Mizu
Software Developer
- Location
- Victoria, Australia
Going off FGO it's genuine for modern magi too - the player had to wear a special enchanted outfit to survive when they were sent into ancient Babylonian times, when Gilgamesh was living.
A Different Kind of Whale (Worm/FGO-based Gamer, a FI ft. Nihilo)
- Thread starter Omida
- Start date
- Crossover Mature
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
Er, no. I meant more "is high mana concentrations an issue the average magi has to concern himself with?"
The people in Chaldeas are anything but that.
Mizu
Software Developer
- Location
- Victoria, Australia
Ah. In that case far as I'm aware the answer is no - mages in the modern day deal with modern day levels of ambient mana in the environment, barring certain locations that have a stronger amount, like that Spirit Tomb you mentioned; the latter being quite rare overall.
Chapter 14: 2-3 [White Mage]
New
- Location
- London
January 16th
Amy woke up to… someone's hands gently shaking her awake. Startling, she opened her eyes to the unfamiliar ceiling, her mind flooding with momentary confusion before the… events of the previous day's afternoon came back. The dinner. Carol being her charming self more than usual. Epopeia… Outis, she supposed, leaping to her indirect defence in response to the equally indirect attack (even if it was probably, probably, directed at Katsumi this time). Amy's past just sort of… exploding into the open once Outis and Katsumi left.
And…
And Vicky getting her out. Her strong, brave, incredible sister (not actually, a treacherously hopeful little voice in the back of her head supplied) grabbing Amy, grabbing a bag she had obviously prepared before the dinner (somehow, Vicky planned on saving Amy and decided this would the best time) and just flying them out of the city, to… an actual castle, which apparently belonged to Outis' team?
She was flown in a princess carry to a castle, to a peaceful, safe bed… she could feel her cheeks heat up at the memory. It was… almost perfect. It would have been perfect if Vicky… nonononono. Vicky was just (just) being an excellent sister.
Before she could spiral even further into her recollections and fantasies, she was shaken again. Amy's head snapped to the side and she paused at the pale, mostly featureless (if visibly female) projection waiting patiently by her bed. It didn't have discernible eyes, but somehow, it managed to project the feeling of utter exasperation with her. She flushed again, this time out of embarrassment and ducked her head down.
This was ridiculous, why was she feeling judged by a projection?
She got another poke for her trouble. Raising her head back up, the projection pointed at the corner of the room where, on the stand, a basin with steaming water, towels and some soap were waiting. Then, it bowed its head and clasped hands, as if apologising.
Okay, so whomever popped the castle in this patch of the woods went a little too hard on authentic mediaeval feeling.
[I'll let Outis know to not go quite as hard by the vibe next time. Or try to convince Lady Elizabeth to focus on amenities beyond what is necessary for her singing career.]
What?
[Good morning, Miss Amelia. My designation is Da'at.]
What?
There was a vaguely feminine voice in her head. Did she go insane? Get so lost in gay thoughts they manifested as a split personality? What wa–
The projection poked her again, snapping her back to focus. She narrowed her eyes. Were the projection and the voice connected? The same person?
[Thank you, Bernadett.] The projection bowed at nothing in particular. Probably not the same person. Unless they were either insane or really committed to the bit. [I am, unfortunately, incapable of being physically present. I am connected to Outis, however, and their power and thus am able to conditionally establish communication channels with other people through them.]
Oh.
Amy winced as she stood up and got around to getting some washing done. Some sort of Trump/Thinker with some serious power drawbacks, then.
"Why only now?" She asked, hoping the information would help take her mind off of… things.
[The way my and Outis abilities interact, there needs to be a sufficient degree of familiarity and trust for a parahuman to be able to be added to my network. You passed the threshold yesterday. Given the events, I decided to wait with the information overload.]
That was thoughtful of… her? Still, Amy could only imagine the utter hell of isolation Da'at's power was forcing upon her.
[It's nothing I am incapable of dealing with, Miss Amelia.] Did she… [I am quite good at reading people and predicting their thought patterns.]
Fucking Thinkers.
"You said I'm now part of your network but I didn't notice anything different." Not even with her power, which honestly contributed to her earlier freakout over hearing Da'at.
[As I said, I didn't wish to overwhelm you immediately.]
[A moment, if you will.]
Suddenly, just as she was aware of every littlest detail of her body and its condition, Amy was aware of four more people. Not to the same extent, but she knew they were there, knew their names and knew their general status.
[Apologies. Outis expects certain… flair, from these things.]
<Outis Karas (Ruler), HP: 100%>
<Elizabeth Bathory (Lancer), HP: 99%, Charmed>
<James M. Adler (Archer), HP: 100%>
<Florence Nightingale (Berserker), HP: 100%>
<Amelia Dallon (Caster), HP: 100%>
[Before you worry too much, Miss Elizabeth is simply.., extremely amorous with fairer sex.]
[And enthusiastic.]
Amy choked as the implications hit her like a speeding truck. Was… was that why Bathory hadn't deemed fit to greet them?
[Parian is, perhaps, even more hopeless than Miss Elizabeth.]
[Yes, Miss Bernadett, perhaps even more than Miss Amelia.]
"I… I am missing something here." Amy croaked, determined not to turn around and face the projection… which Da'at kept referring to in quite personal terms.
[While Miss Bernadett is, indeed, part of the castle, she and the rest of the staff are faithfully based on the people Miss Elizabeth knew previously. It is simply the current limitations of the castle that prevent them from being more… direct, most of the time.]
[Since they are part of the system my network connects, I have the unique ability to understand them and relay their words.]
Trump, Thinker and Shaker in one package, and fairly potent at that. Outis got hell of a mission control for an ally. And apparently whatever the hell equivalent of a cluster trigger her version of powers had.
That probably meant Da'at also wasn't a parahuman, didn't it?
"You're not a…"
[...parahuman, no.] The voice agreed languidly. [Your power was most eager to exchange information on our respective systems, however it lacks the ability to communicate with you.]
[I can infer some things from the data I acquired which may prove helpful to you.]
[For now, however, if you would be so kind, breakfast awaits.]
[Miss Nightingale also expressed interest in… making certain you are up to snuff when it comes to medical knowledge and experience.]
[We've managed to negotiate her down from much more for now, but she is dedicated.]
With a codename like that, that was probably their actual healer cape they brought over, Amy reasoned. Hopefully less lusty with her patients than the name would imply. Amy didn't need to stumble on anything like that anymore than she already had.
"Ummm… where's Victoria?"
[Miss Dallon is currently in the courtyard with Miss Kuze getting some exercise. She already had breakfast.]
Typical Vicky, Amy sighed, early bird and full of energy from start to finish.
Soon enough, she was back in the great hall, where Bathory was actually present, the inhuman cape skillfully lounging lazily on the ostentatious throne behind the main table, languidly devouring her breakfast piece by piece. Her tail flopped over the armrest and onto the floor to her left. On her right side, a… frankly disturbingly indistinct, pale guy was listening to her chattering about something or other. On the guy's other side, an older gentleman, European, clearly in excellent health and fitness despite advanced age, dividing his attention between his meal and a smartphone. On her left-hand side, a dark-skinned girl, a bit older than Amy by the looks of it, sat over her own breakfast.
[Caster: Parian]
Amy froze as she noticed a nametag hovering above the unmasked cape. Just casually unmasked. This was… she swallowed as she approached the table, taking slow, deep breaths to keep calm.
[For whatever it is worth, this feature is completely automatic. I have no control over it.]
Still!
[It is, however, disabled simply by being sufficiently far away from Outis.]
Oh, thank god. Amy really didn't need to have to worry about this kind of shit any more than what her power already had her dealing with. She tugged at her gloves…
Wait, she said it's based on proximity to Outis. Which means…
Oh, oh that was a shitshow waiting to happen. At least Amy's power didn't put a name and a face to the full biological information she got, and it was contact based. This was just…
"Panacea, good morning~!" Bathory greeted her with a wide grin and a wave of hand. "I trust you had a good sleep?"
"M-morning." Parian mumbled from her plate, head down and a bit shaky. Weird.
