At the end of the testings Ale looked around and found the evidence of her shenanigans, most of the walls had some degree of markings from her claws, and a few some extra markings as she had taken off her shoes and started growing claws from her feet too, just to make sure these worked well (and to check her feet pads, they worked. Also they were squishy, and Ale liked very much how they felt).
But all that was good had to end at some point. So Ale ensured that everything was in order, that her tail was well groomed, and that her ears stood fluffy once again after rolling on the dirt for half an hour.
What? Her clothes? That was the easiest part; she only made sure her nanites took care of those. Her fur, however, was different and required a personal touch. She was the prettiestest of them all, of course, and she would make sure she was presentable in the things that mattered the most!
She had sadly needed to redesign her feet and hide her cat pads away. While nice to push at, they were awkward to walk on shoes, boots, or sandals with them (she checked). At least she could deal with her ears above her head and her tail easily enough. It wasn’t that hard to make some small modifications to her shorts so her tail could move unimpeded without hurting her.
So with that done she walked towards the door and-
“[Notice, host has not reversed the changes to body. Currently Beast Core - Cat modifications are active.]”
……Dang it.
“Do I need to?” Ale said as her ears fell flat atop her head, her tail stopped moving and entangled itself against her leg.
“[Yes, it is best if the current form is refined before exposing it to a broader public.]”
Her cute strategy didn’t work?
“[Host, we are not biological in nature, appareance means nothing unless it has an effect on our effectivity.]”
….dang it.
“Fine, store the current iteration of [Beast Core - Cat], and start simulation to optimize; we don’t really need all that extra fur that the [Blueprint] wanted to offer me, no matter how much I can alter my body make. I do not want to even have to deal with licking my whole body if I end up covered in fur from head to cat pads.” Ale said as she felt the Core on her chest start crumbling.
The weird energy that made it (Mana) seemed to evaporate away, but weirdly enough, it did not restore her storage of this energy. With the disappearance of the [Core], the changes to her body slowly started going away; her bones returned to a more normal composition. Her muscles stopped being flexible. Her joints became once more static.
She no longer felt nimble and was painfully aware that she would need to manually alter her body if she wanted to move like she had done before.
She also noticed how the world turned quiet, or more like, she was not able to hear or perceive as much as before; her eyes returned to normal. Not the ones she had before the change, but the base blueprint she had without any of the alterations that she had done.
“Main Core? Why did my body return to the base blueprint instead of the one I had before doing the change?” Ale asked just to make sure.
“[Inconclusive.]” Only to get that as an answer.
“Core?” Ale asked to the air.
Notice:
The change into a different base blueprint results in the return to a base blueprint.
Possible base blueprints to return are:
-Alexa Saintsworths, Child Stage (5 years old)
-Ale Saintsworths, Teenager Stage (12 Years old)
-Alexandra Saintsworths, Young Woman Stage (19 years old)
-THE CRAB!, insufficient materials to make. Modify or get the materials.
“Hmm….So if we are in danger or we are missing materials on our current body, what form would I return to?” Ale asked, since the blue box spoke only about base forms to return, and not about what conditions it would return from and into what.
Answer: The current default form is Alexa. Host's default form will change as you grow.
“Tch…Injustice, I declare injustice.” Ale said as she pushed open the door.
What she found was [Skye] and [Golem] sitting on the floor with some cards on their hands and some A-Bills and circular metal objects besides some weird small square objects, those seemed to had the same ending as the [DataBank] had to connect into a [PC].
“Hah!” [Skye] said pointing at Ale, “I told you she would exit as if nothing happened!”
“And I told you that it was a stupid bet, she is a ShapeShifter who also changes her clothes, it is impossible for her to exit with damaged clothes unless she wishes to do so.” [Golem] said as he put his hand atop the [Money], “Rhapsody, did you damage your clothes?”
…did she?
Ale looked down to her clothes, they looked a new, and perhaps even better than new, since she had just made them, again.
