fahimshahriar871chapter 16 .Jan 25
honestly he is as whimsical as a child and he could have become the god of time and gain more power and just because he doesn't want to be dependent on appendage he rejected it seriously what a fucked up protagonist, still he virgin, perhaps you don't have experience in writing lemons but still do you intend to keep him virgin till the end
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This made me laugh. I had implied that the Mc was having s*x with Amaya, but I guess that wasn't clear enough.
I don't do lemons. You can go look through Questionable Questing if that's what you want.
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Lot's of harsh reviews, which is not that surprising.
Writing doesn't seem to be for me, I like writing but don't like any interaction that comes with it. Seeing people shit talk my writing especially when they haven't written anything themselves kinda sucks.
I do enjoy creeping profiles and finding some hidden gems that I haven't seen before. But most of the time I find garbage, which makes me feel a little better about my own writing.
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I generally enjoy apathetic or psychotic Mc's, so that's what I write. Aimless wandering is all I wanted to write about, boring business building is what I'm interested in currently.
In my last fic I dabbled in fight scenes and science-like experimentation, this time I'm playing around with the almost 'plotless' aimless story progression seen in many Japanese novels.
Sorry if that's not for you, maybe you'll like my next fic?
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I saw a lot of people saying that my characters lack depth.
You are probably right, they probably lack depth, I don't know how to write better characters. Youtube videos aren't too helpful when it comes to learning how to craft a story, neither are the many blogs I've perused.
I'll keep looking/trying to write a better character but I'm fairly lost on how to proceed.
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Someone was confused about the DxD-timeline.
There are two DxD universes that the Mc fools around in.
The one he was born in, and another one he found with a hundred-year time difference. In the last chapter, the Mc was in the second DxD-verse aka somewhere in the 1900s.
Daddy Agares was killed and eaten in the alternate DxD-verse, so he still lives in the original DxD-verse.
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Sypho Dias chapter 15 . Dec 20, 2020
You know, I have no idea why you have such an infatuation with OCs. Please dial it down a little.
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Seen and heard, there was a lot more to this review, you can go find it if you are interested.
I'm just experimenting, trying to make a good character. It hasn't happened yet, but I'm going to keep trying until it works.
I'm trying to get better at writing, this means experimentation, if you're not interested I suggest you move onto something more polished.
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Yukilumi chapter 15 .Dec 20, 2020
Honestly? Both this and your Naruto fic just depress me, chapter after chapter. Yet for some reason, I still keep reading every update.
You're one of the most unique SI writers I've ever read. The vast majority are normal nerds. Some just write straight up gary stus, or something similar. A rare few make cool and interesting main characters. You... you are one of the most empty and depressed SIs I've ever read about. You drift though the world, completely associating with almost everything around you, empty, seeking for anything to distract you from your depression and pointlessness. And it's not like you try to hide it or anything.
There was a lot more than the above, again you can seek it out if your interested.
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I'm depressed, so maybe that bleeds into my writing? I'm not really sure. I write/read to escape from my life, so maybe that bleeds into what I'm writing?
The reason I write Si's is that I want to escape and in turn help people escape. Si's/Isekai are what I like and I hoped to contribute.
That being said, I care a lot about originally. I try to make my writing original, that way if it's terrible trash, at least it's original terrible trash. People usually like my trash for the originality, so maybe that's what you like? I'm not too sure myself.
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Fic's arent quality works, don't expect quality unless you're paying for something. There's plenty of good books from established authors, maybe you should check them out?
Just be happy that my English got better, I'm learning to write, I'm not putting out finished products.
Sorry for rambling a lot.
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March 1948:
I had decided to leave my pet cats behind when I fled the DxD-world. I simply didn't know them well enough, nor did I want more stuff to deal with.
After a rather sad goodbye, where only four of us knew it was a goodbye, we set off to our original destination, Rapture.
It only took a day for us to settle in, and a week to get back into the swing of things, and another week to find something for Mihaela and Amaya to do.
Things had settled down, Amaya was reading about Magic, Runes and was sometimes taught by Mihaela and me on occasion.
Mihaela had taken to exploring Rapture and enjoying the sights, though she had been moody as of late.
So, here we were, sparing in the middle of the artic, ice and snow in every direction as far as we could see. Mihaela opted to use what was readily available, while I had been focusing on Wind as I hadn't used it in a long time.
