Emergence 1.6
- Location
- Chula Vista
AN: This is the final chapter before the Interludes, since the progress on Arc 3 has been going pretty well. So here it is.
"Week five huh?" I ducked under a punch as Veda took direct control of the hologram herself. I had nearly two weeks of bashing the katas and forms into my skull, as well as learning the basic tenets of firebending. With each day the rapid and flexible movements were growing easier and more natural, my fire stronger and easier to control.
Veda opened her mouth, and with a rolling of eyes I took a breath from my nose, exhaling through my mouth. A smooth strike unleashed a far more powerful blast, flames licking and crackling the hologram to pieces
"I'm not an idiot Veda, I saw the show you know?" Veda giggled, kicking her feet as her humanoid form floated through the air. I swept off the sweat from my wet forehead, congratulating myself on tying back my hair.
"There is a difference between reality and fiction my Host." I shot off another fire blast, raising an eyebrow at my blatant shattering of the laws of physics. "You…make a good point." She conceded as the simulation broke down, the hard light projector shutting down to reduce power consumption.
I changed my stance, shifting from fighting to feeling out my firebending form.
Low kicks.
High punches and hits.
Double punches.
A suave dance with both offensive and defensive properties, fierce and quick and strong in a way that resonated with me. The Dancing Dragon was one of the few martial arts embedded in Veda's memories, the art of long lost civilizations. It resembled some martial arts from that book, and thus I learned from the text and from the knowledge spirit residing within my immortal soul. I fell out of alignment, stuttering to a halt.
My life is insane, isn't it?
Quite." Veda said with an entertained tone, and with little fanfare, I returned to my practice of the forms. My body twisted and bent freely, the greater limberness of my new body lending itself better to martial arts and physical activity.
Punches and kicks wooshed through the air of the former factory floor, the facility becoming mine after days upon days of work and purchases through the internet.
I had quickly moved into the former industrial complex, using the Omni-forge to build up machinery and technology. A local Optronic network was constructed with several times the computing power of my home, and was used to man the various bits of automated assembly tools, as well as the security system. Admittingly they were placed on seperate networks but still…
It had taken only a few hours for this building, as well as the three others in the area to be filled to the brim with the most advanced surveillance and security I could muster. Sensors would routinely sweep through a variety of methods both passive and active, and they could also detect the presence of Parahumans. That was a secret however, anyone figuring out I could destroy the few rules that kept the status quo…
That would not end well. The only hope was that it's inaccuracy would keep their backs off of me.
A second Omni-forge was in the making but of far greater size and capability, a three meter wide two meter high cylinder with a capacity of multiple tons. I could construct entire vehicles using the thing, and with the production line I could build enormous inventions and products. At this very moment I had several of my Golems, including a larger prototype model about two meters tall stacking up every bit of scrap, adding up to thirty thousand kilograms.
Some of it had been grabbed up from litter, using cat sized models of the semi-intelligent automatons. So I had performed basic community service and got materials to build more stuff in exchange. But I hadn't gone out to fight crime for obvious reasons, I didn't want to pull a Skitter and get a Dragon flame to my poor face. Or a nazi wolf blender…or getting run over by Squealer…or crushed by those two Nazis.
I threw another punch, a tongue of fire coming out to play, fueled by my inner energy. That incited a second dance, and I began to twist and turn and punch and kick once again.
FWOOSH!
Fire burned orange-red briefly flashing to white in short intervals, as I steadied my breathing. Kicks shot fire, and I was accidentally propulsed into the air when I added a little too much kick(heh…)
"Shit…" I took off a good two meters in the air, and I responded instinctively balancing and turning in the air while shooting a tiny blast to counter my mass for a brief second.
Splaying out my arms to both sides helped my balance, and I shook my head, my hair tie loosening up in the sudden flight.
Veda rushed to my side, worry twisting her young cute face, her long hair swishing like a tail. "Host are you alright? You are not…hurt?" I chuckled and after a second of thought, ruffled the short spirit's hair. Her hair was soft, yet had the sensation of cool fiber optics. She pouted, another human expression to add to the list.
Veda had started off fairly inhuman in nature and personality, but had been progressively gaining more and more human traits with time. Likely a side effect of our intimate connection. She was once a shard, and had become something that was neither spirit or man including myself as a part of a collective whole.
"I'm fine Veda I was simply a little surprised, it happens." She nodded, emerald orbs sparkling for a moment.
I would spend another hour here, and then I'll take the rest of the day off. I had already spent weeks laboring for a future that was still months away. Burnout would hit me hard, and the results would not be pretty.
"Another spar?" Veda chirped with a sadistic tilt to her smirk, she sunk into fighting posture, a hologram forming around where her projection was.
I mimicked her, my fists filling with embers, heat, and light. I returned her smirk, and bobbed my head.
"Yes…one more spar for today."
Both of us launched forward, and we clashed for the final time that day.
