POV Coal

My ability, sensory radar was something else. I went for long walk to the forest. I went for unfrequented paths into deep green. I had no phone or metal accessories with me. I felt different, uplifted, touching sacred. I knew, that En probably would laugh at me. He was from Underwood, where green is part of life and I was from Silesia, which was mines and coal industry area. It was as if I breathed for the first time freely.

I also tuned in with my radar. I felt life, which I couldn’t see. There were birds, there were small ground animals, probably foxes. I felt boar before I saw it. I sailed away in my mind from daily thoughts. Even trees and soil were creating shadows of shadow for my extrasensory radar. There was some flow there. I couldn’t grasp it, but there was. As if that flow went through all living. I lost myself in time sitting on fallen old tree. World was dancing in my head. I was part of that dance.

This state, feeling, wasn’t free of charge. I felt very hungry after some time. There is no illumination, that is free of charge. Some are just not worth price. That one was worth many times more, than hunger I felt after.

I went back for lunch. Then it was time to do my job. I rented mountain bike and moved in direction, where I spotted bio-stones.

Riding bike in spring in area full of lakes and ponds wasn’t best choice. Also metal bike affected to some degree my radar sense. But it was more painful to maneuver on paths, that sometimes led to sink parts or ended with dead ends. I got quite good map on phone, but it couldn’t show all surprises. Few times I considered backing off to main road, but somehow I managed to go through obstacles. If worse came to worst, I would contact acquaintances to pull me up to city.

Then I felt it. Not stones. Two level three people rode some parallel road in woods and went in direction of main road. I went there after them. They were perhaps in a car with lifted roof, for me to feel them. Before I got to point, I heard noises created by car accident. If someone ever heard car accident, one couldn’t mistake it with anything else.

When I was close, I felt them again. I slowed down. They left before I was able to see them clearly. I checked place. There were car parts near the road, but no car. Also were thick branch, bough, had traces of collision. I thought, that accident wasn’t so serious as I thought earlier. I did little circle curious if I can find something. And I found.

Some distance in forest, unseen from road, was swampy pond. In it was sinking car with two people inside. Car had traces of accident and violence. One person, driver, was unconscious and had blood on his head. Second one, older man, which I associated loosely with my trip around the city, was trying to get out. Doors and trunk had traces of use of sonic boom ability, which slammed it shut. I couldn’t feel them with mu radar, as they were inside metal car.

I went to help them. During my ride and run I had second thoughts. They saw what one of us could do, so maybe it was better if they died. They could traced me, us, after they would trace Vivaldi, as I was nearly hundred percent sure, it was done by Vivaldi. I became angry. Those thoughts, I wouldn’t have them few months ago. I had lifeguard training in my teens. I believed, that life was precious. I didn’t stop, I ran. Car was nose diving into the pond. I used sonic boom to create opening in trunk. I was standing in swampy water to hip level. My feet bogged down. I destroyed trunk door completely. Old man was trying to pull out unconscious one. I went inside through trunk. We were talking short sentences, as car was diving faster after water started to fill it from trunk side. I folded back chairs and pulled out unconscious one. Old man came by himself. We stopped at the trees by the pond. He was breathing very hard.

-= Thank you. – He said.

I considered, what I should tell him. Then I remembered, that I had second thoughts and anger returned. I should warn them, that was clear.

-= Do you know, who did to you? – I asked.

-= They were masked, but I know, who are they. – He was talkative. – I’m retired policeman. As a hobby I was searching for, helping police force from Halfcity. I had some suspects, but now I’m sure one of those two, that trapped us, was culprit. They must felt threatened, so they created this ambush. If not for your help, we would die, or at least my companion would die.

-= Can you describe them for me?

He did that. That was Vivaldi and Kirk description.

-= Why did you ask? Do you know them?

I sighed.

-= Don’t get involved with them. If you do, you will die. Only chance for you to live is to kill them first, if you will get involved. And police forces don’t kill people usually in Poland, just catch them.

I sighed again.

-= So you know them.

-= I know them, but I can’t kill them. For now at least.

