The first thing I did was cut my own finger. And by that I meant I bit down and ripped it right off to produce a lot of blood. A clean slice didn't produce the results that I wanted. It also helped that the holes in the Power Armor were just about large enough for me to fit my severed pointer finger through. It was painful and incredibly uncomfortable, but, considering I'd once been reduced to nothing more than brain and skull fragments, this really was nothing more than just another sensation. I pushed my blood through the hole, allowing it to meld and merge with the Astartes' blood.

It was a very... interesting experience.

The Astartes blood seemed to reject me for a moment, before I simply altered my own blood to be identical. And that's where things started getting outright weird. It was an expansionof sorts. I became immediately and very intimately aware of everything within the body of the Astartes, down to the cellular structures and DNA strands – all of which I was more than capable of altering, since he was now me. Or, at the very least, my ability seemed to think that he was me. I wasn't sure what it was like for the Astartes, though. But I figured that didn't matter. I turned my attention to the internal damages.

Oh.

By the Emperor, how was he still alive?

Almost every single organ in his body was ruptured or outright blown to bits. Fortunately, I wasn't unfamiliar with Astartes biology, seeing as I had the option to transform into one, alongside the full knowledge of their physiology, down to the genetic level, thanks to the System. It didn't take much effort on my part, then, especially since I didn't even need to spend much biomass, to fix the ruined state of the Astartes. I mended the cracks in the bones first, sealing them with the same shards of bone that'd torn through organs and muscles, and realigned the ones that'd quite literally broken off. The spine, for instance, was so heavily damaged that I wasn't sure how the Astartes was even able to attack the traitors the way he did. After fixing the bones, I turned my attention to the organs.

There were... no words to describe the physical impossibility that I was looking at. Once again, I had to wonder how in the Emperor's name the Astartes was still even alive. Just about every single internal organ was... destroyed or, at the very least, damaged beyond feasible functionality.

Rebuilding them was a simple enough task, however, and – soon enough – I'd completely rebuilt the Astartes from the inside as much as I possibly could. He'd live. I even made sure to completely seal his wounds and replace the blood he'd lost. It was a simple process, I noted, but not something I could perform quickly and easily – not in the same way I rebuilt myself near-automatically. More importantly, however, was the discovery that I could, in fact, circumnavigate my ability's limitation that kept me from altering others. It was tempting, actually, very tempting to try and optimize the internal workings of the Astartes, after seeing it. There were... defects, I noted, mutations that made him less-efficient than my own genetic blueprint. I wasn't sure why there was a difference at all, but there was one. My own version of the Astartes form was just... better than theirs – more stable, lacking all the tiny flaws the Carcharodon possessed.

Interesting.

After fixing everything that I could, I then ran into a problem that wasn't exactly small or simple. How was I supposed to separate myself from the Astartes? The first step had been to merge with the Astartes so that my ability wouldn't be able to discern who was who and just assumed that the two lumps of flesh were both me. Now, my problem was that I had to make me distinct from the Astartes once more. Of course, the first thing I tried was to simply alter my DNA, the very thing I did to myself when I merged with the Astartes. When I did that, however, I noted how it wasn't just me that was suddenly altered, but the Astartes as well, precisely because – as far as the System was concerned – we were one and the same.

As far as the System was concerned, the Astartes was little more than an extension of myself, much like a finger or a toe.

It was a problematic discovery, to say the least. So, I reverted the changes.

There was a much simpler way of separating, however, that did not require any DNA or molecular alteration – at least, not while the Astartes and I were still considered a single entity, during which any change I gave myself would affect him as well. However, on a technical level, I was the one who mirrored my genetics to match the Astartes, which was what allowed for the seamless [Self Shaping]. That also meant that the Astartes largely did not require any further alteration. With that in mind, the simplest way of separation was to literally just take a step back and cut off the part of me that was connected to the Astartes, which so happened to be a simple pointer finger.

I'd deal with any genetic alteration once I was separated.

And so, with the barest exertion of my will, I ripped my finger free and stumbled back, falling to the ground as the sudden sensation of being in one body once more overwhelmed me for a moment.

[Self Shaping] level up!

[Self Shaping] is now level 5!

Skill Evolution!

Congratulations! [Self Shaping] has evolved into [Flesh Shaping]!

All other skills can no longer attain Skill Evolution, unless you finish the required Skill Quests.

The knowledge that flooded my head did not ease things along, I thought, gritting my teeth. It wasn't bad news, however, as I now knew that my little attempt earlier was now somewhat streamlined, allowing me to easily alter the bodies of others without having to become one with them; though, what I was able to do with others was – for the moment – extremely limited and, at most, I could fix people, but no more than that – quite similar to what [Self Shaping] was limited to at level 1. I also now had plenty of creative freedom with my own body, without having to rely too much on preexisting genetic blueprints. But, that was something I'd test later.