"Good morning, Bathory. As good as I could hope, given the situation." Amy sighed even as she wracked her head on how to address Parian. "And morning to you." Really brave of you, Amy. Just rip that band-aid off and get this over with. "Where's Outis? I was told she was still at breakfast."
Bathory blinked, tilting her head at the question as if Amy was a weirdo for asking. Parian seemed to ignore things completely, lost to her fidgety focus on her plate. The old man ignored her as well, content to simply raise his phone higher.
"Still getting used to the datastream, Amy?" The probably-Stranger asked mildly, an ink black eyebrow arching over an eye that could've come out of a medical diagram for how perfectly average it was. The only remotely notable thing was the iris, which was a grey you could almost mistake for pale blue.
Wait a moment…
Amy narrowed her eyes, inspecting the man closer. Different build from Outis, true, but the exact same eye colour and the general… lack of literally any ethnicity. Outis' power was a colour-coded set of Changer states. And she said she had a way to go around without being recognised as herself, which to think about it, being colour-coded really would prevent.
Motherfu–
snap
[In her defence, the system was never really supposed to ID you. Even the party status is something of a hack job. The others also didn't really need it to know you.]
[I have merely made sure to not refer to you in a gendered way when speaking with her earlier.]
[Since you are such a reaction whore.]
"Reaction gigolo right now, thank you." That bastard said with a mock offended recoil of his head and hand to his chest, looking up at the ceiling. Then his eyes were back on her, giving her a cheeky wink, "The name is still Outis Karas, don't worry. Nobody is versatile like that."
The old man, Adler, snorted at that before putting the phone away. Weird. Some sort of inside joke?
"Also, you'll be happy to know I swapped right in front of your sister when she was in the middle of telling Elizabeth she's straight, and James got it on camera." Outis added with an all-too-pleased smile, propping that smug face on a loose fist, "She then insisted that 'sisters should share the experience'."
Amy was thankful she already sat down but didn't start eating just yet because the images that conjured in her mind… She grabbed the glass of water and downed it immediately.
"Nice shade of red." Bathory commented idly, wrapping a strand of hair around her finger. "Very nice." And Bathory really wasn't helping. Weren't idols supposed to be some sort of pure like fresh snow shit or something?
[You already have one toy, Miss Elizabeth.]
["One, yes. But what about a second one? Just for a start."]
She had been abducted by some European sex cult, hadn't she?
["Greedy girl."] Amy could feel the mix of amusement, indulgence and pride there, although she didn't exactly have time to ponder that as Outis switched back to speaking aloud, "Huh, so like Eric and Crystal? I don't envy you, Vicky is straighter than Wukong's staff. And I somehow doubt you're as cavalier as me about swapping sex."
"I'm… I am not! That's to say–! Wait, Eric and Crystal are what?!" Amy croaked out, dread mixing with mortification, mixing with pang of jealousy. Her brain latched onto her (Vicky's) cousins' thing just to avoid… the minefield.
"Learning all sorts of things about the New Wave that no one would believe me about anyway." Parian muttered before gasping and squirming quietly.
"Miss Elizabeth, must you?" James chided Bathory with a perfect 'disappointed parent' tone. "You promised to leave that sort of thing away from the meal time."
"It is concentration training?" Bathory offered, bravely meeting Adler's disappointed, deadpan stare despite a faint redness of her cheeks. Eventually, however, the inhuman puffed her cheeks and pouted. "Okay, okay, fiiiiine. Ruin our fun, will you?" She whined as her tail stilled.
"I know it's been a while since you could really enjoy yourself, and I don't personally mind, but it's been three days now and we do have guests present." Outis sighed, patting the draconic girl on the shoulder before turning back to her. "Anyways, I think that's enough teasing for now, here. Catch." He said as he chucked her something off-white and the size of a fist. "See what your power makes of it, should clear your head something sweet."
She caught it, barely, in her hands, and managed to avoid dropping it on her plate. It was a… tooth? A fang? What the–
She looked up, only to see the projection called Bernadett looking down Outis, all but radiating disapproval.
"...Sorry for throwing things across the table, Bernadett." He reluctantly apologised.
The projection gave a sighing motion and shook its head before making its way to properly stand behind Bathory. Amy shook her head, swallowed and… actually, this was from Outis and he had said it would clear her head. She slid the massive tooth to the side of the table where there was no cutlery.
She was not doing this on an empty stomach.
His disappointed 'aw' was all the confirmation she needed.
"Outis, Outis what in the actual fuck?!" Amy whispered hoarsely once she finished getting over… everything about the massive fang, easily the size of her palm. It was… it was definitely from an unnatural creature. She didn't quite get a full picture of what, but her power inferred plenty from just it. Massive, reptilian predator of some kind. There were marks of the creature being able to breathe fire. There was also some sort of dormant transformative component to the fang. It was like looking at some of Blasto's creations, a thing that paid only vague attention to the established laws of biology. It all made her head dizzy.
"Okay, now trust me on this, scan Elizabeth. It'll make sense." Outis, she was finding out, was a fucking menace when not trying to moderate herself- himself- arg. When the bastard wasn't making a point of being socially acceptable. It almost reminded her… of…
Fuck, he acted like a Tinker finally able to show off all his cool toys. He had a projection-staffed secret lair in the goddamn woods and what may as well be an assistant AI, most Tinkers wished they had a third of that.
Amy glanced over at Bathory drumming her odd fingers against the table. The inhuman raised her tail as if to deliberately show that she was no longer molesting Parian with it, and used it to wave at her.
"Don't worry, darling, I don't bite." The pinkette grinned, showing off some excellent fangs of her own. "Not without invitation~." The projection behind her made another sighing motion and put its hands on Bathory's shoulders. "Et tu?" The teen whined, sticking her tongue out. Very mature response for someone wanting to take showbiz by storm. "Anyway, consent is important for these things. Besides, the Head Nurse would do her best to see how hard she can cave my head in without it crippling me if I took away her toy." The possibly insane girl pointed at the other side of the hall, where a woman was standing by the door, arms folded under her bust. Even from all the way on the other side of the room, Amy could feel the woman's silent, judging gaze.
[Berserker: Florence Nightingale]
And that was definitely not helping Amy's nerves. It did, however, help trust Bathory's claims that she wouldn't do anything untoward.
"Hand, please." Amy sighed as she reached her own over Outis. It would probably be fine. Now that she knew there were powers that weren't caused by corona pollentia she was probably over the worst of it. Disregard the source and the worst would be over.
…
……
………
"Why does my power insist you're a woman in your fifties with the hormonal balance of someone after multiple pregnancies? Despite also being biologically eighteen." Not impossible, no, but it was pretty much the tamest thing about Bathory.
Her… mutations? Extra body parts? Inhuman bits?
Her power insisted that while she wasn't born with them, merely a genetic echo of them, they were also completely, perfectly natural to her. Most of the remaining deviations were the result of the presence of aforementioned bits… which, now that she was looking, bore a striking similarity to the markers on the fang.
So wherever Bathory was from, bestiality produced a viable offspring. Incredible.
…
With the information from Bathory and from the fang, she felt she could probably recreate at the very least the lizard which sourced the fang. She would need a fair amount of biomass and…
…and she would have to make a brain… from scratch. She cou-
No. Not going there. Absolutely not.
"Something the matter, Miss?" A strong, even voice with an undercurrent of steel shook her out of her analysis. That, and the gloved hand which grabbed her by the wrist and pulled away from Bathory's. Looking up, Amy met Nightingale's intensely focused, yet unreadable gaze. She swallowed hard, feeling the dryness of her throat. This close up, the woman's striking features and curves were… really pronounced.
"I… No. Just, a bit lost in trying to make heads and tails of what my power tells me I'm seeing, biologically. Thank you for pulling me out of my thoughts, miss."
Nightingale narrowed her eyes slightly, clearly not buying her answer, not fully. She studied Amy's face for a moment longer (and she could feel her face heat up under that scrutiny) before the woman nodded and stepped back, releasing Amy's hand from her grasp. Then, she gave Amy a small, crooked smile (it was still a very pretty smile).
"As Miss Elizabeth's previous health professional, alongside several other unique patients, I can attest how frustrating trying to establish a baseline for individuals veering away from the norm can be. And that's without a power which would allow me to instantly and intimately know their biology."
