"They took how many photos?!" Saw asked.
"Thousands… and so many skimpy… lewd outfits…" I said as I poked my Katsudon bowl.
"Wow… did you at least look good?"
"Shush you…" I grumbled. "But yes…I did…"
"Well, at least you have that." Saw shrugged. "I did ask Scotch to make you a back guard to cover that button though. There was Monofilament in some of the loot we raided from the Nexus bases so he said it will be able to handle your fire."
"Okay thank Mother cause…I don't want that happening again, especially with an enemy." I said readily.
"I figured, that's why I asked." Saw said. "So, we checking for more bases? Cause Kelly got the first Shipment of supplies and Data Drives from that deal with Midas you made."
"Yeah, doing more raid's would be a good idea." I nodded.
"Well, we can head over to Kelly's new shop/place in a bit. I'm sure you want to finish that bowl off."
"Yes, yes I do." I nodded, deciding to finish up my Katsudon before we headed out instead of moping here.
As I was eating, I now noticed Saw seemed rather silent.
"I think Scotch wants to adopt one of the new Nokori kids…" Saw said.
I nearly choked on the fried pork.
"Wh-what brought this on?" I asked carefully.
"Well… we were considering maybe trying to get a cat or dog or something, mainly a cat since… ya know. Anyway, and then you brought all the newcomers and Scotch has been helping try and pair the kids with willing adults and such but there's still some not being taken in and… He talked about them… all night…"
"Sounds like he really wants kids…but do you want kids?" I inquired.
"I have no idea… do I trust that should anyone be dumb enough to hurt them that I'd put the culprit ten feet under? Yes. Do I trust myself to not fuck up the kid myself? No… let's be real here I am not a responsible person let alone any kind of role model…"
"Well…you won't know unless you try." I said honestly. "And taking care of a kid…while it's complicated, it can be rather simple if you don't overthink it." I admitted.
"Ugh… I knew you'd be no help…" Saw said, letting their head drop and hit the table.
"Are you saying my personal experience raising kids isn't any help?" I asked.
"Midoriya how old is your oldest kid?" He asked, not raising his head up.
"Ten." I said.
"When's her birthday?"
"October fifteenth."
"What's today?"
"October seven- Oh shit…"
"My point…"
"I couldn't really spend time for her birthday when that was the day I was having that crisis." I frowned. "Plus I was kidnapped for four days…"
"Either way…" He groaned, turning his head to lay on the side. "That's still your own kid… I'll be adopting. These kids already probably trust no one and were either separated or abandoned by their bio parents then turned into a Nokori… Terrified… crap…" He sighed. "I can relate…"
"Right now, it's a matter of gaining their trust, and showing them that you do care about them, that you aren't going to abandon them like their bio parents." I stated.
"So what's your daughter's late birthday gift then?"
…
"Okay fine, you can suffer with your decision by yourself." I said, finishing my food and getting up. "Last time I actually give advice."
"I'm just saying you should get her something to apologize! Yeesh." Saw said. "What's she like anyway?"
"She has my smarts that's for sure, bright, analytical…and her favorite thing is to hear me and Delilah talk about our battles and adventures." I explained. "Our sweet little Daisy always has this adorable sparkle in her eye as we tell her in a more…kid friendly way."
"Right, she's your only kid with Delilah… So, has she developed any of your quirks since those are genetic?"
"She…got all of them." I said sheepishly. "And…boy is it mildly worrying…"
"... So, does that include All for One and One for All?"
"When I say 'she got all of them', I mean she literally got all my Quirks." I said.
"Right, so that means she can also combine them into new Quirks and such too?"
"Which is horrifying cause she's already figuring out a lot of different combos…" I said nervously.
"Well, she is your daughter… But she's also Delilah's so… gods know what she can do with your smarts and Delilah's attitude."
"Why do you think I'm scared?" I asked
"Fair, but I was referring to things like cartoons or animals or toys in terms of her likes."
"Yeah…" I sighed. "Well…she's my kid…I'll get her her own few blank notebooks." I said readily.
"And thus begins the story of how your daughter is gonna surpass you… way faster than you're gonna like…" Saw said as he pulled himself up. "Welp, while you do that, I'm gonna go have a talk with Scotch. Meet up with you at Kelly's." He said, falling into a Warp portal he opened underneath himself.
"And that's what I'm really scared of…" I sighed, heading off to go get Daisy some blank notebooks cause she'll have a field day with them.
I bought the notebooks, ten and some extra pencils and such before rushing off to her room.
Daisy's room was decorated with some… stuff. Hard to find normal kids toys and such in The Nightmare. Most are patchwork dolls and porcelain dolls. A bit creepy, but she loved them.
I saw her at her desk… using her Creation Quirk to make…
…
…
I'm sorry is that… Uh… actually what is that? It's some kind of… puddy?
"Uh…what are you making Daisy?"
"Dad-" She yelped, the Puddy that was coming out of her hand hitting the desk, making her yelp. She immediately used Warp-
KA-BOOM!
… Oh… it was C-4…
I coughed as I found myself having crashed through the livingroom and into the kitchen…
"Uh… are you good?" She asked, peeking out a Warp portal from above me.
"Why were you making C-4, and why was it that unstable?"
"C-4 is really delicate. It's on par with Nitroglycerin but more easily transported… and I was making it to sell to Kelly…" She said, wincing.
"No…that's not C-4, C-4 is actually rather stable and doesn't explode unless you have a blasting cap…and why were you going to sell it?"
"Normally… unless I mix in some of my Nitro sweat from Explosion…" She peeped. "And I was gonna sell it to buy some stuff…"
"You could have just asked for some money…" I sighed. "Also, next time, don't make a powerful and very stable explosive more powerful and unstable without at least someone that understands explosive making around…" I coughed up some smoke. "But I came in to give you these." I said, handing her the completely undamaged notebooks as I had them all in my Assistant to surprise her.
"Notebooks?" She asked, reaching up… down, and taking them.
"Yep, ten empty notebooks and plenty of pencils and erasers for all the growing ideas in your head." I explained. "I'm sorry I wasn't here but…happy birthday Daisy."
"Oh! Thanks dad!" She said, giving me a quick hug from her Warp Portal. "So uh… that aside, how grounded am I?"
"You are rather grounded, yes." I stated. "Firstly, because you weren't making those explosives in a safe room, how many times have I mentioned staying safe when experimenting?" I asked, hearing her groan a bit. "Secondly, because you made a good stable explosive into a dangerous unstable explosive in the house." I stated. "And three, what do you need the money to buy?"
"...Secret…" She said.
I crossed my arms. "And how special is this secret?"
"...Special enough to accept a longer grounding…"
I sighed. "Well, you won't be grounded longer if the secret is that important." I said, gently patting her head. "But Daisy…please inform an adult that know's what they're doing, I know you are smart and capable but safety is always an important thing before doing something dangerous.'