"If you have the power to do something, then you do it and fuck what anyone else thinks. If they had the power to force you to do what they wanted then that's how it would go." I shot Wind bullets from my very manly finger-guns and dodged the hail of pencil-thin Ice Spikes with the grace of a gymnast. "So, do what makes you happy, even if it means leaving a trail of snacks from the zoo to an orphanage."
A hail of razor-thin shards of ice was what I got in response to my rambling. Mihaela didn't seem to appreciate my wit and charm.
"No need to be so cold, no-one said you had to open the cages." I threw up a shabby shield and blocked the hail of ice. Sharp as it was, durable twas not. "If you weren't such a sicko you're mind wouldn't have gone there." I waved my hand and tossed a large Wind-Blade at Mihaela, which she ducked under.
"You Fucker!" Mihaela cursed as she dove under another Wind-Blade trying to avoid decapitation. "Stop you're rambling, I know this is because I insulted your little girlfriend!" She held a palm out, a bright blue Magic Circle appearing on it, followed shortly after by many circles appearing around her. She launched a thick pillar of ice at me with a shout. "Ice Pillar Rain."
After the first pillar more soon followed, and it became apparent that I couldn't dodge them all while limited to Chantless Wind Magic.
"Crush." So, I didn't limit myself, breaking my self-imposed rule.
Every pillar I touched was crushed by increasing the air pressure around it, allowing me to slip past them and come out of the attack unharmed.
Mihaela sneered at me, Magic Circles with a water jug in the middle appearing above and below her, encompassing her body and coming down to meet in the middle.
"Zodiac Empowerment: Aquarius." Her appearance didn't change, but her aura and temperament did. Her face became still, emotionless, and her aura became much stronger and reeked of Water, Ice, and Air.
"This is my Family's ancestral magic, witness it's greatness and fear it's power!" Mihaela drew her hand back, creating a bow and arrow, and shot it at me with little fanfare.
The arrow impacted my hastily created Air Shield and bloomed into a mass of Ice Spikes, a second, third, and fourth arrow quickly impacted the shield, destroying it and rendering me venerable.
"Air Solidification." The easiest way to defend after losing your shield was by making another much better shield, so I solidified the air around myself, bring the air's molecules together, and sat comfortably in my new little dome.
My new shield did what shields do, and blocked Mihaela's successive Ice Arrows. Though the shield did nothing to stop the build-up of ice, and soon I was encased completely.
"Razor Wind." I willed the Air outside into Blades and scattered them haphazardly, mainly stalling, though also hoping for a lucky hit. "Push."
I pushed the air out around me, clearing my dome of ice and also tossing Mihaela away judging from the lack of recourse.
The snow my attacks kicked up settled and I met eyes with Mihaela, creating some lovely dramatic tension.
Mihaela shook her head at me and started skating on a little patch of ice, slowly circling me creating a smooth path of ice as she did. I shrugged and dismissed my shield earning a scoff from Mihaela.
"Frostbite." The air surrounding me dropped in temperature, and I was covered in a layer of frost. I flexed my fingers, finding my movement unhindered.
"Whirlwind Armor." I ignored her attack and shot towards her, using the wind to propel myself and feel my surroundings at the same time.
The annoying thing about my armor was the lack of sight, having a swirling mass of wind covering your whole body wasn't good for visibility.
Mihaela created a transparent shield of ice on her outstretched hand intending to block my charge, I ignored the shield and continued my attack.
"Ha!" I feinted a straight forward punch to her shield and used some wind to skirt to her left. My impromptu feint worked and my fist sunk into her side, sending her tumbling along the snowy ground.
Mihaela's tumbling slowed, and eventually she skidded to a stop, facing the sky and seemingly dazed. She laid there for a second, but quickly came to her senses and sat up.
She was a squishy Magician.
"When I first met you, you were only good with Sealing Magic. Now you have a few more tricks up your sleeve." Mihaela just huffed exhaustedly and flopped onto her back.
She stayed silent and stared at the sky, a myriad of emotions played across her face as she did so.
"Temporal Lock." With a snap of my fingers, Mihaela's mind was 'locked' out of time. "Temporal Healing." And with another, whatever damage she received was healed as well.
We stayed silent and Mihaela's transformation receded. Both of us had a lot on our minds, though for different reasons, I was once again considering Mihaela's usefulness and she was probably lamenting her defeat.
