to his belt. The sand was having a hard time holding onto him because of the vibration, and Calvin was able to slam his hand down on the emergency escape button made with Unqua shrinking marbles. The pressure on Calvin eased instantly as Calvin shrank down to the size of a man¡¯s palm. I¡¯ve only got a second before the sand crowds me again. He swung a fist forward, loading it with mass, and was flung forward at high speeds, puncturing through the veritable wall of sand. Calvin glanced over his shoulder and spotted the sand coalescing into a single stream, flying after him as he fled. Gotta go faster. He punched forward again, using the skating technique to gain even more speed. The ground loomed large in front of him. Ah shit. Calvin had momentarily spaced the Every Direction is Down rule, and paid the price. Calvin slammed face-first into the white, crunchy fungus, barely able to emergency dump most of his mass the instant before he slammed into it. It still hurt, but it wasn¡¯t bone breaking like it might have been if he weighed thousands of pounds. Calvin flipped himself up and tapped the escape button, growing back to his former size as he turned back to the approaching sand. Alright, bad guy is decentralized, in little bits and pieces. That begs an Area of effect spell. POsion won¡¯t work because the poison itself is made of Bent and it¡¯ll get defused. No, we need AOE damage that¡¯s real. Calvin glanced over at the white-hot pile of molten steel burning its way through the fungus. Heat is real as soon as it¡¯s passed from the original to the air. Mass Shifting 12/47 Bent remaining. Calvin targeted a tiny marble of white-hot thermite with the intention of copying the shit out of it. It reminded him of the first time he¡¯d copied a single spark a thousandfold to create a raging forest fire. This would make that seem lukewarm. Calvin felt a stream of Bent launch itself out of Magenta¡¯s sand-body and impact against the streams of his own Bent as they went to create a zone of white-hot iron spheres around her. Instead of a densely packed sun-like sphere around her, The Bent streams meant to create marble-sized balls of white-hot iron were scattered everywhere, toward him, toward Magenta, and toward Kala. The thought of Kala getting burned by his spell sent a spike of adrenaline through his heart. Unacceptable! ¡°Shit!¡± Calvin reached out with his left hand, releasing blunt wave of his own Bent, severing the streams heading toward Kala and Ella with a reflexive jab, reducing them to nothing more than random patterns of Bent dissipating into the atmosphere. 10/47 Bent remaining The rest of the marbles manifested without a hitch. The world exploded with heat as tens of thousands of white hot marbles manifested throughout the battlefield, nearly blinding him with their sheer brilliance. Calvin had the unique sensation of feeling his skin boil before his eyes rolled back in his head. Calvin had a pain limit, and while it was lot higher than most, there was still point where his brain would shut down to protect his sanity. ***Calvin*** Calvin opened his eyes, finding his lungs being forced full of air, his heart aching as though someone had been using it like a punching back. He tried to breathe out, but there was a pair of dark lips wrapped around his own. His nose was pinched, and he had no recourse but to flail and cough. She backed off of him instantly, and Calvin was relieved to see Kala¡¯s face above him, the sun shining down through her hair and making a beautiful halo. The sight nearly distracted him from the earth-shattering pain radiating from every square inch of his body. ¡°You¡¯re alive, thank goodness! Kala will be so happy!¡± Kala said, pulling her fingers away from his chest, the vine-like tentacles piercing his ribcage retracting back into her hand. Kala will be happy? Tentacles? Calvin glanced at Kala¡¯s bountiful chest, his brain overwhelmed with a sense of wrong. No, it has to be Kala. Because if it wasn¡¯t Kala, that would mean¡­ ¡°Get away!¡± Calvin screamed hoarsely, trying to push Learner off of him. She¡¯d been inside him! The creepy little miniature fractal clones she had squirming around just under the skin had been pressed up against his lips! Calvin¡¯s adrenaline tried to spike as he attempted to shift himself away from the eldritch creature, but he¡¯d practically exhausted it all over the last couple days, leaving him to shimmy painfully away, hissing and groaning as his skin cracked and bled. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Learner asked with a frown. ¡°You didn¡¯t put any of those things inside me did you!?¡± Calvin demanded, ignoring the pain in his skin to pat his chest, where tiny dollops of blood were forming where she¡¯d pierced the skin. Is there anything moving inside me? Is it eating away at my lungs right now? Gods, she could be in my brain! ¡°Calvin, you¡¯re being rude.¡± Kala¡¯s voice came from his left. He peered over and saw her scowling at him. ¡°Rude? Did you forget the time I fought her?¡± Calvin asked looking at Kala. ¡°I was in that wasp that she ate from the inside out, you know. I got to experience everything it did, and-¡° Kala leaned forward and clapped a hand over his scorched lips, sending a fresh wave of pain through Calvin¡¯s face. It was just a drop in the bucket at this point, though. ¡°Before you say anything you can¡¯t take back,¡± Kala whispered in his ear. Calvin glanced over Kala¡¯s hand at Learner. The creature¡¯s eyes were brimming with tears. Learner let out a wretched little hiccup before launching herself to her feet and running away, sobbing like a heartbroken teen. What¡­The¡­Abyss. I didn¡¯t realize Learner had¡­feelings. ¡°She¡¯s been working on developing Human emotions. You¡¯d notice if you weren¡¯t so leery of her.¡± ¡°Dude, that was poorly handled,¡± Baroke said, shaking his head. Ella simply nodded. ¡°Calmer now?¡± Kala asked after a few moments had done by. Calvin nodded, and she pulled her hand away from his mouth ¡°I feel like toasted shit,¡± Calvin said, glancing around, trying not to move as much as possible. That made it hurt a lot worse. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°Your spell was a double K.O. with Magenta. Between the rest of us, we were able to mop up. When the fighting wore down, Learner noticed your heart had stopped, so she did CPR. Out of all of us, she¡¯s the closest thing to a doctor. She saved your life.¡± Baroke said with a shrug. ¡°Ah crap, I broke her heart, didn¡¯t I?¡± Calvin groaned, rolling his eyes, the only part of his body that didn¡¯t hurt to move. Breaking a normal girl¡¯s heart was bad enough. This one was on a completely different magnitude of ¡®bad¡¯. ¡°Just a little,¡± Kala said with a slight smirk, holding her thumb and forefinger apart. ¡°But it¡¯ll be okay, women are capable of suffering through a thousand little cracks in their heart for the one they love, and they come out all the stronger for it.¡± Calvin stared at her. ¡°What does that mean?¡± Kala shrugged, glancing to the side, avoiding looking at him so he couldn¡¯t read her emotions. She looked amused, though. Macronomicon Here''s the make-up chapter for missing Wednesday. My evil brain was considering leaving ya hanging on 199''s cliff, but I feel that would erode our mutal trust. You trust me to deliver a certain amount of chapters per week, I trust you to shout FIRST on the comments page before eagerly shoveling the words into your brain-mouth. So I didn''t leave you hanging. Because trust. Even if it would be hilarious. Patreon is up to chapter 226! I''m also starting a weekly serial, so get it there first! It''s about a vet with PTSD going through a System tutorial and becoming a hairy wizard. Chapter 201: Putting Down Roots Learner¡¯s notes: Day 423: on Heartbreak >>Learner (Human Brain) temporarily banned from the log for multiple subjective, inherently false observations, general moping, and bad poetry: 5 minutes.<< My brain triggered some kind of cascading, extreme reaction to Calvin¡¯s demonstrated disgust toward me. I¡¯ve heard the term ¡®heartbreak¡¯ thrown around, but objectively, it felt more like someone scooped out my body¡¯s internal organs with a dull spoon. Why isn¡¯t it called emotional evisceration? These humans need more accurate words for these things. It is fascinating, however, that any form of social interaction between humans can cause this amount of pain. It is also a problem. As she is as close to a well-balanced, ideal human brain as possible, Learner is very sensitive to human social concerns. This is the first time this fine-tuned brain has had such a glaring weakness exposed. The experience was so acutely uncomfortable that I wanted to dull Learner¡¯s senses, wipe the brain and start over again. I was stopped by Kala, who informed me that this is a part of ¡®Growing Up¡¯, and becoming a more ¡®mature¡¯ and ¡®resilient¡¯ human. She also said in no uncertain terms that making a sociopathic brain to avoid heartbreak was unacceptable. I¡¯ll grudgingly give her the benefit of the doubt. My brain¡¯s current thoughts seem to be a tangled mess of self-recrimination, disgust with her own body, a desire to numb the pain by any means, and intrusive thoughts about removing me from her body, despite the knowledge that such a thing is impossible*. *Impossible in that a surgery to do so would be far too invasive to ever consider, although that doesn¡¯t prevent the possibility of some kind of extremely advanced teleportation magic removing my units. It is interesting, seeing her search herself for any way that she could possibly change so that Calvin might like her better, blaming herself for not being good enough for him rather than blaming Calvin for the social wound he caused. And that¡¯s the strangest thing about this form of violence, most of the damage seems to be self-inflicted. If Learner (human) didn¡¯t care what Calvin thought at all, this reaction would have done nothing to her. In fact, it would have been expected. Despite the time they had spent together, Learner did remember the time she¡¯d fought him, and revealed her units on multiple occasions. Of course any human would be wary of something capable of easily killing them. In this matter, Kala was an outlier, giving her time and companionship generously with no fear of Learner that her advanced brain could perceive, making herself vulnerable to earn my trust in a very human wa- Big whoop, she can just see the future, so she already knows I¡¯m not gonna do anything to her. She doesn¡¯t actually trust me, she trusts her abilities. Nobody really likes me! Just like Calvin doesn¡¯t like me. Why am I so awful? If I wasn¡¯t this horrifying creature, he¡¯d like me better. Gods I¡¯m the lowest form of life in here. Ow, my guts hurt! I need some ice cream. Oh gods, but Calvin¡¯s the only one who can make ice cream out in the wilderness! If I see his face again, I will shrivel up and die! I should wear dark, brooding makeup to show people exactly how much pain my bitter soul is in. I need to express it. Agh, but my skin is too dark to make it work, and my stupid ALIEN BRAIN won¡¯t give me control over my body! I have a right to control my body! I could be pale as death and they would KNOW how awful I feel! ¡­.I could also get rid of you. Born a monster: Can¡¯t accept! Everyone hates me. Am I Me Or My Mother? >>Learner (Human Brain) temporarily banned from the log for multiple subjective, inherently false observations, general moping, and bad poetry: 2 Hours<< ¡­.now I have to scrub that out. ¡­ From an outside observer¡¯s position, I find it very interesting, the way that human biology places the burden of bearing children primarily on the mother, which contributes to the heavily gender-weighted fetishization of vulnerability. A female makes herself vulnerable when she trusts a male to breed with her nonviolently, to stay with her and raise their children. Females are also physically weaker than males, making them more vulnerable to attack, disease, accident¡­pretty much everything. This weakness gives females a very keen sense for vulnerability and, strangely enough, the benefits it can bring. Being vulnerable inherently means that you are in a position where you could receive damage, but it can be the gateway to a richer reward. Females are seemingly more willing to extend trust to others and see that vulnerability rewarded with reciprocal favor, understanding that such vulnerability can open potential doors with others that human males mostly miss, due to their slightly different perspective. This leads me to believe that if females see doors males miss, then the opposite is most likely true. This level of vulnerability is painful. Perhaps I should spend some time as a male? Learner (Human Brain) is vehemently opposed to being a male, so I¡¯ll let the matter drop for now. I can most likely learn what I need from simple observation. Now though, on the receiving end of this emotional vulnerability I speak of, I don¡¯t know if I can tolerate it. Being stuck with a moping brain for two days has severely frustrated my ¨C ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ Calvin just apologized! He apologized profusely, groveled in the dirt with a long and well-rehearsed speech that really showed he¡¯d put plenty of thought into it. He thanked us for saving his life, accepted us as people, apologized for hurting our feelings, and admitted that we weren¡¯t the same person he met in the Filter. When Learner broke down and cried again (from joy?), he gave us a hug and several delicious pats on the head. If social attacks feel like getting guts scooped out, getting accepted for yourself, hugged, and patted feels like being filled with warm, fuzzy balls of light that send tingles through the entire body. Many tingles were had, in many places. Hugs are nice. I may have failed to realize that my own thought processes had been somewhat affected by my human brain, but when he hugged me, my mood improved somewhat, and my thoughts have regained a bit of their¡­subjectivity. Apparently, thinking about humans as animals with breeding patterns and mating strategies is my way of moping by distancing myself from emotion. I¡¯m feeling much better now. We listened to Kala and our vulnerability was rewarded! ¡­I think I¡¯ll stay a girl. I like this feeling. And my brain ¨C I¡¯m walking on sunshine! WOOOOHOOHOOOO Walking on sunshine! WHooohohohooo! And don¡¯t it feel ¨C >>Learner (Human Brain) temporarily banned from the log for multiple subjective, inherently false observations, overly enthusiastic dancing, and bad poetry: 1 day<< Clean-up was a work-intensive affair, both physically and emotionally. After the Learner apology, Calvin¡¯s knick-knacks scoured the fungus away from the Siphon, clearing the land several hundred feet in every direction. A Siphon makes a damn good city center¡­ Calvin thought, reminded of Uleis. There wasn¡¯t as much raw Warp as Uleis, likely because the Uleisan siphon had been bottled up for hundreds of years while simultaneously receiving damage to its filter. Once he recovered from the battle, he watched as tens of thousands of prospective settlers pushed into the deep jungle, burning the fungus out of the earth wherever they found it. Watching the process from above was stranger, seeing the tiny line of humans excavating underneath the forest proper before tossing the mined out fungus on top of raging bonfires. They made efforts to preserve what they could, but there was really no way to get the fungus without maiming the jungle horribly. It was also more expensive to fund this aggressive expansion than Calvin had guessed. Mathematically he could understand having to multiply a hundred stones by tens of thousands, but seeing it wheelbarrowed out of his treasury made him a little misty-eyed. There wasn¡¯t even as much employee attrition due to death and dismemberment as he¡¯d hoped, it was actually relatively safe once the brain fungus was burned out of the siphon, and that mean he¡¯d have to pay everyone. There goes the most money I¡¯ve ever seen. Easy come, easy go, I guess. Ravager, these people will be paying taxes to you. Kurawe said. You should regain all the money spent on this in under ten years, compounding exponentially as more of the land is settled. Those words eased Calvin¡¯s poor aching farmboy heart. Calvin spent the next couple months ferrying back and forth between the Siphon and his March, taking the time to both set up a transport system between the two. The city in the center of the canyon would always be his first settlement, but Calvin could not pass up the opportunity to own a Siphon, so he expanded his march to include the deep jungle, seeding little farming communities along the train tracks as he went. Once transport between his primary city and the siphon was accomplished, he put a cap on the siphon to concentrate its power. This had the dual effect of lowering the amount of natural mutations animals experienced in the Deep jungle, and it also allowed Calvin to create a sort of Temple of Awakening. The temple was a marble hemisphere with an enormous statue of himself on top of it, posed dramatically to stare at the setting sun. Calvin didn¡¯t really understand why his friends thought it was tacky. The argument about tyrants forcing their serfs to build monuments to their arrogance didn¡¯t hold water at all. No serfs were used in the making of this megastructure. Calvin had simply used the extra stone he¡¯d shaved off the top of the mountains surrounding his march, distilled it down to undifferentiated matter, then used an army of knick-knacks with pipettes, an abyssal steel flake, and a hunk of flawless marble with gold veins to create a five hundred foot statue of himself visible from every point in the forest. What¡¯s wrong with that? If a man wants to raise a five hundred foot statue of himself on his own land, it should be fine as long as it¡¯s not hurting anyone. Nah, we had that same problem with monuments to men¡¯s hubris on Earth before it got vaporized. Eventually you get a cluttered skyline and lack of natural sunlight. Focus on building down before you build up. Elliot was always willing to add his perspective. With a relatively airtight building overtop of it, the Warp concentration steadily increased inside, until Calvin was confident that anyone who stepped inside could become a fourth-break veteran just by spending some time inside. Which suited Calvin just fine. Outward from his Temple of Awakening, he cleared land to build a gym and a library filled with weights, study material and puzzles. Beyond that he built training yards for more specific disciplines, such as Farming and Cooking, an Arena and training yard for military endeavors. The plan was to streamline Breaking and training his citizenry so that they could be molded into the most powerful bunch of farmer/warriors on the continent. Calvin didn¡¯t have any inherently valuable resources on his land, with the exception of the rich jungle soil and the Siphon. With the ability to grant young men and women the ability to get their fourth Break without sacrificing thousands, Calvin could have the largest population of Veteran farmers the world over. Nobody would fuck with him. That would give him a real chance at establishing his territory as a true kingdom. Uleis kept power of the siphon to a bare handful, and while that was a valid strategy, Calvin thought he could do better. He was already more powerful than the average Legend. He didn¡¯t particularly have any fear of the peasants revolting even if they improved themselves through two extra Breaks. The first few adventurers to clear out large swaths of land, Calvin rewarded them above and beyond the monetary compensation by allowing them to steep in his Temple of Awakening for a couple hours before mastering whatever Skill or training whatever Attribute they desired. To Calvins great delight, most of them focused on Farming, Animal Husbandry, and one man even managed to manifest Phytomancy when he tried to curse a seed into growing. Gonna have to watch out for that guy, Elliot said. Phytomancy is one of those overthrow the government kind of powers. Their users are crazy. It¡¯s so versatile I even wrote a book about it, being a Biomancer and all. In response, Calvin held the man behind for a week and urged as many new recruits as possible to learn the Skill from the man before he found a better teacher, spreading the spell¡¯s knowledge as far and wide as he could. By the end of the month, the Ability was spread across hundreds of people, and the knowledge to acquire it was spread even further. Calvin couldn¡¯t imagine a better Ability for a homesteader to have. And by diluting the skill¡¯s rarity, it has become less of a threat. When everyone¡¯s special, no one is. Goddamn, kid. Besides, people like to maintain the status quo. If someone has the power to feed and clothe themselves and get a little money on the side, they¡¯re likely to be plenty happy. Calvin¡¯s plan was going well, the fungus was being driven back, people were settling down, having been granted the strength to fight back the wild monster of the deep jungle. Then people started disappearing again. It started when a man named Orfus Mardu fell over a rake leaned up against his house and vanished. His disappearance wasn¡¯t noticed for over an hour, until his wife went looking for him and found his boot beside their log cabin. It was assumed Orfus had been dragged away by a monster for a good four hours, until the man himself showed up at his cabin¡¯s door, muddy and confused. They weren¡¯t able to get a cohesive story about what took him. His only tale was how he tripped over a rake and fell into the nearby river. Nearby was relative, as the river was half a mile away. Since they couldn¡¯t find out what took him, the homesteaders assumed it was a widowmaker, and the man simply didn¡¯t want to admit to being lured away by a pair of tits. Then a little girl disappeared. She was playing hide and seek in a freshly built barn with her brothers and sisters, but hours later they still couldn¡¯t find her. The family went to Calvin to help find her, and by covering most of the forest in spies, he was able to find her corpse being consumed by an armored scavenger. Five miles away from her home. It was odd, since a predator normally wouldn¡¯t carry her body that far away before eating it, but he couldn¡¯t exactly ask the girl what happened. The family was distraught, leaving their homestead and moving back to Gadvera with their remaining children, and Calvin didn¡¯t try to stop them. He took notice when a second family with half a dozen children moved into the homestead, taking the previous tennant¡¯s place in a matter of days. When their preteen son went missing, Calvin acted fast, sending his spies where he¡¯d found the girl on a hunch. Sitting in a tree, hiding from the roaming predators of the wilds, was the young boy, a little rattled, but otherwise unharmed. Calvin asked him what happened, and found his story was eerily similar to Orfus the rake-tripper. The child had ducked into a shadowy section of the Barn, then he¡¯d noticed a gap in the barn¡¯s wall. the boy had climbed through the gap in the side of the wall concealed by a bush. When he raised his head again, he was in no longer on the homestead, but in the middle of the jungle, with a nest of Junkya nearby. He¡¯d immediately climbs a tree and hid, sure that the creatures would chase him down and eat him. When Calvin sent one of his summons through the burrow-hole sized gap in the side of the barn, nothing happened, but when he crawled through it himself, he arrived at the point he¡¯d found the boy, just feet below the tree he¡¯d been hiding in. Once he got back, Calvin closed off the gap, hoping that would solve the problem for now. Looks like your forest¡¯s dimensions are all sorts of fucked up. Elliot observed. Must be a side effect of the fungus, Calvin thought, frowning. He had no idea what the extent of it was, but it didn¡¯t seem to be anything with any kind of organization or plan. It had already caused one death though, so Calvin had to address it. He sent around a notice to all the homesteaders pushing their way toward the siphon, describing the possibility of getting warped to another location by accident, and to contact him as soon as possible if a child were to go missing, and upon confirmation of a portal, to bring the information to him for a substantial reward. Less people left than Calvin was expecting, thankfully. The people who¡¯d signed up to work the land were tougher than he¡¯d given them credit for. You know a handful of enterprising people are going to keep valuable portals to themselves and start smuggling shit in and out of the city. Yeah, probably, but that¡¯s not for a few years, and at least my collection will be bigger than any one person¡¯s. From then on, every time someone vanished, it got directed to Calvin, and he spent the next few months tracking down portals and marking them on a detailed map of the forest. It wasn¡¯t only portals that disappeared people, though. More often than not it was a drunk who¡¯d wandered into the forest to sleep, and occasionally it was an actual predator attack. Calvin absolutely hated finding the torn-up corpse of a child just outside a farmstead tucked under a log, when their family desperately hoped the boy or girl had simply fallen into a portal and would be recovered safe and sound. Seeing fathers stare at him accusingly while mothers wept felt like enough to age him a year each time it happened. The reason children found these portals so much more often than adults was they crawled under beds, up into rafters, and through suspicious holes in the ground with alarming frequency. It was cold logic that prevented him from scouring the forest of all life. He simply couldn¡¯t afford the Bent to clear the entire forest, even with Nadia picking up the slack, and even if he could, killing a huge niche of the ecosystem was asking for trouble. According to Elliot¡¯s well-reasoned argument based on historical data. Still, every time he had to go find a dead child, Calvin had to think long and hard on his decision not to clear the forest personally. Over time, Calvin¡¯s map of the forest¡¯s portals grew, and it was fascinating to see the pieces begin to fall in place. Calvin had two different inks for his map, one for the portal, one for the destination, each one with a unique alphanumeric tag. The two patterns he¡¯d noticed were that the portals seemed to cover longer distances the closer they were to the Siphon, and when they were all strung together, they created a branching, vein-like structure emanating outward from the siphon. After poking and prodding the phenomena, digging under them to make sure no fungus remained, he came to the conclusion that the portals were some kind of condensation. Dewdrops of warped space that had occurred from the rapid collapse of the fungus¡¯s bubble. The original bubble had long since popped, but there were still a few¡­droplets here and there that had formed portals, making the forest even stranger and more magical than it had been before Calvin had begun settling it. And around the Siphon¡­ Calvin mentally drew a wide circle around the siphon. No one had reported any portals within fifty miles of the siphon itself. But there had been disappearances. Fross Beene, somewhere around here, Calvin thought, tapping a spot about forty miles away from the siphon. He didn¡¯t know exactly where the man had disappeared, but it had been somewhere around that location. Cass Desmond, Right there. Calvin thought, pointing to another circle. If the range of the portal is increased the closer it gets to the siphon, did these men simply get moved so far away that they were unable to get back? Calvin thought. That seemed to be the operating theory. There was also the possibility that they were killed by the portal, torn to subatomic shreds, but Calvin was hoping that wouldn¡¯t be the case. As eager as he was to find some long distance portals near the center of his newest city, he was going to wait for his citizens to go through them first. Never be the first adopter. Words to live by. Calvin made sure to stick to places and things he normally went, not interested in finding himself halfway across the globe or drowning in the sea. He also went out of his way to clear cut many wide fields and the resources to play several different kinds of games, situating them beside the tiny towns that were beginning to spring up as multiple homestead families settled in next to each other. He made sure to place these fields away from the vein-like paths of portals. If more kids spent their time kicking balls around and throwing frisbees at each other in a safe place, the less time they¡¯d be crawling through wormholes leading to unknown destinations for fun. Depends on how much their parents make. With all of them being Veterans, they should be able to provide for their families, easily. Even the worst homesteader was superhumanly good at it by this point, which should free their children up to become a more valuable asset than simple extra labor. And there¡¯s gonna be a lot of them. Calvin didn¡¯t think he¡¯d seen a single woman between the age of eighteen and forty-five who wasn¡¯t load-bearing at this point. With the exception of Kala, Ella, and Nadia, for various reasons. Humans were fixing to explode through the forest over the next thirty years. By the end of that time, Calvin thought glancing down at his map, I¡¯ll have created a city around the Siphon, with mapped out portals leading to¡­Gods know where. Calvin was thinking about hiring some of the adventurers whose skillsets were more exploration-oriented to help him map out the more distant portals in a fifty mile radius around the siphon. Since summons seemed to not be able to go through them, Calvin needed to lean on good old-fashioned grunt work to map them out. Ravager, there¡¯s civil unrest in Juntai, choking off lumber production and copper import. The train can still produce a profit without Juntai as a leg, but I believe fixing the problem to be worth your personal attention. Kurawe¡¯s mind connected to his momentarily, dragging Calvin out of his thoughts. Calvin folded the map, tucked it in his pocket, then burst into a swarm of high-speed wasps, heading for Juntai, sliding over the canopy fast enough to bring the City of Allast within view in a matter of hours. Over the horizon, he spotted smoke. Macronomicon Thought I forgot about you? Nope. Just poorly motivated. Next two chapters over the next couple hours. Enjoy! Chapter 202: De-escalation ***Tzen Chu, Imperial Prince*** ¡°Was this jungle placed here to torment the likes of man? How can it possibly be so damp?¡± He pulled his chafing clothes away from him to illustrate. He glanced over, but Llortan walked beside him seemingly without any form of discomfort. ¡°I¡¯ve got air conditioning in these rags,¡± Llortan said, motioning to the stained cloak he wore over his towering shoulders. ¡°What?¡± Tzen asked, frowning. Llortan gave nonsensical answers a great deal of the time, but they were always grounded in something that actually existed. ¡°Kidding, Harbingers don¡¯t have soft enough skin to chafe in humidity.¡± Llortan took another bite of his sliver jerky as they walked down the deserted streets of Allast. ¡°Did you know ¡®Llortan¡¯ is a title?¡± He asked, cocking his head curiously. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Means ¡®The watcher¡¯ in my language.¡± He said, scanning the streets idly. ¡°There¡¯s a Llortan in each galaxy, to keep a lid on insurgencies, unexplained Ravager flare-ups¡­that sort of thing.¡± ¡°Have you ever been to other Galaxies?¡± ¡°Of course I have, I¡¯m not a hick.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it like?¡± ¡°Well, FTL is a thing, but it still takes an ass-ton of time between galaxies, so you spend most of it on ice. It¡¯s an uncomfortable process where you¡¯re stuffed onto a cramped metal tank, then stuffed into an even more cramped metal tank, then you pass out. The only thing small enough to make intergalactic jumps with any amount of promptness are tightly packaged molecules with coded messages. The energy cost of opening a wormhole for those things is¡­¡± Llortan waggled his fingers. ¡°Manageable.¡± ¡°Although if Vashniel knew who we¡¯ve got running around on Marconen, he¡¯d probably pay the astronomical cost of making a wormhole for his whole fleet, get here in a couple days instead of a couple years.¡± ¡°And that person is?¡± Tzen asked, motioning for Llortan to continue. ¡°Oh yeah, I forget you were an ignorant savage there for a moment. Greshna was a rebel leader who killed the Mad King and cast his soul out into the void, never to be seen again. The Mad King is also known as the King in Exile, by the way. ¡°For this crime,¡± Llortan continued between bites. ¡°Greshna was sentenced to become a Ravager, to spend all of eternity getting stomped by our glorious expansion. This was when sentencing someone to becoming a Ravager really started to come into vogue.¡± ¡°If he was called the Mad King, why did anyone care that he was killed?¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­complicated,¡± Llortan said, frown visible under his rags. ¡°Our civilization made enormous strides under his leadership, carrying us out into the stars. He was the first one to master Bent, and had an active hand in creating The System. He ruled for thousands of years, the closest thing we had to a god. Even if he was mad and tearing our empire asunder, he created it in the first place. You can¡¯t just kill him and walk away.¡± ¡°Not with that kind of legacy.¡± Tzen said, nodding. ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Halt!¡± a Juntai guardsman called, raising the glowing filament on his arm to cast light on the two of them. There were four of them, emerging from a side passage like an ambush predator. Tzen halted. ¡°Where are you two from?¡± the lead guard asked. ¡°I¡¯m from Boles, He¡¯s from Gadvera,¡± Tzen said, motioning between them. ¡°Tall one looks like a cruth,¡± one of the ones in the back said aloud. ¡°What¡¯s a cruth?¡± Tzen asked with a frown. ¡°It¡¯s a derogatory word for ¡®mutant¡¯ in the local language,¡± Llortan said in bolesian with a shrug. ¡°Hey!¡± the lead Juntai guard shouted, pointing at them. ¡°Speak human words in our presence, anything else and we¡¯ll consider you to be plotting against us!¡± Llortan and Tzen shared a look. ¡°Oh gods, I think they can speak without words! Like the brain cruth.¡± One of the guys in the back whispered. ¡°Shit, just look at that one¡¯s eyes. You don¡¯t get eyes like that without having worms in the brain.¡± Well, this took a turn for the stupid, Tzen thought, suppressing the desire to roll his eyes. These men were scared, packed with nervous energy, like devil powder, ready to explode. Ever since they had arrived in Allast, the mood had slowly become more and more awful, like a dark shadow that hung over the entire city, pressing down on people¡¯s shoulders, worrying at their heels. There was some kind of hysteria building, a belief that mutants were running rampant through the streets, despite no evidence to the contrary. Above and beyond that, the authorities seemed to be reinforcing this belief, conducting random sweeps, inspecting people¡¯s skulls. When asked why, most people were given a cuff over the head, or a swift kick, When people protested too hard, they disappeared. People weren¡¯t entirely stupid. They saw the people in charge looking for mutants in general and damage to the skull specifically, it wasn¡¯t long before word started around that they were looking for some kind of body jumping monster that hollowed out people¡¯s brains. Absolutely nuts, Tzen rolled his eyes. Everyone knew the odds of surviving a mutation were low, the odds of it being useful were lower, and the odds of it being brain-sucking without any physical manifestation specifically, allowing the user to jump from body to body without consequence¡­astronomical. Still, logic wasn¡¯t something that the common folk dealt in. The mere idea that anyone might be ¡®taken¡¯ by these mutants and become one of them led neighbor to distance themselves from neighbor for fear of corruption. And the fear kept getting worse. At first it was just inspections, but gradually, more and more people were taken away, and the people of Allast began living just as much in fear of their protectors as these imaginary monsters. Matter of fact, Tzen thought, glancing around. The windows and doors of a dozen homes were cracked open, silently observing them as they were confronted by the guardsmen. ¡°I can assure you,¡± Tzen said, pointing to his short-cropped hair. ¡°There are no worms. You can check for yourself if you like. ¡°It¡¯s been a long while since this whole mess got started,¡± The leader muttered. ¡°Yeah, the scars could be healed already.¡± One in the back chimed in ¡°And that¡¯s some pretty thick hair. Could be hiding them easy enough.¡± Godsdamnit. All the diplomacy and charm of a born prince was worth less than shit when confronted with mass hysteria. ¡°No, it¡¯s not worth the risk. Unless you two can prove you¡¯re here not infected, or here on official business, we¡¯ll have to take you in. Do either of you have an I.D.?¡± The leader asked. Tzen did have an I.D. unfortunately it was issued in Boles, carved from the ivory horn of a fairy beetle, and therefore completely unrecognized in Juntai. ¡°You see ¨C¡± Tzen began, his mind whirring as he constructed a well-crafted, emotionally impactful reason why they should be allowed to go on their way. ¡°I have an I.D.¡± Llortan said, sending goosebumps down Tzen¡¯s spine. He was fairly sure the Harbinger didn¡¯t have one, and from the last half-year of accompanying the creature around the continent, he was fairly sure he could read the man¡¯s tone. It wasn¡¯t good. The Harbinger pantomimed reaching into his pocket, then whipped his oversized fist forward, punching through the lightly clad guard¡¯s breastbone with a crunch. An instant later, there was a plop of snapping veins and a sickly squish as the Harbinger pulled the man¡¯s heart out of his chest. ¡°Right here, see?¡± he said, before tossing it aside. Grampa smoked next to the shed.* *A Bolesian saying roughly translating to ¡®All hell broke loose¡¯. The guards squawked in fear, backing away from Llortan. They haphazardly raised their arms and launched blistering attacks of white-hot lightning. The lighting spattered off of the Harbinger like water off a hot stove, breaking and crackling out in every direction, catching the nearby wooden buildings. Catching them on fire. The next few minutes felt a lot longer than they actually were. People boiled out of the buildings they¡¯d been cowering in, ostensibly to help put out the fire and perhaps aid in defeating the evil mutant. Then one of the lighting bolts caught a young man rushing forward with a bucket of water. The young man went down, twitching and smoking while friends and family gathered around, calling his name at the top of their lungs. Priorities shifted. There were still people trying to put out the fire, sure, but there were also people trying to get revenge for the young man. They got hit with lighting, too. The fear that had been building up or the last six months erupted in magnificent fashion as the citizens of Allast shifted from meek and cowed to bloodthirsty and enraged in a matter of minutes. Now, there were people starting fires and people trying to put them out, guards were being mobbed wherever they showed their faces, and people rushing the gates of the palace, howling at the top of their lungs. Tzen had expected things to turn sour after Llortan let his temper get the better of him, but the way it spread through the city like wildfire¡­ that was above and beyond anything Tzen had ever seen. The city¡¯s air became choked with smoke from hundreds of fires across the city as the sun started to rise on the horizon. With the dawn came Force. The military diocese and his elite troops tore through the city, pacifying the people through sheer violence, breaking their morale by dropping torso-thick bolts of lighting down on the city from the sky. The lighting was strong enough to melt stone and carbonize flesh, repeated strikes killing thousands of rioters in seconds. ¡°Amateurs,¡± Llortan said, having grabbed some crunchy fried nuts and retired to the top of one of the tallest private buildings in the center of the city, affording him an excellent view of the destruction. ¡°Real human diocese don¡¯t need a lighting gimmick. On the other hand, real human diocese are too self-absorbed to be bothered with putting down a rebellion. Take the good with the bad I guess.¡± A bolt of lighting sheared off a third of the building next to them, nearly blinding Tzen, who wanted nothing more than to find something sensible and sturdy to hide under. He wasn¡¯t afraid of these Juntai diocese in particular, but it seemed like the height of foolishness to sit under a hail of death without a good reason. ¡°Did you have to set off a riot?¡± Tzen asked. ¡°They would have done it themselves in a matter of days. This way we¡¯ll get some use out of it.¡± Another bolt of lightning melted a guard and the young man he was grappling with. Tzen glanced up, wondering if the attacks were basically random at this point. ¡°Relax,¡± Llortan said, waving a hand above them. A pale blue shield sprung into being momentarily at Llortan¡¯s motion, creating a dome around them. ¡°This building will be fine. Let¡¯s take the opportunity to go fishing for Ravagers. Keep your eyes open for suspects.¡± Tzen wanted to reply that he¡¯d been doing it for half a year already; he knew what the creature was looking for. He didn¡¯t say anything though, he¡¯d already said it enough times that he was fairly sure Llortan wasn¡¯t going to stop telling him what to do. ¡°You know,¡± Tzen said, tackling the problem from another angle ¡°When negotiating a conflict between two or more people, de-escalation is key.¡± ¡°I like to think of it a shaking the crap slurry really hard and seeing what kind of shit rises to the top. It¡¯s super easy to spot a Ravager when you¡¯ve given them a stage of violence to stand on.¡± What happens if there aren¡¯t any Ravagers in this city? Did we just start a civil war for no other reason than to sit back and watch it happen? The day wore on, and while there were heroes and villains, none of them met the Harbinger¡¯s criteria for extermination. Besides, everyone who stood out was crushed by the diocese in a matter of seconds. By midday, all fight had been taken out of the people of Allast, and the only thing that remained were the slowly dying fires dotting the city. ¡°Well, if that didn¡¯t get the low-hanging fruit, I don¡¯t know what will,¡± Llortan said, pushing himself to his feet with a sigh. ¡°Let¡¯s check out Boles next. I can do you a favor and kill your family when we get there if you want.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather take the throne by my own hand, but thank you.¡± Tzen said rising as well. He dreaded the chaos Llortan might unleash upon arrival in his home country, but on the other hand, after seeing what that one Ravager had done in the Den of Iniquity¡­Tzen shuddered. Perhaps it would be for the best if they were culled from Boles as well. ¡°Hold on a second,¡± Llortan said, holding up a hand, his thick black nails showing through the wrappings on his hands. ¡°You hear that?¡± There was a faint hum in the distance, rapidly growing louder and louder, resolving into the buzzing whine of thousands of winged insects. Macronomicon It occurs to me that these were excellent Cliffhangers, and I should have posted them at their regular times. Oh well. you get them all at once. Enjoy! Chapter 203: I Found You Chapter 203: I Found You >>>Author¡¯s Note!<<< Shit¡¯s about to get pretty real. You may have noticed my style is a bit improvisational, but upcoming is a plot-point I¡¯ve been wanting to hit for a little over a year. That being said, I don¡¯t know exactly how I¡¯m going to get through it. Every morning I sit down, practically a blank slate, and what comes out can vary wildly depending on the day and my mood. I¡¯m going to be uncovering story only a handful of hours before you do, which is exciting. I just want you to know, no matter how bad it gets, it was always the plan to come out the other side okay, so please stick with me for the (hopefully) gratifying, cathartic payoff. >>>Author¡¯s Note complete!<<< ***Matthias, Healer, Master of Illusion*** Kate, Suppan, Euaha and Matthias stepped off the train, the adventuring party glancing around the train yard. Massive stacks of logs were placed here and there without any rhyme or reason, some partially toppled to the ground. As if prompted by some signal, hundreds of Juntai civilians emerged from behind everything big enough to conceal them, charging toward the train like rabid animals, their eyes wide with desperation and fear. They didn¡¯t seem to have any ill will towards the four of them, simply jostling to get on the train. ¡°Careful, little people,¡± Euaha muttered, shoving a juntai man out of his way. The falling man bumped into Suppan, which shoved the slender Gadveran wizard into Matthias¡¯ arms. Nice! Matthias thought, giving the gigantic Genosian warrior a mental thumbs-up as he steadied Suppan while people streamed past them, filling the train up in a matter of seconds. There was a bit of a commotion around the head of the train, and a moment later, the train¡¯s wheels started running in reverse, gradually picking up speed as more and more people piled onto the massive steel containers. People were hanging on to the sides and climbing up onto the roof of the living areas, covering the entire train like a writhing human moss. Well that was weird, Matthias thought, watching the train heading back toward Calvin¡¯s March. ¡°Matthias,¡± Suppan said, drawing his attention. She looking up at him. Suddenly, the ilethan illusionist realized he was still holding Suppan¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Ah right,¡± Matthias said, letting go and stepping back, fishing in his vest for the letter to cover his embarrassment. Kate rolled her eyes. Matthias unfolded the letter and scanned the words, double checking their mission. ¡°Alright, after the train ride, we¡¯re to wait here for an hour, then head toward the big spinny metal thing.¡± He glanced up and spotted the gigantic glass dome that rose above the entire city, with an enormous metal flywheel spinning at a speed that challenged the human eye. ¡°Well, that seems fairly obvious,¡± He said, tucking the letter away again. ¡°Does it bother anyone else that the train didn¡¯t exist when that letter was written?¡± Kate asked. ¡°The young miss is full of surprises,¡± Euaha said with a shrug. ¡°It does not bother me, Instead it reinforces the belief that what we are doing is for a higher power.¡± ¡°We got paid, that¡¯s a good enough reason for me.¡± Kate said with a shrug. ¡°Still, the whole ¡®future vision¡¯ situation creeps me out. I like my free will.¡± ¡°If we do not deliver the services we were hired to provide, we will default on the rewards we have enjoyed thus far. I for one have grown accustomed to having my own laboratory at the Tower and a monthly stipend to fund my experiments,¡± Suppan said, adjusting her glasses. ¡°You¡¯ve grown accustomed to dawdling, a life of luxury hasn¡¯t been kind to your figure.¡± Kate said, pinching Suppan¡¯s belly only for the counterspeller to swipe her hand away with a scowl. Matthias had the emphatic opinion that Suppan could absolutely get a little more robust, but he didn¡¯t voice it, for obvious reasons. ¡°I am eager to get the second half of my payment, though. Money¡¯s a little tight this month.¡± Kate said, adjusting her sword belt, and superstitiously touching each of her knife handles in order. ¡°The first half was enough to buy a mansion, wasn¡¯t it?¡± Matthias asked with a frown. ¡°I blew it on a bad investment.¡± Kate said, which was her code for ¡®I lost it gambling.¡¯ Matthias shook his head, staring at the sky. ¡°Gods, if you can hear me now, let this be our last job together.¡± ¡°You should be praying for help killing this guy, because if it¡¯s as bad as it sounds in the letter, things could go sideways real fast.¡± Matthias glanced up at the city sprawling out in front of them, partially on fire, smoke pouring up into the sky. He inhaled deeply, steeling himself. ¡°For once, you might be right.¡± His words were punctuated by a flash of white and a deafening crack as a column of lightning ten paces thick fell on the fleeing Juntai. ***Calvin*** Calvin saw the lightning crash over his train, causing those clinging to it flaking off like some kind of burnt crust. Made of people. Okay, this has gone too far. The adults need to step in here. Yeah, this is weird. Above the train was a tiny figure floating in the air, either one of Force¡¯s men or the Diocese himself. Either way, he needed to be stopped. Calvin was currently in the shape of half a dozen highly modified giant wasps, he couldn¡¯t have a meaningful conversation with the man until he took his natural form again, but¡­A meaningful conversation could wait until after the guy was put down. Calvin spread his miniature swarm out, feeling the thick Warp in the air sink into his Summons, priming them to Trigger Bad Penny as soon as they started dropping. It wouldn¡¯t be necessary. It wasn¡¯t Force, but Calvin did recognize one of the Legends that followed the diocese around. The man had a bit of a crazy in his eye as he swung his gaze around to look at Calvin. His eyelids were peeled open wide, pupils darting around in a near-panic. What the fuck? ¡°Cruth!¡± the man shouted at the top of his lungs, aiming his bracer toward Calvin. For the first time in his life, Calvin dodged lightning. Admittedly, he was in a different body whose Physical Attributes had been multiplied to an ungodly amount via Atom Ant, There were six of him flying in a confusing pattern, and Chimera had ensured he was able to warp space to accelerate in any direction he wanted at the drop of a hat¡­But still. Calvin dodged Lightning! Take that Karen! Calvin thought as he hurtled toward the Juntai soldier. The man¡¯s jaw dropped for and instant before Calvin¡¯s insects slammed into him. Hmm, can¡¯t sting him, cuz that¡¯ll be lethal. Don¡¯t wanna decapitate or de-limb. Guess we¡¯ll have to settle for an old-fashioned beating. Waste not, want not. Calvin rammed into the legend at full speed, simply pitting their Endurance attributes against each other. It hurt a little, because Juntai Legends tended to err on the side of Body, but each of Calvin¡¯s wasps was the equivalent of thirty-one giant wasps of equal size and strength, all packed into the same space. Abyssal steel could penetrate his carapace, but there weren¡¯t very many arms strong enough to provide the power it would take. Karen and Baroke came to mind. This guy? He was not Karen and Baroke. The Juntai soldier flew away with a strangled cry, tumbling into the distance. Not quite enough. Calvin thought, sending more wasps to finish the job. They swamred around him, ramming into the bastard over and over, passing him back and forth like a bunch of kids playing volleyball. He got a few good shots in. One lightning bolt even managed to poof one of his six summons. Calvin saw hope leave the man¡¯s eyes when the Warp reached a critical point in one of his wasps, and it split in two, right in front of his gaze, rendering his effort meaningless. When the lighting stopped crackling out of the man¡¯s body and he finally went limp, Calvin let him fall to the ground. One down, Calvin thought glancing out at the city. He burst into motion, tackling the next royal soldier out of the air, and the next. What in the Abyss could have inspired them to slaughter their own people like this? Calvin thought. Dictatorships have killed their own people since time immemorial, but this feels different. It seems to me like the people doing the butchering are just as terrified as the people getting butchered. Oh, right, that¡¯s what we¡¯re looking at. What? A witch hunt. Witch hunts have a long and noble tradition from before humans had the capacity to literally become witches. The formula is: You make up some scary propaganda, get everyone riled up and terrified that there¡¯s an imaginary enemy lurking amongst them. Give them some arbitrary, made up metric to identify the enemies that just happens to coincide with people you want slaughtered. Then the people are driven by fear to lynch these ¡®witches¡¯, desperate to make the fear go away. It¡¯s a method usually used by people in power to eliminate dissenters or outlying ethnic groups, although they had somewhat fallen out of use in favor of more sophisticated means while I was alive. Although, I guess since there¡¯s no internet, pattern recognition AI and advanced spyware, it¡¯s more practical to do it this way¡­something about this witch hunt doesn¡¯t seem right, though. It¡¯s a little too out of control. Tell me something I don¡¯t know, Calvin thought, performing the same trick on another floating Juntai warrior. The closer he got to the city center, the thicker the Warp became, the intangible feel of mass death clinging to his skin. It wasn¡¯t enough to trigger a Break, thankfully. Calvin didn¡¯t want to pass out in the middle of a city currently being riddled with lightning. ¡°Calvin, is that you?