"I'll try… Hmm…" She hummed as she went back into her Warp portal and was gone.
I sighed, pulling myself back up and dusting myself off… gonna have to repair her room later… Still, why would she be making explosives for money… and why is Kelly buying it?
"Okay…so off to see Kelly then…" I muttered, Warping to Kelly's both to catch up with Saw and to see what Kelly knew about this stuff.
I arrived outside-
"Oof… Well that was well timed…" Saw said as we bumped into one another both coming out of Warp Portals. "So, how's Daisy?"
"Well, she's doing alright, loves the gift and is also making a C-4 Nitroglycerin mixture for a secret thing and I don't know why…"
"Oh she's gonna need a stabilizer to keep the Nitro from setting off by accident then." Saw said. "I doubt your world had Moon Worms though…"
"No, but there should be other stabilizers." I said honestly. "Grounded her and gave her a quick explanation on why safety is key when working with dangerous things…also need to get her someone that knows how to use explosives to watch over her when she does that…"
"Right. Welp… Scotch and I are adopting…"
"How many kids?" I inquired.
"Well there are eight that still need a place so… eight…" He sighed. "I can't say no to that adorable face of his… Also, I can relate to being a scared kid feeling like the world doesn't want you so… yeah… We're gonna get the place house remodeled to have them all housed properly…"
"That's good." I nodded. "Children are quite a bit of responsibility but are worth it."
"Yeah… uh… hope it's gonna work out… I mean, zero to eight kids all have their own flavors of trauma and issues…"
"Patience and Kindness will go a long way." I stated simply.
"Yeah… well, let's get in there anyway." He sighed, giving a pull of Kelly's shop door and we entered. The whole place was filled with a little of everything. Weapons, armor, ammo, raw materials and even food were everywhere here.
Kelly was sitting in a comfy looking chair at the register. Several guns at her side on one end, on the other, a table with snacks, and a bottled drink.
"Hey, you two here for the stuff Midas sent?" She asked as she saw us.
"Yes, and also to ask why are you buying dangerous explosives from Daisy?"
"They sell good, clear out large waves of enemies and a few well placed ones help dig tunnels and mine resources." She said.
"And do you know the 'secret' she needs the money for?" I asked, thinking Kelly was also in on this.
"Nope." She shrugged. "She sells the explosives, I give her the money and that's all I know."
"Well, what about the supplies and data drives?" Saw asked.
"Right, well, here you go." Kelly said, removing two Data Drives, odd, small metallic boxes, and one small little gift box from her Assistant. "Those are the Data Drives and that box is the supplies."
"Huh…unless it's bigger on the inside, surprised how small the supply box is." I admitted.
"It's an External Storage Box." She said, popping the lid off for me and inside was what looked like some kind of… flap, or something akin to half a pocket watch. One side was a metal cover, the other, looked like a metallic design of the Assistant. "People use them to directly transfer large quantities of items to another via Assistant without needing to meet with them directly."
Huh… kinda weird looking.
"Well…I suppose that's fair." I shrugged. "Can't really deliver possibly hundreds of crates full of stuff without it being suspicious."
"Are these things rare?" Saw asked.
"Well, you can make them but not easily." Kelly shrugged.
I aligned the metallic Assistant symbol with mine. The metallic version melded into my Assistant and I got a notification.
[Notice! External Storage Device Detected!
Accessing Contents…
Contents Available for Transfer!]
Alright now let's see what… he… gave… us…
…
Oh… my…
This is more than what we get raiding ten Nexus bases!
"Uh…" I blinked. "That's…that's a lot…" I muttered in shock.
"Heh, yeah that sounds like Midas." Kelly chuckled.
"You know him?" Saw asked.
"Not directly, but I've worked with Greed long enough to hear the stories. Midas of Greed, supposedly he has a Title that marks him as the Greediest Man Alive, but, he never really acts like one would think. You've seen how he dresses, and supposedly everything he owns personally looks like junk. Supposedly he overpays for them too, up to billions and trillions of rem for what others consider junk. No one can really get a read on that guy."
"Yeah…he seemed rather weird…I mean, sure, the saying 'one man's trash is another man's treasure' but still…"
"Well, whatever the case, looks like between this deal, raiding bases and even stuff we find in the Nightmare proper, supplies are looking good." Saw said. He then picked up the Data Drives, putting them to his Assistant and obtaining the data. "Hmm… hey, there's a Violence Facility nearby."
"That we can deal with easily." I said readily. "How close is it?"
"Ten miles south of here."
That's too close… That's in the vicinity of our Frontier Portal System… I must have passed them and not even noticed…
"How the hell did I miss that?" I asked worriedly.
"Well come on, let's get going and correct that." Saw said, opening a Warp portal as he and I ran into it.
We emerged out in the Nightmare, above what looked to be a prison.
We landed on the roof. Danger Sense immediately went off.
"Move!" I snapped, jumping back as I wasn't sure if Danger Sense was going off because of how dangerous this place was or if there was an immediate attack and I didn't want to guess which.
Right where Saw and I were prior, bursting from the roof was a tendril covered arm that pulled the rest of its body out. It was some kind of shark person, various… parasitic squids were fused to its body.
Scan!
[Scan Complete!
Name: N/A
Race: Bestial Anthro Shark-Man Type 33.
Gender: Male.
Age: 14
HP: 3,500
MP: 45,000
ATT: 2,450
DEF: 1,200
PR: 1,000
MR: 4,000
ER: 2,000
Status R: 1,000
Poison R: 1,000
Fear R: N/A
Bleed R: N/A
Acid R: N/A
Psychic R: N/A
Disease R: N/A
—
Strength: 100
Agility: 100
Vitality: 100
Vigor: 90
Intelligence: N/A
Endurance: 100
Dexterity: 100]
"Right…" I said. "Time to see how strong I really am…" I muttered, bringing out Memory Stealer and Second Chance, using Fa Jin, Gearshift and Engine in a combo move. "Momentum's Grace…First Step." I said, launching myself as I let out a blinding flurry of attacks against the Shark person, attempting to both save him and get rid of all those damned parasitic squids.
As I did that, Saw jumped down into the building.
This guy was just fourteen, and I don't know if he's like this from birth or some kids they took…
Damn it… what's the right thing to do?! Reset him back to an infant or see if I can save them… are they even still in there?! I want to save him… I just want to save them all!
[Notice! Greed Branch Unlocked! Dark Skill, Taboo, Available!]
What?
I backed up, dodging a swing from this guy and checking my Skills… I clicked on Taboo and…
I flinched as in a flash of darkness appeared… a book?
"What the fuck…how is saving people greedy!?" I shouted incredulously, grabbing the book and dodging another swing, as all those attacks I did somehow didn't work.
I looked at the book and opened it. The pages, first blank, now began showing-
I dodged another attack and looked at the pages… it was him. The shark Guy… is this… This is… some kind of biography? I flew up a bit, not enough to be out of their sight but enough to easily dodge them.
