Chapter 38: Winding Down. (Patreon)

Chapter 38: Winding Down.

 “How many?”

“Around two hundred?” Monique answered.

“And the best prospects?”

“Subutai, Gina and Stellio. Three Types each. They caused quite a ruckus.”

“Good.” Slab said. “The Council is less likely to notice then. I’ll advocate on your behalf as if you relapsed back to drinking. No one should notice the difference and any who do will chalk it up to the liquor.”

“Speaking of which, are we sure that won’t have any, uh, side-effects?”

I looked at Charlie with a raised eyebrow.

“The plan or the booze?”

“Both.”

I shrugged.

“The plan is the most likely to work, given our current restrictions. The alternative will see me and the Seeking Drake merging far more naturally, as Sarcophagus Solomon made it. I’ve seen that thing’s appetites. I’m not interested in twisting my own mind into that. We’re not quite that desperate yet.”

“Yeah, you say that, but you’re undoing what the future you had done. The future you that was much stronger than you are now.”

Charlie pointed out.

I rolled my eyes.

“That other me was also not real and working off of [Precognition] or, a not-yet-formed version of [Insight]. I’ve come to realize that the process of ability combination is far slower than I thought. Constant level-ups in a short time ramp up to their eventual completions. Dusty should be getting a Tier 4 ability any day now. The point is that he was…. Working with limited knowledge. He had his own timeline as a reference, which was enough to ill Anezka before he went all Doc Roboticus on us. The Drake was meant to be a failsafe, in case you guys failed. But you didn’t. Now he’s an opportunity. One that needs to be handled very, very delicately.”

I placed a good deal of emphasis on that last word. Making damn dure they all got the picture.

“Because if it suspects something halfway through, I’m going to have the literal pre-historic, nigh-all powerful biblical monster inside my skull trying to kill me. At a time where we’re preparing for the literal end of days and over a hundred interdimensional invasions. That is not going to end well. For anybody.”

We all sat in silence for a few seconds after that. Al of them re-playing the visions I’d shared whilst willfully ignoring the ring as it promised us untold riches in exchange for more blood sacrifices.

“You know, the only reason I came within a mile of that thing was because I thought you wouldn’t notice us being gone.” Charlie grumbled. “I say we find a deep well and throw it inside.”

“We need it.” Was all I said in response. “The Drake must not suspect anything. Not until I have crushed what’s left of his ego and taken its powers for my own. I will not be able to hide anything from it once I start the process. No one can know but you four and you four must keep it hidden from me. At least until the next time we meet Randall.”

“I can’t believe you didn’t kill him.” Monique repeated. Massaging her temple with such ferocity that one would think she was trying to purposefully cave in her own skull.

“I have held nothing back.” I repeated for the umpteenth time. “You all saw Periwig. You all saw the Barbarian’s End. My Earth will the first, but not the last. Randall is a tool. The least he can do is be a useful tool.”

“Naturally.” Slab assented.

“Do any of you have any other questions?”

None of them spoke up.

So, I conjured [Suppression] and started my scheme.

______________________________________________________________________________

[Solomon’s Overwhelming Delusion V] was an incredible ability. A fact that hadn’t become immediately apparent to me earlier.

How foolish of me.

It wasn’t merely an upgrade to [Static Illusion].

No sir!

It could bring up perfect recreations of any sensations!

Any.

Sensations.

So, naturally, I was currently dancing in the oval pit that used to be the bottom of the gnomish village of Happy Shrub.

Blasting music so loud that the others couldn’t stay for more than half an hour at a time.

Which was great, because that meant we could keep playing our little game.

I pulled another bottle of Irish whiskey from the storage ring. Moving it in the air with a flourish before opening it and taking a couple of gulps.

The amber liquid burned my throat on its way down. Making my head spin and giving me a stupendous warmth in my chest. A heat that kicked the stuffing out of all my doubts and fears.

I gasped. Reveling in the fire running through my veins.