He looked at me. It was long look, as he wanted to see my soul under flesh disguise.

-= But you are not the killer.

-= I’m not, but under some circumstances I would kill. I’m cursed and they are cursed too. – I stopped. I wanted to warn him, not to cry to him. – You saw, what they can do. They moved car from road to pond and locked it with their fists. They can also shake thoughts in human head. You can’t defend against them, if they would find you. So whatever you decide, just hide from them later.

-= Why are you telling me this?

-= Do you have phone and phone coverage?

-= Yes.

-= So, after we finish talks, call for help. I will leave you my number, but don’t try to make me your witness or anything. If you would stay alive and want to talk, come to War-Saw and we would talk more. As for the case from Halfcity, you can’t sentence them as there is no body of guy they killed in hunters house.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

-= You were there. Oh, that car with some people, witnesses saw then.

-= Those guys you follow are really dangerous. They killed that guy just to frame us. That is my last warning about them.

I gave my number and left them. I heard old one whispering to bloody head, if he heard our talk. Bloody one whispered something in return and nodded lightly. I didn’t care. I couldn’t make their decisions. All of us had our things to do.

POV Main

Our operation, exchange of hosts was success. Arthur was free of burden and Henry still stayed at neurologist hospital, but he had stable condition. He had neurological problem through two days after linking, but it wasn’t as bad as Asmo told me, Legibot had.

We did linking in minus hundred and thirty degrees of Celsius. It took very long time and quite a bit of blood, as it was freezing fast, but all after affects thinned down. Henry was losing consciousness, his brainwaves were erratic, he acted as if he had very high fever, but then wave of cognitive problems stepped back and he felt himself. Then we continued and got next wave. It took one and half day to complete linking. There was no instance, when he was fully aware, but didn’t know who was he.

Troubles didn’t end with linking, but they were receding. I met him many times during process, as we even could talk normally during better moments. We were waiting with assessing his magic, till he would be completely healed. And I suspected, that it would be better to give him some time.

From his twenty two companions, that started magic training with him, another six people showed magic talents. Talents of those people developed very slowly compared to us, hosts, but they did.

I wanted for Henry to join Unlimited Devas directly. I needed to be very delicate, as Hail felt omitted once. It would be nice, if Hail gave as reason to take him in before we do with Henry.

Celine, who nicknamed herself Mouse, joined fully Associated Devas. She had her own farm. Asmo was helping her as person to contact in emergencies. She had mice colony there, as it was her way to feed bio-stone before level three. She also had normal catering with animals and bodies. She seemed too back off to help girls much with Devas movement. We hoped, that she would find her best place.

Luigi also got to level three.

We had fifteen hosts being Devas, Associated or Unlimited. Five of them were poison producers.

Adam was one of them. He joined Associated Devas after meeting with Diana. Pine, his uncle, was closely supervising him.

Book, we used during hoax with Diana, wasn’t normal book. It was spy or detective equipment. We bought one, that looked old and mysteriously, but online detective shop had many variants. Covers were different, but inside were GPS localization, mini cameras and microphones. Diana didn’t know, but we had her words recorded, when she practically confessed, that she messed up with cultists heads. Literally she confessed, that she messed with Adam’s head, but it confirmed suspicions other had. It was big win for us. Others seemed to undervalue it, but that made us hundred percent good guys in eyes of converted cultists.

I had problem with assessing Mirror, but Huntress and Mercy pushed to let her join Unlimited.

Tom, from pharmacy company, contacted me, as there were business troubles on horizon. He needed urgent meeting with me in Santago and time for negotiations in the evening after. I answered, that I would meet him with Lily and Pine as they were shareholders. It seemed to surprise him. Still, we would meet, just few days later.

Lynx got ability to produce mixture for health strengthening. He said, that he experimented a lot. It was good info. Sith didn’t get that ability. It was possible, that poison producers would need to enhance poison. Still he didn’t give up.

We all felt spring. There was positiveness in the air.

