Chương 46: The New and the Familiar [½]

[You have been granted access to the portal world Endless Horde of the Sunken Land by an administrator.] At that, Scarlet looked at the Historian, then down at herself, before turning to face the outer edge of the gaping pit. Sunken land indeed. Kilometres apart and arranged around the pit's perimeter were what looked like different dwellings.

Some were permanent fixtures like cabins and houses, others were obviously temporary dwellings, and a few were completely foreign to her, like the one that hovered in the air. A quick Inspect told her it was a 'Tier 3 Hover Home', whatever that was. What was more interesting to her however was the actual dirt the pit and surrounding land was made from.

Despite the entire place resembling a barren wasteland, the information from the Resource Tome she'd absorbed before was telling her that the soil here was a phenomenal material for planting. She must have been projecting because Maus blinked from her shoulder to the ground then back before announcing that'the dirt here feels all wiggly wobbly'.

'Wiggly wobbly?' She inquired.

'Yeah Boss. It's shifty!'

'Shifty...' Shifty, barren dirt that was also great for planting? She tried Inspecting it, but it felt almost as though the Skill was having difficulty focusing. The info-layer was also somewhat unhelpful. It felt like trying to read a book through frosted glass. The words were there, she just couldn't quite make them out. The Historian brought them to one of the more modest villas within the Vulpian faction's territory, and Scarlet shelved her musings for later as she refocused on her surroundings.

"We'll be staying here?" she asked.

"We will be staying here," the Historian said, pointing to himself and the irate Tareth-cicle.

"And you will be staying down there." Scarlet stared at him expressionlessly.

"In the Sunken Land with the Endless Horde." It wasn't a question, not that the Historian was paying much attention.

"Before that, I have so many questions for you. Come, come. To the study!" He walked a short distance away and only turned back when he realised she wasn't following. Scarlet looked down at herself and let her incredulity show.

"Right, right. Take tonight; rest and recover. Answers can wait for tomorrow."

'Answers tomorrow, he says,' Scarlet sent to Maus.

'Answers tomorrow?' her bond- No, her Familiar sent back. His confusion at her displeasure was endearing enough that most of her bad mood was dispelled. Shaking her head, she thought about all the information she'd be sure to extract from the Historian. The library was in a distant world now, one she didn't know when she'd be able to return to. That information was vital, and if she couldn't get it from the books, she'd extract it from the Historian himself.

If he thought he was getting a scrap more out of her before he shared what she wanted, he was mistaken. She took a deep breath and re-centred herself.

'Don't worry about it,' she told Maus, as a floating orb bobbed into view and pulsed once in front of her.

"Hello, honoured guest. Please allow me to escort you to your resting accommodations." The voice was androgynous but surprisingly melodic. The orb itself was metallic and covered in those enchantments that fascinated Scarlet. She Inspected it. [Tier 1 Assistance Orb ⅛: This orb was created by Gek Smithson (T1) of the FelisCanis Enchanters Union. This is a single part of a larger unit enchanted to act as housekeeping and general aid within remote and unoccupied dwellings…] The information went on, but Scarlet was most interested in what this FelisCanis was, as well as how to obtain more information on enchanting. If it could create such objects, and even deemed them so low Tier, the potential applications back on Earth were nearly endless. Scarlet sank into thought as she allowed the floating orb to guide her to another suite. Once more, a door took her mana signature. This time, however, she put a sliver of psionic energy into it as well.

In the information layer, she gave the energy an instruction. It wasn't anything complicated, she didn't have that kind of power yet. Simply dissipate. When it triggered, the mana signature would be destroyed, and because the psionic energy was hers, she could do it from a distance... she hoped. <-... -> The bathing facilities in the room were no less luxurious than the previous ones, and Scarlet was taking full advantage.

'Maus, come scrub,' she told her companion.

'Boss,' he tried to negotiate.

'I swim?'

'Only after you scrub. You were in that water with me,' she replied as she vigorously scoured herself with a net sponge and soap.

'Boss, I can clean with my mouth.' He tried again. Scarlet paused and gave him a look until he obediently scampered close enough for her to set him on her knee. He had his own little pet-set and fur shampoo, and it took barely any time for her to lather and rinse her Familiar into a sopping wet, but incredibly clean, mouse.

