Changeling

2.7

Later that night, she used her new system to drive to the announced location without a hitch. This time, the portal was hidden in a public park in district twenty-two, closed at night. Nestra had to infiltrate the place via the expedient means of climbing over a fence. The camera detector proved useful by identifying the only camera around which pointed at the entrance, a fortunate side effect of being at the periphery. A sensation of relief announced the presence of a portal, then she followed her instincts until she found the familiar blue radiance tucked inside what looked like an abandoned enclosure. It was closed to the public, possibly why it was still undetected.

Or was it?

Whoever directed her to these portals probably had a way to disable humans peacefully, like the janitor had been, but there were also no government employees around and those were the first to come once a portal had been declared. That meant that they were able to find portals that were hidden, matched the difficulty she could handle, and were dozens of kilometers apart from each other. That would require an ability to perceive portals that no humans could possess, at least to her knowledge. Between this and the book, it indicated what she’d suspected.

She wasn’t alone. There were others like her. At least one.

“You sure you don’t want to show up?” she asked the empty concrete. “I know you’re watching me.”

Silence was the only answer.

“Oh fine.”

Nestra pushed her way through the portal.

***

Another cavern. Scintillating blue light shone from crystals dotting the ceiling, giving enough light that she could see the soft silvery note of the sheer rock. This place was deep, wet, and pure with a pleasant smell that complimented the richer mana. The only sound was the chime of falling condensation. Nestra readjusted her armor which felt a little tight.

“Hmmm.”

This biome was not immediately familiar. She pulled the database and found some references. Possibly stone creatures or mushrooms. Wasn’t she still a little bit green for that? Obviously the portals were gaining in strength though they were still at the lower end of the D-class. Whatever. Her benefactor wouldn’t send her here to die. Probably.

She set out, quickly arriving in a large cavern. Rather well lit. Stalactites hung from a high ceiling, and an instant later she found out where all that light was coming from: jellyfishes. Child-sized jellyfishes floating in the air with four tendrils dancing under a bulbous head. The first one drifted in her direction. An azure streak of lightning danced between its tentacles as they seemed to taste the air. She unsheathed her blade and waited.

This was a perfect opportunity to test the Stalk of the Scornful Crescent the book contained. There was something in the style that resonated with Nestra, not a series of movements but a philosophy of combat she thought might suit her. The issue was that it required experience and she didn’t have much against monsters so… this was a good opportunity to start.

The jellyfish seemed to blur as it was only a dozen paces away. Nestra darted to the side as it was moving, dodging a grasping tendril. Her counter batted the limb away but failed to cut. Her target was simply too resilient and the limb, too light. She was not coating it in mana either as the effort was still too tiring. That was fine. Move in reaction. Never stand and wait. Always counter, always dominate and never give your opponent a moment of peace. That was the goal of the Scornful Crescent. For that, she needed to improve.

The jellyfish struck forward with two tendrils. She dodged left, then right under a back swing. She could see the tentacles, the way they wound up, the way the suckers at the end contracted ever so slightly before each strike. The jellyfish pushed her back and she let it. She felt for the flow. It was a slow, uncomplicated dance and she was learning quickly. She started batting the tentacles aside as the fight progressed and she moved back towards the cave’s entrance. More jellyfishes were approaching, however. She didn’t want to be overwhelmed.

The creature facing her blurred again. She collapsed on herself, seeing an actininic cloud pass overhead. Nestra stood and struck at the same time.

Her blade caught the tender, vulnerable bulb and sliced it in half. Strange organs and transparent blood fell and the jellyfish slowly collapsed on itself, the lights fading in dying embers. The next two jellyfishes were in range so they performed their little charge. Nestra dodged the first then hid behind it to stop the second. She kept her footwork tight and efficient. Dodge, block, deflect attacks. Electricity shone on the blade but it absorbed everything and even if it didn’t, the armor would.

A feeling of exhilaration slowly filled Nestra. This was it, the Scornful path. She could feel the meaning behind it albeit faintly. The benefactor was right. It really suited her. As a new jellyfish joined the fray, she stepped out of range of the second and closed on the first. It turned on itself, sending its tentacle in a side whip attack just as she knew it would. She blocked the first and ducked under the second.