"I wasn't that bad, surely?" Bathory complained quietly from her seat, stilling slightly when Nightingale turned to her.
"Mostly because, despite your build, you were surprisingly resilient. And despite the amount of ruckus you caused, you managed to avoid anything serious. Which couldn't be said about many, many others." The woman stated with a deep, frustrated sigh. "Anyway, I've initially come to see if Miss Amelia would be amenable to a medical talk in a more private setting. Commander and Da'at have informed me there's a medical certification for superpowered individuals and I'd like to establish all the facts. I've also finished both my research and the list of likely equipment and supplies the infirmary will be needing for. Depending on the level of Miss Amelia's involvement, it may be slightly modified, but I would still recommend against leaning too heavily on easy availability to her powers."
"I… if you don't need me, I don't mind?"
"Go ahead, go ahead, I wanted you two to get to know each other anyways." Outis chuckled, shaking his head. Then, with an odd sleight of hand, he pulled a vivid violet card from between his fingers. It had a stereotypical wizard emblazoned on it, book in one hand, staff in the other, and a beard down to his belt. "Just hang onto this for now. Da'at will tell you more when she thinks you're ready. Keep the fang, too, it should help."
Amy accepted the card with some confusion before grabbing the massive fang in both hands and followed behind Nightingale out of the hall.
Soon enough, they were seated in an infirmary. Or at least, something approaching one. The beds were clearly just moved from guest rooms, but at least they were crispy clean. There were some bandages and a few rather antiquated tools which Amy supposed could be used for urgent surgery, but their precise purpose eluded her.
"Apologies. Unfortunately, I've been out of contact with… Oratorio during its set-up phase and while Da'at is an excellent archive of information, they are… focused on their own purpose and Commander isn't exactly a trained professional. Fortunately, Professor James and him have the list of necessities so we should be actually properly stocked before long." Nightingale began, giving a shallow, apologetic bow.
Then, without preamble, she grabbed Amy's hand.
"Wha–" She could feel her face heat again. Both of them wore gloves so there wasn't anything bad about the physical contact, but Nightingale just… did it, without warning. The older woman kept kneading Amy's hand, pressuring her muscles and massaging bones as her fingers moved across her palm and up to her wrist, her red eyes alternating between Amy's face and observing her hand's movements. Feeling lost, Amy just let it happen for a moment, wetting her lips before gathering her nerves.
"Errrr… excuse me, miss Nightingale?" The woman's gaze immediately snapped up to focus on Amy's face and she felt faltering for a moment by the intensity in those eyes. Amy took a deep breath before continuing. "Could I know what… what are you doing?"
"Hmmm. Apologies." Nightingale grunted softly as she let Amy's hand go and straightened back. "I've refrained from commenting in the hall, but aside from utilising your power to analyse the fang Commander has given you for what I can summarise to be supernatural analysis, you've been keeping your hands covered. Since I've not noticed scarring indicative of injury, I've wondered whether the damage was wholly internal or whether it was something related to your parahuman ability."
And she couldn't just ask?
"Oftentimes, people refuse to admit there may be something wrong with them. Whether due to a lack of medical knowledge leading to incorrect self-analysis or an issue of pride. I've learned it is for the best to cut to the chase." Oh, alright. Amy couldn't exactly argue with the logic, she had seen and heard enough of similar cases to get where Nightingale was coming from. "Which means there's an issue with your power."
Ducking her head, Amy's first instinct was to deny. She had perfect control, no accidents, things were as they had been ever since she had triggered. But… She lifted her gaze to meet Nightingale's calm, emotionless eyes. No, not emotionless. Focused (it was something of a trend with the woman, Amy realised even after such a short acquaintance; Nightingale was a woman of focus and commitment, of absolute certainty in her purpose in life, utterly dedicated to it) and judging. Not bad judging. More like… she was on the lookout for potential issues, yes like Carol always was, but only so she could spring to help without wasting even a second of time. It was intimidating, that certainty.
A little bit inspiring too.
"I… I want to preface this by saying my power has an off switch. I can choose when to use it and when not."
"But it's not automatic. Wholly intent based." Nightingale stated rather than asked.
"Y-yes. I never had any problems with accidentally doing something I didn't mean to, but… lately, it has been getting harder. It always came without issues, but lately it's almost… eager. Too eager."
"You're afraid of losing control and doing something irreversible. Commendable." Nightingale finished for her, hooking her intertwined hands on her knee. "How long have you had those… issues? Anything that happened that was out of ordinary enough to force the change to how your power operates?"
"A couple of weeks… since around New Year's." Amy admitted, lowering her gaze again. She just couldn't stand maintaining eye contact with Nightingale. "I think around the time Outis was brought to me for healing? Definitely after our second session."
[Could you describe your power fully, Miss Amelia?]
"You have a diagnosis, Da'at?" Nightingale asked sharply. Almost demanded.
[A hypothesis.]
Swallowing, Amy gathered her thoughts.
"It has two facets. Almost three, but two of them are pretty much the same thing but at differing levels of activity, and are an offshoot of the main thing." Amy began as she looked up again. "It's a touch based absolute ability to manipulate biological matter. It comes with full awareness of the target's biology as well. It's limited by my own understanding of biology, with a single exception." Taking off her gloves, Amy flexed one of her hands, closing it into a fist and relaxing it. "While I cannot affect myself, I have, passively, perfect awareness of my own body. Normally, it's only a rough state, but I can choose more… in-depth knowledge."
"And how have you been using it so far?" Nightingale followed the explanation.
"Healing. Purely fixing the body. Started small, scrapes and bruises. Started studying anatomy and medicine to have a better grasp on what to do and how." And only healing. She was aware enough where 'perfect bio-manipulation' could go, if misused. "Gradually more and more difficult issues, until I hit my limit."
"Your limit. Not your power's." Nightingale narrowed her eyes, leaning forward.
"... I don't do brains." Amy eventually whispered. "I just do-"
"I understand." The older woman nodded warmly, startling Amy. Carol had much more… complicated reaction to that admission. "A brain is a delicate thing, easy to damage but hard to fix, and even harder to restore perfectly. I'd say impossible, but with supernatural means, the definition of what is impossible has obviously changed. It is hard to gain experience in brain surgery, especially in an ethical manner." She finished with a satisfied nod.
"Errrr… yes."
"Hmmm… I believe I understand the situation." Nightingale nodded. Not quite in satisfaction, but pleased that a solution was in view.
[QUERY.]
[Are you aware of the origin of parahuman powers, Miss Amelia?]
"They are controlled by an outgrowth which develops in the brain after the trigger. I'm… even with my power, I'm still not quite certain on the details, but I think Corona has something to do with transmission and control."
[Roughly accurate. From my own investigation, which was only possible thanks to contact with you, Miss Amelia, the parahuman powers are a possibly symbiotic phenomena.]
[Something out there reaches to a human brain and stimulates it to be able to receive its power and adapt to it.]
[In return the… entity granting the power receives data on its usage.]
[CONFIRMATION]
[For what purpose or why it elects to use intermediaries, I am unsure. I would say it wishes for second-hand perspective, but that is pure speculation.]
That was… it would explain why most people seemed to trigger in high stress situations. Brains were delicate, and in moments of crisis, the human body tended to pull out all stops to ensure survival.
"Your power is 'absolute biological manipulation." Nightingale picked up before Amy could process the, frankly, worldview shattering revelations any further. "Not, it should be noted, 'absolute biokinetic healing'. Given the primarily information gathering purpose of powers, I would say your recent troubles with your power's 'eagerness' stem from twofold origin. The first is that, as you said, without willing to pass your personal lines, you have hit the plateau of what your power can achieve in regards to healing. The second is that, naturally, healing is a very limited scope of what your power is actually capable of and your… benefactor was getting frustrated with the dearth of data flowing back to it."
"So that means when I used it on Outis…" Amy realised the issue immediately. It has been, frankly, staring her in the face the entire time, she just lacked a bit of context.
"It gained a new avenue of information. An avenue previously completely unknown to it and any other entities responsible for the powers of other parahumans." Nightingale agreed. "Now, the solution to your control issues is therefore simultaneously banally simple and quite complex." Amy tilted her head in confusion at the red-eyed woman's words. "You simply need to begin using your power for things other than healing." Then, she gave Amy a wry, bitter smile. "Of course, I'm certain you have a reason for why you have decided to limit it only to healing. That self imposed limitation will not be easy to overcome."