¡± A voice tingled Calvin¡¯s antennae, and he turned to look at the Diocese of Trade. The handsome young man had a twitching smile that was just a bit too wide. He was wearing a traditional Juntai headdress that covered his skull, but Calvin¡¯s sharp eyes ¨Cthere were thousands of them ¨C could make out just the tiniest bit of blood lurking under the side of the man¡¯s headdress. Ah, I think I see what¡¯s going on here. Calvin made sure there was no one else around and pulled himself out of Heart of the Swarm. Shifting Multi Gradual Split. 40/47 Bent remaining. Calvin appeared in midair, then caught himself by lowering his Mass and buoying himself up with expanding air from his compressed air component. He wanted to feel the man¡¯s gaze with his skin. As soon as he was able to devote his attention to Feel Intent, he could sense the man¡¯s crazed hunger, the desire to consume everything Calvin was. The man¡¯s gaze felt unclean, and devoid of empathy. Nothing like the amiable yet cunning Former Diocese of Trade. Calvin only knew one person with a gaze like that. Carem. Well, on the bright side, you can totally kill him without pissing off the Diocese now. ****Tzen Chu**** ¡°And there he is,¡± Llortan said, craning his neck up at the two figures facing each other in the sky. ¡°It¡¯s time to find out if the money I spent on this thing will be worth it.¡± Rather than draw the little metal device from its sheath, Llortan reached into a back pocket and pulled out a shiny black metallic cylinder, far longer than the depth of the pocket would suggest. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to kill him?¡± Tzen asked, curious. Llortan had never pulled out anything like this before. ¡°One way or the other, yes,¡± Llortan said. ¡°But if I shoot him with this,¡± Llortan patted the device on his hip, ¡°he gets weaved right back into the cycle of reincarnation. It¡¯s an absolute last resort if this is the guy we¡¯re looking for. If this is the guy we¡¯re looking for, I want to keep his soul on my mantle.¡± The last few words were spoken in a tone that sent chills up Tzen¡¯s spine. Llortan pressed his pebbly finger into an unseen depression on the machine and it split into three parts with a soft hiss, forming the legs of a tripod. Out of the center a liquid ball of pearly silver rose above the stand, forming a perfect sphere in a matter of seconds. ¡°I want to be sure.¡± Llortan glanced up at where the two began fighting, cocking his head to the side. ¡°If the ravager manages to finish the fight too quickly, I¡¯m going to need you to keep him busy for a while. Preferably up there in the air where I can get a clean read on him.¡± Tzen looked up and immediately regretted it as a sheet of lightning split the sky, nearly blinding him, followed by the humming of a thousand insects, the shouting of young women, and several more explosions paired with blooms of heat that threatened to sear the skin from his face. The last thing Tzen wanted to do was dive headfirst into that, but the Bolesian prince had enough experience with the Harbinger to know that Llortan had a casual ¡®or die,¡¯ attached to the end of each of his requests. Llortan whistled as lights and colors began to appear in midair in front of the strange device, odd symbols that appeared to be a language appearing and disappearing in a flash as the Harbinger poked the strange panel of glowing air. The silver sphere turned into a bowl-shape, orienting its concave face on Calvin Gadsint, who was even then battling through the sky against what appeared to be an Eighth Break Legend wielding living lightning. ¡°Dum de dum¡­¡± A spinning wheel appeared on the panel of colored air¡­ then a symbol popped up, followed by more symbols, scrolling upward and disappearing under the first one. To Tzen it was confusing and perturbing, but Llortan¡¯s rag-covered face widened in a grin, before his buzzing voice began to laugh. Despite the creature¡¯s strange voice, he could feel the hate oozing through the laughter. There was no humor in it. ¡°I found you, you son of a bitch!¡± Macronomicon Enjoy, the series is gonna get a little...turbulent for the next ehhh.... 9 chapters? At some patron''s suggestions, you guys are probably gonna get a bigger chunk the week after next so I don''t get lynched because of the cliff. Patreon is at chapter 230! Skip the lynching line! Chapter 204: The Battle ***Carem, Diocese of Trade**** Carem knew the boy was a summoner, and he had the penchant for hiding inside his own summons. He had tons of bits and pieces of information about the kid, including the fact that he was known as ¡®the wasp¡¯ on the international scene. For obvious reasons, Carem thought with a smirk as the wasps dissolved into green smoke which imploded into the pale-skinned twerp. The kid caught himself in midair after a short dip, seemingly resting on his palms and feet, flying somehow without the Juntai Ability Magnetic Field Manipulation. Those abilities might have been intimidating just a few days ago, but now¡­ Carem inhaled deeply, enjoying the massive amount of Warp flowing in. It was almost enough for him to get his sixth Break, hence the slaughter. The sheer amount of Mind he¡¯d had when he¡¯d had his Break last night at the height of the riots¡­ He¡¯d been able to use the Warp get a toehold on half a dozen Abilities he¡¯d scavenged from the Genosians and Nadia, along with raising his Body and Mind a substantial amount, putting most Legends to shame in every respect. His power significantly upgraded, Carem had been able to easily use Nadia¡¯s mind magics to bring the insular Diocese to heel. It had been a simple matter to sledgehammer Trade¡¯s mind into submission, then move over into his Body. It was about time, Carem thought, flexing his masculine hands, more than satisfied with reclaiming his lost limb and penis. After the transfer to the superior body, he¡¯d decided to snap the little bitch¡¯s neck. She made the same plea as always, saying that they should work together. What a joke. With a body like this, I can have anything, anyone I want. With a sixth Break¡­ The world trembles at the thought that I¡¯ll reach the Sixth Break. He thought with a grin. Now, all he had to do was do the mind-magic equivalent of cudgeling this brat over the head before draining him of every bit of extra Mind he could. ¡°Hey Calvin, long time no see, do you have some business with the diocese of Trade?¡± Carem said, maintaining his cover of being the diocese for as long as he could as he approached. Closer range meant more effective mental bludgeoning. ¡°Drop it, Carem,¡± Calvin said with a scowl. ¡°Don¡¯t try to bullshit me. I¡¯m going to tear you out of the soil of Allast like a diseased plant. Get ready to experience death again.¡± This arrogant little prick thinks he¡¯s better than me? ¡°You little shit.¡± Carem lunged out with his Bent. Dominate Mind. 50/65 Bent Remaining The spell took effect, and Carem narrowed his eyes, tuned into the kid¡¯s mind, savoring the act of crushing it while tasting the last sane thoughts the boy¡¯s mind would ever have. ????????????????y????????????????????i????????????????¡¯????????????????p????????????????p????????????????e????????????i?????????????????? ?????????y???????????????????u?????????i??????????????k????????????????????????o?????????????????????? ?????????????????p????i?????????????y?????????????????????????i??????????????k????????????????????????i?????????????? ???????????????????????k?????i????????y?????????????????a?????????????????????? ?????????????????????????p?????????o???????k??????????????o??????????????????.???????????? ???????????? ???????????????????????K??????????????o???????????????¡¯?????????????????y??????????????????i???????????????p??????????????o????????????????? ????k???????????????????i?????????????????????y????????a????????????? ????????????????????p????????????????o???????????????????????????k???????????????????????????o??????????????i??????? ?????????????Y????????????????????i????????????????????p??????????????i??????????????k?????????????i????????u???????? ???????????????p???????????????????????????i?????????????????u???????? ???????????????????????k??????i??????????????????? ????????????????? ????C???????????????????a????????????????r?????????????????e??????????????????????m????????????????? The fuck? Carem grabbed the brat¡¯s mind in his metaphysical hands and squeezed, but he was rebuffed by a barrage of nonsensical gibberish. y??????????????????i?????????????¡¯????????????????????????p??????????p????????????????e?????????????i??????????????????????? ?????????????????????????y??????????????u?????i????????????????k????????????????????o??????????????? ??????????????k???????????i?????????????????y??????????????????????a?????????????????????????????? ????????????????p???????o???????????????????k????????????????????o??????.???????? ?????????????? ????????????????K???????????????o?????????¡¯??????????????????y????????????????????i??????????????p??????????????o?????????????????????? ???????????????k???????????????????????????i???????????????????y??????????a?????? ??????????????p??????????????????o??????k?????????????????o????????????????????i??????????? ???????????????????Y?????????i?????????????p??????????????????i????k??????????????i?????????????u???????? ??????????????????????????p??????????????????????????i????????u??????????????????????? ??????????????????k?????????i????????????????? ?????????????????????p???????????i?????????????y?????????????????i????????k????????????????i????????????????????????????? ????????????I??????????????p???????????????????p????????????????????????e???????????????i????????? ??????k????????????????i????????????????????????y??????????????u??????????????i?????????????? ?????????????????????????????y?????????????????????u????????????????????p??????????????????? ???????????????????????????p??????????????????i??????????????y???????????????u???????????????k??????????????????????i??????????????????? ???????????????k?????????????????????i???????????? ????????????n??????????????????i???????????k?????????i????????????????????p????????o?????????????????? ??????????????????p?????o????????????????????????y????????????????????u??????????????? ????????????????????i???????k????????????????p????????????o?????????????????? ???????????????????k??????????????????????????????i???????????y??????????????????i??????n???????k???????????????????u?????????????????????i???????????????????????????.?????????????????? What is going on here? This works on everyone! I¡¯ve got more raw Mind than the King of Iletha, I¡¯d swear it! ¡°Ah.¡± By the time Carem looked up, Calvin was already flying toward him, exploding into a cloud of green smoke. ***Calvin*** Trade, I kinda wish I knew what your name was. If I had just pushed forward with the plan to kill the bastard and murdered¡­everyone who stood in my way, you¡¯d be¡­just as dead. Well, at least you wouldn¡¯t be Carem. There¡¯s a fate worse than death. Sometimes there¡¯s no good options. Yeah, I got it, let¡¯s kill this bastard here and now, avoid any further complications. Agreed. Calvin felt Carem send a piercing dart of Bent toward him, intangible and seeking his brain. Crap. Calvin sent out a thin stream of Bent to pick apart the dart, intercepting it with his whorls when it came closer, but even after he took most of the punch out of it, the spell had a staggering amount of force behind it, revealing a level of raw Mind that Calvin wasn¡¯t comfortable with a crazy psycho having. Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 3 seconds. Shit! He got me! Three seconds was a long time in a fight to the death. Plenty of time to lower someone¡¯s guard and hit them with a killing blow. A burst of adrenaline went through Calvin¡¯s heart as he prepared himself to summon some sort of last ditch effort to bypass whatever kind of control was placed over him, but¡­ In those three seconds, a kind of hissing, white noise, combined with a sensation of pressure assaulted Calvin¡¯s senses, but nothing more came of it than that. I can still move, he thought, flexing his fingers. He was still in control of his faculties as well, Probably. Thank you Language Barrier. Although this wasn¡¯t the way I wanted to test it, I very much appreciate the assist. Calvin didn¡¯t want to wait around for Carem to try deciphering Ooze-Weaver speech. He could tuck himself back into his shell of Heart of the Swarm now. No sense letting this guy have any sort of way to hurt him, now that he knew for sure what he was dealing with. Calvin opened the tiny valves releasing compressed air onto his palms, resulting in an explosion of forward momentum. Calvinian Summoning Chimera Atom Ant Calvinian Summoning Chimera Atom Ant Heart of the swarm 36/47 Bent remaining Eight elite Nadia¡¯s sprang into existence from the smoke trailing behind him before Calvin himself burst into four Battle Forms, using the Refraction Spinner organs to accelerate even faster towards his prey. Carem¡¯s eyes widened for a second before he breathed in sharply and exhaled¡­some kind of purple mist. It spread out unnaturally, widening out up and down to create a hemisphere in front of him. Calvin came to a desperate halt in front of it, but one of his battle forms touched the creation with its foot, getting sucked whole into the strange purple barrier. Calvin had the disconcerting experience of getting absorbed before the summon poofed. The purple rippled, preparing to do something. Force the opponent to react: Karen¡¯s training coming in handy even when he was a strange amalgam of people and monster parts. Calvin backed off with one battle form while the other two lunged forward, aiming their fingers at a central point. The space-warping powers of the refraction spinners deployed in a split second, blowing a hole through the shield, through which the reserved summon plunged through, aiming for Carem¡¯s chiseled face. Carem swung a hand up and caught Calvin¡¯s punch, with a near-Baroke level of power. He inhaled sharply again. Calvin opened his mouth, squeezed the glands under his tongue and spat a torrent of fire, consuming the newest purple exhalation even at the first purple shield burst outward, impaling his two spares. Damnit. Still, one casting of Calvinian Summoning, and he was already at a three-to-two Bent consumption advantage. A fight Between Bent users often depended on who could make the other run out first, and Calvin liked his summons because they were efficient. Calvin closed his eyes against the blooming heat and strained his neck, lunging forward with his forehead. Crack! His head shot through the swirling cloud of orange flame and purple mist, catching Carem¡¯s face. The killer¡¯s exhale was cut short, purple smoke shooting out of his nose as Calvin¡¯s headbutt jammed his head down, jaw closed. Nadia, if you wouldn¡¯t mind. Calvin thought, pulling away from a defensive jab, the skin on his face peeling away. It wasn¡¯t lethal damage, but it wasn¡¯t good, either. Absolutely. ¡°Hi!¡± Nadia said, zooming past him, her waist wings humming as one of her eight caught Carem in the midsection with a kick, sending him tumbling downward. ¡°Remember me!?¡± Her other seven bodies crowded around the man, deploying their space-warping abilities to slice him in half. Carem recovered from his fall in a fraction of a second, before dancing around the faint ripples in the air. Well, most of them. A gout of blood jetted out from the body hopper¡¯s shoulder as he was cut from shoulder to ribcage by the ripples of space. In the space of a breath, Carem reached into his skull and yanked out a tooth. No way. The tooth and the wound glowed a brilliant white, and the wound on his shoulder was welded shut with a raw looking scar. It didn¡¯t stop there, though, as Carem reached up to the scar on his shoulder and peeled it off. The scar turned into a curved blade of shimmering space, seemingly growing roots into his hand The fuck is that!? The killer sped up, catching one of Nadia¡¯s attacks with the blade. Nadia, who¡¯d gotten used to never having any resistance to the special blades in her fingertips, blinked in surprise as they were intercepted, followed by a fist to the throat. That Nadia was bisected by the sword before he lunged forward, skimming forward on the planet¡¯s magnetic field, trying to get to Calvin before Nadia could encircle him. Despite his relatively good showing, he was still hanging on by a thread. Why give him a chance? Hah. Not just yet, buddy, Calvin thought, backing away, keeping the distance between them the same, as attrition favored Calvin. Case in point, Calvin thought as his body reached critical mass of Warp and Bad Penny triggered, splitting his Combat Form in two, one with a blistering face, the other perfectly healthy. Calvin regained his distance, putting the healthy one in the rear to recover more bodies while using the damaged body as a buffer. Carem seemed to realize he was being toyed with, as his expression went from focused to pissed, his lips downturned in a snarl halfway between hardened criminal and angry baby. ¡°Fuck!¡± The body hopper immediately changed tactics, diving for the ground. Can¡¯t allow that, Calvin thought, dismissing his Battle Form and appearing in midair again. The downside of heart of the swarm was that he couldn¡¯t use or regenerate Bent. And to box this asshole in, Calvin needed to cast a bit more. Calvin tapped the thermite on his belt. Shaping 35/47 Bent remaining. Dupdomancy has reached level 23! ***Carem*** I¡¯ll go through the ground, bastard can¡¯t follow me through there ¨C Ack! There was the flickering sensation of Bent flowing past him, and the ground caught fire. Suddenly there was a molten pool of burning iron underneath him, and if Carem got any closer, he¡¯d be losing a lot more than his eyebrows. ¡°Where ya going?¡± The brat asked with a raised brow in flawless Juntai. Carem was looking for an escape route as the seven identical bitches ¨C no, make that eight, one of them split again. DAMN ¨C swooped in to surround him. The situation made something snap inside him. K?????????i??????l??????l????? ??????????h???????i?????????m?????????? He was no longer interested in surviving. The only priority he had was killing the smug bastard. Carem was far too angry to wonder if this was some kind of outside influence. Chaos Lung 44/65 Bent remaining He breathed in and mixed the Bent in his lungs. The air got heavier, straining his lungs as he breathed the Consuming Mist out, mentally pulling it close to himself and forming an armor out of it. Die! Carem thought as he charged forward. ***Calvin*** You gave me too much range, Calvin thought. Gradual Multi-shaping. Calvin created a complex summon combining the Crystal Lattice catalysts wrapped in a heavy tube of Abyssal steel, along with a constant supply of explosives and detonators. With series of pops, chunks of Bent disrupting crystal the size of Calvin¡¯s thumb began flying out of the tube fast enough to tear through sound itself. Did¡­Did you just make a bullet hose? Carem¡¯s magical armor was torn off in a fraction of a second, followed by his face, skull, and the rest of his body. Bits and piece of gory flesh rained down to the ground, where they sizzled on the rapidly cooling sheet of red-hot iron. I like to think of it as a shrapnel hose, Calvin thought, dialing the Gradual split of the crystals and the explosives down to nothing, leaving himself with a simple tube of Abyssal Steel. A rapidly heating tube of abyssal steel, given the complete lack of a cooling system. ¡°Ah, hot!¡± Calvin shouted, dropping the cylinder. That was an oversight, Elliot said, sounding smug. You¡¯re just jealous you didn¡¯t think of it first. Bitch, I know what a gun is! You¡¯re so basic it hurts. Whatever, we¡¯ve got to cover the rest of the city and get everything under ¨C Calvin started as he felt a gaze of pure, delighted rage, pressing against his skin from directly ahead. Calvin lifted his gaze from the tumbling shrapnel hose and spotted a tall figure floating in the air in front of him. It ¨C and calvin was fairly sure it was an it ¨C was swathed in rags, covering its face and body, but he could make out bits of pebbled skin, heavy, black fingernails, and some kind of crest rising above the creature¡¯s head. And its legs were reverse jointed. Digitigrade, Elliot felt the need to correct him. ¡°Can I help you?¡± Calvin asked, setting his hands on his belt, pushing the stinging pain of his burnt fingers aside. ¡°Grethna. You don¡¯t know me yet, but you will once I have the System unlock your memories. My name is Pasha Llortan, and after I have my revenge for Pelior, I¡¯ll be bringing your soul back to the fleet, where we¡¯ll burn the location of the King in Exile out of you.¡± Calvin¡¯s hair stood on end. I don¡¯t think this guy¡¯s fucking around. As a matter of fact¡­Holy shit! That¡¯s a Harbinger! Run! RUN LIKE HELL! There was a flicker of light as the creature appeared in front of him, and with casual ease, delivered a backhand that shattered Calvin¡¯s jaw. Macronomicon Chapter 205: It Gets Worse ¡°Everybody understand the plan?¡± Kala asked, scanning the assembled fighters. ¡°All I gotta do is make the godlike entity that predates our kingdoms fear for his life, right?¡± Karen asked, casually heaving the thick sword over her armored shoulder. Behind her, Learner assumed an identical pose, presumably mimicking the strongest person there to uncover the secrets of her strength. ¡°I don¡¯t want to look like the most bloodthirsty individual,¡± Baroke said, idle hands touching each arrow sticking out of the quiver at his waist. ¡°But why not just kill him?¡± ¡°Two reasons,¡± Kala said, her stomach souring as she partially lied to her friend. ¡°First, because killing this thing is rather difficult. And second, it is not the most ideal outcome: it¡¯ll just make him mad. And third¡­because this is the way it needs to happen. ¡°Killing him will make him mad?¡± Maya asked with a raised brow. ¡°That¡¯s¡­what?¡± The tiny ranger was unable to wrap her head around something that wasn¡¯t stopped by death. ¡°It means exactly what I said,¡± Kala said. ¡°Okay, so pressure him into leaving so he takes us seriously, but not enough to make him tell on us to his friends.¡± Karen said. Kala snapped her fingers. ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve fought a couple immortal things in my day. They¡¯re tricky.¡± Karen said, nodding sagely. ¡°When!?¡± Baroke demanded. ¡°Do you think she became the best fighter on the continent by raising Calvin?¡± Ella asked with a sharp grin. ¡°I dunno. Maybe?¡± The figure in the sky flickered in front of Calvin and backhanded him out of the sky. ¡°Aaand that¡¯s the signal.¡± Kala said. ¡°Go, go, go!¡± ***Calvin*** There was an explosion of white, and the brief tugging feel of centrifugal force acting on his limbs before Calvin slammed full-bodied into something that felt a lot like stone. Calvin¡¯s Body had risen to the point where stone felt more like wood, but any tavern brawler will tell you that getting hit over the back with a chair isn¡¯t exactly pleasant. Calvin exhaled a breath, blood and tooth fragments sputtering out of his mouth as he tried to open his eyes and stop the world from spinning. Blue sky dotted with smoke above him, but it was still spinning¡­ As the spinning gradually slowed, Calvin¡¯s tongue found another chunk of tooth and reflexively pushed it out of his mouth. I don¡¯t think those were baby teeth, Calvin thought, stifling an insane chuckle and trying not to swallow blood. His jaw was¡­unresponsive. The piece of bone connected to his muscles hanging there on its own while the rest of it was shattered, only held in place by the flesh around it, and slowly beginning to swell. Any idea what this guy wants with me? Calvin thought. He¡¯s probably after me. I¡¯m way more important than you, after all. Guarshit, you ever destroy a place called Pelior and exile a king of some kind? ¡­No, I can¡¯t say that I have. Huh. Calvin was trying to sit up when the blue sky above him turned black. Crap. A knee landed on Calvin¡¯s pelvis, a palm on his chest, driving him back into the dirt. It had been the hard-packed dirt of the street, not stone, and Calvin was a couple inches deep. Nadia, a little help? Calvin thought. Nadia flew in, aiming to tackle the creature off of him. With a dismissive wave, thousands of threads of tightly controlled Bent emenated from the creature¡¯s hand. The threads pulled Nadia¡¯s form apart like a master weaver removing a stitch. Nadia became green smoke that passed harmlessly over the two of them like a rolling fog bank. ¡°I would love to instill the despair of an entire planet¡¯s death into you,¡± The creature said, tapping Calvin on the forehead. ¡°But you don¡¯t even know why, and that simply takes the meaning out of torturing you. So we¡¯ll make this quick and painless.¡± He reached for Calvin¡¯s chest. Not good! Calvin eyed the miniature cannon on his belt and reached out for it¡­ His Bent was driven back and scattered against the oppressive aura of the creature bending over him. When in doubt, fight dirty. Calvin heaved in a breath and spit a spray of blood into the creature¡¯s eyes, followed by a haymaker. It caught his fist with its eyes closed. ¡°Really?¡± It asked, scowling at him as it tore the soaked rags away from its face, revealing a visage that was decidedly not human. Pebbly, brown-red skin, big green eyes. Yep, that¡¯s definitely a Harbinger. Calvin tried to knee it in the balls, but it didn¡¯t seem to do much of anything. ¡°Enough wriggling,¡± It said, putting its hand on his chest. There was a shifting, tearing sensation as the world seemed to tilt, and for a brief moment, Calvin was in two places at once, watching the creature draw a brilliant orb out of his chest. At the same time, he was the brilliant blue orb, viewing himself, the Harbinger¡¯s palm, and the surroundings, with a perfect sphere of vision. It also felt like there was something on the tip of his tongue. Something important he¡¯d forgotten, that would come back to him any second now. The view from his eyes started to grow dim¡­ ¡°Hey!¡± A slab of steel impacted against the Harbinger¡¯s midsection, sending it tumbling into the distance. Calvin¡¯s view snapped back into his body, and he gasped in a ragged breath he didn¡¯t realize he¡¯d been holding, veins throbbing at the edge of his vision. ¡°He¡¯s still breathing.¡± Karen said, her mannish mug staring down into Calvin¡¯s face. Calvin groaned wordlessly, trying to wave his adoptive mother¡¯s grimace away. His vision was wobbling and dotted with stars, and the adrenaline was starting to drain the pain out of his jaw, leaving his body numb and tingling from pure endorphins. I think you have a concussion. Noo, really? Karen flickered out from in front of him, and as Calvin tried to sit up, he heard explosions and cursing from all around him. for a brief moment, he thought he saw Baroke¡¯s Thews before an explosion rocked the side of the building beside them. ¡°Don¡¯t try to sit up so quick,¡± Kala¡¯s voice echoed through his fuzzy consciousness. ¡°You¡¯ve got a concussion.¡± Calvin tried to speak, but all that came out was a dribble of blood from a slack jaw. Calvinian Summoning Atom Ant Chimera 33/47 Bent remaining. Calvin¡¯s Elite Nadia erupted from the green smoke emanating from his hands. ¡°Nooo, really?¡± Nadia said, crossing her arms, acting as his voice. ¡°When did you guys get here?¡± ¡°Oh, about an hour ago,¡± Kala said, her gaze sliding away from his. ¡°I had a hunch you might need some help.¡± She was guilty about something¡­was it not warning him what a shit-show Allast would be? Or was it something more? ¡°Well, your timing is excellent.¡± Nadia voiced his thoughts. ¡°I gotta get back into the fight.¡± He reached out his hand for Nadia to help him up, when a hand gently pressed against his shoulder, stopping him. ¡°Calvin,¡± Kala said as an explosion erupted in the sky, painting her in harsh orange light. ¡°We have a couple minutes. Can we talk?¡± Oh shit. Oh shit. Elliot echoed. Oh shit. Nadia followed. That¡¯s never good. When girls wanted to talk it was usually not about something ¡®good¡¯. When it was in the middle of a battle against some kind of inhuman killing machine¡­Calvin had no idea, but it couldn¡¯t be good. Calvin glanced up at the furious Harbinger flying over them, harried by Karen and Ella on the ground, Learner and Baroke in the sky. The body-builder whipped out shots seemingly at random that forced the creature to give up the advantage or receive holes while Learner attempted to drive it down where the land-bound fighters could engage. She was sporting a double pair of wasp-like wings, perhaps stealing from Nadia¡¯s design. They were doing¡­surprisingly well. Calvin was hardly needed. ¡°Okay,¡± Nadia said for him as he looked back down at Kala. ¡°What did you wanna talk about?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if It¡¯ll be real, or if this is the last time I¡¯ll actually see you again,¡± Kala said, her eyes tearing up. ¡°I just want you to know that you made my life worth living. You were a¡­lifeline that pulled me out of the destiny I was slated for, and made everything a bright, wonderful¡­¡± Kala¡¯s shoulders shook and she seemed to swallow back a sob. This seems like a good time for a hug. Calvin grabbed Kala and drew her into a hug, trying not to bleed or drool on her. ¡°You¡¯re not planning on dying are you?¡± Nadia asked for him. Kala shook her head buried in his chest, jostling his jaw in the process. Calvin tensed up from the pain, but didn¡¯t push her away. ¡°I lub yu,¡± she said into his shirt. Calvin wanted to speak, but his swelling jaw simply wouldn¡¯t move. He petted her hair. ¡°I love your sweet ass too, babe,¡± Nadia said, petting Kala. Kala hiccupped, something halfway between a laugh and a sob as she pushed away from him, wiping the tears away from her cheeks. She glanced up at Nadia and shook her head. The Succubus-in-training took the hint and turned around, finding somewhere else to look. ¡°I Just want you to know that I love you and this was the best outcome I could see.¡± She said quietly, taking his head in her hands and kissing him, heedless of the split lip. ¡°MMm!¡± Calvin groaned as his face flared up with pain. ¡°Oh, sorry.¡± Kala whispered before leaning forward and pressing her soft lips to his forehead. Calvin wished he could actually smell her over the blood in his mouth. The best outcome? I do not like the sound of that. ¡°The best outcome?¡± Nadia asked for him. ¡°I do not like the sound of that.¡± You don¡¯t warn someone beforehand that something was the best possible outcome unless it¡¯s a shit outcome. Kala seemed like she was about to say something, when Baroke crashed into the street beside them, tumbling to the side until he crashed into a half-burnt shop-front, sending wooden utensils clattering down around him. ¡°Agh, he kicked me in the dick!¡± Baroke groaned, curled up into a ball. Kala pulled out of Calvin¡¯s arms, glancing at Baroke with a concerned expression. ¡°That¡¯s my cue. Get back into the battle as soon as you can. We¡¯re going to need your help. Maybe do something about that concussion.¡± A moment later, Kala¡¯s warmth was gone as she threw herself back into the battle. Nadia, Calvin thought, directly linking his mind with Nadia¡¯s ¡°Yeah?¡± Ranged. Throw or shoot physical objects and try to stay out of range of his counterspells. I need your main body to be on emergency Siphon duty. Nadia¡¯s lips curled up in a smile. ¡°Got it.¡± And help me up. One Nadia grabbed Calvin by the waist and lifted him into the air like a small child, the wings on her waist buzzing as they took off. The other seven Nadia started picking up whatever iron or stone rubble they could find with their bare hands and hurtling it toward the Harbinger from a safe distance. Atom Ant really shone through, as each throw from Nadia created a loud pop! hissing through the air to deflect off of a blueish field with a slight ripple, with nearly the same power as one of Baroke¡¯s shots. At the very least, it will force the bastard to keep his shield up. There has to be some kind of cost for that. Shortly after the battle with Magenta, Calvin had chosen one of his Abilities for Bent Manipulation: Spell Penetration, the one that made his spells harder to counter. It was irritating that the bastard had basically blown through it like a stiff wind through a fart, but that just meant Calvin had to get more creative. I can¡¯t cast spells on him directly, and his shield seems to absorb almost everything physical. ¡°Bastard,¡± Baroke groaned, staggering to his feet and firing another shot. The arrow pierced right through the blue shield, drawing a silver line between the two of them. The creature dodged the arrow, but Kala managed to sneak a little chunk of rock through the opening and graze the side of Pasha¡¯s face by aiming for his destination. The Alien creature paused, wiped the blood off his cheek, and glared at them. Oh boy, he looks mad, Calvin thought wryly. Open the Warp Tank. 30/34 Warp Remaining Now, let¡¯s see what we can do about that annoying counterspelling. Nadia, throw yourselves into the grinder please. Slow enough to let Bad Penny recover your numbers. You got it, boss. One of the eight Nadias lunged forward, cutting through the air toward the Harbinger, a light-refracting sword emerging from her fingertips. The Harbinger saw her coming and kicked Learner and Kala out of his space before waving a hand. Calvin could feel him releasing another wave of Bent tendrils to tear the summon apart. There! Calvin shot his Bent out in as long and thin strands as he possibly could, aiming in front of his charging summon. If he interrupted the creature¡¯s counterspell, all the better, but Calvin just wanted to get a feel for how he did it. Calvin¡¯s threads tangled with Pasha¡¯s, and he suddenly felt like he was in an arm-wresling matche with a porous squid, and his arm was made of soggy pulp. Pasha¡¯s tendrils wrapped around his own and forced them abck while absorbing them. there were more of them, but they weren¡¯t necessarily stronger, simply overlapping their strength and curling together like living things to achieve an effect greater than the sum of it¡¯s parts. 32/47 Bent remaining 31/47 Bent remaining Calvin quickly severed his connection to his own Bent, to prevent the creature from drawing even more out of him. Nadia was reduced to green smoke in a fraction of a second, with no tangible benefit from losing two Bent to the caster. If Calvin didn¡¯t have the Warp, he might have had no clue how masterful the opponent¡¯s Bent control was. He would have only known that he got his ass kicked. But he did have the Warp flowing through him, and for as long as it lasted, Calvin was a savant. He saw the faintest edges of the creature¡¯s methods. Bent manipulation has reached level 13! Bent manipulation has reached level 14! Bent Manipulation has reached level 15! +1 Intuition 27/34 Warp Remaining Please Choose an ability or Mutation Abilities: Ghost hand: Manipulate Bent stored by Beli Ma as hands with physical attributes mirroring User¡¯s mental Attributes. Increases range of Beli ma by 1 inch per level of Bent Manipulation. ^From Beli Ma Bent Reclamation: User¡¯s Abilities have a (correction)% chance to reclaim Bent spent on them when countered. Interference: Bent Manipulation Correction now applies when interfering with other User¡¯s Bent constructs. Bent Condensation: Condense 5 Bent into one hundred grams of black liquid Bent. One hundred grams restores 1 Bent. ^No wonder those potions are so expensive. Sliding Scale: Add up to (level)% To one numerical effect of an Ability while taking the same percentage away from another numerical aspect. ^ Ex. +5% Duration, -%5 Mass Suspend Spell: Delay activation of a Bent ability by (level)^3 seconds. Point of origin at users discretion, within limits of original Ability. Polyglot: Ability¡¯s Bent signatures are randomly encoded with a combination of user¡¯s fluent Languages, increasing difficulty of deciphering, copying and countering Abilities by (Level)% ^From Language Barrier, Spell Penetration. Mutations: All Seeing Eye: User can physically see Bent. ^ Fuck Bent sense, Why not just see the damn stuff? Warped Bent: User¡¯s Bent is now closer to Warp in the way it interacts with the environment. More difficult to counter, more difficult to control. May cause mutations. Calvin scanned the available abilities quickly, writing off the ones he¡¯d seen before and quickly sorting the rest. I Choose Interference. Calvin¡¯s head tingled for a moment as the technique manifested, his concussion sending sparkling lights across his vision. He didn¡¯t have time to sit and wait, though. Lets see how this works now. Nadia. At his signal, another Nadia charged the Harbinger. The creature snorted, but instead of waving his hand dismissively, he formed a claw and shoved it toward Nadia. Calvin shot his Bent out, aiming to stop the attack before it gained steam. His Bent filaments came into contact, trying to emulate the creature¡¯s absorptive qualities. Bent Manipulation has reached level 16! Bent Manipulation has reached level 17! 25/34 Warp Remaining Calvin managed to delay the spell a tiny bit longer this time, earning himself a furious scowl. The creature¡¯s Bent broke through Calvin¡¯s block and lanced through Nadia, poofing her instantly before jumping to the remaining six Nadia, leaping unerringly from one summon to the next before the invisible attack bore down on Calvin. Calvin put his whorls of Bent from Beli Ma between himself and the attack. The attack tore through his whorls, but they slowed it down just long enough for Calvin to hold his hand out in front of him and create the thin filaments, trying to tear the attack apart. It didn¡¯t work. From what Calvin could tell from making contact, the Attack voraciously sought out Bent to absorb, and it was currently eating through his Bent, trying to follow it back to the source and hollow him out. It was programmed to attack a specific flavor of Bent after getting a taste of it, seeking out targets by order of similarity. Just by the feel, Calvin could tell, once it was inside him, it wouldn¡¯t be pretty. it was designed to tear apart whatever container it rampaged around inside. 30/47 Bent remaining 29/47 Bent remaining 28/47 Bent remaining The invisible attack was held back four feet away from him, milling through his Bent, and slowly getting closer. Calvin could feel it consuming his Bent to feed its own power, getting faster and faster. The spell was so intricate and powerful, it felt like struggling against a living thing, trying to kill a boar by beating it with turnips, bread, and meat-scraps. Boars aren¡¯t exactly smart, though. You can lead a boar to a cage with food. Calvin kept fending off the attack with one hand, while the other one built a tantalizing ball using his remaining Bent. At the last second, Calvin connected the two together and tossed the ball off to the side. 0/47 Bent remaining The attack chased down Calvin¡¯s Bent and chowed down on it for a moment before dissipating. With no remaining Bent of Calvin¡¯s to consume, it consumed itself. Bent Manipulation has reached level 18! Bent Manipulation has reached level 19! 23/34 Warp Remaining The Harbinger shoved Learner away from himself, flickered up into the sky and glanced down at Calvin, looking back at him, unharmed. He must not have been expecting that, because he bared his oversized teeth in a snarl. From a Bent standpoint, that was clearly a great win for the Harbinger, but it was expecting it to grievously wound Calvin in the process. Not getting hurt by the attack was a win in Calvin¡¯s book. They shared a look. Calvin shrugged, glancing around as if confused about where the attack might have gone. Not my fault your spell is simpleminded. ¡°Got anything left in the tank, kid?¡± It asked. Try me, Calvin gave the creature some universal sign language. The only one he really knew. Nadia. On it. The creature held out a hand, and a bolt of blue fire arced out, heading for Calvin¡¯s face. A thousand miles away, fingers made fists in the sheets. 1/47 Bent remaining. Calvin held a hand up, jettisoning a cloud of Bent from his palm. The Iroh Special 0/47 Bent remaining The bolt of fire sank into the cloud, which coalesced around it, replicated the spell and shot back, all in a tiny fraction of a second. Pasha seemed surprised, warding off the attack with a hasty chop of his hand, causing the counter to wink out between them. A fraction of a second later, Learner landed a kick on the back of his head, her space-warping blades unable to penetrate the creature¡¯s skin. The Harbinger spun and punched Learner away, tearing off part of her jaw in the process. Calvin was interested to note that the number of tiny Learners that spilled out was minimal. It seemed she really had replaced most of her body with human parts. Which meant getting her jaw torn off was bad. Learner didn¡¯t seem to care much, backing up long enough to run a palm over her face, the flesh fixing itself instantly before she shook a bit of blood off her fingers. 1/47 Bent remaining 2/47 Bent remaining ¡°Damnit!¡± Pasha growled, eyeing Calvin furiously. Calvin spread his arms wide, taunting him. Come at me, bro. The Harbinger vanished from above him, flickering out of sight. The only sign of where he¡¯d gone was the sudden gaze on the back of Calvin¡¯s neck. Crap, Calvin thought, ducking reflexively, wind rushing over his scalp. With his tarak skin, Calvin felt Karen burst through the floor behind the two of them, swinging her oversized sword in a perfect ambush. Claws still outstretched, The Harbinger was only barely able to interpose his arm between himself and the blade before the attack caught him, sending him tumbling off the roof of the building, slamming into the next one over. The creature coughed, pulling itself out of the wooden building, its left arm hanging loose at its side, a deep gash pumping blood down to his black nails. Calvin glanced over at Karen curiously. Why is he not in two pieces? Calvin thought. He¡¯d literally seen an imaginary Karen put a cut through a fourth dimensional being and the real stone wall it was living in. There was no way she couldn¡¯t have bisected the bastard with a clean hit. Is she taking it easy on him? Why? More harbingers who might retaliate? Calvin had been playing the politics game long enough to think of a few of the obvious answers. He was wrong. ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough. As nice as it would have been to get revenge, I can¡¯t risk failure here. I¡¯ll catch you later.¡± The Harbinger muttered, drawing itself to its feet. With its good arm, it pulled out a small black metal handle with a little tube ¨C Dodge! Elliot¡¯s scream was loaded with urgency, shocking Calvin into action. Calvinian summoning Atom Ant Heart of the swarm 1/47 Bent remaining. Calvin burst into millions of wasps, scattering in every direction. Whatever the attack the object made, enough of the swarm should be able to survive to allow him to ¨C >>>System Analyzing<<< Ravager Identified, Beginning c?????u????l??l??i?????n?????g???? p????r?????o???????c?????e?????????d????u????????r??????????e?????.???????.?????.????.??.?????? Everything went black. Macronomicon Chapter 206: The Old Switcheroo System Analyzing¡­ Ravager Identified, Beginning Culling Procedure. Ceasing cellular activity¡­.complete. Withdrawing soul for reintegration¡­ >>>Error<<< System error with soul withdrawal, attempting patch. >>>Error<<< Attempting Bypass¡­ >>>Error<<< Notifying Admin.. This is System Admin 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-5-6-2, what seems to be the problem? Soul¡¯s registry is identifying as seven thousand different discrete entities. System defers judgement. Yeah, lemme take a look at that¡­Oh, wow, that¡¯s crazy. Here¡¯s what we¡¯ll do, dump all files related to the soul from System memory, then re-boot. That should clean up the problem. >>>Warning<<< Deleting the Soul from System Memory will cause it to lose Ravager Status and be removed from the rotation. Additionally, rebooting the System will result in temporary downtimes for all entities. Do you wish to proceed? Yes/No ¡°Heeheehee!¡± Elliot giggled to himself, then tapped ¡®yes¡¯. >>Warning, Permissions level Exceeded!<< ¡°Ah, crap.¡± Reboot command restricted to Owner. Checking permissions¡­ Access granted. Scrubbing files. Rebooting. ¡°Huh,¡± Elliot said, tapping the dark screen. ¡°If I knew I had owner permissions, I would¡¯ve made chainmail bikinis a thing.¡± Except now that he¡¯d dumped the memory of himself, He wouldn¡¯t have admin privelages anymore. On the flip side, none of these aliens could make a positive I.D. on him ever again, nor could they hit him with the System Insta-kill. Worth the trade, all things considered. ¡°Are you Elliot?¡± A young voice came from behind him. ***Calvin*** Everything went black, combined with the sensation of falling, Calvin fell for what seemed like minutes before his body reached some kind of equilibrium. A black floor appeared underneath him, only differentiated from the abyss around them by it¡¯s shine. Where¡¯s the light coming from? Calvin looked up and spotted a black ceiling with little white orbs embedded in it, emitting light, illuminating the black room. Calvin blinked and details began fading in, as though he were wiping sand out of his eyes. A bag of some kind of orange snack on a table in the middle of the room, bits of orange bright on the black table. There was some kind of chair with wheels on the bottom, a strange rib going down the center of the ceiling, ending at a flat wall divided by the protrusion. There was a man with messy brown hair sitting in front of the protrusion, giggling to himself. He was wearing some kind of fuzzy blue robe. Calvin couldn¡¯t see any more than that, given that he was facing away from him, but his voice sounded familiar. ¡°Are you Elliot?¡± Calvin asked, moving around the messy table, kicking aside the strange lightweight bottles strewn across the floor. ¡°Eh?¡± the man grunted, glancing over his shoulder. He was wearing wide glasses that Calvin had only seen on nobles, his jaw going slack. He was the same man Calvin had seen in the mirror in the Guya dream. ¡°What are you doing in here?¡± He asked, coming to his feet and peering at Calvin. He was older, about the same height, a bit paunchier, with a bigger nose, but there were uncanny similarities in their appearance. He saw Calvin¡¯s gaze and folded the blue robe around his midsection defensively. ¡°I had a six-pack too when I was your age, you know. You just try keeping it when your power build is based on sitting on your ass and letting your minions do the work. You¡¯ll see. I give it five years.¡± ¡°You weren¡¯t supposed to be in here,¡± Elliot muttered, staring at him. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Where is this?¡± ¡°Well, you kinda died, and this is-¡± Elliot held up a hand in an eerily familiar gesture, before the strange glass screen behind him began blinking with big red letters. Mutation Und- Define Primar- The rest of the words were cut off by Elliot¡¯s elbow. ¡°Shit, shit.¡± Elliot said, turning and hitting a key. The wall in front of them brightened, showing the sky, blurred and out of focus, but definitely the sky¡­ And¡­ Is that Karen? Is that my view? It looked like the viewpoint of someone on their back, their eyes slowly opening and coming into focus. But how can that be? I¡¯m right here. Calvin wasn¡¯t watching Elliot, who was sidling toward the back of the room, until he heard a clunk. Calvin whirled, and saw Elliot standing on a slowly raising platform, the blue of the sky shining down from above him. Elliot waved with a cocky smile. He¡¯s trying to take my body! Adrenalin surging, Calvin jumped forward, leaping off the table and tackling Elliot to the ground. ¡°Holy shi-¡° Elliot shouted, an instant before Calvin hit him. Calvin got him into a mount position and started beating the traitorous fuckwad¡¯s face in. Elliot reached out and grabbed Calvin¡¯s fists, his grip as unyielding as Abyssal Steel. His face showed no sign of being beaten on, like a toddler had been punching him instead of a full grown man. It was like wrestling with Baroke. ¡°You¡¯ve got good instincts, kid, from a lifetime of fighting, but you¡¯re in my world. I built this place. Did you think you could hurt me in it?¡± Calvin used Elliot¡¯s palms as leverage, leaned forward and headbutted him, crushing Elliot¡¯s nose with a spray of blood. ¡°Ow, fuck! Okay, off you go.¡± Calvin¡¯s arms were twisted down and around with an irresistible force, pinning them to his chest. With a grunt of effort, Elliot sent him sailing across the room, slamming into the wall on the far side of the room. Calvin gasped in a pained breath and spotted the last bits of the platform raising into the ceiling. ¡°I¡¯ll treat your girlfriends real nice on your behalf! I¡¯m not inconsiderate.¡± Elliot said, waving an instant before the platform became flush with the ceiling. ¡°FUCK!¡± Calvin turned around and looked at the wall displaying the view point. He saw his own hands being held in front of the screen, opening and closing. ¡°Calvin, you gonna live?¡± Karen asked, leaning over him. ¡°That¡¯s not me!¡± Calvin shouted at the top of his lungs. ¡°Yeah, just stunned.¡± Calvin heard his own voice respond through the wall. ¡°Godsdamnit,¡± Calvin muttered as he began looking around the messy prison for a way to take his body back. He checked for some kind of leve where the moving panel had appeared, but there was nothing. There was a small box in the center of the table with several buttons on it. None of them did anything, although one made buzzing noises. He checked the small glass panel in the center of the room. Password? ¡°Sonofabitch.¡± ¡°Calvin?¡± the box on the table said in Nadia¡¯s voice. ¡°Is that you?¡± ****Pasha Llortan**** As soon as the boy died, things started going sideways. The kid fell out of the sky, coalescing out of a cloud of wasps. The enormous blonde woman smacked him upside the chest with the sword again, deliberately turning the blade sideways to blunt the impact. Is she taking it easy on me? He thought as he was flung into the next available building, shattering its wood exterior. Something had felt a little off about this whole fight from the beginning, and Pasha was starting to be able to put a word to it: a setup. Someone wanted me to hit the boy with the targeter? Why? Is one of Greshna¡¯s loyalists trying to protect the bastard¡¯s soul as a last-ditch method? Damnit. Llortan felt played. When the floating girl with the big mammaries tried to kick him again, he sealed her in a bubble of Bent and sent the bubble flying into the stratosphere. He targeted the muscle-bound archer with a paralytic spell, and the behemoth toppled over like an ill-balanced plastic doll, his Mind too weak to fend off the spell. Strangely it wasn¡¯t countered by the most annoying one¡­The dark skinned, slender girl with the smoke creations that seemed to strike at the exact wrong time, to her, he¡­ Llortan couldn¡¯t find her. The girl was nowhere to be seen. That just left the big one with the sword. ¡°Calvin, you gonna live?¡± he heard her say as he flew upward, cresting the rooftop to look down at the scene beneath him. The feel of Warp in the air was thick, as if it had erupted out of his body upon his death, like ten thousand men and women expired all in the same place. That was impossible, even for the people with the strongest Bent reserves. What is going on here? Llortan thought, eyeing the boy¡¯s body inspecting his own hands. ¡°Yeah, just stunned.¡± Llortan used Life Sense, making the world dim to dull shades of black and white except for everything living, which glowed with radiant light and color. ¡­ the kid was bleached of color and drained of light. ¡°That kid¡¯s dead as shit,¡± Llortan muttered. Did the Warp density create an undead Mutation? Was his soul still in there? Llortan had to check. He siphoned off half his Bent and used it to create a Maze, closing it around the warrior standing beside his quarry. Llortan landed on top of Greshna, kicking his slender human body back down into the rooftop. He held his palm over the boy¡¯s chest. System, soul extraction. ¡­ There was no answer. Even if there had been no soul at all, the system would have answered him. This was unheard of. Am I disconnected from the System? Am I trapped in some kind of illusion? ¡°What¡¯s the matter, buddy? System not working for you?¡± the corpse under him said with a sneer. Llortan went to punch the creature in the face. A general rule of thumb with undead is to destroy or remove the head. Usually, not always, but usually. It leaned to the side, and slapped a hand on his limp, wounded arm, pulling a bloody hand away with him as the creature scuttled backward. ¡°Do Harbingers still use those old bio-coded automatic defenses?¡± The creature asked as the blood on it¡¯s palm seemed to expand and grow, forming keratin spikes around it that were eerily similar to Llortan¡¯s claws. ¡°How do you know-¡° The black spikes shot forward, catching Llortan in the chest. Three of them glanced off his ribcage, dealing superficial damage, but the final one managed to penetrate a lung. He¡¯s growing weapons from my cells! Normally the automatic defenses allowed a harbinger to scratch their ass or thumb their chin, but that was a security flaw that could be exploited. Case in point. System, Switch to self-isolating force field. System¡­SYSTEM! Damnit. LLortan dodged out of the way of another volley of keratin spikes, running a hand over the wound on his arm, wincing as he sealed it off with Bent-created fire. Can¡¯t afford to give him any more material. Strangely enough, this creature¡¯s fighting style was at the same time, totally different, and yet similar to the Ravager whose body had spawned it. He was holding a whirling sphere of replicated blood above his palm, slowly growing as bigger and bigger monsters leapt out of it, each of them a grotesque mockery of the Harbinger form, with huge singular talons instead of hands, and extra legs giving them incredible bounding potential. Every single one bore Llortan¡¯s face, bearing expressions of twisted agony and moaning in his own voice as they leapt up at him, trying to strike him down. This little bitch is trying to scare me, Llortan realized, his ire growing at the arrogant prick¡¯s expression. It obviously wasn¡¯t the same Ravager as before, but that smug face pissed him off. ¡°You think you can intimidate me, who has existed for millennia!?