Lord Joyde The Madman: Heylo, everybody! How're you all doing this fine day?
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Muhhahahaha!
Damn, guys! You really got hyped up by that last chapter xD
We rose like 20 in ranking by that last one alone.
I guess that means I should incorporate more Eldritch themes and less normality.
Oh well, PRAISE CHAOS!
Anyways, here comes the next chapter of EUPHORIA! I sincerely hope that you enjoy, let us begin!
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Don't mind me guys and girls! I'm just a line break...
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The New Place - Later That Evening... - Leonardo's Point Of View...
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"L-look! He's w-waking up!" A very worried voice thundered across the basement room which I had taken a liking too.
The deepest part of the newly-bought mansion we were using as a temporary headquarters."LEO!? YOU! WHA- WHY WAS ANY OF THAT?!" Yomi screeched into my mind and I felt myself blink.
Finding myself staring downwards, I noticed that my bed sheets were stained in red. Guess I was bleeding in real life too, huh?
I blinked.
Bled. From every vein and pore there was on my body.
D-DADDY!? A-are- no, whats going on with OUR BODY?!
Aria questioned with a tone of pure fear. Wait, questioned? She has a voice now for some reason.
I looked at myself again, this time in the mirror.
My eyes went wide as insanity took hold of me and I stood off the bed, promptly ignoring the stupefied and paralyzed quad of people next to me."B-boss?"
The mirror shone with a dreadful crimson glow as I approached... no, it was me who was glowing.
As in every single wound on my body, every vein that had erupted previously and was re-filled with liquid chaos... they all glowed a potent red.
The image of my broken body from Euphoria formed in my mind alongside a giant red X drawn across it all.
Ah, so that body was what I'd look like had I failed the test.
... so Gaia expected me to fail? How insulting."Never mind any of that! Your entire body has changed, Leo! How.. how are you even alive after that t-thing?!" Yomi exclaimed in a tone full of horror and yet, curiosity.
A deep sigh echoed in my mind as Eadom replied to them."Yomi, Aria... don't bother. You two wouldn't be able to understand even if we explained it but.. well basically, Chaos pulled Leo into a maturity ritual and... he passed."
Huh? Eadom, your voice isn't distorted anymore.
Aria spoke with surprise in her voice as an imaginary blink formed in my thoughts.
My eyes were glowing a menacing, blazing shade of crimson and gold, much alike to the blood which now flowed in my veins.
Another blink as I found myself looking all over my body, the aforementioned veins bulging out as if I worked out on a daily basis, but their coloration was the same red as my eyes, something that had the potential to stand out immensely.
"Aria dear, could you create an extra layer of skin for me? To hide the transformation." A stupefied imaginary nod was sent to me.
Sure just.. uh, take off your clothes.
I did as I was told and then remembered that there were supposed to be people in the room... I turned around, but there was nobody there.
The light from my eyes shone against the darkness of my room and I saw them through the walls, gathered around a table just in time for someone, most likely A if I remember his body-structure correctly, to come back from what was possibly a scouting mission.
I felt myself focusing deeper into the picture."Whats gotten into all of you people?"
A asked with confusion evident in his tone and I grinned. I could hear him talk all the way from here.
But that wasn't all I could do now.
I found myself walking outside, to a tiny garden full of grass and two giant trees. I...
I sensed each and every tree and blade of grass. Each and every one of them had life flowing through them.
Each was a piece of chaos that would one day be returned to the whole.
... returned to the whole.
This notion forced my mind to expand, my consciousness to reach for the skies... and as I was flung right back into my body, I noticed the existence of some unseen force.
The joint need of all creation to return to the whole.
But us humans have a different name for it.
Gravity.
I... can see gravity.
It was like seeing heat during the hottest days of a summer, except the energy wasn't falling, the twisting of invisible strings wasn't dancing around the air sporadically.
No, it was all flowing downwards, into the earth and towards its core.
I found myself reaching out to this energy, this invisible force.
I grasped at seemingly nothing with my fingers, my hands reaching out into the air as I looked at one of the trees within the garden... and pulled my hand downwards.
Without warning, the tree tore itself apart and fell down with a resounding thunk, its ruptured trunk becoming a true symbol of my newfound power.
H-huh, dad there's like .. a new part of your brain. Its taking in your mana and converting it into a new kind of energy.
Closing my eyes and taking in a deep breath, I finally answered her."Psi. And what was that about something happening to our body, darling?"
W-well, for one your brain is completely red now and... whatever you did... Um dad, you should be dead. I-I don't even..
Her tone indicated a sense of understanding.