He was… four when he was sold to Violence and… turned into this… Jackie… that's his name…
"I see you unlocked Taboo." I turned, seeing that same quadruped Time Walker from before… something about her though… felt different. "Good." She said, standing on the air next to me, or so it looked.
"I don't know how though…I shouldn't have gotten it just because I want to save people." I frowned. "And what happened to you? You…feel different…"
"That's not important, but it's good you obtained this power. It can help you when you need to know more, to make the right choice." She said.
"And the right choice is I need to save this poor innocent child that was forced to be like this for ten years straight." I stated.
"Yes, but how you save them, well that's just as, maybe more important." She said. The Shark-Man jumped to attack. She let off that glowing eye trick again, and they froze in mid air. "Resetting them with Memory Stealer and Second Chance is one method, they were four, but then the four year old they were is gone forever as well. Tragedy, really."
"But they would be a four year old on a fourteen year olds body, consumed by the parasites on them in a mindless rage as his Stats showed he didn't have any intelligence from what I could see."
For some reason, I could feel her smirk under that hood. "You're not very good at thinking outside the box, are you?" She asked, reaching into her cloak and tossing me something. I caught it… a… USB?
It then flashed with Code, melting into my hand and… My whole body burned in a way completely different from my Fire…
[Notice! Code Mod Has Been Installed!
Stability Rating… 97%
Code Mod: Skill Type, Installed.
Modded Skill: Sin Eater, Has Been Obtained!
Sin Eater: You can devour the sins and evils of a target for your own, reverting them to a pure state.]
"Wh-what the fuck…" I coughed. "Sin Eater? How…?" I looked at them in confusion as to why they gave me this and how they could get it.
"Code Mod, a Hacker made Ability not approved by The Family for use in the Skill Trees. Few can make them, but it will remain stable as long as you don't use it on someone that's too far gone to save." She said. "It always helps to have options." She added before vanishing in a blink, as if she wasn't there.
"Uh…right…" I muttered, as I tried to look up how to use the stupid thing.
Instantly, that freezing thing wore off and the shark-man attacked me.
I reacted, putting my hands on them.
[Sin Eater Activated!]
Their body glowed, they seemed to shrink and change, finally when it was over all that was left was a small child in my arms. I quickly pulled a blanket from my Assistant to cover them…
[Sin Eater Rewards
Time Gem (Weak) x1
Parasite Nightmare Squids x15
Parasite Nightmare Squids Converted into Biological Mutation Ability.
New Mutation Ability, Controle, Obtained!
Controle: By Infecting monsters with the small parasites you produce, you can control them, akin to a Beast Tamer Ability.]
"Uh…huh…" I muttered, cradling the little shark boy in my arms. "That's…new."
I landed, carrying the kid down to the ground. He began to wake up. "Hmmm… where… Who are you?" He asked, looking at me.
"I'm Hero, what's your name?" I asked softly.
"Jackie… where am I? I can't remember how I got here…" He said, then looked at himself and the blanket. "... Why am I naked?"
"You had fifteen parasitic squids on your body and…well, they didn't take kindly to clothing." I explained carefully. "What's the last thing you remember?"
"I uh… I had what?" He asked. "I remember… I remember the Slave Market…"
Right… probably shouldn't tell that to a kid…
I nodded. "Well, you are safe and free, and that's all that matters." I said softly.
The rest of the Violence base had others, some more people like Jackie in there, most when I used Sin Eater reverted to infants, some became children again and none have memories of the time they were monsters.
I think it has something to do with the fact each time I used Sin Eater, on top of some other stuff, I got a Time Gem, usually a weak one.
There was a Scientist I tried to use the ability one, but that didn't work. So, Memory Stealer and Second Chance was used.
After that, Saw and I checked from supplies, finding little and went home.
Code Mods… Basically, they're Hacker made Abilities… that means either the Nokori God that Time Walker is working with has enough Code skill to make them… or he's not the only Hacker she's working with…
I sighed, sitting in the booth of the bar. So much to think about…
"Crap…" I grumbled and took a swig of my Sake. "This fucking sucks…"
As I put my cup down, Saw appeared from a Warp portal, took the bottle and began chugging it. I blinked as he finished that whole bottle before putting it down. "Fuck me…" He groaned, rubbing his eyes.
"I mean, since your offering I suppose, but isn't that Scotchs job?"
"... I'm still not used to you making the jokes…" He sighed. "But no… I met the kids earlier…"
"And how are they?"
"Well, healthy. That's good at least…"
"So what sort of nonsense are they putting you through?" I inquired.
"Not really nonsense. They're untrusting, which is understandable. Their abilities are interesting, but mostly they're just a bit standoffish."
"It'll take time.* I shrugged. "Patience and kindness, two things to show your willingness to wait for them to trust you, and that you do care and won't abandon them."
"I know that, I was a system kid." Saw said, quickly ordering me another Sake bottle and a meat pie for himself. "But fucking hell the looks… I used to give those same looks to adults I didn't trust…"
I gave him a dead look with a weary smile. "You get used to it…"
"I feel like you want to say something…"
"So I'm busy wondering why our Time Walker sponsor just gave me a Hacker Mod of Sin Eater." I stated.
"And I know what that is… because?"
"Remember that new thing I was doing at the Violence base?" I asked. "Yeah, I was handed that from a USB made out of Code…and that was after I somehow unlocked Greed because I wanted to be a good persoj and save people."
"Huh… so, are you mad about that… or?"
"I'm mad that I got Greed and Taboo because I want to save people, but I'm also confused as to why that is…and why I got this stupid thing…" I said, bringing out the book that Taboo magically gave me.
Saw reached over, but when he tried to pick it up, his hand phased through it, like it was a hologram. "Well… that's a thing."
"I can only imagine it's because this is mine and I got it from the Dark Skill Tree…but this is still bullshit." I frowned.
"Well, what's it do?"
"Well, it basically gave me a history on who I was fighting and how they got to that point, like with Jackie and all the other children I didn't use Second Chance on."
"Seriously? Wow… does it work on everyone?"
I shrugged, picking the book up and opening it. The blank pages filling in… about Saw.
[Info.
Name: Saw
Given Name: Keven Diago
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Homosexual
Species: Nokori
Birth Species: Human
Nokori Fusion Item: Industrial diamond tipped buzz saw.(Enchanted)
Nokori Fusion Animal: Ram (Age 2)
Crimes: Theft, Robbery, Armed Robbery, Drug Possession, Illegal Substance distribution, Illegal ownership of Firearms, Explosive manufacturing, Use of deadly weapons, Murder, Assassination, Disposal of human corpses, grand theft auto, domestic terrorism, international terrorism, vehicular manslaughter, arson.]
Wow that's a lot… also, Keven?
"Well…didn't expect your name to be Keven Daigo…" I said.