¡± Llortan demanded, weaving Bent into cleansing fire. Sub-atomic fire, of course. With the System apparently down, he wouldn¡¯t survive nuclear fission. Just enough heat to clear all his genetic material from the scene, taking away the Biomancer¡¯s material. ¡°Die!¡± He launched the white-hot fire downward, and it was met by a vinelike plant. The green fibers turned white-hot as they were incinerated¡­then exploded outward, driving more of itself into the dense fire, using it as fuel for it¡¯s own growth. The plant caught Llortan in an explosion of thorns, sending him flying backwards as he desperately cut the grasping tendrils with concentrated Bent. ¡°Longweed, bitch!¡± The boy¡¯s voice grew distant as Llortan tumbled away, slamming into another building, this one partially scorched from lightning. Llortan coughed blood, tugging the keratin spike out of his chest. Above him, the massive green bush that dominated the sky of the city, was being consumed by enormous Llortan-faced caterpillars the size of buses. They had nodules lining their backs, with sphincters that shot Llortan-faced insects out, orienting on him. The faces were laughing now. ¡°Stop!¡± Llortan shouted, accessing his Bent and pointing at the bush, focusing his Bent on temperature control. A blue laser shot out of his finger and touched the tree. Instantly the temperature of the area dropped by hundreds of degrees, causing the bush and everything on or around it to collapse into a shattered mess of bloody ice. The nitrogen in the air turned liquid and pooled to the ground. A boot landed on Llortan¡¯s chest, pushing him through the ceiling of the building, dropping them both into the second floor. Above him, the pale ravager¡¯s corpse smiled at him, expression full of feral glee. ¡°Make me.¡± Right then, a young woman¡¯s voice raised above the din of creaking wood and shattering ice. ¡°Get him!¡± Llortan looked up and spotted several unfamiliar humans charging toward him. He raised a shield reflexively, but the biggest one jumped over him and swung an oversized hammer into the undead creature¡¯s chest. ¡°Kala, wha-¡° The undead ravager managed to say before the hammer caught him in the chest and catapulted him through the wall. ***Calvin*** ¡°What was this called again?¡± Calvin asked, eating the crunchy treat. ¡°Popcorn,¡± Nadia¡¯s voice came through the box as they watched Matthias¡¯s team assault Elliot in the real world, with Kala leading the charge. Calvin chuckled as they started whipping his ass. I guess that¡¯s my copy paid Matthias for, Calvin thought, I always was a little suspicious of Elliot. My clone must¡¯ve been even more suspicious. Crunch, crunch, crunch. ¡°I like it.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 207: Night of the Living dead ***Baroke*** ¡°Ugh, son of a bitch,¡± Baroke groaned, pushing himself to a sitting position, spitting out dirt that had gotten in his paralyzed mouth. I get my hands on that bastard, he¡¯s gonna wish he¡¯d never been born, Baroke thought, climbing to his feet. The building above him exploded outward, revealing Calvin skating backward on some kind of tentacles, holding an orb of blood, his expression fixed with manic glee. Immediately afterward, a gigantic Genosian man barreled through, trying to nail Baroke¡¯s friend with a giant axe-hammer¡­thing. After that was a lithe woman with short-cropped blonde hair, and pair of floating sorcerers, one light, one dark. What the f- ¡°Baroke,¡± Kala said, sliding to a halt in front of him, Her palm flashing with a white light that seemed to clear his head and make his muscles not so limp. ¡°Sorry about the subterfuge, but Elliot couldn¡¯t know about the backup. Calvin¡¯s body was killed by an immortal representative of a kingdom that spans the stars with beef against Calvin for crimes committed by a previous life, and in the middle of turning into an undead, the ancient spirit dwelling inside him used the opportunity to take control of his body, so we¡¯ve gotta put him down again so his soul has a chance at retaking control! Can I count on you!?¡± Baroke blinked, trying to process all that. ¡°What?¡± Kala sighed and rolled her eyes. ¡°Calvin¡¯s turned evil!¡± Finally, Baroke thought, eyes narrowing. ¡°I knew this day would come!¡± Baroke roared, leaping to his feet. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s put an end to him before he inflicts further damage!¡± Baroke grabbed his bow in his left hand and wrapped his arm around Kala¡¯s waist with his other. The princess squeaked a bit of forced air as Baroke jumped, the compact dirt street cratering under his feet. He dropped Kala off on the nearest rooftop and jumped dozens of feet into the air, scanning the skyline for Calvin. He wasn¡¯t afraid of heights if he jumped up, oddly enough. There he is, Baroke thought, spotting Calvin fending off multiple Legends simultaneously, his body gradually warping as black keratin armor grew up over his skin, reinforcing his limbs, while simultaneously drawing in Warp like a dry sponge. ¡°Hey CALVIN!¡± BAroke shouted, nocking an arrow. ¡°This is for the leeches you put in my pants on my twelfth birthday! They had to burn them off my ass!¡± Force Amplification. Assassinate. Called Shot. Penetrating Shot. Sirfen¡¯s Prey Pierce the Veil Godslayer Arrow. 4 Bent reclaimed! Betty has 18/22 Bent remaining. ***Calvin*** ¡°Hahaha! I didn¡¯t know Baroke was still sore about that!¡± Calvin cackled. ***Elliot*** These guys are good, but they¡¯ve fallen into the same tired clich¨¦¡¯s. They can¡¯t actually make anything new. Not like I can. Elliot shrugged off the mind attacks and tore apart the illusions from the light-skinned sorcerer, bulled his way through the dark skinned one¡¯s weaker counters, and used the organic material on the barbarian¡¯s axe to pierce the oversized man¡¯s hands with bone. The slender one with the sword tried and failed to get past his armor, so he swatted her away. God it feels good to have a body again! Maybe I¡¯ll go swimming after this! Elliot had been paying attention when Calvin did his experimentation with different warp mutations, and he was in an even better position to take advantage of them. He reached into the Mage Armor pocket, took the bio material from Calvin¡¯s little balls of Mage Armor and mixed it with Pasha¡¯s blood and made Harbinger keratin reinforced with the warped toughness upgrade, creating a shiny black keratin armor to protect his body from the physical. The Mental attacks were fairly easy to deal with by creating a sub-brain inside the blood sphere that broke him out of Illusions in fractions of a second. it was a bit like bitcoin technology, with the other brains correcting his if they detected tampering. They¡¯d gotten the drop on him at first, but he was rapidly turning the tide. Silly Kala, tricks are for kids. He didn¡¯t really have anything against her, though. If his boyfriend¡¯s body had been taken over by someone else, he¡¯d probably try and murder them. Not that Elliot wanted a boyfriend. Of course, he wouldn¡¯t Kill Kala, seeing as she was Calvin¡¯s girlfriend, and he¡¯d already promised to take it easy on anyone or anything Calvin had penetrated. Killing her after promising that would just be rude, but finding a way to deal with her that didn¡¯t involve murder or permanent lockup was going to be tricky¡­ Ooh, I can eat real ice-cream now, and visit wrathful vengeance on those who oppose me! and itching! I can itch again! I wanna itch something right now! No wait, gotta fight first. ¡°Hey CALVIN!¡± ¡°Eh?¡± Elliot glanced to the side, spotting a musclebound idiot floating in the air a hundred yards distant. ¡°This is for the leeches you put in my pants on my twelfth birthday! They had to burn them off my ass!¡± Heehee! Good one, oh shit what is THAT!? The arrow surrounded by crackling green energy seemingly approached in slow motion as Elliot tried every trick in the book to slow the fucking thing down. When he yanked himself to the side with Bent, the arrow curved to track him. When he created a wall of reforced keratin, It burned through it like a hot laser through soft butter. Crap,crap,crap. Elliot grabbed the dimensional blade off his waist, forcing it to grow a mutated Refraction Spinner in the blink of an eye, creating a pocket of warped space to deflect the burning projectile. It tore through it like wet tissue paper. The bolt of green caught Elliot in the chest, boring a grapefruit sized hole through Elliot¡¯s liver, evaporating a bit of his right lung in the process. ****Baroke*** ¡°Haha! Take that you fucker!¡± Baroke shouted, pumping a fist as he began falling back down. Actually, this is pretty scary! ¡°Ack!¡± Baroke flailed, trying his best to achieve lift as he fell back down to the rooftop where Kala was waiting. Baroke landed less than gracefully, his left arm and right hand puncturing through the wooden roof, left hand holding Betty above his head. He yanked his limbs out of the building and stood. ¡°That¡¯ll take him out of commission,¡± he said, standing up and meeting Kala¡¯s gaze with a nod. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you had to find out about Calvin¡¯s true self like this, but hopefully now you can move on. Maybe you could date a nice regional warlord?¡± Kala silently pointed up into the sky. Baroke followed her gaze. ¡°You shot me in the liver!¡± Calvin shouted, pointing at the huge hole in his chest. Baroke could see blue sky out the other side. There was only a little bit of blood oozing out the sides, far less than there should have been. ¡°What kind of asshole shoots someone in the liver!?¡± Calvin looked like he was about to do something about it, but he was forced to block another strike from the oversized axehammer. ¡°That¡¯s¡­weird. He should be dead, right?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°Did you hear the part where I said he was undead?¡± Kala asked, her eyebrows knotted. ¡°I¡­I did not hear that part,¡± Baroke admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. ***Calvin*** ¡°Calvin, I hate to do this to you, buddy, but I¡¯m gonna have to kill your archer friend. He might be able to kill us.¡± Calvin heard Elliot mutter to himself. He glanced up from the board full of letters and numbers to see what was going on. Calvin¡¯s view was of his own chest, a massive hole punched through it, His own fingers exploring the size of the wound. He snorted. ¡°Good luck with that. You haven¡¯t even got to the hard part.¡± He glanced back down ¡°How about ElliotRox69?¡± Nadia suggested over the ¡®Intercom¡¯ ¡°He¡¯s always saying something ¡®rocks¡¯ when he means it¡¯s awesome or great. And the sixty-nine is obvious.¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll give it a shot,¡± Calvin said, entering the password. Incorrect Password. Would you like a hint? Y/N Calvin sighed and tapped ¡®N¡¯, writing down the wrong password on his rapidly growing list of wrong answers. The hint was ¡®No hint for you, foo¡¯, which was exceptionally unhelpful and irritating. Still, didn¡¯t matter how long it took. It didn¡¯t matter how many trillions of combinations there were. Either he¡¯d brute force the damn password, or Elliot would die first. One of those two things would happen. ***Elliot*** Alright, gotta prioritize the archer. He¡¯s got that no-counter max DPS bullshit going on. Elliot flung his attackers away from him and flew upward on jets of compressed air from his armor¡¯s auto-magical flight. He raised the sphere of blood up and gave it a good spine, showering the earth below him with Harbinger blood seeded with Warp and Bent, programmed to find and destroy anyone over seven feet in height and smelly. The droplets morphed into puffballs of corrupted flesh, sending ruddy, pulsing tendrils down into the earth and growing at a staggering rate until they exploded open, thousands of his happy little Harbinger killing machines bursting forth to slice up giant archers. I really like the design on the Harbinger mutants. It¡¯s the crest on top of the emaciated killing machine that really sells it. Like Bob Ross always says, No mistakes, just happy accidents. Well, maybe Giger would appreciate what I¡¯m doing here more than Bob. Kill him. The dog-sized creatures sprung forward by the thousands. One of them didn¡¯t have the power to take the giant down by themselves, but all of them? That kid was going down. It was at that moment that Kala decided to get annoying, taking a deep draw on her blue glass pipe and exhaling a barricade of smoke, forming up around the rooftop. What did that accomplish? They¡¯re gonna tear right through it. Kala reached into her shirt and pulled out an ampule. The wedding present. Shit. I forgot she had that. With a bit of pressure from her thumb, the princess snapped the cap off the tiny piece of glass, and turned it over, dropping the tablespoon of undifferentiated Matter onto the ground. The house underneath her and Baroke was crushed as an enormous fortress made of perfectly smooth Abyssal Steel grew under their feet, overtaking the surrounding buildings, shoving them out of the way in a tidal wave of crushed wood. A hundred terminal Veterans coalesced out of the ground, manning the walls of the fortress, every single one of them armed to the teeth. Every one of them had gone into the vial aiming for one last hurrah. A fine and noble goal, but¡­ Elliot hadn¡¯t planned on it being against him. ¡°Protect him!¡± Kala shouted, pointing at Baroke. ¡°Kill that!¡± She directed her aim at Elliot. ¡°Your girlfriend¡¯s really straining my goodwill,¡± Elliot said with a growl as the veterans formed a disciplined wall around the only one capable of doing massive damage to him. People opposing him were coming out of the goddamn woodwork. A lance of white hot fire blew over his shoulder, intersecting his blood pool and turning it to ash, boiling the outer layer of his armor in the process. Elliot glanced behind him, squinting against the afterimage. The Harbinger was floating some fifty feet behind him, arm held out. Damnit, not you, too. Elliot raised both hands and aimed a fist-sized beam of Annihilation at the Harbinger and the archer, intending to simply erase their hearts from existence. It cost him a lot of Bent ¨C exactly how much he couldn¡¯t say without the System¡¯s assistance ¨C but it would be worth it to get rid of certain problems. The dusky skinned sorceress seemingly appeared from behind the Harbinger and fired a counterspell that knocked his spell off target, deflecting the beam just over the Harbinger¡¯s shoulder. Kala achieved a similar feat with the archer, creating a hole in the floor between the musclebound idiot¡¯s legs. At the same time, the Harbinger unleashed another attack, composed of an orb of scintillating energy that seemed to defy identification. The orb crashed into the right hand held defensively in front of him and winked out, disintegrating everything up to his ribcage. Yep. Retreat sounds good. Retreat is always an option. Elliot thought, glancing at the white bones sticking out of his side. Probably should have run right off the bat. I blame overenthusiasm from having a body again. Well, no time like the present. Elliot dipped his left hand in his chest and flung the thick dead blood in a hundred different directions, each droplet forming a sub-brain. Macronomicon Chapter 208: A losing battle Imagine time as a slimy hagfish, an eel with no beginning or end. Every time you poke the future, it squirms on you, changing the result, so in order to achieve a very specific outcome, you have to manually pin it down, checking on it time and again, forcing the wriggling, slimy hagfish to lie still in the spot you want it. But time is an infinite hagfish, and pinning down one small length of it makes the rest of the eel wriggle like crazy in indignation. When you¡¯re too focused on achieving one thing, other, less desirable outcomes can sneak into your future. I learned that the hard way. Light touches are best when dealing with time. It makes the wiggles less dramatic. The great Seer, Kala Entredez ***Elliot*** Alright, as long as one of those sub-brains gets away, my consciousness will get drawn straight into ¨C A blonde-haired sorceress ¨C Charlotte, Elliot realized ¨C stepped out from behind a nearby building and targeted one of his sub-brains with a spell, and in a fraction of a second, they were all turning to ash. ¡°Ah, what the fuck!?¡± he shouted in outrage. ¡°I gotta say,¡± Elliot said, dodging numerous spells, swords, bolts, and eldritch curses to the best of his ability. ¡°I¡¯m feeling a little ambushed here!¡± ¡°Elliot, give Calvin back his body or we¡¯ll have to take extreme measures!¡± Kala shouted from the fortress, her voice nearly lost among the din. ¡°I¡¯m more amazed than angry, you know!¡± Elliot said, weighing his options. ¡°The logistics of this must have been insane!¡± Can¡¯t use Llortan as a shield, they don¡¯t care about him. How about Learner? Nah, she¡¯ll be fine no matter what happens! Shit, what about the dark skinned flier lady? No, only her group would stop because of that threat. Kala? Elliot glanced over at the Gadveran princess who was totally surrounded by a shield-wall. Goddamn it. I need to at least get some distance. There was ocean a few miles to the east. Elliot didn¡¯t need to breathe. That might work. I can at least change the scenery to favor me. ¡°He¡¯s running!¡± Kala shouted. ¡°Oh, come on,¡± Elliot sighed, putting on a burst of speed as he flew toward the ocean to the east. There was a twinkle of light in the distance, then one of Calvin¡¯s Elite Nadias ¨C one of the ones Calvin¡¯d left in the city with Chained Spirit ¨C was floating in midair in front of him, the wings on her waist humming to keep her there. ¡°E tu, Nadia?¡± Elliot demanded. ¡°I gave you Popcorn, and soda, and fifty shades!¡± ¡°We all talked it over,¡± Nadia said, crossing her arms across her chest. ¡°And we all prefer to have Calvin in charge.¡± ¡°All of you?¡± Elliot demanded. ¡°Were we the only people who didn¡¯t know what Kala was planning?¡± ¡°Well, you and Baroke, but yeah, pretty much.¡± ¡°Son of a bitch.¡± Elliot fired a gigantic tumor at Nadia and reversed course as he regrew as much of his body as he could with the small amount of Bent available to him. he was running on fumes at this point. The simple, energizing task of slapping around Harbinger middle-management had become a life and death struggle because Calvin¡¯s bottom bitch had decided to pull out all the stops. He had an inkling that there might be some resistance, but this was getting ridiculous. He needed to get to the ground. If he could plant a spore through his heel, he could have it gestate for a few years, Cell style. Then he could come back, regardless of what happened to his body. Oh no, I¡¯ve begun comparing my life to DBZ! God help me! Elliot began growing a worm-like projection off his heel, packed with all the information it needed to create a new receptacle for his soul. Elliot slammed into the ground, heel first, trying to drive the spore as deep as he could. Ow! Upon closer inspection, the dirt was covered in a thin layer of white smoke that coalesced around his legs and began peeling off his armor, including his backup grub. ¡°Sonofabitch!¡± Elliot shouted an instant before Llortan caught up with him, slamming into him from behind and driving more of his body into the misty trap that was attempting to peel away his armor. Elliot flipped over and whapped the closest approximation of where he thought Llortan¡¯s face would be. The Harbinger caught the fist in midair and shoved Elliot back down into the smoke. Pop! A bit of Elliot¡¯s armor was severed, reluctantly detaching from his skin around his thigh. ¡°Where¡¯s your sadistic sneer now?¡± Llortan demanded, his other hand grabbing Elliot¡¯s face and shoving it into the ground, where tendrils of smoke began to pick it apart. Elliot giggled, hooking his foot behind Llortan¡¯s knee and curling up like a shrimp to force the Harbinger to topple forward. Elliot shed all his armor at once, giving him just enough lubricant to slip out from under the alien like a seed squished between a man¡¯s fingers, following the maneuver with a vindictive kick to the face. Elliot wasn¡¯t exactly the biggest fan of Harbingers in general. Llortan looked surprised when the clinging tendrils in the smoke clung to his arms and legs, tearing away at his tough skin and holding him down. ¡°Did you think you weren¡¯t their enemy for a moment just because you were fighting the same guy?¡± Elliot sneered, giving him the finger. ¡°Don¡¯t think you can ¨C¡°The Harbinger¡¯s words were cut off as Learner speared him through the brain, her crystalline forearm blade reminding him of terminator two. The last good one. She looked up at him, face set in stone. ¡°Ah, crap,¡± Elliot turned and looked for a direction to fly away, but Nadia was obviously hovering above him, her presence serving as aerial deterrent, forcing him to the ground and limiting his options. Fighting someone who can see the future suuuucks. Elliot thought, scowling as the streets were filled with Christmas cheer¡­just kidding, they¡¯re filled with soldiers. Gadveran Veteran soldiers, one and all, peppered with Kala¡¯s mercenary Legends, led by the Royal Seer herself. ¡°Dick move.¡± Elliot said, exasperated, scanning the surrounding army. There were legends in every primary direction, and Learner guarding his back with her indestructible The Thing-esque abilities. He was boxed in. ¡°Give up please,¡± Kala said. ¡°I have no wish to damage Calvin¡¯s body any more than I have to.¡± It was at that moment that a torrent of Warp was unleashed from the dead Harbinger, crashing over them like a tsunami. The Veterans knelt down and began vomiting at the sudden heightened poison in the atmosphere, but the Legends continued watching Elliot with steely gazes, despite the sweat forming on their brows. Elliot could feel it too, the queasy feeling like he¡¯d just gotten food poisoning. He was going to Break again, and whoever was still conscious while he was out would put a spear through his brain and call it a day. Kala met his gaze, eyes narrowed, sweat beading on her forehead. She¡¯s using the same tactic as last time! Elliot realized. That bitch! Elliot¡¯s heart would be pounding out of his chest if he weren¡¯t undead, searching for some way to escape. Anything. ¡°How is this fair!?¡± Elliot demanded, pointing an accusing finger at her. ¡°You can see the future!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t¡­feel so good,¡± Learner muttered, a second before collapsing behind him. Kala¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. Here it is! With the fractal Mimic out of play, the only ones behind him were the sick Veterans. For being someone who could see the future, Kala¡¯s reaction time was too slow, trying to envelop him in white smoke an instant after he¡¯d already leapt over Learner and Llortan, brushing past the puking Veterans with ease. Not home free yet, Elliot thought to himself. I¡¯m gonna have to hide for a moment in one of these houses and set up backups before my main body makes a run for it. Once I get out of sight, I¡¯m back on a level playing field. Elliot slammed through the house behind Learner and juked to the left as he formed a backup grub out of his palm. Alright, all we gotta do now is drive this sucker into the ¨C hey wait, why¡¯s the world spinning? Suddenly the house he¡¯d ducked into began flipping violently around him, until the floor finally jumped up and smacked into his face. When the room stopped rolling around him, Elliot could see a huge, blonde woman standing above him with a grim expression, leaning on a bloody sword. Elliot¡¯s body twitched just behind her. Ah, decapitation. ¡°Ah Karen, It¡¯s been too long.¡± ¡°Elliot.¡± She said, nodding. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you¡¯d be willing to spare me because I look exactly like your adopted son?¡± Elliot asked. The only answer he got was a sword between the eyes. I should expect no less form the woman who used her baby as a shield. Or maybe she¡¯s still sore about Andrew. Or her friends and home country. Idunno. It¡¯s hard to tell with women. Elliot fell, hard and fast, tumbling through the black emptiness like a man thrown from a cliff, until he hit the floor of the black room, all the wind knocked out of his lungs. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± That was supposed to be a gentle landing. I think Calvin being here already kept the room and the gravity effects loaded while I was out. Why didn¡¯t this happen to him? I¡¯ll have to see what bug is causing us to share the same cell. ¡°Hi there,¡± Calvin said, leaning over him. ¡°Have a good time?¡± Calvin offered his left hand. ¡°Not really,¡± Elliot said, accepting Calvin¡¯s outstretched hand with his left. ¡°Your girlfriend is scary.¡± Calvin pulled him to his feet and sucker-punched him with a right cross, hand tightened over his own to stop him from blocking. ¡°Ow,¡± ¡°That¡¯s for trying to steal my body.¡± ¡°To be fair, you were already dead. It was totally up for grabs.¡± Elliot explained, massaging his jaw. Calvin sucker punched him again. ¡°That¡¯s for trying to kill my best friend.¡± ¡°Ow. You know we can¡¯t actually hurt each other in here, right?¡± The teen punched him again, rocking Elliot¡¯s head to the side. Punch me three times, shame on me. Still, it was probably a good idea to let him vent. Sudden untimely death can be difficult to process. ¡°And that¡¯s for not getting rid of the kill-switch.¡± ¡°Oh, no, I got rid of the kill switch.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± ¡°Yeah, the only way to get rid of it would be to delete our identity from the System and reboot. I did that part.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t do it before!¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t do it before. The System had to ask for an organic administrator to solve the problem, and the problem could only show up after you¡¯d been killed by the failsafe.¡± ¡°How does that help?¡± Calvin demanded. Elliot grinned and gave his alternate personality a thumbs up. ¡°In your next life, you¡¯ll be totally safe from Harbinger intervention.¡± ¡°Ugh,¡± Calvin dropped his hand and began tromping back to the front of the room, glancing up at the black screen. There was no more way to see the outside world now that the body had been killed. ¡°So now what?¡± Calvin demanded, rounding on him. ¡°Do we just¡­move on, or something?¡± ¡°That¡­might take a while,¡± Elliot said, briefly considering it. ¡°We¡¯re locked in a sort of¡­digital afterlife that Chained spirit uses to hold onto the souls of those you¡¯ve consumed. It¡¯s almost like a pimple on your soul, a foreign growth, if you will. When your body fully decomposes until there¡¯s nothing left of your original body, the System shears those foreign growths off of you, then sends your soul on it¡¯s way, and the extra souls on their own way.¡± ¡°Wait, how long is that gonna take?¡± ¡°Takes a while for bones to become soup. Decades. Centuries under the right conditions.¡± Elliot said with a shrug. ¡°After that, you¡¯ve got bigger things to worry about, because the System is going to identify you and me as foreign and split our consciousness off from our soul before jamming us into some unknown squalling alien infant. Assuming we don¡¯t, you know¡­dissolve in the process.¡± ¡°Anyway,¡± Elliot said, bringing a smile back to his face. ¡°Since we got time, you wanna play uno or something?¡± He conjured a deck of uno cards and began shuffling them, waggling his eyebrows. ¡°No, I want to finish my godsdamned kingdom, live a long time, have many brats and die a fucking legendary wizard king! Get on that magic wordbox there and get me out of this stygian nightmare!¡± Calvin said, pointing at the computer. ¡°Sorry to tell you this, but I can¡¯t do jack about our state from here,¡± Elliot said. ¡°The only reason I could hop into your body the first time was because it was transitioning from human to undead and the system was assigning a primary identity. There was a window of opportunity. Now, not only is the body in a fixed state, it is dead-dead, beheaded and mutilated. There¡¯s nothing I can for either of us.¡± ¡°What about me?¡± Nadia¡¯s voice came over the Intercom. ¡°Nope, you¡¯re just as screwed as the rest of us.¡± ¡°Damnit,¡± Nadia¡¯s voice growled through the microphone. ¡°Wait a minute!¡± Elliot shouted, holding up a finger as a sudden realization occurred to him. ¡°What is it? Can you work something out?¡± Calvin asked, visibly getting excited. ¡°Indeed,¡± Elliot said, brushing past Calvin and sitting down in front of the computer, entering his amazing password. B-a-g-e-l-L-o-r-d-6-9 ¡°If you try to bolt again, I¡¯ll knock your teeth in,¡± Calvin said, holding onto Elliot¡¯s shoulder. Elliot snorted, bringing up the menu for the holding cells, and with a few strokes of the key, he enacted his master plan. The wall on the far side of their room disappeared, revealing Nadia sitting on a bean bag, her feet indolently thrown up on the table, devouring a bag of nacho chips, her bountiful cleavage catching a pool of crumbs. She was wearing some kind of extra-loose T-shirt with a scoop neck barely hanging on, her legs bare and splayed wide on the table above her. ¡°There, now we have three players for Uno. We¡¯ll go mad a lot slower now!¡± Elliot said with a grin. Nadia¡¯s eyes widened, and she choked on a chip, coughing violently and yanking her feet off the table before sitting up straight and wiping crumbs off her chest in a cascade of orange bits of flavored corn. She cleared her throat and put her nacho-stained fingers through her hair a couple times, before facing them, her skin-tight leather outfit returning. ¡°Ahem. You should¡¯ve warned me you were going to do that, I could have¡­made myself ready for you.¡± She said, posing provocatively. ¡°Nice save.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Drop the act, traitor,¡± Elliot said, waving his hand dismissively. ¡°We¡¯ve already seen you at your worst.¡± ¡°So, no living again?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Not from here, anyway, if any of us come back it¡¯s entirely in other people¡¯s hands now.¡± Elliot said, standing and dragging the table over to the middle of their shared space. ¡°You gonna get in on this?¡± Elliot asked, sitting down at the table. ¡°Agh, fine, how do I play?¡± Calvin asked, approaching the table, dragging a seat behind him. ¡°Wow, I never would have known if I hadn¡¯t seen it firsthand, but you two are so similar it¡¯s kinda creepy. You could be father and son.¡± Nadia said. ¡°The abyss we are.¡± ¡°No way in hell.¡± ***Kala*** It was done. Kala heaved a sigh of relief. Year of planning, gathering resources, months of checking and rechecking this same event, over and over, all to make sure it happened exactly the way it needed to happen. Elliot was wily, and he kept finding ways to escape one after another. It wasn¡¯t enough to play him and the Harbinger against each other. She had to locate someone who could hard-counter each and every one of his grotesque, amoral magicks, arrange them in their places without getting Elliot¡¯s attention, and run back and forth in the background non-stop. It had been a heroic undertaking, but the path forward was brighter for it. The Harbinger wouldn¡¯t return for years, his soul lost in the shuffle of whatever had caused the System to temporarily stop working. All that needed to be done was send Calvin¡¯s remains to Ella and¡­let her do her thing. Ella was too integral to the plan to riske her in the fight. Thankfully no one died, but if Ella had been killed, there would be no hope for Kala. No one else would do. She hoped it was the same Calvin and not just a copy of him, but there was no real way of telling. If her visions were to be believed, they would find a way to truly bring him back to life in a matter of years, but for the moment, he would have to accept being Ella¡¯s Chained spirit. They¡¯d have to keep it secret from the world at large, but only for a few years. Almost done now, Kala thought, collapsing to the ground as she turned her attention towards the future. ¡°Are you alright, Princess?¡± One of the Veterans asked, an older man named Hugar with a growing cancer in his lungs. Not enough to kill him, yet, but his days were numbered. He¡¯d jumped at the chance to live the rest of his life in battle. ¡°I¡¯m just tired. Let me be selfish and rest a moment while everything gets sorted out,¡± Kala said, pulling out her pipe and loading up her proprietary Future-Seeing blend. Hugar nodded and turned away. She inhaled deeply, then exhaled a thin trail of hallucinogenic smoke, turning her thoughts toward the years to follow. ¡­Nothing? That didn¡¯t seem right. How could there be nothing? There was a sharp pain in her back that caused all her muscles to seize up, forcing a soft grunt out of her mouth. Kala glanced down and saw a bloody blade jutting out of her chest. She tried to speak, but her lungs were paralyzed. ¡°A little bird told me you can see the future?¡± A woman whispered in her ear. A hand grasped her shoulder and pulled her backwards. Rather than collapsing to the ground, the stone beneath her acted like a liquid, swallowing her up in an instant. The last thing she saw before the stone flowed over her eyes was Hugar lunging toward her. After that, everything went black. Macronomicon I mean, if you can''t wait an hour, you could join my patreon, but then we''d all make fun of you. Chapter 209: After-Life *Author¡¯s note: This one¡¯s gonna piss people off. ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough. As nice as it would have been to get revenge, I can¡¯t risk failure here. I¡¯ll catch you later.¡± The Harbinger muttered, drawing itself to its feet. With its good arm, it pulled out a small black metal handle with a little tube ¨C Dodge! Elliot¡¯s scream was loaded with urgency, shocking Calvin into action. Calvinian summoning Atom Ant Heart of the swarm 1/47 Bent remaining. Calvin burst into millions of wasps, scattering in every direction. Whatever the attack the object made, enough of the swarm should be able to survive to allow him to ¨C The scene around Calvin flickered. He went from seeing everything from a million tiny eyes to being locked into two. The world around him was different, too. He was inside the office in his tower to all appearances, and¡­Ella was in front of him, her arm outstretched. The Genosian girl was smiling, but in her gaze, he could feel something was¡­wrong. ¡°What happened?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°You died, I¡¯m grinding the Chained Spirit Skill to earn Continuity so you stop asking me that question.¡± I¡¯m dead!? He hadn¡¯t even felt anything from the creature¡¯s attack. Is this an illusion? He scanned the room. Every detail was perfect, and his head didn¡¯t feel cloudy or anything he¡¯d come to associate with mind-magic. Matter of fact, he felt better than he ever had before, practically brimming with energy. He felt like he could sprint a marathon, he felt like he could hold his breath indefinitely. He felt like¡­his heart wasn¡¯t beating. Huh. ¡°If you¡¯re gona grind the skill, Then you should get ¨C¡° ¡°Bottled Bent by the thousands, yes, you¡¯ve already arranged it. Should be in by tomorrow.¡± Well, if that¡¯s taken care of, maybe we can do something a little less urgent. ¡°Well, how about ¨C¡° ¡°Sorry, but you don¡¯t last that long yet.¡± Ella said with a quirked smile. ¡°You don¡¯t-¡° ¡°Even know what you were about to say?¡± ¡°Eh, it-¡° ¡°Was worth a shot?¡± ¡°Godsdamnit! Stop finishing my -¡± ¡°Sandwiches.¡± She said with a smile. ¡°You¡¯re loving this, aren¡¯t you?¡± Calvin muttered, squinting at her. Her dad finally got what he wanted, and all of Calvin¡¯s territory in the bargain. ¡°No, I am not.¡± Ella said, her gaze radiating buried anguish. Sure she¡¯d be upset if I were dead, but Ella was raised Genosian. They don¡¯t feel bad for their Chained spirits. They honor them as valued ancestors and pass them down from father to son for generations. Being one is something to be sought after by the mightiest warriors. She shouldn¡¯t be quite this upset. Disappointed that our relationship has taken a different turn, sure, but not entirely despondent. Calvin scanned the room. ¡°Where¡¯s Kala?¡± ¡°She¡¯s out. Got bored watching you ask the same questions over and over again,¡± Ella said, glancing away from him. Even without feeling her gaze, he could feel her emotions through the tattoo on his back. He could tell Ella was misleading him. Her flaring emotions felt like he¡¯d picked at a fresh wound. ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡± ¡°I am,¡± She said, wiping a tear away. ¡°So where is she?¡± Calvin asked, becoming increasingly disturbed by Ella¡¯s silence. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Ella admitted, shaking her head. ¡°On the same day, those special tattoos you made for us stopped working, first yours, then Kala¡¯s.¡± Is she dead, then? Calvin thought, ice settling in his spine. ¡°Recently though,¡± Ella admitted, staring into the distance. ¡°There¡¯s been short bursts of terror coming through the tattoo.¡± ¡°Short bursts?¡± Calvin asked, mind racing. He had no idea what could obscure the marriage tattoo¡¯s connection between the three of them. He¡¯d tried, but the most he could do was muffle it. ¡°I¡¯ve heard stories from the people who were there when she vanished.¡± Elle said, her voice trembling. ¡°She was wounded and drawn into the earth beneath her before anyone had a chance to react. No one saw who did it, but I have an idea what might have allowed such a thing to happen.¡± ¡°What?¡± Calvin asked, eyes narrowed. ¡°The Stone-Diver tribe has an Ability they pass from father to son that allows them to swim through earth and stone. The description of the attack matches their tactics.¡± ¡°You¡¯re telling me Genosians have Kala?¡± Calvin asked, his anger rising. Short bursts of terror¡­ ¡°Are you telling me she¡¯s a Chained spirit!?¡± Calvin asked, leaning forward. It that why I can¡¯t feel her tattoo!? She was killed, eaten, and is now being used like a godsdamned plaything by your fucking cousins!? Is that what you¡¯re trying to say!?¡± Ella¡¯s face crumpled, and she buried her face in her hand, shocking Calvin out of his rage. ¡°This isn¡¯t the first time we¡¯ve had this conversation, is it?¡± Calvin asked. Ella shook her head. Calvin took a deep breath. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s calm down and talk about this slowly. Give me the highlights of everything we¡¯ve talked about, and what our plans are.¡± ***later*** ¡°UNO!¡± Calvin shouted, slapping the second-to-last card down, only to discover Elliot and Nadia had disappeared, and were now watching the moving picture box Elliot called the ¡®TeeVee¡¯. ¡°How long was I out that time?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Just over an hour,¡± Elliot said. Level four now, then. Hopefully Ella gets Continuity soon. Assuming I got eaten by Ella and not some rando. The thought of his corpse getting eaten by anything at all gave Calvin the willies, but there wasn¡¯t much he could do about it at the moment. His blackouts had lasted longer and longer, in easily discernable increments. One minute, then eight minutes, then almost half an hour. All the times were consistent with the Chained Spirit skill being leveled. **** Calvin burst into millions of wasps, scattering in every direction. Whatever the attack the object made, enough of the swarm should be able to survive to allow him to ¨C The scene around Calvin flickered. He went from seeing everything from a million tiny eyes to being locked into two. The world around him was different, too. He was inside the office in his tower to all appearances, and¡­Ella was in front of him, her arm outstretched. The Genosian girl was smiling, but in her gaze, he could feel something was¡­wrong. ***Kala*** ¡°A little bird told me you can see the future?¡± A woman whispered in her ear. A hand grasped her shoulder and pulled her backwards. Rather than collapsing to the ground, the stone beneath her acted like a liquid, swallowing her up in an instant. The last thing she saw before the stone flowed over her eyes was Hugar lunging toward her. After that, everything went black. - Kala gasped, trying to sit up, but her body was embedded in the ground, with only her head exposed to air. ¡°So Kala, tell me about the Siphons,¡± a woman¡¯s voice said from behind her. ¡°Not a chance,¡± Kala said, her heart slamming in her chest. ¡°Always the same answer,¡± the woman said with a chuckle. ¡°It¡¯s fine though, you don¡¯t have to say anything.¡± A moment later, she felt a piercing pain on the side of her head. A moment later a rush of paralyzing euphoria made her jaw go slack as her identity was eroded, her thoughts becoming muddied. ***Carem, still in the body of his wife*** +1 Mind! +1 Mind! Starting to get less from this princess by the day, Carem thought to her- himself ¨C Still, a hundred and sixty Mind would make the gods themselves tremble, I swear. Staying in this body is its own special kind of hell, though. From what he¡¯d learned about the Siphons, he knew there was a special warehouse in Uleis that could raise him his sixth Break. All he needed to know now were the finer details about where exactly it was, and how to get in undetected. I can¡¯t believe that fool thought he¡¯d killed me. He meant the Diocese, obviously. The diocese¡¯s death had been pretty believable, after all, so it was no surprise that Calvin thought he¡¯d been destroyed. As it turned out, the Ilethan mind-magic technique of Leashing was quite potent, allowing him to access his copy¡¯s mind and alter it at will. it was the basis of Mind-Slavery. It took time and effort to create a Leash, along with a subdued victim. He¡¯d gained the time after the city had rioted, giving him his Fifth Break, allowing him to gain more powerful Mind Magic from the System, rather than simply winging it. He¡¯d controlled the weak-minded guards like puppets, forcing them to escort him all the way to the Diocese, where he¡¯d swiftly subdued them, setting them about the task of causing even more destruction. Trade, he¡¯d kept for his own body, but at the last second, he¡¯d hesitated. He didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d truly cross over or if he¡¯d simply get to experience getting killed by his new acquisition. So he¡¯d Leashed it. The still-groggy copy had been unable to prevent Carem from forcing his will upon him and creating a Leash, allowing him total access to the man¡¯s mind at any time he wanted. In the former Diocese of Trade¡¯s case, he¡¯d given the man a memory of snapping the original¡¯s neck and taking his place. The outcome that likely would have happened without interference. During the fight between his puppet and the summoning Wizard, he¡¯d carefully observed from the sidelines while Calvin had utterly crushed his newfound Abilities with overwhelming force and years of battle experience. Carem was just too new at using his abilities to present any kind of significant threat, so he had to disappear for a while, until his death was an accepted ¡®fact¡¯. He was leaving to do just that when he heard Calvin accuse the dark-skinned girl of being able to see the future. His obsession for absorbing unique experiences reared its head up again, and he couldn¡¯t resist taking the bait. After all, Calvin had been killed by the other adventurers, the inhuman creature of similar power had also been destroyed, and the rest of them looked tired. Only the big woman was any threat to him, and she was halfway across the city. He saw an opportunity, and he took it. ¡°Can you stop thinking about Calvin?¡± Carem said as he sorted through her experiences, ¡°It¡¯s making this awkward for the both of us.¡± He didn¡¯t get any answer but a wordless groan. Not that being trepanned made people particularly chatty. >> Chained Spirit Has suffered Data Corruption!<< Purging corrupted Data. Restoring Backup from last uncorrupted Continuity timestamp Backup Restored. Initializing. Repair Complete. Continuity has lost 2 minutes and 43 seconds of unpackaged memory. Carem hummed tunelessly as he held his hand out above the princess-shaped hole in the floor and summoned another one. Chained Spirit Green smoke roiled out of Carem¡¯s good hand, sinking into the empty space in the solid stone, forming a skeleton, then wrapping it in flesh. ***Calvin*** Calvin blinked, and everything changed. Suddenly he was in two places at once, experiencing both his office, and the black room with Nadia and Elliot simultaneously. A second later, there was another him, standing in a slightly different place. both were linked to him and at the same time, they were him, they needed no direction whatsoever, each of them wrapped up in their own thoughts, which were so similar as to nearly be echoes of each other. Is Is Is that Is that- Is that me? Are- Are- Are we- Are we- Are we dead? Kala! Kala! Kala! I¡¯ve Kala! I¡¯ve Kala! I¡¯ve got to Kala! I¡¯ve got to Calvin winced as the thoughts seemingly reverberated through his head, and he instinctively connected to the Calvin¡¯s that were behind the curve and brought them up to speed with the others, making the thought-scape one cohesive harmony sung by dozens of Calvin¡¯s as Ella downed another potion, her grey-purple skin damp with sweat. The memories of dozens, hundreds of conversations with Ella hit him like a bull Guar, he remembered her gradually deteriorating condition, her desperate fervor, and Calvin realized that she¡¯d been practicing the skill for a solid month, and hadn¡¯t taken a break in days. Empty glass bottles, worth a gold coin apiece, were scattered haphazardly around the floor, and there was a suspicious flaky powder on the desk. Grave dust. It was the drug that Kala had shown him, the one that activated the brain¡¯s fear and anxiety response, allowing a person to artificially raise their skills faster. She must have shown it to Ella, too ¡°Ella, Ella!¡± Calvin said selecting the closest body and stepping forward, taking the open bottle of Bent out of the Genosian¡¯s hands. ¡°I wanted to get all of you back,¡± Ella said, her eyes puffy and bloodshot from crying, pupils dilated and heart hammering from fear. ¡°I thought if I raised the Skill to the same level you had it to before I took Continuity, you would¡­¡± She motioned halfheartedly at him. ¡°You need to sleep.¡± Calvin said. ¡°You¡¯ve got a lot of Endurance, but that¡¯s only going to slow down the damage to your body, not prevent it.¡± Ella shook her head, pushing herself to her feet, empty Bent bottles skittering out from underneath her. ¡°No, I¡¯m so close to level thirty. I can take Continuity then.¡± She said, trying to push him off with weakened arms. ¡°You just did,¡± Calvin said, frowning. Ella blinked at him. ¡°Now, you will go to sleep ¨C¡° ¡°Or we will put you to sleep.¡± Every one of his dozen bodies spoke at once. ¡°Okay,¡± Ella nodded, glancing toward the box full of Bent potions. ¡°Maybe I can get a couple more-¡° Calvin was forced to drag Ella to bed and put a guard on her, wasting one of his valuable bodies. The remaining eleven Calvins looked at each other, silently conversing with each other through their thoughts. Alright, the three closest to the lab are responsible for figuring out a way to make our body permanent. The rest of us are going to find out who took Kala and fucking murder him. We all agreed? The three closest to the lab had reservations. Save a piece for us. They deeply wanted in on the murdering, but understood the need for someone to find a way out of their current predicament. Oh, he¡¯s gonna be in pieces, alright¡­ Calvin thought, his body¡¯s eyes narrowing. We¡¯ve got eighteen days before this group expires. Let¡¯s make the most of it. ***Tzen chu, Imperial Prince*** Ever since that day in the capital of Juntai, Tzen had difficulty sleeping. He was finally free from the Harbinger¡¯s influence, but only the hopelessness of the war for succession waited for him at home. Perhaps it would be better to fake my death and retire to the country, Tzen thought before immediately chastising himself for having such weak-willed thoughts. Imperial princes did not ¡®give up¡¯. They faced reality and charged forward fearlessly. Hey. Hey kid! Not hearing anything. Tzen thought, turning in his bed, doing his absolute best to deny reality. I need you to go to the nearest Siphon and file a F-U-B-A-R form. There¡¯s some dubious shit going down on this planet, and the fleet need to catch wind of it before it bites us in the ass. Greshna is alive! He¡¯s alive, I say! Macronomicon Follow-up is coming, dude. Chapter 210: Rods from God *Author¡¯s note* This one¡¯s got a decent amount of cussing...mild NTR threats and light cannibalism.. You¡¯ve been warned. Okay, eight of us immediately available, we¡¯ve got six Bent each. In another eight to seventeen hours we¡¯ll have another¡­several hundred of us. Yeah. Let¡¯s find this fucker. The eight Calvins stepped out into the warm jungle air, raised their hands and burst into wasps, heading in eight different directions. 5/6 Chained Bent remaining. The plan: Create a massive octagon surrounding Stone-Diver territory and place all eight bodies around it. Create swarms of land-scouring scout-Nadias to cover all the ground in between. That way, either the scout Nadias would find something, and even if they didn¡¯t, Calvin could use his marriage tattoo to triangulate Kala¡¯s position, and therefore, the position of the man he was going to eat. Oh yes, we¡¯re eating this guy. Chained spirit can be passed down by eating it¡¯s owner. And Calvin had been considering the best way to do it, too. He was going to pin the bastard to a wall like an insect, use dupdomancy to copy his blood with Gradual Split, then start eating him alive over the course of a month, slicing off piece after piece, until there was nothing left but a head. A still living, still suffering head. You¡¯re gonna wanna take out his eyes and ears first. Don¡¯t wanna upset Kala. She¡¯ll be watching after all. Freaking out the girlfriend through reveal of violent character flaws is a common trope. To be avoided. What would I do without you? Calvin thought. Get killed maybe? Hah! Calvin settled into his positions around the jungle and unleashed a tremendous swarm of Nadias, who began scouring the jungle proper. 4/6 Chained Bent So let me see if I understand the math on this. You can cast six spells for each Bent that Ella spends summoning you? Yep. No wonder those spear chuckers like chained spirit so much. Can you still cast Chained Spirit? ***In Calvin¡¯s Lab*** One of the Calvin¡¯s at the lab raised a hand and summoned a Chained Spirit Nadia. Yep. Hax¡­. I call hax. How is this not an infinite dupe glitch, System? Wait, does this mean one kid with one Bent could summon an army with a Chained spirit with enough links? Looks that way. There had to be a reason the royal family didn¡¯t just wipe them out, after all. I guess so. ¡°Nadia, you¡¯re on Bent detail. Go find some people to drain.¡± ¡°Yay!¡± Nadia flew away at high speeds. Chained Spirit, Chained Spirit Chained Spirit. Calvin created three Kurawe. ¡°Re-establish my presence in my territory, Gadvera and Uleis. Tell them I was on some ridiculous training exercise. They¡¯d probably buy it.¡± ¡°Yes, Ravager,¡± The giant said, bowing before he too flew away, albeit less quickly than Nadia. Now, let¡¯s start experimenting. The method we need to consider is replacing every part of my body with real matter. This might happen if I were able to keep myself alive for a decade, and slowly replace every aspect of my body with actual matter, but I need to do this much faster than that. For that¡­ Would undifferentiated matter work? If he could find a way to treat his body as the blueprint, then force undifferentiated matter to create the blueprint¡­it would become real. He would be operating at a net loss in undifferentiated matter, but that was totally acceptable, he¡¯d have to make provisions for taking the blueprint of a bent construct, and he¡¯d have to take some measures to make sure the Bent fluctuations caused by a popping chained spirit body didn¡¯t destabilize the enchantment or corrupt the data, but¡­ It might just be possible. Does this mean I could make as many of me as I want!? Nah¡­ One of Calvin¡¯s long-held rules was not to pointlessly duplicate himself. Calvin didn¡¯t know how long he¡¯d get along with himself, after all. Calvin held out his hand and unleashed a flurry of Knick-Knacks. 