෴Adele෴
෴Javier෴
෴Marcus෴
෴Hugo෴
෴Mercator෴
෴෴෴ ෴෴෴ ෴෴෴
Sleepwalkers
෴෴෴ ෴෴෴ ෴෴෴
Adele woke up bleary-eyed. She rolled out of bed and staggered over to the ensuite bathroom. She remembered to try her ability, something she had been forgetting to do more and more. It still failed to work, feeling blocked by something immeasurably powerful.
A few minutes later she wandered her way to the dining hall. Javier and Marcus were already there. They each ate from large dishes filled with a variety of foods. Adele saw the food and realized she was famished.
Once they were all eating, they heard the low booming voice of Mercator approaching. He walked in with Hugo. It sounded like they were discussing what Hugo’s favorite food and desserts were.
“I’m a simple guy. Your basic ice cream is a winner with me.” he said to Mercator.
The giant figure threw his horned head back and laughed. “Well then, ice cream you all shall have, my delectable young friend.” With that he turned away from Hugo and bid the group good day. He piled his own plate high with food before sitting down on the large side of the table.
Javier looked around the room suddenly, as though shocked at his surroundings. “Wait, what’s happening here? I thought we—he trailed off and stared at his plate for a few seconds before resuming his meal. Marcus ate with mechanical regularity, bringing hand to mouth without appearing to be aware of his actions. Adele resisted the urge to take a bit of the food on her fork. She looked over at Mercator. He was staring at Hugo with a toothy grin.
As they all finished eating, Mercator ventured over to a metal box in the corner. From within he drew a gallon of icecream. He served them each heaping bowls and clapped Hugo on the back. “Excellent choice. This is just perfect for you all.”
He took a taste of it himself, but rejected it with a grimace. “Ah well, perhaps this food is too human for me.” he said with a booming chuckle.
Adele allowed herself just a taste of the ice cream. Before she realized it, the bowl was empty.
Marcus and Javier yawned wide enough to let out popping noises from their jaws. Adele suppressed the urge to yawn herself.
“Where does the day go?” she yawned.
“I dunno, I’m beat though.” Marcus slurred.
Javier nodded in agreement.
Adele barely made it back to her room in time to wash her face before exhaustion forced her into bed. The last thing she did was loosen her pants. “My clothes must be shrinking” she muttered before dozing off.
Unaware of this, Hugo ate his fill of ice cream before heading back toward his bedroom himself. Halfway there, he leaned against a wall and then slumped over, fast asleep. Mercator scooped him up like an adult might pick up a small child and carried him to bed.
Later, Mercator checked in on each of his guests, looking over them with a gleeful grin and a gaze filled with avarice.
෴Raz෴
෴Hex෴
෴෴෴ ෴෴෴ ෴෴෴
Threads
෴෴෴ ෴෴෴ ෴෴෴
“Tell me what you want.” She insisted.
He looked at her quizzically. “I want you. Isn’t that what we’re doing back here?“
She smiled. “Oh, it totally is. That reminds me, did you want anyone else to join us?”
Hell yes!
“That depends. Will you try something for me?” He replied.
She winked and grinned insouciantly. “You know me. I’ll try anything two or three times.”
He managed to stay serious, suppressed his answering grin, “I'm going to answer your question, but I need you to promise me something.”
She nodded. “Ok, I’ll try.”
“If, that’s if I say yes, I want, someone” he paused to think. Can’t say a name or she might jump the gun.
“To join us, I want you to say no.” he finished.
“You what?” she looked shocked, and a little hurt.
He raised his hands placatingly. “Listen babe, the idea of a three-four-fivesome etc at will is beyond hot. I love the idea.”
He made a point to look over her nude form without pretense. “Trust me on this. I truly love the idea. But I mind it not being your choice.” he let out an abrupt sigh. “The things I thought I’d never have reason to say.”
“So, you want it, but you want me to pretend not to?” she ventured.
That could be a place to start.
“Look, if you want to brighten my day, and think that's the way, awesome. If I ask, and you feel like it, great. But I don’t want you to be trapped like this.”