I was sweating bullets, despite Buddy’s continued efforts to keep me cool.

My feet were moving on their own. Stumbling around the stony dancing floor in a clumsy gait that would have elicited howls of laughter from any onlookers back home.

Meanwhile, there was a war in my head. [Insight] telling me the sounds weren’t real, while [Delusion] did its best to make them real.

It was the best.

Working out while having fun!

All while my new comrades enjoyed themselves next to me.

Suffocating the fears that had haunted me all this time.

Ha! Take that, fears!

I’m a good person and I have lots of people who love me!

“This isn’t the real one!” Stellio cursed, as he grasped an illusory copy of me. His thick calloused fingers slipping through empty air while I sang alongside all my doppelgangers.

“Tooooooruru! TOOruRurRoooRuRu! Tooruru! RU! RU!”

The music reached a new crescendo as we all gave voice to the lyrics. Screaming our hearts out for all the maze to hear!

“EWVERY NIGHT IN MOY DREAMS! I SEEEE YOUUUU! I FEEEEEEEL YOOOOUUUU! THRAT IS HROW I KNOR YOU! GO OOOOOOONNNNN!”

“Sully! Sully! Give me the bottle man! Its not worth it! Please!” Prudence was reaching out and patting clones on the shoulder. Trying to see if she could tell which one was the real me.

Jokes on her. That wasn’t how [Delusion] worked! It changed how other perceived the world around them so much that it overrode their tests!

People could run their fingers right through empty air and their brains would somehow convince themselves that it had been solid.

Case in point, Simeon couldn’t tell where I was either.

“[Echolocation] isn’t working! It says there’s sound everywhere! It’s telling me there’s a whole band playing! [Olfactory Navigation] doesn’t work either! I’m smelling bottles all around me! Ahmed! Ahmed, can you feel him!?”

“No!” Ahmed answered.

His body reforming in front of me. Changing from a sentient cloud and back to a human.

“[Proprioception] and [Incorporate Gas] aren’t working either! I felt all of them at once and they all feel real! All of them stink of liquor! I don’t have any points left…. Does anyone have [Thermal Vision]?”

“Mr. Park says that doesn’t do anything! All of them come up as real!”

Ahmed and Simeon kept searching for a few more minutes, before the latter crumpled to the floor.

His hands going to his ears in a futile attempt to keep the music out.

I went over to him and helped him to his feet.

“Hey there man. I got you! Couldn’t handle the party, eh? I get it. No worries! Let me help you back to the Warehouse.”

“Sully? Sully! Is that the real you!?”

I chuckled. Hiccupping a little and almost dropping him by accident.

“I don’t know. Am I?”

“Sully! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry I tried to hit you! It was stupid. I know how hard you’ve been working! I know how much you wanted to save people! I…I’m thankful! I’m so, very thankful! Please stop drinking! You’ll kill yourself at this rate! You need to live! Our worlds! You need to save our worlds! The video! Periwig!”

“Yeah yeah. We can see the movie later.”

Simeon flexed his new Shifter powers. Calling upon Psy from his second Type.

His frame grew more muscular. Making it so that he was twice as heavy.

I slipped and fell backwards, while he stumbled forward.

He reached out all around him, trying to find my arms again.

His hand brushed against a copy and he made to grab it. Trying to bring it past the door in a stunning display of futility.

“Please! You have to sleep!” He told the illusion. “Let’s get you back to bed! You even have a room all to yourself! You’re a hero now! So, sleep and stop drinking and sober the (Gnome) up for (Gnome)s sake.”

I laughed so hard that tears came out of my eyes while a stiff soreness arose along my stomach.

I had to hold on to my belly with both hands in order to soothe the cramps.

Level Gained: +500 Maximum Psy. +12 Ability Points.