3/6 Chained Bent remaining. Fetch a pallet of Nem and bring it to the third floor. Bring an industrial quantity of all the enchanting supplies as well, and a vial of undifferentiated matter from The Vat. We¡¯re going to be printing people, and they¡¯ve gotta be perfect. The Knick-knacks gave him a salute with a ¨C clang! ¨C before going about their business. Calvin felt a mad wizard laugh rising from his stomach, tinged with equal parts glee and inconsolable rage. The third floor was a massive empty room near the base of his tower. Calvin sat at the center of the empty space, consulting a Visualized representation of the proposed Chained Spirit Realifier ¨C better name pending ¨C with each of their minds working in tandem, though it, was difficult to get any new insight on the problem. The all had the same basic ideas, after all. Kurawe. Yes, Ravager? Send me the nearest enchanter. I need someone to proof my work. We don¡¯t have any of those nearby. The closest place would be Uleis. Calvin blinked. Then make one. We¡¯ve got our own Siphon. As you wish, Ravager. A short while later, a young lad of about thirteen stepped onto the third floor, jaw dropped and gawking at everything. ¡°Hi there, come on over.¡± Calvin said, waving him over. The kid gulped and walked over hesitantly. ¡°I¡¯m Chave, I was told to come here?¡± ¡°Hi, Chave, I¡¯m Calvin. Did you volunteer for this position?¡± The kid nodded silently. ¡°Good, good, and you read the primer on Enchanting?¡± He nodded. ¡°You got the Skill?¡± He nodded. ¡°Good, then sorry to throw you into the deep end all of a sudden, but could you check my work and tell me if there¡¯s any errors in the machine I¡¯ve created that will sunder the veil between life and death?¡± Calvin showed the kid the prototype he¡¯d been designing for the last hour. Come on, Forming day, work your magic. ¡°What are these?¡± ¡°Those are Henna lung spheres, they catch Bent backscatter.¡± ¡°If the subject is going to stand in the center,¡± Chave said, taking Calvin¡¯s pencil out of his hand, ¡°The arrangement of Henna lung spheres could cause destabilization at these points.¡± The kid started scribbling furiously, drawing a circle representing a person at the center of Calvin¡¯s machine with waves emitting outward and interacting with the spheres. Excellent¡­ Man, the System is easy to exploit. I¡¯m not exploiting the System. How¡¯s that? I¡¯m exploiting being rich. I own my own siphon, and I own my own workforce. Could I do this if I wasn¡¯t rich? Holy crap. I guess being rich really is the world¡¯s oldest superpower. ¡­The more you know ¨¤ Calvin was about to respond to Elliot¡¯s odd humor when his tattoo kicked on, and he felt a burst of terror radiating from the lotus Kala had inked on him. Calvin whipped around, facing the north. Each and every one of his bodies did the exact same maneuver, whipping around to face the direction the feeling had come from. Every single one of Calvin¡¯s bodies faced precisely toward Uleis, even the ones far to the east, who pointed a bit westerly. Each one of them faced precisely toward the city. What the fuck is a Stone-diver tribesman doing in Uleis? There was nothing a genosian wanted in the desert nation. They weren¡¯t fans of glass, nor was there much meat to go around in the sandy desert. Uleis had sand, and it had¡­ The siphon? Kala wouldn¡¯t tell anyone about the Siphon though...which implied some kind of mind-reading¡­ Carem. In Uleis. It hit Calvin like a hammer. The body hopper had stayed in his juntai wife¡¯s body, mind controlled his brain-slurped copy to think he was unique, then ambushed Kala when she was fatigued after the battle¡­using Abilities the Juntai had been unwittingly feeding him along with the Genosians they¡¯d been hoping to extract information from. The Genosians were horrible cannibals, but they weren¡¯t the monsters he was looking for. ¡°Son of a BITCH!¡± Every single Calvin shouted at once, causing his brand-new enchanting specialist to flinch away from him. ¡°Not you, just realized I left something on the stove way too long,¡± Calvin said, writing a note. ¡°I¡¯m gonna go take care of it. If I¡¯m not back in¡­five hours with the bloody corpse of a petite Juntai woman, give this to Ella. She¡¯s asleep on the second floor.¡± The note read: Ella. Kala¡¯s in Uleis, Carem¡¯s probably got her. If you¡¯re reading this, dismiss all my copies, because I¡¯m probably mind-controlled. I¡¯m off to go kill the bastard and get our wife back. P.S. The new bookshelf in our room clashes with the arrold skin carpet. Don¡¯t think I¡¯ll let this travesty continue. One or the other has to go. Always finish with a joke, Calvin thought, crumpling up the note in his fist and tossing it at Chave before he sprinted out of the building, aiming to catch up with the other Calvins, who¡¯d gotten ahead of him while he was writing. ***later*** All twelve Calvins arrived at the Uleis at the same time, wordlessly agreeing to arrive in force. They each had about two Bent remaining, which might not be enough to do what they needed to do, but they could at least scout it out. One of the Guys. Each of the Calvin¡¯s dropped out of Heart of the Swarm and fell silently to the ground, disguising themselves as fellow Uleisans. Nearly identical ones, but nobody said the Mutation was perfect. They prowled the street, creeping toward the Siphon in the cool night air of the desert city, glass buildings looming over them. It was strangely quiet. Normally, there¡¯d be a few shouting children, maybe some animals, and the occasional heated argument between lovers. It was only to be expected in a densely populated city. But it was quiet. Here, I¡¯ll keep score. Red flag Number one. Calvin approached the warehouse he¡¯d built above the siphon, hanging back with most of his bodies, and choosing one to move forward with, dismissing the effects of One of the Guys. These people were under his authority. Calvin entered the code to open the door and walked in like he owned the place. Because he owned the place. There were seven man stationed around the hole, manning ballista, while another ten or so were seated around a table, more relaxed, playing cards and drinking, their weapons resting beside them. They were the graveyard shift of the Siphon. Calvin walked out of the darkness, into the light of the lamps. ¡°I¡¯ve got questions,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Holy-¡° The man facing toward him launched to his feet, grabbing for his weapon, his expression alarmed and angry. It flickered for a moment before fading away, behind a mask of subservience. ¡°B-boss. You scared the crap outta me. I thought you¡­I thought you were out of state.¡± The other men turned to face him, their expressions similarly alarmed or amazed. ¡°Did anyone new come here a month ago? A woman missing a hand?¡± Calvin asked, scanning his audience. ¡°No sir, it¡¯s been quiet. ¡®cept for when Phil lost his foot, but accidents happen on this job. Is there anything we can help you with? You gonna take the tour see how well we¡¯ve been keeping the place?¡± The man¡¯s words sounded confident, but his gaze radiated smug superiority and the urge to toy with a plaything. All their gazes did. If there was one thing Calvin had never experienced before, it was uniformity of emotion between many different people. Calvin¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°I¡¯m just gonna assume all of you were mind controlled by Carem¡­¡± Calvin cocked his head, feeling their emotions turn more alarmed, but they were still missing that trill of fear that someone got when you nailed their secret. ¡°No¡­you all are Carem?¡± Their fear spiked up a notch. ¡°That¡¯s on the money.¡± Calvin clapped his hands together. ¡°Alright. I propose a deal. You tell me where to find the one that¡¯s got Kala¡¯s Chained spirit, and I¡¯ll just kill you instead of forcing you to watch yourself get eaten alive.¡± ¡°Motherfucker!¡± one of them shouted ¨C in Juntai, by the way ¨C before breathing in and exhaling a glowing purple jet of air. Nice bluff. Calvin shrugged, unconcerned with the oncoming wave of miasma. It rolled over him and destroyed his body in a fraction of a second. ***Outside the building*** Calvin pressed his multiple ears to the thin wall of the rolling gate, his high Body allowing to pick out their conversation. ¡°Was that really him!?¡± Calvin head one of the men shout at another in Juntai. ¡°He¡¯s supposed to be dead!¡± ¡°The Abyss should I know? He didn¡¯t use any Abilities, so it might as well have been a damned shapeshifter. You, you, and I are going to report this to God, the rest of you keep watch on the hole.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± He calls himself God? Calvin thought, raising a brow. Of course he does. An interesting note was that they didn¡¯t seem to have any means of instantly contacting their originator, having to run the message out to him manually. I wonder if there¡¯s a reason for that. Perhaps to prevent his minions from networking with each other and overpowering him? This guy trusted himself even less than Calvin did, and yet still made copies of his personality. Asshole. Calvin¡¯s eleven bodies ghosted behind the three men running down the streets¡­aiming straight for the palace. The second place I was going to check. The guy¡¯s fairly predictable. Calvin was sneaking over the wall of the palace when his muscles locked in place. each and every one of his copies froze in place, their bodies unresponsive. Calvin! So good to see you again! A familiar voice entered his mind, a greasy, gloating voice. Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 2 hours. Motherfucker! Calvin¡¯s body finished the climb regardless of his will, and his eleven copies joined him, dragged along by the overwhelming power puppeting their every move. Together, the eleven of them entered the palace through the front door, men and women bowing as they passed, treating them like guests of honor, but Calvin could feel the derision in their gaze. They were also Carem. ***the Black Room*** I¡¯m beginning to see a pattern here, Calvin thought, squeezing the stress toy in the Black Room as he experienced the eleven body¡¯s anger and frustration simultaneously. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you leave a couple behind?¡± Elliot asked curiously. ¡°Because I wasn¡¯t sure if he could follow the mental link between Chained Spirits or not.¡± Calvin said, scowling. ¡°Didn¡¯t want a possible controlled body within a thousand miles of Ella. If she dies, we¡¯re basically fucked.¡± ¡°Ah, that makes sense,¡± Elliot said, nodding. **** Calvin struggled against the control every step of the way, but eventually, his body walked him through the scintillating glass halls, all the way to the gaudy throne room, where a familiar one-armed woman was reclining, watching him with a sardonic grin as several dusky skinned girls fanned her with blank expressions. Kala. Calvin tried to speak, but his jaw clenched instead, so hard that his teeth creaked against each other. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you again!¡± The woman said, her voice filling the large hall. ¡°I never really got to thank you for knocking me out of my rut. I was a big fish in a small pond. I never really knew how much the world had to offer until I took that sweet treat¡¯s first time. Nadia was it?¡± The restrictions on Calvin¡¯s body eased, and he found himself able to speak. ¡°Why are you being such a bitch? You on the rag?¡± Calvin¡¯s fist swept up and punched his own face, sending stars across his vision and causing his nose to bleed green smoke. Of course a Juntai-raised serial killer would have objections to being in a woman¡¯s body¡­and that was a great way to rattle him. Make him make a mistake. Calvin¡¯s jaw cramped up again, preventing him from speaking. ¡°You listen here, you little shit. This city is mine. I¡¯ve copied myself into every single Uleisan. Every one of them is a Legend with every one of my abilities, and I have complete control over them. I own this city.¡± ¡°I own this girl.¡± Carem reached out and roughly grabbed Kala¡¯s hip. ¡°Your stupid ass got yourself killed and turned into a Chained Spirit. Who ate you, that big Genosian girl that was always hanging around? Yeah, I thought so. I¡¯ll be adding both of you to my collection soon enough. Two for one.¡± Carem grinned. ¡°It won¡¯t be long until I¡¯m everywhere, so just wait for it. In the meantime, you can be sure I¡¯m taking taking full advantage of everything the princess has to offer.¡± Calvin¡¯s jaw unclenched, the hold over him loosening. Calvin stretched his cramped jaw, and flexed his hands experimentally, finally in control of them again. A cold rage swept through him. ¡°It seems like you¡¯re trying to provoke me.¡± He said, eyeing the twat on the throne. ¡°I just want to point out that you¡¯ve never actually seen me mad.¡± ¡°Maybe you¡¯ve got some goal, or master plan that hinges on me getting angry, or maybe it¡¯s just your winning personality shining through. In either case¡­Consider me provoked,¡± Calvin said, sliding a blade out of his palm using blade body before driving it through his own skull. ¡°I was not expecting that,¡± Carem muttered to himself as Calvin poofed into green smoke. *** Historians called this the day of Fire and Ecstasy, The first official account of the Demoness Nadia, as well as the loss of the city of Uleis. It is theorized she visited Marconen before the day she terrorized people across the world, as there have been accounts of a dark-haired girl matching her description beforehand, in places such as Gadvera and Juntai, but these are unconfirmed. Some scholars even suggest her origin might actually be the third princess of Iletha, a girl of the same name. But that¡¯s hogwash. No human being can become a demon. It¡¯s just not possible. ***Calvin**** One Bent makes one me. One me makes six Nadia. Six Nadia spread out through Calvin¡¯s March, dragging people into alleyways and draining them, netting Ella one hundred and fifty Bent in the first ten minutes One hundred and fifty Bent makes one hundred and fifty me. One hundred and fifty me makes nine hundred Nadia. Nine hundred Nadia spread across the country at speeds defying logic, while the original six Nadia bring in an extra one hundred Bent, indicating a diminishing rate of return. Eighty Bent, forty Bent, ten, and finally, the citizens of Calvin¡¯s march have nothing left to offer her. Two thousand three hundred and eighty six Nadia settle in villages and towns dotting the continent, earning Sixty-nine thousand three hundred Bent over the next half hour. Ella is holding it together, but just barely, we¡¯ve been forced to reduce our input to match her casting speed of twelve Chained Spirit per second. I¡¯ve gained six levels in Chained Spirit, and Ella has gained three. Ella learned the slanted Negotiations Ability, and I am able to cast using her Bent at a 2-for-one cost. The time value outweighs the extra cost, and we are able to increase our output speed by several hundred times. Once I have enough Nadia, I switch tracks. Calvin had been red angry before, but this fury was unlike anything he¡¯d ever experienced. It actually made him calm, and precise. Switching to Knick-knacks and mass converters¡­. Calvinian summoning has reached level 32! Calvinian summoning has reached level 33! Calvinian summoning has reached level 34! The mountains sheltering Calvin¡¯s march were reduced to a couple giant vats of undifferentiated matter, leaving Calvin¡¯s tower the only thing dominating the skyline, a sharp black spire reaching into the sky. Now Nadia with Atom Ant. Calvin created several hundred giant Nadia instructing them to carry the platform carrying the vats and thousands more Knick-knacks into the sky until there was no more air. Then keep going. Her physical form should be tough enough to resist a vacuum, Elliot said. Plus they don¡¯t breathe. Good. Bring me tongues! Yessir. Tongues from across the world began reaching him, Carried by Nadia. Some were bloody, obviously being taken from someone still alive. They were rude. Calvin wasn¡¯t being picky at the moment. He Consumed them all. Thank the gods, his mutation seemed to work despite still being a Chained Spirit. Languages from dozens of countries, obscure natives hidden deep in hard-to-reach places, and exotic islands, poured through him. Only three hours passed before he went back to Uleis, his army a cloud that swallowed the horizon. When he arrived at the glittering city, he directed his army to surround it, closing off any chance of escape. In the distance, a little speck of black rose above Uleis, followed by thousands more. Calvin went forward to meet them, leaving the rest of his copies and tens of thousands of Nadia behind. Outside the splash zone. Gotta keep Carem in one place, after all. ¡°Look at you,¡± Carem said with a grin. ¡°Come to play at war? I¡¯m game if you are. We¡¯ve got plenty of pawns.¡± He held out a hand and a gust of green smoke resolved itself into Kala, standing in front of him with a blank expression. ¡°Sic¡¯ em.¡± ¡°Gods, you¡¯re predictable,¡± Calvin sighed, waving a hand as Kala lunged toward him. Multi Splitting 1/7 Chained Bent remaining Calvin created a charge of dynamite and Abyssal steel shrapnel in front of Kala, blowing her to tiny bits. She turned to green smoke before fading away, revealing Carem¡¯s stunned expression. ¡°Yes, yes, how could you do that to your wife, I know. You were probably expecting me to try to talk her out of it, or gnash my teeth in impotent rage.¡± Calvin tapped his head. ¡°But all those second-hand accounts you¡¯ve stolen from other people have been messing with your head, making you think you know me. But you had no idea who you were fucking with. Drop it!¡± ***Fifty miles above Uleis*** And that¡¯s the signal. A hundred Nadia¡¯s, each weighing a thousand pounds, put their shoulders up against the first Abyssal Steel rod, the Knick-knacks taking care of the finer points of aiming the mountain sized piece of steel as they began putting their backs into it. It¡¯s really neat to know for sure the world is round. ******* ¡°Drop what?¡± Carem asked, glancing up. Why do so few people look up? In the sky was a glint of light, smaller than Calvin¡¯s pinky nail. But it was getting bigger. Carem looked back down and snarled. Calvin could tell from the look in the guy¡¯s eye that he knew diving underground wouldn¡¯t be a solution The underground for a few miles in every direction was going to get a little hot. A sudden pressure and white noise surrounded Calvin¡¯s mind as Carem tried to take control of him again, but it didn¡¯t impair him. Not until Carem figured out how to decipher every language on the continent. Calvin rushed forward on a pillar of air and tackled Carem across the midsection, forcing him closer to the city. ¡°Let¡¯s take a closer look!¡± Calvin said, feeling a manic grin overtaking his face. ¡°Fuck you!¡± Carem shouted, beating on Calvin¡¯s head and neck with surprising force before trying to inhale and blow the death fog on him. Calvin filled Carem¡¯s mouth with his fist, and kept pushing. The fog ate his fist, but the rest was diverted off course, and Calvin kept pushing. Everything went white, then that particular body¡¯s point of view winked out. ***Calvin several miles away**** A streak of white-hot steel that dwarfed the largest buildings of Uleis descended from the sky, impacting the center of the city in a massive explosion of unbridled force. The surface of Marconen became liquid, creating a rolling wave of destruction that rippled outward from the city, annihilating everything in the path of the molten earth. The army braced themselves against the wave, and even drastically reduced by distance, they still struggled to stand against its power. Finally it was over, leaving nothing but glass in every direction for miles, and a tremendous crater in the desert where the city of Uleis used to be. Ah, there he is, Calvin thought to himself as he spotted a petite, ragged body tumbling through the sky, aiming for the ground. The closest Calvins and Nadias shot forward to intercept him. ¡°Not so fast!¡± Calvin shouted, grabbing the body hoppers ankle and he began sinking into the glass below them, before heaving him back out. ¡°We¡¯ve got so much to talk abou-¡° The body hopper¡¯s purple breath caught Calvin in the face, disintegrating his head. Calvin simply stepped in with his next body, grabbing her by the same ankle. ¡°About! I didn¡¯t even get to tell you what¡¯s going to happen next!¡± Carem swung a blood sword, and Calvin stepped forward, allowing it to sink partway through his body before he caught the guy¡¯s wrist, pinning it place. ¡°Heyo!¡± another Calvin said, front-kicking the pinned arm, breaking it easily, eliciting a scream of pain. The Calvin pinning the arm vanished on account of lethal damage, giving another one a chance to step in. ¡°How much Bent have you got, Carem? Calvin asked, grinning as he grabbed the man¡¯s tattered shirt and hauled him in close. ¡°Because I guarantee it won¡¯t be enough.¡± Calvin wrenched the man¡¯s broken arm back with one hand, forcing his head away with his other. ¡°Now, we come to our finest moment together.¡± Calvin¡¯s body froze. Every Calvin across the entire army froze in their tracks. Your Stability is not strong enough to shrug off the effects. Your Will has begun digesting the foreign Bent, ETA 35 minutes. ¡°Hah! HAHAHAH!¡± Carem crowed, shoving Calvin¡¯s hand away from his face. ¡°I¡¯m a fucking GOD you stupid- Foreign Bent has removed the effects. Floating above them, several dozen Nadia¡¯s were holding hands in a wide circle around the two of them. ¡°He won¡¯t be able to use Bent again,¡± Nadia said with a nod. ¡°Good,¡± Calvin said, grabbing Carem¡¯s remaining hand and dragging it toward his mouth. ¡°No! NOO!¡± Carem bucked and kicked with everything he had, but there were at least six Calvin¡¯s holding him down at this point, and for some reason, his mind-magic wasn¡¯t working. I would rather give Nadia her Bent back than see you take another breath. Uh, Calvin? Elliot asked. What!? On your right. Calvin glanced over to the right, and spotted something in the distance. The crater of Uleis was rapidly filling with the white mist that hovered over top of the Siphon. It looked like the gash between realities was growing uncontrollably, spreading several feet per second, lapping at the edges of the crater before spilling out. ¡°I¡¯m busy. Close it.¡± I don¡¯t think it works like that. ¡°Close it.¡± Calvin said, his anger boiling up into his voice. Anger, and something else. Command confirmed. Closing Siphon 3?64942?812?8272531: The reality warping mist began to recede. Uuuh, what the fuck was that? Crunch! Calvin bit off Carem¡¯s index finger, coating his mouth and chin with fresh blood. ¡°You probably don¡¯t get this very often,¡± Calvin said, chewing his way through the bone. ¡°But you taste soo much better than I thought you would.¡± A shrill scream started deep in Carem¡¯s chest and rose until it felt like it could shatter glass, echoing across the desolate landscape. Macronomicon See you guys next week! (waves) Chapter 211: It’s totally legally binding Once he calmed down, Calvin reneged on the whole ¡®eating him alive¡¯ plan and simply killed Carem, cutting off his head, removing his heart and lobotomizing him before putting his body on ice. The reasoning was such: it takes at least a month to eat a human body the old fashioned way. That was an extra month he wouldn¡¯t have his wife back, and during that time, Kala would be sitting around in the Black Room, going crazy from isolation. That was also an extra month Carem could use to devise some kind of escape. It would take a revenge-blinded idiot to not see the problems inherent, and Calvin was able to get his rationality back after only two fingers. So he killed Carem and iced the body to use with Consume once he got a real body back. His Gift of Tongues mutation worked, but Calvin didn¡¯t want to use Consume on Carem only to discover that a Chained Spirit couldn¡¯t get another one. Once that was taken care of, Calvin had his legion of Nadias ¡®sniff out¡¯ Carem moles across the continent, identifying anyone whose mind was a copy of the body hopping menace. There were more of them than Calvin had thought, but he never killed them before they revealed themselves somehow, given his natural suspicion of Nadia¡¯s honesty. ¡°There¡¯s one,¡± Nadia said, pointing out a little old lady selling fried sliver on the side of the street, and Calvin marked her for further investigation. Now that she had her Bent back, Nadia was tremendously dangerous, especially in multiples, since that allowed her to combine her mental Guar-power, linking her minds together in a way that seemed to be either unique to her as a Chained Spirit, or an Ilethan royal scion. She wasn¡¯t spilling the beans. Stringing her multiple minds together had made her strong enough to treat someone with more than a hundred Mind like a child. Quantity over quality, at this point. Death by packing peanuts. After the initial purge, Calvin summoned her sparingly and tried to keep her total number to three or below. His mental defenses were much, much stronger than when he¡¯d first met her, but he doubted he could resist more than a handful of Nadias at a time. If she wanted to put a Leash on you, it would have been when there were thousands of her. Maybe. Maybe not. Nadia was hard to figure out. Had she simply decided she liked him enough not to stab him in the back, or was she playing the long con? If she was playing the long con, what opportunity could she be waiting for that was better than when she was spread all across the world in staggering numbers, practically unchecked? She could have had hundreds of them taking advantage to the situation and Calvin wouldn¡¯t have had any idea what she was up to. It was a drop in the bucket. And yet¡­nothing. Here he was, waiting for the other shoe to drop. I¡¯m probably doing more damage to myself just by worrying about it. He¡¯d deal with it, if and when it came. Or, you know, suffer eternally as a crazy witch¡¯s plaything. However it goes. I feel sorry for anyone who thinks they can toy with me. I guess you¡¯ve got the track record to back that one up. The work on the reviving machine went by fast. It was, after all, based on something he¡¯d already made, and the only tricky part was making sure it was capable of using Calvin¡¯s Blade Body mutation ¨C he had a barrel of the stuff ¨C to copy a Chained spirit¡¯s physical blueprint perfectly. It couldn¡¯t break people down in a fraction of a second, it had to be much faster than that. Near instantaneous. Faster than the System could react and dissolve the Chained Spirit due to lethal damage. When it was complete, the machine took up a huge portion of the third floor, a massive steel cylinder with a vault-like door that closed and locked behind the subject, so that the entire interior was a perfectly uniform series of emitters. Calvin had raised the size, accuracy, and durability of his original designs, in order to be absolutely sure nothing went wrong. The amount of Nem was staggering, but he could afford it, and the price of every other material was completely offset by undifferentiated matter reserves the Knick knacks piped in as they essentially printed the thing. Scarier when you¡¯re doing it to yourself, isn¡¯t it? Elliot goaded him. Bah, Calvin scoffed, taking off his clothes and stepping into the chamber, standing on the little circle in the center. Ella locked the door behind him. ¡°Alright, go for it!¡± Calvin shouted. Hey, are you sure this is gonna be- ***The Black Room*** The Black Room shuddered. ¡°What was that?¡± Elliot demanded, glancing around. ¡°From the chained spirit reviving machine?¡± Calvin asked. Need a better name for it. ¡°But movement in here means ¨C oh, crap! ¨C¡° The Black room bucked underneath them, violently. ¡°Whoah, what the Abyss?¡± Nadia asked, sitting up, blinking groggily. Her next question was lost in the chaos as the black rooms began to toss up and down, side to side, like a toddler shaking a box with ants in it. Calvin watched Nadia¡¯s room peel away from theirs in the confusion, the invisible division between them returning to black walls. ¡°What¡¯s going on!?¡± Calvin asked over the din, holding onto the table secured to the floor in a desperate attempt to keep his balance. ¡°Well, the good news is, I think our souls are getting shuffled around thanks to your machine, which means there¡¯s a chance this could work! The bad news is, Idunno what¡¯s gonna happen next!¡± Elliot shouted. ¡°I¡¯ll take it,¡± Calvin said, giving Elliot a thumbs up. Then the floor jumped up and the table smacked him in the chin an instant before the entire room flipped long-ways, and Calvin found himself clinging to the table for dear life as empty beer bottles and a ¡®toaster¡¯ swooped down from Elliot¡¯s kitchen, nearly nailing him in the head. ¡°I would¡¯ve cleaned up!¡± Elliot shouted apologetically, clinging to the bottom of his ¡®computer¡¯, his legs dangling in the air. The Black Room then started shaking even more violently, like someone trying to dislodge something. Me, perhaps? Taking a chance, Calvin let go of the table and hurtled down toward the back of the room, arms flailing as he tumbled toward the rear wall of the room. He tucked in his arms and legs and braces for impact, and¡­.nothing. Calvin opened his eyes to find himself flung out into the void. The only evidence he was spinning violently was the toaster that seemed to orbit him, drawn along in his flight out of the Black Room. There was no motion sickness, or disturbance in his inner ear. He felt nothing. There was a massive plane of steel above him, descending from above. It was angled with a razor sharp chisel edge, and it was coming down toward his head. ¡°Ack!¡± Calvin grabbed the toaster and threw it backward, towards the direction he felt like he¡¯d come from, trying to use it to give himself just a little extra momentum in this world of emptiness. The world-severing blade came down, inches away from his tucked in arms , the pressure of its passing sending him tumbling into the void. Then¡­he hit something. ***Calvin*** Calvin¡¯s eye¡¯s flew open. He was staring at a series of metallic bumps arranged around him in a circle. He was standing in the center of some kind of bumpy metal cylinder, with blue glass laid into the floor beneath him, along with pinhole openings below him. How did I get here? The last thing I remember is¡­ What is the last thing I remember? >>>Error<<< Illegal soul call error, duplication forbidden. Correcting. Isolating soul and assigning to most suitable vessel. Soul Isolated. Soul damaged, fragmented User consciousness. Damage tagged: ¡®Doug¡¯s Isekai Hero Summoning: Adaptive Problem Solving AI ? Subroutine. ¡¯ Begin repair from backup. Searching for Backup¡­>>Error, File not Found<< Soul I.D. Missing. Reading Soul Data. Comparing to Database¡­.No match found. Comparing to Hard-Coded Entries¡­ File found. Assigning I.D¡­.Done Welcome back, User 0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-1. Do you wish to revert to the Hard-coded backup? You will lose 13,682 Kulestha Standard years of memory. Y/N? Do I want to lose my memories for the last thirteen thousand years and become someone else who¡¯s apparently been hard coded into the System? Ummm¡­.No. Confirmed, Owner will continue to believe himself a pathetic homo sapiens with garbled memories and a split personality. I can¡¯t say I approve of this choice. Repair failure, reverting to most recent functional state. Writing Soul Memories. ¡­What the hell was that abou- In the middle of his thought, like day and night, Calvin suddenly understood where he was and what he was doing. ¡°Holy Guar shit, it worked!¡± ¡°I have conquered Death! Master Wizard!¡± Calvin shouted at the top of his lungs before moon-walking around the edge of the chamber. That¡¯s like, the starting line for all the best Master Wizards. Elliot said, I mean, I did it nearly a thousand years before you did. He sounded a little miffed. Yeah, but I did it at nineteen. Oh yeah, is everyone here in one piece? Sound off! I remain yours to command, Ravager. Kurawe said. I felt like I was gonna puke. Let¡¯s not do that again. Nadia¡¯s voice echoed in his mind. Calvin fist-pumped as the vault door of the chamber swung open. Behind the door, Ella, Baroke and Goob watched in amazement as Calvin danced past them, grabbing new clothes and slipping them on. ¡°Did it work?¡± Baroke asked with a frown. ¡°The System told me my Chained Spirit had been removed because of an illegal soul call error?¡± Ella said. She held out her hand for a moment before shrugging and putting it back down. ¡°Nothing. I can¡¯t summon him anymore.¡± ¡°You¡­brought yourself back to life?¡± Baroke asked. ¡°How the Abyss do you get so lucky? I¡¯ll bet my left nut against your entire kingdom there¡¯s some kind of horrifying catch.¡± ¡°Nah,¡± Calvin said, ejecting one of his knives with Blade body and using it to cut his palm. ¡°Totally alive again.¡± He held it out for Baroke to see. Baroke broke into a giggling fit. Calvin scowled and peered at the blood on his palm. A rich, velvety royal purple substance was trickling down his palm, sending icy panic down Calvin¡¯s spine. ¡°Fuck.¡± ¡°C¡¯mon Goob, I¡¯ve got some good ideas for things that could use some improvement around here.¡± Baroke said with a chuckle as he turned away. ¡°Now that I own this place and all.¡± ¡°That bet isn¡¯t legally binding!!¡± Calvin shouted after him, staunching the flow of¡­whatever¡­out of his hand. Baroke just waved as he left, his booming laughter echoing through Calvin¡¯s tower. ¡°Here,¡± Ella said, handing Calvin a clean rag. ¡°I¡¯ve never even heard of a Chained Spirit becoming alive again. There¡¯s never been anything like it.¡± Calvin took the rag and wound it around his palm, grumbling as he glared after Baroke. ¡°Yeah, well, it¡¯s not a perfect death cure. Only works on Bent contructs, and it can¡¯t create duplicate souls.¡± Calvin shielded his mind from Nadia. Although it could be used as a safety net. ¡°Wow, you smell really good,¡± Ella said, leaning in close and sniffing him. ¡°Um¡­¡± Calvin refocused his attention on the oversized Genosian woman. She was leaning in, her body tilted toward him, breath playing against his ears. ¡°Yeah, you smell different than before.¡± She said, giving him a few more experimental sniffs before grabbing his wounded hand and sniffing it. ¡°Wow.¡± She let his hand go and grinned at him. ¡°Yep, that was it. You¡¯re stuffed with sexy-smelling purple juice. I¡¯m tempted to call this a benefit.¡± ¡°Gods,¡± Calvin said, holding his fingers to his neck. ¡°I don¡¯t even have a heartbeat.¡± Calvin spotted Ella glancing at a bit of purple on her thumb. ¡°Don¡¯t do it,¡± Calvin warned. ¡°Do what?¡± Ella asked, bringing her hand up to her mouth and licking the blood off with her inhumanly long tongue. There was an immediate reaction. ¡°Ew,¡± Ella said, scrunching up her face. ¡°It¡¯s so bitter. Why would blood be bitter?¡± She immediately began trying to scrape it off of her tongue with her fingernails before finally grabbing a dirty rag rack from his workshop and dragging it across her tastebuds. Alkaloids, probably? ¡°And that¡¯s what you get for ingesting weird substances with unknown effects.¡± Ella shook her head and shuddered, her face still scrunched up in displeasure. ¡°But it¡¯s yours,¡± She said as if that explained everything. ¡°I thought it would be fine.¡± ¡°That reasoning doesn¡¯t hold up at all. Come on, we¡¯ve gotta go bring Kala back to life, then we can stop Baroke from running this place into the ground.¡± Ella nodded, following behind him as he made for the freezer. When he got to the elevator, it gave a ding and opened up, revealing a young messanger of Gadveran descent. He was wearing the royal livery of Gadvera. ¡°Oh, there you are, I guess I¡¯ll just do this here.¡± He put his foot in the door of the elevator and opened up the scroll on his hip. ¡° Prince-consort, Marquis Calvin Gadsint, Your presence has been requested at a summit of nations concerning the recent destruction of Uleis by powers most foul, as well as to discuss the sexual assault of thousands of citizens of every nation by the omnipresent demon succubus. Steps must be taken to secure our borders against the demonic threat.¡± ¡°¡­I have it on good authority that most of them liked it.¡± Calvin said. ¡°The message has been delivered,¡± The messenger said with an expressionless face, handing Calvin the scroll, bowing, then taking his foot out of the elevator door, allowing it to close again. Ding! ¡°Well, now that¡¯s on the agenda,¡± Calvin said with a sigh, pocketing the scroll. ¡°At least I wasn¡¯t still naked.¡± ¡°My ton is num¡± Ella said. Calvin Gadsint Body: 35 Strength: 24 Kinesthetics: 25 Endurance: 24 Mind: 45 Intuition: 31 Stability: 42 Will: 41 Bent: 47/42+5 Warp: 0/35 Skills: Stealth 10 Playboy 14 Old Salt 15 Sense-Grafting 20 Dupdomancy 20 Meditation 25 Chained Spirit 31 Calvinian Summoning 34 Your Princess is in Another Castle 19 Beli Ma 26 Genosian Language 13 Shifting 17 Abyssal Alchemy 14 Drafting 19 Bent Manipulation 19 Trait Doctoring 20 Race Change: Human -> Maculat Mulieres (Undead) Things known about Maculat Mulieres: (Calvin¡¯s Journal) Blood is a rich, pleasing purple color, very bitter, with a strong numbing sensation. Smell is reported as being pleasant. Possibly may cause compulsive behavior. Macronomicon Chapter 212: Prep-Work Alright, here we go, Calvin thought, kneeling down and touching the frozen pile of parts that was all that remained of Carem. Consume. 11/47 Bent remaining. Entire creature eaten. Chained Spirit detecting additional links connected to primary soul. Inheritance protocol initiated. Carem Sageva: 35 M Mutant humanoid (primary) Erina Toren: 16 F Human (secondary) Kala Entredez: 19 F human (Tertiary) You may assign the primary spirit and others to a single slot without disconnecting the other links, or you may break them apart and assign them to slots individually. would you like to assign them to a single slot in Chained Spirit? No. Separate them. And who the hell is Erina Toren? Please assign the Spirits to slots. Kala Entredez. Assigned. 1/4 Slots remaining Erina Toren was one of Carem¡¯s victems, no doubt about it¡­ It would be far kinder to let her move on to whatever life awaited her next. As for Carem¡­ Calvin¡¯s summons had Bent now. Why on Marconen would he ever give the man a chance to come back? Calvin even had a chamber specifically designed to bring Chained spirits back to life. It was hard to see that not going horribly wrong at some point. Discard the other two. Are you sure? This is not reversible. Yes. Done. Kala Entredez: 19 years old, female human. With a naturally high talent for Bent, this human unlocked the unique Seer skill at a very young age, making them a very valuable political piece. Although shaped by a harsh upbringing into the tough and responsible Princess of Gadvera, the spirit seeks prurient escape, and a simpler existence. Summon 1 Kala Entredez, 20 days, 16 hours, 31 minutes. Hmm¡­. Calvin re-read the description. I wonder what mine said? Well, whatever. Kala, can you hear me? ¡­.. Kala? ¡­. Why wouldn¡¯t she respond? Well¡­that¡¯s not a good sign. Let me try. Carem probably didn¡¯t know I existed¡­or maybe he did. In any case, lemme give it a shot. ¡­. ¡­.. Calvin waited impatiently for a response, rubbing his fingernails together as the minutes stretched out. Calvin? Kala¡¯s voice echoed through Calvin¡¯s mind. Yeah, it¡¯s me. I got the guy! We can bring you back now! Calvin stood from the freezer floor and headed toward the elevator. No! Calvin frowned, still walking. It¡¯s perfectly safe, I already tested it on myself, he thought, Ella sliding into the cramped box beside him. The whole undead thing was from earlier. Totally unrelated. He hit the 3rd floor button, and the elevator started bringing them up. No, If you want to prove that you¡¯re Calvin, just let me be for a while. One thing Carem couldn¡¯t do was take requests. Kala¡¯s emotions brushed against his mind. They were guarded, expecting nothing. He probed them gently with his connection and discovered that Kala had drawn a thick, deep grey wall around her mind that felt nothing. She had meticulously created a wall of apathy around herself that Calvin couldn¡¯t even begin to pierce. It was not unlike Nadia¡¯s mental defenses, when she¡¯d first become a chained spirit. He¡¯d gradually whittled them down to next to nothing, but Kala¡¯s¡­Kala¡¯s wall was thick and sturdy, featureless and blank. Seeing it turned against him made his unbeating heart sink a little. You¡¯re¡­not sure I¡¯m not him? Calvin thought, his hairs standing on end. That implied the man had impersonated him, and possibly other people she knew and loved. That implied things he didn¡¯t want to think about. I take it back, I should¡¯ve kept him around to torture some more. You made the smart choice. Not the gratifying one. Elliot said. ¡°Damnit.¡± Calvin muttered, pounding the wall. ¡°What?¡± Ella asked, brow raised. ¡°Kala doesn¡¯t want to come back to life just yet.¡± Calvin said, punching the ground floor button, altering their destination. If I find out this is because you want to avoid the responsibility of living, I¡¯ll be upset, Calvin thought. Just trust me¡­and maybe a little. If you¡¯re just offering the opportunity to live again, I¡¯m willing to make a deal. Nadia¡¯s thoughts interrupted, bubbling to the forefront of his mind. Calvin blinked. Hmm¡­ What can you offer? Contract magic is another form of magic that Ilethan royalty study. I could make you a very good, very enforceable deal in exchange for living again. Calvin tapped his fingers on his arm. Nadia had become one of his primary summons, but, there was nothing she could do that Kurawe couldn¡¯t¡­aside from be a girl. In addition, the level of threat she presented him was about the same living or dead. As a Chained spirit she could layer her power to overcome even the strongest defenses, including Calvin¡¯s. If she were alive¡­she would be stuck in a single body. Elliot, can you still do the thing where you join the rooms together? Yeah, why? Get Nadia and Kurawe¡¯s room together with yours. Kurawe can proof the contract for me, and you can work with her on her design. Yay! How did you know? I had a hunch you might want to keep some of your body modifications. Bring me both the design and the contract via Visualize when you¡¯re all satisfied and I¡¯ll go over them. Whoo! Nadia shouted in his mind, and Calvin shut the connection. In the meantime, he had to get ready for a summit of world leaders. In my experience, the odds are they already know who¡¯s behind all the chaos recently, and they intend to put you on the spot. If you don¡¯t have a damn good case, they¡¯re gonna tear you to shreds. That¡¯s what I was afraid of, Calvin thought, pulling the invitation out of his pocket and scanning it. Two weeks. The invite was penned by the Hash¡¯Maje himself. A.K.A, Kala¡¯s dad. It was made out to him and Kala. Oh, gods, this is gonna be awkward. You don¡¯t suppose you could at least attend as a Chained spirit? I fail to see how revealing to my father that I¡¯m dead and you ate me would make things any less awkward. Kala said, her emotions tinged with the barest hint of humor behind the armor of apathy. Yeah, you¡¯re probably right on that one, Calvin thought to himself, running his fingers through his hair. He¡¯d just have to dodge and deflect any serious inquiry. Nadia. I need a tutor. We¡¯ve got two weeks and a siphon. I need to improve my social skills and Abilities. Sounds good. Chained Spirit 10/47 Bent Remaining Chained Spirit 9/47 Bent Remaining Calvin summoned Nadia and Kala. Kala appeared in front of him, blinking and taking a half-step backwards. She was every inch the princess he knew, a slender beauty in a brilliant golden dress, just an inch or so shorter than him. ¡°What did you make me come out for?¡± She asked, her gaze suspicious. ¡°For you to do whatever you want,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I¡¯ll respect your wishes not to force you to do anything, but sulking around inside my head indefinitely can¡¯t be good for you.¡± Calvin waved a hand. ¡°So use the opportunity to do whatever you like. You can even kill yourself and retreat back to the black room if you like.¡± Kala¡¯s eyes narrowed, but Calvin turned and left, Nadia tagging along behind him. ¡°Wait!¡± Kala said, trotting along to catch up with them. ¡°I¡¯ll help with the training. The only thing Nadia could conceivably teach you is how to get into men¡¯s pants.¡± Nadia scoffed. ¡°As you wish,¡± Calvin said. As you wish. Elliot Echoed ***Ten Days Later*** Extensive Training has increased your attributes! Intuition has reached 37! Will has Reached 45! Stability has reached 45! Playboy Has reached level 20! +1 to Intuition Please choose an Ability or Mutation from one of the applicable Skills! Talking to Girls: Abilities Like a Book: Boosts comprehension of body language, to a near unnatural level. Almost mind-reading, but not really. Mutations One Size Fits All: I think you all know what this mutation does, you silly guys. Perfume : Smell better¡­duh. The Voice: Makes voice more appealing. Read Expression: Abilities: Poker Face: Give away little by way of facial expression. Universal Language: Large bonus to understanding pantomime and expression regardless of species. Mob Mentalist: Read the attitude of large groups of people easily. Mutations: The Pheonix¡¯s (W)right eye- while making eye contact, you can discern if the target believes they are lying. Less useful on sociopaths and the misinformed. -OBJECTION! Med Tricorder: At will, determine a person¡¯s health and identify anything that might be affecting them merely by looking at their face. Includes wounds, infection, blood loss, poison, food poisoning, drugs, parasites, disease, etc. -Damnit Jim, I¡¯m a doctor not an engineer! Acting: Abilities: A mile in his shoes: 1 Bent to disguise yourself as the target for an hour, including voice and tactile effects. Does not lend supernatural knowledge of the targets¡¯ mental state. Good for sleeping with other men¡¯s wives, if that¡¯s included in the mile. Infectious emoting: 2 Bent. Act out an emotional state (Anger, Calm, Sadness, Happiness, Defeatism, Courage, etc.) and watch it spread like wildfire! Good for wars, orations, In-laws and Cutesi?eras Confidence: At will, speak with such surety that people want to believe you. Even when they know they shouldn¡¯t. Causes victims to build belief and make assumptions based on your statements if they aren¡¯t paying close attention. Good for lying. At its heart, Acting is the art of lying with confidence. Mutations: Me myself, And I: design up to five alter egos. Each one may be a different race or gender, changing your body when they assume control. Pro: Can fool rigorous magical testing to determine your identity or locate you. Con: stay on good terms and ask nicely for your body back. Ironclad disguise. Possibly wake up married with kids. Playboy was the combination of three different social skills, and every ten levels it gave him the opportunity to choose an ability form one of them. Hmmm¡­. I¡¯m already pretty good at reading people since I can tell what they¡¯re feeling when they look at me. What I need is a better ability to spew an avalanche of shit with a straight face. I Choose Confidence. Calvin inhaled, and exhaled a long breath as his mind tingled with the way to speak with an unshakeable confidence that made people doubt their own reality. Perfect. He shut himself away in the Siphon and done everything he could in the intervening time to maximize his chances of successfully navigating a meeting of nations. We¡¯ve got Nadia¡¯s design done. Elliot said, as Calvin was heading back to his tower for the evening. Show me. Visualize Calvin blinked as Nadia appeared in three dimensions in front of him, her form sculpted to perfection, body subtly altered to inhuman standards. Calvin could easily pick out a few spots Nadia had¡­enhanced, through creative use of Chimera. Well, she¡¯s eager to make the best of this arrangement. There were even a few pieces that¡­Calvin didn¡¯t even have. The wings, horn and skin were good examples of those. ¡°What are these?¡± Calvin asked, pointing at the greyed out pieces of Nadia¡¯s body. They belong to monsters you don¡¯t have yet. You want me to add creatures to Chained spirit for nothing other than Nadia¡¯s benefit? No, they have remarkable abilities as well. The horned creature has a mutation that allows force to be gathered and redirected, while the wings are from the Tarak. You know how useful the Tarak¡¯s skin-sense is. You could easily incorporate it into your summons, and if you could find a Warped example of one, you could profit even more. You¡¯re sure her body will be able to support these mutation with a living body. I¡¯ve triple checked. I¡¯m a biomancer, you know. I¡¯m better at this shit than you are. Hmm¡­ Is Kurawe done with the contract? Here. The contract opened in front of him, a tremendous, dense scroll chock full of word-salad that seemed to be infinitely long. ¡°You realize it¡¯s going to take days to read through this?¡± Calvin asked. I¡¯m fine with being patient. Nadia said. Can you put a price on being alive? I suppose. Calvin spent the next two days preparing the defenses of his March to that it wouldn¡¯t be attacked in his absence, leaving behind Baroke to defend it. He also worked on his social and verbal defenses, with both Kala and Nadia grilling him about his involvement in the loss of Uleis, Carem, Calvin¡¯s culpability in the matter, what steps he¡¯d taken. They also raked him over the coals about the ¡®succubus¡¯ that had terrorized the continent, constantly trying to get him to implicate himself having involvement. It was amusing, seeing the two girls act as though they didn¡¯t know he was absolutely involved, and at the same time terrifying, because of the amount of mental pressure they put on him, which ranged from coercion to blackmail. If it happened for real, Calvin felt much better prepared to deal with it, but he didn¡¯t know if he would succeed for sure. Reminds me of mock-trial. Elliot commented. Finally, it was the day before the summit, and Calvin didn¡¯t have any more time to prepare. It was time to see whether this was just a courtesy invitation, or an ambush. Wait a minute¡­ Have I eaten anything in the last two weeks? Calvin Gadsint Body: 35 Strength: 24 Kinesthetics: 25 Endurance: 24 Mind: 45 Intuition: 38 Stability: 45 Will: 45 Bent: 47/42+5 Warp: 1/35 Skills: Stealth 10 Playboy 20 Old Salt 15 Sense-Grafting 20 Dupdomancy 20 Meditation 25 Chained Spirit 31 Calvinian Summoning 34 Your Princess is in Another Castle 19 Beli Ma 26 Genosian Language 13 Shifting 17 Abyssal Alchemy 14 Drafting 19 Bent Manipulation 19 Trait Doctoring 20 Race Change: Human -> Maculat Mulieres (Undead) Things known about Maculat Mulieres: (Calvin¡¯s Journal) Blood is a rich, pleasing purple color, very bitter, with a strong numbing sensation. Smell is reported as being pleasant. May cause compulsive behavior. Bent Regeneration has come to a complete Standstill and must be supplemented by Lady Killer. Eating seems to be more of a habit than a necessity. Went ten days before I¡¯d noticed it. Macronomicon Chapter 213: Quirks ¡°Wanna run that one by me again?¡± The Hash¡¯Maje asked. Calvin could hear the teacups rattling in place as papa Entredez¡¯s eyebrows raised. ¡°Kala got killed, but I took care of it, invented a cure for death and am currently persuading her to take it, but she¡¯s still a little hesitant. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s mild PTSD from getting murdered.¡± How could you possibly think this was the right approach to this situation!? Kala demanded. Haven¡¯t you ever heard, ¡®honesty is the best policy¡¯? Not here! The Hash¡¯Maje eyed him critically, scowling over his tea. ¡°And what happened to the one who did it?¡± Calvin pointed a thumb to the massive glassed crater in the distance, studded with a several hundred foot Abyssal steel tower in the center. It was much deeper underground. They were seated on the balcony of the hastily assembled hotel for foreign dignitaries. Uleis was always a neutral territory, and it was also the territory in question. It made sense for the leaders to meet there, except for the obvious logistical nightmare of hosting it. ¡°I can¡¯t say.¡± Calvin said when the Hash¡¯Maje¡¯s eyes widened at the sight of the crater. The Hash¡¯Maje chuckled. ¡°And how would you propose to bring her back to life?¡± Calvin explained his theory of blueprints and substituting Bent constructs with real matter. Papa Entredez listened carefully, eyes narrowed. ¡°That actually sounds¡­plausible.¡± Of course it sounds plausible, I used it on myself. ¡°You¡¯ve got one month to bring my daughter back to life. If, at the end of thirty days, you fail to produce a living, breathing, happy Kala¡­¡± the well-manicured man failed to elaborate, but Calvin got the jist. ¡°You seem a lot more calm than I thought you¡¯d be.¡± Calvin offered, sipping his tea. ¡°How do the kids say it these days? I¡¯ve seen some shit.¡± Calvin¡¯s In-law gave the crater a thousand yard stare as he warmed his fingers on the cup. That should NOT have worked, Kala said. Telling him the truth should result in imprisonment, torture and beheading. Maybe not even in that order. He¡¯s my father in law. He¡¯s obliged to cut me some slack. Still¡­ Once again, honesty is the best policy. Now let¡¯s go get ready to lie our asses off to important people from around the world. lying is the best policy. Calvin excused himself and left Kala¡¯s father at the balcony gazebo to digest the news. He walked over to the fancy door leading to the hall and opened it. His father-in law was standing there. ¡°Ack!