I shook my head and pushed myself up just in time to see the Astartes looming over me. I hadn't noticed him moving, but that might've been due to a distraction. He was no longer bleeding from the holes on his armor – holes that I could easily fix with [Tech Shaping] – and that was a good indicator that my little experiment worked. He was alive and he would continue living as long as he didn't charge into a barrage of laser fire once again, turning his organs into mush. I breathed in and smiled. That had been a mentally-exhausting task, but the gains were well worth the effort. Now, I could heal anyone, provided I touched them and that I had enough [Biomass], which I still had plenty of, but it wasn't at its maximum capacity anymore. "Are you well?"

The Astartes did not answer verbally, sending me a curt nod, instead, before he simply walked off to join his brothers in the ongoing slaughter. Smiling to myself at the success of my work, I walked towards the mutilated bodies of the traitors and absorbed all of them. I also made sure to send the Hellgun to my [Inventory], after fixing it up with [Tech Shaping], because I've always wanted one of those and no one with the rank of private ever got one. It was like a Lasgun, essentially, but with far greater range and penetrative power, which was why – I figured – the Carcharodon's Power Armor had been riddled with smoking holes.

Out of sight and out of mind – for now, at least – I sat down on a sandbag and experimented with my Evolved Skill, as the System called it, [Flesh Shaping]. I moved my hand down, just a simple flick of the wrist, while simultaneously creating another hand from my [Biomass] reserves to move the opposite direction – an identical hand, attached to the same wrist, moving in a way that I was sure had defied quite a lot of physical and biological laws. And then, I reversed the movement of both hands, merging them into a singular appendage once more. I closed my eyes for my next test, during which I willed forth an eye to appear behind my head, allowing me to view the world behind me, though I didn't see much, since what lay behind me was just a wall and a bunch of discarded equipment.

The sounds of battle died away and heavy footsteps echoed, moving towards me, which meant the Astartes were finished with their work. The Mountain Fortress was taken, liberated from the hands of the traitor scum who'd held it in the name of their misbegotten gods. Tepok approached me first. I recognized him due to the pattern of the decorations he'd placed on his Power Armor, a bunch of teeth and bones and other things that marked him uniquely. Though, to be perfectly honest, I didn't think I'd be able to tell them apart if none of them wore any decorations. "Thank you for healing my brother, Anatinus. You have my gratitude."

"No need for that, Tepok." I raised a hand and waved it off. Thanks were not necessary, especially among servants of the God-Emperor. "I did what anyone in my place would've done."

Tepok stiffened for a moment, before nodding. "The fortress is taken. It will be a haven for you, I believe, until the war is over. It won't take long. The enemy is scattered, their leaders are missing, and any semblance of strategy they might've had died with their siege line."

I nodded, smiled, and extended my hand towards Tepok. This was the moment we parted ways. I'd be safe here, at least, far from the carnage. No doubt, unlike the Kuresh region, the rest of Praxtor was still drowning in war and battle and death. After all, this fortress was manned by traitorous, heretical guardsmen before we wrested it from their grasp. Even before that, the Colonel who greeted me in the Kuresh Hive City had also been a heretic. Therefore, it wouldn't be a stretch to assume that a large portion of the Planetary Guard had turned their back on the Emperor and embraced the dark powers. "Stay safe out there, Tepok. And may the God-Emperor be with you."

Tepok glanced down at my hand for a moment, before he extended his own and shook my hand. "I wish you the same, Anatinus. Worry not, my brothers and I will make sure that no enemy can ever reach you. We will scour the surrounding lands before we rejoin the others. You have my word."

I nodded. I would've preferred if he didn't do that and allowed the enemy to flood this place so I could experiment more with my newfound skill, but that would go against the God-Emperor's command, which neither of us were keen on doing. Still, I hoped they wouldn't kill everything. It'd be terribly boring if no enemy came for me. Were such thoughts heretical? I mean, the God-Emperor told me to keep myself safe and I was willing to admit that... I was doing a subpar job of that. I wasn't out to harm myself and neither was I actively seeking the heretics themselves, but I wasn't doing my best to hide from them, either.

Without another word, the Astartes vacated the fortress. I then spent the next half hour or so absorbing as much [Biomass] as I could. One by one, the corpses and limbs disappeared. It was only when my reserves reached their maximum capacity did I begin... experimenting again.

I gathered all the body parts, limbs, organs, and corpses into a single area, creating a rather sizable pile of death.

And then, for the first time in... my entire life, I was struck with the curious urge to create.

AN: I am very excited to hear what you all think of the Arc Finale (when you get to it at Chapter 25). As always, however, I hope you all enjoyed this one. See you all next friday! If you're interested in advanced chapters, consider being a Patron. MERRY CHRISTMAS!