Mihaela thought that I was beating her up because of a slight against Amaya, but that wasn't the case. I had started beating her up because she was behaving like an arrogant young master from a Wuxia, and I continued beating her up when she reminded me that she was being a bitch to Amaya.
Though I didn't think correcting her was worth the effort. Her arrogance was somewhat justified, and she wasn't awful to everyone, just moody and arrogant, so I felt that I could let it slide.
For now. Though a few threats wouldn't hurt.
"I ask very little of you." I clasped my arms behind my back and leaned over her. "Teach Valerie, don't betray me, don't cause problems, and don't be shitty to those I've kept." Because that's what my little group was. Those I kept. "You're not doing great with what little I ask, as it is, your more trouble than you're worth." I released the evil I had sealed in my Scythe along with my full power, I let it run rampant causing our surroundings to shake and covering me in a wispy black aura of power.
Mihaela stopped breathing and remained completely still. I reigned in my power and resealed the evil into the Scythe, allowing her to breathe again.
"I don't treat you like a minion. I could be ordering you around, assigning tasks whenever it suits me, making you bend over backwards for a single small favor." I leaned back and stopped hovering over her. "Instead, I allow you to have autonomy, freedom, although all you are is hired help, not even my Magician." I took a few steps back, allowing her more room to breathe. "And you spit on my goodwill, treating those I care about like shit, not appreciating that I've included you in my wondrous journey across universes."
Mihaela's eyes widened, and she looked up at me from her spot on the ground. She went to speak, but I cut her off with a wave of my hand.
"If you have the power to do something, then you do it and fuck what anyone else thinks. If they had the power to force you to do what they wanted then that's how it would go." I repeated my earlier phrase, eyeing Mihaela as I did. "You don't yet have the power to act as you please around me, get your act together or I will return you to where I found you, with no memories as to what you have experienced these last few years."
"I'm sorry." Mihaela apologized, I could feel there was some resentment, with a hint of guilt. "I'll be better."
"I hope so..." Instead of refusing her apology like I wanted to I just swallowed my grievances, and made a mental note to keep my eye on Mihaela for the next few years. "My kindness isn't unconditional, remember that."
"I will." She promised.
Though humans were quick to forget, so I didn't hold much hope.
I shook my head and stepped into my shadow, ready to head back to Rapture.
I needed to see what my assistant was up to and get Amaya started on Rune lessons. Though I doubted she had much enthusiasm after having Mihaela teach her.
I also had something to ponder in the meantime.
If Mihaela can go Super Saiyan, then so can I.
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March 1948:
"I want to be a Devil." Amaya surprised me during our Runes lesson, though it was less of a lesson on Runes, more of a lesson on penmanship and carving in English as Amaya was trying to become fluent. "And I want to try a threesome."
I blinked, more than a little stunned, and slightly hurt. More so with the second part of her statement.
"With two guys or a proper one?" Amaya went to swat me, but I sidestepped her, stopping her from hurting her hand.
"The threesome is not important. I've decided that I want to be a Devil." Amaya put her hands on her hips and stared me down, in what she probably thought was an intimidating manner.
"The threesome is probably the most important, if you didn't want to talk about it, you shouldn't have tried to slip it in." I crossed my arms and prepared myself for what might be a painful conversation.
We slipped into silence, I was mentally preparing, and Amaya had drifted off into thought, seemingly trying to get her thoughts into order.
"I feel like I stole you from Valerie, I think she disserves you more than I do and I want to give her a chance at happiness." Amaya stared at her feet for a moment, and then acted as if nothing happened. "And after being nearly suffocated just from someone's presence alone, I've decided that I need to be strong enough to 'not accidentally die', as you've put it."
Thank god, I thought we were going to have a conversation about me not being good enough. Hope for the best, expect the worst as they say.
I turned away and stayed silent while doing my best to redirect my thoughts away from lewd territory. Sadly, that didn't work.
"Being invited into our sex-life, only to be refused afterward would hurt, I'd caution you against something so drastic." I scratched my head, not sure how to have this conversation. "I wouldn't say no, but once you open the 'flood gates' so to speak, they aren't easily closed."
Why was I even considering this?
"Ah, yea..." Amaya didn't seem to want to have this conversation any more than I did. "I want to include her, but don't want to be left out. If you know what I mean?"
"I don't." I shook my head with a small smile, finding the idea slightly funny. "If there was another guy that liked you, I wouldn't think of including him and would do my best to distance myself and you from him."