"Fuck it tells you that?" Saw asked. "Ugh, I haven't gone by that name in years. And please don't call me it. Aside from that, it say anything else?"
"Tells me your fusion item and animal, your sexuality, species, name, and literally every theme of crime you have committed which you have sixteen of them."
"I'm pretty sure I've done way more than sixteen. Huh… maybe it only tells you the ones I've done and not the repeats?" He hummed. "Well… it does that… maybe it does other stuff. Try asking it a question or something?"
"Hmm…what's Saw's favorite fetish?" I asked the book, wanting to see if that was true and so I can make fun of him.
"You ass!" Saw yelled.
[Submissive Pet Play]
Oh…my…
I looked at Saw carefully. "...Does it have a bell?" I asked, trying my best not to laugh.
His face turned rather red.
I lost it.
"Oh screw you…" He growled.
"Suck's when you're not the one doing the teasing doesn't it?" I laughed. "I mean…it's not the worst thing I imagined you being into but it's one of the funniest." I said honestly. "Kinda expected a Praise Kink but that's basically the same thing."
"Shut up… you've already lit the fire. I have to get that ability and post your kink list all over town…"
"Jeez, calm down." I stated. "I'm not going to post the entire thing out there damn, you're making it sound like only me knowing this is the worst possible thing ever."
"When it's what Scotch and I do in private… it is. And before you say about Delilah talking about you two, we don't tease you with what we know, so keep that in mind."
I gave him a deadpanned look.
"We don't!" Saw said defensively.
I stared at them harder.
"Look if I was to abuse that knowledge, I'd have done so already."
"Uh huh…" I said, unconvinced of his nonsense. "And also, I just want to point out, I learn a thing and laugh or tease once, then let it go when I'm the only one that knows about it."
"Hey, you never made those jokes before so it's still new. But I was thinking maybe ask important questions. Like, oh I don't know, where every town in The Nightmare is or how best to help recruit them to our little whatever this is or fuck even just where your boyfriend Three is since it's been a long ass time."
"Well…all of that is true." I admitted, looking at my Book. "Where's Three?" I asked the Book, hoping it knows who that is and if it'll tell me.
[Imprisoned by The Majority in Kalver Drika in Hazard Zone Broken Mirror]
I immediately stood up… how…
"I…I need to go." I said quickly.
"Hold up!" Saw said. "Where are you even going?"
"Saint's place so I can figure out where the Broken Mirror is." I said, opening up a Warp Gate to his place to get some answers.
I walked in and saw The Saint sipping some tea. "Hello Hero. You seem agitated."
"Where's the Broken Mirror Hazard Zone?" I asked quickly. "The rest of what's bugging the shit out of me can wait."
"Why would you want to go to Broken Mirror?"
"They have Three imprisoned there." I stated. "Some people called 'The Majority' have him captured, and I'm not taking that without some fight."
"Then I'm afraid you aren't going." The Saint said, making me blink.
"Why not?" I asked with a frown.
"For starters." He said as he put his teacup down. "The Majority is one of the oldest Chaos Guilds, Older than Violence and Greed and Lust, only younger to Nexus. For a time, in the past, they were rivaled not even by Nexus. Back in Era one, they were everywhere, and their leader was responsible for creating a weapon that could permakill, something he accomplished by forging it from a still living Void Admin. Any members are born to the guild, not from Breeders but from their surviving members, many of which are from their Era One glory days. Second, the Broken Mirror zone is the third most dangerous zone on Armageddon. You are not strong enough to go there… Neither am I, as a matter of fact."
I was…actually shocked to hear that. "H-how are you not strong enough for that area? YOu're one of the strongest being's on this planet aren't you?"
"Yes, and on that list are those who are much, much stronger." The Saint said. "Most of which still reside within the remnants of The Majority Guild."
"That's…that's a terrifying thought…" I said carefully.
"I'm sorry, Hero, but right now there is nothing either of us can do to help Three. He is… at their mercy…"
…
"Yeah no." I frowned. "I'm not going to just sit here and do nothing, I'm not going to lose Three again."
"If you try to go, then you will never see your family here again." He said, making me pause. "I know your past with Three, and that he is part of your family, and precious to you, but so are they. Your other mates, your children… you can't throw them away, and if your goal is to get stronger fast, until the update there isn't an easy way."
I growled. "Then what the hell am I supposed to do? Sit here and wait even longer as I failed to even realize he was captured for most likely ten years straight?"
"... There might be two options…" The Saint said, seeming to collect their thoughts. "One, Midas might be able to make a deal with them. Two, I could try and contact my Master…"
"Both of which are probably bad idea's cause even if you're scared of the Majority we shouldn't have Midas trade with them and…your Master is in hiding for a reason and I don't want him to get into more danger." I said, trying to think of a way…something outside the box like that Time Walker recommended.
… That Time Walker…
I quickly opened the book Taboo gave me.
"Who was that Time Walker?" I asked the book.
[Diamond Tiara, Rogue Time Walker.]
"A…Rogue Time Walker?" I asked worriedly. "Where is she?"
[Outside your home. Waiting for you to ask for her help.]
…
"I'll…be right back…" I said, opening up a Warp portal to my house and heading there cause…oh boy that's concerning.
I exited the portal and there she was, sitting there with her hood and cloak on as usual and was reading a book. "Right on time." She said, closing her book.
"How long have you been sitting there?" I asked carefully.
"Two minutes. I figured it wouldn't be long once you realized the Saint was too weak to help you save Three, the last Time Runner."
"Yes, and I need your help to rescue him." I said quickly. "How long has he been held Captive?" I asked, fearing that I've just…abandoned him while I was busy dicking around here.
"Just the last year. He was taken a little after he wrapped up his business elsewhere aiding another. Shame. He was on his way back to you as well."
"Well, I'm going to be trying to save him." I said readily. "I don't care if the Broken Mirror or the Majority are thing's even the Saint doesn't want to mess with, I need to save him."
"No you won't." She said, putting her book away. "If you go, you will never return here. Your children will never see you again, nor your lovers or your friends. Another one lost to Armageddon's Game."
"Well then how the hell am I supposed to save him?" I asked.
"You? Heh. You can't. I can though." She said. "But, not for free. You have something I figure you'd prefer to barter with rather than I take by force."
"And what magical thing do you want?" I asked.
"In your possession, you have a Time Gem in the shape of a heart. I need it."
"No." I said quickly. "That…I don't know where it came from, but it's important to me." I said quickly. "It…it's the heart of someone I should know but I just can't remember…" I said, as that was something very important to me even though I…I just couldn't remember why…
"So it's more important to you than Three's life?" She asked dryly. "It's a simple bargain. I save him, you give me the gem."
I…that Time Gem was important…maybe…this is what that Time Gem was meant for? As some bargaining chip? Damn it… "All…alright…" I said sadly, as it feels like it was a betrayal…"Just…please, help save Three."
"Of course. You have my word." She said, standing up and as she turned to walk… it was like reality cracked around her, and she walked into the floating around and over her as she walked into them.
