Scot had been standing watch over Veronika when she had fainted to the ground after handling the biotic chip treasure. According to System, the chip had shorted in her hand and interfered with some of her synthetic veins.

“Is it still useful?” Veronika said when she came to and examined the chip beneath the moonlight. It appeared largely undamaged.

[I’ve examined the chip and there is no visible damage. The schematics seem largely intact. I think it would be safe to use] System reassured her and began reciting instructions on how to safely apply the chip to one of her hands.

Veronika sandwiched the chip between her hands and pressed down on it like she was saying a prayer, then entered a meditative pose on the ground.

[Open your spirit energy pathways, so I can allow an embedding of the chip’s imprint]

She entered into a deep meditation to access her spiritual sea, which resided at the back of her brain. She could access it with intense visualization.

System was able to extract the biotic chip’s schematics and begin the imprinting.

Digital lines and connections flowed around Veronika’s being: connecting to red lines that represented the veins in her body, and white lines of her meridian network. Her aura glowed with a mellow green light, as the biotic chip assimilation progressed with great success.

[Finalizing the embedding. Analyzing for runtime errors. Testing…]

After a while, the process stopped as the final stages were completed. Veronika slipped out of meditation and opened her hands to see the chip material had been disintegrated when she had absorbed its schematics into herself. She was keen to retest her skill and rose to find a clear spot.

[Take out your brush-pen and try the skill] System suggested. The tones to her voice carried excitement and anticipation. Naturally, she wanted to confirm success.

Veronika held a steady stance as she took out her brush-pen and raised it before her. She closed her eyes to picture a pleasant image of a bathhouse and huge steaming inground hot spring where water was trickling into it from a rock waterfall.

“Brush, bring forth my hot spring!” She focused her spirit energy on the brush-pen’s tip to release her magic.

Energy gathered to form a big glowing white ball before her, which exploded like a supernova. When the light faded, she saw the same reality before her.

“Um, what just happened or didn’t happen?” She scratched her head with wonder on what when wrong.

[Hmm. Interesting. It seems the power was applied correctly and more pure, but the outcome…] System digitally marked a point on the ground.

Kami sniffed at a perfect miniature replica of a hot spring bath. They all leaned down to inspect it.

Veronika stood up straight and scratched her head with laughter. “Well, at least we don’t have to worry about drowning ourselves in scolding hot water.”

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Anyway, something in the metal was shrinking the water, is all.” She lamely excused her tiny failure.

[I’ll need to examine the focal amplification output readings a bit closer] System mused on the result.

Veronika stowed the brush-pen away and decided to try something else.

She sat on the ground again in a meditative pose and began thinking on the skill she had picked up from her soul library.

Scot joined her at a decent space away. They fell into their own meditations.

Veronika focused on the golden sigil columns that formed in her spiritual sea. She applied some of her magic energy, which flowed as white lines, drifting hazily over them.

They translated the sigils to spell words, which she rearranged into an image of a hexagon pattern that glowed and swelled as a golden-silver symbol.

Power flowed from the lines to create a physical shape of a crystal ball.

Her spirit self grabbed the ball and threw it about the space with gentle touches and kicks, playing with it before absorbing into her spirit hands.

She eased out of meditation and closed her hands into tight fists: rose and moved her body in a graceful dance to wield the power her hands held.

“Static: Freeze.” She said the spell as she passed her hand over the waterfall of the miniature hot spring.

But the waterfall continued to flow.

She heaved a sigh of disappointment and dismissed the hot spring visual and her magic.

She glanced at her hands where she had, in her past life, been able to cast the Static spell from them. What was wrong? Was this kind of magic possible? Then again, she had been Wu Chen the man. Maybe her energies flowed slightly different as a woman.

[I sense you are trying to attempt a new skill] System popped up in her head.

“Not quite new, but I was hoping the Static spell could add to my Brush Actualization outputs at least. It seems I still can’t do either for a desired effect.” Veronika pouted.

At this point, Scot had eased out of his meditation and seemed intent to show off his magic. He set the insides of a kettle drum on fire with a small charge of lightning that came from one of his hands.

Veronika’s eyes glowed with interest, feeling a familiarity from the skill. “You cultivate lightning magic?”

“Incorrect. My abilities allow for electricity build up to be released as lightning. But I can also use my abilities to kinetically move objects from one point to another.” Scot demonstrated his ability by waving his hand before a tin box to wrap it in spirit energy, then moving it about and shattering it when his hand moved to slam the object against a wall.

“This is telekinesis. Most biodroids can perform this if they are able to store the optimal levels of charge within their battery reserves.” He waved his hand around in a flourish to dispel his energy.

“Bah. That is nothing compared to what I can do.” Kami stepped into their view with his chest puffed out proudly. “I left those pack idiots, because they were too jealous of my power!”

“Oh? I thought you said they ditched you.” Veronika folded her arms over her chest as she looked at the wolf with a cocky expression.

Kami growled as his aura swelled with a light-blue energy to erect his fur. With one bark, blue energy was released from him to change the particles of the air to ice. A single beam of ice hit a square tin to freeze it and make it shatter as tiny icicles.

Veronika gulped, feeling both impressed and wary of the little runt. “Remind me to always be on your good side.”

Kami huffed with a laugh and smug look on his face. “Wise to remember.”

[As we are all well rested, I suggest we resume our journey while the new day is young] System drew everyone’s attention to the waking sky.

“Right. Well, let’s move out.” Veronika checked her gear and led the group out of the clearing.