Though 'distance' may equal death depending on how sneaky the guy was attempting to be.
"Let's leave this for another time." Amaya looked thankful, though disappointed. "Instead let's focus on your potential reincarnation." I blinked, trying to remember if I had even brought my Evil Pieces with me. "If you've decided to become a Devil out of fear, I'd ask you to wait a few months, and maybe reconsider it then."
The last thing I wanted was a resentful Amaya going Stray because she felt trapped.
"Good decisions aren't made in fear, after all." I ran a hand through my hair and started eyeing the door, ready to escape.
I hadn't been ready for such a mentally exhausting conversation.
"Sigh..." Amaya let out a heavy breath. "I already thought about it a lot, but waiting for a little won't hurt."
"Good." I wrapped an arm around her, and she leaned into me. "Being a Devil means living for thousands of years, and not everyone wants that. Consider it carefully is all I'm saying."
Amaya rolled her eyes, but nodded languidly, looking relaxed.
We soon drifted off into silence, our lesson on Runes forgotten and replaced by much heavier thoughts.
Nothing like the threat of death to kick you into action...
But was Devilhood what she truly wanted? Or did she just want security? Safety? Was that the same thing?
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June 1948:
Plasmids were being advertised, at least among the high class. I knew them for what they were, drugs, but others did not and soon Rapture would descend into anarchy.
Plasmids reception among the high-class was rather bland, no-one wanted to be the first to try something so unproven, despite how mystical it was.
News leaked about an unstable teleportation plasmid only reaffirmed their original decision to wait, and allow other, more adventurous, people to test them.
So, the fall of Rapture wouldn't be happening soon, as plasmids were regarded with skepticism, but it was only a matter of time. Humans were curious, and eventually, plasmid use would become common.
It was only a matter of time. Rapture would fall, slowly, but surely.
I rapped my finger on my desk and spun around to face the winery. Things were as they always were, my little blond assistant was stalking around and giving some slackers the stink-eye as she passed.
Valerie and Mihaela had teamed up and were assembling a larger more modern still, that I had stolen when I went to get the newspaper used to discipline Mihaela.
It was the one that looked the least out of place among my new collection of stolen stills, but a new shiny copper contraption inevitably looked out of place amongst used stills, so I doubted it mattered too much anyway.
I turned my eyes away from the still building duo and back onto my desk, my ledger to be exact. I could sell at low cost because a portion of my stock was duplicated, this allowed me to squash smaller businesses at first, and return my prices to 'normal' or as normal as they could be.
I was now pulling in a healthy amount and could reasonably expand with minor growing pains. I just had to squash one of the current brewing giants to make room for myself and things would be golden.
That, or I could try and weasel into the plasmid business. I could only do one without looking suspicious, I was already selling more alcohol than I could reasonably produce, and I didn't want people to look too deeply into what was happening.
Plasmids had more entertainment value than expanding the brewery, but running a brewery was a skill that would translate across any future worlds I visit...
"Decisions, decisions..." I hummed, and turned to the sign on the wall 'Agares Sprits N' Wine' I stared at it for a moment and reaffirmed my desire to continue on my chosen path. "I'll steal every recipe I come across and become the best brewer I can be..."
I just needed to dump my responsibilities onto someone else and I'll start brewing again like I did when we first started...
Amaya's up and coming change into Devil-hood, Plasmids, expansion, and getting back to brewing, lots to do and so little time.
"Time flies when your having fun..." I tapped my fingers on my desk and started making plans to hire a manager.
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June 1948:
Many different plasmids became commercially available with Fontaine Futuristics teleportation plasmid being the most notable.
Notable because despite its continued instability, it was still being sold and lauded as a great product. If people wanted to risk dissolving every time, they teleported then I guess the plasmid was right for them.
But most people did not want to dissolve, and thus the plasmid gained some notoriety among the other currently available plasmids. 'Pick your plasmid and evolve' was the newest slogan being pushed around Rapture.
Seeing people light up their cigarettes, or use the telekinesis plasmid was neat. It meant that sooner or later, our little group could get away with using some of our powers a little more recklessly.
Zapping an attacker wouldn't be weird now, it made me feel a little safer knowing that we could defend ourselves without having to fear major reprisal.
"So, how do you feel." I noticed that Amaya was awake and focused on her, tearing my mind away from plasmids and the potential shenanigans I could get up to.