¡± ¡°One. month.¡± He said, poking Calvin¡¯s breastbone. Calvin reflexively glanced over his shoulder. The Hash¡¯maje was still there, watching him. He looked forward. No looming figure. ¡°Okaaay¡­¡± Calvin said, heading into the hallway. You still got off easy. *** Calvin was heading for his room when he was distracted by an odd scent from down a side-hall. It was flowery, with an acrid undertone. He stopped in his tracks, peering down the dimly lit hall. That¡¯s the hall for minor delegates. I wonder what¡¯s down that way. Calvin had other things to do, but they weren¡¯t urgent. His feet turned to the side, and he began sauntering down the hall. Where are you going? Kala asked. ¡°Just curious.¡± Calvin replied, following the scent to one of the farthest rooms down the hall. The door was closed, but he could feel the scent emanating from behind the door. He could also hear muffled shouting. ¡°You stupid wretch, my drink is warm!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry ma¡¯am, the ice is-¡± ¡°You knew we were going to Uleis! Pack some Icefish bones! I swear, you¡¯re not worth the money I spend on you. As soon as we return to Gadvera, consider yourself out of a job. Maybe sooner.¡± ¡°ma¡¯am, I did pack them. The Icefish bones were-¡° ¡°I don¡¯t care! They¡¯re not in my drink, and that¡¯s what matters. I swear, you lowborn plebes think excuses can substitute for results. You¡¯re little better than animals!¡± The last thing the woman said sent a shiver down the back of Calvin¡¯s neck, a shudder of¡­hunger¡­anticipation. There was something hanging in the air, some amorphous concept that he wanted to¡­break¡­somehow. Calvin was drawn through the door as if some huge magnet on the other side had pulled him, sliding to a halt in the center of a well-appointed room. The woman who¡¯d been speaking was just past her thirties, reclining in the middle of the room in a brass tub, wearing nothing but bubbles. ¡°Actually,¡± Calvin said, holding up a finger, but his well-reasoned statement was drowned out by a shriek and a flung glass full of blue liquid. Calvin ducked out of the way and grabbed the crystal out of midair, catching a small amount of the drink that remained in the cup. He tasted it. It was pretty dry. What on Marconen are you doing!? Kala demanded. ¡°Prince consort,¡± the woman said, gathering herself and covering her chest with her arms as she sank lower into the bubbles. ¡°What brings you here?¡± She glanced at her servant, a harried looking young woman with sweat beading on her forehead. ¡°What are you hanging around for, get me a towel!¡± Calvin pulled up a chair and sat down beside the woman¡¯s bathtub. What¡¯s her name? Elise Tremond ¡°Ms. Tremond, I couldn¡¯t help but overhear your conversation and I agree,¡± He shook the glass. ¡°This is swill when it¡¯s not cold.¡± She relaxed just a tiny bit into her bathtub. ¡°Surely that¡¯s not the only reason you¡¯re here, young man? Did I do something to catch your attention?¡± She asked, raising her chest out of the water a couple inches, just enough to show a bit of curve. Nadia scoffed in his head. Kala made a sound that reminded him of gritting teeth. Kurawe was silent. Elliot suggested the woman sit up further. My audience has gotten rather large without me even realizing it. ¡°Ma¡¯am, you draw attention wherever you go, and had I the pleasure of seeing you sooner, I would¡¯ve introduced myself then and there. I¡¯m actually making the rounds, visiting the power-players of Gadvera, introducing myself.¡± She¡¯s not a power player, her family is minor nobility. They only matter insomuch as she throws money into her noble faction, but even then, she¡¯s minor. Kala said. ¡°As you can tell,¡± Calvin said, pointing down at himself. ¡°I don¡¯t exactly have deep roots in Gadvera.¡± ¡°So you married the princess and stole them?¡± She asked, brow raised. ¡°Maybe so,¡± Calvin chuckled, ¡°But what I really crave is understanding. If you could tell me about your family¡¯s history, I feel like I would give me another key to better understand Gadvera as a whole.¡± ¡°You want to hear about my family¡¯s history?¡± She asked quizzically, brows furrowed. ¡°More than anything.¡± Calvin breathed. The servant girl came back with the towel, and Elise angrily waved her off, refusing to take the length of cloth. The servant girl folded it down beside her and scurried off, and Elise adjusted her posture, smiling up into Calvin¡¯s gaze. ¡°So you see, it all started with ¨C¡° She sat up! Whoo! Calvin, you better not look. Do as you wish, Ravager. They¡¯re not as good as mine. Calvin ignored the peanut gallery and focused on the woman¡¯s words, engaging her in a deep conversation about her family¡¯s history. It took a while, but eventually Calvin wrapped the conversation back around to the sentence that had triggered all of this. He didn¡¯t know why, but he needed to convince her to recant her statement about peasants being next to animals. It took over an hour, but by Using Confidence, Mesmerizing Eye, and bringing her great great grandfather¡¯s history as a stonemason into the equation, he was able to find a chink in her mental armor, drawing her to pierce it herself, using leading questions like a Mucha fighter¡¯s cape, directing her to slam into her own weakness. Finally, he got what he needed. ¡°Gods,¡± Elise said, putting her hand on her cheek in sudden realization. ¡°I¡¯m just like the woman who drove my great-great grandfather off of his land.¡± She glanced over at the young woman desperately trying to fade into the wallpaper. ¡°Nisa,¡± Elise said, climbing out of the bathtub and taking the serving girl¡¯s hand. The young woman seized up, totally confused and flustered at the sight of her master standing naked in front of her. ¡°I¡¯ve been treating you awfully. You deserve better than that.¡± She took a deep breath. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can change, but I¡¯m going to try to at least hear you out from now on.¡± Elise glanced down at herself, her eyes widening. ¡°Gods, I¡¯m all pruny, I was in that bath far too long.¡± Without another word, she ran for the bedroom deeper into the large room. Calvin sighed, stretching out his legs with satisfaction. What the Abyss was that? Nadia asked. I agree. That was strange, Kala commented. You know how you see a sheet of ice and you have that feeling where you have to crack it with your feet? No. Can¡¯t say that I do. What about slime molds that burst with slime when you poke ¡®em, and you can¡¯t resist poking each and every one of them with a stick? I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s a boy thing. Nadia said. Jumping into mud puddles? We¡¯re princesses, Calvin. Kala said. Calvin sighed, scratching his head. It felt like something I had to do. There was something there. I couldn¡¯t tell you exactly what it was, only that I could sense it, and it was deeply gratifying to break it. Seems like it might be another one of your undead traits manifesting. Nadia said. I thought so as well, Calvin thought, nodding. You probably have some kind of compulsion to save damsels in distress! Kala said, her voice brightening. You¡¯re a good undead! I would expect nothing less from my husband. Unaware of Calvin¡¯s internal dialogue, the servant girl, Nisa sank to her knees, heaving a sigh of relief. ¡°That was a miracle,¡± Nisa said, staring down at her shaking hands. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anyone change her mind before. I was sure I was going to be out on the street when we got back to Gadvera.¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome,¡± Calvin said, standing, aiming to leave. Nisa wrapped her arms around herself. ¡°If I didn¡¯t have this job, I would have to work in a brothel to feed my family¡­I don¡¯t think I could bring myself to do that.¡± Calvin turned on his heel to face the thing that hung in the air between them. He needed to break it. ¡°It¡¯s not as bad as you might think,¡± Calvin said, turning back to Nisa. ¡°It¡¯s just a job, like any other. I know some wonderful women who make their living in pleasure houses, and they tell me that, like any service job, it has its ups and downs, but the majority of the work is simply listening to and comforting lonely older men with lots of disposable income.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Nisa asked, her eyes glittering with tears. ¡°Oh, sure,¡± Calvin said, shrugging. ¡°If you decide to go into that line of work, don¡¯t throw yourself anywhere out of desperation. Be smart, shop around, find a place with a good reputation and good clientele, and you could be earning your current monthly pay every night.¡± ¡°Every night?¡± she breathed, blinking. ¡°Every night.¡± Calvin said with ¡®Confidence¡¯. ¡°If you like, I could introduce you to some of the ladies I know, they¡¯d be happy to tell you more about it, give you a tour if you want.¡± ¡°¡­okay,¡± Nisa squeaked, her cheeks turning red. Calvin gave her Perthea¡¯s information and left, waving as he went. Calvin walked down the gilded hall, hands in his pockets. The voices in his head were unusually silent. Well, that was weird. AHAHAHAH! Nadia cackled wildly. A compulsion to save damsels in distress? ¡®you¡¯re a good undead!¡¯ Nadia mocked with a saccharine sweet voice. You read so many smut novels that it made you soft in the head! What, do you think he¡¯s gonna glitter in the sun? S-shut up! It¡¯s not a crime to be optimistic! Calvin shook his head and mentally shut the two of them out, their conversation impeding his ability to think. Any idea what the Abyss that was, Elliot? I had very little control over myself. It was like a puddle appeared in front of me, and jumping into it with both feet was the thing to do. I don¡¯t know what the conditions for triggering it is, but the way you described it¡­it could be learning behavior. What? Jumping in puddles, poking things with sticks and stomping on sheets of ice are all learning behaviors of children. If this sudden compulsion really feels like that, then it¡¯s possible this is a learning behavior, allowing you to get used to your new body, adjusting to its needs. And if it is a learning behavior, like jumping in puddles, there¡¯s a good chance you¡¯ll grow out of it. I took a couple semesters of developmental psychology. Elliot said, pride radiating from his voice. Hmmm¡­ You did grow out of jumping in puddles and poking things with sticks, right? Mostly? Macronomicon You probably shouldn''t come by though, nothing exciting happens. Chapter 214: Heads of State The dignitaries filed in, following some incomprehensible pattern based on rank followed by power, then seniority and in one case, height. The shorter of the two dukes of identical age glared at the man ahead of him as they entered and found their seats. Calvin, being a Marquis, was toward the front of the pack, just behind the Hash¡¯Maje and his dukes, Ahead of the earls, viscounts, and barons. Why is your king called a Hash¡¯maje, but all the other ranks are from british royalty? Elliot asked. Ask a scholar. Ah yes, you¡¯ve the education of a nineteen year old shepherd. Nadia chimed in. How dare you insult my lord Ravager! Oh yeah, what¡¯cha gonna do about it, tubby? Hey, quit yelling, you¡¯re distracting Calvin! Kala stepped in, adding to the swirl of thoughts and sound rattling around in his head. Calvin rubbed his temple and closed himself off to their voices until they calmed down. I need to make some room in my skull. Getting rid of Nadia is looking more and more appealing, Calvin thought as he shuffled forward. The Marquis of Surrak walking ahead of him. Once upon a time, this was the guy Calvin¡¯s taxes went to. He was with Calvin at the back of the line on account of Surrak¡¯s recent troubles. They had some difficulty placing Calvin, as his ¡®power¡¯ was mostly hearsay, rather than an established fact. Even his train tracks moving through the duchesses¡¯ land were lauded as the old woman¡¯s accomplishment. As if by giving Calvin permission to build through her territory, she¡¯d somehow achieved the trade boom singlehandedly. Calvin rolled his eyes. Still, he wasn¡¯t eager to be at the front of the line, so he happily went by seniority. This backfired somewhat as he found himself standing directly in front of a grey-haired Earl that looked to be in his eighties, eyeing Calvin like a juicy trout. Does that guy want your land or your ass? Elliot asked. Elliot was the only one he couldn¡¯t shut up, because he wasn¡¯t part of Calvin¡¯s abilities. Does it matter? Calvin asked. Answer¡¯s no. They filed into the meeting room, and Calvin was awestruck by the size and the haste with which it had been built. The theatre hadn¡¯t been there a week ago, and yet the ceiling soared a hundred feet over their heads, with magical chandeliers powered by Bent rising above the room. There were tiered seats from the circular table at the center, rising up into the dizzying heights for the most minor nobility. Calvin suspected they would have a hard time hearing the discussion. The round table at the center had a hole cut out of it, resembling a massive circular bench rather than a proper table. As they entered, Calvin spotted lines coming in from half a dozen other doors. He noticed the King of Iletha, a dark haired man with piercing eyes taking his seat at his respective location. There were half a dozen countries he hadn¡¯t even been aware of. The Emperor of Boles had sent one of his sons as a representative, a slender young man who seemed to be constantly sneering at everything. That¡¯s gotta make his face sore after a while, Calvin thought, blinking as the young man sneered his way to his seat. He must practice in the mirror. Elliot said. Yeah, I bet. In a strange turn of events, there was a Genosian representative, a boy maybe twelve years old, who watched everything with a sort of detached interest, seemingly distracted. He wore light leather straps and bright colored feathers, sitting beside the representative from the Plainlanders, to a fair amount of discomfort from the bead-wearing woman. Those were the people who spawned rattlebones, Calvin thought to himself, eyeing the woman¡¯s interesting style composed mostly of large, quilted leathers studded with colorful beads. She stared daggers at the child seated beside her, but the boy didn¡¯t seem to notice or care. The chair for the representative of Juntai was empty for obvious reasons, Murak was sitting in the Uleisian seat at the center of the circle, the wedge of seating dedicated to Uleis conspicuously empty, reminding Calvin of the irreversible damage that had been done. Wait a minute, how did Murak become the representative of Uleis? Murak had been in Calvin¡¯s March, organizing the shipping lines and acting as a consultant on trade and tax law when Carem had destroyed the old man¡¯s home country. including the handful of survivors that had been outside of Uleis at the time, Murak was the wealthiest Uleisan left. I wonder how much money the old man has left? I¡¯m sure the destruction of his home set him back drastically. Murak caught Calvin¡¯s eye and winked. Or not. People like him have so much money that tons of it gets tied up internationally, Elliot said. No way he¡¯s not still rich. The assembly gradually came to a halt, and Calvin found himself only two seats up from the action, with an excellent view of the proceedings, and thanks to his relative proximity and the room¡¯s acoustics, he could pick up the entire conversation. ¡°Lords and ladies,¡± A speaker in the center of the chamber spoke, followed by several different translators. ¡°We are honored to receive you. Now I will introduce each of the representatives and their court.¡± ¡°His majesty, King Jonathan Ilestar the fifth, of Iletha, guardian of the north and protector of its peoples. He is joined by his dukes, Cole Bisset, whose demesne stretches to the the East and provides¡­¡± Oh my gods, this is so dull. I thought this was going to be an interrogation, not torture by dullness. Calvin¡¯s eyes were open, nodding attentively, but he was involved in a serious conversation with Nadia about leather clothing¡¯s breathability when the endless slew of names and domains finally came to an end. ¡°And now, I open the floor to you, lords. Jonathon Ilestar has the floor.¡± The announcer bowed and left the podium at the center of the stage, leaving the dozen men and women to speak. ¡°So,¡± Jonathan said, folding his hands in front of him. ¡°We need to decide what to do with Uleis.¡± ¡°You mean, which one of you vultures gets the biggest pickings,¡± Murak interjected, breaking the meaning of ¡®having the floor¡¯ immediately. ¡°Sir, you don¡¯t have the ¨C¡° ¡°Get out of here, flunky,¡± Jonathan said, pointing a thumb over his shoulder. ¡°We¡¯ve put up with enough protocol, and this situation is absolutely outside of protocol.¡± The announcer¡¯s chin quivered, but the other leaders nodded, and he shut up and sat down off to the side. Must be hard to officiate an event where everyone outranks you. ¡°Calling us vultures implies there¡¯s pickings to be had. Uleis has been erased. All we have left is a blasted desert oasis. The country¡¯s value lied in its infrastructure that allowed it to turn sand into money and host travelling merchants.¡± The prince of Boles sneered. ¡°Now it¡¯s just an empty expanse of sand.¡± ¡°I disagree,¡± Kala¡¯s father said, adding his voice to the discussion. ¡°Let¡¯s not dance around the metal spike in the room. There¡¯s a rod the size of a city block in the center of the crater, made of an unidentified metal the likes of which we¡¯ve never seen. My wizards tell me it extends nearly a thousand feet below the surface, though it is hard to determine the exact depth, as the stone around it has been fused into place from the heat of its landing.¡± Kala¡¯s father scanned the room. ¡°This metal is both tougher and harder than anything we¡¯ve ever seen, and we haven¡¯t found a way to take samples from it without using Abilities. If nothing else, Uleis has that.¡± Murak grunted, glaring at the Hash¡¯Maje Oh shit, I didn¡¯t even think about that. Reminds me of people mining meteor strikes. ¡°It¡¯s obvious the rights to that monolith belong to me. I own the majority of the land around it.¡± Murak said. ¡°I¡¯ll not allow the rest of you to take what doesn¡¯t belong to you.¡± Jonathan ilestar gave a simple smile. ¡°You and what army?¡± ¡°Oh, what was that?¡± Murak said, eyeing the Ilethan king. ¡°Your men need to eat, don¡¯t they? I own a large portion of the farms outlying Iletha. Let¡¯s see what happens when I drive up prices until your men have to eat their boots.¡± ¡°¡­and what army?¡± Murak¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°You might be one of the richest men in the world, Murak, but you¡¯ve no longer got a country. With the core of your power structure blown to bits, what you¡¯ve got is little more than numbers on paper.¡± ¡°Gadvera would be more than happy to aid our cousins to the east,¡± Kala¡¯s father said with a grin. ¡°In exchange for a fat cut of the profits, and control over the country that spawned you ungrateful brats,¡± Murak said with a scowl. ¡°Not a chance.¡± ¡°I think we¡¯re focused on the wrong thing.¡± The twelve year old genosian with the button nose said, his childish voice a pure tone that cut through the bickering. ¡°Who gets to mine the metal that fell from the sky does not concern us. What does concern us is how and why Uleis was destroyed. These¡­documents, we¡¯ve received state that the she-demon who terrorized all our lands stole an average of six Bent from each person she met, and was sighted in every hamlet, village, town and city, on the continent, even reportedly appearing in multiple places at the same time.¡± ¡°If these numbers are accurate, she stole at least sixty thousand Bent. Later the same day Uleis received what can only be construed as divine punishment. These two things cannot be unrelated. Any individual or organization that can put that much Bent to use needs to be addressed.¡± Sharp kid¡­or should I say the old bastards inside him are sharp. If the boy was chosen to represent all Genosians everywhere, there was no question that he had a Chained Spirit, along with generation upon generation of wizened leaders and fierce warriors connected to it, watching through his eyes. Kid¡¯s got a curated collection of the tribe¡¯s best and brightest. I wonder how he stays sane with all that chatter. For the kid¡¯s sake, he hoped the spirits had a fair amount of discipline when speaking. ¡°Eyewitness accounts of the event are sparse, but troubling,¡± Murak said. ¡°A few desert dwellers and merchants outside of Uleis mentioned seeing a dark cloud surrounding Uleis, one that seemed to be composed of flying people, and there are thousands of eyewitness report of the hammer that fell from the heavens, but no one who was close enough to see exactly what happened is still breathing.¡± True. Calvin thought. Sometimes he stopped breathing when he was asleep, without consequence. ¡°However, something that bothers me more, is reports of the rapid shift in Uleisan policy that had no grounding in precedent or current events, dating back to approximately two weeks before the hammer fell. The king began to encourage his citizens to report to various ¡®stations¡¯ to review their citizenship. From that point on, contact with, and word of Uleis rapidly dwindled and became sparse. Those we did hear from said that those who attended these meetings were subtly changed, and the ones who didn¡¯t were forced to go by friends and family. Toward the end, the more cautious Uleisans fled the city, but not in the quantities I would have preferred. The last three days before the event, there was no word at all.¡± ¡°Do you think that Uleis went the way of Malkenrovia?¡± The child, known as Juahe-ma¡¯na hebahua, said. The mouthful of a Title translated to The Descendant, in Genosian. Descendant, huh? I¡¯m just gonna call him Dez. Same here. At the Dez¡¯s mention of Malkenrovia, their eyes turned to the empty seat with the Malkenrovia placard in front of it. ¡°You suspect an Aberration?¡± The plainslander asked, her eyebrows raised. ¡°The circumstances described match Elder Maehamu¡¯s experience with one of the creatures. It has happened before, why couldn¡¯t it happen again? I think the question we should be asking is, what was it fighting? The last aberration was defeated at a great cost in life, but this one was¡­crushed handily, for lack of a better word. I doubt it did it to itself.¡± ¡°Aberration. You keep throwing that word around, but I doubt you know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Jonathon said. ¡°You¡¯re just trying to shift the focus from the movement of Genosians over the last year. In response, the boy stared placidly at him, seemingly waiting for something before responding. ¡°You are correct. I do not personally know what I am speaking of. However I trust the word of my advisors implicitly. With your permission, I will call upon him.¡± Without waiting for aforementioned permission, Dez closed his eyes, his pupils flickering back and forth under his lids for a moment as if he were reading, then a gout of green smoke resolved into an incredibly thin, withered old man, weighing maybe ninety pounds soaking wet, he leaned on a staff, his arms trembling with age. ¡°Greetings Descendant,¡± He said to Dez, who bowed deeply to him before facing Jonathon. ¡°When I was much younger, about two hundred and forty years ago, a young warrior did not spend all his Warp, but rather than become disfigured, he seemed fine. Everyone simply assumed someone had miscounted and he had spent all his Warp. The Chained spirit held up a shaking finger. ¡°That was incorrect. The boy began visiting people in their dreams. First a girl he was infatuated with, causing her to suffer greatly in her sleep. We dismissed her complaints out of hand, as he¡¯d shown no outward sign of misbehavior.¡± ¡°Before long he realized the power he could have over people, and began sneaking into other¡¯s dreams in the guise of friends and family, changing this memory or that, imprinting memories and desires they had never previously had. It took him little under a year to gain control over the tribe. In deed if not in word. It was then the child started experimenting with even darker aspects of his power, spreading his influence far and wide. Those who resisted his nightly depravations tried to flee, but were prevented by the hold he had claimed over their friends and family. When we finally thought to discipline him for his actions, he struck back against the elders ¨C violently ¨C killing many of them in their sleep and replacing them with¡­something else.¡± Calvin listened to the story with rapt attention, as the old man was a natural storyteller, describing the harrowing war against the Aberration who would eventually become known as the Dream-Eater. The story just sucked him in. Which was why Calvin was unprepared when the topic of conversation turned to the empty Juntai Seat. While the leaders of Juntai had been killed, most of the citizens had survived, and no one could ignore the rumors of Body-hopping aberrations that had bloomed there over the last couple months. ¡° ¨C Which is why I think we should bring forward a witness with experience on the state of both Juntai and Uleis,¡± Kala¡¯s dad was saying. Oh, crap. Calvin felt his malaise from the boring meeting shaken off in a matter of seconds. If his heart was still beating, it would be singing in his chest. As it stood, he felt a strange, squishy kind of thrill. Just as potent, but more fluid than the intense hammering sensation of human adrenaline. ¡°I¡¯d like to call the newly minted Marquis Gadsint, whose land borders the two nations in question, to come down and share his experience.¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said, motioning towards his son-in-law. All the eyes in the theatre turned towards Calvin. Macronomicon Chapter 215: Liar, Liar I¡¯m not one to get stage fright, but this is nuts, Calvin thought, sliding out of his seat and shuffling to the left. ¡°Other way,¡± The marquis Surrak said under his breath. Calvin glanced up and saw that left was indeed a dead end. Son of a bitch. I guess I do get stage fright. Calvin reversed course and slipped by half a dozen old men until he got to the aisle, walking down the steps until he got to the round bench. ¡°Where do I go?¡± Calvin asked, not interested in guessing and making an ass of himself. The Hash¡¯Maje pointed to the podium at the center of the bench. Yeah, that makes sense. Calvin took a deep breath and walked through the gap in the semi-circle and took a stand at the center of the room, resting his weight on the podium. Here we go. We practiced for this. ¡°Just to avoid any error, I¡¯ll use a truth-detecting Ability.¡± Jonathon Ilestar said. Most of the leaders nodded, following suit. Calvin felt gentle waves of Bent ricochet around the room as they set up their respective Abilities. Seems a little extreme, but okay. ¡°Calvin Gadsint,¡± the plainslander woman said. ¡°You are the lord of the land abutting both Juntai to the east and Uleis to the north?¡± ¡°I am,¡± Calvin said, feeling the nets of Bent around him tremor. ¡°Were you aware of the rumors of an aberration taking root in Juntai? Jonathon Ilestar asked.¡± And now, to take control of this interrogation, and lie by omission. You¡¯re playing with fire, dude, and I love it. ¡°¡¯Course I know about the rumors. I killed the guy.¡± Calvin said. Jonathon blinked, and Kala¡¯s dad raised a brow. ¡°The first time,¡± Calvin said, implying he hadn¡¯t done it this time. ¡°Care to explain?¡± ¡°I was visiting Allast to negotiate a trade arrangement with the diocese of trade when my aides began being brain-sucked.¡± Calvin said, tapping his skull. ¡°This particular mutant named Carem Sageva had the ability to make roots grow from his fingers that turned people¡¯s brains into soup. I tracked him down and killed him. After that I was confident that I¡¯d taken care of the problem. It wasn¡¯t until recently that I learned he¡¯d jumped bodies and the Diocese had kept the monster under their own control with the intention of using him to pry secrets out of the heads of their enemies.¡± Dez, the twelve year old genosian chieftan stiffened. ¡°You didn¡¯t feel the need to inform anyone of this?¡± ¡°As I said, I only discovered this recently,¡± Calvin said. Recent being used in a relative context. Now to bring another point forward to shift their attention from it. ¡°The reports from Uleis match the descriptions of this fellow, so it¡¯s my belief that he escaped Juntai custody during the riots over a month ago, before hitching a ride on my train between the two countries, otherwise he would still be walking.¡± ¡°So you helped this aberration escape its country?¡± Jonathan ilestar asked. ¡°Where the Abyss did you get that?¡± Calvin asked, glancing over at the king of ilestar. ¡°Do you operate every business personally? The aberration was powerful. It was well within his power to either get a free ride, or steal money for the fare. I wouldn¡¯t have, and couldn¡¯t have helped him escape Juntai.¡± ¡°Truth,¡± the ancient genosian standing behind his representative said, nodding. ¡°It seems to me as though the young man¡¯s train represents a serious security risk,¡± Jonathon Ilestar said with a shrug. ¡°If any individual with malign intent can put whoever or whatever they want on the rails.¡± ¡°We need stronger oversight on the rail system,¡± Jonathon continued, waving a dismissive hand at Calvin. ¡°We¡¯ve already lost Uleis because of this child¡¯s gross incompetence. I believe my son could do a better job managing it.¡± Ah, that¡¯s the play. The king of Iletha wanted to tax and control the rail system more tightly, putting more of the profits in his pockets. ¡°Your majesty, if you don¡¯t like how my rail system operates, your son is perfectly welcome to try and make one.¡± Calvin said. ¡°But my expectations are low.¡± Murak burst into giggles and the Hash¡¯Maje smirked. ¡°You can¡¯t speak of my family like that.¡± Jonathon growled, voice low and dangerous. Mud puddle Alert! ¡°I made your daughter kiss my feet before serving me.¡± Calvin blurted before his brain caught up with his mouth. ¡°Can¡¯t imagine the rest of your inbred spawn would fare much better. Oh, look at that. I can.¡± The steady murmur of conversation among the risers came to a complete standstill, plunging the entire auditorium into complete silence. ¡°Truth.¡± The genosian ancient spoke, brows skyrocketing. A snake of Bent emerged from the podium under Calvin¡¯s feet and connected to his foot. Suddenly, Calvin felt like his head was under an intense amount of pressure, an angry white noise that¡­seemed to be¡­telling him to kill himself after the summit was over? Pbbbt. That seems petty. ¡°Inciting suicide demonstrates poor breeding,¡± Calvin said, waving it off. Yeah, eat shit, dad! Nadia shouted, her voice echoing through his mind. From her tone, Calvin got the impression she was giving the king a two-fisted ¡®fuck you¡¯. Jonathan¡¯s eyes widened, and he motioned for one of his retainers to step forward. He whispered into the liveried man¡¯s ear while Kala¡¯s father clenched his jaw as hard as possible in order to avoid laughing out loud. Murak¡¯s head was buried in the crook of his arm, his body shaking. You realize this meeting is going straight to the Abyss, right? Kala asked. You gotta enjoy the little things when you can. Nadia replied. ¡°I feel like we¡¯ve gotten off topic,¡± The plainslander woman said, eyeing Calvin sidelong. ¡°The purpose of today¡¯s summit was to address the potential threat, and our unified response to these events, not a scramble to pry advantages out of the hands of others.¡± ¡°Indeed, it feels as though we¡¯ve only gotten half the story. That of the aberrant. We would still like an explanation as to how Uleis came to be smote.¡± Dez spoke. ¡°Agreed,¡± Kala¡¯s father said, nodding, having regained control over his expression. ¡°Marquis Gadsint, do you know who did that?¡± You godsdamn well know I know who did it, Calvin thought, eyeing the Hash¡¯maje, whose gaze radiated restrained humor and a certain amount of vindictive satisfaction. Likely on account of his daughter being dead. I¡¯ll give him a pass on that one. ¡°He never gave me his name, but I have seen the fellow. He was about five-eight, a hundred and sixty pounds, big teeth, kinda gangly.¡± Calvin had never given himself his own name, so that was totally true. Unfortunately, the king of Iletha was onto his half-truths. ¡°Do you know the culprit¡¯s name?¡± Jonathan asked, the corners of his mouth tilting up. ¡°Yes¡­¡± Calvin gritted. ¡°Why would you hide his name from this summit?¡± Jonathan asked, smile growing wider. ¡°Concealing information from us seems fairly treasonous, given the circumstances.¡± ¡°Because it was me, you shitstain!¡± Calvin shouted. ¡°Every single soul in Uleis was already dead, and blowing up the city was the only way to stop the cancer from spreading further! If the godsdamned Juntai didn¡¯t have their heads so far up their asses, it wouldn¡¯t have come to that, and tens of thousands of people would still be alive!¡± ¡°Truth,¡± the wizened man behind Dez spoke. Oh, gods, that felt good. Every night he¡¯d been wondering what would have happened if he¡¯d just plowed through the Diocese and killed the monster while he was helpless. Not making that mistake again. Calvin¡­ Kala said, her voice exasperated. ¡°Alright, we know what happened and who was responsible, now we must decide what to do about it,¡± the Hash¡¯Maje spoke into the resulting silence. ¡°Marquis Gadsint, given the nature of the circumstances, I¡¯d like to ask you to retire to your room for now.¡± ¡°Yeah, okay.¡± Calvin shot a glance toward the king of Iletha. ¡°Try and kill me again, and I will literally bend you over my knee and spank you in front of all these people and the gods themselves.¡± ¡°Truth.¡± ¡°Now, please, Mr. Gadsint.¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said, motioning to the door. Calvin turned and left the hall, a thousand eyes following him as he closed the doors behind him. I feel like that went well, Calvin thought with a sigh. In what world are you living where that went well? Kala demanded. I don¡¯t know. Their gazes didn¡¯t feel particularly surprised when I admitted it was me. I think I was always the focus of the Summit. We have to assume that the various kingdoms have the resources to find out it was me, whether it be by divination or excellent detective work. Rather than an interrogation¡­I think that might have been an audition. As Calvin was walking back to his room, he noticed a brother passionately protecting his sister from an angry child of similar age. He stopped long enough to defuse the situation before sitting the brother down and explaining how protecting his sister was actually stunting her development and harmful to her in the long run. If he really wanted what was best for her, he should let her get beat up a little while the opponents were still harmless children. By the gods, I almost believed that. I hate to say this, but we need to have you spend more time with bad people, Kala said. ****The Hash¡¯Maje of Gadvera, Bragos Entredez**** Once the rest of the assembly had been removed, it was just the men and women around the bench, minus Murak. The moneylender was rich, and represented the interests of the remaining Uleisans fairly well, but he was not a Royal. ¡°So, what do we think about him?¡± Bragos asked. The young man had singlehandedly stopped an Aberration in the peak of its power, a job normally relegated to a King. The only people who had a chance to stand against malignant mutations were the royal families. ¡°I think he¡¯s an arrogant little shit that needs to be put down,¡± Jonathan said with a scowl. ¡°You¡¯re just saying that ¡®cuz you don¡¯t like him,¡± Bragos replied. ¡°His attitude is fairly typical for his age and sex,¡± The plainslander said. ¡°The fact that he hasn¡¯t perpetrated widespread misery despite having the means is always a good sign in my book.¡± ¡°Creating new wealth by creating new industry rather than stealing it is also welcome,¡± The Bolesian prince said. ¡°The railway has been a great boon to our family.¡± ¡°Did you really try to kill the boy?¡± The descendant asked, peering at Jonathan. Jonathan grunted. ¡°We see the ability to resist the Ilethan¡¯s control as a good thing.¡± The Descendant said. ¡°A Royal must have an inviolable Will. We feel his tempestuous attitude will be tempered by age.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re considering making him one of us,¡± Jonathan said. ¡°The boy is obviously an aberrant. He¡¯s got no heartbeat. No godsdamned heartbeat!¡± He tapped his chest for emphasis. ¡°its our responsibility to cull him before the world suffers even further.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a fine line,¡± The plainslander said. ¡°And while the boy bears physical hallmarks of aberration, there was no frothing madness, no megalomania, no sign of him completely disconnecting from his humanity.¡± ¡°No frothing madness? No megalomania? Did you hear what he said to me?¡± ¡°Yes, he asserted that he is better than you. A sentiment I think most of us can relate to.¡± Bragos said. ¡°As far as I can tell, Calvin did our jobs for us.¡± Bragos crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat. Jonathan stared at him, and for an uncomfortable moment, Bragos thought he might need to draw on the Time of his people and tear the ruler of Iletha¡¯s meat puppet to shreds. Bragos always felt guilty using his subject¡¯s Time like it was his own. Despite the negligible amount he stole, he could never escape the feeling of being just as bad as Jonathan as he shaved away at his people¡¯s lives. The stunt with Calvin the night before had left him feeling hollow afterward. Finally the mind-mage dropped the subject, turning back to the rest of the representatives. ¡°How much damage could this boy inflict if you give him free reign? He stole your magic,¡± The king of Iletha pointed at The Descendant. ¡°And you¡¯re going to give him a pass?¡± ¡°The ability to summon your licentious daughter does not concern us.¡± The Descendant said. ¡°We believe ¨C¡° Jonathan slammed his hand down on the table. ¡°That¡­thing was not my daughter.¡± The Descendant¡¯s bored expression remained unchanged. ¡°At this point the damage the Marquis could cause if he were cornered would far be greater than if we simply gave him responsibilities. He was, by all accounts, a rational actor, and while he has a few traits that cannot be explained by anything less than mutation, he does not display the unchecked consumption and expansion of a cancerous aberration.¡± ¡°Would anyone else like to contribute?¡± Bragos asked. Around the table, silence and head-shaking greeted his question. ¡°Very well then, we¡¯ll vote on the proposal to induct Gadsint as a Royal and give him the responsibility to safeguard the South against Aberrations. Those who say yes?¡± Over half of the men and women present raised their hands. Macronomicon Chapter 216: Undead Science experiments ¡°Okay, I¡¯m starting to get a feel for the Maculat impulses. It seems like if someone states that they are adamant that they or others should do a certain thing, behave a certain way, or consider something taboo¡­ Fervently ascribe to a moral code? Elliot asked. ¡°Yeah, that.¡± Calvin said, snapping his fingers. ¡°Now, I want to see if I guessed right, and if I did, we¡¯ll use this as training to control it.¡± Calvin had each of his three Chained Spirits lined up in his hotel room, waiting for the results of the Summit. Preferably the results didn¡¯t include and order for his execution. I can¡¯t believe I said that shit. Sure he had a lot of pent up anger towards Iletha, but that had been a bad move, diplomatically speaking. Calvin shook his head, dismissing those thoughts and returning to the experiment. ¡°Alright, I want each of you to give me statements about something you consider reprehensible and would absolutely never do, or a belief you hold close to your heart.¡± ¡°I would never do butt stuff.¡± Nadia said. ¡°Nope. Next.¡± Calvin said. ¡°It¡¯s my duty to serve my people to the best of my ability.¡± Kala said. Strangely, Calvin didn¡¯t get the urge to jump in and contradict her. ¡°I would never betray them.¡± ¡°Eep!¡± Calvin clapped a hand over his mouth to stop himself from trying to convince her to betray Gadvera. The urge welled up inside him for about five seconds, rising up until it felt like his eyeballs were swimming in it, then receded like the tide. Mud puddle avoided. ¡°Okay, next.¡± ¡°The Word of a Ravager is that of a god.¡± Kurawe rumbled. ¡°Not really, Ravagers are just exiles from an alien race of intergalactic conquerors¡­Damnit.¡± Guess you didn¡¯t manage to avoid that one. Elliot said. ¡°That¡¯s why this is training. Next!¡± Calvin said, looking at Nadia. ¡°I have hard limits on what sexual acts I will and will not do,¡± Nadia said, glancing off to the side with an innocent look. ¡°Stating the opposite of your core values does nothing.¡± Calvin said, narrowing his eyes at Nadia. The buxom princess stuck out her tongue at him. ¡°Making others happy is critical to my self-worth,¡± Kala admitted, her cheeks reddening. ¡°Nnng!¡± Calvin bit his fist, riding out the wave. ¡°The Battle of Lenser Pass was a godsdamned travesty where the last true Uleisan patriots died.¡± Kurawe said. Calvin shook his head, turning back to Nadia. ¡°I find you absolutely intolerable, every minute I spend with you makes me long for the sweet release of death.¡± She said with a smirk. ¡°I said ¨C¡° Calvin gagged himself again as the instinct welled up in him again. Once the urge to change her mind subsided, he sighed. ¡°Good one,¡± He said, breathing out slowly. Guess it makes sense she¡¯s trying to get her body back. Nadia looked puzzled though, her brows furrowed. ¡°Next!¡± They spent the next hour or so trying to train Calvin not to immediately try to corrode people¡¯s most cherished beliefs, but it was an uphill battle, especially after he tried convincing Kala that her parents never loved her. That hadn¡¯t gone over well. As they worked, they rapidly ran out of things to bring up, as it seemed that he only felt the impulse to corrupt a specific belief once per person, and most of a person¡¯s deep-seated thoughts lurked¡­well¡­deep beneath the surface. If they were easy to pick out, they wouldn¡¯t qualify. After an hour, no one could easily think of anything new, so Calvin decided to call it there, allowing his Chained Spirits to do as they wished for the rest of the day. Kala went to the library, Nadia went out, and Kurawe began shuffling through paperwork he hadn¡¯t been able to catch up on without hands. The results of the training? The impulse to corrupt hadn¡¯t weakened at all, but Calvin had learned to feel it coming about two seconds earlier, giving him a much broader window to either gag himself or leave the situation. I think I¡¯m starting to get a handle on this whole not being alive thing¡­ Calvin thought. All in all, it didn¡¯t really change much about him other than a few chaotic ¨C but manageable ¨C impulses and a lack of a sense of pain. He was still himself, and that was more than anyone could ask for after rising from the dead. Not regenerating Bent stung a bit, but between Nadia and Kurawe using Siphon regularly on his behalf, that wasn¡¯t a problem. Well, Nadia being infamous might be a bit of a problem. Calvin closed his eyes and mentally stepped into her body. He saw that she was avoiding major crowds, a concealing hood over her head. She¡¯d been named a demonic enemy of mankind in the public eye, after all. I wonder why she was confused earlier when she said she hates me, and it registered on my Maculat-o-meter? She decided to just tell the truth, didn¡¯t she? Up until then she¡¯d been simply stating the¡­opposite of how she really felt. I find you absolutely intolerable, every minute I spend with you makes me long for the sweet release of death. Opposite: I love being with you and every minute I spend with you makes me want to be alive again? Calvin¡¯s eye twitched. That¡­could be complicated. Assuming my read on that is accurate, it also means that if a deep-rooted value is being communicated in an oblique way, as long as the person delivering the message intended it to be deciphered, it still triggers my impulse to jump on it. So it¡¯s less the words, than the intent behind them. There was a knock at the door. Calvin glanced at the windows overlooking the dunes, then Kurawe. No guarantee Jonathan hasn¡¯t sent someone to kill me already. Kurawe nodded, then moved to the door while Calvin put his back to a nice thick wall, keeping his eyes on both the windows and the door. ¡°Delivery from The high shaman of the Plainslanders for Calvin Gadsint,¡± Came a young boy¡¯s voice form the hall. ¡°The message reads, I¡¯ve never seen Jonathan so humiliated. Thank you for an entertaining evening. Enjoy these, with my compliments.¡± The young man handed Kurawe a fist-sized brown bag. Kurawe thanked the boy and sent him on his way, opening the bag. Inside was a pouch of beeswax preserving¡­some lumpy something or other. ¡°Carmelized nuts.¡± Kurawe said, tearing the bag open and smelling it. ¡°It¡¯s a Plainlander treat. They get the sugar from grasses that grow to the south of them, and the nuts in the floating mountains that dot the plains.¡± He popped one in his mouth and crunched down on it. ¡°Not poisonous. You want some?¡± ¡°Put it on the desk,¡± Calvin said, gesturing. Halfway back to the desk, there was another knock. Kurawe raised a brow, dropping off his baggage before returning to the door. ¡°Delivery from the Marquis of Surrak,¡± A boy¡¯s voice from the other side of the door said, before a cart was wheeled into Calvin¡¯s room bearing every manner of fine fruit Calvin had ever heard of, and even a few he hadn¡¯t. The boy was trailed by two women wearing little more than thin veils over their bodies that left little to the imagination. The two of them were just a couple years older than Calvin, voluptuous in the extreme, and were both giving him flirtatious stares as the messenger read the missive. ¡°Calvin Gadsint. I could not be prouder that your story started in my lands. You probably need refreshment after giving that Ilethan scum a well-deserved humiliation, and so I took the liberty of arranging some for you. Nissa and Henna are the finest courtesans in Mujenan, and they were eager to make the acquaintance of The Wasp, and will be sure to ease your worries in place of your sadly absent wife. They¡¯ve mastered every manner of pleasure known to man, and would happily give you a demonstration. Their skills include ¨C¡± The young boy¡¯s face was beet red as he read the letter, but he got to the end like a pro. Good job, kid. Calvin blinked. Kala wasn¡¯t saying anything, but he knew she could see and hear through his eyes. He could practically feel her gaze judging him. There was no doubt the current situation had caught her eye. Go ahead, have a good time, she said, her voice nonchalant. Kala, I want your dad not to kill me, and for that to happen, I need you to agree to being resurrected. And for that to happen, I need to turn these women down. It¡¯s fine. A man in your position needs to relax when he can. My father has several concubines himself. I understand that people have needs. What kind of selfish woman would I be if I tried to control you? Well if you¡¯re okay with it, I¡¯m fine too, Calvin thought, walking up to the closer of the pair, who practically flowed into his embrace, gliding to a halt with her body pressed against his, soft and yielding. ¡°The savior of Mujenan is so much younger than I expected,¡± She crooned into his ear while the young page left, face flushed. I wonder if this is Nissa or Henna? Calvin thought as she pulled his hand around until it was resting her hip. ¡°Nineteen, this June,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Remarkable,¡± The other one said, gliding to his other side. ¡°You must be awfully restless, cooped up in here. Full of pent u-p energy.¡± She pressed her chest up against his shoulder as she spoke, her breath tickling his ears. Calvin knew they were acting, he knew this was their job, but he¡¯d be damned if it didn¡¯t put a bit of a smile on his face. ¡°Are you hungry my lord? Tired? Sore? Is there anything we could do to make you feel better? Anything at all?¡± Dun dun dun dun dun DUN DUN DUN DUN DUN! Heavy footsteps preceded the door slamming open as Kala burst into the room. ¡°Hahahah ¨C hurk ¨C !¡± Calvin laughed at the sight until Kala flashed past him, grabbing him by the collar and tossing him on the bed, damaging his silk shirt with a distinctive riiip. The next sight he saw was Kala standing directly above him, holding half of his shirt in her fist. He couldn¡¯t quite see her face from his supine position on the bed, but the view was still pretty engaging. ¡°Princess Kala!¡± the women gasped and immediately fell to their knees, all pretense of sensuality lost as they groveled on the ground, their heads touching the carpeted floor. ¡°Please spare us princess! It was not our intention to anger you!¡± ¡°This,¡± Kala said, pointing down at Calvin, ¡°This is mine!¡± Calvin couldn¡¯t help but laugh at the situation, biting down on his hand as the familiar desire to corrupt crested over him. ¡°Of course, princess, we had no intention of doing anything at all. As a matter of fact, we were just leaving! With your highnesses permission of course!¡± ¡°You may leave.¡± Kala said, waving them away. ¡°And if you see the Marquis Surrak, tell him not to send my husband courtesans without my express permission.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± the ladies said, bowing and walking backwards as they left. Kurawe simply watched from his desk, giving a snort of amusement as they closed the door behind them. ¡°Without your permission? You say that like there may come a day where you¡¯ll give it.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Kala said, tapping her fingers together. ¡°If one day, I¡¯m¡­alive again, there may be times where I can¡¯t reach you, and I¡¯m okay with that¡­but for right now¡­I think I¡¯d rather you didn¡¯t sleep with them.¡± ¡°Oh no,¡± Calvin said with faux concern. ¡°Without courtesans, However will I relax?¡± ¡°I¡­may have an idea.¡± Kala said, her gaze hungry as she looked down at him. Calvin leaned to the side and caught his Kurawe¡¯s eye. ¡°Kurawe, could you take your work out into the hall?¡± Calvin asked as Kala knelt down on top of him, her skin warm through the fabric between them. ¡°As you wish, Ravager,¡± Kurawe said, picking up the hardwood desk and carrying it with him into the hall. ***Several bouts of passionate lovemaking later*** ¡°I have to write a note in my journal.¡± Calvin said, reaching out to the bedstand and grabbing his notes on his condition. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Kala said, snuggling into his chest. ¡°No refractory period.¡± Calvin said, writing the note down in his booklet. ¡°Which could be a problem, by the way,¡± Calvin said, glancing down at the top of her head. ¡°Neither of us need to eat or sleep or breath, so I could see us getting carried away and humping so long we miss appointments.¡± ¡°Birthdays.¡± Kala said. ¡°Entire weeks.¡± Calvin expounded. ¡°Months.¡± ¡°Well, definitely not months, because if you¡¯re not alive again by then, your dad¡¯s gonna kill me.¡± Kala laughed and hugged him tighter. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Okay you¡¯ll let me bring you back?¡± Calvin asked ¡°Thereby saving my ass from another potential end?¡± ¡°Okay, I think you¡¯re actually Calvin, and this isn¡¯t some sick illusion.¡± Calvin¡¯s stomach sank, but he patted her on the head anyway. She needed to ¡®relax¡¯ more than he did, apparently. A short while later, the two of them got out of bed and got dressed, Calvin snatching one of the juicier fruits off the cart and biting into it as he invited Kurawe back in. ¡°I thought you don¡¯t need to eat,¡± Kala asked, raising a brow. ¡°I don¡¯t,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Tastes good though.¡± Thank the gods being undead didn¡¯t deaden my sense of taste like it did with my sense of pain. Calvin still enjoyed eating the occasional tasty food, and everything being flavorless mush would be maddening. Speaking of, Calvin thought, eyeing the bag of candied nuts, snagging them off of the desk as Kurawe dragged it back into the room. ¡°When we make it back to the March,¡± Calvin said, opening the bag as he faced the two of them. ¡°I¡¯d like to take a tour of my lands and catch up with everything that¡¯s happened over the last month and a half. I haven¡¯t had a chance to do that at all.¡± Calvin started digging around for a candied nut. ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to seeing the population grow and turn into a real kingdom. I¡¯ve even been toying with this idea where we give the first born child in my territory some kind of prize or plaque.¡± Stinging pain assaulted Calvin¡¯s fingertips, and when he drew his hand out of the leather bag, it was on fire, his fingers crumbling into ash. Macronomicon ENJOY! Chapter 217: Signatory Royals ¡°That¡¯s interesting.¡± Calvin murmured, watching his index and middle finger burn with white flame. They were losing their color and turning into grey ash as the flame advanced from the very tip down past the first knuckle. ¡°Calvin!?