Chương 123: Book 4 - Wakey Wakey

Eternal Spark Book 4 - Chapter 1 Synopsis Two years remain of the integration as everything is starting to come to a head. Joe has just awoken from his 6-month slumber to find out that Zevra, the old Seer, has a secret to reveal about her true purpose on Thropia. At the same time, the second Star Shard competition is soon to begin, sparking a confrontation between Joe and the two Space Brothers. Will he overcome their combined strength and claim a shard? Or will another one slip through his grasp?

Join Joe as he struggles to deal with his forgotten heritage and meets his siblings, discovering a long-hidden secret. All the while the Devourer stirs, and the clock ticks closer to its awakening. What will happen when it awakens? Will any of them be safe? The integration's finale is about to begin.

Joe blinked as he tried to make sense of his surroundings. His head throbbed dully, and the soft weight beneath him told him he was lying on a bed, but he couldn't remember getting here. The last thing he recalled was his mana bars emptying. Everything after that felt lost behind a fog he couldn't quite pull apart. He rubbed at his temple, searching for memories that refused to surface. A soft sound pulled his attention left. Corel sat in a chair beside him, watching quietly.

That alone felt odd; normally, he woke up with her lying beside him or half-wrapped around him. It took him a moment before he managed to push himself upright and speak.

"What happened? How long was I out?" he asked.

"Six months," Corel said.

"What? Six months?" he repeated, stunned.

'Wakey, wakey,' Uriel chimed.

'Kakakakaka.'

"Did anything happen while I was out?" Joe asked.

"Nothing important," Corel said as she rose. She knelt by the bed and gently guided his forehead to hers. A pulse flowed through their touch, and memories rushed into him. Her wrapping his body beneath Yggdrasil, the small routines of daily life, Esha and Gao competing in events, gates being cleared, points being earned. It was… startlingly normal. Peaceful, even.

"I guess I'm the cause of most of the crazy things we get into, then," he joked. Corel chuckled and patted his cheek.

"I missed you," she whispered.

"I missed you, too," he murmured as they embraced. After their… reunion, they made their way into the main room, where everyone waited. Esha was the first to leap up and rush him, fussing over him and checking for what she called "deficiencies." Beneath her playful glare lingered a thin thread of worry.

"I'm sorry I made everyone worry," Joe said, sincerely.

"We're used to it," Esha replied, giving his arm a light punch.

"This time was a… long one. Try not to do that again." He nodded. Joe tenderly took a seat and listened intently as his friends updated him on everything he'd missed over the past six months. Once again, nothing wild had happened. A few more inhabitants from other worlds had settled in Heliopolis, turning it into a refuge for survivors from the defeated. Some worlds were contributing more now, but most of the top ten still focused on themselves.

"There are only twelve worlds left in the integration," Gao reported.

"We're still sitting at eleventh, but the gap is small. Not small enough, though. Have you looked at the integration screen yet?" Joe shook his head.

"Did something happen? Should I check it now?" Gao nodded, so he pulled out his personal pillar and opened the integration section. The moment the screen loaded, he saw what she was hinting at. Resource Grab challenge in effect from World Ranked 10. 5 days remaining.

"When was this issued?" Joe asked as he scrolled through the list of defenders. The names were mostly familiar, with a few new ones.

"Twenty days ago," Gao said.

"We've started preparations. We should…" Joe raised a hand, stopping her mid-thought as he signed up and bumped the lowest-ranked defender off the list. With his number-one rank on Thropia, he could enter any competition regardless of capacity.

"I'll handle it. Can you let everyone know to withdraw? They won't be needed." Esha and Gao exchanged a long, cautious look before Gao faced him.

"Are you sure? We can help. And… are you even in fighting condition right now?" Joe glanced down at his arm, then smiled. The edges of it bordered on manic, and Esha burst out laughing.

"I think the Farmer has improved again," she said, grinning.

"Again? Can I see your stats one more time?" Gao asked, chuckling. Gao went over a few more important updates before she and Esha disappeared to inform the others on the Resource Grab list to remove their names. Joe was a little surprised at how quickly they accepted his request. Sometimes he forgot just how much sway he held, at least when he wasn't being bullied. Alice and Felicia had already left to resume training the brats, who were still inside the village's training Gate.

That left Corel, Tevenny, and Valeri. Joe's gaze drifted to Tevenny, who had undergone drastic changes over the last six months. Her skin had almost fully returned to the yellow hue of her previous body, except for her fingertips, which still held a faint brown tone. She also wore a dark brown and green leather toga, similar to the one Corel favored. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. What stood out most, though, was the new mask across her face.

It wrapped over her eye sockets like a smooth visor, metallic, yet somehow wooden at the same time. When she noticed his stare, she stepped closer and guided his hand to it.

"It's made from something called Uridium," Tevenny explained as she let his fingers trail across the cool surface.

"Feels metallic… but something's different. Hard to tell exactly what I'm touching," Joe murmured, inspecting the unfamiliar material.

"Where did you get it?"

"It was a quest reward," Tevenny said. As Joe let go, she stepped back and exchanged a glance with Corel, who answered with a small smile before settling back in her seat. Joe raised an eyebrow, tempted to pry, but thought better of it. Probably wiser not to dig into that one. Tevenny had also styled her hair again to match Corel's. It now flowed in a long auburn braid nearly to her waist. And her antennae had grown more prominent, long, drooping, with light brown tips, where Valeri's remained short stubs.

Overall, Tevenny carried an aura of strength her race didn't normally possess, being primarily a peaceful race. The shift gave Joe an idea as he turned toward Corel.

"Rel… was there anything else? You mentioned Zevra came by a couple of days ago?" Corel sighed.

"She knew you would wake today, and she requested you visit her as soon as you did," she said, clearly perturbed.