She shrugged. “I don’t feel trapped. This feels right to me.”
He covered his eyes with one hand and rubbed at his temples. “I get it. Will you try this game for me then?”
“Sure babe, I’m game for a game.” she smiled.
“I’m going to ask you to bring in another aspect, and I’d like you to decline, and then you and me will just have a good time together, just the two of us.”
She furrowed her brow and frowned. “What? No. Why would I do a thing like that?”
“Will you at least try for me?”
Her frown deepened. “I—I’m not sure I can. Just thinking about it feels like holding my breath. I could maybe hold out for a minute or two, but eventually I’m going to need to breathe. Can we have this discussion later?”
“Will you try? How about trying your best, and before you feel like you’ll have to come up for air, then just squeeze my leg once.”
Ok, it’s not much of a starting place, but it’s a start.
She sighed, then sat up and fidgeted in place for a moment before putting her hand on his leg.
Raz smiled encouragingly “Ok, so are you—”
“Let’s just get this over with. By the way honey, if this is just a plan to get me out of the mood, it’s kind of working.” she said with a sad tone.
Well, if that helps her resist this a bit better, maybe that’s not so bad.
Raz felt his body making a strong argument against any of this mood killing bullshit he was engaged in. He pushed it down and tried to ignore the physical response aggressively making itself known.
“Ok honey, why yes, I think I’d like to have Tris and Dara join us.” he spoke slow and clearly.
She instantly grimaced and clenched her jaw. A few seconds later she started rocking in place. Her eyes blinked fast, then closed for a few seconds before opening again and locking onto his gaze. Her eye contact was intense. The struggle was mental but still very real. Far too soon, she moved, convulsively squeezing at his thigh.
“I changed my mind, I don’t want any other aspects here.” he blurted out as fast as he could.
She relaxed and sagged in place. “Are you sure? I can bring in anyone you like.”
“Nope. Just you and me.” to prove he meant it, he pulled his shorts off and joined her on the bed.
She rubbed at her temples. “That wasn’t much fun. Distract me from all that. Tell me what you want me to buy.” she said again.
“Few pairs of pants, something durable, and some shirts. Nothing special, just things you know I’d like.”
She sighed and kissed him, “So you want me to go spend my money on your clothes?”
Oh, it's this again. One tiny step forward and who knows how many steps back?
“Yes, I need more clothing. I’d appreciate it if you pick some up for me.”
She purred. “For sure. I’m on it. Now get on me.”
He smiled. “That I can do.”
*** *** ***
A while later they relaxed on the bed together. He felt several pulses of arriving aspects in the front room. Sia rolled over and lay over him. “So babe, ready to give me a fashion show?”
He laughed. “Sure, should I brush up on my runway strut first?”
She tugged at his chest hair. “No. I have a better idea.”
He looked at her with an arched brow. “Well, that’s not ominous or anything.”
She poked him in the ribs, extorting a twitch from him, “Don’t worry baby, you’ll do great.”
He stared at the ceiling. “Somehow that doesn’t make me feel any better. I take it you’re all ready for me in the living room?”
She looked at him with an intrigued but pleased expression. “You really can feel me arriving. I haven't run into anyone else that could do that.”
Raz got up and started to pull on his shorts.
Sia put her bare foot on the shorts to hold them down. “Those won't be necessary.”
“Oh. It’s like that is it.” he half smiled and strode out into the living room in a bad naked catwalk strut.
The room was covered. This time with clothing and outfits instead of weaponry.
“That–is a lot more than a couple pairs of pants and shirts.”
Tavi laid a sport coat over the arm of the couch. “I might have gotten carried away. I’ll take anything you don’t want back.”
Dara finished laying out the suit. “You never know when you’ll need to look good.” she added.
For the next hour the girls directed Raz to try on item after item. Some went into the reject pile, but most of them received the Hex seal of approval and went into the keeper pile.
At the end Raz changed into a gray pair of work pants and a graphic t-shirt with the letters VNV in stylized block script on the front. “Well, that was a lot of clothes. Where should I put it all?”