Plant foot. Twist.

“Yaaar.”

A powerful upward swing, perfectly timed. The blow splattered the jellyfish’s innards over that of the newcomer and she felt its power fill her soul. A blur at her back and she dodged the first one. It stood in front of her, recovering. A thrust. Her blade easily found the tender flesh. A down strike. The jellyfish was gutted. Three opponents dead. Damn armor was stifling her though. Too tight. Blocked her sensation.

“Come on then.”

She kind of wanted to bite them but… maybe poisonous.

With three opponents, the dance grew more frantic but now she had all the cavern for herself as those were the last foes. Dancing on the rock, she kept one always at a distance. The jellyfishes smelled strangely of brine. Their attacks were familiar to her now and she fell into a rhythm. Dodging and blocking became a patient exercise until she was sure she had them, understood them. Then, it was time to strike.

With a vicious smile, she sidestepped a lunge and charged. Her blow devastated the first enemy then she batted the next tentacle into the head of the third jellyfish.

Electricity coursed down the limb as it connected. She saw it as a blue fluorescence along the extended limb.

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The head exploded.

It did so with a loud pop but the innards spraying her armor caught Nestra off guard and she jumped back in surprise. That was all it took.

Three tentacles latched on her arm and twisted. She heard the nylon give, and the plate underneath was peeled off like a torn tin can. A stinging jolt made her swear.

Urgency.

Nestra brought her sword close and sliced, imbuing the edge with mana. She cut through all three tentacles. The pressure decreased while the head now shone with frantic lights. With a roar, she stepped forward and ravaged it with a furious downward strike. The beast was dead before it hit the ground.

“Shit shit shit.”

Colorful creatures were always either venomous or poisonous or both. A brief study of her arm in the faded light showed dark dots over the gray skin of her biceps. Some blood had pooled. The last of the crimson color turned gray as it formed scabs. That was… fast. Very fast. No D-class people matched this speed of regeneration. She waited anxiously for tingles, or signs or poison. Nothing so far, which was good because she had no appropriate antivenoms and general purpose antidotes were really, really expensive.

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Calming down, she pulled her database. Jellyfishes, jellyfishes, jellyfishes, ah. Match. Rhopilemana Azuridae Aeris. Cave Jennies. The database said a contact with unprotected skin sent enough electricity to stun a D-class raider and they mangle a limb in a second. Those were real D-class monsters because of their dash, though on the lowest end. She was getting stronger! More importantly, they were edible. Wait no, bad Nestra. Money first.

Their cephalic serum can be harvested and used in high-end anti-aging beauty products. They could be sold at seven hundred credits a vial! Nestra looked at the liquid hopelessly splattered across the ground. She should have found the entry before deciding to go full destroyer. Gah. Oh, but their tentacles could be cooked at low temperatures and eaten as a salad! That was great. She cut half a dozen of them — all her backpack could contain — then looked around.

There were mushrooms on the wall.

“Jackpot.”

And they were edible too. Low level mana mushrooms according to the database. Nestra happily harvested several handfuls with images of garlic and parsley in her head. Once done, she looked around to make sure there wasn’t anything she’d forgotten.

There was also the question of her armor set.

Mundane armor helped against monsters. There was no denying it. The actual question was, how much. The set strained against her skin and hampered her movements to a degree. Soon, it would be more trouble than it was worth. Perhaps even now. She had to replace it and soon but how? Material harvested in portals were considered ‘exotic’ because they broke the laws of physics. Raider gear used exotic material almost exclusively, which implied costly sourcing and handmade gleam craft. A new armor set would be stupidly expensive even before going to the black market. Getting high tech gear that could still hold its own meant getting jailbroken corpo stuff. That was one of the fastest way to get mysteriously ‘disappeared’.

Fuck, maybe Gorge had a way to help but that would cost a load of credits, one she didn’t have. Well, that was for later.

After some hesitation, Nestra decided to keep the armor on. For now.

A narrow alley continued, eventually leading to a smaller cavern containing three jellyfishes. This time, she cut their limbs at the base which made them slowly fall. That brought ten vials of brain juice she could sell. The third cavern posed as much of a challenge, but soon she approached the end of the portal world. This time, she had a good look around and found… nothing.