I had gone with a chocolate chip cookie, chocolate milk and a croissant breakfast sandwich with sausage, egg, and cheese. A rather strange thing to do at three in the afternoon, but since I was an adult I could buy whatever the hell I wanted. I had been doing this the moment I had my own money and it wasn't changing any time soon.
I didn't get more than a few cursory glances, since the residents of Brockton had better things to do than be suspicious of a giddy nineteen year old woman. My eyes cut through the veil, and I felt fortunate that my unusual nature kept them conspicuous. Shamans usually had greater visual cues whenever they pierced into the spiritual realms. Veda and I did not have the same trouble, so I had a front view seat to the party of spirits that made their home here.
Spirits of heat, of commerce, hospitality, there was even a specific spirit of the-pleasure-of-making-a-sale.
…
…
Spirits often became rather niche, it's their nature as purely metaphysical beings. They were interesting, and I was studying up on them as best as I could for both my own sake and the sake of others. For all the wonder they provoked, I also knew they were extremely dangerous. Some of them could qualify as S-class threats, and certain interactions were deemed illegal due to the danger and threat they posed to mortal races.
I took everything in, allowing myself to just be even if that meant I had a dozen thoughts buzzing in and out of my train of thought. The jerking slowed, and I watched people simply walk, order, eat(well…sorta…), and do all the other things expected in a coffee shop.
One of my hands was on the table, a gentle rhythm being followed as my fingernails tippity tapped on smooth wood. The table was cold but the air was warm, heated by the HVAC the shop had built in. Luckily I had shrugged off my jacket, leaving myself in a green tank top, and grey sweatpants. There was a hushed conversation to my right, three fairly tall dark haired men pushing a much shorter one in my direction. Their sneers were obvious, with the short nerdy blonde guy being the only exception.
I kept my eyes on them, placing my sweater on my lap. The poor guy stuttered something fierce, and I felt a little bad for him. Not that it would convince me to entertain whatever this hot mess is.
The rest of the customers briefly looked in our direction before rolling their eyes, and responding with scoffs and sighs. Which meant they had to do this pretty often…
Veda rolled her eyes, and I almost did the same…
The guy lifted up his hand in greeting. "H-Hey I—"
"I'm sorry but no…please leave." He relaxed, shoulders dropping at my instant denial. His three 'friends' were a little annoyed, because they had clearly expected that I would tolerate their shenanigans.
I smiled when one of them tried to open his big mouth. The three were swiftly rebuffed, and the shorter guy looked confused before shrugging and sitting back down with his so called friends.
I tsked quietly, turning the swivel chair when I heard the sound of the worker sauntering over to leave a bag with my meal inside. I slid off my seat, and marched confidently to my destination. I grabbed the bag, and rushed back to my seat, my stomach rumbling at the prospect of food. I had also forgotten I could drink the bottled chocolate milk.
I pulled out a delectable mix of baked dough and chocolate droplets, and proceeded to nibble on its contents. Chocolatey goodness rolled down my tongue, and I knew I had resisted sweets for too long.
Mmm…so good…
It took me only about seven more bites and sessions of chewing to eat the entire snack, and I then switched to the sandwich. I spent more time watching people, and my mind rapidly drifted off topic.
I had always been a little bit scatterbrained…even if I would personally word it as selectively focused.
It was February now, the 14th day of the month to be exact. There was only ten more days before the Simurgh would descend onto Canberra. Ten more days before thousands die, and Australia loses its capital to the containment zone. There was time, time I could use to prepare or to warm someone. But I didn't think it would do any good. If I was some type of roadblock or block in her path, I might be able to do something. But this was the Simurgh we were talking about, there was a good chance she could see me, or at least respond to what happens around me.
It could be as simple as moving someplace else getting many more people killed in the process, or finding a way to use what I knew and could do against the rest of the world. My technology in the hands of an Endbringer was a horrifying concept to contemplate. I didn't have enough time to escalate either, my tech was still pretty much street level, with the exception of some of the heavy weaponry I can build.
The idea of shooting the Simurgh in the face with a half kilogram chunk of tungsten-uranium at Mach 40,000 sounds rather tempting and amusing. Unfortunately that would do little more than tickle the Simurgh with her body made out of shard magic. The spirits might be able to do something more to her, but I could only really manipulate Aspects since they're so much weaker and less intelligent. I could accidentally summon something worse than the Endbringers.
There was nothing I could do that wouldn't set something off, so I would only be able to prepare for Leviathan in three months if that's something already preset. Even then there were few weapons in my arsenal that wouldn't destroy the city or bring the whole world down on my head. The first was unacceptable, while the second would be a huge setback, though I could probably flee to another dimension if I tried to open up Veda's dimension transference to my own use.
I paused mid bite when the door swung open with the natural jingle of the bell. There was a change in the atmosphere, a low hum of excitement as most of the patrons stared at the newcomers with a mix of familiarity and awe. My blood curdled as a blast of electromagnetic energy tried to force its way into my head. A brief spike in awe and positive emotion, nothing dangerous but still disturbing.