"Now you can swim," she told him aloud. Before she'd even finished the words, he'd already Blinked into the large recessed bath. Sighing, she continued scrubbing herself down while checking her notifications. There were a lot to go through. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings. [Primordial Psion protocol: … subsume?] [Yes | No] [Yes] [Full Subsumption Commencing…] [Abort?] [Yes | No] [… commencing in 05… 03…] [Primordial Psion protocol: Full Subsumption in progress…] Full Subsumption? Looks like it had auto-triggered while she'd been distracted by, well, everything else. No wonder. She'd already been overwhelmed, and then came the deluge of power. Scarlet read on. [Warning: Soul instability detected] [Warning…] [Attempting stabilisation…] [Warning: Bond structure compromised. Reconstitution interrupted] [Reconstitution delayed] [… delayed…] This must have been when the reconstitution countdown reversed into a count-up. [Critical Warning] [Bond integrity below reconstitution threshold] [Permanent dissolution…] [External Affinity: Alignment… subsuming… exceeded…] [Achievement recognised: Attunement before Tier 1] [You have received System Rewards…] [Reconstitution accelerated… bond transformation… Familiar Bond established] [Primordial Psion protocol has Subsumed essence of Alignment… Trait…] There was so much to go through that Scarlet mainly skimmed it while focusing on the Interface. Based on the changes to her Status, she was able to vaguely cross-reference the notifications while working out the timeline of events, querying the Guide as she went. Name: Scarlet Bourne Level: 7 -> 9 Tier: 0 Stats Per Level (SPL): 10 -> 15 Base 3 -> 4 Titles 7 -> 6 Traits 5 Free Stats (FS): 15 -> 38 Titles: A Cut Above (+1 SPL) First Among Us (+5 SPL): A consolidation of multiple World First achievements.

This Title has growth potential. Traits: Early Adopter: Granted for meaningful action taken prior to full System Integration and beyond. You stand at the forefront of change. +5 SPL After accumulating multiple 'First' Titles and System Achievements, Early Adopter has become a System Recognised Trait. Increased base FS and Stat gain. Increased adaptation speed when exposed to novel circumstances. Instinctive awareness of unusual opportunities and developmental pathways.

Reduced penalties when integrating acquired skills. Increased cohesion between compatible skills. Primordial Psion: Innate sensitivity to surrounding psionic and energetic fields. Naturally reduces friction between internal systems and encourages harmonisation of conflicting and compatible energies. Additional and acquired information slightly increases the rate at which Stats, Skills, and soul structures may be understood and developed.

Psionic Shroud Soulsmith: You have demonstrated the ability to perceive, manipulate, and reconstruct soul architecture before reaching Tier 1. The System recognises your aptitude for soulcraft. You are now more attuned to soul resonance and slightly more attuned to soul phenomena. +1 to all Potential Stats. +1 to all Stats when reaching or exceeding every major Soul Milestone. System Guide True Anomalous Soul: Both within the System and without, your soul is unique.

Additional transformation has made your soul more flexible, resilient, and more resistant to external influence.

Stats: Strength: 5 -> 10 / 13 -> 17 Dexterity: 9 -> 11 / 15 -> 18 Vitality: 5 -> 10 / 13 -> 17 Perception: 14 -> 15 / 20 -> 24 Intelligence: 12 -> 13 / 15 -> 19 Willpower: 11 -> 14 / 15 -> 19 Mana: 9 -> 10 / 15 -> 18 Skills: Empathy (T1) Inspect (T2) Mana Manipulation (T2) Meditation (T2) Familiar: Maus Soul Anchor: Stable Familiar Status: Content • Tired Well, the notifications were beginning to make more sense. It looked like she'd reached Level 8 with the same 10 SPL.

Then she'd gained another 'First' Title, and her World First Titles had consolidated into First Among Us. After accumulating enough Firsts and System Achievements, Early Adopter had become a Trait. Following further progress and additional System recognition, Scarlet had advanced to Level 9 with 13 SPL, increasing her Free Stats to 38. Then, now that Early Adopter was a Trait, she'd gained another 2 Stats Per Level. Most incredible though was the increase to her baseline SPL bringing her total up to 15.

She hadn't even known that was possible. Did the Historian? Should she ask? She thought of Maus, of the life or death struggle to bring him back, of the vow she'd made to get the information she wanted before she revealed anything else. Of just how much simpler this would be if she only had more leverage, more information. She sighed. Now was a time to be happy. She'd done it. She'd be able to max her SPL cap before reaching Tier 1, and without any of the Historian's dubious assistance.

Without even batting an eye, she dumped her Free Stats into raising all of her stats to 25. Free Stats (FS): 38 -> 2 Stats: Strength: 10 / 17 → 25 Dexterity: 11 / 18 → 25 Vitality: 10 / 17 → 25 Perception: 15 / 24 → 25 Intelligence: 13 / 19 → 25 Willpower: 14 / 19 → 25 Mana: 10 / 18 Well, she raised all of her stats except Mana, but that was alright. All she'd need to do was level up. Besides, the Historian said he had ways to raise both her real and potential Mana stats. Why not save her FS?

Though, considering how the Pool Project(™) went, she wouldn't hesitate to figure something out herself when the time came - if the time came. Based on her calculation, however, it appeared Tier 0 was the only Tier where full Stat Saturation would be feasible. In that case, she'd be sure to do it properly. Looking at all of the changes on her Interface, Scarlet realised there was a lot to unpack there. Beginning with the Familiar Bond, and what that actually meant.