“These are new ones, since the previous ones were accidentally consumed,” Ale answered unsure about what this meant. “These are made exactly as the previous ones I had, so…does that count a damaged my clothes? I can make artificial wounds simulating what my original clothes would have experimented if needed?”
[Skye] seemed hurt at the answer, while [Golem] only smirked.
“See? She is a physical fighter, so it stands to reason that what she does would damage her clothes. It would have been another story if she had used the BodySuit or fought in the nude. But since she is a girl, that option was out from the start.” [Golem] said nodding his head sagely.
Ale…didn’t like that one last option.
“I would not fight in the nude if possible; I am not Alexa,” Ale said, unsure about why that had offended her that way. “Even with the new [Blueprints] I managed to create, none would leave me exposed.”
Well, one could potentially, but she would just end up with a coat of fur…that she didn’t want to have, but between being covered in fur or being exposed, sacrifices would need to be made… Why was she even this hung up on that anyway?
It was just skin and meat…It shouldn’t matter…It shouldn’t….WHY DID IT MATTER?!?!?!? WHAT THE HECK WAS THIS WEIRD AS HELL BRAIN CHEMISTRY OR FEELINGS TELLING HER THAT BEING EXPOSED WAS BAD?!?!?
“Rhapsody?” [Skye] said as she stood, “Trust me I get it, you are in that age. I used to like running around without a shirt when I was little, but as soon as I started hitting Puberty I never used strap blouses again.”
… Puberty?
The heck is Puberty?
“[State of active change within the human Blueprint. It is scheduled to kickstart between ages 12 to 16 in males and 10 to 14 to females.]” Main Core started speaking at the back of her mind, “[Changes range from increased growth spurt that makes the body change into the next Stage of growth by the increase of hormonal production, it also accelerates the growth of several key organs and changes their body proportion to facilitate the identification of gender. Side effects of this hormonal rush include changes in personality, tastes, and mood swings.]”
…she was not moody.
“[Host Teenager stage puts her at the middle of this state, so some weird hiccups in the conscious streams are expected.]”
“I’m not moody Main Core!” Ale said, glaring at the thing… which really meant that she was glaring at an imaginary spot in the room.
“....right. Should we…speak about this?” [Skye] said, looking worried, “Do you want me to snitch on Golem, betting on you exiting half naked?”
“I did not make such a bet.” [Golem] said from the side, “However, I did prepare some spare clothes in case that was the case. I have…the disgrace of having to require a new change of clothes after my first time using these facilities.”
She could not imagine how that would have looked, since he was basically a mass of rocks moving around.
“Thank you for the mental image I didn’t want.” [Skye] said from the side shaking her head. Ale…didn’t know what mental image that was, but she just shrugged.
She could ask [Skye] about that later, or poke Alexandra when they changed later for answers.
“Anyway, I got what I wanted. I have some [Blueprints] ready, but I will need to speak with [Billy] about them since they may interact with the [BodySuit]...Also they promised me an updated one too, so there is that.” Ale said trying to get the conversation away from her being moody.
She was not moody, dang it.
“Okay then, you girls do that. I will go and study my copy of the extended plan. I know my participation is merely a muscle. But I would like to know what to expect nonetheless.” [Golem] said as he walked away in the direction that went deeper into the facility.
Ale hadn’t explored that part quite yet, mostly because she knew that it would be less of a chore if they left it to Alexa, when she was in that stage she was the happiest and could to the most annoying things easily so long she framed it right.
So of course exploring the [Villain Hideout] was something she would enjoy more on her [Child Stage].
“Let’s go see that old goat then.” [Skye] said as she offered Ale her hand.
----------------------------------------
They arrived quite easily from this area of the base, it seemed that there was one elevator that could get them easily enough from the training room that [Golem] loaned her to the workshop of [Billy], even if said elevator seemed to be designed for the use of [Golem]...Or very heavy materials.