Amaya's skin was smoother, her pores clean and free of the usual human gunk, her features looked smoother and more symmetrical. Her brown hair now had a permanent healthy sheen, and her eyes were lustrous.
Suffice to say Amaya had gained a supernatural beauty, an inherent charisma that allowed Devils to talk people into selling their souls for small favors. She would continue to become more beautiful as she got older, she would ever so slowly shift closer to her 'ideal self' becoming more attractive the more powerful she got.
"I feel like a Devil I suppose." Amaya waved her hand back and forth, mesmerized by the action. "I can hear so much more, and see so much more. I can't even imagine what else has changed."
"What you're experiencing now is nothing, as you become more powerful your body will continue to adapt and change. Eventually, trying to appear human will become too hard to bother with." Amaya's head snapped to Valerie, who had dramatically stepped out of the shadows and into the light.
"You don't have much Demonic Power right now, that'll change how you experience life as well..." I added my own two cents, pinching my fingers together, and miming how little power she had.
"I thought you said that a Bishop Piece would give me more Demonic Power?" Amaya looked slightly put out at her lack of reserves.
"You come from a world with little magic and the Bishop is a multiplier, zero times five is still zero." Valerie ruthlessly crushed Amaya's thoughts about gaining instant power.
"Don't worry about that too much though, even if you didn't train at all, you'd still gain enough power to use basic spells in a few years." I smiled reassuringly. "With training, in a few months, you'll be ready to launch fireballs like the best of us." I lied smoothly, doing my best not to crush her hope.
Magic would depend entirely on her inherent talent and drive to improve. I hoped her little brush with Serafall would be the kick she needed to advance and move forward but I had my doubts.
It was very easy to get complacent, especially when you didn't have an insurmountable enemy or unachievable goal to pursue.
"Fireballs?" Amaya looking slightly dazed, likely from information overload.
"You have a very apparent affinity for fire, and a lesser one for shadow." Though the shadow affinity probably came from her connection to me. It wasn't strong enough to be meaningful at her current strength. "We'll figure out the rest of them when Mihaela's around."
Amaya nodded, still looking slightly dazed, and lost in thought. Valerie took the opportunity to comb through Amaya's hair with her fingers, comforting her in her own way.
I watched them silently, as I didn't want to break up their moment. Bonding was never a bad thing after all.
I left them to it and turned my mind back to the still looming problem of not having a manager. Now that Amaya was less squishy, I could groom her for a manager position.
But was she ready? She was a cop or Japan's equivalent, she might be better suited for combat. But just because someone became a cop, didn't mean they were suited to combat. Or were they?
Maybe asking was the best course of action...
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July 1948:
Gene Tonics were truly a marvel, and they didn't require EVE after their initial use. They were essentially a permanent upgrade, it sounded too good to be true and it was.
Excessive use caused mutation, permanent mutation. So, while you could be more beautiful and smell fantastic all the time, you couldn't also have the strength of two men or become a super athlete.
You sadly couldn't stack upgrades indefinitely. The number of Tonics you could consume without consequences was different for everyone but currently averaged at two, with five being the highest recorded.
So, while tempting, Tonics weren't something readily used, not yet anyway. People were waiting for more innovation before using up their two Tonic limit.
After all, why settle for less? The Tonics would get better, why not wait a few months or years?
"Truly a marvel!" Steinman was equally as interested as I was, he held up the newest 'Slim Down' it did as advertised and shed excess fat. "My industry may become obsolete, but truly a marvel!"
Steinman shook the bottle at me, in what I could only describe as a hysterical manner.
"People can only use so many, you have nothing to worry about my friend." I gave him what I hoped was a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"Ah, that's true! But still! Man will innovate, there won't be a genetic limit on Tonics for long!" Steinman stared at me mournfully. "I spent my whole life trying to make people beautiful and some scientist made a concoction that does it for me in minutes, there's no art to it!"
"People will always appreciate art, most people would rather not use the Tonics for vanity, those that do are missing out on the other more useful Tonics." I gave him another reassuring pat, hoping my words were supportive.
Steinman had Dragon-like devotion to beauty, if he were a Devil, he could probably work his way up to Ultimate-class using his obsessive devotion. It's a shame he wasn't devoted to something like saving lives, but I supposed devotion to beauty was better than a devotion towards breasts as was Issei's case.