"I… I just don't want to hurt anyone. I could not-!" Amy replied, voicing her fears, festering since the day she grasped weather power really meant. The fears Carol's suspicions cultivated. Fears Bonesaw represented.
"I understand." Amy startled again when Nightingale put her hands around Amy;s, a warm, calm smile on her face. "Medicine has always been a double edged sword." She turned her head slightly. Amy followed, her gaze falling on the innocuous, violet card laying on the side of the table. "There's a way to satisfy your power while limiting the danger. But, as with other options, the choice is ultimately yours."
Amy looked back at Nightingale's face, calm, composed, certain. Her breath all but stilled in her breast, her hands not shaking only because of that firm, careful grasp the older woman had on them.
"Please…" She whispered fervently, desperately. "Tell me how."
[I refer you particularly to the process of creating homunculi.]
[Even if the experts prefer to call it coining or forging.]
Was this how Blasto felt like, all the time? Just had an idea and suddenly he knew what had to be done to bring genuine life to… life? How to play with the basic building blocks of biology to bring forth something new and fantastical?
[Partnerships, even amongst usual colleagues, tend to be beneficial.]
[Having someone who truly understands to double-check your thought process can offer insights you have not considered.]
[No two beings think exactly the same after all.]
The possibilities even just Amy's own power offered… She could do so much. So, so, so much… She would need a deeper understanding of that whole circuit deal. It was heavily involved in some of these concepts. Even if violet wasn't really her thing.
[I am not sure that's a wise course of action.]
[Seems a bit sudden, don't you think?]
[Oh dear.]
Suddenly, her body burned, like someone was shoving hot pokers into her nerves. Amy choked back a cry, even as her heart stopped (not really) as she could feel Caster's circuits sear themselves into her, no longer a superimposed copy but an integral part of her.
Panicking, she tried to shut her power off.
Pleasepleasepleaseplease…
Why wasn't it responding?! Why was she still changing?!
[I told you it was a bad idea to do it so fast.]
[Give her a few days, okay? She ought to be in good hands.]
[You need time as well. Rushing things caused this, so perhaps it's better to wait and analyse further?]
[I am flattered.]
[New Quest: Sorcerer's Apprentice - Find a magecraft tutor for Amelia Dallon]
[Rewards: Panacea Bond levels, ???, ???]
"Ugh, the Empress would work but she's the exact opposite of what Amy needs after dealing with Brandish." Outis grumbled to himself, before continuing on his way to the courtyard. He had promised Katsumi some training. Besides, he had a card to give her too.
Sorry, Lakshmibai, but they just had better stratcom here and your luck was too atrocious to risk in their situation. Fucking Thinkers. Fucking Endbringers.
As Always, big thanks to Xanah, Unknown B, Penguino, JoJoDio, Shirou0Emiya, Bowchikabowow. MetaWorld42, nununu, Just Some Guy With A Mustage, Ermast, Helios, Joshua Littlesun, [TEE],PlatiNom, Jose Matos, Soulsmsher, Altaibaatar, Ian DeHart, Brigand, Starfall 20 and ลิงติดเกม จากป่าดิบชื้นแถบอเมริกาใต้, saganatsu, Gabriel, Devan Duncan, Dodge the Lava and Aravir, who decided my writing is actually worth paying for.
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Amy woke up to… someone's hands gently shaking her awake. Startling, she opened her eyes to the unfamiliar ceiling, her mind flooding with momentary confusion before the… events of the previous day's afternoon came back. The dinner. Carol being her charming self more than usual. Epopeia… Outis, she supposed, leaping to her indirect defence in response to the equally indirect attack (even if it was probably, probably, directed at Katsumi this time). Amy's past just sort of… exploding into the open once Outis and Katsumi left.
And…
And Vicky getting her out. Her strong, brave, incredible sister (not actually, a treacherously hopeful little voice in the back of her head supplied) grabbing Amy, grabbing a bag she had obviously prepared before the dinner (somehow, Vicky planned on saving Amy and decided this would the best time) and just flying them out of the city, to… an actual castle, which apparently belonged to Outis' team?
She was flown in a princess carry to a castle, to a peaceful, safe bed… she could feel her cheeks heat up at the memory. It was… almost perfect. It would have been perfect if Vicky… nonononono. Vicky was just (just) being an excellent sister.
Before she could spiral even further into her recollections and fantasies, she was shaken again. Amy's head snapped to the side and she paused at the pale, mostly featureless (if visibly female) projection waiting patiently by her bed. It didn't have discernible eyes, but somehow, it managed to project the feeling of utter exasperation with her. She flushed again, this time out of embarrassment and ducked her head down.
This was ridiculous, why was she feeling judged by a projection?
She got another poke for her trouble. Raising her head back up, the projection pointed at the corner of the room where, on the stand, a basin with steaming water, towels and some soap were waiting. Then, it bowed its head and clasped hands, as if apologising.
Okay, so whomever popped the castle in this patch of the woods went a little too hard on authentic mediaeval feeling.
[I'll let Outis know to not go quite as hard by the vibe next time. Or try to convince Lady Elizabeth to focus on amenities beyond what is necessary for her singing career.]
What?
[Good morning, Miss Amelia. My designation is Da'at.]
What?
There was a vaguely feminine voice in her head. Did she go insane? Get so lost in gay thoughts they manifested as a split personality? What wa–
The projection poked her again, snapping her back to focus. She narrowed her eyes. Were the projection and the voice connected? The same person?
[Thank you, Bernadett.] The projection bowed at nothing in particular. Probably not the same person. Unless they were either insane or really committed to the bit. [I am, unfortunately, incapable of being physically present. I am connected to Outis, however, and their power and thus am able to conditionally establish communication channels with other people through them.]
Oh.
Amy winced as she stood up and got around to getting some washing done. Some sort of Trump/Thinker with some serious power drawbacks, then.
"Why only now?" She asked, hoping the information would help take her mind off of… things.
[The way my and Outis abilities interact, there needs to be a sufficient degree of familiarity and trust for a parahuman to be able to be added to my network. You passed the threshold yesterday. Given the events, I decided to wait with the information overload.]
That was thoughtful of… her? Still, Amy could only imagine the utter hell of isolation Da'at's power was forcing upon her.
[It's nothing I am incapable of dealing with, Miss Amelia.] Did she… [I am quite good at reading people and predicting their thought patterns.]
Fucking Thinkers.
"You said I'm now part of your network but I didn't notice anything different." Not even with her power, which honestly contributed to her earlier freakout over hearing Da'at.
[As I said, I didn't wish to overwhelm you immediately.]
[A moment, if you will.]
[INITIATE NETWORK ADJUSTMENTS]
[PARABOLIC PANOPLY EXPANSION UNDERWAY]
[15%]
[42%]
[69%] [Nice]
[98%]
[PARABOLIC PANOPLY EXPANSION UNDERWAY]
[15%]
[42%]
[69%] [Nice]
[98%]
Suddenly, just as she was aware of every littlest detail of her body and its condition, Amy was aware of four more people. Not to the same extent, but she knew they were there, knew their names and knew their general status.
[Apologies. Outis expects certain… flair, from these things.]
<Outis Karas (Ruler), HP: 100%>
<Elizabeth Bathory (Lancer), HP: 99%, Charmed>
<James M. Adler (Archer), HP: 100%>
<Florence Nightingale (Berserker), HP: 100%>
<Amelia Dallon (Caster), HP: 100%>
[Before you worry too much, Miss Elizabeth is simply.., extremely amorous with fairer sex.]
[And enthusiastic.]
Amy choked as the implications hit her like a speeding truck. Was… was that why Bathory hadn't deemed fit to greet them?
[Parian is, perhaps, even more hopeless than Miss Elizabeth.]
[Yes, Miss Bernadett, perhaps even more than Miss Amelia.]
"I… I am missing something here." Amy croaked, determined not to turn around and face the projection… which Da'at kept referring to in quite personal terms.