“ARE YOU DAFT?!?!? DO YOU WANT TO BURN IN HOLY FIRE OR SOMETHING?!?!?” As soon as they walked into the workshop they got blasted in the ears with that scream. Also, with the image of a very small old man screaming to a two-meter tall [Human], that should be a [Core User] if Ale’s sensors were to be believed.
She had taken some time (And some nibbles from materials here and there) to remake some of her extra sensory input. She would need to check if it was viable to make this into something to wear instead of having to move some of her organs and muscles here and there. It would be ridiculous if she had to replace a good amount of her arms because she needed a bigger radar sensor.
“THE ANSWER?!?!?” [Billy] continued screaming to the [Human] that should be more [Powerful] if Ale was to judge by appearance.
“I’m sorry sir…I…wanted to finish early…” Was what the bigger [Human] said as he seemed to want to make himself look smaller, of course that was impossible when one was two meter tall and probably weighed around 150 kgs of pure muscle.
“Hmph, young’ins don’t have fear these days… Moving two highly reactive agents on the same pallet…Should have let you burn yourself…” [Billy] said as he pushed some buttons in some parts of his belt and built a thing with spare parts that he sourced from all over his body. “Really, why do they even send me muscle heads… In my time, if we wanted to move something, we built a robot to do it for us… fricking Vulcanus getting soft I tell you…”
As soon as he finished building the small critter, [Billy] threw it at the canister that the [Human] had been moving, the thing SOMEHOW turned into two exact replicas, even though the original should not have enough mass to do such a thing, and each of them went and carried one canister each.
“There!” [Billy] said as the small flying devices carried that canister away, “Now, if you make a mess at worst, you will need a new arm or leg, but at least you will not explode; now get the heck out of my sight for the rest of the day.”
And with a paler face, the [Human] walked away slowly, turning to look at the canisters from time to time to make sure those stood straight and didn’t fall…
Ale wanted one sample if possible…
“Rhapsody? Sylph? What are you two doing here, and how did you get here without me noticing? I posted two minions with the job of making sure they informed me of you!” [Billy] said when he noticed them. “These minions are getting lazy! Lazy I tell you!”
He seemed to be in a weird mood…
“Come here girl, we need to do some tests, you made me work all night and then had the gall of not coming? The stupid twitch wouldn’t let me sleep! Whatever your body has it shouldn’t move that way, I mean. You burst your stomach the right way, but there wasn’t any pressure building up from Chrysalis! how does that even work!” [Billy] rambled as he pulled Ale toward a more isolated part of the workshop.
Ale was unsure if she should prepare to fight or not… But [Skye] seemed to be walking behind them shaking her head, if she was to guess, she would imagine her smiling wrily under her mask.
“There!” [Billy] said pointing at a door at the end, it had a [Sign] atop that read [Private area, only walk if you want to have Vulcanus checking on you should you find something you weren’t supposed to find out.] that sounded ominous enough. “You in the secret already Sylph?”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
On the secret?
“I know her face, but not the ins and outs of her power.” [Skye] answered, what secret?
“Your call, but if you walk in, you better be ready to spill the beans, that is only fair.” [Billy] said as he shoved Ale inside the door.
“[User Recognized, Rhapsody - Body Shifter.]” Ale heard from one of the speakers in the room.
“I will sit this one out, I will wait on your reception area if you don’t mind.” [Skye] said from the other side, “I will see you later Rhapsody!”
And like that she walked away, [Billy] looked at her and then turned to Ale, as he walked inside the room the door closed behind him and Ale could see an almost manic smile on him as he eyed her…
He looked like a [Predator].
“[User Recognized, Hermes - ExoSuit Tinker / Speed Tinker, Former Hero.]” The speaker announced.
“This is secure; the whole system is its own black box; not even Vulcanus can get inside without me noticing. And should anyone attempt to even peek at it, they will get a nasty virus nurtured by every tinker that walked through these same doors. If you want to add something to it you are welcome by the way.” [Billy] said as he pointed to one of the walls here with some sockets to it, “Fair warning, that access only work one way, so you will not be able to get anything out.”