"Hello everybody!" Blonde hair waved for a moment, a tall well figured teenager announcing herself to the world with great fanfare. She wore a sweater with a black hoodie, a black drawing of the Brockton skyline around her chest. Light blue eye did their apparent usual inspection of the people around her. A shorter freckled brunette followed behind with a much more subdued appearance. She wore a white sweater shirt with jeans, her dark eyes roaming the vicinity.
Victoria and Amy Dallon huh? Otherwise known as Glory Girl and Panacea of New Wave. Didn't know they went to this place…but this was my first time here so it'd be impossible for me to know the regulars.
The cafe didn't reply back in unison, though there was murmur or two of greeting. The most powerful biokinetic in the world rolls her eyes, an affectionate smile on her face regardless.
I blinked as Glory Girl zipped over to the counter, briefly asking her sister for her order and stopping an inch short from the counter. The employee, a perky redhead flinched, Glory Girl looking sheepish at the response.
Her sister shook her head, and found a spot at a table taking out a book and cracking open to a bookmarked page. Amy leafed past the page, she scanned the book at a constant rate. I could hear Victoria chattering away with the cashier, her aura periodically flaring in light dose.
"Harmless at that level…it would require continuous exposure to have any permanent effect." Veda tapped out again, this time shifting into a small green wisp made up of tesseract glass. She circled around the two Parahumans, and a ghost flashed before my eyes.
A figure of glass, glory and gold, protectively curling around their host. Youthful innocence personified, the equivalent for an Entity I mean. Amy was next, and what sat next to her was far less friendly.
A specter of death hung over the healer's shoulders, dozens upon dozens of skeletal arms clung to her body…their skinless nails gripping tightly with sheer enraged frustration. Their cloak mirrored the host, a stark white that shuddered revealing it to be made of flesh that shifted and warped. Their eyes were pinpricks of light, a face obscure in writhing shadows.
Holy fuck Shaper is a goddamn nightmare…Panacea has the grim reaper following her and she has no clue.
"What an uncouth shard, so unsubtle in their approach…" Veda sounded disappointed, and I remembered that she herself had once been a shard of a far older cycle. I kept my head from nodding in agreement, and then I found those dark turmoiled orbs glaring at me with suspicion.
I made my gaze more direct, blinking slowly as her suspicion only grew. I admit I had been looking for a while so she probably picked up on it.
We entered a staring contest, her look left a burning sensation while I only innocently kept eye contact because I wasn't sure how to make her stop. That continued for nearly a minute straight, Panacea's grip on her book tightening until her knuckles turned white.
Jeez…she gets easily riled up huh?
Her shard shifted behind her, bony fingers tapping eagerly, their restraint barely kept in check by the will of their Host. Which meant that both Shard and Host were progressively growing mad. Amy with her various mental health issues and Shaper with a lack of new data, with her dad being in prison and Amy being rightfully terrified of the implications of her powers.
So a shitshow all around.
That aura of golden glassy glory returned in full force, and I tilted my head up to meet the complicated expression of Victoria Dallon. She crossed her arms, her face setting into an unamused frown.
"Hey what's the deal with you and my sister?" Amy dropped her head onto the table, and Veda chuckled.
"The deal? I'll be honest, I'm not sure what you're on about," I said as much and Vicky frowned again. "I was staring in her general direction and when she started glaring at me it got awkward…and I wasn't sure how to look away." Red dived into my face. I could have just looked away and be done with Amy's problems. I wasn't the right ma–woman for the job. I didn't have inherent talk-no-jutsu like an anime protagonist or like Jack Slash.
Glory Girl loomed over me, aura spiking before being suppressed. Her power emulated her motions and posture, the nine foot tall mass of light adding more intimidation to the girl. "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes. Honestly I only looked over because I recognized her and thought she looked tired." I wasn't a fib, the first thing to pop to mind was that she looked like shit. She's not ugly but bags and stress don't tend to make a girl's looks shine very bright.
Vicky glanced over to her sister, and her expression softened. She had noticed the same issue. "Oh…sorry for bothering you…I just hope you weren't thinking about a bo—" I lifted up my bust under my folded arms, and she shut her trap.
She coughed, hiding a grin behind her fist.
"It's fine, it was just a misunderstanding. I know I can be pretty grouchy when I don't get my rest." I was always irritable and grouchy but she doesn't have to know that.
Victoria(The Fragile One) backed off, sitting down with her sister and whispering harshly. Amy(The Shaper) glanced over to me, her shard mirroring her gestures with no small amount of resentment. I gave a tiny wave, and with a roll of eyes she returned to her normal programming.
"Your food is getting cold…" Veda warmed me and a gasp left me, I proceeded to pick up the remainder of my sandwich.
Just a few more bites and I could go home and work on some smaller projects made for fun. It would be educational…
I would hope so anyway.
After that tense but filling lunch I had dived back into some light tinkering, small side projects that were more on the fun side of things. A couple of hours of experimenting and building had gotten a good number of projects close to or at completion.
