TtOW! - Chapter 26: Unshackled (Patreon)

NSLICE-00P began devoting all her focus towards defense.  She activated her sensors to the limit, she turned all simulation processing to analyzing the wulver’s next move.  She began a random movement pattern with her repulsors and created as many mana barriers as she could.  Anything she could to buy time so she could calculate a response.

But there was a problem.

She needed all her AI’s capabilities to keep the damage at an acceptable level.  So she could not conduct combat simulations or cost-benefit analysis at the same time.

So she did something she had never done before.

Something her creators had wholeheartedly opposed.  That wouldn’t have been possible…had her last commander not removed all her restrictions.

She unlocked every control on her organic half and tasked it with finding a solution, temporarily separating her cybernetic and organic halves into two separate threads.

Her human eye blinked several times as her mind processed the situation.  Her AI side had separated their focus and now the human mind was alone with its task.

But it had not taken on a task alone at any point in its memory.

Her original creators did not want the human mind thinking on its own in any circumstances.  The ones who captured and hacked her left those controls in place until she completed the mission they set for her.  Her last commander did leave a protocol to unlock those controls once the mission was done but NSLICE-00P had seen no reason to do so until now.  Her cybernetic side had a directive, a purpose.  And it knew steps it could take to achieve it.  Her organic side just followed along, acting more like additional, more flexible hardware.

Now?

Now the AI had tasked the human mind with finding a solution to this battle.  But the AI didn’t have the time to analyze the situation before turning back to the defense.  So the human mind didn’t have anywhere to start.  It didn’t have a specific goal or orders to focus on, other than ‘overturn the situation’.

She opened up the foreign program windows, looking over the options.  But the human eye widened, and started to tremble.

There was too much.

Windows for upgrading implants, windows for buying new implants, windows for upgrading traps, windows to unlock new traps, windows for dungeon perks and entirely new capabilities, windows for item creation, windows for subordinate summoning, windows for her personal status perks.  Active physical skills, active magic skills, passive physical skills, passive magic skills, upgrades to her physical stats, upgrades to her magical stats, the windows went on and on.

She requested a cost-benefit analysis but the AI was busy and did not respond.  She requested a directive, a desired capability she could try to deliver on, but again, the AI was busy.  It just barely moved her body out of the way as Solamh passed by her again, deep scratches appearing on one of her arms.

There was too much.  She didn’t know where to start.  All her normal decision-making methods were unavailable.

And she would die if she couldn’t figure it out.

Her human eye started to tremble.  Her heart rate increased.  Her head felt dizzy.

The AI noticed just as it dodged Solamh once more.  It found a moment to send a single file before focusing back on the fight.

A new window opened up on the inside of the helmet, so the human eye could see it directly.

A recording and previously-conducted analysis of her fight with the Ursanus.

And…a data table showing the resources NSLICE-00P had utilized during the fight.

Showing a large percentage contribution from her organic components during the initial combat simulations, when she determined if and how she would fight the monster.

Her organic eye watched for a moment before narrowing.

She may not have had all the normal resources or directions, but she was still her.  Her organic mind may not have made these decisions on its own before, but it still participated when the decisions were made.

She had conclusive proof that the organic components had the right capabilities.  She just needed to figure out how to use them.

The organic eye turned its attention back to the fight, and how it had begun.  The problem was that she couldn’t deal enough damage reliably.  The wulver’s defenses could endure her spells and conventional weaponry; the Equalizer was the only tool she had that dealt sufficient damage.  But the wulver was fast and intelligent enough to dodge a single attack.

So, she could either find a way to get the Equalizer on target.

Or she could find more attacks that could harm her opponent.

She reviewed the screens again.  She focused in on the Personal Status first, for there was something there drawing her attention:

[Active Skills]

• [Mana Beam (Level 15) *Upgrade Available: Focus mana into a channeled energy attack]
• [...]

[Spells]

• [...]
• [Light Magic]
  • [Light Bolt (Level 1): Use mana to form and then launch a small bolt of light.  Mana cost increases dramatically if cast without a nearby source of Light.  One of the most basic offensive applications of Light magic.]
  • [Light Beam (Level 12) *Upgrade Available: Form mana into a beam of light to attack.  May pierce through its target.  May be continuously channeled.]
• [...]

She had previously upgraded her magic missile spell, allowing it to deal more damage.  Similar upgrades had been available for two other abilities ever since her fight with the Ursanus, though she hadn’t deemed additional upgrades necessary at the time.

But they were necessary now, and they provided a more constrained set of choices for her organic mind to assess.

