Razum felt it the moment Ten’Telo fully integrated into his vast body of mycelium. The bond was strong, formed of a covenant that had been hashed out in detail. With his new Familiar settled in place, he finally returned to looking at his System Status.

Razum

Race:

Overmind Sporecap (Awakened)

Chosen Name:

None

Bond:

Dug Shardaal (Blood Covenant), Ten’Telo (Familiar Covenant)

Class:

Unchosen*

Rank: F(1)*

Level: 0*

Experience: 0/200*

Main Attributes:

Strength: 4 [10] (F)

Dexterity: 3 [12] (F)

Constitution: 20 [25] (E - Tempered [Copper])

Intelligence: 28 (E - Tempered [Copper])

Wisdom: 16 (F)

Charisma: 17 (F)

Spark: 6 (F)

Looking at his Status he noticed that none of his Main Attributes had increased despite his Familiar now bolstering his form. There was however now a secondary set of numbers beside his more physical statistics. On a whim he moved his consciousness to his fruiting body and to his delight found that he could move it better than before. Clenching his ‘fist’ he punched the wall and felt the earth give a little.

He felt no pain since there were no nerve endings to send such signals but he did note that the flesh of his ‘fist’ was slightly damaged. Before he made a move to repair the damage he found tendrils of darkness sweep into the damaged area and when it retreated the flesh had been repaired. Observing closer he found yet more tendrils covering the body and reinforcing the major muscular groups he had thrown together.

Hmmm…so his fruiting body was empowered through his bond but his far vaster underground Nexus was most likely too large to see any extravagant gains in its attributes. Razum made his fruiting body shrug like he had seen his father do and found he liked it. That was fine. He had chosen Ten’Telo for a different purpose and that had to do with the Titles and Boons he had received for his Sapience. It was to these that he turned his attention to next.

Titles:

Father of Monsters

Progenitor

Umbral Host (New - Familiar Bond)

Boons:

Divergent Overmind

Nutrient Synthesis

Umbral Spore Generation (Upgraded from Spore Generation)

Umbral Infused Fruiting Body (Upgraded from Durable Fruiting Body)

Sensory Mycelium

Mindbender

Experienced Potential

Hive Lord

Sporecap Locomotion

Malleable Sporecap

Umbral Fleshcraft (New - Familiar Bond)

Stolen story; please report.

Symbiote Fragmentation (New - Familiar Bond)

There were a host of differences that showed him just how much his new covenant had affected him. A couple of Boons had been upgraded while new ones had become available. Not only that but he had earned a new Title that undoubtedly communicated the nature of his relationship with his new Familiar. Now that he had time, he figured it would be wise to look at each of his Titles and Boons in order so that he might see what his natural limits were before choosing a cornerstone that would define his future growth.

Title Granted: Father of Monsters

This Title was bestowed by The Maker as penance for a father’s arrogance and machinations.

Title Effects:

Like a Dungeon Core, you have been given permission to create Monsters from a specialized Monster Core known as a Sporeheart. A Sporeheart can only be planted into dead, plant, or fungal-based material and replaces the former Spark Matrix. Such a Monster is afflicted with The Growth allowing for intense Aetheric mutations instead of developing intellectually. They will never reach Sapience though they may with time reach a high level of sentience as they rise in Ranks. Their Rank may never exceed yours.

As a result of this Title, you have been denied the ability to propagate your species. Your methods of reproduction will be changed to reflect this. As this is The Maker’s Decree it is inviolable.

That…was more than he had expected. It seemed that The Maker had decided to be generous despite the reason why the Title had been given. Razum wasn’t put out by the notion that he would not sire Sapient children. His yearning to spread and grow was something he had brought with him from when he had been a simpler fungus. If he had been given permission to spread at that time then his offspring would have been like him, simple and without Sapience. The fact that now they would be able to grow and reach a state of sentience was more than enough.

He wasn’t sure what his thoughts on the issue would be like down the road as he grew older but he would deal with those thoughts when he had them. Like his father, Razum figured he would dwell in the moment and pursue the future with rigor according to his abilities. It was in this vein of thought that he opened up the next two Titles.

Title Granted: Progenitor

A Title granted for being the first of your Species upon the face of Aldem. May you be blessed.