[While Miss Bernadett is, indeed, part of the castle, she and the rest of the staff are faithfully based on the people Miss Elizabeth knew previously. It is simply the current limitations of the castle that prevent them from being more… direct, most of the time.]
[Since they are part of the system my network connects, I have the unique ability to understand them and relay their words.]
Trump, Thinker and Shaker in one package, and fairly potent at that. Outis got hell of a mission control for an ally. And apparently whatever the hell equivalent of a cluster trigger her version of powers had.
That probably meant Da'at also wasn't a parahuman, didn't it?
"You're not a…"
[...parahuman, no.] The voice agreed languidly. [Your power was most eager to exchange information on our respective systems, however it lacks the ability to communicate with you.]
[I can infer some things from the data I acquired which may prove helpful to you.]
[For now, however, if you would be so kind, breakfast awaits.]
[Miss Nightingale also expressed interest in… making certain you are up to snuff when it comes to medical knowledge and experience.]
[We've managed to negotiate her down from much more for now, but she is dedicated.]
With a codename like that, that was probably their actual healer cape they brought over, Amy reasoned. Hopefully less lusty with her patients than the name would imply. Amy didn't need to stumble on anything like that anymore than she already had.
"Ummm… where's Victoria?"
[Miss Dallon is currently in the courtyard with Miss Kuze getting some exercise. She already had breakfast.]
Typical Vicky, Amy sighed, early bird and full of energy from start to finish.
Soon enough, she was back in the great hall, where Bathory was actually present, the inhuman cape skillfully lounging lazily on the ostentatious throne behind the main table, languidly devouring her breakfast piece by piece. Her tail flopped over the armrest and onto the floor to her left. On her right side, a… frankly disturbingly indistinct, pale guy was listening to her chattering about something or other. On the guy's other side, an older gentleman, European, clearly in excellent health and fitness despite advanced age, dividing his attention between his meal and a smartphone. On her left-hand side, a dark-skinned girl, a bit older than Amy by the looks of it, sat over her own breakfast.
[Caster: Parian]
Amy froze as she noticed a nametag hovering above the unmasked cape. Just casually unmasked. This was… she swallowed as she approached the table, taking slow, deep breaths to keep calm.
[For whatever it is worth, this feature is completely automatic. I have no control over it.]
Still!
[It is, however, disabled simply by being sufficiently far away from Outis.]
Oh, thank god. Amy really didn't need to have to worry about this kind of shit any more than what her power already had her dealing with. She tugged at her gloves…
Wait, she said it's based on proximity to Outis. Which means…
Oh, oh that was a shitshow waiting to happen. At least Amy's power didn't put a name and a face to the full biological information she got, and it was contact based. This was just…
"Panacea, good morning~!" Bathory greeted her with a wide grin and a wave of hand. "I trust you had a good sleep?"
"M-morning." Parian mumbled from her plate, head down and a bit shaky. Weird.
"Good morning, Bathory. As good as I could hope, given the situation." Amy sighed even as she wracked her head on how to address Parian. "And morning to you." Really brave of you, Amy. Just rip that band-aid off and get this over with. "Where's Outis? I was told she was still at breakfast."
Bathory blinked, tilting her head at the question as if Amy was a weirdo for asking. Parian seemed to ignore things completely, lost to her fidgety focus on her plate. The old man ignored her as well, content to simply raise his phone higher.
"Still getting used to the datastream, Amy?" The probably-Stranger asked mildly, an ink black eyebrow arching over an eye that could've come out of a medical diagram for how perfectly average it was. The only remotely notable thing was the iris, which was a grey you could almost mistake for pale blue.
Wait a moment…
Amy narrowed her eyes, inspecting the man closer. Different build from Outis, true, but the exact same eye colour and the general… lack of literally any ethnicity. Outis' power was a colour-coded set of Changer states. And she said she had a way to go around without being recognised as herself, which to think about it, being colour-coded really would prevent.
Motherfu–
snap
[In her defence, the system was never really supposed to ID you. Even the party status is something of a hack job. The others also didn't really need it to know you.]
[I have merely made sure to not refer to you in a gendered way when speaking with her earlier.]
[Since you are such a reaction whore.]
"Reaction gigolo right now, thank you." That bastard said with a mock offended recoil of his head and hand to his chest, looking up at the ceiling. Then his eyes were back on her, giving her a cheeky wink, "The name is still Outis Karas, don't worry. Nobody is versatile like that."
The old man, Adler, snorted at that before putting the phone away. Weird. Some sort of inside joke?
"Also, you'll be happy to know I swapped right in front of your sister when she was in the middle of telling Elizabeth she's straight, and James got it on camera." Outis added with an all-too-pleased smile, propping that smug face on a loose fist, "She then insisted that 'sisters should share the experience'."
Amy was thankful she already sat down but didn't start eating just yet because the images that conjured in her mind… She grabbed the glass of water and downed it immediately.
"Nice shade of red." Bathory commented idly, wrapping a strand of hair around her finger. "Very nice." And Bathory really wasn't helping. Weren't idols supposed to be some sort of pure like fresh snow shit or something?
[You already have one toy, Miss Elizabeth.]
["One, yes. But what about a second one? Just for a start."]
She had been abducted by some European sex cult, hadn't she?
["Greedy girl."] Amy could feel the mix of amusement, indulgence and pride there, although she didn't exactly have time to ponder that as Outis switched back to speaking aloud, "Huh, so like Eric and Crystal? I don't envy you, Vicky is straighter than Wukong's staff. And I somehow doubt you're as cavalier as me about swapping sex."
"I'm… I am not! That's to say–! Wait, Eric and Crystal are what?!" Amy croaked out, dread mixing with mortification, mixing with pang of jealousy. Her brain latched onto her (Vicky's) cousins' thing just to avoid… the minefield.
"Learning all sorts of things about the New Wave that no one would believe me about anyway." Parian muttered before gasping and squirming quietly.
"Miss Elizabeth, must you?" James chided Bathory with a perfect 'disappointed parent' tone. "You promised to leave that sort of thing away from the meal time."
"It is concentration training?" Bathory offered, bravely meeting Adler's disappointed, deadpan stare despite a faint redness of her cheeks. Eventually, however, the inhuman puffed her cheeks and pouted. "Okay, okay, fiiiiine. Ruin our fun, will you?" She whined as her tail stilled.
"I know it's been a while since you could really enjoy yourself, and I don't personally mind, but it's been three days now and we do have guests present." Outis sighed, patting the draconic girl on the shoulder before turning back to her. "Anyways, I think that's enough teasing for now, here. Catch." He said as he chucked her something off-white and the size of a fist. "See what your power makes of it, should clear your head something sweet."
She caught it, barely, in her hands, and managed to avoid dropping it on her plate. It was a… tooth? A fang? What the–
She looked up, only to see the projection called Bernadett looking down Outis, all but radiating disapproval.
"...Sorry for throwing things across the table, Bernadett." He reluctantly apologised.
The projection gave a sighing motion and shook its head before making its way to properly stand behind Bathory. Amy shook her head, swallowed and… actually, this was from Outis and he had said it would clear her head. She slid the massive tooth to the side of the table where there was no cutlery.
She was not doing this on an empty stomach.
His disappointed 'aw' was all the confirmation she needed.
"Outis, Outis what in the actual fuck?!" Amy whispered hoarsely once she finished getting over… everything about the massive fang, easily the size of her palm. It was… it was definitely from an unnatural creature. She didn't quite get a full picture of what, but her power inferred plenty from just it. Massive, reptilian predator of some kind. There were marks of the creature being able to breathe fire. There was also some sort of dormant transformative component to the fang. It was like looking at some of Blasto's creations, a thing that paid only vague attention to the established laws of biology. It all made her head dizzy.
"Okay, now trust me on this, scan Elizabeth. It'll make sense." Outis, she was finding out, was a fucking menace when not trying to moderate herself- himself- arg. When the bastard wasn't making a point of being socially acceptable. It almost reminded her… of…
Fuck, he acted like a Tinker finally able to show off all his cool toys. He had a projection-staffed secret lair in the goddamn woods and what may as well be an assistant AI, most Tinkers wished they had a third of that.
Amy glanced over at Bathory drumming her odd fingers against the table. The inhuman raised her tail as if to deliberately show that she was no longer molesting Parian with it, and used it to wave at her.