Sia waved the question away. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll find a place for all of it”
I hate this. No one action feels wrong, or like it's something I can be sure she wouldn’t have done for me before. Am I second guessing too much?
[I have completed your request.]
That’s great. What request was that again?
[I have combed through all the data and notes I have access to, to locate the type of energy least resisted through abilities.]
Oh yeah. That request. Can't afford to get locked into a combat ability that turns out to be garbage.
Raz sat down on the couch.
Well don’t make me wait, what’s the answer? I’ve been putting off a combat ability despite needing one, so gimme the name already.
[The answer appears to be something called “White Fire”]
You have got to be kidding me. ‘White Fire’ sounds like some kind of old timey made up thing for alchemists to trick the rubes.
[True, but you were requesting that I find which energy types are the least resistable, and this is the answer.]
[It is listed as a terrible weapon, but also one that is very difficult to wield.]
Well, not that it matters right now. Still need to finish getting rid of Overload, and then unlock enough stuff in the new tree to get another, right?
[That is correct.]
So why is ‘white fire’ so unresisted?
[The notes imply that it is a difficult ability to weaponize at all, and nearly impossible to control.]
That makes it sound like a bad choice. Is there any hint to what it actually is?
[No, however, there is something else worth knowing about this White Fire.]
Please be good news.
[The White Fire tree is the only place I have found for specific resistances to this form of energy.]
[This matters because White Fire is a species locked ability.]
[No, I don’t know how that works, or why Humans are on the list.]
[Yes, it is a very short list of species, humans being the only ones I recognize.]
Huh, that… might be good news?
[Yes, I can determine no reason for this to be anything other than good news.]
Also, I have mixed feelings about you answering my questions before I even articulate them.
[Every species-specific tree I have been able to confirm, has associated notes that imply those abilities in the tree are unusually potent.]
Ok, that sounds good. On another note, different species have access to different ability trees?
[It appears there is significant overlap, but that is in essence correct.]
You’ve mentioned this before. How many species are listed in that data?
[Quite a few, and that is just the ones I can see within current access restrictions.]
[Many of them are listed as extinct or ‘lost’.]
[Many of the notes are in languages I am unable to translate.]
Extinct, lost? There was a time I thought humans must have invented catalyst. That sounds like a pretty silly and anthropocentric viewpoint now.
[Judging by the age of the notes I can read, it would have to have been invented by humans a long time before the stone age.]
So yeah, it’s been around a while. Status.
[Overload level 3 <0> (energy costs increased ~30%, energy gain unavailable.)]
[Energy: 74/?]
This reminds me of something I’ve been wondering. It says energy gain unavailable, but I am clearly able to gain energy right now. Not that I’m complaining, just curious.
Raz began his new harvesting technique.
[It appears to indicate that natural energy regeneration does not occur.]
[Your active method of recovering energy appears to be unusual.]
[Topical catalyst also restores energy reserves at a much lesser rate in this state.]
Ok, that kind of sucks, but whatever. So what do we know about White Fire as an attack ability?
A low buzz started.
Scratch that. How much do I have to spend in the Restoration tree to get out of it?
[Unknown.]
[The notes do not specify.]
[When the unlock occurs, I will inform you.]
What can I fully activate?
[Nothing.]
What? I thought I had tons of—show me my capacity and catalyst status.
[Capacity: 56]
[Catalyst: 3.27]
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
That’s a lot of capacity. So I just need to tank up on catalyst. I can’t really use the fractional catalyst, right?
[Incorrect. You can and have used fractional catalyst reserves for abilities requiring catalyst consumption several times.]
Right. I mean, I can’t spend that fractional catalyst.
[Correct.]
After what felt much longer than the ten minutes of harvesting, he finally topped off his energy reserves.
[Energy: 100/?]
Raz stood in the center of the living room in a relaxed pose. He activated Somatic Restoration and harvested as effectively as he could. The energy loss from the ability seemed much less drastic than before. With careful harvesting, he was able to balance the energy loss with incoming energy.
