Chapter 133: That Flesh (Patreon)

Learner’s notes: Day 7 Cont.

Ryan took us to something called a ‘library’ today. When I spotted the hooter scribbles on the flat sheets of pressed pulp, I was somewhat intrigued, but when I saw the hooter put it back, I realized the entire wooden construction was supporting three hundred and forty-two of these sheet binders full of hoots.

A strange sensation went down the center of my back, where the knobbly bone bits are, as I gazed across the contents of the entire ‘library’. If each of these sheet binders was of a different subject, then this ‘library’ was such a wealth of information that it put my efforts so far to shame.

I knew in that moment that I must make an active effort to learn the visual hoot language as soon as possible.

Ryan delivered something called a ‘letter’, which is a hoot scribbled onto pulp with the intention of passing on a message. He gave the letter to a hooter others referred to as ‘Professor Seymour’.

A notion I’ve recently come to consider is that some hooter’s names are indicative of their status or profession while others are not. I wonder if Professor’s first name is one of those? Perhaps if I meet more ‘professors’ a common theme will be established that will give me the answer.

This Professor Seymour was an odd one, because its coloration was not like the rest of the common hooters of the area I’d found myself in. Similar to Nadia and Calvin, he was considerably paler, with a curly black mane, long in the front, that fell in front of his eyes as interpreted the hoot scribble.

Professor’s extremities shook as he read the ‘letter’ and then Ryan enquired as to the meaning of the letter. Ryan had already deciphered it himelf, and apparently didn’t understand it’s meaning quite the same way as Professor did.

When Professor proved unwilling to share what caused his fear, Ryan ‘beat it out of him’.

Professor finally told us something about ancient history, and ‘System Administrators’ who had grown powerful enough to challenge the gods, and been cast down for their arrogance.

….

…..

What is a System?

Requires more study.

***Ryan***

Ryan burst into Nadia’s room at the whorehouse, half expecting to find the fallen princess entertaining guests again, but the bitch was just reading, her finger’s tracing the book’s words. Under a series of odd raised bumps was a title. The lusty Uleisan Maid?

She looked up at him, her gaze flickering down to the blood on his knuckles, then back to the book.

“What brings you here? Seymour was supposed to contact me.”

Dara hesitantly ducked her head inside, then decided better of it like a good girl.

Ryan scoffed, and set the professor’s letter back on the table. “Seymour’s not very talkative right now. So, tell me, what were you hoping a history professor could tell you about your situation?”

“I’m sure you could tell me.”

Ryan followed her gaze down to his knuckles that still had traces of Seymour on them.

“That depends,” Ryan said, lacing his fingers. “How much of his guar-shit are you willing to buy from me?”

He had her over a barrel now. A fun proposition. He knew what Calvin was carrying around inside him…or what she suspected Calvin was carrying around inside him, sharing space with her. If she wanted to get the professor’s input on the subject, she’d have to give him something in return.

“Hmm…” Nadia tapped her fingers on her crimson lips. “I want to buy…none of it.”

“Ah..What?” What the Abyss did she send me there for, then?

“Aww…It’s not you, Ryan,” She said sweetly, closing her book and laying a possessive hand on his knee, leaning forward and looking into his eyes. “It’s me.”

“My mind isn’t exactly a private space these days. So you’re going to keep me in the dark about the things you’re doing for me, especially when it comes to sensitive information about our mutual friend.”

“How am I…How are you supposed to…What?”

“Here.” she said, passing him another letter. “Pardon my handwriting, I wasn’t looking.”

She glanced down at his knuckles again. “I wish you hadn’t done that, though. It’s going to make this next part awkward.”

Ryan opened the letter, surprised to see a key tucked in the letter. The handwriting was a little sloppy, but easily legible.

- Reward for previous job : Lockbox 17 in Uleis Trade Guild.

Next job: discuss my options with Professor Seymour and take him to the Sacrificial pit to Break. Follow his instructions. Relay results in Braille. Ask him what that means, you ignorant thug.

Nadia narrowed her eyes as she watched him read the note, then she set her romance down snatched the note away from Ryan’s hands. Rather than text, there were raised bumps on the romance novel’s pages, which caused a moment of confusion.

Without looking, the bitch wrote a quick note and handed it back to him.

Do NOT throw him in the pit.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Ryan said, standing, hefting the key in his hand. “I guess it depends on if this key is worth enough to make nice with the Ilethan with his head up his ass.”

“Do me a favor, and cut your reward by a quarter for not following my instructions in good faith.” Nadia said as she returned to her book.

Ryan chuckled. “Good one.” He turned and left, brushing past Dara on the way by as she hovered near the doorway. The mute meekly followed behind him.

If the pay is underwhelming, I’m changing teams. Dara can hang.

***Calvin***

Chained Minds.