"Don't worry, darling, I don't bite." The pinkette grinned, showing off some excellent fangs of her own. "Not without invitation~." The projection behind her made another sighing motion and put its hands on Bathory's shoulders. "Et tu?" The teen whined, sticking her tongue out. Very mature response for someone wanting to take showbiz by storm. "Anyway, consent is important for these things. Besides, the Head Nurse would do her best to see how hard she can cave my head in without it crippling me if I took away her toy." The possibly insane girl pointed at the other side of the hall, where a woman was standing by the door, arms folded under her bust. Even from all the way on the other side of the room, Amy could feel the woman's silent, judging gaze.
[Berserker: Florence Nightingale]
And that was definitely not helping Amy's nerves. It did, however, help trust Bathory's claims that she wouldn't do anything untoward.
"Hand, please." Amy sighed as she reached her own over Outis. It would probably be fine. Now that she knew there were powers that weren't caused by corona pollentia she was probably over the worst of it. Disregard the source and the worst would be over.
…
……
………
"Why does my power insist you're a woman in your fifties with the hormonal balance of someone after multiple pregnancies? Despite also being biologically eighteen." Not impossible, no, but it was pretty much the tamest thing about Bathory.
Her… mutations? Extra body parts? Inhuman bits?
Her power insisted that while she wasn't born with them, merely a genetic echo of them, they were also completely, perfectly natural to her. Most of the remaining deviations were the result of the presence of aforementioned bits… which, now that she was looking, bore a striking similarity to the markers on the fang.
So wherever Bathory was from, bestiality produced a viable offspring. Incredible.
…
With the information from Bathory and from the fang, she felt she could probably recreate at the very least the lizard which sourced the fang. She would need a fair amount of biomass and…
…and she would have to make a brain… from scratch. She cou-
No. Not going there. Absolutely not.
"Something the matter, Miss?" A strong, even voice with an undercurrent of steel shook her out of her analysis. That, and the gloved hand which grabbed her by the wrist and pulled away from Bathory's. Looking up, Amy met Nightingale's intensely focused, yet unreadable gaze. She swallowed hard, feeling the dryness of her throat. This close up, the woman's striking features and curves were… really pronounced.
"I… No. Just, a bit lost in trying to make heads and tails of what my power tells me I'm seeing, biologically. Thank you for pulling me out of my thoughts, miss."
Nightingale narrowed her eyes slightly, clearly not buying her answer, not fully. She studied Amy's face for a moment longer (and she could feel her face heat up under that scrutiny) before the woman nodded and stepped back, releasing Amy's hand from her grasp. Then, she gave Amy a small, crooked smile (it was still a very pretty smile).
"As Miss Elizabeth's previous health professional, alongside several other unique patients, I can attest how frustrating trying to establish a baseline for individuals veering away from the norm can be. And that's without a power which would allow me to instantly and intimately know their biology."
"I wasn't that bad, surely?" Bathory complained quietly from her seat, stilling slightly when Nightingale turned to her.
"Mostly because, despite your build, you were surprisingly resilient. And despite the amount of ruckus you caused, you managed to avoid anything serious. Which couldn't be said about many, many others." The woman stated with a deep, frustrated sigh. "Anyway, I've initially come to see if Miss Amelia would be amenable to a medical talk in a more private setting. Commander and Da'at have informed me there's a medical certification for superpowered individuals and I'd like to establish all the facts. I've also finished both my research and the list of likely equipment and supplies the infirmary will be needing for. Depending on the level of Miss Amelia's involvement, it may be slightly modified, but I would still recommend against leaning too heavily on easy availability to her powers."
"I… if you don't need me, I don't mind?"
"Go ahead, go ahead, I wanted you two to get to know each other anyways." Outis chuckled, shaking his head. Then, with an odd sleight of hand, he pulled a vivid violet card from between his fingers. It had a stereotypical wizard emblazoned on it, book in one hand, staff in the other, and a beard down to his belt. "Just hang onto this for now. Da'at will tell you more when she thinks you're ready. Keep the fang, too, it should help."
Amy accepted the card with some confusion before grabbing the massive fang in both hands and followed behind Nightingale out of the hall.
Soon enough, they were seated in an infirmary. Or at least, something approaching one. The beds were clearly just moved from guest rooms, but at least they were crispy clean. There were some bandages and a few rather antiquated tools which Amy supposed could be used for urgent surgery, but their precise purpose eluded her.
"Apologies. Unfortunately, I've been out of contact with… Oratorio during its set-up phase and while Da'at is an excellent archive of information, they are… focused on their own purpose and Commander isn't exactly a trained professional. Fortunately, Professor James and him have the list of necessities so we should be actually properly stocked before long." Nightingale began, giving a shallow, apologetic bow.
Then, without preamble, she grabbed Amy's hand.
"Wha–" She could feel her face heat again. Both of them wore gloves so there wasn't anything bad about the physical contact, but Nightingale just… did it, without warning. The older woman kept kneading Amy's hand, pressuring her muscles and massaging bones as her fingers moved across her palm and up to her wrist, her red eyes alternating between Amy's face and observing her hand's movements. Feeling lost, Amy just let it happen for a moment, wetting her lips before gathering her nerves.
"Errrr… excuse me, miss Nightingale?" The woman's gaze immediately snapped up to focus on Amy's face and she felt faltering for a moment by the intensity in those eyes. Amy took a deep breath before continuing. "Could I know what… what are you doing?"
"Hmmm. Apologies." Nightingale grunted softly as she let Amy's hand go and straightened back. "I've refrained from commenting in the hall, but aside from utilising your power to analyse the fang Commander has given you for what I can summarise to be supernatural analysis, you've been keeping your hands covered. Since I've not noticed scarring indicative of injury, I've wondered whether the damage was wholly internal or whether it was something related to your parahuman ability."
And she couldn't just ask?
"Oftentimes, people refuse to admit there may be something wrong with them. Whether due to a lack of medical knowledge leading to incorrect self-analysis or an issue of pride. I've learned it is for the best to cut to the chase." Oh, alright. Amy couldn't exactly argue with the logic, she had seen and heard enough of similar cases to get where Nightingale was coming from. "Which means there's an issue with your power."
Ducking her head, Amy's first instinct was to deny. She had perfect control, no accidents, things were as they had been ever since she had triggered. But… She lifted her gaze to meet Nightingale's calm, emotionless eyes. No, not emotionless. Focused (it was something of a trend with the woman, Amy realised even after such a short acquaintance; Nightingale was a woman of focus and commitment, of absolute certainty in her purpose in life, utterly dedicated to it) and judging. Not bad judging. More like… she was on the lookout for potential issues, yes like Carol always was, but only so she could spring to help without wasting even a second of time. It was intimidating, that certainty.
A little bit inspiring too.
"I… I want to preface this by saying my power has an off switch. I can choose when to use it and when not."
"But it's not automatic. Wholly intent based." Nightingale stated rather than asked.
"Y-yes. I never had any problems with accidentally doing something I didn't mean to, but… lately, it has been getting harder. It always came without issues, but lately it's almost… eager. Too eager."
"You're afraid of losing control and doing something irreversible. Commendable." Nightingale finished for her, hooking her intertwined hands on her knee. "How long have you had those… issues? Anything that happened that was out of ordinary enough to force the change to how your power operates?"
"A couple of weeks… since around New Year's." Amy admitted, lowering her gaze again. She just couldn't stand maintaining eye contact with Nightingale. "I think around the time Outis was brought to me for healing? Definitely after our second session."
[Could you describe your power fully, Miss Amelia?]
"You have a diagnosis, Da'at?" Nightingale asked sharply. Almost demanded.
[A hypothesis.]
Swallowing, Amy gathered her thoughts.
"It has two facets. Almost three, but two of them are pretty much the same thing but at differing levels of activity, and are an offshoot of the main thing." Amy began as she looked up again. "It's a touch based absolute ability to manipulate biological matter. It comes with full awareness of the target's biology as well. It's limited by my own understanding of biology, with a single exception." Taking off her gloves, Amy flexed one of her hands, closing it into a fist and relaxing it. "While I cannot affect myself, I have, passively, perfect awareness of my own body. Normally, it's only a rough state, but I can choose more… in-depth knowledge."