I watched as a small art piece did its job, making use of advanced technology for a rather mundane use. It was a small container, with numerous puny Eezo cores and a bag of marbles. Marbles bounced continuously off of kinetic barrier surfaces, forming a kaleidoscopic piece of kinetic artwork. A simple, pretty, and handmade art piece.
I then moved onto the slab of carbon fiber with an underside that glimmered with the blue-white of an active eezo drive. Stepping onto the hoverboard was easy, and I now planned to make use of its unique capabilities.
WOOSH!
I suddenly flew in the air, cutting through the resistance as the hoverboard hit more than 20 miles an hour within minutes. My magnetic soles made me firmly attached, and I floated with a delicate movement of my hips to maintain a weight balance.
As I flew inside the warehouse, a trickle of entertainment and art tech percolated down into my brain. Use of artificial gravity to manipulate water into intricate shapes. Floating chandeliers, one of many floating designs built into my head.
Statues created by vectored gravity slices. Zero gravity for sports; and of course hoverboards. Building them was far less mentally taxing than going all out with the many weapons and vehicles to learn from assimilated knowledge.
Relaxation was an important part of this life so I wouldn't go mad. Building weird art and entertainment tech had been just what I needed and I didn't plan to change that. They would probably be a pretty good thing to sell too, little pieces of unique artwork that people might pay a fair bit of money. Obscure the more technological artifacts of the art, and they'll be a moneymaker on top of being something to do besides building weapons, armor, and infrastructure.
I balanced on the board, the flying machine compensating for any unsteadiness I did have. I picked up the pace with a gesture, the board accelerating to about 40 miles an hour. Electricity crackled feeding the core, and unleashing bursts of dark energy. The strange force warped reality with much greater efficiency and with negligible damage toward the fabric of spacetime.
I stopped…the board hovering in midair as the curiosity took over.
I had perused much into how Eezo worked, and it involved whatever created the soul. Eezo was composed of neutronium with most of its mass turned into dark matter, shifting to a field of dark energy whenever it was activated with enough energy input. The two substances hadn't always been like this, something had changed.
Dark matter was likely some type of particle, but I felt that this 'dark matter' was expressing its mass across dimensions. Dark energy was the same…the two paired into a fifth fundamental interaction. The Spirit World itself was permeated with the material, and while my firebending and shamanism didn't seem to be emitting the stuff. How could I know?
Whatever had done this was far more powerful than even the Entities, those damn whales did their best to twist the laws of physics but even they had their limits. This was a fundamental and permanent altering of the physical constants of reality. All of it seemingly without regard for Entropy or any of the laws mankind had discovered.
I was playing in the sandbox of someone powerful enough to play at being a God. Playing with technology that could forge stellar empires, a neatly wrapped gift to the Entities who sought what I had been given. The only thing missing was what they would do afterward.
"I…" my altitude dropped as the haptic system interpreted my sudden melancholy as the signal to quit playing. I dropped off the toy with dropped shoulders, the room shrinking around me. Veda took her human form once again, her expression going between uncaring apathy, confusion, sympathy, guilt, and unsure anxiety.
"H–Basilia…do you wish for a hug?" I pouted, heat rushing to my face and a general feeling of shame hitting me. That was promptly slapped out of existence…
I had perfectly legitimate reasons for not being at my best…I was chosen likely at random to save a planet I only cared about in the abstract. I had been torn from my home and stripped of identity and choice. I was bonded with a spirit created from the body of a parasitic life form responsible for destroying countless worlds. I was on a timer…ticking down every second I was still here.
"Sure…" she wrapped her arms around my waist, looking uncomfortable all the while. The former shard was clearly not versed in the art of friendship, and it showed. But the fact that Veda was willing to try at all is a testament to the general attitude of the being that had saved the both of us.
I had no idea who or what they were, only flashes of inspiration and horror in some of my night terrors. Blinks of crippling darkness, blood curdling screams, and beacons of light in kaleidoscopic color. Oh…and I couldn't forget the burning, that kind of sensation was hard to forget even with a rattled brain.
…
I definitely need a therapist at this point.
"I need more friends Veda. I think I'm going stir crazy." I said to her and she mumbled in agreement.
"That might be a necessity…I am not very good with human feelings," she grimaced. "Better than the rest of my kind but that speaks ill of them rather than well of myself."
She let go of me, and I generated another ball of writhing fire in my palm. The energy pulsed in time with my heartbeat, fueled by my emotions and from my spiritual power.
"So…what…give it about another week or so before I go out then?" I asked, talking more to myself than to the spirit wrapped around my soul. I had also already sent the paperwork to register the company where I would sell and distribute technology…
Just a little longer…and I'll be set.
I won't let this world end…and I'll find a way home if it's possible.
___
Emergence 1.6
"Week five huh?" I ducked under a punch as Veda took direct control of the hologram herself. I had nearly two weeks of bashing the katas and forms into my skull, as well as learning the basic tenets of firebending. With each day the rapid and flexible movements were growing easier and more natural, my fire stronger and easier to control.