….Main Core?
“[Host is adviced to not interface directly, faint mana readings are coming out of those connections.]”
…scary.
“This room is used to discuss more openly without fear of anything coming out, should your secrets be spilled by me. You can come here and insert a data packet into that socket, and my personal information will be made public. “ [Billy] added afterward, that seemed an overly complicated way to ensure secrecy…Also pointless if someone could change their identity. “So, with that out of the way. Spill it, how did you make this happen.”
[Billy] placed his hand into one of the walls and it changed into a projection of the fight against Chrysalis, it focused and zoomed into her body as she made it burst.
“The human body doesn’t behave like that, your clothes shouldn’t behave like that. It looks as if the force field pushed against you and ripped you in two. But while the clothes, skin and even organs behaved as they should if something was pressing on you…” [Billy] said as he made some weird gestures with his hands against the wall, as if he was writing or directing something, “...you can see here on this other video that Chrysalis shield never changed form, she even thinned out her armor in reflex, probably thinking that she was indeed ripping you in two.”
….She did?
Ale would have doubled down and put an attack into her head, to be honest, but that was also beside the point.
“So I need to tell you how that worked?” Ale asked, that was…honestly too close to reveal her true form.
“I don’t care how it works, I just want confirmation. You can change the elasticity, make, and decide how any part of your body behaves? Yes or no.” [Billy] asked turning to her with bloodshot eyes.
“...yes. If I wish for it, I can change how my skin, muscles, bones and any part of my body behaves, so long I have the correct [Blueprint] or [Material] I can also turn or change into them, but this hinges on me having the materials and energy to make those changes.” Ale answered.
“I KNEW IT!” [Billy] screamed hitting the wall with his fist. “You are closer to a molecular shifter than a normal shifter!”
…How could so many people hit that answer so easily.
“Most shifters work like this, but there are very few that actually can control it like you. Was it your upbringing? Or perhaps you do have a Tinker sub-core somewhere in there. Either way, this changes everything!” [Billy] said as he started moving his fingers across the wall as if to write something. “There! This is the original Blueprint of the bodysuit that the Lieutenants use, can you build it? We usually only give it to them since building requires a molecular printer and it is very expensive both energy and Material wise.”
At the wall was the exact composition and materials used to make the thing. It was…
“[A work of art.]”
That it was indeed, the armor was made of an amalgamation of minerals, not textiles, but minerals. Most of those were the metals she had just found about thanks to the training room that [Golem] allowed her, and while it had the molecular composition of them at the side…
“[Error, Error, formula returns nothing. Can’t divide by Mana squared to twenty-seven.]”
That was an overly specific number. It didn’t matter to her, since [Core] could build it anyway. No the problem was… “This Material…Devilthread? I need a sample, same with Stardust Cloth and this…ShadowSilk?”
What the hell were these names?
“Hmm….the molecular structure isn’t enough?” Asked [Billy] turning to her, his eyes were basically shining.
“I can’t parse those formulas.” Ale answered, “My [Core Power] lets me remake them, but I need the original material and then I have a hard limit about how much I can make in one go.”
[Billy] nodded his head as if this was the natural answer, “How much can you make and what will happen to the materials?” He asked afterward; he also took some capsules from his pouch and started playing with them. “Also, how much do you need.”
Ale stopped to think about it.
“Main Core?” And then stopped thinking about it and just asked.
“[Estimated build up will require the digital blueprint to make a correct assesment, but a rough estimate would be around 500 grams of DevilThread, 250 grams of Stardust Cloth and 250 grams of Shadow Silk.]” Main Core answered, then afterwards “[Other minerals are already stored within database, but additional samples could offset the cost.]”
“Around 500 grams of each Material if possible, but I can make it work with as little as 50 grams. If I can get the required amount for each Material I can make it right this instant, otherwise…” Ale answered turning to see [Billy]’s smile turn wider and wider.