Name:

Solomon Carter

Psy:

12, 319 / 97, 920

Type:

Telepath III Level 120

Abilities:

[Solomon’s Inescapable Domination X] 18 / [Solomon’s Overwhelming Delusion V] 12 / [Solomon’s Inexorable Suppression V] 12 / [Solomon’s Calamitous Insight VII] 19 / [Delirium III] 6 / [Sense Thoughts] 14 / [Message] 5 / [Mental Bolt] 4 / [Hide] 3 / [Faint Presence] 2 / [Mental Map] 10 / [Team Tactics] 5 / [Electronic Interface] 4 / [Floral Interface] 1 / [Fungal Interface] 1 /

Ability Points:

31

Oh boy! Another level!

Yes!

I didn’t even know how or why I got it but I sure as (Gnome) was happy about it!

‘Wait, where’s Dolce? Did I send him and his cousins out? Oh, well, whatever. Thanks for the level!’

I stood up on shaky arms and legs. Pushing against the ground with my hands as the chamber spun and spun and spun.

Part of me felt like throwing up while another part of wanted to lay on the ground for a quick nap.

The conflicting impulses clashing within my skull even as the unreal music made it vibrate with ecstasy.

My fog was turning on and off at random intervals. Informing me of just how many people were trying to play the game.

‘I could do whatever and still not get caught.’ I thought with smug satisfaction.

Dusty, Slab, Charlie, Borislav, Monique and Prudence could check until the cows came home and they still wouldn’t be able to tell which me was the real me.

Not that they were deterred.

We still had a game to play after all.

“Please Shepherd! Sully! We’ve celebrated enough! We have to rest! You have to rest!”

“Sully! Come on! Let’s just stop drinking for a minute! Just a few minutes!”

“Sully! Come on you daft bastard! We’re all dead without you! You’ve got to stop drinking!”

“Sully! I’m sorry about running away in the vision! You were right! We should be friends! I know you’re a good person! Come out and talk to us!”

“Sully! Get over here already! You need to be healed! You’re risking liver failure! Brain damage! We need you to stay alive! I promise we’ll be friends! Come out!”

“Sully! I’m sorry about trying to punch you earlier! Thanks for giving me back my diary! Let’s go back and talk about it! You like Thunder Fist right!? Me too! Let’s talk about him!”

They were going round and round in circles. Covering their ears as best as possible while reaching out to grab unreal bottles from my copies.

I giggled at how well they were doing in this round.

‘They’ve all gotten so much stronger! So many new levels!’

Some of it was thanks to [Insight] but this game had helped them too.

They had to use their brains to combat the confusing elements of the music.

To struggle against the illusions.

The effort made them more adept and cycling Psy. Giving them experience in a safe setting.

The thought filled me with even more happiness!

Not only did I have friends! But I could help them grow more and more and more!

Everything was awesome.

I had friends! Superpowers! A space free of gnomes!

And best of all, booze!

Booze glorious booze!

Endless amounts spilling from every bar in every safe zone we conquered.

My insides roiled with a tingly sensation and I allowed myself to be carried away by the wave. Reaching down into my lake and tugging on the ropes for the source.

‘Ah, the illusions are about to dissipate.’

I rolled around on the ground for a few more instants, before flexing my will and re-summoning the [Delusion].

Psy drained away like water down a toilet.

Escaping through the back of my eyes to stain the surrounding reality.

Dying it in my colours. In my never-ending jubilation.

That done, I marshalled my strength and stood back up.

“NEEEER! FAAAARRR! WHHHEEEEEERAAAAVEEERRR YOU ARE! I CAAAAN FEEEEELLL! THAT! TA HART DOS! GO OOOOOOOOOOONNNN AAAAND OOOOOOOONNNNN!”

“Him! That’s him! All the other copies are on the ground!”

I blinked a few times, turning around to see who’d said that.

I felt a warm, affectionate embrace.

Soft, squishy parts of a torso being smashed against my face.

It felt amazing.

This, this was what the hopes and dreams of men were made of.