I stood there in awe at seeing that… then backed away. First, I heard yells, then screams… then the sounds of combat. I felt the shockwaves that came out of those cracks. It was like… feeling creation implode…
The screams as the noises of battle got louder and louder. Soon I noticed… blood was leaking out from the portal. First like a spill that turned into a rushing torrent as if a water hose that was left on. The flow not letting up until suddenly, thrown out from the cracks was…
Three. He was missing arms and legs but… he's here! The Time Walker then walked out of the cracks, the blood torrent stopping as the cracks vanished. "The Time Gem." She stated.
I pulled it out and practically threw it at her as I rushed to Three's side. "Oh my god Three! Are you alright?"
"Agh… been better…" He huffed as he managed to move himself around some despite missing his limbs. He then got a proper look at me. "Uhhh… What in Mother's name happened to you?!"
"...Yes." I said weakly, as there was a flood of tears pouring out of my eyes. "Just…it's…it's a long story my love…but…but your back and I…I couldn't be happier." I cried. "I'd hug you but…w-well…"
"I mean… until I get replacements I can qualify as a body pillow…" Three offered.
I paused before laughing with him.
"Treasure this, Hero." The Time Walker said as she put the heart shaped Time Gem into her Assistant. "You walk a path where these will be few and far between."
"Thank you…Diamond." I said, having read their name from the book. "But…what are you going to do with that Time Gem?"
"What I must. This game has been going on for far too long and it needs to end. Talk to The Saint about making Contact with a group called the New Foundation. They have resources, allies and people you will want to meet sooner rather than later. Tell Button I say hi." She added, a DTD opening behind her as she turned and walked through it.
With that, she was gone and the DTD closed behind her.
"R-right…" I said carefully. "So…we have a lot of catching up to do…"
"Clearly…" He said, his eyes going up and down along me. "You uh… you look good. Uh… did you… grow?" He asked.
"Ever since I was forced into becoming a Nokori…I checked and it's all bigger by two or three sizes." I admitted.
"Ah… I uh… that's gonna be… different."
"Yes, it's going to be very different…" I said honestly. "And…after ten years…I'm going to get you rebuilt with a spare body cause there are things that need to be done between the two of us."
"Heh, well, over ten years. Have the others been holding back on you?" He chuckled.
"There's been a lot of things happening, and sure I have currently had literal crater inducing sex with Delilah and Kelly but…well, there's over ten years worth of you dicking me down my favorite man." I stated simply.
"As far as I know, I'm still your only man. Has that changed?"
"Nope, you are my one and only man." I chuckled. "So…for some explanations…to start, I am a Nokori fusion of Keyblade Armor, a Sun Phoenix, and a Hunter Shadow…which both the Sun Phoenix and Hunter Shadow were already apart of my soul kind of…" I said sheepishly.
"Ah… Hm… Well, that's… useful." Three said. "So… awkward to ask but can you carry me to the place… I wanna see what's changed."
I smiled and chuckled.
"Alright." I said with a smile, gently picking up Three and cradling them against my body as I headed off to show them around town. "So, I have gained three town's to our growing settlement, two from this realm and one from the realm of darkness…which I also learned I also have Darkness Armor from some training a while back…and a mental breakdown…"
"Heh. Just the one or were there several?"
"There were several, the recent one being how I had to reconcile being four different people in one body." I said. "Which is why I named myself Hero cause…I am Izuku, Izukie, the Phoenix and Shadow Hunter all with their own hopes and dreams…which I ended at least one of their hopes and dreams…" I sighed bitterly.
"Well, Once I get some limbs back, I'll help you. For all of them."
"Name's Saw! Nice to finally meet the man who makes Hero scream!" Saw said as he shook Three's new arm.
The Saint thankfully was able to make him new arms and legs quickly.
"Uh, and nice to meet you… Uh, Saw." Three said.
"Hero and I have been Party members for… two, almost three years."
"Yeah, this special ram is a pain in my ass but he's a dear friend." I said with a nod. "Helped me take down plenty of Nexus bases and I helped him get a boyfriend."
"Oh, how did you two meet?" Three asked.
"Hero broke me out of the slammer." Saw said.
"The Saint gave me and Delilah some 'on the job' training and were going to take out a Violence facility, I grabbed Saw and a poor child that had some…very poor Coding done to them…" I explained.
"It's nice to have you back Three." Delilah said, giving him a quick hug.
"Feels good to be back." He chuckled.
"You know, Hero has missed you so much. They moan your name in their sleep and scream it in the shower~" Delilah said.
I went red, my wings puffed out. Saw was laughing on the ground.
"Bitch why must you say such forbidden knowledge?" I asked incredulously.
"Cause I'm your sexy tease loving bitch." Delilah teased with a wink as I groaned.
"And, hello." Mom said as she walked up to Three. "I'm Inko, Hero's mother. Long story, not an Isekai… technically? Anyway, nice to meet you."
"Uh, yes… I have a lot to catch up on." Three said as he shook mom's hand.
"I take it you'll be joining the party as well?"
"Yes. I've been away too long but I have all I needed to make the prison cubes." Three said. "Over a thousand of them."
"And we'll probably be getting even more of the resources ever since I made that deal with Midas." I admitted.
"You… met Midas?" Three asked me.
"Not only did I meet Midas…I talked and made a deal with him, as what me and Saw accidentally started in a drunken rage has made the Chaos Guilds panic buy all his products…which is good for him I guess."
"Huh. Well, glad to know he's doing well." Three said.
"You know him?" Saw asked.
"Of course I do… after this reality was made and long after… Izukie died, Midas was known as, back then, the head of the largest company both in the old and new reality, Midas, last son of Cript the Impossible. He's a son of The Family."
I blinked… Excuse me, WHAT?!
"Uh…hold up, fucking what!?" I asked incredulously.
"Who's Cript the Impossible?" Saw asked.
"One of the founding members of The Family, and one of the strongest. Rivaled only by All Maker King of Nothing, Lord the Ancient, and Dark Gray, The Reflection of Evil."
"Out of all those names…I think I only heard about Lord…and that he's an asshole." I said, trying to remember where I heard about Lord.
"So wait, that guy is the son, and apparently the last son of some hot shot god of this reality? The fuck is he doing here of all places then?!" Saw asked.
"No idea. He just… appeared here some time in Era one, established Greed and… has been here since." Three said.
"Well…if he owned the biggest corporation ever than maybe he thought of starting from scratch?"
"In fact, it's because Fuck Taxes."
"Boss, you're talking to yourself again."
"Well, at least he seems to be a pretty cool guy." Saw said.
"Well, let's head to the bar, celebrate, then you and Hero can catch on lost time. I'll be expecting Hero's first pregnancy within the week." Delilah said.
"You mean something that will force them to take a break? You better give it your all, my guy." Saw added, giving Three a pat on his side.