“So you really are a Molecular Shifter, a true honest to god one…” He said as he started cackling like a…teacher of a school. That was such a weird comparison to make, but at least reality wasn’t breaking around him. So that was that. “Here.”
Then he threw the small spheres he had brought before. “Push the button to open them, these are samples we use with our distributors when asking for materials, they are basically useless to us, so you can take them and use them.” Ale did as asked, and sure enough, she found samples of most of the things shown on the screen, but these were barely 50 grams each. “As for the materials…I can maybe get some shavings here and there, but for the Adamantium and Shadow Silk…”
New Blueprints Acquired:
Shadow Silk:
Spider thread infused with Mana and with altered properties, these seem to be able to occupy the same space as other materials and help diminish the weight while not compromising the integrity of the original material. There is a limit of 10% of the total weight of the product while using Shadow Silk. Going above that limit ends up compromising the integrity of the object.
Devilthread:
Thread made out of an organic compound, there is evidence of further alteration to the base material to prevent uncontrolled reproduction. DNA probes into the original design found evidence that this is a hostile organism that grows out of control; this material is highly breathable and has a low self-regeneration factor.
Stardust Cloth :
Cloth patches made out of reinforced threads at the molecular level, make of it seem to imply that Nanotechnology was used on its make, but no evidence of nanites was found on its make. It can channel Mana almost as well as Mythril, and while being sturdy it is still less durable than other minerals that host has access.
DANG IT!
“Something the matter?” [Billy] asked.
“No…So about those shavings?” Ale asked turning back to him, she was sure her face was probably like [Billy], she would need to get as much as she could to save on materials.
She liked the upgrades to her [Banked Storage], but these costs…She would need to eat more Biomass and probably get as much of these exotic materials as she could. If she did her math right, maybe she could accelerate the return of her [CRAB] form using these new materials instead of the original ones….
Ale couldn’t help but smile as the spheres and their Material got stored on her [Banked Materials].
Notice:
A new batch of exotic materials detected, using materials in the reinforcement of [Banked Biomass] and [Banked Material]...20%...43%...57%....80%...100%...finished.
Increased efficiency in the management of materials stored within, fusing the theoretical space used to store both biomass and materials...Finished.
Congratulations Alexa!
You have managed to acquire materials that will boost the production and management of the Nanite forge, usage of mana and production and storage of Nanites increased.
[Banked Storage]:
A theoretical space created within the [Core] of the host, made of space that was available within the Nanite Forge. Within this space, the host may temporarily store the materials required to fuel the modifications and creations that the host uses or does to her body. This space is now able to store both biological components, non-biological components, and exotic components. The storage uses the same objects to maintain stability and prevent causality degradation.
[For every ten units of any determined component, 3 will be used to help maintain the stability of the storage space.]
Sub-Storage:
It is possible to temporarily store a finished construct so long as they have high mana conductivity; this is achieved thanks to the materials they hold. It was tested with a finished blueprint high in mana conductivity materials, and while this stresses the space, a workaround was devised by [Core]. Host may create an extra [Information Core] to store the data about the make and design within her body, this will focus on stabilizing the space and give quick access to the desired object.
Currently storing:
-Pounce Armor Mk 1
Status Name: Alexandra Saintsworths Head: Human(Peak) Race: Bio-Weapon Right Arm: Human(Mod) Subrace: Human Left Arm: Human(Mod) Gender: Female Torso: Human(Peak) Age: 5 12 19 years Right Leg: Human(Mod) Weight: 42 52 65 kgs Left Leg: Human(Mod) Height: 1,02 1,45 1,65 cms Skeleton System: Reinforced Overall Status: Healthy Muscular System: Reinforced Current Form: Human (Peak) Nanite Foundry: Active Sub Nanite Foundry: Active Body Status Strength 42 75 107 units Health: 30 22 22 Dexterity: 40 50 30 units Mana: 30 26 26 Constitution 10 6 6 units Stamina: 41 35 39 Luck 10 10 10 units Nanite Swarm: 4 8 11
Mana 5/26