Veda opened her mouth, and with a rolling of eyes I took a breath from my nose, exhaling through my mouth. A smooth strike unleashed a far more powerful blast, flames licking and crackling the hologram to pieces
"I'm not an idiot Veda, I saw the show you know?" Veda giggled, kicking her feet as her humanoid form floated through the air. I swept off the sweat from my wet forehead, congratulating myself on tying back my hair.
"There is a difference between reality and fiction my Host." I shot off another fire blast, raising an eyebrow at my blatant shattering of the laws of physics. "You…make a good point." She conceded as the simulation broke down, the hard light projector shutting down to reduce power consumption.
I changed my stance, shifting from fighting to feeling out my firebending form.
Low kicks.
High punches and hits.
Double punches.
A suave dance with both offensive and defensive properties, fierce and quick and strong in a way that resonated with me. The Dancing Dragon was one of the few martial arts embedded in Veda's memories, the art of long lost civilizations. It resembled some martial arts from that book, and thus I learned from the text and from the knowledge spirit residing within my immortal soul. I fell out of alignment, stuttering to a halt.
My life is insane, isn't it?
Quite." Veda said with an entertained tone, and with little fanfare, I returned to my practice of the forms. My body twisted and bent freely, the greater limberness of my new body lending itself better to martial arts and physical activity.
Punches and kicks wooshed through the air of the former factory floor, the facility becoming mine after days upon days of work and purchases through the internet.
I had quickly moved into the former industrial complex, using the Omni-forge to build up machinery and technology. A local Optronic network was constructed with several times the computing power of my home, and was used to man the various bits of automated assembly tools, as well as the security system. Admittingly they were placed on seperate networks but still…
It had taken only a few hours for this building, as well as the three others in the area to be filled to the brim with the most advanced surveillance and security I could muster. Sensors would routinely sweep through a variety of methods both passive and active, and they could also detect the presence of Parahumans. That was a secret however, anyone figuring out I could destroy the few rules that kept the status quo…
That would not end well. The only hope was that it's inaccuracy would keep their backs off of me.
A second Omni-forge was in the making but of far greater size and capability, a three meter wide two meter high cylinder with a capacity of multiple tons. I could construct entire vehicles using the thing, and with the production line I could build enormous inventions and products. At this very moment I had several of my Golems, including a larger prototype model about two meters tall stacking up every bit of scrap, adding up to thirty thousand kilograms.
Some of it had been grabbed up from litter, using cat sized models of the semi-intelligent automatons. So I had performed basic community service and got materials to build more stuff in exchange. But I hadn't gone out to fight crime for obvious reasons, I didn't want to pull a Skitter and get a Dragon flame to my poor face. Or a nazi wolf blender…or getting run over by Squealer…or crushed by those two Nazis.
I threw another punch, a tongue of fire coming out to play, fueled by my inner energy. That incited a second dance, and I began to twist and turn and punch and kick once again.
FWOOSH!
Fire burned orange-red briefly flashing to white in short intervals, as I steadied my breathing. Kicks shot fire, and I was accidentally propulsed into the air when I added a little too much kick(heh…)
"Shit…" I took off a good two meters in the air, and I responded instinctively balancing and turning in the air while shooting a tiny blast to counter my mass for a brief second.
Splaying out my arms to both sides helped my balance, and I shook my head, my hair tie loosening up in the sudden flight.
Veda rushed to my side, worry twisting her young cute face, her long hair swishing like a tail. "Host are you alright? You are not…hurt?" I chuckled and after a second of thought, ruffled the short spirit's hair. Her hair was soft, yet had the sensation of cool fiber optics. She pouted, another human expression to add to the list.
Veda had started off fairly inhuman in nature and personality, but had been progressively gaining more and more human traits with time. Likely a side effect of our intimate connection. She was once a shard, and had become something that was neither spirit or man including myself as a part of a collective whole.
"I'm fine Veda I was simply a little surprised, it happens." She nodded, emerald orbs sparkling for a moment.
I would spend another hour here, and then I'll take the rest of the day off. I had already spent weeks laboring for a future that was still months away. Burnout would hit me hard, and the results would not be pretty.
"Another spar?" Veda chirped with a sadistic tilt to her smirk, she sunk into fighting posture, a hologram forming around where her projection was.
I mimicked her, my fists filling with embers, heat, and light. I returned her smirk, and bobbed my head.
"Yes…one more spar for today."
Both of us launched forward, and we clashed for the final time that day.
___
I jerked back and forth in my seat, enjoying the swiveling shop stool that the local coffee shop had as I waited for my order to be completed. After the busy morning I had taken a considerable break so I could relax for the moment. Taylor hadn't been in the library so I had taken a trip to a coffee shop that was closer to the nicer neighborhood around Arcadia. I wouldn't call it a rich neighborhood, more middle class but it was a sight better than where I lived, which was a sight better than where Taylor lives.