I strategized a little in free time. Using potions I could uplift stats of [Muscle] and [Body integrity] to twenty five. I had nothing to work with [Nervous system] stat. Dee said, that Diana would have limit at thirty. We could counter her with magic. She neglected that part. Perhaps she couldn’t stole magic abilities from us, as she was wired differently. But besides Diana, we all would get to twenty five with time. Magic was game changer for us, as otherwise we would be equally strong.

I thought about magic abilities a lot. They were astonishing, sure. But besides fight, they were unusable. Sure, you could chill drinks, but I wasn’t talking about that kind of usage. I would like to be able to create something with them. No, I didn’t complain, maybe a little. I just wanted to exercise and enhance my magic by doing useful staff. I trained lightning a lot, with Dee or without, but I only created holes and bended metal equipment. If I could fill batteries with electricity during training, it would be step in right direction. We all needed something like that. Something beyond training, that would make us train. Gave motivation to training. Oh, my lightning was already on level, that I couldn’t resign or change that magic ability. I was standing before wall, that stopped humanity more than once. Training was boring. I needed to find solution fast, cause sunny spring was winning and I was training less and less.

POV Arthur, former host

I was by the Baltic sea. I spent few days inhaling full of iodine air. I wasn’t socializing very good with my group. I didn’t trouble them either. I still have moments in the middle of the night, when I felt strangely deep and random feelings. I went to the sea then and looked into blackness. Baltic sea could suck all of light during some of those nights around. Total blackness didn’t felt dangerous, it felt natural. It calmed me down.

During the day I walked by the sea shore a lot. It was kind of cold and wind always was blowing. Many of my friends told me many times, that warm seas were better. When I had friends. How did I end up so deserted? I didn’t know.

One day I met Paladin, that was sitting on shielded bench by the sea. He didn’t put his attention on me, till I came right to him.

-= Hi. – I said.

-= Do I know you? – He asked.

-= Yes. We met at Mokotov field during linking with bio-stones.

He watched me carefully.

-= You don’t feel as one of us. Maybe something is lingering, but not much.

-= I gave back my stone.

He invited me for tea, as he didn’t want to talk about such things in public place. I came to his little tourist house. We rather were silent than talked.

-= What are you thinking about? – I asked him, when he was making tea for us.

-= I was thinking, if I should kill you.

-= Why? I should be useless to you now.

-= You know me and I’m hiding right now. You pose risk to me. Moreover, my stone, Curse, as I called him, needs to eat people.

I laughed.

-= Unlimited Devas use dead bodies, I heard.

-= Oh, you would be dead after I kill you.

I laughed again.

-= They use already dead bodies. They’re not killing them.

Spoon flew out from his hand to the floor. He tried to act as nothing happened, after.

-= How?

-= There is a lot of dead bodies in funeral houses.

-= They’re stealing bodies! How disgusting.

I wanted to tell him, that it was better, than creating dead bodies. I was afraid, he would be too touchy, so I stayed silent.

-= Why didn’t you join them? – He asked.

-= I think, I was stupid. Even before meeting on Mokotov field. Not stupid, as I couldn’t think logically at all. I was hurting my life long before. I thought I knew answers. I didn’t asked.

He served me tea.

-= I still am thinking about killing you. – He said.

I didn’t sugar my tea. Would I even be sad, if I would day today? Not really. Still, I needed to learn to ask more.

-= Is there a reason for that violence?

-= I told you already. My stone needs to eat and stronger is devouring weaker. It’s part of nature.

I wanted to laugh, but I knew, he wouldn’t understand my laugh.

-= If you believe in that, you should sacrifice yourself, so it could be satisfied.

His hands were shaking after I said that.

-= What do you mean?

I was preparing to leave. I didn’t care, if he would attack me, when I turn my back to him. He showed me, that his misery was bigger than mine. Somehow it uplifted me.

-= You said it yourself, stone is stronger than you. You called yourself inferior to some parasitic stone.

I went out. He didn’t killed me.

Maybe I did wrong, that I ditched my stone, but it was my decision. As long, as I could make my own decisions, I could live with my head up.