"That sounds like the old bag. But I'll deal with her later. First, I need help testing out my new body," Joe said, a spark lighting in his eyes.

"We already tested it. It's pretty good," Corel replied with a perfectly straight face. Now it was Joe's turn to turn a shade of red as he shook his head.

"I mean in a spar," he groaned, turning to Tevenny.

"Tev, would you join me for one?" Tevenny jumped to her feet with an eager smile.

"Yes!" A short while later, the four of them gathered at the training grounds. Joe rolled his shoulders and eased into a series of warm-up stretches, trying to work the stiffness out of muscles that hadn't moved in half a year. From the moment he awakened, he could tell this wasn't simply a fresh start; his entire body felt different. Calling it a 'new body' also wasn't quite right; it was still his, just… transformed from the inside out after the final vine and his long slumber.

He closed his eyes and focused inward. The first change hit him like a bucket of ice water: a near-complete, vein-like network ran through every inch of him. From his toes to the base of his neck, white vines traced a path like glowing blood vessels. And that led him to the disturbing realization that followed. He no longer had blood. Had those vines replaced it? The thought made his stomach twist. He pulled a small knife from his storage and pressed it to his fingertip.

It took far more force than he expected before he managed to slice open a tiny cut. What oozed out made his breath catch. A single white bubble formed where crimson should've appeared.

"Fuck me," he whispered, staring at the pale droplet. White blood? What the hell was he turning into? The wound sealed almost instantly as Nature's touch healed him, but there was no denying it. His body was changing in ways he didn't understand, and he could feel that an uncomfortable truth was drawing closer, whether he wanted it or not. Shaking off the unease, he refocused on the task at hand, sparring with Tevenny to loosen up and prepare for the looming Resource Grab.

Tevenny stood opposite him on the training grounds, bouncing from foot to foot as she signalled that she was ready. Joe grinned and lunged forward. He had underestimated his own strength. His body slammed into Tevenny with far too much force, but Tevenny rolled with the impact and drove a knee into his side, redirecting his reckless leap into a wild tumble that sent him crashing through the trees bordering the training grounds.

A moment later, Joe reappeared in the centre of the training grounds, brushing dirt from his shoulders as all three watched him with identical, blinking expressions.

"Oops, Sorry about that. Just a slight miscalculation. Shall we continue?" he said, settling into a stance. Tevenny nodded, completely unfazed. This time, she took the initiative, her form shimmering before vanishing from normal sight. Joe activated Farmer's Sight, spotting her mana-cloaked outline circling from his left. He raised his arm in time, catching her strike with a block that sparked a flash of surprise across her face. They traded a flurry of rapid blows before Tevenny leapt back to reassess.

"Try a psychic attack," Joe encouraged. He'd been hit by one of her specialty techniques once, and part of him was curious how it would affect him now. When Tevenny's eyes lit up, he immediately regretted the suggestion, but it was too late. A wave of psychic force hit him, and his surroundings warped. Suddenly he stood in an unfamiliar bedroom. Furniture lined the walls, framed pictures hung around the room, and a massive bed dominated the centre. He looked down at himself… completely naked.

Tevenny drifted toward him, equally unclothed, whispering.

"Hey," into his ear.

"AAAHHHHHH!" Joe roared as his Mana Stream erupted outward, cocooning him and shattering the psychic construct in an instant.

"Okay, new rule! No more psychic attacks!" he declared. Corel tilted her head at him in bafflement while Tevenny pouted in genuine disappointment.

"What did she show you?" Corel asked. Tevenny opened her mouth, but Joe threw his hands up in alarm.

"Ah! Ah! Nothing at all! The spar is over. I'm going to go and visit Zevra." He spun on his heel and marched toward the Seer's house.

"I'll tell you all about it," he heard Tevenny tease as she drifted toward Corel. Joe's walk turned into a jog. When would he learn? Psychics… He soon arrived at Zevra's home. The door was wide open, so he stepped inside. Zevra sat in her usual chair, eyes closed, an empty cup resting beside her. He decided not to bother making her tea this time and took a seat opposite her.

"Welcome back," she said without opening her eyes.

"How was your nap?"

"Quite eventful. I had some very interesting dreams," Joe replied.

"Dreams?" Zevra's voice sharpened just slightly.

"Yes. Very interesting dreams," he repeated, keeping it vague. The six months of unconsciousness had passed quickly for him, but the strange flashes he'd seen still lingered in his mind, refusing to settle.

"Enough small talk. I have a task…" Zevra said as she opened her eyes at last. Something in his appearance must have startled her; her gaze twitched in a way he'd never seen.

"I need you to help me retrieve an..." she waved her cane.

"An item? What kind of item?" Joe asked, curiosity piqued. Zevra rarely asked him for anything beyond tea; this was definitely new.

'Careful,' Uriel warned.

"A special one. The details aren't important. I just need you to help me gain entry and..."

"Entry? Is it inside a gate?" Zevra nodded.

"A quest?" She shook her head.

"And do you know where this gate is?"

"Yes. But we still have a few months before it opens." Joe leaned back, mulling it over. He already knew he would agree, but he made her wait a few extra moments out of principle. There was still so much he didn't understand about Zevra, but she'd never misled him, and she'd always been informative. He finally nodded.

"Sure. Just let me know when it opens. Until then, I've got a bunch of things to prepare for," he said, rising to his feet.

"You… never mind. We can talk about that later," Zevra muttered, waving him off with enough emphasis that he didn't dare push the question. Whatever she had been about to say, she clearly wasn't ready to share. With the brief visit finished, Joe stepped outside and stretched. Six months of unconsciousness or not, he still felt like he was coated in stale sweat. It was definitely time for a bath.