I had gone with a chocolate chip cookie, chocolate milk and a croissant breakfast sandwich with sausage, egg, and cheese. A rather strange thing to do at three in the afternoon, but since I was an adult I could buy whatever the hell I wanted. I had been doing this the moment I had my own money and it wasn't changing any time soon.
I didn't get more than a few cursory glances, since the residents of Brockton had better things to do than be suspicious of a giddy nineteen year old woman. My eyes cut through the veil, and I felt fortunate that my unusual nature kept them conspicuous. Shamans usually had greater visual cues whenever they pierced into the spiritual realms. Veda and I did not have the same trouble, so I had a front view seat to the party of spirits that made their home here.
Spirits of heat, of commerce, hospitality, there was even a specific spirit of the-pleasure-of-making-a-sale.
…
…
Spirits often became rather niche, it's their nature as purely metaphysical beings. They were interesting, and I was studying up on them as best as I could for both my own sake and the sake of others. For all the wonder they provoked, I also knew they were extremely dangerous. Some of them could qualify as S-class threats, and certain interactions were deemed illegal due to the danger and threat they posed to mortal races.
I took everything in, allowing myself to just be even if that meant I had a dozen thoughts buzzing in and out of my train of thought. The jerking slowed, and I watched people simply walk, order, eat(well…sorta…), and do all the other things expected in a coffee shop.
One of my hands was on the table, a gentle rhythm being followed as my fingernails tippity tapped on smooth wood. The table was cold but the air was warm, heated by the HVAC the shop had built in. Luckily I had shrugged off my jacket, leaving myself in a green tank top, and grey sweatpants. There was a hushed conversation to my right, three fairly tall dark haired men pushing a much shorter one in my direction. Their sneers were obvious, with the short nerdy blonde guy being the only exception.
I kept my eyes on them, placing my sweater on my lap. The poor guy stuttered something fierce, and I felt a little bad for him. Not that it would convince me to entertain whatever this hot mess is.
The rest of the customers briefly looked in our direction before rolling their eyes, and responding with scoffs and sighs. Which meant they had to do this pretty often…
Veda rolled her eyes, and I almost did the same…
The guy lifted up his hand in greeting. "H-Hey I—"
"I'm sorry but no…please leave." He relaxed, shoulders dropping at my instant denial. His three 'friends' were a little annoyed, because they had clearly expected that I would tolerate their shenanigans.
I smiled when one of them tried to open his big mouth. The three were swiftly rebuffed, and the shorter guy looked confused before shrugging and sitting back down with his so called friends.
I tsked quietly, turning the swivel chair when I heard the sound of the worker sauntering over to leave a bag with my meal inside. I slid off my seat, and marched confidently to my destination. I grabbed the bag, and rushed back to my seat, my stomach rumbling at the prospect of food. I had also forgotten I could drink the bottled chocolate milk.
I pulled out a delectable mix of baked dough and chocolate droplets, and proceeded to nibble on its contents. Chocolatey goodness rolled down my tongue, and I knew I had resisted sweets for too long.
Mmm…so good…
It took me only about seven more bites and sessions of chewing to eat the entire snack, and I then switched to the sandwich. I spent more time watching people, and my mind rapidly drifted off topic.
I had always been a little bit scatterbrained…even if I would personally word it as selectively focused.
It was February now, the 14th day of the month to be exact. There was only ten more days before the Simurgh would descend onto Canberra. Ten more days before thousands die, and Australia loses its capital to the containment zone. There was time, time I could use to prepare or to warm someone. But I didn't think it would do any good. If I was some type of roadblock or block in her path, I might be able to do something. But this was the Simurgh we were talking about, there was a good chance she could see me, or at least respond to what happens around me.
It could be as simple as moving someplace else getting many more people killed in the process, or finding a way to use what I knew and could do against the rest of the world. My technology in the hands of an Endbringer was a horrifying concept to contemplate. I didn't have enough time to escalate either, my tech was still pretty much street level, with the exception of some of the heavy weaponry I can build.
The idea of shooting the Simurgh in the face with a half kilogram chunk of tungsten-uranium at Mach 40,000 sounds rather tempting and amusing. Unfortunately that would do little more than tickle the Simurgh with her body made out of shard magic. The spirits might be able to do something more to her, but I could only really manipulate Aspects since they're so much weaker and less intelligent. I could accidentally summon something worse than the Endbringers.
There was nothing I could do that wouldn't set something off, so I would only be able to prepare for Leviathan in three months if that's something already preset. Even then there were few weapons in my arsenal that wouldn't destroy the city or bring the whole world down on my head. The first was unacceptable, while the second would be a huge setback, though I could probably flee to another dimension if I tried to open up Veda's dimension transference to my own use.