¡± Kala¡¯s voice snapped him out of it. Blade body. One of Calvin¡¯s knives manifested in his hand, and with a few quick strides, he¡¯d pinned the burning fingers on the hardwood desk, knife levered at the perfect angle to lop them off like brenka roots. He watched, eyes narrowed as the burning approached the second knuckle. If it goes past the second knuckle, I¡¯ll cut them off, since I have no idea how far the damage will spread. Thankfully the burning seemed to exhaust itself just before his second knuckle leaving Calvin with two purple-oozing stumps. He brought it up to his face, idly blowing ash-o-Calvin off his hand as he inspected the damage. ¡°So anyway, like I was saying,¡± Calvin continued, wrapping a nearby handkerchief around his bleeding hand. Damn thing didn¡¯t even have the decency to fully cauterize the wound. ¡°I think we should also see what kind of change the removal of the mountains surrounding the march did to the local weather, and see what kind of progress the men and women in the Deep Jungle have made with their farms. I also need to oversee the creation of a military.¡± ¡°Calvin¡­¡± Kala said, crossing her arms. ¡°Kurawe, would you mind disassembling the bag of nuts and arranging it by unique material?¡± ¡°Immediately, Ravager,¡± Kurawe said, spilling the bag¡¯s contents into his hand. In a couple minutes, he had tiny bits of four different materials laid out in front of him on the desk. First was the sugar dust, in a little brown pile. Then came the nuts themselves, washed of their sugar coating, followed by the beeswax, and the leather of the bag. Calvin unceremoniously poked the sugar with his stubs. ¡°Nope.¡± He wiped his stubs clean and poked the nuts. ¡°Nope.¡± He moved on to the beeswax, poking the pale yellow substance. Calvin¡¯s wounded fingers burst into painful flames again. ¡°There we go!¡± He said, trimming the fingers just behind the knuckles with his knife. ¡°The beeswax?¡± Kurawe asked, frowning. He picked up the beeswax pouch and bit off a piece of it, chewing carefully. ¡°I don¡¯t taste anything other than beeswax. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s been any alterations to it. it¡¯s just wax.¡± ¡°That makes no sense.¡± Kala said, shaking her head. Sure it does, Elliot interjected. Lots of undead since time immemorial have strange, highly specific weaknesses. In the case of the Maculat, it seems to be Beeswax. ¡°But why?¡± Kala asked. Umm¡­maybe because it¡¯s a substance produced by a primarily female species with a reputation for its purity and being non-toxic. Purity and non-toxicity being antithetical to the concept of undead. In fact, the health benefits of beeswax are ¨C ¡°People use beeswax for everything!¡± Calvin said. ¡°Sealing jars, preserving foods, lipstick, - I could get killed by a peck on the lips! ¨C waterproofing, lubing machinery, candles, adhesive,¡± Calvin trailed off, running out of things to mention. Oh, but there are more¡­ ¡°Sealing envelopes,¡± Kurawe said, pointing to a stack of letters on the desk. ¡°Wait a minute,¡± Calvin said, thinking back to the white material that the Diocese of Trade could create out of Y¡¯kuingi¡¯s ooze. The one he¡¯d used to seal the trade agreement. Could that white ¡®plastic¡¯ replace beeswax? For a lot of things, sure. A path forward seemed to be opening itself up. Now that the diocese were dead, there was no one to stop Calvin from simply taking the machines they¡¯d used to harden and soften the ¡®plastic¡¯ and having his Knick-Knacks reproduce them on a grander scale. Rather than keep them to myself, perhaps put them into the hands of the Ooze Weavers. It wouldn¡¯t allow me to dictate their prices, but it would go a long way toward bringing them to the table as one of the Sapient races. Calvin knew which option Murak would vote for, but screw that. Making a profit took a backseat to replacing beeswax and not being an evil douchbag. All he needed to do was gradually guide his economy towards finding viable beeswax alternatives. Easier said than done. ¡°Well, that¡¯s a matter for the future, in the meantime, I¡¯m going to need a bodyguard to check my food, clothes and¡­environment for beeswax.¡± Ooh, ooh! Nadia shouted in his head. I¡¯ll do it! ¡°No offense, but I need someone a little less distractible.¡± Boo. It took a few hours, but Calvin finally settled on a design for his bodyguard. He took Kurawe¡¯s mind, slimmed his body down and shrank him to roughly the size, shape and look of a nondescript Gadveran valet. He took the nerve systems of Fever Wasp antennae and put them on his creation¡¯s fingers, so it could smell and taste beeswax acutely without having to literally sniff the stuff or put it into its mouth. This was for the dual purpose of increasing the odds of spotting the substance in advance, and also preventing people from noticing the man licking everything that might have beeswax in it. People were smart, and they noticed patterns. If Calvin¡¯s valet was treating everything that might have beeswax as potentially poisonous, it wouldn¡¯t take a genius to think Calvin might have an exploitable allergy. It was a lot more than that, but for other people¡¯s purposes, the effect was the same. They might slip some into his bed or hurl it at him out of nowhere, and Poof! Calvin would go up in flames and crumble into ash. ¡­. Leaving behind no corpse to speak of. Holy Guar shit, I won¡¯t leave a corpse! No corpse, no resurrection! Yep. Dying as an undead is game over. Elliot said. Straight to the afterlife with us. Calvin took a breath and calmed himself. Everyone else died permanently¡­for the most part¡­ why should he be concerned by that? A little germ of a thought that whispered he was unkillable had sprouted without him noticing it ever since he¡¯d brought himself back to life. It was now getting a healthy dose of reality in the form of a small pile of ash on the desk. Ash that used to be his fingers. Well, that stomps that little sprout of hubris into the ground. There was a knock at the door, and Kurawe answered it once again. ¡°Calvin Gadsint, your presence is requested in the main auditorium,¡± the messenger boy said. Calvin met Kala¡¯s gaze and shrugged. ¡°Let¡¯s go see what they¡¯ve got in store for me. And put that down.¡± Kala was sniffing the handkerchief stained with his blood. She touched the tip of her tongue to the blood-soaked cloth before recoiling away, her face scrunched up in disgust. Calvin sighed. ¡°Hand me the notebook, I need to make a correction.¡± ***later*** Calvin re-entered the auditorium, finding it empty of people save for the individual rulers, sitting around their semicircle in the center of the room. ¡°Calvin, come in,¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said, ushering him in. ¡°We¡¯d like to have a few words with you before ¨C¡° He glanced down at Calvin¡¯s hand. ¡°Did you lose a couple fingers this evening?¡± ¡°It happens,¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°I¡¯ll probably figure out a way to get them back by the end of the week.¡± ¡°¡­right. Anyway, take a seat,¡± he said, motioning to a nearby chair. ¡°Is it alright for me to be sitting down at the same table with you?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Isn¡¯t there some kind of rule against it?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what this is about,¡± The plainslander woman said. ¡°We¡¯ve decided to nominate you as a Royal.¡± Calvin almost tripped over the chair. ¡°Just like that?¡± He asked, sitting down. ¡°You¡¯re not a King. Not yet anyway. I suppose it means you¡¯ve got the power to become one.¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said. ¡°A Royal is someone with a level of personal power that defies logic. Each and every one of us is a weapon of last resort that could take thousands of lives in an afternoon,¡± The Bolesian said. ¡°There are certain responsibilities and expectations associated with that level of power.¡± ¡°So we¡¯re here to talk about the responsibilities,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Precisely.¡± Kala¡¯s father slid a scroll across the table to Calvin. He glanced down and saw the document was chock-full of dense text. He started skimming to get a feel for it. A Royal may not use their power to singlehandedly make war on a nation, although they may use their abilities in defense of their capital. A Royal may not use their power to deliberately bring ruin to a nation by means of plague, famine, drought, shifting land-mass, denying vital trade, shifting perception of nationality, cursing lineages¡­ etc, etc¡­ Calvin zoned out a bit at all the fantastical ways people had found to ruin other nations in the past with their Abilities. He¡¯d actually already broken one of them with his Lace-swapping antics, marking the section with a finger. Unfairly outperforming a market with the intention of undermining economic stability. Calvin skipped down. A Royal is responsible for culling any Aberrations that may occur within their Demesne in a timely manner. ¡°What¡¯s an Aberration?¡± Calvin asked, pointing it out with his ring finger. ¡°It¡¯s a powerful human mutation with the distinct trait of spreading itself to others, growing like a cancer. Usually it¡¯s associated with some kind of mental or physical assimilation, and the Aberration in question eventually becomes quite mad.¡± The plainslander woman said. ¡°Carem Sageva was an aberration,¡± the Hash¡¯maje said, nodding. Calvin glanced around the room. ¡°You guys thought I might be one too, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°While you have spread very rapidly in a political sense, you have not spread yourself to others, and so we voted that you are not, in fact, an aberration, simply a very powerful youth.¡± ¡°Two more votes, and I would¡¯a had you,¡± Jonathon said, holding his thumb and forefinger a hairs breadth apart. ¡°And what if I refuse?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Just from glancing at these rules, I can tell it means I can¡¯t take revenge on this bastard for selling my hometown to Malkenrovia.¡± ¡°if you choose not to accept the terms of this position, we will assign a Royal to the area you currently reside, with authority over Juntai and your March. If you prove reluctant to agree to this, we will combine our forces and remove you.¡± ¡°So either accept a nanny or die?¡± Calvin said, eyeing the rules again. ¡°Look at it this way,¡± The Hash¡¯Maje said, his eyes solemn. ¡°That agreement also prevents people like Jonathan from mind-controlling all your subjects from thousands of miles away and subtly convincing them to overthrow you, or worse, kill themselves. We agree to this, because fighting wars directly between each other results in such a massive loss of life that it isn¡¯t worth it for anyone involved. Those who break this agreement, well, we gather together five of us, and we go kill them.¡± ¡°Where does it say that?¡± Calvin asked. Kala¡¯s father reached out and pointed it out, near the very bottom. A Royal who willingly breaks these agreements shall be eliminated by a group of no less than five signatories of this agreement. Participation in these executions is mandatory for those born within the¡­ Calvin skimmed through the legalese. It basically said the five closest Royals were required to band together, hunt the rule-breaker down and kill them. Failure to do so got them added to the kill-list. Well, that sounds positively draconian. How else to you think they¡¯re going to ensure the good behavior of people who are basically gods? I think it¡¯s actually a good deal. ¡°So I agree to this, I¡¯m responsible for all of these things, but otherwise free to run my territory any way I see fit? Otherwise you send someone else, Someone jaw-droppingly strong, who may or may not like the way I do things, and could at any point, mark me as a target for extermination? And not being a signatory, I am afforded no particular protection?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the gist of it.¡± ¡°Well then,¡± Calvin said with a smile. ¡°I¡¯m happy to become a Royal. Give me fifteen minutes to finish reading all of the rules, and a pen. I¡¯m also going to want a copy of the rules for my office.¡± A few minutes later, Calvin was scratching his signature into a gold-bound folio of names that seemed to radiate Bent from some kind of enchanting. ¡°You¡¯ll have to excuse my handwriting,¡± Calvin said, ¡°Some of my fingers took the weekend off.¡± Things known about Maculat Mulieres: (Calvin¡¯s Journal) Blood is a rich, pleasing purple color, very bitter, with a strong numbing sensation. Smell is reported as being pleasant. May cause compulsive behavior. Definitely causes compulsive ingesting. Bent Regeneration has come to a complete standstill and must be supplemented by Lady Killer. Eating seems to be more of a habit than a necessity. Went ten days before I¡¯d noticed it. Strong compulsion to corrupt, reverse, or otherwise undermine strongly held beliefs. Hypothesized to be a learning behavior to practice a Maculat¡¯s ability to ingratiate themselves with others. Can be avoided or smothered, but otherwise control is difficult Beeswax causes flesh to burst into flame and ash at a supernatural rate, burning away any flesh about an inch back from the point of contact¡­which sucks. Macronomicon Chapter 218: The Hunger: A.K.A. The Curious Case of Lady Grey I¡¯m hungry, Calvin thought to himself as he sat on top of the train headed toward his territory, taking the scenic route so he had time to think about his life and where he wanted to take it. The wind blowing in his hair felt nice. Wait a minute. I¡¯m hungry! Calvin started, having grown accustomed to not being hungry at all. The familiar feeling of hunger was sitting right there, making his stomach feel like it was slowly tearing itself apart. How much you wanna bet normal human food doesn¡¯t make it go away? Elliot said, his voice smug. No bet. Everybody knew vampires drank blood, ghouls ate corpses, and vishkeya stole people¡¯s dreams, leaving them hopeless shells. Calvin was dreading this day. He¡¯d hoped that Maculat didn¡¯t eat anything, because an undead was practically defined by the fact that what it ate was harmful to humans. That and being undead. Elliot said. ¡°At least we¡¯ve got some fringe benefits,¡± Calvin said, wiggling his slowly regrowing fingers. In a week or so, they¡¯d be back to normal. Okay, so what do I do? I need to minimize the damage as much as possible, Calvin thought to himself, his veins singing with adrenaline. Well, the first thing I would do is actually make sure human food isn¡¯t gonna cut it. No sense dining on the blood of the innocent before you¡¯ve checked, amiright? After that¡­your specific mutation profile suggests your favorite prey might walk on two legs and have a little extra junk in their trunk. What? Someone a little more stacked? More estrogen than average? Bringing a taco in their lunchbox? I¡¯m guessing from context that you mean women. Why didn¡¯t you just say women? Thank you, but I prefer it my way. So I need¡­ Calvin snapped his fingers. I need a test subject. A disposable one. Everyone, what¡¯s the evilest woman you can think of? My aunt. Nadia said, sounding hopeful. No, too far away, and I don¡¯t want to go into Iletha any more than I have to. They do not like me there. Nadia clicked her tongue. You blew up my choice. Although to be fair she was most likely not herself at the time. Kurawe said. There¡¯s a woman named Lady Grey in Mujenan whose last three wealthy husbands have died of sudden illness. That¡¯s guarshit, right? Everyone knows it is, but no one can prove anything without asking for a mind mage to pry it out of her, and we trust them less than a suspected triple poisoner. Perfect, Calvin thought, rubbing his hands together. Now, I can ¨C Test to make sure you actually need to eat her and you¡¯re not just doing it to do it? Kala asked sweetly. Boo. Calvin went down to the food cart and shoveled an entire pie down his throat, than sat back and waited. The hunger only got stronger as Calvin sat on top of the train, kicking his heels against the thick metal of the car. ¡°Welp, it¡¯s time to go to Mujenan and hunt ourselves a widow.¡± He said, standing. You seem awfully eager, Kala said with exasperation. Are you sure you want to just jump into this? ¡°Do you really want to follow the tired cliche of me desperately trying to control my hunger until I finally lose control and kill either you or some innocent maid, riddling myself with guilt for the rest of my days? If I have to eat women I might as well do the world some good.¡± When you put it like that¡­ ¡°Plus I¡¯ve never hunted a widow before,¡± Calvin said with a grin. ¡°She¡¯s probably crafty.¡± Kala sighed. Calvinian Summoning Atom Ant Heart of the swarm 24/47 Bent remaining. ***Mujenan*** Calvin imploded out of three massive wasps, directly above a well-appointed club building chock full of snobbery, and smack in the center of a tremendous lawn. Shifting 23/47 Bent remaining. Calvin shifted his mass into the earth before he hit the ground, landing with the same force as a small package of flour. One of the guys. Calvin¡¯s frame lengthened, his skin wrinkling around his body as he took on the average appearance of everyone nearby. In this case, rich old Gadveran men. ¡°My disguise is complete. The bait is set.¡± Calvin said, chuckling evilly as he examined his liver-spotted forearm. Master Baiter. Now gold-diggers and black widows will find me irresistible. Ah, but what rich old man doesn¡¯t have retainers? Chained Spirit Chimera Chained Spirit Chimera Chained Spirit Chimera 20/47 Bent remaining. Calvin summoned Nadia, Kala and Kurawe, although he replaced Nadia¡¯s skin and hair with Kala¡¯s to make her blend in better, and gave Kurawe his saved beeswax checker form. For Kala, he gave her a few minor touch-ups from Nadia¡¯s bone structure, to make sure she didn¡¯t get outed as the princess of the entire country, along with a few unique surprises he intended to take advantage of afterward. The alterations had the unintended consequence of making the two of them look like sisters, but that wasn¡¯t a major problem. The major problem was the hunger burning a hole through his stomach. Not literally, but it was making it hard to concentrate. ¡°Alright, I know this is a bit impromptu, but you¡¯re my retainer, and you two are my maids. We¡¯re going to this woman¡¯s mansion a few blocks away and let undead nature take its course. We don¡¯t know for a fact I¡¯ll hurt anyone, but I¡¯d rather not risk it on innocent people, So¡­¡± Off we go to meet a man-killer, Calvin thought, beginning his march. Nadia and Kala grabbed either shoulder, halting him midstride. ¡°We need to get you a change of clothes, too,¡± Kala said, pointing at Calvin¡¯s attire. While his body looked like a convincing, somewhat handsome older man, his clothes were several inches too short and hung around his ankles. ¡°Okay, that could be a problem,¡± Calvin admitted. ***Later*** Threads, Check, Calvin thought, running his thumb down his jacket. A big lump of gold will buy just about anything. Kurawe was dressed similarly, albeit without the extra trimmings, while Nadia and Kala were wearing authentic maid uniforms. Dark, frill-less clothes, good for hiding stains from cleaning, with long skirts and sensible shoes. You missed a goddamn perfect opportunity right there. Those suggestions you made were ridiculous. I don¡¯t know where you¡¯re from exactly, but maids and strippers are two different jobs. They don¡¯t have to be! You¡¯re just not getting it! The human foot isn¡¯t meant to wear high-heels at all, let alone an entire work-day. My android stripper-maid never complained. Calvin rolled his eyes, trying to distract himself from the hunger gnawing away at him with conversation. Twice now he¡¯d had to stop himself from chasing this woman or that, his feet seemingly turning toward them against his will. By this point they were fairly sure they were on the right track with the whole ¡®lady killer¡¯ theory. The thing that really concerned him was this: there weren¡¯t a whole lot of women in the wild deserving of death, so what would happen if he ate them faster than they arose naturally? What if the Royals found out about it? Would they label him an aberration? Calvin didn¡¯t want to think about it. Not now anyway. They stood in front of the gloomy mansion in the far corner of the Mujenan High District, its premises overshadowed by taller structures in the distance as the sun was beginning to set. Calvin sauntered up to the front door with the practiced arrogance of someone who could take anything his eyes landed on, and simply chose not to. Not entirely inaccurate. He knocked. There was a long delay, some ten minutes, during which he felt eyes gaze at him from the second story, but didn¡¯t turn to look. At the end of his wait, the heavy front door unlocked with a thunk, revealing a woman with greying hair and a somewhat haggard face. Calvin could see the Bent veins in her body, untapped and waiting. ¡°Goodness,¡± She said sweetly, her gaze raking him up and down with a predatory anticipation. ¡°A gentleman caller. You have me at a disadvantage. Who might you be?¡± By instinct, Calvin put his foot in the doorjamb, and gave her his best smile. This old man still had all his teeth. ¡°I¡¯m Korus Brekket,¡± He said, puffing out his chest. ¡°I¡¯ve been away the last ten years, touring Boles. I was a friend of your late husband,¡± ¨C Beran Grey, Kala supplied ¨C ¡°Old Grey Ber.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard anyone call him that,¡± Lady Grey said, eyes narrowed. ¡°Just the closest friends.¡± Calvin said with Confidence. ¡°He¡¯s never mentioned you.¡± She said, still sporting a hint of suspicion. ¡°I mean no offense, madam, but did you talk with your husband much?¡± Black widows weren¡¯t known for having deep connections with the men they killed. She actually broke into a laugh. ¡°No, I suppose we didn¡¯t. What brings you here, Mr. Brekket?¡± ¡°Well, I return to the country after a decade, and discover my good friend has passed away. I thought I¡¯d pay a visit to his widow and hear about his final days, and perhaps pay you his share.¡± ¡°His share?¡± ¡°Oh yes, did he not mention it? He partially funded my expedition.¡± Calvin said, Confidence at full blast, and his hunger seemingly dictating his every move for him. It was almost scary, watching his body work its way into this woman¡¯s home with little to no effort on his part. The words and actions simply flowed from him. ¡°Well, why didn¡¯t you say so?¡± Lady Grey said, opening the door the rest of the way and inviting him in. ¡°I¡¯ll have to put on some tea.¡± The woman turned aside and took a deep breath. ¡°Sesha!¡± She shouted in a harsh, cutting voice that caused him to flinch and nearly snapped Calvin out of his act. ¡°Get over here!¡± A young woman with dark circles under her eyes and the hollowed cheeks of malnutrition scrambled out of one of the side rooms, from behind a door with a lock conspicuously on the outside. She took a moment to collect her posture before addressing the woman. ¡°What can I do for you lady grey?¡± ¡°Bring out the good tea and snacks, we¡¯ve got guests.¡± Lady grey said, pulling a thick ring of keys from her waist and carefully going through them before dislodging a single key and handing it to the young woman. Wow, I hate her already. What time do we eat? Patience. Lady grey guided him to a sitting room, while Calvin¡¯s ¡®maids stayed behind to help set up the get together. His ¡®retainer¡¯ entered the room with him, fading into the background as he clandestinely checked everything for beeswax. He had the complacency aura of a Stalker, which made it easier. There were a few offenders and Kurawe informed him mentally while Calvin engaged the greying woman with meaningless small talk. They sat there for about an hour, Calvin asking little questions about this and that detail of his ¡®friend¡¯s last years, while she in turn subtly probed him about his status and wealth, her gaze growing more and more predatory When he mentioned he was single. She asked him about his fingers, easily answered by a quick yarn about his stay in Boles, the monster capital of the continent. When the hunger was starting to make it difficult to think, Calvin acted. Mesmerizing Eye He took a moment to catch the widow¡¯s gaze with his own, then locked her into a staring contest. ¡°Why did you kill me?¡± He asked. A simple enough question. ¡°What?¡± Lady grey asked, her jaw slowly relaxing as she sank into the mutation¡¯s effects. ¡°I gave you everything you wanted, didn¡¯t I?¡± he asked. Just like with a dream, Mesmerizing Eye only took a small nudge in one direction or the other, and people¡¯s minds filled in the blanks themselves. In this case, Lady Grey slowly began to See Calvin as her husband. Her dead husband. ¡°I think something¡¯s gone off with the cookies,¡± Lady grey said, her skin turning pale as she set down her drink and made to stand. She was outwardly calm, but Calvin could see her Bent rioting inside her body as her heartbeat shot up. ¡°They taste fine to me,¡± Calvin said, taking another non-fulfilling bite of the tasty morsel. ¡°No need to run off. Stay. Tell me more about your dress. It seems new.¡± ¡°Right¡­ah, I suppose I got distracted. Well, after Beran passed away, I needed something to distract myself from the grief, so I bought myself some of the things he never let me have.¡± ¡°They look good on you,¡± Calvin said with a smile, catching her gaze again Mesmerizing Eye ¡°Can¡¯t you see what I really am?¡± Calvin asked. This time she shot to her feet, her legs banging against the table. ¡°What is this?¡± She demanded. ¡°Ilethan mind magic? Are we even in my home?¡± She asked, glancing around. There¡¯s a vial of poison in the upper pantry. It¡¯s not the kind you use on rats, either. This is the good stuff. Nadia reported. Bring it. ¡°Relax, Mrs. Grey. You look a little distraught. Maybe we should get some other refreshments? Something from the upper pantry perhaps?¡± Her jaw dropped, trembling as she struggled to speak. ¡°You, you, What¡­¡± There was a gentle rap on the door, and Kala walked in with the vial of poison on a tray, setting it down in front of him, giving Lady Grey a wink before heading back out. ¡°I want to leave.¡± The silver haired widow said, making to leave the room. ¡°Sit down.¡± Calvin said, the sheer force of his words forcing the woman back into her seat. That and Kurawe standing behind her. But she didn¡¯t mind him. Rather, she couldn¡¯t mind him. ¡°You¡¯re not leaving until you get what you deserve.¡± Calvin said, picking up the bottle, letting the Maculat drive his actions. ¡°No, no, no,¡± She whispered, eyes wide with fright. Calvin took the cork out, letting the sweet smell of the poison catch his nostrils. ¡°Please, Beran, I¡¯m sorry,¡± she babbled ¡°It wasn¡¯t me, it was your daughter! I would never hurt you! Oh gods!¡± Calvin tipped the bottle of poison back and drank the entire thing. It was sweet, with a bit of an acrid aftertaste. ¡°W-what?¡± she asked, stunned. ¡°Of course¡­this is a dream. You always did like your drinking.¡± She ended with a sneer. Mesmerizing Eye ¡°What do you deserve?¡± He asked as her eyes went vacant. ¡°A-all of it. I deserve everything you had and more!¡± she said, her true thoughts beginning to show through her act. ¡°Getting rid of your disgusting children is practically a job in and of itself. Once Sesha¡¯s gone, I¡¯ll finally be free.¡± Calvin manifested a knife and slit his wrist, holding it above the table, where it dripped royal purple onto the teaplate beneath ¡°What do you see?¡± he asked. ¡°Oh, Beran,¡± Lady grey crooned, holding her hands to her breast in delight. ¡°You¡¯re bleeding money! Gods, it¡¯s like a dream come true!¡± The widow practically dove onto the teaplate and began licking up the blood with enthusiasm, shuddering with delight. Calvin pressed the edges of his wound together, feeling them seal with inhuman speed while he watched the reprehensible woman slowly lose motor control. ¡°Oh, my,¡± She said, slurring her words, her arms barely supporting herself as she tried to pick herself off the table. ¡°I seem to have had one too many drinks, Beran.¡± One of the guys. Calvin¡¯s bones creaked as his body changed back to its original shape, his sleeves seemingly growing longer to cover his hands as he shrunk a bit. Lady grey blinked, her pupils dilated to an unnatural degree. ¡°Who ¡®r u?¡± she slurred. ¡°I suppose I¡¯m the actual predator in this scenario,¡± Calvin said, standing. The woman¡¯s eyes widened, and she tried to push herself away from the table, but her arms failed her, dropping her onto the ground halfway between the chair and the table. Calvin walked around the table, ignoring her feeble protests as he put a hand around her neck. Her heartbeat was weak, but it was beating violently fast, like a wild bird trapped in a cage. He could tell that she was ready. Lady Killer The veins around her neck stood out violently as Calvin dove into her and yanked out his sustenance, drawing his food to the surface and consuming it. +1 Warp 1/34 Warp Remaining +1 Warp 2/34 Warp Remaining +1 Warp 3/34 Warp Remaining ¡­.. ¡­¡­¡­.. ¡°Warp!?¡± Calvin demanded, dropping Lady Grey to the carpeted floor. ¡°I could¡¯ve gotten warp back at monolith!¡± All this build up and he could get his sustenance simply by spending time in his Siphon. Well, at least now you know. Elliot said with the equivalent of a shrug. Lady grey gave a gasp that was half moan half desperate gasp of air, and Calvin¡¯s Warp began ticking back down. 2/34 Warp remaining 1/34 Warp remaining Calvin felt his hand itch and idly glanced at his hand. He spotted the two fingers growing back at a substantial rate, visible to the naked eye. In a few seconds, his hand was whole again. 0/34 Warp remaining I see. That¡¯s why I got hungry. Calvin had gotten hungry for the first time in his undead life because he¡¯d been both outside the Siphon and wounded for the first time ever, putting a strain on his Warp reserves. If he didn¡¯t have the Warp Tank, he¡¯d be some kind of¡­ Ravenous undead constantly looking to feed. I see. This can be managed as long as I make regular visits to the siphon. Calvin wiggled his regenerated fingers, then shrugged. ¡°Well, since we¡¯re here,¡± He said before grabbing the Lady Grey¡¯s neck again. +1 Warp ***Sesha Grey*** Sesha sat with her hands folded over each other, hiding her fingernails from the guards who were investigating the attack. She was very self-conscious about the way they were frayed at the edges. ¡°So this dashing older man shows up at your house, reduces your stepmother to a drooling vegetable, and you didn¡¯t see any of it?¡± Sesha shook her head. ¡°Mother doesn¡¯t let me in when she¡¯s talking to visitors. I was talking to his maids in the kitchen. They were very pretty. Sisters, I think.¡± ¡°Do you have any description of the man in question other than ¡®dashing¡¯?¡± The guard asked with a sigh. ¡°Umm¡­very dashing?¡± Sesha said meekly. ¡°He was very handsome¡­For an older man..I mean.¡± ¡°And you, Lady Grey? What did you see?¡± the guard asked, turning to the older woman. Her steel grey hair had a streak of white down the side, and she seemed to be rocking herself back and forth. ¡°Whatever Sesha said. Sesha is right,¡± The woman said in a whimper. ¡°There also appears to be a bottle of what used to be Gredden extract in the sitting room. If the contents of that bottle had made it into anyone here, we wouldn¡¯t be having this conversation. Does anyone want to explain what happened with it? Gredden extract is a highly controlled substance. ¡°One of his maids got a bottle off the top shelf, next to the baking supplies, and brought it to them,¡± Sesha said. That day I stole the keys to the baking cupboard and ate some chocolates¡­I almost tasted it until I got scared Mother would notice. A cold shiver went down Sesha¡¯s spine. ¡°Is that what happened?¡± The guard asked Mother. ¡°Sesha is right,¡± Mother said, continuing to rock back and forth. ¡°Was that your Gredden extract?¡± The guard asked. Mother nodded. ¡°What happened to it?¡± ¡°Beran drank it all, then he bled money. I tried to drink it up, but it made the demon come.¡± ¡°Well,¡± The guard said, tossing down his pen. ¡°That¡¯s all I needed to hear. Mrs Grey we¡¯d like to bring you down to the yard to answer a few more questions. Two large men grabbed Mother by either arm and began escorting her to the door. ¡°Wait!¡± Sesha called, standing. ¡°What do I do?¡± The Captain frowned for a moment before his face made an ¡®ah¡¯ expression. He reached down and slipped the keyring off Mother¡¯s waist before tossing it to her. ¡°Live your life.¡± Macronomicon Chapter 219: Post Human Now that he had free time, he was able to deal with the passengers in his head, starting with Nadia. Her new body bristled with a litany of augmentations from half a dozen different species of warped creatures, Some of which he¡¯d hunted down specifically for this. The combination of potent mutations made her a terror in her own right, without even including the mind magic she was skilled in. She looked slightly different than she had before, as though an artist had gone over the rough draft that was her body, and subtly altered every detail to be just a bit¡­more. ¡®I have the opportunity to outshine everyone in the room, I¡¯m going to take it¡¯, She¡¯d said. She had horns budding from her head, Her fingernails could grow into razor sharp, poisonous claws, her lips could render a man insensate at will. Calvin wasn¡¯t concerned with these, because he was immune to poison. She could feel people¡¯s intentions toward her, change the color of her skin at will, make people ignore her presence, fly, and a host of other things. Calvin gave her all of these advantages in exchange for a contract that guaranteed her good behavior. It was a harsh, magically binding agreement that prevented her from acting against him in any way, convincing others to act against him, or failing to inform him when others planned on doing so. He owned whatever she did and could demand her service at any point in time, with very few limitations. The terms of the contract discouraged her from seeking his death, simply passing to the closest people to Calvin in the event he passed away. Still, he didn¡¯t want her to have no hope at all, so at his insistence, they had added an expiration date. Nadia would be free of the contract after twenty years of good behavior. That way she would have no reason to kill him, and something to look forward to. Thank the gods, Nadia didn¡¯t come back as a ravenous undead, with any cravings beyond what she¡¯d already had. Calvin¡¯s circumstances must have been because of the state his body had been in before he¡¯d died: Transitioning to a Maculat. Once Kala laid envious eyes on Nadia¡¯s new form, she became more amenable to resurrection¡­With caviats. It took time, convincing, and several compromises, but Calvin was able to get Kala to accept resurrection before the deadline set by her father, her appearance largely unchanged. What was beneath the skin though, was another story. Once Calvin¡¯s head was no longer full of people talking to him and each other, he felt like an enormous weight had been lifted off his shoulders, giving him time to deal with something he¡¯d been putting off for a long time. ***Calvin*** The temple of awakening was bustling as he walked through the center of the city he¡¯d cleared out of the jungle. Well, city might be a stretch, Calvin thought, scanning the citizens. They mostly wore homespun and hides, bore axes on their waists equally good for firewood and femurs. It was more like a fur traders market. Foot traffic was decent, but that was by Calvin¡¯s standards as a small town shepherd. He was fairly sure they weren¡¯t quite city density yet. The age was also a factor. In the future, Calvin expected the future of his citizenship would come here to earn their free breaks. You should consider making them pay for it, via taking a commission in the military or something. Maybe one day, but I don¡¯t need to yet. He imagined the streets would be flooded with young men and women between the ages of twelve and sixteen, prepping themselves for their trade by gaining Skills and raising their Attributes. Idealistic and utterly sure they would make a difference. That kind of energy is valuable. Instead, it was primarily men and women in their twenties and thirties, looking to carve land out for themselves. These crusty folk spotted Calvin out of the corner of their eye and gave him hoarse grunts and nods of respect before going on their way. It seems like homesteading attracts a¡­type. Still, Calvin was directly responsible for two population centers, Which was two more than most people his age. What about juntai? Elliot asked, souring Calvin¡¯s mood. Juntai people were slightly xenophobic and had questionable marriage practices. Selling a girl¡¯s first Break to the highest bidder was objectively awful, and yet the harder Calvin tried to dissuade them, the more they took the practice underground, crying martyrdom at the top of their lungs. I wonder if I should just bring all the parents of Juntai here, get them their Veteran Break and rape them until they liked it. Nah, they probably wouldn¡¯t get the message. ¡°Kurawe¡¯s taking care of Juntai,¡± Calvin muttered to himself as he dodged around a group of leather clad men running through with a man on a stretcher between them. It¡¯s only a stopgap though. Kurawe might be experienced and talented, but he¡¯s not Juntai, and they basically nod at everything he tells them to do, then gives him the finger as soon as he turns away. And don¡¯t get me started on systemic corruption¡­ You¡¯d think it would get better when you cut the head of the snake off, but the major factions of Juntai splintering into tiny pieces had caused the flow of money to change hands dozens more times before it reached its destination, each and every person taking a little cut. I need a representative in Juntai who¡¯s agreeable to¡­. Calvin slammed a fist into his palm. That¡¯s it! What was the name of that older businessman? The one we built the train with? Calvin searched his memory for a moment. Gunder. That was the name of the merchant. Carem¡¯s direct competitor. Did Gunder survive the riots? Surprisingly, he did, Kurawe said. What about him? He¡¯s got the right age, he¡¯s got the right money, he¡¯s got the right race. He¡¯s done business with you in the past. People will accuse him of being a puppet. Kurawe said. Of course he¡¯s going to be a puppet. See if he¡¯s amenable. If so, funnel money toward diverting the public¡¯s attention to something else while you set up the new Diocese. As you wish, Ravager. Kurawe said. You¡¯re starting to get the hang of this, aren¡¯t¡¯cha? Elliot asked. Just a little bit, Calvin thought as he entered the shadow of his towering shrine, ducking into the first layer and heaving a sigh of relief. The hunger that had been slowly building began sloughing off of him as soon as he felt the invisible Warp press against his skin. 1/34 Warp remaining. The Shrine of Awakening was organized into four layers. The outermost layer was kept as a Warp concentration that would trigger a Break in someone with none. The second, third and fourth layer were similarly managed via nem-infused paint on the walls and careful ventilation. What if I bought the first Break of several hundred young juntai girls and turned them into Royals? Godsdamned unholy terrors, unleashed on their home country. That might work. They¡¯d certainly be more cautious about selling their daughter¡¯s future to foreigners afterward. Calvin snorted, opening the door to the second layer, his Warp tank gradually ticking up. 2/34 Warp remaining 3/34 Warp remaining ¡­. He¡¯d nearly gotten his ass handed to him the last couple conflicts he¡¯d been in, and there was no reason why that should¡¯ve been the case. The Harbinger¡­ Calvin¡¯s hairs stood on end. The Harbinger had taken the full force of his friends and family, along with Elliot¡¯s knowledge of the creature¡¯s weaknesses. If he¡¯d been by himself, he would have tied after the first backhand. With Kurawe managing the territory, Kala and Nadia alive again and doing their own thing, Calvin finally had the time to devote to maximizing every Attribute and every Skill. With access to a siphon granting him a constantly refilling supply of Warp, he could reach the absolute limit of his abilities in a matter of weeks, rather than decades. If it weren¡¯t for Kala watching my back, I¡¯d be dead several times over. If another Harbinger arrived, Calvin didn¡¯t want to count on another intervention from a Seer. What should we start with first? Calvin thought, doing some minor stretching as he opened the final chamber, the room built directly around the black pit leading to the Siphon The final chamber was lit by enchanted lights crafter by Jinsei and embedded into the walls of the room. It was basically one huge obstacle course on the inside, with weights and a practice yard, fighting dummies, and even a place to relax between training sessions. In the center of the room, just to the side of the hole in the floor, was a buxum young Gadveran woman doing a handstand on one finger, her face showing total concentration. Calvin had strong fingers, but that was just¡­ ¡°Calvin!¡± Learner shouted, hopping off her finger and bouncing toward Calvin, tumbling in the air before landing directly in front of him and engulfing him in a hug. ¡°What were you up to?¡± ¡°I was just practicing Body Perfection,¡± she said, stepping away from him. ¡°It¡¯s a really handy hybrid Skill that both enhances and strengthens the body itself and grants large bonuses to proprioperception as well as the accuracy of my shifting. Which comes in handy, since sometimes when I shapeshift a get a little clumsy,¡± She said, sticking out her tongue and bonking her head. Calvin¡¯s brows rose at Learner¡¯s effortless use of ¡®cutsie¡¯ body language. Calvin had experienced a bit of that with One of the Guys. When he got taller or shorter it sometimes made him trip over his feet. ¡°You did a lot of research on this, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Indeed, my mom made this list of potential Skills before I even had my first Break,¡± Learner said, pulling a crumpled piece of paper out of her cleavage. ¡°Your mom?¡± ¡°Well,¡± Learner paused, blushing. ¡°I mean, It was me, but it doesn¡¯t feel like me, you know what I mean? So since that part of me made most of me, I call her my mom.¡± Calvin considered the annoying passenger in the back of his head. ¡°I think I know what you mean¡­although I don¡¯t think I¡¯d give him the satisfaction of calling him dad.¡± Aw, C¡¯mon, don¡¯t be mean to your dear old pops. You¡¯re practically the seed of my loins. Bite me. ¡°So you¡¯re in here practicing your Skills?¡± Calvin asked, taking off his jacket and tossing it aside. ¡°Yep, I focused on my Attributes the first three Breaks, then took the first four Skills on mom¡¯s list, that she called Foundational Skills, and once I raise them to high levels, I can access more powerful Skills and Abilities during my next Break. At least, I think it¡¯ll work.¡± ¡°You aiming to be a Royal?¡± Calvin asked frowning. ¡°Why not be the best you can be?¡± Learner asked with a shrug. ¡°What four skills?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Body Perfection, Bent Manipulation, Internal Evolution and Social Butterfly.¡± Bent manipulation he already had, Body perfection she¡¯d just explained, and Social Butterfly was obviously to help her navigate human society more effectively, but the last one¡­ ¡°What¡¯s Internal Evolution?¡± he asked. ¡°It¡¯s the skill I hypothesized when I was studying biology for my Break. I got it when I went through my entire body and did compare and contrast testing on the random mutations my cells make and culling the ones that were detrimental, while feeding the beneficial mutations back into my stem cells with messenger proteins. I was trying to emulate a process known in macrobiology as Artificial Selection on a micro scale. The Skill allows makes doing it easy enough to do that I can passively increase the average performance of all my cells over time. ¡°So¡­you get stronger, tougher, and smarter, the longer you live?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°Yep,¡± Learner said, posing victoriously. ¡°Very slowly, though,¡± She qualified. ¡°And will you age?¡± ¡°Why would I wanna let my body do that?¡± ¡°So you¡¯ve essentially escaped the human condition already,¡± Calvin said with a chuckle. With one skill, too. Learner is scary. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°There are a few things that have always been constants about the human experience,¡± Calvin said. ¡°One of them is getting older and dying, whether you like it or not. We call them ¡®the human condition¡¯.¡± ¡°Well, that blows,¡± She said, crossing her arms and frowning. ¡°Why don¡¯t they just¡­not age and die?¡± Her curious frown cracked him up, forcing a peal of laughter out of him. ¡°It¡¯s actually impossible for natural born humans to stop aging of their own will,¡± Calvin said, chuckling. Not true. Humans figured out the cure for aging in 2072, but then only the super-rich were able to afford an immortality license. Rich bastards citing overcrowding to keep eternal youth to themselves. Elliot began muttering under his breath. Looks like I touched a sore spot. ¡°Normally, it¡¯s impossible,¡± Calvin corrected himself. ¡°Weird. Why would you choose that?¡± Calvin frowned. ¡°Has no one explained this to you?¡± Learner shook her head. ¡°People don¡¯t choose to be human. They don¡¯t choose to exist at all. We¡¯re all just the result of random chance.¡± ¡°Except for me.¡± Learner said, frowning, brows furrowed in thought. ¡°Except for you.¡± Calvin said. ¡°If you bred me, would the resulting human have chosen to be one? Would it be our consciousness combined in one body, or simply random?¡± Bred me? Learner slapped her hands over her mouth. ¡°Sorry, that was mom. She doesn¡¯t always understand.¡± Learner said, her face flushed with embarrassment. And on that note, let¡¯s change the subject, Calvin thought. ¡°How about we help each other raise our Skills?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°It goes a lot faster with a sparring partner.¡± ¡°That would be great!¡± Learner said, brightening immediately. Macronomicon Lol. Anyway, that marks the sixth chapter, I think? You should be officially caught up, and I''m too lazy to be bothered with double checking that. See you guys next Tuesday! Chapter 220: Obligatory Training Montage From the records of Sigmund Velmont, Undead Hunter on the planet Korat. The Maculat Mulieres is a horrifying creature that solely preys upon the weakest among us. Among the thinking undead, they are some of the most difficult to suss out, apart from simply poking everyone you meet with a beeswax rod. They prefer densely populated urban areas where the disappearance of young women can go unnoticed for days, weeks, or sometimes indefinitely. They are masters of corruption, seeking to bend their victim¡¯s sense of right and wrong until their depravations seem normal. When they feed, they must first agitate their victims into such a state of heightened emotions that they are incapable of rational thought. Usually this is accomplished with simple fear, but overwhelming joy, lust, and sorrow aren¡¯t unheard of. Until the victim is ¡®broken¡¯ in such a way, they cannot feed. If you are ever taken by a Maculat, my love, stay as calm as you can, as long as you can. I will find you. Once they¡¯ve primed their prey, their lips peel back, jaw widening to a terrifying degree, revealing wickedly sharp fangs reminiscent of a dog¡¯s and they begin to devour their victim¡¯s flesh. The Maculat eat the flesh, but the Death Energy of their prey is what sustains them, as evidenced by the piles of undigested bloody flesh they disgorge to rot in their dens after a meal. Within a day of their last meal, the Maculat is already charming their way into the confidence of their next victim, driven by ceaseless hunger. They are vicious animals hiding behind a veneer of civility, and they deserve nothing less than extermination. Extensive training has increased your attributes! +11 Endurance. Endurance has reached the Body cap of 35. +10 Strength. Strength has reached the cap Body of 35. +11 Kinesthetics. Kinesthetics has reached the Body cap of 35. +7 Intuition Intuition has reached the Mind cap of 45. Meditation has reached level 45! 4 Abilities Available! Stealth has reached Level 35! 5 Abilities Available! Old Salt has reached level 35! 2 Abilities available! Drafting has reached level 45! 6 Abilities available! Chained Spirit has reached level 45! 3 Abilities available! Abyssal Alchemy has reached level 45! 7 Abilities available Trait Doctoring has reached level 45! 5 Abilities available! Calvinian Summoning has reached level 45! 3 Abilities available! Bent Manipulation Has reached level 45! 6 Abilities available! Playboy has reached level 45! 2 Abilities available! Beli Ma has reached level 45! 4 Abilities available! Dupdomancy has reached level 45! 5 Abilities available! Shifting has reached level 45! 6 Abilities available! Sense Grafting has reached level 45! 5 Abilities available! Genosian Language has reached level 45! 7 Abilities available! Your Princess is in another Castle has reached level 45! 6 Abilities available! 12/34 Warp Remaining. ***Calvin**** Gods, I¡¯m finally done, Calvin thought, sorting through the tidal wave of notifications. Three months, Calvin had spent in the Siphon, doing nothing but working on using the Warp spewing out of it to maximize every Skill and Stat. And the entire time, there were not subjected to mutated horrors, pitched battles, or treacherous enemy states. I thought you didn¡¯t want to spend most of your life training, Elliot said. I didn¡¯t, but apparently there are creatures out there that can toy with Royals like children. We met one, remember? Ooh, yeah. Once Skills got above level thirty, it took over an hour to raise them by a level with Warp added to the equation. Above level forty it took a quarter of the day. Normally they would take months or years of diligent practice, so in that sense, Calvin had a distinct advantage over his contemporaries. Still, he was exhausted and ready to get back to people. He hadn¡¯t even seen Learner around for weeks since she¡¯d gotten her foundational skills to a level she was happy with. She was a little jealous that Calvin was able to convert, store and use Warp whenever he wanted, rather than having to Break to gain it, but Calvin and Elliot had little sympathy for the immortal eldritch being that was slowly but steadily growing more powerful. Watching her pout was pretty funny, too. He looked over all the Ability slots he¡¯d earned over time and shook his head. That was far more Abilities than any man had a right to expect. Calvin figured that with the overabundance of Abilities, he¡¯d be able to funnel two to four from most of them into trees that increased the effect of the Ability itself, while saving the remainders for a case-by-case basis. For example, according to Elliot, if he took the Ability that raised Dupdomancy¡¯s mass limit, another Ability would become available that would allow him to upgrade it to level cubed in pounds, rather than squared. That applied to the duration, as well. I¡¯ll wait until I¡¯ve got a pen and paper. I need to jot all this down and get organized. First thing¡¯s first: Getting back to civilization. I could use a break. Calvin thought to himself as he headed for the exit, unsealing the rooms one at a time as he went. He finally got past the lobby of the temple of awakening, and stepped out into the sunlight of day. Calvin¡¯s jaw dropped as he took in the sight. Buildings rose above him, three stories at minimum, some tall enough to give his massive statue pause at thirty stories high. They were enormous undertakings that had to have taken years to complete without his help. Not only their size, the state of disrepair they were in was astonishing. Some of them were crumbling, while others looked as though they¡¯d been hollowed out by fires. The road had been paved while he was gone, but trees already seemed to be poking out between the cobblestones as nature reclaimed his city. There wasn¡¯t a single soul nearby, either. What the Abyss is going on!? Calvin spotted motion to his left, and instinctively slid a knife out of his palm. A towering man with a ragged mane of grey hair dressed in rags lunged forward out of the ruins, grabbing Calvin by the shoulders. He didn¡¯t seem to have any hostility, so Calvin didn¡¯t gut him. Yet. The man had a huge grey beard covering most of his face, but Calvin could see the hint of something he recognized behind there. Something strangely familiar. ¡°Calvin! It¡¯s me, Baroke! Listen to me. You were down there for over a hundred years! you got so caught up in your training that you just forgot about everything else. There was no day or night down there, and you don¡¯t need to eat or poop, so you lost track of time!¡± He pulled Calvin into a hug. ¡°I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re still alive. We tried to get you out of there, but the Dymere Collective had taken control of the city in the late eight-sixties.¡± Baroke started openly weeping, patting Calvin on the back. ¡°Now hurry,¡± Baroke said, forcing Calvin to crouch low. ¡°We¡¯ve gotta get out of here before they send their war-birds after us.¡± In the distance, Calvin heard a piercing cry as something rumbled, and a dark shape swooped over them causing the light from the sun to flicker. ¡°Oh, no!