"Come on guys~!" I whined.
"I expect twin's the first batch." Mom stated.
"Mom~!" I whined louder.
"Heh… Your friends and family sure are… something." Saw chuckled.
I sighed, but smiled. Yeah, they are.
I woke up with a yawn, stretching and popping joints. Two months… a week until the update… and already I've got a belly… pregnancy sure is… Different… Especially when it's with Triplets…
I swear mom jinxed me…
"Well…it could be better…hmm…I wonder if one of my are going to be Nokori, Synthetic, Human…Phoenix or…Hunter Shadow…" I thought to myself, as I weirdly thought that I…might possibly be able to reproduce a Hunter Shadow because I technically am one. "Though I'm glad I don't lay eggs…that would suck…"
I felt something get placed on my head. "Morning humpty dumpty." Delilah said, sporting a Christmas themed outfit and had that let her ears poke out at the top.
Heh… Christmas… haven't celebrated that in… so long. I'm actually glad mom brought it up.
Luna went ALL out decorating the town for it to.
"Morning my special fluffy elf." I chuckled. "And…Christmas is just around the corner…haven't celebrated that in ages."
"I know. Not since we came here basically. Feels nice." She said, handing me a plate of pancakes and eggs. "And this is the longest you've been in the house since we got here too."
"Yeah yeah." I rolled my eyes. "I'm sorry I've been so busy." I pouted.
"Well for the next sevenish months you'll be here at home." She said, poking my belly. "Heh. And Three, Saw and the others are doing okay in terms of the Chaos Guild raids."
I sighed. "I know…but I should be out there still…" I grumbled. "Getting a bit stir crazy here…"
"Well you're pregnant now so no fighting or strenuous activity. So time to fight your biggest threat, your unending desire to do literally anything other than relax."
"Shush you." I said, eating my breakfast and bringing out a blank notebook as I started to write out the quirks I had and what they did, trying to come up with Combinations that Daisy hasn't already thought up yet.
"Heh, competing with your daughter is only proof you can't sit still." She chuckled, giving me a quick kiss.
"This isn't competing, this is how I relax." I stated.
"Uh huh, sure~." She laughed. "Once Luna builds one, I'm dragging you to a spa."
"A spa day would be nice I will admit." I said honestly.
"Alright, and when you're ready to wobble out of bed, Poppy has been baking a lot of sweets. Honestly with how much she has learned to cook, I'm glad she's filling up her time… and with all the stuff from both Midas and the Raids, we've got more than enough for her to cook and try out."
That was nice, still, it sucks that she still will drop everything because after so many days I do have to… well, sleep with her otherwise that terrible programming kicks in. Same for 682. She gets rather uncharacteristically needy and honestly… that scares me more than her normal… sadistic nature…
That task has gotten trickier now that I'm pregnant too…
"Well, at least things are going well." I said honestly. "But…their programming is…difficult, and I'm still trying to figure out why 682 is so infused with rage…"
"At this point, why are you bothering? Not even that Sin Eater thing of yours worked." Delilah asked.
True, I did try and use it on her, mostly to see if anything would happen. The Stability went down. From 97% down to 95%. Guess that's what the Time Walker meant by not using it on people too far gone.
"Yeah…" I sighed. "And…I don't like the possibility of losing Sin Eater when it's needed for what I want to do…"
"Well, guess people like her are what are considered too far gone."
"Yeah…" I sighed. "Just…wish there was something I could do, cause her being nothing but rage and hate is…it's not living, it's just…sad."
"Some people can't be helped, either because they don't want it or they are just too far gone. Let's be honest, were she not a Breeder, she'd be a monster attacking the town with no hesitation, regret or remorse."
"I know…" I sighed…but…I pulled out the Taboo book. "Given you have information that shouldn't be possible…is 682 always going to be a rage beast?" I asked the Taboo book.
I opened it.
[682's race, the Immortagons, are born from rage and embody the primal hatred and wrath. Their immortality is a form of spite against life and death. In all the realities in all the possibilities of this world, few have surpassed their rage, and in all the worlds, there is only one being capable of repressing, removing their rage.
The Embodiment of Innocence.
You know them as 999.]
"Huh…yeah that's about right…" I said carefully. "And…where is 999?" I asked carefully.
[Lost in the Deepest Darkness of the Void Realm. Once the first is found, more shall appear.]
I looked at that. "Uh…that's…that's scary…" I said. "I…need to tell the New Foundation this information…"
"Speaking of, aren't we supposed to be seeing them approach us sooner or later?"
"Yes, they said that they were dealing with some things first, but they should be here soon." I said honestly.
"That's neat."
I finished up breakfast and I got up and went to the living room. A large decorated pine tree with some lights, all of which were made in mass produced bulk by Scotch, and there was already lots of presents for everyone. We had to explain the concept of Christmas to the various villagers, most all being born here they never heard of holidays. That was a strange concept.
Still, they all really liked the idea and once they knew the basics, got to work.
The kitchen was rich with the smells of Christmas baking.
Perhaps the most fun part, the town was covered in snow.
I did give this a change to test out cold resistances, and, yeah, it seems like my body naturally adapts in temperature to resist the cold. Does make me wonder what the cold of space would do to me? Would I burst out into plasma and such? Actually, that sounds kinda cool.
"Heh…looks like even in this extremely dangerous place, even it enjoy's the holidays…" I said with a smile. "Hmm…actually, I wonder…" I hummed, pulling out my Taboo book. "Is there a Christmas Dungeon that spawn's around this time?" I inquired as I opened the book, wondering if it would be a simple 'enjoy the monster's decorating a dungeon' thing that I could take Delilah, Three and Daisy to.
[Yes, many, but on Armageddon they are less fun and more frightful.]
Yeah, that tracks… Hmm… wonder what else I can use this book for? Can I ask it any question? Can it actually answer any question?
"Hmm…what questions can you not answer?" I asked the book, might as well ask a simple question that could encompass all the answers to my burning inquiries.
[I can not tell you about The Family, The Game of Armageddon, The Pieces of Dark Gray's Game, nor the location of the Final Dungeon.]
"Yeah…yeah that checks out." I said honestly.
Still… that does leave a lot it can tell me about… Hmm…
"Hmm…where is…my brother, the Galaxy Phoenix?" I inquired, might as well learn where exactly they were.
[The Hazard Zone, Terra Aqua.]
"And how far away is that?" I inquired.
[92.3 Million Lightyears south east.]
"Feck…" I grumbled. "Why…did I obtain Greed and…you, from wanting to save people?"
[Greed is more than selfish desire, but it all stems from want. You want to save people, to help them and do the most you can to help them and make the right choice, with all your being. That want and desire to help, to save transformed into a Greed, a greed to aid and save others, to bring justice to this world. That is why you obtained me. Because for you, Hope, Salvation, Heroism, The Safety of Others is your Greed.]