“I’m sorry about this, Sully.” A beautiful voice said.

I felt a tightening around my throat. Struggling to draw in air.

Someone placed a hand to my face and the hand smelled of love and tranquility.

I was falling.

Dozing off against my will.

The wonderful warmth spread all around my skin and over Buddy.

Like a fresh blanket enveloping the entirety of my being.

The darkness welcomed me back like a long-lost lover.

I expected bad dreams.

They’d been the norm for some time and I’d been sure the loss of [Meditation] would have only worsened matters.

Instead, I felt…

Content.

Filled with a tranquility that was difficult to describe. Almost as if all my problems were ripped off my back and thrown in a trash bin.

I looked down and saw that my body was laying in a grassy garden. Surrounded by hedges and a stony cobbled path.

I stood up slowly. Revelling in the unnatural respite from my woes.

‘What was I doing? After the hunt? I remember saving people and the trials and a kiss? Did I kiss someone?’

My hand went to my lips. Touching the spot where I could vaguely recall the sweet aftertaste.

I was still trying to recall the exact details when began walking around. Entering the very opulent building right behind me.

The manse was immaculate. No specks of dust could be seen anywhere inside the building. Nor outside for that matter.

It was as if the very air had been scoured of impurities so that the estate could maintain its splendor forevermore.

A perfect picture in an imperfect world.

My fog wasn’t picking up anything. Meaning there were no animals around either.

Odd, considering that chirping birds could be heard just out of sight and that there was a big hairy Labrador sitting on the grass near the central water fountain.

His tongue moved steadily as he panted, his big friendly eyes tracking me as I stepped around the neatly trimmed rose bushes.

His tail was wagging pleasantly. The telltale sign of a very good boy who really wanted to play with his new best friend.

“Well, this is a pleasant surprise.” I said to no one in particular. “It might have been more pleasant if it was real, but beggars can’t be choosers I guess.”

“What makes you think this isn’t real?” The dog asked, tilting his fuzzy head to the side in confusion.

I shrugged.

“Oh, I don’t know. It could be the fact that you can talk or the absence of other creatures’ thoughts in my head. The sun being the wrong colour doesn’t help your case either. Also, Buddy is missing and I’m dressed like someone who’s about to do handstands for the king in ye old royal court.”

I jiggled the bells on my sleeves to accentuate my point.

“Look at this. If I rattle them in just the right way, I can play ‘O Canada.’ I should make a show out of it.”

The thing pretending to be a dog eyed me curiously.

Sort of like how a jaguar might assess an obese tourist stepping in to the amazon. Not quite sure whether to flee or go for the jugular.

“Even if all of that weren’t enough, your voice sounds like nails on chalkboard. Actually, scratch that, nails on chalkboard would be an improvement. You sound like someone who torments the souls of the dead for (Gnome)s and giggles.”

The thing pretending to be a dog laughed. Its canine jaw opening wider than should have been possible before splitting into four sections that pulled themselves free of the bone and muscle that tied them together. Pulling backwards to the point where it resembled a budding flower with teeth and weeping flesh where petals should have been.

“Your appraisal is quite…insightful. Though I have no interest in the dead. It is the living who concern me.”

Its body shrank into itself.

Churning until the bone and sinew gave way and a pulsing red blob took its place.

The figure grew a tendril, then another then two more after that. It shivered and the meat coalesced once again. In the center, was a mouth filled with perfect human teeth, twisted into a rictus grin.

“That is the way it has always been and the way it shall always be. You weren’t strong enough to see me before. Not truly. You caught glimpses, shadows on the wall. Never comprehending the depth of my majesty. The glory of my vicissitude.”

Its corporeal form twisted like slimy play-dough. Shaping and kneading itself into a roughly human outline.

It paused once it resembled a burn victim and shivered again, caressing itself with small misshapen fingers.

The redness in its outer layer vanished deep inside, replaced by a layer of pristine, slightly tanned skin.