The cavern was large, larger even than the first. Small crystalline structures provided perfect visibility, even for human eyes. The blue radiance bounced on the walls to provide a diffuse background to a central boulder. A small altar at the back announced that this was the end of this portal world. Nestra could guess what this was about and it would not be easy. This time, she would be using her gun. One bullet should be enough.

She stepped towards the boulder and stopped when it shifted. With a rumble, cracks appeared on the black surface. Rocky limbs randomly detached from a massive torso, its surface cracked and pitted. The creature finished deploying itself with a low, rumbling growl. This one had three legs, a chest and two arms leading to a cone that it would probably use as a hammer. After all, it was not technically alive.

Animana Lapis Unus. A monocore stone golem. A real D-class threat.

That was it, the true test of mettle. Golems like this one came in many shapes, hence why she had waited to engage rather than catching a surprise attack from a mystery limb.

When she was young, her father had trained her to fight against those threats. Golems struck in wide, powerful swings that raiders could not easily block. Without a defense specialist, they could not block it at all. That was why golems made every fight harder. One could not stand their ground against this force of nature.

The creature turned to Nestra then moved forward ponderously. It was slightly slower than a running human. Not that it mattered. In a cavern, there was nowhere to hide, and a golem never tired.

Nestra faced the creature. It was as tall as her but much, much wider. As it approached, it raised one of its massive arms. There was no hand, only pure, solid stone.

Nestra felt very alive.

Walking into the attack, she struck at the exposed chest with a mana-infused blade. It was so thick. Like hitting a wall. She stepped to the side and slashed at a leg then dodged under a return swing, then she jumped over the next and sidestepped around another leg. The three legs made the golem rather quick but it had trouble rotating. Her next lunge bit into its powerful torso then she jumped back, avoiding a headbutt. As it passed by, she struck where the neck would be. She was already tiring from the constant drain of coating her blade, but that should be enough.

The cuts on the legs and arms were slowly healing but the one on its front torso was already closed, a darker shade of stone the only hint the creature had been damaged. That meant the core was there. The closer to the core, the faster the regeneration. She didn’t dare make some distance. It would be useless. Had to finish fast. Already, her heart drummed against her chest and her breath grew more labored. She needed a coated blade.

Jumping over a low strike, Nestra thrusted into the center of the chest. The golem shuddered and took a step back.

She could see it, a small bulge where the liver would be. Just at the right spot.

Nestra drew her gun and shot.

The thunderous blow almost deafened her. The revolver kicked like a mule on steroid, forcing her back even with her enhanced strength. Her forearm and elbow stung. A moment later, shards showered her.

A cerulean radiance emerged from the shattered stone in the form of a dripping, thick liquid. The core.

The golem shook from the damage. Weakness. An opening. A grin erupted on her lips. This was so great.

A perfect lunge.

The tip of the sword crashed into the core, breaking it with a ghastly crack. The golem stopped moving. It didn’t fall or collapse. No longer a foe, for the enemy was now a statue.

Victory once again.

“Hell yes. I’m the best!”

Nestra felt like whooping. She’d done it! A serious foe defeated by herself! That was well done, if she dared say so herself. The Stalk of the Scorn Crescent really helped her guide her style. And it was versatile too!

Nestra picked up golem crystal shards. The intact core could fetch a great price since they could be used to animate guardian constructs for wealthy houses. Sadly, the cores were excessively hard to harvest since, quite obviously, the golem objected. The shards would still fetch a decent price as a crafting material for heavy armor. Nestra hummed under her breath. Three mana crystals this time! She was rich. Well, not yet. But surely soon!

The portal back was uneventful and there was another package with a letter waiting for her by the primate enclosure entrance.

Nestra sighed and read.

“Little Nezhra!

You have done very well but you need to eat more! I have found this for you. Here are the coordinates of your last playing ground before we start on the real fun!

Quest: grow strong enough to use spells.

Reward: skin!”

“What the fuck?”