Was making Steinman a Devil a good idea? Maybe? It was an interesting idea at least. I wasn't particularly inclined on reincarnating men, but it would break the streak I seem to have going. I didn't want my Peerage to became a harem anyway.
"Ah, that may be true." He nodded thankfully. "There were too many uglys for me to fix anyway. Now they can be saved even without my help."
I held in the skeptical 'sure' that wanted to come out and instead just nodded in sympathy. I swiped one of the new red wines, made with a different yeast, and handed it to Steinman.
"We can drink to that." I let my eyes roam over the wine rack, which took up a whole wall and selected a blackberry wine. "You can't save everyone." I let my mind drift to the bears I had Devoured and used to pick the wild blackberries, finding the whole idea funny in hindsight. "But it is good to save who you can."
"True, it's a shame, but I am only one man." He set down the Tonic and popped the cork off the bottle, drinking directly from it. "And one man can only do so much!" He took a mournful sip from the bottle.
I popped the cork on my own bottle and joined in on the debauchery, drinking directly from the bottle like an animal.
Steinman continued lamenting his fate, worried about his industry and worried about the future. A future of 'artless beauty' as he called it.
I just sat back and silently listened, stewing in thoughts, thinking of potential ways to use ADAM to advance myself.
Could I use ADAM to make new bloodlines? Could ADAM even be adjusted to run off of Demonic Power? Would ADAM even work on me, a being of magic and soul?
Who knew, I certainly didn't. There was much to explore, especially so when one could make an unlimited supply of ADAM.
...
August 1948:
Plasmids required energy to use, that energy came in the form of EVE. EVE was essentially 'mana' used to power 'spells' or in Raptures case Plasmids.
The whole thing was fascinating, using external power was how the plasmids functioned so could Demonic Power be used to fuel Plasmids?
The answer was no, but also yes. No, when the Plasmids were made to be powered by EVE, but yes when the Plasmids were made to be powered by Demonic Power.
Sadly, the Plasmids were still just as unstable and addictive as they were before.
So, my newly acquired knowledge about genetics will go to waste. Fontaine's geneticists had died and been reborn in vain, their knowledge going to waste.
I didn't have time for logic or genetics, I was a man of magic and like all men of magic, I used my knowledge poorly and as little as possible.
I nodded to myself, sure of my logic.
If the stem cells weren't unstable by nature, I would've been able to use them, but as they were any abilities gained through ADAM had to be reapplied by ADAM or they would quickly disappear.
The stem cells and cells that came from said stem cells just died too quickly, making abilities gained through ADAM temporary.
Demonic Power didn't do stability, and that further hampered any hope I had in using ADAM to empower myself.
"Looks like It's just Devouring for good old Surnothal Agares!" I bumped shoulders with Mihaela causing her to spill the very expensive pure ADAM I had acquired.
The stare Mihaela sent my way would cow lesser men, but I twas not a lesser man. I was Surnothal Agares, a near conceptual existence of Darkness and Shadow, a gestalt of Shadows that represented Devoured souls, newly a gestalt of minds, and Vampire Slayer!
"Sorry, I'm feeling silly today." A side effect of completely consuming something and not cutting away their memories and individuality, a mistake that I shouldn't commit again. "I got a little high on understanding, you know how it is." I smiled cheerily, ignoring the wrongness I felt.
Mihaela sent me a look that I took as 'you're the only one who eats people here' and she was completely right about that.
The unfortunate thing about experimenting with my unstable powers was that the results were seldom predictable and now I had a 'soul connection gestalt thingy' going on.
One mind did not have the power to truly utilize one-hundred percent of their powers and abilities. But forty or so minds of former scientists did, I had a small conceptual understanding of Time, Shadow, and Darkness, but with forty-plus more minds sharing a conceptual understanding and advancing it on their own...
It was pretty much a recipe for disaster. I had become the Borg, a magical conceptual Borg, but still the Borg. Until I figured out how to unfuck myself I was going to continue being the Borg.
"Ah, almost forgot!" I snapped my fingers and duplicated a few vials of ADAM with an ease that didn't exist a day ago. "Well, it's been fun hovering over you're shoulder but I have to get going."
I nodded to Mihaela and dolphin-dived into a Gate leading to the north pole. The gate snapped shut behind me, and I was left to my thoughts.
I pressed my face into the ice below me and resisted the urge to slam my head until it was a red paste.