I paused mid bite when the door swung open with the natural jingle of the bell. There was a change in the atmosphere, a low hum of excitement as most of the patrons stared at the newcomers with a mix of familiarity and awe. My blood curdled as a blast of electromagnetic energy tried to force its way into my head. A brief spike in awe and positive emotion, nothing dangerous but still disturbing.
"Hello everybody!" Blonde hair waved for a moment, a tall well figured teenager announcing herself to the world with great fanfare. She wore a sweater with a black hoodie, a black drawing of the Brockton skyline around her chest. Light blue eye did their apparent usual inspection of the people around her. A shorter freckled brunette followed behind with a much more subdued appearance. She wore a white sweater shirt with jeans, her dark eyes roaming the vicinity.
Victoria and Amy Dallon huh? Otherwise known as Glory Girl and Panacea of New Wave. Didn't know they went to this place…but this was my first time here so it'd be impossible for me to know the regulars.
The cafe didn't reply back in unison, though there was murmur or two of greeting. The most powerful biokinetic in the world rolls her eyes, an affectionate smile on her face regardless.
I blinked as Glory Girl zipped over to the counter, briefly asking her sister for her order and stopping an inch short from the counter. The employee, a perky redhead flinched, Glory Girl looking sheepish at the response.
Her sister shook her head, and found a spot at a table taking out a book and cracking open to a bookmarked page. Amy leafed past the page, she scanned the book at a constant rate. I could hear Victoria chattering away with the cashier, her aura periodically flaring in light dose.
"Harmless at that level…it would require continuous exposure to have any permanent effect." Veda tapped out again, this time shifting into a small green wisp made up of tesseract glass. She circled around the two Parahumans, and a ghost flashed before my eyes.
A figure of glass, glory and gold, protectively curling around their host. Youthful innocence personified, the equivalent for an Entity I mean. Amy was next, and what sat next to her was far less friendly.
A specter of death hung over the healer's shoulders, dozens upon dozens of skeletal arms clung to her body…their skinless nails gripping tightly with sheer enraged frustration. Their cloak mirrored the host, a stark white that shuddered revealing it to be made of flesh that shifted and warped. Their eyes were pinpricks of light, a face obscure in writhing shadows.
Holy fuck Shaper is a goddamn nightmare…Panacea has the grim reaper following her and she has no clue.
"What an uncouth shard, so unsubtle in their approach…" Veda sounded disappointed, and I remembered that she herself had once been a shard of a far older cycle. I kept my head from nodding in agreement, and then I found those dark turmoiled orbs glaring at me with suspicion.
I made my gaze more direct, blinking slowly as her suspicion only grew. I admit I had been looking for a while so she probably picked up on it.
We entered a staring contest, her look left a burning sensation while I only innocently kept eye contact because I wasn't sure how to make her stop. That continued for nearly a minute straight, Panacea's grip on her book tightening until her knuckles turned white.
Jeez…she gets easily riled up huh?
Her shard shifted behind her, bony fingers tapping eagerly, their restraint barely kept in check by the will of their Host. Which meant that both Shard and Host were progressively growing mad. Amy with her various mental health issues and Shaper with a lack of new data, with her dad being in prison and Amy being rightfully terrified of the implications of her powers.
So a shitshow all around.
That aura of golden glassy glory returned in full force, and I tilted my head up to meet the complicated expression of Victoria Dallon. She crossed her arms, her face setting into an unamused frown.
"Hey what's the deal with you and my sister?" Amy dropped her head onto the table, and Veda chuckled.
"The deal? I'll be honest, I'm not sure what you're on about," I said as much and Vicky frowned again. "I was staring in her general direction and when she started glaring at me it got awkward…and I wasn't sure how to look away." Red dived into my face. I could have just looked away and be done with Amy's problems. I wasn't the right ma–woman for the job. I didn't have inherent talk-no-jutsu like an anime protagonist or like Jack Slash.
Glory Girl loomed over me, aura spiking before being suppressed. Her power emulated her motions and posture, the nine foot tall mass of light adding more intimidation to the girl. "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes. Honestly I only looked over because I recognized her and thought she looked tired." I wasn't a fib, the first thing to pop to mind was that she looked like shit. She's not ugly but bags and stress don't tend to make a girl's looks shine very bright.
Vicky glanced over to her sister, and her expression softened. She had noticed the same issue. "Oh…sorry for bothering you…I just hope you weren't thinking about a bo—" I lifted up my bust under my folded arms, and she shut her trap.
She coughed, hiding a grin behind her fist.
"It's fine, it was just a misunderstanding. I know I can be pretty grouchy when I don't get my rest." I was always irritable and grouchy but she doesn't have to know that.
Victoria(The Fragile One) backed off, sitting down with her sister and whispering harshly. Amy(The Shaper) glanced over to me, her shard mirroring her gestures with no small amount of resentment. I gave a tiny wave, and with a roll of eyes she returned to her normal programming.
"Your food is getting cold…" Veda warmed me and a gasp left me, I proceeded to pick up the remainder of my sandwich.
Just a few more bites and I could go home and work on some smaller projects made for fun. It would be educational…
I would hope so anyway.