She knew what had happened, but was not willing to admit it."Aria, did my transformation affect you somehow?"
An adorable yelp escaped her.
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Uuuh.. yeah, it did. Whatever you did, it changed your brain.. evolved it, somehow, someway. And um, I'm kind of a part of your brain so... whatever happened affected me as well. Now, my bio-chip core has a nice shade of crimson, much like every other of your new brain cells.
"I see. Any other changes?" She shook her head in negative.
Well, so long as you don't count the actual liquid fire flowing through your veins and somehow not burning you or rather us alive and the immense, ominous, glowing patches of red skin all over your body, no. Not much else has changed.
"Leo..." A silent whisper echoed in my mind as Yomi muttered something under her breath."Yomi? Is something wrong?"
She blinked and then began screaming at me in frustration."Wrong? OH NOTHING IS FUCKING WRONG! I just thought we were, y'know, not lying to each other!"
I blinked right back at her."I lied to you? When? About what?"
Taken aback by my harmonious answer, she replied in a pacified tone."Well uh, you told me that your.. Chaos, wasn't some supernatural entity."
"That's because I didn't know that Chaos had a face back then." Eadom tilted his head in confusion."It has a face?"
I shook my head."No, that's wrong. Its more of a... matter of perspective, I should say."
"I see." He replied while nodding his head in a wise-like manner, causing Yomi to scream again."WELL I FUCKING DON'T! AND I WISH I NEVER DID!"
Now, it was my turn to be confused."Yomi? Did.. did Chaos influence you in some way?"
A pause as she calmed down again. Huh, such rabid changes in emotional states.. I guess she really was influenced somehow."I.. Remember how I first entered you?"
That sounds really wrong."Yes? You were in the shape of some white tendrils."
An imaginary nod."Yeah that.. look, I'm actually kind of a parasite inside of you right now. That tendril is all that remains of my actual body... the only part of me which isn't, y'know, decayed to disgust."
An ooh sound escaped me as I understood what had happened."You were feeding off my blood... so when my blood was replaced by that of Chaos, you unknowingly drank some of it, causing you to witness Chaos as it truly is. And you will most likely continue to drink it, for the time being."
"C-chaos?! This is the blood of .. of that thing?! B-but how, its so pure and.. full of life... Chaos, is a way of life, no, Chaos is life itself." Realization dawned upon her and I felt a part of me rejoicing."Feel that? Remember that feeling mate. Its the feeling you get when Chaos approves of something you did."
I scowled at Eadom."Yeah, about that. How come you failed the test?"
He blinked."I.. failed?"
His questioning tone made me give out a sigh."You ate of its flesh, didn't you?"
"Well yes. Chaos was offering me to become part of it, of the whole. What reason, what logic was there in refusing it?" He asked with a condescending tone and I sighed again."Never mind. I guess you succeed in your own way."
"First I failed and now I succeed? Make up your mind, man!" Was his annoyed reply as I looked away, unwilling to tell him the truth.
He failed the test, no reason to tell him the truth.
I turned around and took one look at the invisible annoyance hiding behind a corner."A. Did you get me what I asked of you?"
"A-ah!" The guy in question had an uncharacteristic yelp before replying."Y-yes, boss. Here you go."
He slowly walked over to me and handed me a detailed building plan for a certain Iyrd Robotics. I smirked to myself as I noticed that I remembered the plans perfectly, though I only scanned them for a singular second."I suppose this is what it means to be psychic."
Dad, I'm done synthesizing your new skin. You ready?
Aria asked me with an inquisitive tone and then I remembered that I wasn't wearing any clothing.
I looked down at myself and shrugged. Guess A is gay, who would've thought that the Italian guy is gay.
Or maybe just bi.
Who knows.
More importantly, who even cares?
A nod to Aria was all it took for her nanomachines to swarm all over my body, changing my crimson skin color and adding a new, more normal-colored, layer of skin on top of it.
It felt like I was wearing my Antioch suit, to be honest."Ahh, that's much better. Now, the suit as well, darling."
An imaginary nod ran through my mind as I felt A swallowing his fear and fascination."B-boss? W-whats going on?"
I smirked at the man, causing him to recoil."Nothing you have the capacity to understand. The same goes for the others."
"Even me?" Yuko walked forward and asked me with terror clear upon her frame. In her hands was an elongated katana with a pure-white handle and a crimson sheath. An O-type, as far as I could tell.
She also seemed to be radiating some form of magical energy... albeit it was mixed with her own life-force, her Qi, her essence."That's called Spirit Energy. Its an unnatural combination of mana and life-force which Spirit Masters and Ayakashi hunters use." Yomi explained as I quirked an eyebrow."Why would you need spirit energy to hunt water-type yokai?"