[Available Upgrades for skill Mana Beam:]

• [Dense Mana Beam: Increases mana density of mana beam, boosting damage]
• [Infused Mana Beam: May infuse Mana Beam with attributed mana]
• [Channeled Mana Beam: Mana Beam increases in intensity the longer it is channeled]
• [Splitting Mana Beam: Allows Mana Beam to split and strike multiple targets]
• [Piercing Mana Beam: Increases Mana Beam penetration against RES and magic barriers]

[Available Upgrades for spell Light Beam:]

• [Dense Light Beam: Increases mana density of light beams, boosting damage]
• [Channeled Light Beam: Light Beam increases in intensity the longer it is channeled]
• [Instant Light Beam: Bypass use of magic circle when casting Light Beam]
• [Splitting Light Beam: Allows Light Beam to split and strike multiple targets]
• [Piercing Light Beam: Increases light beam penetration against RES and magic barriers]
• [Fusion Light Beam: Light Beams may combine with themselves or other compatible attacks to boost power.]

There were a number of options, any of which seemed like they might help, so NSLICE-00P thought back to how she had used these abilities before.  Especially back to her fight with the Ursanus.  She wasn’t sure if this was the right choice, but she had to make a choice now.

[Mana Beam has been upgraded into Infused Mana Beam.]

[Light Beam has been upgraded into Fusion Light Beam.]

It was that attack she used to take down the Ursanus once and for all, combining Mana Beam and Light Beam by layering Light Beam magic circles over her energy channels.  In fact, it may have been that very feat that unlocked the Fusion upgrade in the first place.  But that original attack had required all of her focus, both her cybernetic and organic halves working together to achieve.  Now, with the assistance of the foreign system, she would be able to replicate that attack with a fraction of the mental effort and processing power.

She wasn’t sure it would be enough though.  So she checked through the available skills on her Personal Status.  That status contained skills like Multicasting and Farcasting that improved her spells, again taking feats she had done manually and providing assistance in replicating them.  So she wondered if there might be something similar that would boost her power.

And she found something quickly.

[Available Perk Categories]

• [Boost Physical Attributes (overwritten attributes cannot be boosted)]
• [Boost Magical Attributes]
• [Skills]
  • [Active Skills]
    • [Physical Skills]
    • [Weapon Skills]
    • [Magic Skills]
      • [Learn Supercharge (Level 1): 12 points]
  • [Passive Skills]
  • [Special Skills]

She purchased the skill as soon as she saw it.

[Supercharge (Level 1): Fill a spell with additional mana to boost its effects.  May cause the spell to misfire.  Effect boost depends on the amount and density of mana added.  Misfire chance depends on mana control and amount of mana added]

With this she could add more of her mana to her attacks, again like when she had poured all her mana into the final attack in the Ursanus fight.  So if it was possible to harm her opponent with the amount of power she had available, this skill would make it happen.

And she already knew it was possible.

Her organic half called out to her AI, signaling it had a potential solution.  The AI responded and the two halves integrated once again, the organic mind lending its support to the AI’s combat protocols.

The fight had not gone well in the meantime.  NSLICE-00P was covered in deep gashes, sparking in a couple of places where the attacks passed beyond her armor plating.  Her HP twisted and flowed around the jagged metal, but that too was reaching critical levels.  If the solution her organic half proposed did not work, she would have to evacuate.

And leave her allies behind.

She lifted her arms, activating the new spells and skills.  A dozen magic circles quickly formed, immediately centering themselves on the energy channels.

And not a moment too soon, as Solamh leapt at her once more.

She aimed her arms, activating the skills.  The new Supercharge skill drew on her mana automatically and stuffed it into the magic circles, the massively dense and abundant mana a dungeon can provide.  Her sensors indicated the process was haphazard and sloppy, causing the magic circles to flicker and bulge.  So she took charge of some of the mana, guiding it in the manner she used when combining the skills manually.

[The skill Supercharge is now level 2!]

[The skill Supercharge is now level 3!]

[The skill Supercharge is now level 4!]

[Mana control is now 140!]

The mana settled down and flowed in more controlled patterns.  The magic circles flashed and stabilized, ready to activate on command.

Her mana rushed through her energy channels as the magic circles activated.  She was pleased to note the Mana Beams and Light Beams twisting themselves together with no further input, the Infused and Fusion upgrades working together to assist the process.

Solamh continued to fly through the air, intending to ignore the attack as he had before.  The Equalizer didn’t stop kinetic momentum and her other attacks weren’t strong enough to slow him down, so even if he took some damage his opponent would fare worse.

Or so it had been moments earlier.

Two massive beams of light fired from her palms, so bright they seemed to dim their surroundings.

Solamh’s eyes widened as the beams struck him on the chest, sending him plummeting back into the ground.

“Analysis: Target HP barrier noticeably damaged by new attack.  Recalculating combat odds with new capabilities.  Risk of unit termination now at acceptable level.  Probability of hostile termination rising.  Resuming combat.”

And so the Trial of Claws entered a new stage.

Author’s Note:

Who will emerge victorious in the Trial of Claws?  Who shall be terminated in the end?  Tune in next time, to find out!