Trying to attach a soul to my own and make it a 'proxy soul' had been a mistake, forgetting to remove their memories and individuality also a mistake. Playing with the 'mistake proxy soul' and making it a part of myself was a mistake. Adding more souls to myself, in the same way, was a bad decision.
Once I realized I had made a sort of gestalt, not stopping was a bad decision. Making the minds think about Shadow and then Darkness was a mistake. Not stopping them was a bad decision. Isolating myself in a Time Bubble and meditating for years, a rare good decision. Still allowing the minds to keep some of their individuality was the worst bad decision I had made.
Bad decisions and mistakes, I was full of them...
Letting my power do what it wanted to was backfiring on me, unexpected powers and abilities were cool but not worth the trouble.
I needed to cut away the mind's individuality and memories, but not before making them think about the concept of Time. Then I needed to deal with my problems in the way I usually delt with them, and that was Seal, Seal, Seal, Seal, Seal everything away and keep Sealing until I no longer had problems to Seal.
I needed to do all of that quickly, as the minds urged me to advance our understanding.
Scientists really liked advancement, who knew?
"Dammit, no!" I rolled around rubbing my eyes, trying to get rid of the sudden headache. "No more concepts."
I had to get rid of the minds. I was in charge, but who knew how long that would last. They had learned how to draw on my Demonic Power, it was only a matter of time.
...
August 1948:
Crisis averted, my mind was the only mind and much of myself was Sealed including most of my conceptual understanding.
Sealing your ability to 'accidentally become a conceptual existence' was hard, but doable with forty-four minds and a few years. So, my power wouldn't create problems for me anymore, nor would I experience any more accidental upgrades.
Getting rid of the individuality and memories of the minds was much easier. Better incorporating the minds into myself and then Sealing them, even easier.
Regaining my sanity was probably the hardest part of the whole ordeal, on the plus-side, I now had a type of mind palace. Having forty Surnothal's running around in your mind was weird, but nice.
Having other Surnothal's to organize my mind was nice, but arguing with myself was weird.
And was I really such an asshole? Or was it just that particular Surnothal?
And now with forty extra Surnothal's, I had more of me to go around, I just needed enough bodies.
Though my original idea was making a proxy soul so I could run around in worlds that rejected me, this worked just fine. I could figure out how to make a proxy soul later, I had the manpower, it was just a matter of time.
With a thought, I sealed my other-selves away and dropped the Time Bubble I had created a long while ago. With another thought I created a Gate and stepped into my living room, traveling thousands of kilometers in a second.
"Yo!" I waved at Valerie who peeked over her book and blinked at me before returning to reading a moment later.
I shrugged at the cold shoulder I was getting and collapsed into my armchair, happy to have my safe space back.
Having a better conceptual understanding of Shadow and Darkness meant most of those magics were currently overpowered and unusable unless I was willing to level a city accidentally when I was using said magic.
I was more limited than I usually was, and it sucked. No more shadow walking, nor more peering through the shadows and capturing criminals to Devourer, no more haphazardly assuming my dark and shadowy form, which was actually part conceptual Darkness now, and no more shooting Darkness Beams.
Casual use of Darkness and Shadow was now a no-no. I could only use named spells, and very carefully at that.
At least until train up my control in any case.
"Amaya was asking about your birthday and how old you were." Valerie spoke up but didn't look away from her book. "I told her March the eleventh, and said you were twenty-five."
I'm pretty sure I've told Amaya how old I was...
"Good job." I nodded distractedly. My thoughts occupied with my actual age which I hadn't bothered to keep track of. "Temporal Cognition."
Temporal Cognition told me I was nearing one-hundred and fifty, which was a shock considering I was sixtyish until just recently.
Did I spend ninety years in those Time Bubbles? Fuck.
"Ahem." Valerie pointed to her head and stared at me, silently demanding head-pats.
My arm snaked out, extending to a disturbing length, and awarded Valerie with her due head-pats. I took a moment to try and remember what I had been doing before I had accidentally gestalted myself.
"How did Amaya do at the winery?" My arm retracted with a snap and I completely relaxed back into my armchair.
"She did good for a few days, but got mad that you weren't around and quit." Valerie peeked over the book and narrowed her eyes at me, showing she was also mad I wasn't around.
"How long was I gone?" I blinked slowly.
"It's been a week..." Valerie just shrugged and closed her book, placing it beside her.
"Ah..." I couldn't muster much of a reply, I was too busy wondering if I should just jump back in time and avoid potential repercussions. "Where are they now?"