"And how have you been using it so far?" Nightingale followed the explanation.
"Healing. Purely fixing the body. Started small, scrapes and bruises. Started studying anatomy and medicine to have a better grasp on what to do and how." And only healing. She was aware enough where 'perfect bio-manipulation' could go, if misused. "Gradually more and more difficult issues, until I hit my limit."
"Your limit. Not your power's." Nightingale narrowed her eyes, leaning forward.
"... I don't do brains." Amy eventually whispered. "I just do-"
"I understand." The older woman nodded warmly, startling Amy. Carol had much more… complicated reaction to that admission. "A brain is a delicate thing, easy to damage but hard to fix, and even harder to restore perfectly. I'd say impossible, but with supernatural means, the definition of what is impossible has obviously changed. It is hard to gain experience in brain surgery, especially in an ethical manner." She finished with a satisfied nod.
"Errrr… yes."
"Hmmm… I believe I understand the situation." Nightingale nodded. Not quite in satisfaction, but pleased that a solution was in view.
[Are you aware of the origin of parahuman powers, Miss Amelia?]
"They are controlled by an outgrowth which develops in the brain after the trigger. I'm… even with my power, I'm still not quite certain on the details, but I think Corona has something to do with transmission and control."
[Roughly accurate. From my own investigation, which was only possible thanks to contact with you, Miss Amelia, the parahuman powers are a possibly symbiotic phenomena.]
[Something out there reaches to a human brain and stimulates it to be able to receive its power and adapt to it.]
[In return the… entity granting the power receives data on its usage.]
[For what purpose or why it elects to use intermediaries, I am unsure. I would say it wishes for second-hand perspective, but that is pure speculation.]
That was… it would explain why most people seemed to trigger in high stress situations. Brains were delicate, and in moments of crisis, the human body tended to pull out all stops to ensure survival.
"Your power is 'absolute biological manipulation." Nightingale picked up before Amy could process the, frankly, worldview shattering revelations any further. "Not, it should be noted, 'absolute biokinetic healing'. Given the primarily information gathering purpose of powers, I would say your recent troubles with your power's 'eagerness' stem from twofold origin. The first is that, as you said, without willing to pass your personal lines, you have hit the plateau of what your power can achieve in regards to healing. The second is that, naturally, healing is a very limited scope of what your power is actually capable of and your… benefactor was getting frustrated with the dearth of data flowing back to it."
"So that means when I used it on Outis…" Amy realised the issue immediately. It has been, frankly, staring her in the face the entire time, she just lacked a bit of context.
"It gained a new avenue of information. An avenue previously completely unknown to it and any other entities responsible for the powers of other parahumans." Nightingale agreed. "Now, the solution to your control issues is therefore simultaneously banally simple and quite complex." Amy tilted her head in confusion at the red-eyed woman's words. "You simply need to begin using your power for things other than healing." Then, she gave Amy a wry, bitter smile. "Of course, I'm certain you have a reason for why you have decided to limit it only to healing. That self imposed limitation will not be easy to overcome."
"I… I just don't want to hurt anyone. I could not-!" Amy replied, voicing her fears, festering since the day she grasped weather power really meant. The fears Carol's suspicions cultivated. Fears Bonesaw represented.
"I understand." Amy startled again when Nightingale put her hands around Amy;s, a warm, calm smile on her face. "Medicine has always been a double edged sword." She turned her head slightly. Amy followed, her gaze falling on the innocuous, violet card laying on the side of the table. "There's a way to satisfy your power while limiting the danger. But, as with other options, the choice is ultimately yours."
Amy looked back at Nightingale's face, calm, composed, certain. Her breath all but stilled in her breast, her hands not shaking only because of that firm, careful grasp the older woman had on them.
"Please…" She whispered fervently, desperately. "Tell me how."
[DATA!]
[I refer you particularly to the process of creating homunculi.]
[Even if the experts prefer to call it coining or forging.]
Was this how Blasto felt like, all the time? Just had an idea and suddenly he knew what had to be done to bring genuine life to… life? How to play with the basic building blocks of biology to bring forth something new and fantastical?
[ADMISSION]
[Partnerships, even amongst usual colleagues, tend to be beneficial.]
[Having someone who truly understands to double-check your thought process can offer insights you have not considered.]
[No two beings think exactly the same after all.]
The possibilities even just Amy's own power offered… She could do so much. So, so, so much… She would need a deeper understanding of that whole circuit deal. It was heavily involved in some of these concepts. Even if violet wasn't really her thing.
[IDEA!]
[I am not sure that's a wise course of action.]
[Seems a bit sudden, don't you think?]
[HALP!!!]
[Oh dear.]
Suddenly, her body burned, like someone was shoving hot pokers into her nerves. Amy choked back a cry, even as her heart stopped (not really) as she could feel Caster's circuits sear themselves into her, no longer a superimposed copy but an integral part of her.
Panicking, she tried to shut her power off.
Pleasepleasepleaseplease…
Why wasn't it responding?! Why was she still changing?!
[CONCERN.]
[I told you it was a bad idea to do it so fast.]
[CONFUSION.]
[Give her a few days, okay? She ought to be in good hands.]
[...]
[CONCERN.]
[SELF-DIAGNOSIS.]
[CONCERN.]
[SELF-DIAGNOSIS.]
[You need time as well. Rushing things caused this, so perhaps it's better to wait and analyse further?]
[...]
[TRUST.]
[TRUST.]
[I am flattered.]
[New Quest: Sorcerer's Apprentice - Find a magecraft tutor for Amelia Dallon]
[Rewards: Panacea Bond levels, ???, ???]
"Ugh, the Empress would work but she's the exact opposite of what Amy needs after dealing with Brandish." Outis grumbled to himself, before continuing on his way to the courtyard. He had promised Katsumi some training. Besides, he had a card to give her too.
Sorry, Lakshmibai, but they just had better stratcom here and your luck was too atrocious to risk in their situation. Fucking Thinkers. Fucking Endbringers.
As Always, big thanks to Xanah, Unknown B, Penguino, JoJoDio, Shirou0Emiya, Bowchikabowow. MetaWorld42, nununu, Just Some Guy With A Mustage, Ermast, Helios, Joshua Littlesun, [TEE],PlatiNom, Jose Matos, Soulsmsher, Altaibaatar, Ian DeHart, Brigand, Starfall 20 and ลิงติดเกม จากป่าดิบชื้นแถบอเมริกาใต้, saganatsu, Gabriel, Devan Duncan, Dodge the Lava and Aravir, who decided my writing is actually worth paying for.
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God damnit Shaper, QA's the one normally depicted as being over zelus in the Halping department!
GeekGod_of_Speed
He Who Enjoys The Big Words
What? When did she get a superimposed copy of magic circuits into her body? I think you skipped her doing an install
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
[Teehee]
It happened offscreen, you can tell she had Violet Caster installed because she was accessing the data of that Card on how to make chimaera and homunculi.
GeekGod_of_Speed
He Who Enjoys The Big Words
I thought that was just da'at interacting directly with Shaper and teasing her with data to behave
- Location
- London
Amy needs to have Violet Caster installed for the connection with the data about the spells to be established. Da'at probably could eventually interface with the Shards for direct data exchange but right now both sides require their respective humans to be interacting with one another's power system for that.
Da'at better get going to be grinding that social link personally instead of relying on Outis if it wants to woo princess Shaper
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
Oh, right, have a small lore drop. Since it is unlikely it will come up in-story until like Arc 6. This is the reason Outis specifically was chosen for this job.
Origin: Mimesis
Mimesis (/mɪˈmiːsɪs, mə-, maɪ-, -əs/;[1] Ancient Greek: μίμησις, mīmēsis) is a term used in literary criticism and philosophy that carries a wide range of meanings, including imitatio, imitation, nonsensuous similarity, receptivity, representation, mimicry, the act of expression, the act of resembling, and the presentation of the self.[2]
Origin: Mimesis
Mimesis (/mɪˈmiːsɪs, mə-, maɪ-, -əs/;[1] Ancient Greek: μίμησις, mīmēsis) is a term used in literary criticism and philosophy that carries a wide range of meanings, including imitatio, imitation, nonsensuous similarity, receptivity, representation, mimicry, the act of expression, the act of resembling, and the presentation of the self.[2]
Mizu
Software Developer
- Location
- Victoria, Australia
An origin of mimicry, eh? That might explain their gender fluidity, and certainly the frequent cosplay and outfit changes from installing famed historical or fictional individuals, but I'm not sure we've seen too much to demonstrate it yet. Which is pretty common with nasu origins in fanfic, to be honest.