The topmost part of it began to take the shape of a face while its hands fashioned the connected tissue below it into a neck.

Squeezing around to get the thickness just right.

It grew purple hair from its scalp while reptilian eyes manifested above the mouth. Looking more and more like an oversized doll with every passing second.

‘No. Not like a doll.’ I corrected myself. ‘Its more like a costume. The kind a serial killer would make from its victims.’

The mouth opened and let out a chortle.

“Oh Sully! You’re so very droll! So very, perceptive! Its such a tasty treat! To meet someone who really gets me! After all these years….”

A tongue three times too big slithered from behind the teeth and tasted the air like a serpent.

“Guess you can read minds too. Great. I love having my private thoughts intruded upon.”

It tittered as the details of its feminine body settled in.

Piercing red eyes staring straight at me while a similarly coloured dress spun itself around its body.

“You are wrong. I am not intruding on your mind. This is not me. Not the real me, anyway. What you see are the little itsy bits you’ve absorbed thus far. I am part it and part you. I figured a more, familiar shape might ease your, our…suspicious nature.”

It tittered merrily. That tongue retracted and it flashed an impish grin.

“Like what you see?”

I looked it over once more, eyebrow raised.

“Is that supposed to be a genuine question, or are you still messing with me?”

It balked, feigning offense.

“Mess with you? Why, I’d never even consider it.”

“Good to know.” I answered flatly. “In that case, I’ll be straightforward with you in return. That was, hands down, the third creepiest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Right after the transformation of the other me into Sarcophagus Solomon and the remains of the Gnomish camp. I actually preferred the many-mouthed monstrosity you were before. At least you were being honest.”

It put on a sulking expression.

“Now now. I am being honest. I am part of you now, or rather, I will be, once this annoying little wall crumbles. I have no incentive to deceive you. Nor do I have any other recourse than fully merging with you. Your death would mean my own as well. It stands to reason that I would…”

It paused, stopping long enough to lick its lips in anticipation of its next words.

“Seek. A cooperative relationship. It does get lonely in your little primate skull. Ha. Ha. Ha.”

It did not laugh.

Instead, it repeated the sounds people would make when laughing.

Another shiver crept up my spine.

“Why do I get the feeling that this is the part of a horror movie when the main character makes a stupid mistake?”

“Because you are allowing preconceived notions to cloud your judgement my dear. You see me and think of monsters, when you should be seeing the endless potential of my, our, malleability. We can be monsters to some, to be sure. Yet I’ve played the angel more than once.”

It tried to walk, but stumbled clumsily.

Like a newborn fawn not yet accustomed to maintaining its balance.

It laughed off the indignities, willing its joints to bend at awkward angles in order to regain its footing.

The fact that this was its first recourse spoke volumes as to how alien it truly was.

The bells on my clothes jingled a pretty tune as I took several steps back.

“Ha. Ha. Ha. You flee from us. From you. Our gifts disturb you. How droll. Can’t you see the beauty in what we are? Surely you do. After all, you come from a more open-minded species than mine own.”

I stopped. Staring daggers at it.

“What do you know of humanity?”

“Precious little. Far less than I would have liked. Though I did peek at our collective memories once the absorption began. There was such a thing a cosmetic surgery in your world? It was big business, wasn’t it? What about perfumes? Creams for your face and body? Pills that made you fat or thin? All those aspects of your culture stem from the desire to change. To seek beauty. To aspire for perfection in one way or the other. The yearning is everything to me. It encapsulates who I am. What I do, what we’ll do, is no different. Imagine that, but on a far more precise scale.”

“I’m good the way I am. Thanks.”

“Liar.” It cackled. “You’ve always disliked your nose and the angular shape of your face. The way your eyes can seem, unapproachable. All that can be changed. I can make us into anything we can imagine and into many things you can’t.”

“I’ll get some work done later if I feel like it.”

Its smile turned vicious.

