[X] Maki decided to keep the sword for herself, claiming the finder's keepers to her teammates. It was kinda cool and while not as flashy as her usual explosions, it was loot from a tomb of a dead king and that was what counted.
…
...
The world has changed greatly since you last remember.
Towering buildings of glass and metal. Horseless carriages that are about to move on their own at great speeds. The sheer number of people that move through the city. The outfits. The people. The boxes with moving pictures.
Yes. The world is no longer the one that you once knew. At least you think that's the case - between spending god knows how long in complete isolation combined and your own faulty memories, you aren't quite sure. It's obvious that humanity has made immense advances in technology and the sciences.
Surprisingly, unless this particular city is completely populated by mages, it seems that magic has become more accessible to the masses. You take note that nearly everyone that you see has some kind of device on them that contains magic in one form or another. Though not particularly strong, it is still quite different from your era when magic was almost exclusively for use by those with strong talent. Most that you see don't have that talent.
You have many questions that you desire answers to but you will have to wait until you have a proper connection to the Watcher. Though you still have a connection to your benefactor, it is weak, just barely enough for the Watcher to be aware of your continued existence and little else. Once you have a stronger connection, you will be able to request your master an update on the changes that have occurred to humanity and the world should they see fit to grant such a request.
But in order to strengthen your connection to the Watcher, you will need to acquire a proper vessel.
It appears, much to your mild annoyance, that the one known as Maki of these Crystal Stars has chosen to take you for herself. As one who has apparently inherited the power of the Astral Knights, it would be difficult to mould the girl into a suitable vessel for your powers as her affinity to the Light will forcibly resist any major attempts to form a proper connection with her soul. Still, it is not impossible, just difficult.
All you can do is wait and slowly erode the light-imbued resistance her soul has towards Ebon Force.
…
...
The trip back home was uneventful, much to Maki's annoyance. As usual, nobody was home. Her parents were both working late, leaving her to take care of herself. There were leftovers in the fridge but she wasn't feeling particularly hungry. Today was kinda lame. While the first fifteen minutes of the Ever-Labyrinth was interesting, it quickly lost its novelty after the third monster encounter. Not only that, they failed to find any sign of the Black Galaxy Clan. Well, it wasn't a complete waste of a day.
Instead of finding the Black Galaxy clan's home-base, the Crystal Stars ended up finding some ancient tomb. And for once, it was Youko who stole the march on everyone by smashing her way into the place. Now that was interesting. Sadly, the only thing that was even remotely close to treasure was this sword that was left when she touched the body, causing it to crumble into dust.
Still, the sword was pretty neat. It felt right in her hands and had a sweet design. While the sword didn't seem to have any magic in it, Maki's guts told her that the sword was special somehow, even if she couldn't see how. At any rate, if she was going to be using this sword for her Crystal Star duties, she'd best get to learning how to wield a sword.
Grabbing the sword where she'd left it on the couch, Maki cleared a space in the living room for her to practice some swings and thrusts. She found some basic sword fighting lessons on the internet and began to practice in earnest.
"Swish! Swish! Stab!"
For about an hour, she'd swing the sword around, trying to imitate the lessons she watched, stopping to either move onto the next video or replay the lesson. While it wasn't proper practice, as well as the fact that what she was doing was reckless and dangerous, the magical girl didn't give a crap. She had a bitching sword stolen from the tomb of an ancient sorcerer king (probably) and she was damn well gonna use it.
By the end of the improvised practice session, Maki's arms were burning and her sweat-soaked clothes were clinging to her body. She probably should have changed into her gym uniform before starting all this swording stuff. Tired, she examined the sword in her hand more closely. It was made out of some kind of black metal and the gold pattern on it didn't look to be painted on.
Experimentally, she touched the edge of the sword, only to stare in surprise as blood appeared where she was touching.
"Huh, did I cut myself? Weird, why don't I - OW!" So sharp was the blade that Maki hadn't registered it cutting her finger until her body realised it had been cut. Dropping the sword in surprise, Maki didn't notice the blood that fell on the metal of the black sword disappear as she hurried to stop the bleeding and put a bandage on her finger.
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…
You had forgotten something very important as you took in the blood of your wielder. Blood is the currency of the soul and in cutting herself and allowing her life-essence to fall upon your metal, she has opened up a connection between you and her. How very fortunate. Whatever resistance the Light gave her was made meaningless as you tapped into the newly forged bond between the two of you and purge any chance of the Light tainting the connection.
With this, you have gain purchase upon Maki's soul, and in time, you'll be able to shape Maki into a proper vessel for your might. Whether she will be in control or not, only time will tell. For now, you shall begin the process of empowerment. Just as your benefactor granted you power, you too shall grant Maki Yamamoto power.
Because your connection is still new and weak, you are limited in what you can do but what you can gift the Crystal Star will be useful in the coming days. In exchange, because she has likewise made a connection with you, a small portion of her very being had become part of you, granting you abilities that no other person can give.
As the connection grows stronger, you will be able to grant Maki more power as will she grant you more strength.
This is just the first step in ensuring that an Ebon Lord walks the Earth once again.
…
Connection strength: 0 => 5%
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What power did you grant Maki Yamamoto of the Crystal Stars? (Choose 1)
[ ] Danger Sense - Grants a sixth sense bordering onto precognition which allows the user to perceive "the feeling of death", allowing them to avoid anything that may cause them injury or harm, regardless of intent or lack of, with the smallest amount of movement possible.
[ ] Presence Negation - Grants the ability to become invisible to both magical and normal senses while erasing one's presence, to the point where even physical contact will not be noticed. However, the user can still be sensed by technological means.
[ ] First Empowerment - Grants the user a fraction of the immense might that crippled the forces of Light and Darkness for eons. Effectively grants them peak human capabilities in both physical and mental aspects.
[ ] Unkillable - Makes it impossible for the user to be killed. The user will survive any and all fatal attacks. However, they can still be horrifically wounded. Fortunately, they can heal at an accelerated rate and regenerate limbs and lost organs, albeit at a slow rate.
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What power did you gain from your connection with Maki Yamamoto of the Crystal Stars? (Choose 1)
[ ] Pocket Form - You can shift between two forms, your true self and a much smaller form that can be carried around as a bracelet or a necklace. This power is obtained due to the nature of the Crystal Star's own weapons being stored in a compact and non-threatening form, usually that of a bracelet charm and other forms of jewellery.
[ ] Glamour - You can cover yourself in an illusion, appearing before others with a different design or colour. You can also effectively make it impossible for anyone to recognise what you are unless they already know what you are. You obtained this power due to the Crystal Stars' own glamour ability that protects their identities when transformed.
[ ] Explosive Charge - You can charge yourself with energy that you can unleash when you impact or slice through an object, causing a powerful explosion. The strength of the explosion is reliant on how long you charge energy for. You obtained this power due to Maki's own explosive based abilities that she received when she became a Crystal Star.
[ ] Animal Form - You can transform into a cute animal of your choice and back for some reason. However, you will be unable to access any power that you had as Ebon Lord while in this form. You can, however, speak and write, though only in an ancient language that is considered dead by the world. You can draw stuff though. You don't know why you can transform into a small cute animal.