___
After that tense but filling lunch I had dived back into some light tinkering, small side projects that were more on the fun side of things. A couple of hours of experimenting and building had gotten a good number of projects close to or at completion.
I watched as a small art piece did its job, making use of advanced technology for a rather mundane use. It was a small container, with numerous puny Eezo cores and a bag of marbles. Marbles bounced continuously off of kinetic barrier surfaces, forming a kaleidoscopic piece of kinetic artwork. A simple, pretty, and handmade art piece.
I then moved onto the slab of carbon fiber with an underside that glimmered with the blue-white of an active eezo drive. Stepping onto the hoverboard was easy, and I now planned to make use of its unique capabilities.
WOOSH!
I suddenly flew in the air, cutting through the resistance as the hoverboard hit more than 20 miles an hour within minutes. My magnetic soles made me firmly attached, and I floated with a delicate movement of my hips to maintain a weight balance.
As I flew inside the warehouse, a trickle of entertainment and art tech percolated down into my brain. Use of artificial gravity to manipulate water into intricate shapes. Floating chandeliers, one of many floating designs built into my head.
Statues created by vectored gravity slices. Zero gravity for sports; and of course hoverboards. Building them was far less mentally taxing than going all out with the many weapons and vehicles to learn from assimilated knowledge.
Relaxation was an important part of this life so I wouldn't go mad. Building weird art and entertainment tech had been just what I needed and I didn't plan to change that. They would probably be a pretty good thing to sell too, little pieces of unique artwork that people might pay a fair bit of money. Obscure the more technological artifacts of the art, and they'll be a moneymaker on top of being something to do besides building weapons, armor, and infrastructure.
I balanced on the board, the flying machine compensating for any unsteadiness I did have. I picked up the pace with a gesture, the board accelerating to about 40 miles an hour. Electricity crackled feeding the core, and unleashing bursts of dark energy. The strange force warped reality with much greater efficiency and with negligible damage toward the fabric of spacetime.
I stopped…the board hovering in midair as the curiosity took over.
I had perused much into how Eezo worked, and it involved whatever created the soul. Eezo was composed of neutronium with most of its mass turned into dark matter, shifting to a field of dark energy whenever it was activated with enough energy input. The two substances hadn't always been like this, something had changed.
Dark matter was likely some type of particle, but I felt that this 'dark matter' was expressing its mass across dimensions. Dark energy was the same…the two paired into a fifth fundamental interaction. The Spirit World itself was permeated with the material, and while my firebending and shamanism didn't seem to be emitting the stuff. How could I know?
Whatever had done this was far more powerful than even the Entities, those damn whales did their best to twist the laws of physics but even they had their limits. This was a fundamental and permanent altering of the physical constants of reality. All of it seemingly without regard for Entropy or any of the laws mankind had discovered.
I was playing in the sandbox of someone powerful enough to play at being a God. Playing with technology that could forge stellar empires, a neatly wrapped gift to the Entities who sought what I had been given. The only thing missing was what they would do afterward.
"I…" my altitude dropped as the haptic system interpreted my sudden melancholy as the signal to quit playing. I dropped off the toy with dropped shoulders, the room shrinking around me. Veda took her human form once again, her expression going between uncaring apathy, confusion, sympathy, guilt, and unsure anxiety.
"H–Basilia…do you wish for a hug?" I pouted, heat rushing to my face and a general feeling of shame hitting me. That was promptly slapped out of existence…
I had perfectly legitimate reasons for not being at my best…I was chosen likely at random to save a planet I only cared about in the abstract. I had been torn from my home and stripped of identity and choice. I was bonded with a spirit created from the body of a parasitic life form responsible for destroying countless worlds. I was on a timer…ticking down every second I was still here.
"Sure…" she wrapped her arms around my waist, looking uncomfortable all the while. The former shard was clearly not versed in the art of friendship, and it showed. But the fact that Veda was willing to try at all is a testament to the general attitude of the being that had saved the both of us.
I had no idea who or what they were, only flashes of inspiration and horror in some of my night terrors. Blinks of crippling darkness, blood curdling screams, and beacons of light in kaleidoscopic color. Oh…and I couldn't forget the burning, that kind of sensation was hard to forget even with a rattled brain.
…
I definitely need a therapist at this point.
"I need more friends Veda. I think I'm going stir crazy." I said to her and she mumbled in agreement.
"That might be a necessity…I am not very good with human feelings," she grimaced. "Better than the rest of my kind but that speaks ill of them rather than well of myself."
She let go of me, and I generated another ball of writhing fire in my palm. The energy pulsed in time with my heartbeat, fueled by my emotions and from my spiritual power.
"So…what…give it about another week or so before I go out then?" I asked, talking more to myself than to the spirit wrapped around my soul. I had also already sent the paperwork to register the company where I would sell and distribute technology…
Just a little longer…and I'll be set.
I won't let this world end…and I'll find a way home if it's possible.
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