"That's…both heartwarming…and sad…." I muttered, finding it great how much I care but…my own want to be a good person being technically a Sin is…a little rough. "Hmm…are you a sentient being or you the world's best encyclopedia?"
[While I am intelligent, and self aware, I am not what one can describe as Sentient. I lack a Heart and a Soul and I am unable to acquire either. Nor do I desire such. I am Taboo, the Dark Skill of Greed that grants my owners knowledge otherwise forbidden or hidden from them.]
Hmm…"How does one…grow an Elder Tree?" I asked, as the Hunter Shadow part of me was screaming to learn ancient knowledge to…bring my race back.
[The seed of an Elder Tree of the Hunter Shadows can only be found in the Final Dungeon.]
…Well shit…
Guess that plan is out, at least until this Final Dungeon is found or whatever… still, if the Elder Tree is out, maybe there's other things I can ask that are just as important… let's see…
"What…is the Final Dungeon? And if you can, why is it truly special?" I asked, cause while I have had a few instances of why it's special, like Izukie's soul being there…I never actually was told the whole story.
[The Final Dungeon is both a prison, and a guardian. A prison for creations worst, and a guardian for the most precious of treasures.]
"Well…I suppose that's fair." I admitted, cause out of everything that was the only place I know that was able to give away Souls. "...What is the Dark Skill Tree?" I asked, as I now have…four of the branches…
[The Dark Skill Trees are grown from sins and flourish in poisoned, tainted soil. They were created as the opposite of the Skill Trees made by The Family. For every action, good or bad, there is an equal, negative or positive reaction. If the Skill Trees of The Family are positive, the Dark Skill Trees are the Negative. Good and Evil need a balance, two sides of the same coin must reflect one another.]
"Hmm…" I frowned, understanding what they meant but it kind of blow's that me wanting to be a good person actually forced a 'bad outcome'. "Is there a way to…save the Breeders or other's like them?"
[Their coding is old, ancient and twisted. Fully removing it, while possible, would leave them like a hollow doll. Altering it, however, is possible. Turn them into something akin to the Lovers Class, but who they were before, can never be returned.]
I sighed, well…at least that's good to know. "How does one gain Code powers?" I asked, as I was curious if this was a genetic thing or if there was someway to gain it through either an item or something else.
[Through an item, The Mother's Blessing, found only in level 5 Dungeons, but soon that will change, and the item will only be found in level 20 dungeons. This item normally only works if the one who finds it has The Mother's good grace, but if not, then there are other means to make it work.]
"Right…" I muttered, and I doubt I had The Mother's good grace here.
Well, what else… There has to be something…
"I…suppose that's everything I can think of right now." I muttered. "Thank you." I said to the book as I closed it and put it away.
Well, guess at least I can enjoy the peace.
I sat and tried to relax myself on the couch…
Suddenly, a Warp portal opened, a slightly snow covered Saw fell out and landed on the couch next to me. "Hey."
"You could have at least got snow off of you first…" I grumbled. "But hi."
"Yeah, sorry, but being assaulted by an eight person snowball attack kind of gets snow everywhere." He said, brushing some off. "At least the kids are all in better spirits than when they first arrived. Scotch especially has nose dived into the whole Christmas thing."
"Christmas is a wondrous time for all." I chuckled. "And glad to hear the kids are doing good."
"Way more talkative and active. At least they warmed up to us, heh, I guess a regular warm bed and food will do that… helped us share stories too. Got them to accept me more knowing my past, and I knew more or less what to expect from theirs. Most all of them were born to or sold into slavery. Most from Puritan colonies. Still feels weird, being some parent figure, especially when I didn't have any. At least Kelly's been helping a lot. She considers them all her grandkids and spoils them like a grandma would."
"Yeah I'm not surprised." I chuckled. "Well glad that everything's working out with that."
"Surprisingly. Have to admit, still feels weird having a house, a home with Scotch, kids… I'm happy but, part of me feels like I don't deserve it, or that I'll wake up and it's all just been a dream."
"As someone that's been doing this nonsense for over ten years…I understand completely." I said honestly.
"Yeah… sometimes, I wake up at night and make sure Scotch is still there… The more time goes by, the more I realize your viewpoint on things."
"Welcome to the club," I said while using Creation to create a jacket. "Here's your honorary jacket."
He grabbed the jacket. It was a jean jacket with the words 'Things Get Better' written in red letters across the back.
Saw chuckled, actually putting it on. "Comfy. And, yeah, I'll say this once. You were right. Consider that an early Christmas gift."
"Hold on, I think my hearing was a bit off, what did you say?" I asked with a shit eating grin.
He smirked back. "You heard me, and I'm only gonna say it the one time." He laughed. "Still not used to seeing you with… that." He motioned to my extended stomach. "Weight hit your bladder yet?"
"Eh…kinda, but I'm dealing." I shrugged.
"Yikes. Gone stir crazy yet from having to stay home?"
"I am going stir crazy, and so far I've been trying to keep busy with Taboo and coming up with combination Quirks…" I sighed.
"Well, you have a fair amount of them but at the end of the day, the ones you have are kinda limited, as are their combinations aren't they?"
"Well…I have about fifty two quirks and…if a deck of cards with that number has more permutations than there were stars in my worlds universe…I'd say there's a lot."
"That's a lot. Hmm… Say, can you combine a Quirk and an Ability? Cause your Creation one already lets you make a lot of stuff, but if you can fuel it with your Celestial Transmutation one, then you can have a way more focused use for it and it might not even need your fat cells."
"Yeah…that is true…" I hummed with some thought. "Though I also need to remember…I never turned off Genetic Roulette…"
"Surprising. Well, whatever the case, try and use them both. Maybe it can help you make something you couldn't before?"
Hmm… True… If I use Taboo to see what the molecular structure of something is, then Celestial Transmutation to fuel it… I could make all kinds of stuff.
"Yeah…I can make a lotta shit now that I think about it…" I said carefully. "Oh yeah…I also have Overhaul…with Celestial Transmutation…oh no…"
"Just realized you might have some new super OP combos with your Phoenix crap?"
"A bit yes…then there's also…just so much I can think of…" I said slowly, it dawning on me just how fucked things are going to get.
"You overthink a lot at seemingly random moments."
"I blame both my overactive mind, and pregnancy currently for things." I stated.
"Pfft. Kids ain't even born yet and already causing you problems. That's probably a sign of things to come."
"I'm about to birth triplets and I'm already wondering if they'll be Nokori, Human, Synthetic, a Phoenix…or in some magically candy land, a Hunter Shadow."
"Or, possibly, and most likely, all of the above."
"And that's a tad scarier…" I sighed.
"You already have three hellspawns with 682, what's three more from your own crotch?"
Hope is at least… neutral… Krow… refuses to talk to or even acknowledge me… and Zen just went off into the wilds inside the planet room. He's doing well for himself at least… Did try and talk to him and, like Krow, just ignored me…
"Well…it would be nice if Zen and Krow would at least talk to me…instead of just ignoring me like they are trying to think they hate me or something…"
"Pretty sure they do. No offense but… their mother hates you, so they get it all from her."