"Jamaica." Was Valerie's succinct reply.
I blinked at that, more than a little bothered. Amaya was newly reincarnated and likely to become unstable without my presence.
"Let's join them then." In a slight panic, I felt out my connection to Amaya and found it fine, stable, and secure. My worries were eased, but not completely.
I popped out of my chair and opened a Gate in the sky above where I felt Amaya was. A salty breeze hit the room, and Valerie huffed at me in annoyance but stood and approached the Gate.
This conversation won't be fun...
With a mixture of dread, guilt, and nervousness I jumped through the Gate.
...
September 1948:
I was in one of my more expensive coats today, its interior filled with beaver fur.
I stroked the fur on my cuffs, admiring the thickness of the fur and how coarse it was while thinking about my upcoming foray into the void.
Worlds with vast amounts of magic rejected my existence, that became apparent when I found another magic-rich world and was rejected just as I was in the wizarding world.
The rejection wasn't much of a problem, I could still use my inherent abilities and Demonic Power so there wasn't much to worry about on that front.
But sadly, I couldn't use that world's magic, as it rejected my very existence and actively fought against me when I tried to draw it in and use it.
My solution to this was a 'proxy soul'. My main body and soul could stay in the void while I used the proxy soul to piolet a body and enjoy my time in the foreign world.
If I took a soul from a resident of the world and added a little 'me' while connecting my soul and the other I could theoretically piolet the 'non-foreign' soul and find a body to attach myself to.
I should be able to practice that world's magic, and not have to fight the annoying rejection while I enjoyed exploring that world.
In theory at least...
In reality, it was hard to mesh souls together. I had accidentally become the Borg in my quest to connect a soul to my own.
When I devoured a soul, I broke it down and ate the base parts with my own soul, strengthening it as a result.
Connecting a soul, while trying to maintain what made it a separate and different existence, was hard and not as easy as devouring it. If it didn't have memories or a sense of self a soul just wanted to clump together and mix into a 'soul clump' with another soul that had a sense of self.
The soul essentially sought to be complete, it needed a sense of self and memories to be complete, so it sought those out. If it gained a little extra it didn't care, as long as it had enough of everything it was fine.
So, the idea was simple, let it keep its sense of self and memories and connect it to myself. And in true Surnothal fashion, I completely changed my own existence with a poorly thought-out idea and some half-hearted experimenting.
My new theory ran parallel to the previous one.
I just needed to put my memories and a little of my 'self' into a soul from the Wizarding world and it wouldn't be counted as foreign.
I already had forty 'selves' that I could use, I was just swapping out parts, adjusting one of the Surnothal's so it could prance about in another world.
"Where did the extra brew-masters come from? I can't find them on the registry..." Amaya trailed off as she caught the slight smirk that tugged at my lips. "Did you enslave the brew-masters?"
"Ouch, I'm hurt that's the first thing you thought of." I clutched dramatically at my chest, and collapsed onto the floor, earning a chuckle from Amaya. "But no, they're my clones, and my clones aren't being paid that's why they're not on the registry." I put my arms behind my head and enjoyed my position on the floor.
"Ah, makes sense." Amaya shook her head at me and went to the window that overlooked the factory.
I rolled over and pushed myself up to join her. We stood side by side and stared down at the mix of clones and workmen, it was obvious what ones were the clones, they took the forms of Vampires I had slain in the past and were ridiculously pretty by human standards.
The nice thing about the current clones was that they were just conceptual Shadows and could change appearances at will.
They were the perfect spies, unless whoever I was spying on had some version of soul sight, I would be fine. The only annoyance was that they were limited to forms I had consumed, and took a particular liking to doning the forms of various Vampires.
But to be fair, wearing the skin of your enemy was enjoyable.
"Has Mihaela come back yet?" I tossed a question out to dispel the silence that had fallen over us.
"No, she said she wanted to start a coup in Romina, she probably won't be back until she finishes." Amaya spoke blandly as if starting a coup wasn't a big deal. "She said something about ending communism, so she'll probably be busy for a while..."
I wasn't sure how to continue that conversation so I just hummed.
I wish I had the ambition or the drive to do something like that...
"You can join her if you're interested." I offered. "You're pretty sturdy now, even if you can't do much Magic-wise."
"No thanks." Amaya shook her head and didn't say anything more.
I just let us lapse into silence, too mentally tired to keep the conversation going.
...