Her prize this time was a basket of fruits. And some nuts. But that wasn’t the weird part. The weird part was that those were clearly outside world fruits. Wild ones. They were ripe too. Some of the nuts were still partially wrapped in damaged green pods. Mana fruits were considered particularly nourishing and those found in the wilds, even more so. They also helped with growth, at least for humans. And they were delicious.

Nevertheless, Nestra felt treated like a child. Seriously, the benefactor was like a grandma. So far she’d seen them as a mysterious and powerful entity and clearly they were but… were they not also a little bit dumb? And since when were fruits an acceptable payment?

There were some tiny fruits that looked like tiger bananas with black spots. She picked one.

It was amazing.

“Mff!”

Had to have more. No, wait, she had to leave first. This place wasn’t secure.

Nestra changed in record time then left the park at a brisk pace, carrying her ‘liberated’ new possessions like some sort of loot goblin. She drooled all the way back to her secret lair then had the AI drive her home so she could sample the fruits. They were really amazing. She only refrained from finishing everything because she had the jellyfish as well. Once home, she saw Stib had left her a message asking to meet and apologizing for going off grid. She would reply the next day. First, food!

It took a long time for the jellyfish to be ready. She used her cooking robot to shred it and cook it at low temperature, but when it was done, she had it in sesame and soy sauce. It was crunchy and delicious. She cooked the mushrooms herself as a fricassee and felt very proud of herself. It was absolutely scrumptious. Her great mood was interrupted when her fangs found a mushroom of a slightly different consistency. A bit more spongy. As she bit down, a strange, leathery taste filled her palate. She immediately spat out her mouthful.

“What?”

One of the mushrooms was different. It looked like a morel. She hadn’t noticed.

“I hope aaaawawa. Wa?”

Nestra was super sleepy. Also, the room was now a bright yellow and the walls were leaking mustard. Her fork extended into infinity while the mushrooms danced themselves into an intricate, fractal pattern.

“Guh?”

Nestra’s mouth felt weird, paralyzed. A shape drifted down from the ceiling wearing a bathrobe. It was, she realized, a kangaroo.

“Hey what's cookin’?” the marsupial asked in a husky voice.

“Moh!”

Then, he pulled boxing gloves from a waist pocket, which was silly because they definitely couldn’t fit.

“I want you to know that I take no pleasure in this,” the kangaroo said.

Nestra’s bowl grew in size until it covered the whole of creation. There were stars in there, an abyss that watched back with bloodshot eyes and asked her if she would make a run for tacos. She said hell no and laid down on the ground to contemplate the nature of her existence.

***

Nestra’s mind palace looked like someone had used a shotgun on paint canisters.

“Fuck.”

The walls twisted a little as she went by, checking the changes. There were no new resistances, however the storm core was just a little thicker and the interesting change came from the planet room.

As Nestra entered, she felt a potential in the slowly rotating spheres, but the newest change was from the puddle over which the sphere rotated. It felt deeper, not by much, but enough that the ground underneath wasn’t so clear anymore. She dipped a finger in and felt the caress of quiescent potential. The color of the puddle was gray, just like her spells.

“That’s my mana.”

Good to know that, just like every ability, it could be improved by killing things.

Approaching the cores, she tried something new. The strength core had grown again. She felt that it was strong enough to… attach, somehow? Link. It was strong enough to link. There was only one other core that was developed enough to matter, the one that dealt with speed and precision.

Nestra wasn’t sure how she knew what to do, possibly inborn instinct. Those two could be joined, allowing for a new concept to travel between them. She wove that tether with hesitant fingers. The gestures were instinctive, yet also unfamiliar. She really wished the benefactor would just stop for a one hour discussion instead of playing hide and seek and letting her flounder like an idiot, but apparently they shared her social grace. By that point, Nestra was cursing under her non-existent breath. The work was difficult but as she progressed, she understood what was implied.

The power core was strength, the ability to push, to press, to beat, to pressure. The speed core was the ability to move and react, to be precise. Together, they became strength in motion. The tether was… she almost had it.

It was momentum.

With a last mental click, the tendril locked in place and the planets escaped, now rotating in harmony with each other. It didn’t change anything for the others but they felt more… ordered, somehow. As if something had been completed and the chaos was lessened. It felt great.

And then Nestra woke up.