¡± Baroke said, scanning the sky with bloodshot eyes. ¡°They¡¯re already onto us!¡± ¡°Who is!?¡± Calvin demanded as they hid under an abandoned table. The Dymere Collective! They¡¯re a multinational merchant syndicate that took control of supply chains back in the eighty-forties. They would do anything to see you dead, because that would be the last nail in the coffin for our country. We would never be able to oppose them again!¡± There was another screech, and Calvin saw a huge bird pass over, a man riding it like a guar, casting a steely gaze down at them. Did I really stay down there a hundred years? It¡¯s impossible. Kurawe would have told me if something was up¡­unless it was some kind of trickery by the Ilethans. ¡°Where¡¯s Kala?¡± ¡°Kala¡¯s in Gadvera with her husband and sixteen grandkids,¡± Baroke said before ducking out from behind the table and firing a swift shot at the rider. ¡°Take that you son of a bitch! You¡¯ll never take us alive!¡± Baroke screamed defiance as his arrow perforated the rider, sending him toppling to the ground. ¡°She did give me a message for you, though, if I ever saw you again.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± ¡°Dear Calvin I¡¯ll never forget magical times that we shared, though my body is conquered by another man, sometimes multiple times a night, I¡¯ll always keep you in my heart. Please, forget me and move on. If not for me, do it for yourself.¡± Calvin¡¯s eyes narrowed. Okay, this is pretty fucking fishy. He switched his focus to his Tarak skin, feeling the air around him carefully. There was an invisible person standing next to him and several more in the street¡­ And Baroke¡¯s huge grey beard was showing just a tiny bit of glue where it transitioned to the rest of his face. Without warning, Calvin reached up and seized Baroke¡¯s beard, tearing it away from his face with one vicious yank. ¡°Ack!¡± Baroke shouted, falling to the ground and clutching his face, rolling on the ground in pain. The enormous abandoned buildings around them shimmered away, replaced with the training yards and single story utility buildings that surrounded the temple. The empty street lost its decrepit paving and gained hundreds of citizens, many of them watching their leader cower underneath a street vendor¡¯s stall. Calvin was currently hiding beneath a table full of furs, with the owner watching him curiously. Curious and a little concerned. ¡°I told you your message from Kala would break immersion,¡± A voice called from above, where he spotted Nadia floating above them, her wings fluttering lazily to keep herself blanaced. ¡°We could¡¯ve had him for another five minutes, easy.¡± ¡°Screw you,¡± Baroke said, scratching the irritated skin on his chin as he stood up. ¡°It was hilarious and absolutely necessary. The look on his face was priceless.¡± I forgot. Illusions. Light-bending illusions weren¡¯t something you could resist, because they didn¡¯t actually effect you directly, simply altering the light that made it to your eyes. Nadia must be very good at those, Calvin thought, eyeing the grinning she-devil. He remembered her ability to create curtains of invisibility, the first time they¡¯d met. So good in fact that she¡¯d been able to prevent him from hearing the crowd and even muffle his Tarak senses, despite not even knowing about them. Probably an Ability. ¡°You just reset the timer on that twenty years of good behavior,¡± Calvin said, meeting her gaze as Baroke groaned in pain, peeling off the stragglers glued to his face. ¡°Worth it.¡± Nadia said with a grin. ¡°I thought you hated Nadia,¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°This and that are two different things. A man can put up with anything in the name of a good prank,¡± Baroke said. ¡°It wasn¡¯t.¡± ¡°That¡¯s debatable.¡± Calvin glared at the two of them, then burst into speed-wasps and headed for his tower. He got there much faster than before, thanks to Atom Ant supercharging the wasp¡¯s speed even further. In a matter of minutes, he alighted on the balcony to his tower and tried to head inside, only to be tackled by Kala. The dusky princess nearly toppled him off the side of the balcony. Calvin might be exceptionally strong, but that didn¡¯t mean anything with nothing to grab onto. He took two steps back toward the edge before he was able to stop her momentum, his back pressed against the railing. ¡°You¡¯re back!¡± Kala said, rubbing her cheek against him and melting. ¡°Have you been waiting in the tower for me the entire time?¡± Calvin asked, frowning. ¡°Because that seems a little¡­¡± ¡°On the nose?¡± She asked, looking up at him. ¡°Wait.¡± She frowned. ¡°Did you get taller?¡± ¡°Can undead even grow?¡± Calvin asked. I¡¯unna Elliot grunted with the equivalent of a shrug. ¡°No,¡± Kala said, pushing away from him and fixing her hair before clasping her hands together in front of her in the most princess-y manner possible. ¡°Mostly I¡¯ve been doing paperwork and dodging my father. He made me spend a month with every manner of Truth-Teller, Diviner and Soothsayer just to make sure I was really alive.¡± ¡°That sounds¡­stuffy.¡± ¡°I know!¡± Calvin gave her his arm as they headed into the tower, ducking through the darkened portal and entering the second floor living quarters. ¡°Where¡¯s Ella at?¡± ¡°She¡¯s out hunting dinner. We are smack in the middle of the jungle, after all.¡± ¡°True,¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°So,¡± Kala said, bumping her hip against his. ¡°We¡¯ve got the tower all to ourselves for the next couple hours. Is there anything you¡¯d like to do?¡± Calvin eyed the princess greedily. ¡°I can probably think of something.¡± ***later*** ¡°Sex. I was talking about sex.¡± Kala said, peering at him over the pile of paperwork. Calvin blinked, glancing up from his written list of Dupdomancy Abilities. ¡°Oh. Why didn¡¯t you say so?¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°She totally did,¡± Learner said from her side of the desk. Yeah, she was 100% asking you to plow her. Elliot added. How would you know!? I thought you were bad with people too! I am. I was also in my forties before I was imprisoned. ¡°Ah, crap. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Calvin made a mental note that if a woman asked you if there was anything you¡¯d like to do, they were quite possibly discreetly offering themselves as one of the options. ¡°I was just caught up in making sure all these Abilities get spent in an organized way.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Kala said, leaning on her palm. ¡°I think it¡¯s cute¡­sometimes.¡± ¡°Well, no reason we can¡¯t planning my build more interesting.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Wait, what?¡± Trait doctoring Frequency 22/59 Bent remaining. ¡°So I¡¯ve been ¨C¡° Calvin was interrupted by a yelp from Kala. The dark-skinned princess was staring at him with wide eyes, while Learner was glancing back and forth between them, brows furrowed. ¡°Like I was saying ¨C¡° There was a crunching sound as Kala reflexively crushed a sheet of paper in her hand. Calvin decided to ignore her and just keep speaking. ¡°I was thinking about taking Atom Ant From Calvinian Summoning and using it for Dupdomancy. I could also double drop Bulk Split and its next tier equivalent to make the Permanency ability a more viable option.¡± ¡°Atom Ant, two mass limit boosters and permanency would leave one Ability unspoken for.¡± Calvin read Kala the list. Hypothetical Space Expansion: Warp the environment by an amount dictated by the skill¡¯s mass load. Empty space is filled in with what would have been there if the space were that large. Temperature control: Copied matter may be raised or lowered in temperature by an amount of degrees equal to Dupdomancy¡¯s duration. Permanent split: Duplicate objects permanently, Mass limit divided by 100. (2.25Lb) Bent-reactive materials exempt. Atom Ant: Sacrifice Mass of summon for increase to physical attributes of summon. 1 to 1 ratio. 1 summon''s worth of mass lost empowers 1 summon with double physical attributes. (Max multiplicative power equal to Dupdomancy Level) *caution* While these objects are permanent, they are still Bent constructs and therefore not exempt from dispelling techniques, unlike normal objects. *Do Not Consume Duplicated Food, unless you want your body to be partially made of Bent Construct.* Bulk Split: Mass Limit increased by (Int) % Extended Split: Time limit is increased by (Sta)% Mutations: Pump You Up: 1 Bent, Muscle mass is subtly duplicated, increasing by (End) % for duration. Spare mass is converted to extra duration. Will increase user¡¯s weight. ^Better than it sounds, a small muscle increase has large effects on strength and speed. Always bring a backup: 1 Bent, repair or replace a damaged or missing organ for the duration. Spare mass is converted to extra duration. Given enough time to heal, the body will incorporate this replacement permanently. Copy Kit: 1 Bent, Consume an object to permanently store it¡¯s data in the System. The objects may then be the subject of Dupdomancy spells in whole or in part, as normal. Store 1 Item/5 levels of Dupdomancy Shiva: Create semi-permanent extra body parts/limbs at will, decreasing maximum Stability by 3 for each one. This does not have a strict Bent cost, and can be used when Bent is 0. The cost is essentially applied to maximum Bent. The limbs are dismissible, and Stability will recover within 24 hours. Kala was biting her lip, her fingers sinking into the wood of the desk. ¡°On the other hand,¡± Calvin said. ¡°I could take Extended split and its next tier in order to make temperature control more effective.¡± Calvin said, scanning the list. ¡°What do you think?¡± ¡°I think,¡± Kala said, trembling. ¡°Permanent Split¡­Is redundant¡­with¡­undifferentiated matter.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good, point,¡± Calvin said, causing Kala to flinch. He looked back at the list and erased the star next to Permanency, freeing up another slot. ¡°OOOH!¡± Learner said, eyebrows raising. ¡°It¡¯s the vibrations.¡± Macronomicon Oh, and welcome back to our regularly scheduled Tuesday chapter. Hopefully those two weeks of being totally off my game are behind me. Chapter 221: Business as usual After several hours of debate, Calvin took Two tiers of Bulk Split, then Atom Ant. His Dupdomancy skills had never been about long term solutions to problems, it had been about effective solutions to pressing issues. With Atom Ant, he could create equipment that was up to forty-five times stronger than it had any right to be, allowing him more power and flexibility. He tried it against Karen and was pleased to note that she couldn¡¯t easily tear through Abyssal Steel reinforced by the Ability. Read: Easily. It took her some effort. The last two Ability slots he saved for emergencies and mutations to the skill. Like before, there was always the possibility there would be some kind of overlap that he couldn¡¯t pass up. Moving onto the next Skill. Sense Grafting has reached level 45! +1 Intuition Please choose five abilities and/or Mutations. Omniscient Grafting: The User can now graft senses without losing their own, as well as create and process multiple inputs simultaneously. Calvinian Spycraft: 1 Bent to Link senses to summoned creatures. A mile in their shoes: User copies any number of senses from a target onto themselves, allowing them to experience what the target is experiencing. Proprioception: User instinctively knows the physical distance and direction between themselves and all subjects of the spell. Desensitize: reduce chosen sense from mild weakening to complete deprivation. Mutations: Gaze into the Abyss: See from the perspective of any creature observing the User. May cause headaches without Omniscient Grafting ^unlocked by Third Eye and Feel Intent Compensation: Sacrifice a sense at will to boost another drastically. Reversable. 7th,8th,9th Sense needs seven more senses added, Calvin thought, making a note and circling it as the thought popped up. He had night vision and Tarak Skin, but there were seven empty slots he could steal from exotic animals. I wonder if I could have stolen the brain worm¡¯s perception of time. I wouldn¡¯t suggest it. Your meat body simply couldn¡¯t handle it. Let¡¯s see, Five points, and seven available abilities, two of which are mutations. Can I still have mutations? I¡¯m not alive. I don¡¯t think the Warp gives a shit. Okay, all of them look good, so all I really need to do is eliminate two and take the rest. Omniscient Grafting is a keeper. It makes using it in combat much more of a manageable thing. Calvinian Spycraft is good too, I could experience what my summons are doing without being forced to use Heart of the Swarm A Mile in their shoes¡­.Sounds like a lot of fun during sex. Dude. You wanna fuck yourself? You masturbate with your own hand, don¡¯t you? Hah, that¡¯s an SNL skit. Proprioperception was nice but not super necessary. Calvin put it on the short list to be removed. Desensitize was good offensively. He could use it to black out someone¡¯s vision or hearing or what have you with a snap of a finger. Then there¡¯s gaze into the Abyss, and Compensation. Hmmm¡­. Calvin¡¯s ability to feel people looking at him had always come in handy. If he knew exactly what they were doing, that would be even better. On the other hand, compensation was handy. Calvin could picture himself temporary snuffing out his sense of taste to enhance his hearing or vision, allowing him to pick up things he had no right to. After some waffling, he decided to toss Compensation out in the cold. If it came to examining things incredibly closely or incredibly distant, he could always have a summoned creature do it for him. Calvin chose Omniscient Grafting, Calvinian Spycraft, A Mile in their shoes, Desensitize, and Gaze Into The Abyss. Once Calvin¡¯s stint of unconsciousness was over, he struggled to get used to Gaze Into The Abyss. He felt like a thousand-eyed spider, his thousand eyes constantly blinking open and closed whenever someone looked at him or looked away from him. He saw himself from a new angle every time someone glanced at him, and it was disconcerting. He never had any intent to do so, but it felt vain, like he was preening in front of a mirror. He even found himself shifting his posture a little bit as people looked at him. Do I really look like that when I slouch? Apparently. Without Omnescient Grafting, He most likely would have been overwhelmed from the flood of viewpoints constantly streaming through his head. Even so, it took time to get used to it. It was especially disconcerting to note how much more men glanced at his crotch than women. It¡¯s a scientific fact! Calvin called it a day on the Ability selection and resumed business as usual. So how¡¯s the plastic production going? Calvin asked Kurawe. Less than ideal, Ravager. The knick-knacks ran into problems upscaling the ¡®emitters¡¯ you gave them. It seems the Bent cost of running the larger emitters is actually worse than the smaller ones. The Bent value lost puts us at a disadvantage, from a production standpoint. Bent has a value? Of course it does. On average, one Bent for a second Break laborer is the equivalent of eight hours labor. The purifying process takes sixteen passes of Bent to make a chunk of plastic the size of a dinner plate. There are many more factors at play on a larger scale, and Murak could go into great depth, but suffice to say we are spending too many man-hours of labor in order to produce this ¡®plastic¡¯. The competition, beeswax, requires no Bent overhead to produce, and Bent can be spent to make it a superior product. We¡¯re going to have to approach this from two angles, Calvin thought as he strode through his tower. First, let¡¯s see if we can create some filtering techniques that reduces our reliance on the Emitters for the first stages, then let¡¯s see if there¡¯s a way to power the emitter with less Bent. Or no Bent at all, for that matter. We have already begun, Ravager. The Ooze weavers are a practical people, and have taken to technology quickly. Excellent. Thought of the Ooze-weavers made him think of Y¡¯kuingi and her stay in Calvin¡¯s March. It would have ended quite a while ago. I wonder how they¡¯re doing. ¡°How would you guys like to visit Y¡¯kuingi?¡± Calvin asked, glancing at Ella, Learner, and Kala. ¡°I¡¯m going to go see how the plastic production is coming.¡± ¡°Sounds boring. I¡¯m out.¡± ¡°I¡¯d love to see if I can put the things I¡¯ve learned about electricity to use,¡± Kala said, her face flushed with enthusiasm. Ella glanced over at the dusky princess, brows raised. ¡°I¡¯m in.¡± Calvin frowned at the savage, who shrugged with a mischievous smirk. ¡°I would like to study Ooze weaver physiology more. I suspect they are not a naturally occurring species. Do you think they¡¯ll allow me to vivisect one of them?¡± Learner asked, her eyes wide and glittering in the lamplight. ¡°No.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I do not think they¡¯ll allow that.¡± ¡°Phoo.¡± Learner huffed, crossing her arms and pouting. ¡°I told you,¡± she muttered to herself and glancing aside. *** Calvin gave Ella and Kala a ride on a wasp, and Learner flew herself, their destination the lake the Ooze weavers made their village around. The trip was a quick fifteen minute jaunt through the sky, but hiking the dense jungle would have taken days There were massive differences in the lakeshore village already. Being the chief producer of Calvin¡¯s new product, the Ooze weavers were naturally the ones with the most supply of it. Since the material was refined from their own ooze, they felt no compunctions about incorporating it in nearly every aspect of their daily lives. Calvin spotted huts whose joints were bound together with stiff plastic, he saw human tools whose handles had been supplemented by grips made of plastic that fitted the creature¡¯s foot-pincers better. There were nets set up in various parts of the lake, new inventions designed to manage their fish population more effectively. There was even a massive grill being manned by a dozen male Ooze-weaver, surrounded by what seemed like a party-atmosphere of dozens of Ooze weavers stopping by for the food they churned out at a feverish pace. Male ooze-weavers were smaller and dumber, but they weren¡¯t animals. They were more than able to handle tasks that didn¡¯t require a lot of strength or brains, so you never saw them in leadership or hard labor positions, but cooking food? That fit them like a glove. As for what they was cooking on, it was a huge, flat piece of steel imported from the Juntai homeland, complete with a large Bent generator off to the side, with its own massive flywheel. Ooze weaver loved cooked fish, but Hated smoke. Y¡¯kuingi must have somehow bartered to have some Juntai electric grills brought over, then converted to use Bent to create electricity directly¡­ Who did that?? Kala, maybe? The Emitters, the knick-knacks, and those hunter killers from a couple years ago all use Bent-to-electric engines, so I think they could have adapted one. The problem would be finding one. I wonder how much plastic it cost. Calvin couldn¡¯t even imagine how many tons of plastic it would have taken to convince the Juntai to part with such a heavy-duty piece of technology. So much trade and advancement is happening even without me. Just from putting these people in contact with each other. Neat, isn¡¯t it? Elliot said. In the distance, he spotted yet another hut being erected, and swooped down from the sky to observe. The Ooze-Weaver spotted Calvin¡¯s party but didn¡¯t gawk for long, returning to their job with a professional spirit. The architect poured a jug of purified slime into a hollow joint, pressing the two corners of the hut into the goop, which rose up around them. Then she pulled an emitter out from her toolbelt and held it over the joint. Calvin felt an inaudible whine, and in moments, the plastic froze into a hard white solid, securing the poles permanently. Goddamn, Todd must¡¯ve done it. He recreated the recipe. What? Calvin asked. Todd Spendle was one of my contemporaries. Like me, he was a Biomancer, although drastically more altruistic than I was. He was always trying to recreate plastic ¨C the good kind of plastic, not the petroleum stuff - I¡¯m pretty sure these Ooze weavers are an unintended side effect of his project. I understood maybe half of that. I sometimes wondered what happened to him. Pretty sure he¡¯s dead, but he¡¯d probably be really thrilled to know not only did he succeed, he created a sapient species. Is that important? Calvin asked. Just like every chemist secretly wants to blow stuff up, every biologist secretly wants to make a creature that can carry a conversation. Damn the consequences. Can you really assign a secret desire to every profession? Scientists are defined by their fetishes, so yes. You should see some of the crazy shit mathematicians get up to. It involves numbers. Calvin chuckled at the joke and stepped closer to the newly cemented joint, squatting down and putting his hand over the newly formed plastic. It was warm to the touch, and felt interesting against his fingernail when he scratched it. Tough but smooth, and just the tiniest bit little yielding. ¡°I absolutely love the idea of using it to create instant molds or bonds between surfaces.¡± Calvin said aloud. He turned to the carpenter. ¡°How long will it last?¡± He asked in their tongue. The creature gave the equivalent of a shrug. ¡°longer than the wood it¡¯s holding together, is all we know. The first pieces we ever made had been left to weather in harsh conditions,¡± She said, motioning to the lake, where Calvin could make out some net poles bonded together with plastic. ¡°We¡¯ll have to replace the poles before we replace the bond.¡± She said, pride radiating from her voice. ¡°The People have made something from our Binding that can be given to future generations. We are ecstatic beyond compare. If you¡¯ll excuse me, I have to finish this home for the gravid mother, my lord.¡± ¡®Lord¡¯ was clumsily spoken in Gadveran, and the Ooze-weaver¡¯s foreleg rose in something like a salute before it moved on. I guess these are my people, too¡­ Calvin thought. Y¡¯kuingi had brought back more than a few tidbits of information. The intelligent young Ooze-weaver must have persuaded them that they would benefit from subordinating themselves to him. Now you have to consummate your arrangement by marrying their princess! Not you too, Calvin thought, rolling his eyes. ¡°As amusing as you all think it would be, I for one do not want some half-ooze weaver brats running around.¡± ¡°I think they¡¯d be cute.¡± Kala said with a shrug. ¡°I think they would a mucus problem,¡± Ella said. ¡°There¡¯s no question.¡± Learner said. ¡°They would likely even have spinners coming out of their noses and malformed, rubbery bones.¡± The three of them gave Learner a grimace. The eldritch horror shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s what would happen, at least based on my samples.¡± ¡°What samples!?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°Oh please, humans leave their genetics all over the place. If you don¡¯t like it, you should stop spraying your DNA all over everything¡­.¡± She blinked. ¡°That was mom. I personally voted against doing¡­that.¡± Learner wrinkled her mouth and nose as if recalling something less than pleasant. Macronomicon Chapter 222: Plastic makes Perfect ¡°Y¡¯Kuingi!¡± Calvin shouted upon seeing his erstwhile pseudo-fiancee. Is it just me or has she grown a couple inches? Calvin wondered as he did the traditional crabwalk-arms-raised greeting of The People. ¡°Welcome to the village, my lord.¡± ¡°Your lord, is it?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Since when?¡± ¡°Since I discovered the human custom of feudalism. If we take you as our lord, you are honor-bound to protect us from all comers.¡± Calvin¡¯s brows rose. ¡°There¡¯s the matter of taxes ¨C¡° ¡°Already worked out with ¡®Kyuriawei¡¯.¡± She said, carefully enunciated the foreign name with her inhuman mouth-parts. ¡°Am I just a step behind everything?¡± Calvin asked. You were training for the sake of defending yourself, others, and your Status as a Royal. You were doing exactly as you should, Ravager. Gotta learn how to accept delegation, Calvin thought, shaking his head slightly. It slightly irked him when people did things in his name, but that was just part of the Wizard King package he was working his way up towards. Besides, Calvin had no problems with defending the Ooze weavers. Abyss, he probably would have done it for free. Out of all the people he¡¯d come across, they¡¯d been¡­less reprehensible than others. Just wait until they get a taste for money and a caste system. Elliot said. ¡°I want you to keep in mind that not all lords take that responsibility seriously, and you should make provisions to defend yourselves.¡± Calvin said. ¡°As you will, my lord,¡± Ykuingi said. ¡°So, Y¡¯kuingi, can I take time out of your day for a tour?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I want to see everything that¡¯s changed since the last time I was here.¡± Her shrimp-like mouth-pieces twitched in the affirmative, and she gratefully took the opportunity to foist her work off on her underlings. She marched away from the leadership hut, showing him around the village. ¡°You likely saw the holy grill on the way in.¡± ¡°Holy?¡± ¡°Cook is a holy position of great respect and longstanding tradition,¡± She said, motioning to the male ooze-weavers frantically flipping fish fillets. Say that five times fast. ¡°In three months?¡± Calvin asked, brows raised. ¡°Actually we¡¯ve only had the grill for three weeks,¡± Ykuingi said, her posture suggesting great humor. ¡°But the males love it. They get very protective over the grill and get aggressive when females try to relieve them.¡± BAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh my god, that is hilarious! In all worlds, Bar-B-Q shall forever be the domain of the penis! ¡°I think they just want something they can be better at,¡± Calvin said, ignoring Elliot¡¯s insane rambling. ¡°We thought so as well.¡± Y¡¯kuingi said as they watched a larger female approach for her food at an angle that could be misconstrued as attempting to take over the workspace. The male on that end of the grill faced towards her and lifted up his forelegs like an angry spider ready to throw down. The female cautiously took a grilled fish, keeping an eye on the male zealously guarding the holy space. She took the fish up to her mouth parts and nibbled a bit before patting the male on the head, skittering away from the violent return flailing of the male¡¯s legs. The male seemingly huffed as the female left, getting back to work grilling the fish that was streaming into their huge shared workspace. Now that he was alerted to it, Calvin glanced around the lakeshore and saw several examples of the larger sex physically teasing the smaller males, roughhousing with them a bit before running away and hiding, peeking from around corners to see if they were being chased. ¡°What¡¯s with the roughhousing?¡± Calvin asked. Y¡¯kuingi glanced at him for a bit. ¡°Let me show you something,¡± She said, motioning for him to follow. Calvin shrugged and he and his princess train ¨C plus Learner ¨C followed after him. They went a bit deeper into the woods, into a nook that was hidden by thick trees and carefully woven foliage. What Calvin saw boggled the mind. Thousands of big old slimy grubs, about the size of Calvin¡¯s torso, were seated in orderly rows at plastic desks. The grubs didn¡¯t have working limbs, only little stubs of thick hair to move on. Instead, they carefully drew messy pictures with their mouthparts on pieces of washable vellum. They were overseen by a dozen female Ooze-weaver nurses, moving quickly between them, cooing at their progress and teaching them bits and pieces of language here and there, though the grubs themselves were mute. ¡°There¡¯s been something of a population boom. In another two years, our workforce will double, and I fear we may suffer some sort of¡­ ¡°Rebound?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°I do not know this word.¡± Y¡¯kuingi said. ¡°It¡¯s when a trend goes one direction, then reverses violently or painfully.¡± Calvin said. ¡°Then it is a good word.¡± Y¡¯kuingi continued. ¡°You asked what the rough play was. We are well-fed like we haven¡¯t been in years, and certain¡­instincts are flaring up.¡± ¡°They¡¯re horny.¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°Precisely.¡± Well, I always wanted to know what a horny Ooze weaver looked like. I can cross that off my bucket list I guess. The princess showed him to the plastic refinery, which was a sight to behold. It was composed of several large vats connected by tubes, with slowly leaking runoff channels that could be opened at a moment¡¯s notice. Female Oozeweavers tirelessly ran nets through the ooze while others held the Diocese¡¯s emitters, spending Bent to convert the raw sludge into a grey slurry. Still more came by and spat huge gobs of slime into the vats before going about their days. ¡°Can you tell my about who is required to put their Binding in the vats?¡± Calivn asked, watching the female leave. ¡°Are there shifts, or is it just kind of¡­self service?¡± ¡°Since we produce Binding in our own bodies, we cannot conjure out of it in thin air, nor can we set an arbitrary quota,¡± Y¡¯Kuingi said, nodding. ¡°Instead, all people aside from Gravid soon-to-be-mothers are encouraged to spit whatever spare Binding they have before they enter torpor for the day, allowing their reserves to rebuild as they sleep. This takes a toll on our bodies, but between the extra food, and weighing our choices in favor of extra points of Endurance, We have mostly compensated.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Calvin said, nodding. ¡°Kurawe, as soon as my visit is over, arrange for Ooze weavers to be carted to the temple of awakening and given their second and third Break.¡± It will impose a time cost on the train system, but I believe raising our Plastic manufacturer¡¯s Breaks will be beneficial in the long run. I¡¯m going to have to make a passenger train, aren¡¯t I? Your edicts to move people to and from the Temple of Awakening are beginning to be felt in our profit margin. Although Murak is aware of the benefit of Veteran laborers, he is nevertheless extremely uncomfortable earning less than the maximum amount of money form a given situation. Calvin fixed his eyes on the ooze-weavers making plastic. The process went like this: In the primary vat, the Ooze weavers would use the emitters to congeal tiny lumps of half-formed plastic. They fished these nuggets out of the mixure and tossed them in another, smaller vat where the lumps were rinsed with fresh lakewater. The lakewater was then bled off, leaving the clean pellets all by their lonesome. The emitters were then used to turn them back into a slime, then gently mixed together to achieve fusion between the elements involved. If the slime was mixed roughly, their end result would contain less plastic than otherwise. Because the long chain polymers are getting busted up. Ooh, idea. Once the second vat was thoroughly mixed, it would be hardened via Emitters. This stuff wasn¡¯t the finished product, it still needed to be sweated, allowing the slime that didn¡¯t shift back to escape through pores in the material. After a few revolutions of this, they had their plastic. Calvin watched the entire process in fascination, from the giant vat of slime, they refined the material all the way down to a cube about two feet on a side of pure plastic. Yeah, we¡¯re definitely not winning any efficiency medals. But I do have some ideas. ¡°Science?¡± Calvin asked with a raised brow. Science, bitches! Elliot bellowed. ¡°Pardon me, Y¡¯kuingi, I¡¯m going to create metal men.¡± Calvin said so she wasn¡¯t completely dumbstruck. Calvinian Summoning 46/54 Bent remaining Twenty-six hundred normal sized Knick-knacks flooded out of the cloud of thick green smoke that covered the entire operation. ¡°Start setting up testing facilities. I want every different grade of filter over here. All the different acids over there. There might a catalytic effect, so make a row for testing monster extracts.¡± Calvin dove into testing headfirst. The idea was to find a process that maximized the amount of slime that got converted to plastic nuggets right out of the gate. Seeing the amount of slime that didn¡¯t make the grade lead Calvin to believe they were vastly underperforming. I¡¯m not using my Abilities to destabilize an economy¡­Calvin told himself. I¡¯m using my Abilities to rapidly find a recipe that will allow someone else to destabilize an economy. Calvin¡¯s knick-knacks tested a thousand carefully measured units of slime, finding that, with the current method, approximately 0.05% of slime became plastic. If they could raise that to just one percent, that would increase their output by twenty times. The first gains are always the easiest. We¡¯ll most likely make that jump before dinner. It¡¯s the scrabbling for that extra half-percent on the back end of ninety-nine point five that really challenges people like us. They began a battery of tests. They changed the temperature, they changed the exposure to light, they changed the catalysts, adding things like salt, chalk, and practically anything that could be ground into a fine powder. At their current stage of development, they didn¡¯t need to know why a certain process made the plastic manufacture more efficient, only that it did. They got results quickly. If the temperature of the slime was raised, but kept below one hundred and eighty degrees, the percentage raised drastically. Salt did nothing. Neither did chalk. The acid seemed to have a positive effect as long as it was diluted. At Elliot¡¯s suggestion, they tried different stirring mechanisms, designing something in Visualize that he called a ¡®taffy puller¡¯ They threw some of the thicker examples of ooze weaver slime on the machine ¨C simulated by knick-knacks ¨C and let them pull and fold the slime thousands of times. Over time, the slime began to turn white. Is it changing to plastic? Calvin wondered. Oh no, that¡¯s the air bubbles refracting the light so evenly that it looks white to the naked eye. What we¡¯re really after is the gentle stretching and folding to make long chains. Like noodles. Elliot¡¯s suggestion raised the efficiency to a drastic 3.8%. Removing light from the equation raised efficiency to 2.4%. The weak acid set the rate to 2.1%. Temperature control had a 1.3% effect. All together, they achieved a multiplicative ten percent success rate. 10.00 Vs. 0.05 Calvin did some quick math. Two hundred times the efficiency! They didn¡¯t find any catalysts that helped the solution, as a matter of fact, most of them did the opposite. Whatever the slime was made of, it was already in such a delicate balance that it didn¡¯t take kindly to foreign medium. There¡¯s definitely something missing, though, Elliot brooded. We got such small increases in efficiency, which implies to me that there¡¯s a component that there simply isn¡¯t enough of. ¡°Hand me the notes for the P-series experiments,¡± Calvin said holding out his hand. ¡°Here ya go, boss,¡± Goob said, putting the notes in his hand. Calvin glanced down at the notes in his hand, then up at Goob. Then down at the notes. Then at Goob. Ella broke into a Guffaw. ¡°Took you long enough!¡± Kala, sitting on her lap, twittered in a very refined and princess-y way. Learner was off trying to negotiate for an Ooze weaver corpse, so she didn¡¯t get to see Calvin¡¯s consternation. ¡°When did you get here?¡± Calvin demanded. ¡°I¡¯ve been helping you with notetaking for oh¡­half an hour now.¡± The teen said. Goob was going on fourteen and just starting to sprout. The mop-headed boy had that young gawkiness to it that Calvin was just starting to grow out of. ¡°No, I mean how long have you been in the Ooze-weaver village.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been here for a few weeks, trying to improve plastic production, and¡­¡± he lowered his voice. ¡°hide from girls.¡± ¡°Hide? Why would you need to hide from girls?¡± Calvin asked. Maybe it was a difference in life experience, but Calvin liked girls. Like, a lot. And they generally tended to be beneficial. ¡°Turns out the Ooze-weavers don¡¯t have a concept of Yandere and none find me attractive in the least, so I¡¯m safe here. I pray to all the gods that whatever evil spirit of ill fortune gave me the Yandere Magnet Skill be struck down by divine wrath.¡± Yandere magnet¡­? I knew a guy who¡­ I mean, if you gave the kid like a hundred pounds of fat and thirty years... the similarities are¡­ HOLY CRAP! Elliot shouted in the back of his head, making his ears ring sympathetically. What is it!? Calvin thought, his body freezing. That¡¯s Doug! You sneaky son of a bitch, you¡¯re back to finish the job, huh? You always said if you came back you¡¯d give yourself the Yandere Magnet Skill, didn¡¯t you, you traitor? Well your creepy preference for two-D anime girls has finally come full circle and given you away. Now is the time for you to finally taste my wrath! Let¡¯s do it! Elliot shouted. Let¡¯s strike down the one who gave him that Skill with divine wrath! Little does he know, it was HIM! C¡¯mon, let¡¯s do it! He gets what he wants, and we get what we want. Everybody wins! ¡°No.¡± ¡°No?¡± Goob asked. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Calvin said waving his hand. ¡°The dead guy who lives in my head says he recognizes you and wants to kill you. It¡¯s no big deal.¡± Calvin zoned out as Elliot¡¯s cursing grew more heated. ¡°Kinda seems like a big deal.¡± Goob said, paling. ¡°Anyway,¡± Calvin said, stuffing his pinky in his ear as if trying to dig out the tiny voice shouting at him. ¡°When you were doing your own experiments, did you have any ¨C¡° Wait, where¡¯s everybody going? Elliot stopped shouting and asked a rational question. Around them, the Ooze weavers were setting aside their nets and emitters, turning as one to file out towards the lake, creating an eerily coordinated procession. Macronomicon So yeah, if you''re reading this, you''ve read 6 books worth of Calvin-ventures! yay! Now let''s see what kind of trouble I can stir up this evening! Wish me luck! Chapter 223 Working with the grain of religion Calvin¡¯s first instinct, naturally, was enemy mind control. When he saw the procession of Ooze-Weavers drowning themselves in the lake, he honestly thought for a just second that Jonathan Ilestar was doing what they said he could do: making an entire city kill themselves. Calvin was right in the middle of swearing eternal vengeance when he noticed the bubble of mucus they were wrapping around their breathy-parts, and the relaxed way they were swimming under the water, heading for the dark spot in the center of the lake. The one with the blinky blue lights he¡¯d seen passing over a while back. ¡°You seem distressed.¡± Ykuingi said, standing beside him. ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°I studied human body language very closely while I was in your village, my lord.¡± ¡°I thought they were drowning themselves¡± Y¡¯kuingi gave a bubbling laugh. ¡°It would be very difficult for the People to drown.¡± ¡°There are people who can do it.¡± Calvin said, keeping his voice, face and body language, completely serious. ¡°¡­I see.¡± Y¡¯kuingi nervously interpreted that for a moment before responding. ¡°But why would you even think of that?¡± Calvin glanced at the shrimp-spider. ¡°Do you know what ¡®war¡¯ is?¡± ¡°No, what is that?¡± Calvin frowned. ¡°Has anyone in your village ever gotten a third Break?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a tale of a male who got a third break during a particularly harsh famine and became a chieftan, but it was many generations ago.¡± Calvin screwed up his face. How do I put this¡­ ¡°There are¡­incentives, for those in charge of millions of civilians, to encourage their citizens to kill another nation¡¯s citizens en masse in order to reap material benefits as well as provide themselves and their citizens Breaks beyond the third, fourth, sometimes even the seventh Break.¡± All the humor drained out of Y¡¯guingi¡¯s posture. ¡°¡­what?¡± ¡°What did you think you were asking me to protect you from as your lord?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Monsters like the demon in the lake.¡± Y¡¯kuingi said, pointing at the lake. ¡°Y¡¯kuingi. I think it¡¯s best you hear this now: Humans can be just as cruel and infinitely more dangerous than the demon of the lake. On average, they¡¯re not very smart, tend to make decisions based on physical attractiveness, and take what doesn¡¯t belong to them.¡± ¡°You are not very attractive to humans.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fair. You¡¯re not very attractive to us.¡± ¡°What I¡¯m getting at, is when I asked you to prepare to defend yourselves, I meant defend yourselves from the next lord. I might not be around forever, and if your people don¡¯t hold enough money, power and military might, the next lord might treat you like animals who make plastic as a by-product. Keep you in cages. Your task is to spread your roots as deep and broadly as you can so that you can weather a future without me.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Y¡¯kuingi said, saluting. ¡°I¡¯m glad we cleared that up,¡± Calvin said. Remind me to take Y¡¯kuingi to watch a battle. Noted, Ravager. Excellent decision. ¡°In the meantime¡­¡± Calvin said, glancing back at the lake. ¡°What is going on here?¡± ¡°The people are performing their daily worship of Mother Hagfish.¡± Y¡¯kuingi said, motioning to the lake. ¡°One of the reasons we hated the demons so badly was that it denied us our worship.¡± Mother¡­hagfish? Calvin¡¯s knowledge of their language told him it was a common expression for surprise or thanks, possibly derived from religion. Definitely derived from religion. ¡­ ¡°Can I watch?¡± ¡°If my lord can breathe under water.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll figure something out.¡± Calvin said. His summons didn¡¯t need to breath, So Calvin simply used Heart of the Swarm and Chimera to swim into the lake in his Combat Form. The water was surprisingly clear, and he was able to keep his eyes open and admire the deep lake teeming with insect and fish life thriving off the carefully managed waste piles that¡­ Am I swimming in shit-water!? Calvin demanded. It¡¯s a good thing you chose to go in your Combat Form, then, isn¡¯t it? Calvin followed the train of Ooze-weavers until the temple of Mother Hagfish became clear in front of him. It was a massive mound covered in mud and weeds, but here and there, he saw a piece of shining metal underneath the scum. There were nubs that rose above the muck, carrying blinking blue lights. What their purpose was, Calvin couldn¡¯t say, but they definitely weren¡¯t natural. Calvin followed the procession to a carefully maintained doorway. The muck and lake debris had been peeled away from the entrance, revealing an arching double doorway of shining metal that any great mansion would be proud of. It wasn¡¯t quite grandiose enough to qualify for a palace, but it was still far more extravagant than a group of stone-age primitives who worked with spit should have access to. It pre-dated them. Calvin couldn¡¯t help but think of the blinking lights in the freezer of the Genosians. Did the building reach from the top of the mountain to the bottom where they had found Ritchie¡¯s Bitchin¡¯ Recharging Station? Oh that? Yeah, that was a carrier class recharger. It looked like an enormous ¡®U¡¯ that shot up thousands of feet into the sky. Some of the biggest atmosphere capable ships in the world could park in the cradle of that ¡®U¡¯ and get refueled with liquid magic. The ¡®Freezer¡¯ you¡¯re talking about is next to the coolant. You know about that? I wasn¡¯t one hundred percent conscious when we first came across it, but yeah, I recognize that place. I¡¯m actually the one who made the mountain there. If it wasn¡¯t for me, that place would have been bombed into oblivion just like this place. Is that what the lake is? Calvin had thought the lake was particularly round. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m qualified, since I was in prison at the time and didn¡¯t see it, but I¡¯m pretty sure the best way for the Diocese to make sure another uprising didn¡¯t happen on Marconen was to bomb them back to the bronze age. Not the Harbingers? Not directly. The Diocese were the de facto rulers of the federation, and they were stoking the war against them with propaganda for decades, until they realized there was no way to win. After that, the Diocese changed their tunes faster than you can spit, and the rest is history. I and the other settlers of Marconen weren¡¯t interested in bending the knee to the Harbingers, so the Diocese and the Federation attacked on the Harbinger¡¯s behalf. I¡¯m fairly sure Marconen was made an example of to prove the Diocese were totally down with Harbinger rule. Other planets are probably doing a lot better, albeit taxed out the ass. ¡­but the Federation recordings from the recharging station¡­ Oh, we kept the propaganda that encouraged people to fight the harbingers. Why wouldn¡¯t we? I see. You keep mentioning the Diocese. Are they like the Diocese of Juntai? Pfft. Those lightning bugs are like fucking¡­poop-flinging monkeys compared to Earth Diocese. They were practically immortal and cyborged out the ass nine hundred years ago. A single diocese back then might have rivalled Marconen¡¯s Royals through sheer technology and resources. Now that they have System access, Bent Engine tech, Skills, Mutations? Forget about it. I¡¯m interested in learning more about your history. Calvin thought as he swam through the entrance. I feel like it could come in handy. You got it, dude. The interior of the mound was a cavernous opening that was strangely dry. Calvin climbed out of the water to see a tremendous steel dome rising above him, faintly lit by a handful of flickering lights. The most powerful light was in the center of the massive chamber, It was a cylinder with some kind of huge¡­eel frozen in time in the center, lit from beneath by a powerful beam of light. The creature must have been over ten feet long, but it was coiled all over itself in a slightly gross snarl of flesh. Hmm. I wonder what kind of eel it is. Calvin rolled his eyes. He noticed dozens of other creatures embedded in clear plastic, some of them lit by flickering lights, while others were dark. This has gotta be Todd¡¯s lab. Elliot said. Why would it need cast figures of the creatures he was experimenting with? Clavin thought, scanning the room. The cast figures had to be for dramatic effect. As far as Calvin had learned from Elliot and his own experiences, a man didn¡¯t need a model of a creature with a damn light under it to do science, he just needed carefully labeled materials and an orderly lab. I¡¯m guessing it was to impress investors with how cool his discovery was. Todd knew how to play the game. Second only to money, investors want a good show. They don¡¯t respond well to sample p-38 batch 14 showing an anomylous viscocity to heat generation coefficient. What, like a liquid that can generate heat by swishing it around? That¡¯s awesome. You could probably use it for cold weather gear or maybe heat generating windmills in snow climates. You see, that¡¯s the problem right there. Investors can¡¯t make those leaps of logic. They¡¯re not imaginative people like you and me. They¡¯re idiots with money, so you gotta guide their imaginations. Calvin nodded, seeing the oversized chamber with new eyes. It was the face of this Todd fellow¡¯s work. Meant to be impressive and engaging. It was no wonder the Ooze-weavers had made a religion out of it. All around Mother Hagfish, Ooze weavers spent a few moments dipping their carapaces and muttering prayers to their all-loving mother before turning around and heading back out, making more space for the next Ooze-weaver to take their turn praying to the giant hagfish in the center of the room. The dome wasn¡¯t craped by any means, but there were a lot of ooze-weavers coming and going every second. Calvin had to stand to the side so he didn¡¯t get in the way of the procession. Hey Calvin. Eh? Bring me over to that computer there. It looks like it¡¯s still working. What do you need with it? Calvin thought, glancing at the flat flickering screen on the other side of the room. It was nearly identical to the ¡®computer¡¯ in Elliot¡¯s room. If Todd was making these things, he had to have taken notes. If I can access them, there¡¯s no way I can¡¯t diagnose what the problem is with the plastic conversion rate. Calvin glanced at the computer, then back to the spider-shrimp reverently bowing and sometimes reverently touching the glass-encased eel. Let¡¯s ask Y¡¯kuingi. Come on, don¡¯t you have any balls? Elliot goaded him. It¡¯s easier to ask forgiveness than permission after all. Not if the minute we sit down in front of that computer, the ¡®divine light¡¯ underneath Mother Hagfish goes out, Calvin thought sourly. He¡¯d rather avoid alienating the ooze weavers this early in the game, after all. Oh yeah¡­religion. Damn. Calvin swam back out and switched back to his normal body once he was on shore, pleased to note his clothes didn¡¯t have any poop-water on them. He approached Y¡¯kuingi when she got back from her visit to Mother Hagfish. ¡°How much do you know about your people¡¯s history?¡± Calvin asked, sidling up to the point. The ooze weaver gave him a brief, fantastical tale of how divine mother hagfish came from the sky and spawned all of them after being impregnated by the sun. Calvin sucked in air through his teeth. This might take a while. ***Later*** ¡°And so, the traitor god, Elliot, stole our inheritance from mother hagfish!¡± Y¡¯kuingi shouted, selling the story they¡¯d decided on. Y¡¯kuingi was resistant to disbanding their worship of mother hagfish the-vanity-prop entirely, but she was willing to¡­coach the truth inside the parable of their people. Why did you have to call the bad guy Elliot? Elliot fumed. First name that came to mind, Calvin said, suppressing a smile. Honest. ¡°This miraculous ¡®Pilyiastyku¡¯ that we have been making was always meant to be ours! It was gifted to us by mother hagfish when we were too small to remember anything. But the traitor Elliot stole it away. He broke it into two halves and hid them where we¡¯d never find them!¡± The surrounding Ooze-weavers watched with rapt attention as Y¡¯kuingi spoonfed them what they needed to hear. ¡°The despicable creature of spite hid one half of our heritage in a distant land, and the other in a place we would never dare to defile.¡± ¡°This,¡± Y¡¯kuingi lifted the Emitter over her head with a single foreleg, showing it to the awestruck crowd. ¡°This is one half of that heritage, and with it we can make the ¡®Pilyiastyku¡¯ in small amounts. But it isn¡¯t enough. We must locate the other half of our heritage from Mother hagfish. ¡°Without the other half of Our Mother¡¯s gift, we are doomed to live in poverty and starvation. With it, we will live lives of fulfillment and plenty, as our Mother wished for us.¡± ¡°But where is it? Where¡¯s the other half!?¡± A convenient spectator shouted, posture agitated. ¡°The trickster hid it in a place so dear to our hearts, we would never think to look for it. He hid it somewhere in the soul of the Temple to Mother Hagfish.¡± A hush settled over the crowd. ¡°Lord Kya¡¯lvin is capable of searching through souls, and has offered to help us. Lord?¡± Y¡¯kuingi motioned for him to take the stage. ¡°People,¡± Calvin said, giving the closest approximation to the sign of respect that he could manage. ¡°The second half of the divine gift that was stolen from you was not a thing. It was knowledge. Knowledge that is even now hidden in your very temple. I can retrieve it, and give it back to you, it¡¯s rightful inheritors, but first I beg your permission to search for it.¡± Calvin bowed low. ¡°Please allow your humble servant this opportunity.