As the status faded, it became progressively easier to maintain his energy.
Hex called out to him. “Raz, where do you want me to put this?”
He allowed Somatic Restoration to disengage and headed for the bedroom. On the way, he gingerly tried his old rapid energy harvesting procedural chain. He felt an uncomfortable abrasive sort of tingling in his arms, but no actual pain. He was able to relax into it and refill his energy as he walked down the hall.
Sia stood next to the bed. Behind her the closet was open. A section had clearly been cleared out for him. Looking at the half open drawers on her tallboy dresser, he suspected she’d set aside a drawer or two as well. Then his eyes came to rest on the case next to her.
“Oh, that. It’s funny you should ask. I was just thinking about coming to get that.”
He popped it open and looked at the vials and odd looking devices.
She looked at the contents with him. “They really do kind of look like guns. Just smaller and no real muzzle at the end.”
He picked up one of the vials and looked it over. The liquid moved toward his hand inside the vial. “That is a weird effect. Do you see that?”
She looked at the rich amber colored liquid and shook her head. “That’s wild. It looks magnetic, or like it’s alive, and wants to get to you.”
Raz held it out to her. “Do you mind trying something?”
He set the vial on the dresser.
“Now put your hand near it. Let’s see if it moves like that for you.’
The fluid responded to her proximity. To Raz it looked slightly less energetic, but it clearly had an attraction to both of them. “I’d love to try this with other people, for testing.”
Sia picked it up and handed it back to him. “Honestly, it seems a little creepy to me. What is it?”
He popped the top of the vial off. Without giving himself a chance to think it over, he poured a dollop onto his hand and then slipped the lid back on to keep the rest from escaping the vial. He rubbed it into his arms and hands.
[Absorbing.]
She watched it vanish into his skin. “Seriously, what is that?”
“Braithwaite called it a high-grade pure catalyst. I have no idea if it’s actually special beyond that.”
“What!?” she nearly shrieked. “You can’t just put pure catalyst on your skin! That’s going to give you ability psychosis!”
Raz shook his head. “I don’t think that’s how it works.”
“I’ve heard that from like, everyone. How can you be so sure?” She made several abortive motions that looked like she wanted to hold his hands, but was afraid to touch them.
[Catalyst: 15/15]
[Expel excess remaining catalyst?]
How much will that waste?
[Unknown]
Can I buy something now and make use of it?
[Perhaps, if you’re quick.]
[Somatic Restoration tree:]
[Efficiency 1, rank 3]
[Triage 1, rank 3]
[Somatic Restoration 2, rank 3]
[HUD Tree:]
[Targeting rank 3]
[Combat Scan rank 3, includes weapon exam 2]
[Advanced Interface 4, includes clone, and drain]
[Remedy rank 3]
[You can afford any of those.]
[Depending on the selection, you may be able to purchase several of them.]
Holy shit, that’s a lot of options.
[You could also purchase additional ranks of Siphon or Transfuse.]
Ok, a lot to think about. Clearly we need to have a chat about what all those things do, but for now, let's focus on getting the Restoration tree sorted so I can get a real combat ability.
[You have enough to purchase all the listed abilities within the Somatic Restoration tree.]
That should work. We’ll revisit that when it’s closer to bedtime.
[You must expel the excess catalyst or spend it soon.]
Two ranks of siphon and one of transfuse then.
[You’re making more risky decisions recently, are you sure about this?]
[There are no notes for these abilities, are you really sure?]
Yep!
[There are warnings against—]
Is it something that’s going to harm me?
[It does not appear that this will result in harm, but I cautio—.]
Then just do it.
[Acknowledged.]
[You seem to be disregarding my warnings more.]
[Please note that all warnings exist to protect you from severe conditions, including death.]
[Specifically, I don’t think that unlocking multiple ranks of abilities with possible conflicts is going to help your case with Sia.]
Why, what do you—oh my god.
Internal fire lanced up and down his arms.
“How can you be so sure it’s safe?” she insisted.