Calvin closed his eyes, then he opened Kurawe’s eyes in his mind, as easily as opening one eye or the other. Suddenly he was sitting in the Giant’s study, in the middle of a conversation with Ghuled Bassaan, discussing the logistics of feeding and housing all of Uleis, as well as an expedition into Gadvera.

Did you wish for something, Ravager? Kurawe thought as he felt Calvin’s mind make contact with his own.

How’s the situation? Calvin asked.

I’m afraid that in order to field the Uleisan army, One of three groups must suffer. The Uleisan people, the army, or the refugees. We do not have food for all of them, even with no effort spared, and dipping into the emergency reserves.

Calvin thought about it for a moment.

Can you just equip the army with more hunting supplies? Let them get their own food?

That would upset the soldiers, reduce morale and drastically reduce the speed at which they would be able to arrive, my lord. If you try to keep everyone fed, you’ll wind up with more trouble than if you simply choose one to suffer.

Can you send Rufe and the rest of my Legends out in advance of the military and have them leave care packages along the trail?

My Lord, despite being Legends, Rufe and the men who were trapped in the Abyss could not possibly hunt enough game to supply an army of one hundred thousand.

…They’re Legendary hunters, not soldiers. I think they can do it. Make it happen.

As you wish.

Calvin opened his eyes again, severing the connection between them.

Gods, I hope I’m not screwing everything up constantly. Calvin had considered cutting off the refugees, but his status with Gadverans and Kala’s family in particular was sterling, and he needed to maintain that.

And the Uleisan army probably wouldn’t be willing to take food straight out of the mouths of their families. There was no good answer there.

Calvinian summoning.

Atom Ant

30/33 Bent remaining

Calvin summoned a swarm and split it into two, mentally directing them to go miles afield and push big game toward the road between Uleis and Gadvera.

That should help.

Why don’t you wanna check in with Nadia? Elliot asked. I’m pretty sure she’s plotting something.

Because ever since I got the damn Chained Mind Ability, half the time, she’s ‘busy’. I swear, I’m pretty sure she’s doing it to keep me from prying into her business.

So? What’s stopping you? Getting a free show’s gotta be tittilating, right?

It’s from her point of view. Up close and real personal.

Oh, not quite as fun.

I’ll just write her down as scheming something horrible and leave it at that.

Hah, stymied by gross-out. Careful that your homophobia doesn’t get you stabbed in the back.

Whatever. Calvin thought as the hot air blasted against this face. You try opening your eyes to a dick in your mouth and tell me that again.

AHAHAH….hmm…I see your point.

They were making great time, the desert sands sliding by beneath them at a rate that beggared belief. Already scraggly shrubs and plant life were beginning to show up as they made the gradual transition between desert and jungle.

The grass began to show up, dry and yellow at first, then lusher and more vibrant, until the jungle leapt up below them, marking a stark division between Uleis and Gadvera.

There’s a few things I need in that jungle.

Eventually they passed over a stand of wide leaved trees covered in white maggot-looking worms. How nostalgic.

Calvin created a handful of wasps, with a little something extra.

He vividly pictured the organ the supplied the aura of complacency, along with the ones that connected to it.

Calvinian Summoning

Atom Ant

Chimera.

29/33 Bent remaining.

The resulting Wasp was not pleasant to look at. Somehow its hairs were thicker and darker, and the creature seemed to have a more menacing look to it.

But it was fine, because they were under Calvin’s control.

Nope, not going through that again. Calvin ignored the desire to simply let the wasps do whatever they wanted and established firm control over them before they killed somebody.

Go get me three or four of those grubs. Dead and unexploded.

The capture wasps buzzed down into the clearing, and a series of explosions and plumes of fire began to rock the jungle just as Ella arrived beside him on her steed.

“Why did we stop!?” She shouted over the pervasive hum of their mount’s wings, glancing down at the fires.

“Supplies!” Calvin shouted back.

Ella frowned when the first was showed up, clutching a limp Fire-worm between its clawed arms, thankfully having not burst any of its storage organs like so many of it’s bretheren.

Calvin put a careful hand on the creature.

Consume

28/33 Bent remaining.

Entire creature eaten, would you like to assign it to a slot?

Yes.

Please choose a Skill slot to assign this creature to, or refuse to resume normal biological function. (Warning, volatile chemicals inside the creature may cause severe internal damage to User.)

I Choose Calvinian Summoning, Calvin thought.

6/8 Slots filled for Calvinian Summoning.

On its own, a fire-worm couldn’t do much, but with its ability to spew fire or explode able to be passed to other creatures via Chimera…Calvin definitely wanted it on his roster.

A moment later, another two dead grubs were brought up to him and Calvin used Harvester, storing them in his satchel full of ingredients.