Title Effects:

Experience gained is increased by 100%. Direct descendants will gain this benefit in a reduced form for as long as your bloodline endures. The effect will be locked to your eldest descendent’s bloodline unless none remain before being granted to your next oldest and so on for as long as your bloodline endures.

Error! Maker’s Decree acknowledged. Due to the prevention of true Sapient offspring, the following Trait has been affected for Monstrous descendants: The Growth

Title Granted: Umbral Host

This Title has been granted as a byproduct of being the host of an Umbral Parasyte. This Title’s effects will differ based on whether or not you are a willing host or not.

Title Effects:

As a willing host for an Umbral Parasite, you have been granted the benefits of a Familiar Covenant. The parasite will treat your body as its own while following your commands as the Bond-Holder. As this is not a normal bond but rather a covenant sealed with Authority, neither party may break the bond with the other but neither can an outside party. Numerous Boons have been added or upgraded and further Boons may become available as the Host and Parasyte grow. As this is a Covenant the Host and Parasyte will split Experience evenly.

Taken together, Razum decided that his last two Titles would prove to be immensely useful. The last one was simply an explanation of what he had hashed out with Ten’Telo so he wasn’t terribly surprised. The additional Experience he would gain from being a Progenitor would be immensely helpful since it would mean that he and Ten’Telo would be able to grow extremely quickly as each did their part to help the other. With his Titles out of the way, he looked over his Boons and gave the best approximation of a sigh that his fruiting body could manage without lungs.

He found the action to be comforting despite its ineffectualness. The sheer volume of Boons he had was comforting but it would be a lot to get through. He decided to take a moderated approach, beginning to operate his body more fully. He moved off in the direction of his father’s main living quarters, slowly growing his Mycelium in that direction. It took Aether to do but he found that, once again, Ten’Telo helped him along. Shadowy tendrils helped to guide his Mycelium giving them a robustness they had lacked when attempting to grow under the earth before.

Arriving at his father’s quarters, Razum looked around but found only Obu on her staff. As it was apparent she was sleeping or something equivalent he did not disturb her but instead moved to the center of the room and planted himself. Perhaps this would be easier to do in the garden but Razum wanted to be present when his father returned. The reason for this was simple. Razum wanted to learn Sporecraft from his father. He was aware of just how much knowledge his father had, having been the centerpiece of his massive fungal garden for years.

That being said, Razum also knew that experimentation was often the key to his father’s success and that failure, more often than not, paved the way forward. So he sat and began to grow spores. They descended from his cap in short stalks tipped with a glowing purple-blue bulb. He engaged in a brief moment of whimsy and twisted his cap causing the spores to twirl this way and that sending shadows flickering around the room.

Afterward, he let the bulbs drop from the stalks and was surprised when they didn’t immediately fall. They floated in the air, bobbing on invisible currents as they began to spread outward. He now had spores to play with but didn’t quite know what to do with them. He could still feel them even though they were no longer connected to his Mycelium. Reaching out he could feel them follow his intent but slowly like he was creating a current with his mind. When he stopped they continued to float and even changed direction as some other force acted upon them.

He watched as they bobbed up and down, gradually being carried away by some unseen current. Flexing his mind he heightened his awareness and his connection to his spores brightened. It is important to note that Razum saw the world in a very different manner from other creatures. His Sensory Mycelium had been cultivated in such a way that they picked up on environmental signals before translating them into something understandable. Now that Razum was Sapient his Mental Matrix could empower those Mycelium to sense the environment in ways they had never needed to before.

As he flexed his mind his mycelium responded to his need by growing thin filaments from his sporecap into the air, waving like little streamers as they caught whatever current the spores were in. Immediately, recognition flooded into his mind. Aether…his spores were floating on currents of Aether. Struck with curiosity, Razum uprooted his body and began moving in the direction the Aether was taking his spores. It took him a while but his spores moved slowly to begin with so he had no need to hurry.

Eventually, his slow and steady gait ended with him standing before a yawning cave opening. The different streams of Aether coalesced into a veritable stream of life-giving energy. His spores had long since been caught up in the flood and taken inside but Razum hesitated outside. His mycelium lost all connection to his senses when he tried to push them through and the blackness failed to be penetrated by his glowing spores.

Razum was not someone to be intimidated for long though. Perhaps it was his youth or perhaps it was the fact that he was intensely curious but regardless of the reason, Razum moved his body into the blackness and felt a piece of himself vanish with it.