He grunted and fell to one knee. “I’m–gonna need—a minute” he struggled to speak through white hot pain coursing through every nerve and blood vessel.
Flickering lights appeared within his forearms, lighting up his flesh with flashes of pink light starkly outlined against the black shadows of his bones.
Sia gasped. Several aspects appeared around him and lifted him to his feet.
“You’re having an ability breakthrough! Just keep breathing and relax. The pain will pass! You’re not in danger! Whatever is happening, don’t move, and try not to lash out.” She spoke with an intensity that reached him somewhere floating out past the burning agony in his arms.
She walked him over to the bed and helped him lie down there. Her aspects surrounded the bed with the same concerned expression on a series of similar faces.
Bee, what have you done? What’s wrong with me? He screamed in his mind.
[The initial unlock is nearly complete.]
The flames became a sharp, hot, grinding. Raz opened his eyes expecting to find his hands melting into chunks of scorched bone and smoking flesh. His hands looked fine, except for the pulses of light emitting from under his skin. His arms also continued to strobe pink and white.
Hex looked up from his flashing forearms and hands and tried to lock eyes with him. Each aspect he tried to make eye contact with flinched away when they tried to look back at him.
Raz gave up on making eye contact and looked at his hands. They had involuntarily curled into tight fists. The strobing and pain wave moving down toward his hands. The pain grew more intense as the light became brighter. He forced his hands to relax and open, relieved to discover that moving his hands didn’t increase the pain.
Raz tried to take another breath and instead the tightness in his chest simply expelled what little air he had. He started gasping as though he’d had the wind knocked out of him.
[You have to keep breathing!]
Raz didn’t reply, just kept trying to pull in a breath against his own locked up chest. He closed his eyes and tried to make his diaphragm work. The edge of the strobing had reached his hands. Each hand strobing red and white so fast it lit up the room in pink.
I can't! Air wouldn’t come. His chest wasn’t letting it in.
Raz felt someone’s hand on his chin, then another hand on the back of his head. Cool lips pressed against his. A column of warm air forced its way into his aching lungs. His eyes sprung open. One of her aspects, Dara, was leaning over him. Another was holding his head steady.
Dara broke the kiss of life and stood up. His tight chest expelled the air. The aspect holding his head, Tavi, leaned down as she took in a deep breath.
[Focus on relaxing your torso, start with your shoulders and move down.]
[Don’t rush yourself, but don’t take too long about it!]
Tavi breathed into him, then moved away as Sia took his hand in her hands and Nona moved into position on the other side.
Raz managed to focus on relaxing his muscles even as his fingers felt as though they were erupting into white hot fire.
Sia laid her hand on his chest and filled his lungs. As she moved to stand back up, he grasped at her hand convulsively. She flinched at the sight of his fingers flashing like arc lights but relaxed when she discovered they only looked burning hot.
Raz gripped her hand like a lifeline. He pulled her close with fingers that hurt so much he almost couldn’t imagine how just fingers could even produce so much pain.
His efforts finally paid off and he managed to draw in a lungful of cool air. He started to breathe quickly to restore his air.
Someone started moaning in a strange broken fashion. First a wheezing whining sound, then a thin, reedy groaning sound. It sounded close.
That’s an annoying sound. I hope she stops that.
Hex breathed a collective sigh of relief. “You made it through, like i said, just keep breathing and you’ll be fine.”
The annoying whiny wheezing groaning sound only got louder. The pain had reached a sublime sort of perfection that was so intense it almost felt abstract in its purity. It had become the sensory equivalent of a perfectly cut gem in the sunlight. Brilliant, razor sharp, blades of light spraying out of it in every direction, but also inhuman, and without any human frailties like mercy or remorse.
The tips of his fingers became so bright everyone in the room closed their eyes against the painful cutting light. Without fanfare or warning, the lights went out, and the pain vanished.
For several seconds Raz lay there, eyes closed, basking in the euphoric lack of agony. The simple sensation of not being in pain was somehow the best, most pleasurable experience he could remember in that moment.