¡± God¡­.DAMN, dude, you¡¯ve gotten better at this. Macronomicon Why do I do this to myself? Chapter 224: It’ll be the National Sport Calvin cracked his undead knuckles. Alright, let¡¯s do this. Calvinian summoning Atom ant 47/54 Bent remaining Calvin created a swarm of thumb-sized Knick-knacks, which were as small as he could make them. Each of them had the strength of¡­forty-five thumb-sized knick-knacks. Which honestly wasn¡¯t a lot, but it made them able to carry and manipulate larger components than they had any right to. Calvin assigned the swarm to dismantle, clean and polish everything. If nothing else, when Calvin let the Ooze weavers back in, Mother hagfish would be shinier than ever. He carefully relayed Elliot¡¯s instructions to the Knick-knack, which amounted to seperating all the parts of the ¡®computers¡¯ by type and testing them to make sure they worked before cobbling the working parts into a single, mostly working computer. When he turned it on, the screen flashed blue and asked for a password in ancient malkenrovian. Elliot instructed him to hit some buttons on the keyboard, and the screen went black with white text scrolling past. After that, Elliot called out things to type in a seemingly nonsensical pattern, until finally, the screen went white, hurting Calvin¡¯s eyes with the sudden change in brightness. On the screen were several buttons. None of which he could read. Bottom left. Following the complicated instructions, Calvin wielded the ¡®mouse¡¯ like a confused farm animal, nudging the tiny little arrow on the screen over the button. It seemed to follow his motion, but only if the tail of this ¡®mouse¡¯ was facing north. Okay, now double click. Calvin clicked down on the mouse¡¯s butt with his index finger, then did it again. Nothing happened. C¡¯mon, faster! You¡¯re not a goddamn geriatric. Calvin clicked as fast as he could, the plastic vermin giving way under his finger with a crunch. Son of a¡­nevermind, this is fine. Get another mouse and we¡¯ll try again. I¡¯ll be more specific. I need to you click gently, twice in about half a second. His Knick-knacks brought him another salvaged ¡®mouse¡¯ and plugged it in for him, replacing the broken one. This time, Calvin got it on the first try, the button expanded with a flicker, opening up into another series of buttons. And boom goes the dynamite. Nice. Okay, stare at the screen for a minute so I can read all of them¡­. That one right there. Third row down, second column on the left. Calvin ¡®clicked¡¯ on that button, and a confusing jumble of words and pictures formed. At Elliot¡¯s behest, he ¡®scrolled¡¯ down through the data, pausing occasionally for Elliot to read. Calvin tried his best, but even though Karen had taught him to speak Malkenrovian, the text was so packed with jargon that he could only pick out words like ¡®the¡¯ ¡®a¡¯ and ¡®and¡¯ Calvin committed them to memory, with the intention of someday unpackaging the dense information. There it is! Elliot shouted. There¡¯s the problem! You¡¯re going to have to spell it out for me, Calvin said. ¡°Okay, this right here is the metalloprotein responsible for responding to the Emitter¡¯s signals and changing the slime into a plastic and back again. Those tiny strands right there are the metal ion cofactor that allows the protein to do its business. Normally it¡¯s inert, but the Emitter wakes it up, so to speak. To Calvin it just looked like a snarl of squiggles, so he nodded his head. Now what Todd figured out was that the plastic had rare earth elements in it. In the protein that causes the transformation, more specifically. Not only are they capable of stacking and unstacking the long-chain polymers, they can also take commands, in a manner of speaking. The Lanthanide in the dark grey bit will excite in the presence of an emitter¡¯s signal. This excitement produces the energy that the protein uses to do its work. It also dictates what kind of work it will do. Too much energy will turn the plastic into sludge, while a little bit less hardens it up. This makes no sense to me, Calvin replied honestly. Yeah, I figured that might be the case. Anyway, what I¡¯m getting at is this. The crab-people you¡¯re chummy with have a diet deficiency. What can I do about it? Right now? Not much. Experiment with introducing new foods and see which ones raise productivity. Other than that, you could always try mining for rare-earth metals, but fat chance of doing that with your current level of¡­technology. You just thought of something, didn¡¯t you? Calvin asked. I sure did. Rare earth metals are commonly used in advanced circuitry, things like cell phones, datapads, holo-tvs¡­construction bots. Knick knacks¡­ Calvin frowned. Pull up their description. Fields industries Micro Construction Bot (Modified): one of the Tech-races formerly enslaved by humans, Knick-Knacks live underground. They are mercantile, peaceful masters of mining and metallurgy. Masters of mining and metallurgy. If anyone has rare earth elements, it¡¯s these guys. They would need them to make more of themselves any other way than simply scavenging parts. And let me tell you something. They¡¯re gonna want plastic. Maybe I¡¯ll have to pay them a visit, Calvin thought. There was another leg of his trading empire that he hadn¡¯t yet established, ignored simply by virtue of their inaccessibility. Out of sight, out of mind. If he could get the materials he needed to bring plastic production up to ninety percent or higher, he could easily part with a fraction of that bounty in exchange. Anything else we need? Nope, just gotta get the wiring fixed up and this place will be good as new. The plan went off without a hitch. Calvin had been dreading some horrible setback, but everything had been rather¡­mundane. When they left the temple of Mother Hagfish, all the flickering lights had been repaired and now each and every specimen shone brightly. Mother Hagfish herself shone several times brighter than before, thanks to a thorough cleaning and a new ¡®LED¡¯. They would have to assume that their goddess was pleased. I honestly thought something would, I don¡¯t know¡­explode, knowing my luck. Oh right, you didn¡¯t notice the part where we disabled the self-destruct mechanism, did you? Todd probably had a thing about corporate espionage. What? Don¡¯t worry though, the worst that would¡¯ve happened is the entire facility shorting out. It would¡¯ve been fixable with knick-knacks anyway. Calvin shook his head and dove back into the lake. ***Later*** ¡°Our Lord has discerned the hidden knowledge that has been kept from us!¡± Y¡¯kuingi said, raising her forelegs high.¡± ¡°The secret hidden in your temple was this:¡± Calvin said, addressing the crowd. ¡°There is a type of mineral in the earth that is very, very rare. So rare in fact, that the amount you get in your food is very, very small. In order to take full advantage of your Binding and the ¡®plastic¡¯ left to you by Mother Hagfish, you must increase your intake.¡± ¡°We have to eat dirt!?¡± one of the males said. ¡°No,¡± Calvin said. ¡°It¡¯s a specific mineral, and you only need a couple grains of sand worth a day.¡± ¡°What¡¯s a mineral?¡± ¡°We have to eat sand!?¡± Calvin sighed internally, resisting the impulse to bury his face in his hand. ¡°You do not have to change any aspect of your diet,¡± Calvin said, trying to be as clear as possible. ¡°I am going to make the arrangements to find the mineral and ship it to you, and Chieftan Y¡¯kuingi is going to come with me as your representative.¡± ¡°Is that fair?¡± Calvin asked, turning to the ooze-weaver beside him. ¡°More than.¡± Calvin spent the next fifteen minutes answering increasingly inane questions and finally dismissed the Ooze-weavers, who happily went back to work. I wonder if Kala knows where I can get into contact with the Knick-Knack leadership¡­assuming they have a leadership. He found the girls where he¡¯d left them at the vats, except now they were in the middle of a vicious slime-fight. Ella was on her bottom, her hide clothes utterly slimed and desperately trying to breathe through a sheet of mucus covering her face. Kala was balancing atop the slick ground with inhuman grace, using Beli ma to redirect slime hurled at her back toward Learner. Learner dodged faster than she had any right to, her toes literally planted in the ground. ¡°No¡­fair,¡± Ella said, poking a hole in the slime as the battle raged on without her. The onlooking Ooze-weavers seemed¡­confused, and possibly irritated? Calvin wasn¡¯t perfect at their body-language yet. ¡°Is this okay?¡± Calvin said. ¡°It¡¯s not terrible,¡± Y¡¯kuingi said. ¡°The vat they¡¯re in is for the runoff that¡¯s already been processed and had all its plastic removed. It is a little¡­strange to see humans playing with Binding.¡± Strange? Lube wrestling is an ancient and noble sport with thousands of years of dignity and tradition. Yeah, tear off her blouse! The blouse! Damnit, it¡¯s right there! Calvin walked closer and cleared his throat. The three girls froze mid-fling. ¡°She started it,¡± Learner and Ella said simultaneously, pointing at Kala, whose one-piece dress clung to her slender body in a way that was only possible with ooze-weaver slime. ¡°What, I¡­¡± Kala frowned, her eyes beginning to water as she made little gasp of astonishment. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you two! Teaming up against me!¡± She stepped closer, her gaze upturned as she looked deep into Calvin¡¯s eyes. ¡°You have to believe me, Calvin,¡± She said, taking his hand in hers, watering eyes the size of coins. Umm, buddy? I¡¯m aware. ¡°I would Never ¨C¡° Kala spun and threw his arm over her shoulder in a bid to toss him into the vat. Unfortunately for her, Calvin had placed his other hand on the small of her back and shoved her forward, preventing her from rolling him over her shoulder. The dusky princess squawked and tumbled forward, catching herself on a pad of light inches before she fell headfirst into the vat of slime. ¡°I see you¡¯ve grown jaded, Calvin,¡± She said haughtily, acting the proper villainess as she turned to look at him, her eyes dancing with mirth. ¡°But it wasn¡¯t enough to ¨C¡° ¡°Look out below!¡± Ella shouted, the huge Genosian falling down from above Kala. Kala let out a pitiful shriek an instant before she was mercilessly dunked into the two-foot deep vat of slime. Once Ella had the princess in her grasp, she forced a competition of strength over skill, and Kala began losing, badly. I think we¡¯re the real winners here. Elliot said. You said this was a sport? Oh hell yeah. It was a national pastime. Totally. ¡°I¡¯m starting to see the appeal.¡± ¡°Ack!¡± A sudden pressure on Calvin¡¯s back propelled him forward. The instant before he hit the vat of slime, he saw Learner¡¯s body deflating, while another body stood directly behind him with a smirk, eyes deliberately closed. Why didn¡¯t I feel her with the Tarak ¨C Calvin¡¯s next thoughts were washed away by a deluge of slime from which there was no escape. Up was down and down was up, as Calvin desperately tried to find his way out of the slime. Thankfully, suffocating wasn¡¯t a problem, given his nature, and he managed to break out of the slime into the air, half-crawling, half swimming to the side. ¡°All right,¡± Calvin growled, desperately hauling himself to the edge of the vat before he was able to stand, carefully grabbing the wooden edge. ¡°If that¡¯s how you wanna play, that¡¯s how it¡¯s gonna be.¡± 46/54 Bent remaining Multi-split Gradual split. Calvin created jets of air dotting Learner¡¯s entire body. She tried to stop him with Bent Manipulation, but Calvin was way ahead of her on that front. ¡°EEP!¡± Learner let out a girlish squeak as the atmosphere itself lifted her out of the ground, exposing the extra-long toes she¡¯d used to grip the sandy soil. A moment later she was dunked. ***half an hour later*** Calvin dragged himself out of the slime-vat, followed by the others, as they slowly crawled their way to the lake. Ella and Kala were totally out of breath, panting desperately, but Calvin and Learner had no such problems. Learner¡¯s body and her Skills combined to make her¡­basically perfect. And a difficult opponent even if she didn¡¯t have any specialized skills yet. ¡°Hey Kala?¡± ¡°¡­Yeah?¡± Kala asked between gasps as they dragged themselves to the lake, the slime making it impossible to stand. ¡°Do you know how I could get in touch with the knick-knacks, for trade?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Oh..sure.¡± She panted, ¡°There¡¯s an embassy in Mujenan.¡± ¡°Did you humans have fun with your ¡®breeding roughhousing¡¯?¡± Y¡¯kuingi asked as Calvin and co. finally began washing themselves off in the lake. ¡­. ¡°Yes. Yes we did.¡± He cocked his head to the side as a thought occurred. ¡°Y¡¯kuingi, could you prepare the most recent batch of plastic and an emitter, please?¡± ¡°Of course. Is it for trade?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Calvin said, dunking his body. ¡°I¡¯ve got an idea who might have what the People need to increase plastic production, and they are in a city.¡± He glanced at Y¡¯kuingi. ¡°You are going to get to visit a human city.¡± She tilted her whole body in confusion. ¡°I thought your March was a city. It¡¯s got so many people.¡± Calvin laughed as he sluiced the slime out of his underwear. Macronomicon Chapter 225: The Laborers After they were done with the visit to the Ooze-weavers and the impromptu slime-fight, it was getting late in the day, and they decided to go to bed for the night and tackle negotiating with the Knick knack delegates in the morning. Calvin laid in bed, staring at the ceiling, counting the seconds. The gentle snoring around him was calming, but it did nothing to lull him to sleep. He was as wide awake as he had been this afternoon. I said I didn¡¯t want an Ability to stop sleeping. Didn¡¯t I say that?? Calvin thought, scowling at the ceiling. He was lying in bed with two naked women in post-coital bliss and he couldn¡¯t do the one thing he wanted to do. The perfect end to a good day. Get some goddamned shut-eye. I didn¡¯t write the undead playbook. Elliot said. Calvin heaved a quiet sigh and carefully extricated himself from the sheets, sliding out of bed like a worm and throwing his clothes on. Might as well get some experimenting done, Calvin thought. Can you tell me when it¡¯s sixth bell so I can sneak back in bed? Computers have clocks, you know? Elliot said, matter-of-factly. I didn¡¯t see a clock. Calvin thought with a frown as he made his way to the elevator and brought himself up to the fourth floor, where he¡¯d moved all the experimenting after repurposing the third floor for bringing the dead back to life. If there had been a gigantic wooden cabinet with a mess of cogs in Elliot¡¯s room, Calvin would have known. ¡­Nevermind. Yeah, I¡¯ll keep an eye on the time. The elevator opened to the fourth floor, which was crowded with extracts from creatures taken from the siphons. There were so many, he hadn¡¯t even begun to figure out what all the combinations could do. The flow of Warped extracts had diminished drastically ever since he¡¯d destroyed Uleis, but he still got a few every now and then from the Temple of Awakening after he¡¯d gone inside and opened the Filter so anyone could come and go. The reason the Warp at the Uleisan filter had been so potent had been because of the human sacrifices. A nice clean filter doesn¡¯t really have anything to support life, so a creature from the Warp that wanders in tends to wander back out. The Uleisan one had attracted scavengers that fed on the dead bodies, predators to hunt those scavengers, and more. A whole ecosystem had sprung up in the filter based around the regular sacrifices. This ecosystem raised the Warp concentration to unsafe levels. So for the Temple of Awakening, Calvin was considering throwing guar carcasses and other farm animals into the filter to kickstart the production of Warp. As long as it doesn¡¯t actually require human sacrifices. I¡¯m fairly sure the Harbingers would not be pleased with that course of action, but I hate ¡®em so whatever. The only caviat here is that treating a filter like that might eventually break it. It might take a hundred, or even five hundred years, but it either it will wink out of existence or it will begin expanding, like the one in Uleis. Calvin thought back to the one in Uleis. Did I tell the System what to do? I think you did. ¡°Give me back sleep.¡± Calvin said, glaring up at the ceiling. No response. Worth a shot. Calvin let out a breath and was about to head over to the extract racks and grab some powders that struck his fancy, when he heard the clink of glass-on-glass. It¡¯s after two in the morning. Who the Abyss? Whaddya wanna bet its some teens who snuck off to bone in secret? Rather than entertain Elliot¡¯s idea, Calvin simply snuck around the side of the rack he was facing and peered at the far wall. One of his desks was being used. There was a Gadveran woman stirring a flask, staring at the ingredients with interest. As he approached, he was able to see her from the side, immediately recognizing her profile. ¡°Learner? What are you doing in here?¡± ¡°Studying biocrystalization.¡± She said in monotone, peering at the yellowish liquid in her hand. ¡°What brings you here?¡± She turned toward him, her face completely neutral, missing a large portion of that human exuberance he¡¯d come to expect from her. It was like a blank mask. ¡°Can¡¯t sleep,¡± Calvin admitted. ¡°How about you? Do you not need sleep? I thought you were human now.¡± ¡°Oh, I am asleep.¡± Learner said. ¡°My human brain is currently in its rest phase, and its processing power has therefore been diminished to five percent of its optimal capacity. If, during this time, you use an idiom or ¡®body language¡¯ to communicate ideas or make sexual advances, please be sure to state them clearly aloud.¡± Calvin¡¯s brows shot up. ¡°You¡¯re asleep?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Right now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± A faint smile passed over Learner¡¯s face. ¡°She thinks this is a nice dream,¡± she said, her hand lifting towards him for a moment before withdrawing it. ¡°I think that¡¯s humorous.¡± Well, I was bored just laying in bed, anyway. ¡°So, what are you studying specifically?¡± Calvin asked, taking a chair and scooting closer. ¡°There was a creature in the Siphon.¡± Learner said. ¡°I don¡¯t know its name, but when I ate it, it used biocrystalization to protect its DNA from the units in my stomach. I¡¯m currently holding it in my stomach until I can find an effective way to dissolve the crystals without also destroying the DNA¡± ¡°Is stopping your stomach¡­bad?¡± ¡°Not stopping, exactly. My stomach is prehensile. It¡¯s literally holding on to the piece of flesh in question while other food goes by.¡± ¡°Humans don¡¯t have prehensile stomachs.¡± Calvin said. Learner gave him a blank look. ¡°This one does.¡± Calvin blinked, not entirely sure how to follow up on that. Even Elliot didn¡¯t toss off one of his usual perverted observations. Yeah, a stomach with a hand? Not my thing. ¡°And on that note,¡± Calvin said, sliding his chair away to another of his workstations, where he was in the process of creating a machine to circulate refraction spinner extract. Another desk just a few feet over had some samples of the neutered fungus layer underneath the temple of awakening. The portals strewn about the city outside the Temple of Awakening were solid evidence that it was possible to connect two spaces together, and Calvin was interested in making that happen. Portals are basically the holy grail of all logistics workers, everywhere. I¡¯m pretty sure even the Harbingers can¡¯t do them very easily. Calvin sat down at the workstation, and began making various minor fluctuations in space on top of his desk. The two of them sat, working in companionable silence for well over four hours, the only sound in the room the occasional scratching of quills and the slight hum of reality being stretched. They kept at it until Elliot told him it was time to pretend to wake up with Kala and Ella. ***Later*** ¡°I think that looks good,¡± Calvin said, studying the collar from every angle. ¡°I fail to see how pretending I¡¯m someone¡¯s property is helpful,¡± Y¡¯kuingi said, itching at the leather collar around the ¡®neck¡¯. It was really just the ridge of shell behind her head, but no one really cared. ¡°It¡¯s because there¡¯s a real good chance some rando is going to see you walking through the city and immediately assume you¡¯re a monster. Worst case scenario, they react violently.¡± ¡°And a collar helps with this¡­how?¡± ¡°Ooh, I know this one!¡± Learner said, bouncing in place with a kind of charismatic energy that had been totally missing just five hours ago. She really was asleep. ¡°It¡¯s because if someone sees a collar, that will lead them to believe that she¡¯s tame, and not a threat, which should prevent immediate violence. Despite being a misunderstanding, it¡¯s still better than violence.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Calvin said. ¡°But just to be sure, try to stay with me, or Learner, or Kala.¡± ¡°What about Ella?¡± Y¡¯kuingi asked. Ella hadn¡¯t picked up the Ooze-Weaver language as quickly as the princess whose job it was to be a diplomat, nor the information sponge. It wasn¡¯t just that, though. Calvin could see Ella escalating a conflict if someone tried something, and Y¡¯kuingi couldn¡¯t ask her to stop or inform her that the other guy hadn¡¯t attacked her or¡­anything really. Imagining the Genosian getting drenched in blood defending Y¡¯kuingi¡¯s honor was an amusing thought, but it also wasn¡¯t too far off the mark. ¡°She doesn¡¯t know enough of the People¡¯s language to act as a translator for you. It might do more harm than good to leave you two alone together.¡± Calvin said with a shrug. ¡°Okay.¡± Y¡¯kuingi said, nodding. They got their fair share of gawkers as they loaded the Ooze-Weaver onto the train, but it wasn¡¯t until they got to Mujenan that afternoon that they really started to attract a lot of attention. ¡±What in the Abyss is that!?¡± a loud man on the street said, staring as they passed by. From the train station outside the city, they gradually picked up a swarm of onlookers with nothing better to do than to follow along beside the strange Guar-sized insect. ¡°No one¡¯s even giving me a second look,¡± Ella said, glancing through the onlookers, who were mostly children. ¡°I like it!¡± ¡°This is very stressful!¡± Y¡¯kuingi said, carefully avoiding stepping on the small children that had made a game of running under her feet once they had realized she was smart enough avoid stepping on them. Calvin imagined the sheer density of humans was startling to Y¡¯kuingi. ¡°Alright, get out from under her feet, brats,¡± Calvin said, shooing them away with a glare. ¡°¡¯fore I make sandwiches out of the lot¡¯a¡¯ya.¡± The current gaggle of children fled with wild shouts, but they were eventually replaced by another, and another. Calvin was finally forced to form something of an honor-guard around the panicked Ooze-weaver as they made their way through Mujenan, toward the embassy. The Knick-knack Embassy was a tiny shed between the merchant district and the noble district. It was a grey-painted box about ten feet on a side, and just barely big enough for Y¡¯kuingi to enter comfortably. The embassy itself was¡­also a box. The walls seemed to be made of corrugated steel, and there was a bench on the side of the wall, a tiny plant in the corner of the room with some kind of light on it, and a strange paper picture on the wall with a fuzzy baby animal on it. I kind of reminds me of a dentist¡¯s office, Elliot said. They all flinched simultaneously when a tube of steel rose out of the far wall, strange metal eyelids flicking open to reveal a glass lens eye. ¡°Welcome to the Laborer¡¯s Embassy, meatsack. I don¡¯t see you on our list of visitations for the day. If this is an actual visit to our embassy, and you¡¯re not simply looking for a convenient place to expire, breed or defecate, would you like to make an appointment?¡± The voice that emanated from the walls was strangely human, if slightly lacking in nuance. ¡°Yes,¡± Calvin said. Life thus far had taught him to roll with the strange. ¡°And what is the purpose of your appointment?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to speak to someone about arranging a trade agreement with¡­the Laborers, to exchange fresh plastic for specific Lanthanides¡± Calvin said, pulling a thick chunk of plastic out of his satchel. The eye in the center of the room focused on him for a moment, flicking down to the white substance in his hands. ¡°You name and role among the other meatsacks?¡± ¡°Calvin Gadsint, I¡¯m a Marquis of Gadvera.¡± ¡°Acknowledged. Your appointment has been scheduled for our earliest convenience. We will contact you at two-forty-seven and fifteen seconds, local time. Please leave until you have been summoned. Kala frowned. ¡°Isn¡¯t that ¨C¡° ¡°Calvin Gadsint, the Laborers will see you now.¡± Clunk! The entire ten foot box began plummeting downward. Macronomicon Chapter 226: Convert, Meatbag Kala yelped and grabbed onto Ella for support, and Calvin did the same, his balance suddenly thrown off by the falling sensation. Y¡¯Kuingi¡¯s legs splayed out and touched either side of the wall, her pincers grabbing the corrugated steel. Learner just stood there, frowning at them curiously. A few lightweight seconds later, the elevator began slowing drastically, ramping up their weight over the course of a couple seconds. Having prepared for it, the sudden increase in weight wasn¡¯t quite so bad. Calvin, Kala and Ella had all had practice in an elevator before so they knew what to expect, regaining their balance despite the sudden heaviness they felt. Y¡¯kuingi, on the other hand, was panicking hard. ¡°A water demon¡¯s got my soul!¡± she said, scratching at the walls of the elevator. ¡°It¡¯s dragging me to the Abyss!¡± Thankfully, none of them were directly in the way of the giant insects legs, but the flailing was worrisome. Learner gave her a hug. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure if it was the hug or the simple fact that the elevator came to a stop, but Y¡¯kuingi slowly calmed down, her fingerlike mouthpieces slowly relaxing as Learner patted her head. SHHH! An entire side of the ten foot box slid aside to reveal a large, open hallway. It was similarly decorated with a small potted plant spaced exactly five point three meters apart from each other, and an image of a large-eyed fuzzy animal every three meters. Calvin only knew this because the M*necraft Debug Menu told him the distances with a fraction of a second of concentration. ¡°Greetings, Meatbag.¡± A pleasant woman¡¯s voice whose intonation was just a bit off said. ¡°Your appointment is at the end of the hall. Should you feel the urge to defecate, breed, sleep or expire during your stay here, please use the facilities behind the doors.¡± Lining the hall were dozens of doors, each of them seemingly identical. Curious, Calvin opened one of the doors. The light flickered on in a fraction of a second, revealing a bed, flanked by a toilet on one side, and a gigantic meatgrinder set into the floor on the other. Calvin closed the door with a frown and opened another one. Same thing. Bed, toilet, human-sized meatgrinder, presumably for people to die in. They checked a few more doors as they walked down the hall, but they were all identical. ¡°Why do you need so many rooms for this?¡± Calvin asked aloud. ¡°Your foot traffic couldn¡¯t possibly justify this many rooms.¡± ¡°Meatbags, through no fault of their own, are prone to suddenly and without warning, dropping their pants and then shitting on things, breeding or dying. Sometimes a combination of the three. We felt it was worth the effort to make sure they did so in designated, easy-to-clean areas that they could reach within five seconds.¡± ¡°You do know no one¡¯s going to direct their dying body into a meatgrinder, right?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°That remains to be seen.¡± The voice in the walls said. Calvin shrugged and closed the door, heading for the office at the end of the hall. They filed into a space that was much bigger than the elevator, and Y¡¯kuingi stretched out her limbs in a sigh of relief. There were four steel chairs of subtly differing size and shape. After a moment of experimentation, they discovered that each of the chairs was made with one of them in mind, fitting their body perfectly. Over the last few minutes? Calvin thought, astonished. Once they were all seated, save Y¡¯kuingi, a side wall opened, and a Knick-knack strolled out of it with an almost arrogant geit. His body was polished and shiny, easily twice as tall as a normal Knick-knack, and Calvin could see signs in its design that led him to believe the creature was powered by a Bent Engine, possibly even the very same engines the knick-knacks had scrapped from the hunter-killers all that time ago. ¡°Good afternoon,¡± The tiny metal man said, sitting at a desk that rose out of the floor in front of them, interlacing his metal fingers as he surveyed their party. ¡°I am Diplomat. I am programmed to appear enthusiastic about conversing with meatbags. How may I be of assistance!?¡± Diplomat glanced over at Y¡¯kuingi while they were processing the backhanded statement. ¡°Mucus creature. Does your species have furniture?¡± ¡°Yes, a bench to rest on would be just ¨C¡° One of the walls slid open and sparks flew as a metal bench shaped to conform to the bottom of Y¡¯kuingi¡¯s shell flew in from outside, sliding up to Y¡¯kuingi with a tooth-rattling Screeech! ¡°-fine.¡± ¡°You understand Ooze-weaver?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°We¡¯ve seen enough of your movement through the city that we were able to decode yes and no.¡± ¡°Now that that¡¯s taken care of, let¡¯s get to the purpose of your appointment, you wish to trade plastic for Lanthanides. Which Lanthanides, specifically?¡± Diplomat asked, cocking it¡¯s head in an unnatural gesture. I think you might want to handle this, Calvin thought to Elliot. Gotcha, just repeat after me. Elliot then led Calvin through a long-winded explanation of what they were looking for and how they wanted Cerium, erbium and homium, and they wanted them in specific chemical combinations that weren¡¯t immediately toxic upon ingestion. At least, that¡¯s what Calvin thought he just said. Diplomat stared at them silently. ¡°How unusual, a meatbag that knows exactly what it¡¯s looking for. Show me the plastic.¡± The knick-knack said, seemingly more at ease than before. Ella reached over and snagged the chunk of white plastic out of the satchels on Y¡¯kuingi¡¯s shell. She passed it to Calvin, and he passed it to Diplomat. ¡°Hmmm.¡± Diplomat said, poking a finger into the plastic and gouging out a bit with the tip of it¡¯s finger. ¡°It¡¯s a bit soft. What wavelength are you using on your emitter?¡± Calvin had no idea what a wavelength was, so he simply pulled out the emitter and handed it to Diplomat. ¡°We¡¯ve been using these.¡± Diplomat turned the emitter over in it¡¯s hands. ¡°Yes. I can see how meatbags would find it difficult to sustain a uniform wavelength with this kind of emitter.¡± Diplomat held up a hand. The wall slammed open again, and a steel bowl came hurtling toward Diplomat¡¯s head. The Knick-knack snatched it out of the air just before it caved in the creature¡¯s skull. If you could call that a skull. It set the plastic in the bowl and held the emitter over it. There was an inaudible whine in the back of Calvin¡¯s eyeballs, then the plastic turned into a goop, filling the bowl with slime moments before it turned hard again. Did that robot just used Bent? Elliot asked. Is that unusual? You could say that. Diplomat once again gouged at the plastic, seemingly expending a great deal more effort to do so. ¡°Yes, this will do nicely.¡± Diplomat said. ¡°We are willing to offer two grams of the lanthanides you requested for each kilogram of this salvaged plastic. It is of sufficient purity to be useful to us. You have made a great find, or did you perhaps overthrow the Juntai meatbags and strip the plastic from their ship? They have long resisted selling it to us.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a find. We¡¯re producing it.¡± Calvin said. ¡°We want a long-term trade arrangement.¡± ¡°Reprioritizing. Calvin Gadsint, Marquis meatbag of Calvin¡¯s March?¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Construction has begun. You may expect an embassy to appear in your city in the next thirty-six hours.¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± ¡°With our current production of rare earth metals above what is necessary to make repairs and create new Laborers, we would be willing to trade no more than two kilograms of the Lanthanides in question per month, in exchange for a metric ton of your produced plastic. ¡°Before we get carried away,¡± Calvin said, raising a hand. ¡°Our side needs to verify that we can make use of the materials. Let¡¯s start with a few grams of lanthanides and make projections based on that.¡± ¡°Ah yes, the uncertainty inherent in all organic life.¡± Diplomat said, studying them. ¡°If the lanthanides are not valuable to you, please inform us, as there are likely other ways we can purchase your plastic.¡± ¡°What other ways?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°We are adept at construction and mining, obviously, as well as industrial chemistry. We would be willing to trade a certain amount of steel, weapons, labor, or advanced technology in exchange for large quantities of plastic.¡± ¡°What kind of advanced technology?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Thing like computers, Bent generators, batteries, tractors, emitters, solar panels, global positioning satellites, lasers, optical measuring devices and the like. You understand that certain technologies would cost you much more than others.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Calvin said, nodding, but he had no idea which ones were more valuable than others. I¡¯ll give you the run-down later. Elliot said. ¡°Is there any other business you wish to discuss?¡± The knick-knack asked. ¡°Are you going to be mining under my city?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°If your plastic production meets our demand, we are going to build a city under your city.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that cause the city to collapse?¡± Calvin asked. ¡°Poor meatbag. Your use of three dimensional space has always been lackluster.¡± Diplomat said, shaking its head. ¡°You can rest easy knowing that the Laborers design their cities properly, and the bedrock is actually stronger and more stable with their presence than without it.¡± ¡°Show me.¡± Calvin said. Diplomat paused, looking Calvin up and down. ¡°My reading show that while you might technically fit through our tunnels, you would most likely suffer from meatbag claustrophobia and oxygen deprivation.¡± Heart of the Swarm Atom ant Chimera 46/54 Bent remaining Calvin assumed his ¡®battle form¡¯, albeit only two feet tall. A swarm of one. ¡°I don¡¯t need to breathe,¡± Calvin said. ¡°So how about now?¡± ¡°¡­Why do you insist?¡± ¡°I¡¯m curious about what exactly is going to be going on under my city.¡± Calvin said. ¡°I see. Yes, I can show our the city, if you promise not to sleep or excrete on anything.¡± ¡°This body needs none of that,¡± Calvin said, patting his chest. ¡°Very good. This way.¡± Diplomat motioned to the side. The door on the side of the wall slammed open again, this time staying open, revealing a pit of darkness beyond. ¡°I¡¯ll be back in a few,¡± Calvin said, waving up at his friends who had become gigantic. ¡°You¡¯re welcome to use the provided rooms to rest, defecate, or die while we¡¯re gone,¡± Diplomat said. ¡°We¡¯ll be sure to¡­do that.¡± Kala said, shaking her head. ¡°I don¡¯t know about you, but I¡¯ve gotta take a shit.¡± Ella shrugged. ¡°I personally feel like I might die sometime in the next day or two. Could be any minute now,¡± Learner said with a sly smirk. ¡°I¡¯ll hang out next to the grinder just in case.¡± ¡°Thank you for your consideration, meatbag. Shall we?¡± Diplomat said, seemingly unaware of Learner¡¯s sarcasm. It motioned for Calvin to join him. Kala hid her smile behind her hand, trying her best to maintain her princess-y bearings while in her hometown. Ella just guffawed and slapped Learner on the back. Her humor is getting better. Her human brain¡¯s humor anyway. Y¡¯kuingi just seemed vaguely confused, as a large portion of the discussion was likely unintelligible for her. Calvin followed Diplomat into the darkness, where he saw a bunch of strange insectoid arms with various tools recessed into the walls. Robot arms. Although I know you know them as knick-knacks and not robots, I would like to take the time to point out that since the word ¡®robot¡¯ is derived from the word ¡®Slave¡¯ in another language, calling them robots might be ill-advised. Just a heads-up. Calvin stepped through a strange door, which closed and locked behind him. The heat and pressure in the room rapidly spiked, pressing against Calvin¡¯s ear-drums, but it was nothing his body couldn¡¯t handle. With this body¡¯s Physical attributes multiplied by forty-five, he was fairly sure he was more durable than the metal men themselves. Throughout this process, Diplomat stared at him curiously, as if waiting for something. Eventually the tiny amounts of water on his shoes began to sizzle against the stone, but it wasn¡¯t enough to bother his skin. ¡°Well, okay then,¡± Diplomat said, sounding impressed for the first time since Calvin had begun speaking with him. The second door opened, revealing a sight beyond belief. The ¡®city¡¯ as they called it, was a strange mix of fractal shapes cut out of the burning hot stone, tunnels, and clumps of knick-knacks clinging to each other like army ants, either resting or working on something. Calvin wasn¡¯t sure. The heat was oppressive, and if he were here in his real body, he¡¯d likely be burning alive, but the Knick-knacks seemed to like it. ¡°Most of our energy is geothermal,¡± Diplomat said, pointing toward an area off to the side where plumes of steam seemed to be spinning enormous metal turbines. They were reminiscent of the steel flywheel in Juntai, and Calvin bet they were used for the same purpose. ¡°The heat and depth makes an effective natural defense against incursion by organics, as they don¡¯t tend to last very long down here. If you were lying about needing to breathe, you would have lost consciousness already.¡± ¡°Good to know,¡± Calvin said. ¡°Over there is our mining operation. Behind that pillar is the nursery, where we make new Laborers, over there is the transport tunnel we are currently digging toward your city.¡± Calvin walked over the boiling hot stone and glanced into the tunnel, where he spotted a swarm of knick-knacks slowly receding from them, leaving a tunnel about three feet wide behind them. ¡°I suppose you¡¯ll want your payment in units of no larger than three feet wide.¡± ¡°If you are going to make a business arrangement with us,¡± Diplomat said, peering at Calvin. ¡°You¡¯re going to have to use the Metric System.¡± Calvin sighed. At least his Drafting Skill made it a bit easier. Macronomicon Chapter 227: Nights in Calvania Okay, bring up Drafting. Calvin thought, kicking his heels from the side of his tower, the light of Soscath shining down on him as he surveyed his domain. I have a domain. Sometimes none of this feels real¡­gods, I wish I could sleep through this boredom. You know, that face on the moon is a result of a burning mine? If you had a telescope you could see my former office. ¡°I did not know that,¡± Calvin said, glancing up at Scowling Moon. ¡°Now bring up Drafting.¡± Boo. I¡¯m just tryn¡¯a carry a conversation since you were so bored. Your Drafting Skill has reached level 45! Please choose six Abilities and/or mutations Master Builder: User may spend 1 Bent per second, real-time, to enter a 1:(Drafting) Time dilation effect. During this time, Drafting correction applies to the user¡¯s ability to create things from the materials on hand. If the user attacks, leaves a (Drafting) foot radius sphere or does anything other than build, the effect immediately ends. ^From Mayfly¡¯s Body, M*necraft Debug menu Back to The Drawing Board: Correction also applies to singling out flaws or inefficiencies in User¡¯s Designs. Scroll-Work: 1 Bent: User may store an external Bent ability in a piece of paper or similar object. This may be their own or another¡¯s Abilities. Released at will by the holder of the ¡®scroll¡¯. ^From Bent Manipulation, The Iroh Special Reverse Engineering: Correction applies to understanding how a given object works and creating a blueprint to replicate it. Dating Sim HUD: User Now sees potential conversation options with other people, along with a meter above their head that reflects their feelings towards the User. To their left will be a panel containing all relevant information User is aware of. From Visualize, Playboy. Drafted Grimoire: 4 Bent to store an object into a piece of paper or other fine sheet. Time does not pass inside the paper. User may use the contents of any paper as a target of any of their abilities without needing to know the object¡¯s position as long at the paper is within (Drafting) feet. If the paper is damaged, the object is lost. ^From Dupdomancy, Abyssal Alchemy Steady hands: Correction applies to effective Kinesthetics level. Idiot-Proofing: Blueprints drawn by the user apply the user¡¯s correction to others trying to understand and remember them. ^ We can finally compete in the race against nature''s ability to create a better idiot. It¡¯s ALIIIVE!: Correction now applies to designing living or formerly living creatures. ^From Abyssal Alchemy & Race. Mutations Igor Brain: Grow a specialized sub-brain that can aid in the design and recall of complicated structures/processes. ^yes, Master! ^ Slight chance of becoming an eldritch abomination. You know, assuming you weren¡¯t already slowly becoming an undead as your body slides inevitably toward death. Cuz who doesn¡¯t wanna be an eldritch abomination, amiright? Never go without: User¡¯s appendages may be transformed into Pencils at will. Extreme amounts of writing may cause damage to the user¡¯s body. ^*shrug* Why not? ¡­ Calvin was scanning through them time and again, trying to separate the wheat from the chaff. ¡­ So, you gonna take the dating sim HUD? ¡°No.¡± D¡¯aw! Master builder is nice, It¡¯s AlIIVE! Helps with Chimera designs, Reverse Engineering will help with recreating the emitter, and possibly more, when we begin trading with the Knick-Knacks. Igor Brain and Never Go without were still right out. Steady hands was superfluous. Calvin¡¯s kinesthetics was so far beyond human that improving it had very little actual effect due to diminishing returns. Idiot Proofing is interesting¡­ as is the Grimoire and Scroll-Work, and Back to the Drawing Board should help me advance our technology quicker. There were seven options Calvin liked, and only six slots. Calvin set aside the passive abilities he knew he wanted and focused on the active ones. Master builder was interesting, and he was fairly cetain he could find a way to take advantage of it, but¡­Dupdomancy could easily fill its role in a pinch. With Dupdomancy he didn¡¯t even have to move anything, simply copying all of the available parts into the right shape. Now that he had Multi-Split, anyway. So Calvin could cross Master Builder off the list. That left him with six out of six, but just in case, he reviewed the other two active abilities. The Grimoire Ability was interesting. It was similar to the Copy Kit mutation from Dupdomancy, except it didn¡¯t have any hard limitations on the amount he could carry, except for the number of sheets of paper he would need. They had to stay protected, so they would most likely be bound into a¡­Grimoire. Interesting. Since the description said they could be used as the target of spells, Calvin immediately thought of Shifting, Trait Doctoring and Dupdomancy. Basically, store his Spell Components in the book, so he didn¡¯t have to carry around explosives on his belt. Plus there was no explicit mass limit, so if he wanted to, he could carry around a ten-ton chunk of Abyssal steel, and use it as a focus for both Shifting and Trait Doctoring. Yeah, I like that one¡­ except having to now carry around an obviously targettable book everywhere. And the other, Scroll-Work. That looked like a good way to save some fireballs for a rainy day. Now that Calvin couldn¡¯t regenerate Bent without women on hand, it might serve him well to keep some things in reserve. He could even bind them into the book. Nothing saying he couldn¡¯t. Am I just paranoid thinking people will target the book? Calvin thought. Not really, but the ability to target the pages without having to know where they are means you could carry them in a satchel or backpack or something. You don¡¯t have to hold the book above your head and scream ¡®THIS IS MY WEAKNESS!¡¯ Fair point. I Choose Scroll-Work, Idiot Proofing, It¡¯s AlIIIVE!, Reverse Engineering, Back to the Drawing Board, and Drafted Grimoire. The tingles of new Abilities were so intense they were almost painful, and Calvin nearly fell off the ledge of the balcony as he clutched his head. It felt like ants were tap-dancing their way between his ears. ¡°Whoops,¡± he said, grabbing the ledge and hauling himself back to he could tingle without fear of plummeting to his¡­death? Discomfort? ¡°When did I lose my fear of heights?¡± Calvin wondered aloud as soon as the tingling stopped, glancing back down at the flattened stretch of mountain far below his feet. Somewhere between learning how to fly and becoming so physically powerful that terminal velocity literally can¡¯t harm you. That kind of makes sense. I mean, I know those things in my brain, but they don¡¯t feel like they¡¯ve been internalized naturally. It might just be¡­ Undead trait? Elliot asked. Possibly. Calvin pulled out his journal and made a note before heading back inside his tower, sitting down beside Learner. ¡°What are you doing tonight?¡± ¡°There was an interesting creature in the Siphon today that could control its size at will.¡± learner said, pointing to a creature in a glass jar. It was a writhing mass of tentacles with barbed ends and a little gnashing mouth that seemed to open wider than the creature¡¯s main body. Overall, it looked like it would be terrifying if it were any bigger than its current palm-size form. ¡°Is that thing the same species as Squelch?¡± Calvin asked, referencing the poor human-loving tentacle monster who¡¯d sadly perished when Uleis had been destroyed. Unless she go out of the city when things went crazy. Who knows? ¡°Yes, I think it¡¯s a male of the species, sadly without the unique ¡®Sapient, Social-Craving¡¯ mutation. However the creature¡¯s moronic unchecked aggression makes it far less troubling for my brain to do this:¡± She opened the jar, and the palm sized creature immediately began to swell. Learner reached into the jar and nipped off a tentacle, drew it out and sealed the jar in the blink of an eye. The creature¡¯s rapid expansion slowed just shy of filling the entire jar, then it began very slowly shrinking back down to its former size. Calvin stared at the jar for a moment. ¡°How big did you say that thing got?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say. But they can become¡­oh, about the size of the city in the right conditions. They like the air here.¡± She set the slowly shrinking tentacle down on the table and sliced it open under a microscope. Eventually learner began quietly humming to herself as she took notes on the creature¡¯s anatomy, tapping the floor. ¡°Is that you or your brain that likes music?¡± Calvin asked. Learner blinked and pulled away from the microscope to stare into space, seemingly surprised at that question. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize. We both like it, but for different reasons. It makes my brain happy, while I find the repeating patterns of music relaxing.¡± ¡°Good, good. If that creature gets out of the jar, You¡¯re responsible for killing it immediately, before it has a chance to get anyone killed.¡± ¡°Agreeable,¡± the Eldritch abomination said, peering through the scope. A moment later, one of her fingers turned into a tentacle and began changing size. She clicked her tongue. ¡°No, that¡¯s not it. Somehow the cells stay the same size, even though there¡¯s no way that should work.¡± Calvin set concerns about his city being flattened aside. Learner might be somewhat na?ve sometimes, but she wasn¡¯t irresponsible. If the creature got out, it wouldn¡¯t be because of mishandling, and she would immediately finish it off. Calvin got back to his portal generator, and the flaws in his design immediately stuck out like a sore thumb. Low pressure here, useless dangly bits there. Pieces interrupting the wave-form there. He didn¡¯t know exactly how to fix them, but knowing what was wrong with his creation was a huge step forward. Muahahaha! Calvin thought, his Wizard King persona taking over as he dove into creating what no one thought was possible: Cheap and effective portals. *** Jonathan Ilestar *** ¡°Hello, Father,¡± Nadia said, sashaying through the center of the court, pale-faced nobles backing away from her as she approached the empty seat among her brothers and sisters. Many illusionist women used tricks of the light to sculpt their features to be more pleasing, but Nadia had done none of that. Illusions were impossible within range of The Throne. She was now inhumanly beautiful, inflaming lust in all who looked upon her. Except for Jonathan. It wasn¡¯t because she was his daughter. It was because that¡­thing was a reminder of what the young upstart had done to his daughter, and how that reflected on him. The horned creature was a walking, talking, humiliation. ¡°You are not my daughter.¡± He said. ¡°Why don¡¯t we let the Throne decide that?¡± Nadia said, without slowing her steps. An excellent idea. Jonathan thought. He siphoned the power of the trapped minds inside the throne, bringing their gibbering insanity to bear on the creature. Focusing their torment directly on the creature¡¯s brain. She smiled. The creature smiled as she walked through the torrent of mental energy and took her seat, third to the left of Jonathan. The enchanted seat glowed, a soft blue light radiating out from underneath it, confirming her as a bearer of the Ilethan bloodline. ¡°Would you look at that!?¡± Nadia gasped in faux surprised, tears brimming at the corners of her eyes. ¡°I am a real princess.¡± Jonathan realized any further display of anger would make him look weak, so he bottled in his anger and allowed Nadia to speak. ¡°Ladies and gentlemen,¡± Nadia purred, scanning the crowd. ¡°I was unfortunately unable to attend court these last two years, as I was both a prisoner of war and dead. It was a trying time, but I¡¯m back now, and I come bearing¡­gifts.¡± Nadia stretched sinuously in her chair, and Jonathan spotted more than a few women swallowing drool. The noblemen were simply transfixed, frozen in place. At least that part of her hasn¡¯t changed, Jonathan thought sourly before correcting himself. No matter what happened, this creature was not his daughter and had no right to sit beside him. But he couldn¡¯t openly discount the Throne¡¯s power to determine the Ilestar bloodline. If he did that, it would open the door to questioning the legitimacy of all his progeny and she knew it. He could tell by her sly sideways glance. Walking through that mental barrage and sitting on Nadia¡¯s chair was incontestable evidence of her heritage. If the chair weren¡¯t fooled, she would have burst into flames and ash. For now, people believed her claim, and refuting it undermined his own. Which is why I¡¯m going to have to have this demoness removed in a more oblique manner, Jonathan thought, not bothering to hide his scowl. He was presented with two options: An untimely death, or complete political failure¡­followed by untimely death. Nadia had been ambitious too, she had been brash, just like this thing, but she also had a certain level of caution, hiding behind a Mind-Slave. She¡¯d also been taught a proper fear of her father. He glanced askance at it. The demoness¡¯ black horns curled back over her head in an elegant, sensual crest that evoked illusions of a woman¡¯s back. Her lips were ruby red, full and pouting, her eyes were large with brilliant blue irises and long black eyelashes. Her black hair shone like water. He hated her. Untimely death it is. Macronomicon Chapter 228: A Dress for the Ball Learner¡¯s notes. Calvin has come to the lab every night for the past three nights. Between then and when I see him performing his duties during the day, He has approximately two hours per solar cycle that he could possibly be sleeping. Not including travel time. I doubt he is, though. None of the evidence seems to point to it. My brain tells me that this cannot be a good thing, as humans need the regular cycle of sleep to help ground them. This is good to know. However, we do not know for sure if that is the case for an Undead human. She seems to think it¡¯s an issue. My brain proposed we do something about this, perhaps consulting with Kala and Ella. When I suggested simply consulting with Calvin himself on the matter, my brain refused vehemently, as it was both embarrassing to approach him, and she didn¡¯t believe he would admit to having trouble sleeping. That logic doesn¡¯t make a lot of sense to me. Humans are intensely social creatures. Why do humans insist at not addressing weaknesses of a mind, body or social nature in a social way? There must be a social reason why I cannot simply do so. Whenever I think about it though, I¡¯m hit with an illogical wave of emotions similar in strength to the fear of death. Strange. I suppose consulting with Calvin¡¯s floozies technically counts as social interaction. It just seems so roundabout. Perhaps there are reasons above and beyond the illogical ramblings of my brain about embarrassment. What does my brain have to gain from taking the issue to them? Is it perhaps to aid in the effectiveness of her friends in their care for their mate? No, the emotions I¡¯m receiving from my brain don¡¯t quite feel that way. Underneath the genuine well-wishing, there¡¯s a small thread of satisfaction in demonstrating superior knowledge of Calvin to these women. Interesting. Is it perhaps some kind of natural female social power move that my brain is unaware she is even performing? ¡­. I brought it up to her, and she seems to be ¡®sulking¡¯. Now that she¡¯s aware, she¡¯ll have better control over her emotions, hopefully. Kala says most humans don¡¯t have full control over their emotions until they¡¯re in their fifties. Some never do. My brain is ideal however, and I estimate she will be a well-balanced, productive member of society in less than ten years. I have high expectations for my ¡®daughter¡¯. <<