“HA! HA! HA! Don’t misunderstand me, Sully! I’m only applauding your own species because my own was so backwards in comparison. Such meager changes will only be the start. To be a Shifter is to hunt down a better version of you. To adapt and thrive no matter the circumstances.”

Its nails grew on its left hand, forming razor-sharp claws that glittered like diamonds under the false sun.

“Look at this! Look at what I can do! This is the result of [Claws]. The first ability I ever got during my own time in the Tutorial. It turns a weak, useless appendage into a weapon. By changing myself, I stole victory from the jaws of defeat many, many times.”

“So? I have [Mental Bolt]. Same outcome with less risk.”

It made a rude noise by blowing air out of its lips.

“Is that your position? Do you think such crude methods can hope to match my art? Did you not want to be a Shifter?”

“Yes! Yes!” I screamed before I could stop myself.

“Come to me then! Become one with me!”

I stopped. Hands still opening and closing from the sheer weight of expectation.

“What, uh, do you mean, become one?”

“Just that. You and I will merge. My desired congealing into yours. The resulting being will be a little like you and a little like me. A new life. A new Savant. One more suited to the struggle for Ascension.”

“Yeah….”

I said, slowly losing interest as I started retreating once more.

 “I want the Type. But I’m also not stupid. This is looking more and more like a Faustian deal with every passing second. You’ll have to excuse me for having second thoughts.”

“Do not be foolish. Have I asked anything of you? Have I demanded a sacrifice?”

It wagged its finger in a chastising motion.

Clicking its tongue as it did so.

“You see me and see perversion. Just like my old species. You’re allowing petty moral quandaries and baseless preconceived notions to blind you. Think back to your own world. To Earth. To the animals I saw in your memories. Are tigers unnatural because they are well-suited to killing? Are bears immoral because they maul humans on occasion? Are elephants despised because they can survive some of humanity’s weapons?”

“You can’t seriously compare what you’re doing right now to a normal animal.”

“Why not? I am superior now because I appreciate what made them superior over an older version of me. I can grow larger than an elephant and swifter than a tiger at a thought. Or grow wings if it pleases me to do so. Why shackle yourself to your feeble flesh when you know damn well it is insufficient?”

It stepped towards me. Not quite moving as a human should.

“I am not evil. That label means nothing to me. Nor should it mean anything to you. I am a life that seeks ascendency. The old me could not wrest it from others and this new me has obtained an opportunity through you. Accept me. Know me. Feel my passion inside your very blood.”

I was about to speak, when its right arm melted into bloody slurry, racing forwards like a whip. The liquified limb struck me, not causing any pain, but leaving me with a batch of new sensations to deal with. Like ants crawling inside my lips.

I tried to scream, and found that I had no mouth to do so.

“Tut, tut. My dear host. None of that now. You were the one that made me. A copy to assimilate at your leisure. You were the one that wanted to use me, remember? You wanted to change. To be a Shifter.”

Its right arm became solid once more.

The tittering grew in volume as other maws spread from its chest and neck, opening wide like freshly made wounds.

“Your wish has been granted. I am you now. I will melt and molt into your shape until we are indistinguishable. But first, you will learn the basics. A daunting task, for a fellow Savant. You better put your all into it, dear host. This is all very exciting and experimental. Who knows what could go wrong?”

I felt tendrils slithering up my legs. Turning them into the same jelly-like substance that my attacker was composed of. I felt a connection through the twisted tissue.

A heartbeat.

No.

Many, many heartbeats. Exploding with motion, one after the other.

The ruckus was unimaginably loud. Taking my mind away from the surreal mansion and its verdant gardens.

The whole environment cracked with another violent shudder. Pieces falling away like mirror shards.

“I guess that’s it for now. Pity.” It squealed. “I’ll be seeing you later. My other half. We still have so much to discuss.”

Its last enunciations dragged on for far longer than they should have.

Until it was the only sound that could be heard in the infinite void.