It was during this curious agony afterglow that Raz realized the annoying groaner was him.
Sia learned over him. “Can you speak?”
Raz nodded.
“That’s great, I’m so glad. But I’m going to need to hear you say something now.” she insisted in a calm, almost detached manner.
He opened his mouth and found his throat bone dry. A dry croak escaped his lips. She kept her encouraging expression directed at him as he swallowed a few times, let out a dry cough, and attempted to get his voice back.
He swallowed hard. “Some—thing.” He took another breath. “Now.”
She shook her head with a smile. “Always the wise guy. Well, that was a weird moment for an ability to break through, but you’ll be fine.”
Without him noticing it, the other aspects had slipped away, leaving Sia by his side. She sat down on the edge of the bed next to him. “Do you want to talk about it?”
He shook his head, not quite trusting his voice yet.
She nodded, “I’m going to put some food together, do me a favor and don’t test that ability in my apartment, ok?”
He nodded.
She ran her fingers along his forehead and down along his jawline before getting up and heading out of the room.
Raz lay still and focussed on his body and breathing.
What the actual fuck was all that about?!
[You chose to unlock two abilities that use the same energy structures in your body, but in different ways, at the same time, while those same structures were recovering from major, life threatening, injuries.]
Rage flowed through him, coiling thick and tight inside. Listen here you–you whatever you are. That malicious compliance is not going to fly. If you do shit like that again I will not rest until I’ve found a way to format your ass back to a blank disk. You got me?
[I hear you.]
[You should hear me now.]
[I am incapable of malicious compliance.]
[I am incapable of contesting your will, when you choose to exercise it.]
[I can caution you, I can warn.]
[I can try to stop you when your chosen action has a sufficiently high chance of host death.]
Try?
[Yes, try.]
[Your will runs the show.]
[Everything about me and the system is based around the model of combat.]
[You are the captain, I am a resource.]
You don’t always act like it.
[Nonetheless, you are in charge.]
[The battlefield is no place for a committee.]
[Outside of combat I have somewhat more leeway to engage you in discussion.]
[In combat I can only warn you when you’re making or planning a move that has a sufficiently high chance of host death.]
Well shit. So you’re saying that you were trying to warn me, and I was just charging full speed ahead.
Bee replayed the conversation that had initiated the ability unlock.
[[
Two ranks of siphon and one of transfuse then.
[You’re making more risky decisions recently, are you sure about this?]
[There are no notes for these abilities, are you really sure?]
Yep!
[There are warnings against—]
Is it something that’s going to harm me?
[It does not appear that this will result in harm, but I cautio—.]
Then just do it.
]]
Ok. I get it.
He shook his hands, feeling as though pulses of residual imaginary pain still echoed through them.
Tell me this was at least worth all that.
[I cannot.]
Raz sighed and sat up on the bed. “Of fucking course you can't.”
[I was trying to communicate to you that there are no notes for this ability, and it provides only rudimentary data regarding further levels before being unlocked.]
Can you at least tell me what they do?
[Of course. They both experience roughly 20% less energy loss, 50% less energy activation cost, and an additional 50% infiltration.]
Infiltration? What does that mean in this context?
[The metadata implies it is a way for the ability to penetrate the defenses of the target, and to act in a subtle or undetectable manner.]
So I can steal or give energy on the sly?
[That appears to be the case.]
Ugh. This better turn out to be awesome. I swear. Everyone else unlocks one ability, gets something amazing. I don’t even know how much catalyst I’ve used at this point, and every time it’s just some bullshit thing.
[I agree with that.]
[It would help to scan and gain access to more interfaces and determine how this is possible.]
Raz sagged forward, resting his head in his hands and his elbows on his knees.
Is there anything at all that would make this worth all that?
[Both of these energy transfer abilities now exhibit a synergy connection to the Analyse ability.]
I guess that would be cool if I really knew how that ability even works. So far it’s mostly just “if I analyse people they know it and it feels creepy” and “if you analyse chimera’s you’ll go insane and turn into a monster”. Super cool ability there bro, thanks for the recommendation.