I frowned and sank into the couch a little… yeah… each time, even if she calls me Master and we… do it, even if I try… the flash of green in her eyes is proof enough… all that hate… When we're not… together because of her programming needs, she's alone in her own room.
"And I need to find 999 to fix that but…they're so far into the Void it's not even funny…" I sighed bitterly.
"Yeah… That's what they called Null, right?" Saw asked. "At least in my world… that freaky mouse girl of David's could use Null. Saw her do some… well, it was weird what she could do." Saw said.
"You two can probably do that too." Saw and I both turned, seeing Rin as she walked in… holding our son, Yasu, the little one year old in an adorable elf costume.
"The fuck you mean?" Saw asked.
"Nokori are basically living Core Stones." Rin stated.
"And that is… what?"
"How is it your hubby is the best Crafter in town and you know next to nothing about these things?" Rin asked.
"I might zone out and just listen to him talk… cause his voice is calming to me…"
"Pfft. Adorable. Anyway, a Core Stone is a Legendary Item that when attached to a weapon allows that weapon to absorb bits of monsters, items, and even other weapons to gain their forms, stats, abilities and such. It's a powerful Item. Nokori are like a living version of that, Elemental and Magic gems if you gain Abilities that let you absorb them, or even items, you can add those to yourselves. The magical abilities or whatever."
"How? How does that even work?"
"It has to do with the Fusion process that created the majority of your species, it makes the soul something different and easily adaptable to things otherwise not applicable."
"And you know this how?"
"Knew a few Nokori back before I found Hero and such. When working on stuff you talk to people to help pass time."
"...I feel like I accidentally made one of those but I don't know when or where…" I frowned. "So, onto how I can magically gain Void Powers, cause I have Nature and Darkness naturally and I got Nothingness from Genetic Roulette…jeez, am I going to become the Avatar or something?"
"Pfft, it's not the same thing but if that helps you understand it sure. You basically absorb Elemental Gems, natural or artificial, and you'll instantly gain a Core Affinity, meaning you can use them without issue or drawbacks."
"... So how many do you think we got with all the Midas loot and Chaos Guild Base Raids?" Saw asked me and for once I felt like we had the same idea.
"Um…hmm…" I hummed, looking at my Assistant to see what Elemental Gem's we've gotten as I had Township thankfully correlate all of our resources together so it's all distributed reasonably.
I smirked as I saw there was a lot of various ones… oh yeah… this is gonna be fun.
First, I pulled out two Void Gems for Saw and I.
I absorbed it, since absorbing Elemental Gems is easy. I felt a slight head rush and nausea, dizzy but my Assistant gave me the notification.
[Notice! Void Gem Absorbed! Nokori Biology Detected! Core Null Magic Affinity Gained!]
Well that sucked a bit but it's manageable.
I looked over at Saw, who looked to have gone through the same and was shaking it off.
"Well, that sucked… but wow it actually worked… Hey, does the power of the affinity correlate to anything?" Saw asked.
"I guess it correlates to your base power so… I guess whatever counts as a sun in Void terms for Hero, and whatever for you…" Rin said.
"Right… that terrifies me for several reasons…"
"A Void Sun Phoenix…" I muttered. "Yeah that…sounds mildly horrifying…" I said carefully.
"I was thinking that if David learns this… well… yeah…"
I did… imagine that… Oh boy… that does in fact sound SUPER terrifying… and the others… oh boy… Saw told me what he knew about them and… that sounds like a powderkeg…
"Yeah…that's not a fun thought, so let's figure out what new powers we have." I said quickly.
"Thought you wanted to be the Avatar. Let's absorb more! And maybe have some nausea medicine on hand…"
"Yeah…so what other gem's do we have?" I wondered, looking up what other gems we have cause this was honestly going to be really fun.
Next up, We tried Electronium, basically electricity. Absorbing that didn't do anything but it did increase the Core Nature Affinity for me, it actually did give Saw a Core Nature Affinity though. After a bit, I realized it did do something. In my Race Skill Tree, there was now a new one that was actually Available to me. Cosmic Storm Phoenix.
I did activate it. My feathers changed to an aqua green color and I felt my Fire replaced by something else… the crackling sparks of raw energy…
Saw whistled. "Lucky bitch."
"Oh~, me likey." I purred happily.
I did decide to absorb a Darkness Gem. I already have the Affinity but I noticed there is no Dark Phoenix so…
Once I did and let the nausea wear off, it said my Darkness Affinity had increased, and now there was indeed a new branch of the Phoenix Race Tree. Dark Phoenix.
I activated that, and my feathers all changed to a black color, I grinned and… oh, I didn't see you. Void Phoenix… well, let's see.
When I activated it, my feathers all seemed to remain black, my wings turned purely skeletal. Weird… I can still move them and such just fine, I can even feel and touch with them but there wasn't any skin or flesh on them…
"Man, wish I had that. Guess you lucked out being fused with a magical creature. I got the Magic Core Affinities but nothing fancy like that." Saw said.
"Hmm…strange, did you look in your skill tree?" I inquired.
"Uh…" He said, checking. "No… nothing but… hmm… Well that's interesting…" He said. "For twenty Skill Points I can upgrade from Ram to Magic Ram and… that looks like it does branch off… a lot actually."
"That's cool." I said readily. "You probably have a lot of skill points."
"Yeah, well let's see." Saw said. Not much changed about his body… save that he now had some rather fancy horns that curved around the back of his head to the sides of his jaw. "Woah…" He said, tapping them. "That's new…"
"Fancy horns." I admitted.
"Well, alright now let's see… oh… wow…" He said.
He then tapped on something. His fur changed to some kind of… strange pulsating black and purple, his horns changed to look more akin to flesh as I saw small eyes pop out and open along it.
"Okay that's trippy!" He yelped.
"Void Ram, cool." I nodded.
"Chaos Ram actually." He said. "Okay this whole multiple eyes thing is really weird…" He then changed, now looking more like… His fur was now like normal wool, pulsating yellow and his horns turned a mix of yellow and black…
He looked like a Mareep…
"You look adorable as a Mareep." I chuckled.
"I what?" He asked, looking at his fur and over at his horns a bit. "Huh… well, that's an option next year for Halloween." He shrugged. "This is Nature, specifically Nature Lightning Ram." He said, lifting an arm as he has one of his Sawblades pop out… the blade looked like it was now made of pure energy. "Woah…"
"Awesome." I said with a smile.
"This is so cool…"
"Heh, well now you can have fun messing with your new Nokori abilities." Rin said. "Boredom averted."
"Yes, Boredom has been thankfully averted." I said with a smile. "And we haven't even used all the Gem's yet."
"Well, let's keep at it. This is gonna be fun." Saw said.