"Spirit Energy is very useful for creating long-range projectile attacks, even with a weapon like mine... but I don't remember telling you that I could use it." My dearest sister replied, pulling out her katana and causing my duo of maids to reach for her throat. However, I stopped them before they did anything bad with a wave of my hand, causing my sister to flinch in response.
"Sister dearest, you're radiating power. Why would you need to tell me when I can see it for myself?" She blinked in surprise and blushed from the praise before shaking her adorable head out of her stupor and regaining her hostility."Flattery will get you everywhere, but it won't save you in this particular scenario, brother. I want to know what just happened!"
The duo of maids held themselves back, interest clear within their eyes. Only Tyrone appeared totally disinterested and A seems to have run off somewhere else. I turned towards Tyrone with a quirked eyebrow."Boss, you've done a whole lot of crazy shit lately. In fact, you suddenly gaining superpowers is about the most normal thing that's happened within the last couple days. Its so much easier to wrap my head around, unlike that fucking suit of skin you got yourself."
Said suit appeared on me right as he mentioned it, causing him to blink."Or.. y'know, fucking grew yourself."
I laughed."I guess that's what I should expect from a comic-book fanatic."
A deep sigh escaped me as Tyrone promptly walked back into the mansion, probably to dunk some more beer into his system. Good man, quite delightfully intent on keeping himself sane."As for the rest of you.. You wouldn't get it even if I tried explaining. Anna, Belle, I'm sure you two have been informed about my... special capabilities, correct?"
"So this is a gift from Gaia then?" Anna asked with a quirked eyebrow as Belle exclaimed in disbelief."I didn't really think the master was being serious... but the power reeling of off you ain't magic... or Qi."
I grinned at them."Its Psi. I've gained psychic powers."
They oohed at me and asked in perfect unison."Like those Esper people in America?" A nod was their answer as they followed behind Tyrone.
Turning back towards my sister, I asked."So whats got you in such a state?"
She hugged herself."W-w-when.. when you.. when your body.. your body burst, like really exploded, with blood all of a sudden I.. I was fucking next to you, you asshole!"
Ah, so she freaked.
Well, that's kind of nice, actually.
Walking over to her and hugging her close, I found myself patting her on the head in a somewhat child-like way, causing the poor girl to blush."There there, your brother is okay. Nah, more than okay."
Quickly changing the subject as I let her go, I asked."So you hunt Ayakashi?"
A nod."Yeah.. I work for the government, actually. To keep the people unaware of the Ayakashi threat, people like me are hired to kill off those who can't be trusted to safely integrate into human society."
"Kind of like HI, eh?" She blinked in surprise."You know of us?"
"Wait, you work for HI?" Now it was my turn to blink as she nodded."We're kind of a branch of the main organization, but we're just one of millions all over the world."
"Making the world a better place, huh?" I tilted my head, but not in confusion.".. You say it like its a bad thing."
"That's because it is. People like you are the reason why vampires and werewolves have to hide in the dark corners of the world." Was my rather insensitive reply to her."B-but! If we don't do it then they would hunt us much the same way?"
I turned towards her hopeless gaze and answered."So you chose to stoop onto the same level as the Inhumans? We live in an age of technology and progress. If you people wanted, considering the immesnity of the power you wield, you would easily be capable of integrating Inhuman society into normal society."
"What do you mean?" She asked me in utter confusion and I let out another sigh."Things like genetically modifying vampires so they don't have to drink blood and give them immunity to sunlight. Things like implanting bio-chips into the stomachs of werewolves which would allow them to eat other food than human flesh... there is a myriad of things like that which you could be doing instead of just being racist fascists."
Stricken speechless, I left my sister there paralyzed in thought and shock. It seems that I've broken a part of her worldly view. But before I walked out of the mansion grounds, I told her one last thing."Oh, and the maids that tried to protect me from you beforehand? They're vampires. Maybe you should try talking to them. I know I'd be happy if you at least tried."
And with that, I found myself leaping into the skies, my ability to command gravity allowing me ease of flight through the skies above Tokyo city."Yomi, could you please make a barrier around me while I'm traveling?"
"S-sure thing..." She replied, voice still shell-shocked from our previous conversation.
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Don't mind me guys and girls! I'm just a line break...
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And that is it for this chapter of EUPHORIA!
I was planning on writing some more but I'm kinda hungry and its also lunchtime.
So yeah, maybe I'll write some more later but its unlikely to be posted today.
See ya!
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Anyways, read and review! And Good Morning/Day/Night to you all! ADIOS FOR NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!