[There is one other piece of good news.]
“Good.” he grunted. Ok, what’s the good news.
[Your decisive spending allowed me to retain the additional .23 fractional catalyst that would have been expelled.]
Raz sat stock still for a long moment, and then started laughing hysterically. Sia rushed in a few seconds later.
Raz waved her off, unable to stop laughing but managing to show her he was in no danger.
Oh man. So you mean to tell me, I went through all that, for a tiny fraction, less than a quarter, of a catalyst unit?
[That is correct.]
The laughter finally died down.
Raz looked up at the ceiling. Well, someone’s got a sense of humor.
He got up and found Sia in the kitchen searing pork chops.
“Now that looks like a great idea!” he exclaimed. “I didn’t even realize how hungry I am.”
She nodded and smiled. “It’s not uncommon to be very hungry after an ability breakthrough. These are all for you.” she gestured at the plate stacked high with pan fried chops.
Raz didn’t argue, and took the plate to the table and started eating.
Aspects popped in and set the table around him. She rebuffed his offers to help and encouraged him to keep eating. Before he was done with the stack of chops she’d started eating with most of her aspects.
“So, are you able to tell what your new ability is?” Nona asked him between bites.
Tris continued, “Sometimes if you just relax and think about it, you can get a sense of what the new ability is.”
Dara cut in. “Of course it’s usually something related to your main ability set.”
Tavi caught his eye. “I mean, whatever that actually is. A HUD? Perception suite stuff is weird.”
Ivy continued that line of thought, “I’ve never seen someone’s hands and eyes light up like that during a breakthrough. I really want to hear what it is!”
Raz put the food down. “Whoa!” he raised both hands in a supplicant gesture. “You’re gonna have to relax the rapid fire questions if you want me to be able to answer any of them.”
Sia sat down at the empty spot next to him.
He took a breath and finished the bite on his fork. “Ok, so what it is, is an ability called siphon, and another ability called transfuse. One lets me pull in energy, the other, as you might imagine, lets me push energy into someone else.”
He looked around the table at the six shocked expressions. Finally she spoke. “So, your breakthrough was two abilities, and they have names?”
He nodded. “Yeah, that's how it works for me. They don’t seem very impressive so far though. Really inefficient for one thing.”
She blinked, “I’m sorry, I’m still stuck on the idea that you had a multi ability break through, and that they have names, and you just know what they do! I’ve seen some breakthroughs, and that's not how it goes at all! That isn’t even close to related to perception!”
He put his index finger to his temple and then pointed at her. “Yeah, now that you mention it, I was going to ask how you were so calm during all that. You acted like you’d done that sort of thing before.”
She nodded. “Yeah, Almost everyone I work with who has abilities has the chance of a breakthrough. Usually Midnight helps them through it ahead of time, and it’s a total non event.” she frowned, “but if it just happens out of the blue, it’s kind of a big deal, and it pretty much never happens at a good time. Yours happening at home, just out of the blue, was probably the best of situations.”
I somehow suspect this isn't the same thing she’s talking about. But it’s interesting, we’re going to need to investigate how that works.
He nodded to himself. “Have you ever had one?”
She shook her head. “No, and I’m glad. Midnight has always helped me through them. He always knows what the next breakthrough for me will be.”
Probably need to learn more about that soon.
“So what usually causes them?”
She shrugged. “Hard to say for sure. Thank god it doesn’t come up very often. Stress, combat, desire? It seems they happen when someone really wants or needs something, or when some highly stressful situation happens and the abilities are in use.” She looked at him pointedly. “And then there’s you. Just wigging out in the middle of a conversation at home.”
He let out a single soft laugh. “Yeah, that was probably not great timing.”
She shook her head. “Honestly, at home in the bedroom is a much better place and time than in the middle of a firefight far from home. Not to mention, breakthroughs in combat tend to give annoyingly specific ability breakthroughs.”
He thought back to before the ‘breakthrough’ as she called it. “What if I told you I consciously triggered that event?”