The compound in the worms might not be as potent as God’s Fire made by a chemist like Igglebaum, but it was a Warped creature’s ability, meaning his Abyssal alchemy skill would synergize with it and make it more powerful, And.. there was every possibility that he could find a catalyst in his other materials that would make the stuff even more valuable.

Exploding crystals? Substances that burned memories? Who knew? Calvin was excited to see what he could make with it.

The Widowmaker he wanted to add, on the other hand, wasn’t as easy to pick out as a stand of Sweating Trees, and Calvin didn’t want to delay his arrival in Gadvera more than a few seconds.

Still.

“Let me know if you see me naked down there!” Calvin shouted over the constant hum of the wasps.

“Widowmaker?” she asked.

“Yeah!”

“What makes you think it’ll be you!?” Ella shouted back, giving him a sharp-toothed grin.

“Educated guess!” Calvin shouted back, hunkering down over the wasp’s prickly back before the creature burst into motion, slowly catching up to where Baroke was screaming down the trade road.

Widowmakers had a perfect design for capturing live prey. With a few modifications, he could make the perfect princess-napping summon to take care of the work for him.

I’m not really sure there’s enough princesses in the world to justify industrializing it to that extent, Elliot weighed in.

Eh, it’s that or a Tarak and a Float-Goat.

Could be handy.

Not exactly what we need right now anyway, Calvin thought as the jungle slid by beneath him.

This is another one of those moments, Calvin keenly felt how far he’d come as he effortlessly flew over the jungle he’d nearly died in half a year ago. In the distance, he made out the massive Kugeya, it’s thick armor plates catching the light as it slithered between the treetops.

The very same creature that had terrorized him and Ella seemed…unimpressive.

If I wanted to, I could probably kill that and take it as a Calvinian summon, if I wanted to. What’s my total poundage at right now?

Calvinian Summoning level 25: 15625 Lbs, 625 minutes.

Wow, Damn. Calvin narrowed his eyes, trying to guess the massive creature’s weight. Ah to hell with it. It doesn’t matter.

While a Kugeya was armored and big, he could easily get a wasp that big, and the only other thing it had was venom, supposedly, but not as potent as the young of its kind. No special abilities that interested him, either.

All in all, it wasn’t something Calvin wanted in his lineup.

You’re less valuable to me than a grub, Calvin thought, narrowing his eyes as the segmented armor disappeared under the canopy. That’s your punishment. Live with the shame.

Hah, good one. Hey, how big do you think a fifteen thousand pound wasp would be?

Eh, two, three stories tall, Calvin thought, picturing it. Big fuckin’ wasp. To the point where it was more effective to just make small ones. But the size would be damn intimidating.

That could be useful.

The jungle began to thin as they approached the coast, and Calvin sharpened up, scanning the horizon with his gaze.

Finally, he began to be able to make out the city of Mujenan in the distance, cut out of the dense jungle surrounding it.

It was mostly in one piece…except the walls were the wrong color, along with most of the buildings.

They had been tan sandstone, for the buildings, and off-white for the city walls, presenting a bastion of order and trade in the middle of the Gadveran coast.

Now, they looked…off. it was more yellowish than Calvin remembered, and as they came closer to the city, Calvin was able to make out red veins spreading out across the strangely colored walls, like an old man’s nose, and –

“Oh. That flesh.” Calvin said aloud as he made out the walls of the city for what they were. The walls had been plastered with some kind of skin-like substance that pulsed in the heat of the summer sun.

Clear pustules dotted the sides of the walls, filled with what appeared to be humanoid figures. That was all that Calvin could make out from this distance, and he wasn’t going to go any closer without a plan.

Now, to make an entrance.

Calvinian summoning.

Chimera.

27/33 Bent remaining

Calvin used the Fire-worms as a base, scaling them up to the size of two grown men, then added the wasp’s wings.

A swarm of thirty-nine four hundred pound Fire-worms burst out of a cloud of green smoke, ready to shoot liquid fire in copious amounts out of their asses.

Burn that shit off the walls.

Rather than leap to obey, all thirty-nine winged Fire-Worms thrashed, their wings buzzing wildly as they plummeted toward the ground.

Booom! Boom Boom BOOOM!

In a series of ear-splitting explosions, the Fire-Worms hit the ground and detonated, sending gouts of flame towering above the treetops. So high, Calvin could feel the warm air against his skin.

Well, if you wanted to let One know you were coming, you certainly accomplished that. Probably should have added the chunk of brain that lets them know how to control their wings, too. Or restructured a wasp’s insides instead, because those worms were NOT built to fly.

Fuck. Calvin watched as the pustules along the walls of Mujenan began to burst, and the tiny humanoid figures fell to the ground. We’ll get the kinks of Chimera worked out. In the meantime…

Calvin raised his hands, a cloud of green smoke resolving into thousands of fist-sized wasps.

26/33 Bent remaining

These will keep them busy.