So I guess Amy can just give people magic circuits, going off this chapter, even if it was her power recreating them in their host. Weren't they spiritual organs though? I didn't think you'd be able to gift them just by altering biology.
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
Yeah, I'm not going super hard into it because it is kind of a pointless chore to constantly ponder how the Origin weights in on every decision, but you can see it most clearly in something very simple: Outis went from zero to being fully committed to their new role in Earth Bet (which is, as far as they can figure out, to take down the Endbringers so they stop killing humanity by inches, since she assumes Alaya is responsible for the isekai).
And in general just keeps pace with whatever nonsense Earth Bet and Da'at throw at her, instead of babbling about this being impossible or wanting to go home.
It was a weird edge case where Amy had Violet Caster installed and was hooked up to Da'at, at which point Shaper could bridge the remaining gap to make the magic circuits fully real.
- Location
- Probably at sea
Enjoying this!
It feels very fresh for a Worm fic, which is a massive benefit of ignoring both Taylor and the stations of canon (as well as having the courage to make necessary changes to the setting to better suit the story you're going for). I approve of the choice to hold off on introducing every Servant ever straight away - your assessment that it would give us time to get used to the ones we have was entirely correct.
As for those other Servants, my guess for the other Berserker (a queen, ME EX that significantly affects personality, overbearing) is Penthesilea; the Empress skilled in magecraft mentioned at the end of this chapter is probably Semiramis.
Looking forward to more!
It feels very fresh for a Worm fic, which is a massive benefit of ignoring both Taylor and the stations of canon (as well as having the courage to make necessary changes to the setting to better suit the story you're going for). I approve of the choice to hold off on introducing every Servant ever straight away - your assessment that it would give us time to get used to the ones we have was entirely correct.
As for those other Servants, my guess for the other Berserker (a queen, ME EX that significantly affects personality, overbearing) is Penthesilea; the Empress skilled in magecraft mentioned at the end of this chapter is probably Semiramis.
Looking forward to more!
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Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
Correct. Here is your reward:
Semiramis
STR | E |
AGL | D |
END | D |
MAG | A |
LCK | A |
Level: 1
Bond Level: 0
Ascension Stage: 0
Class Skills:
Presence Concealment [C+] – A Skill that suppresses one's presence as a Servant. It is suitable for espionage activities. The Rank of Presence Concealment drops greatly when Semiramis is preparing to attack. However, this demerit is not included in cases where she is concealing poison as preparations for attack.
Territory Creation [EX] – Creates an area that is advantageous to oneself as a magus. By gathering specific materials, it is possible to create a "Hanging Garden", superior to a "Temple".
Item Construction [C] – Allows the creation of items that carry Magical Energy. Semiramis specializes in toxins and delivery mechanisms for them, however she is also a magus from the Age of Gods. While not on the level of Medea, let alone Circe, she is still capable of making dragon tooth warriors and even modify them to be capable of flight. It is also through a combination of this Skill and Šikar Ušum that she can create toxic monsters without the Hanging Gardens' support.
Personal Skills:
Double Summon (B) – A rare trait that only a small portion of Servants have. Semiramis can materialize with and possess the Class Skills of both the Assassin and Caster Classes.
Familiar (Dove) [D] – (Locked)
Divinity [C] – (Locked)
Noble Phantasms:
Šikar Ušum: Intoxicating Alcohol of the Arrogant Ruler
Rank: B+
Classification: Anti-Army Noble Phantasm
Range: 1~20
Maximum Number of Targets: 10 people
An environmental property of "Poison" is bestowed to the atmosphere around Semiramis and to her Magecraft.
Against Servants who possess anecdotes of "poison was not effective against them", the effects of the poison are halved. But then, in cases where they had episodes where they suffered from being poisoned, this Noble Phantasm doubles the poison damage instead. It is feasible for Semiramis to select the type of poison used, and she can also freely make it lethal or non-lethal as she pleases. Furthermore, it is also feasible for her to summon even Mystical Beasts that possess poison. Although outside the Hanging Gardens, this is limited, not only requiring materials on top of ritual work but also preventing the summoning of beings on the level of Basmu and Nuckelavee. About the strongest she can produce in these circumstances is a much reduced hydra, lacking the immortal head and the ability to multiply its heads with each decapitation, but retaining the powerful toxins and regeneration.
Hanging Gardens of Babylon: The Aerial Gardens of Vainglory
Rank: EX
Classification: Anti-World Noble Phantasm
Range: 10~100
Maximum Number of Targets: 1000 people
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Semiramis was actually not involved with the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. However, this was established as one of her Noble Phantasms by using the faith of the many people that misunderstood it as so.
Because this is a "Vainglory" after all, the Noble Phantasm's invocation conditions are strict. By transporting a fixed amount of earth and stone from historic ruins in the vicinity of Baghdad – the capital city of Iraq – she can perform a 72-hour ritual to grow the Hanging Gardens from them.
It literally manifests as "a great fortress that floats in mid-air". As long as Semiramis is inside this fortress, all of her parameters gain a + modifier. Her fame also rises to the highest class, and furthermore, plus modifiers are added to her attacks. Not only that, but she becomes capable of utterly ludicrous acts of magic within its confines, such as summoning Basmu, direct children of Tiamat, from nothing. She is not only passively aware of everything that goes on within the fortress, but can make spells spring from anywhere in it so long as she is inside.
While its flying speed is low, it boasts 12 magic beam-cannons each individually capable of overcoming Magic Resistance A.
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
The biggest clue for the Berserker is this: Outis went "fuck, I can't use her with Kanabo on the team"
- Location
- Probably at sea
That was the part that didn't really fit for me - and to be fair I was just guessing from the Berserkers I'd actually summoned. My second guess, therefore, after expanding my search, is Raikou, who would definitely not be pleased with working with oni.
That does mean that the queen with a difficult, backstabby personality is a different Servant, though. Medb, possibly?
Well, in any case, I'm willing to wait to see just what comes up.
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
kek. Yeah, you got it mixed up, I think. The one with the difficult and backstab prone personality is Semiramis.
Omida summarized Raikou's attitude without ME on as "racist murderator 9000"
Why?... does this even add anything to the story?
Anyway, could you at least tag it? some of us really dislike this stuff
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
1) It is traditional to gacha games like this, which this powerset apes.
2) It is a way for the protagonist to easily keep a secret identity and better get along with some Servants who have hangups about either sex.
3) It is foreshadowing of the FI's Origin and how it interfaces with the system, which will become relevant around Arc 5 or 6.
4) Genderfluid is a thing that exists as something other than splooge.
Whatever, while I don't agree I really don't have an issue with people writing or reading it. I just wished it was tagged so I knew not to read it. A simple genderbender/genderfluid tag is enough for people who don't like it to avoid it
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
You asked what it added to the story, I provided that answer.
And I just said I disagree...
Arkos
Sleepy Queen of Destruction
- Location
- The Future.
- Pronouns
- She/her
…I can't remember but is there a way to 'trade in' servants for Outis? So you can try to get a less risky Berserker, like 'mamo Cat. Elizabeth's castle needs a chef anyways and iirc you don't have GARcher. Because like, ME-less Raikou? In BB? That feels like a timebomb waiting to go off right under your feet.
I'm just gonna point out, you came onto a pretty stable going fic that's well into itself at 14 chapters to… complain about a minor element that's been there from the start and ask why it's a thing? Why are you surprised one of the authors answered? Honestly Ni's being pretty nice answering instead of going 'don't like, don't read'.
Surprised? I wasn't surprised, I just disagreed with his reasons, then he answered to some objection that didn't exist. Anyway, we should probably stop this before the mods intervene
Though I'll say again, it would be nice if they added the tags
Nihilo
Authorial parasite
- Location
- Catalonia
Nope. Just burn them and go back to gambling.