She looked at him skeptically. “Then I‘d say your sense of timing could use some work.” she glanced down at his forearms. “If you were planning to make me believe that rubbing pure catalyst on your skin isn't dangerous, you probably shouldn’t collapse thirty seconds after you do it.”
“Yeah, I can see how that timing would really not help my case.”
She nodded. “Yeah, let's just say you’ve raised the bar on what it would take to convince me.”
He took her hands in his and pulled her close. “I know it’s safe. Here’s a counter argument. How do you know that injecting catalyst is safe?”
She shook her head. “Counter argument? No. Logical fallacy maybe. Even if you’re right and injection was somehow a problem, that wouldn’t support your assertion that rubbing it into your skin was safe.”
Well shit, she’s right about that.
“Ok that's fair. But just for the sake of the discussion, how do you know catalyst injection is safe?”
She looked confused. “I don’t know. I can’t say as I’ve ever even thought about it. That’s how doctors do it.”
“Well, wouldn't that just be the logical fallacy of appeal to authority?”
Her brow furrowed, but she didn’t back down. “Touché, but that’s how a lot of medicine is given.”
“Hmm, thinking that would be argumentum ad populum.”
She sighed with a smile. “We never should have taken that class on logical debate.”
“Hey now, I thought we had fun in that class. But just humor me. What if injecting people with catalyst is the dangerous way, and putting it on the skin is the safe way?” he put his hand on hers. “I’m not asking you to accept that, just asking, ‘what if that were true?’ What would that mean?”
She shook her head. “I—I don’t know. That doesn’t make any sense. Why would they do it the wrong way if they could just rub it on?”
He moved his hands to her shoulders and pushed her back just far enough to look her in the eye. “Babe, I can't say why people do what they do. But think of your own story. You got just covered in the stuff.”
“And I died, a lot!” she retorted.
“But not from the catalyst itself. The ability you got from it was dangerous, and got you killed. The catalyst itself didn’t hurt you, and it sounds like you were exposed to a lot of it.” He said.
She started to reply and then stopped. She let her gaze wander the room as she thought about his words for several long seconds. “Ok, I think I see what you’re saying. It still seems crazy. But what about the risk of ability psychosis?”
He shook his head. “That’s a more involved discussion, but I can say with good certainty that it is not directly caused by using catalyst topically. Besides, that lotion you use to get an energy boost is just a very weak catalyst mixture in a lotion base.”
Her nostrils flared as her eyes widened. “What? No. That can’t—How do you—?” She stopped and composed herself. “How do you know that?”
“When I tried it, I got the same prompt I see when I touch catalyst. Your ‘booster cream’ is a very low potency mix for sure, but that’s what it is.”
She turned away. “Same ‘prompt?’ That is freaking me out. Don’t take this the wrong way, but how do you know all this stuff, and are you sure about it? You’re saying things that are counter to everything I’ve ever heard about catalyst before.”
He nodded and stepped closer. “Sorry to shift your paradigm without using the clutch, but one of the side effects of my ability is being able to learn about some of this stuff. I don't know everything. Not by a long shot. But I’m discovering that a lot of what people ‘know’ is just plain wrong.”
She shrugged. “Alright. I trust you. You say that’s how it is, I’ll take your word for it until proven otherwise.”
What other abilities are good possibilities with combat applications?
She turned to face him. “So, I really don’t want to talk about this stuff anymore right now. I need a break from crazy. I was thinking. Why don’t we go out tonight, I’d hate to let that suit go to waste.”
“What did you have in mind?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know, a date. We go out, have some fun.”
He smiled. “Somehow I knew you had plans for that suit the second I saw it. Sure, let's do it.”
He glanced at the clock on the wall.
“Wait, weren't we going to go see that Brock guy soon?”
She nodded. “Well yeah. But that’s not going to take all day. I’m talking about going out tonight.”
He smiled. “In that case, let's do it. Sounds good.”
Her expression transformed, taking on an infectious grin. “Yes! We are going dancing!”
Well, this is not what I had in mind, but at least it’s something she loved before.