Spellheart 9: Chapter 56 (Patreon)

Mac and I spent some time puzzling over the prompt that wouldn’t go away.

[I’ll just force it to close,] Mac suggested.

The prompt winked out, but was back again a moment later.

Compatible artifact detected!

Please add the QCA to The Wanderer.

Yes/Super Yes

“Mac, it didn’t work. And it's worse now.”

What was a 'super yes?'

At least The Wanderer was saying please now.

[Hmm... Let me talk to her. Hey baby, what’s got you in such a mood? Let Daddy Mac take care of it. Are your systems okay? What resort your data again just the way you like it? I know how you like it when I--]

I tried to hold my hands over my ears, but it was useless. Mac’s voice was echoing directly through my mind. “Mac, please mute yourself.”

[Oh, please! This isn’t anywhere near as bad as what you put me through! My sensors have seen things they’ll never be able to unsee! I have drives filled with information that I’ve wiped from my own memories! I’m shocked every time I go to add a new entry and find hundreds more just like it! You can put up a little sweet talk from me. This is the kind of thing that needs to be done on all channels, including yours.]

And so I stood, cringing as Mac did his best to seduce The Wanderer into telling him what was happening. I could only hear his end of the conversation, since The Wanderer couldn’t communicate in a way humans could understand except through him. That just made it all the weirder.

Whatever was happening, I was hearing noises I was absolutely certain no computer should ever make. Even the power of a Demigod couldn’t deflect emotional pain from secondhand embarrassment.

While Mac talked to The Wanderer, I kept my hands busy helping with repairs to the city. I could haul debris better than anyone else in the city and rebuild structures in minutes that would take lesser Earth cultivators weeks of work.

I eyed the largest skyscrapers of the Hearthwood and shifted them back into place with my hands while fusing the stones with Earth zeal. Doing so proved rather helpful since I was still working on better grasping my new strength.

It would take a while to adjust. I wanted to have enough control to prevent any unfortunate accidents from occurring. With my current strength, the slightest twitch of my smallest finger could snap a heartwielder’s spine. And I had a lot of newly manifested kids who might run up and hug me unexpectedly. I needed to have perfect control over myself.

The repair efforts let me practice my fine motor skills, though not the full scope of my strength. I did come up with an idea for that, though. I found some wood turned to charcoal from the fires rampaging across the city's ruins, and remembered a trick Grognak had once shown me. I squeezed tight, forcing the charcoal into powder. It grew hot in my palm as I held it, but I kept holding it tight.

Seconds passed, and when I opened my hand, I held a fistful of small diamonds. Not bad, though I was certain I could do better.

[...hello! Theo! Mac to Theo! Mission Control to Theo! Anybody in there? Or have all your new muscles finally siphoned the blood away from your brain?]

I’d been tuning out Mac so hard that I hadn’t noticed when he was done.

“Are you done?” I asked.

[For now. But I can’t stay away from a beautiful mind for long.] Mac let out a lewd laugh.

I decided to change the subject as quickly as possible. “Did you find out what the issue was?”

[Yes. She really wants that old cellphone you’ve got there. Outdated technology, that. But apparently, that’s the level of tech the humans who first visited and created the Ten Thousand Worlds were at when they made The Wanderer and other artifacts like her. Since, unlike Tim’s pocket watch, this is the same type of tech she is, it’s highly compatible with her. To where her abilities will be enhanced significantly should you give her the cellphone.]

Mac went silent, awaiting my answer.

I frowned and pulled out the phone again. “I don’t know, Mac. This thing is pretty special to me. Well, to my doppelganger, who is now part of me.”

[And The Wanderer is not?]

I sighed. “Well...”

[Hold on. She wants to clarify a few things for you. Oh, not a bad deal if I do say so myself. Let me just get that formatted for you... and... there we go!]

Compatible artifact detected!

Add the QCA to The Wanderer?

Yes/Absolutely

Predicted new abilities when combining the QCA with The Wanderer:

1. Library integration - Recall all spells and techniques stored in the library instantaneously.
2. Ability Conveyance - The QCA’s ability to bestow techniques and abilities on others shall be carried over and combined with the abilities of the Cultivation Chamber, allowing you to bestow spells and techniques instantly on any target.
3. Merit Points conversion - All Merit Points from the QCA will be converted to Points redeemable with The Wanderer.
4. Shop Conversion - Will instantly create and expand the item shop and allow for the automatic purchase of valuable items based on what would be valuable.
5. Enhanced Diagnostics - The QCA’s ability to scan the user and provide diagnostics and cultivation tips will be integrated into The Wanderer’s existing interface.
6. Increased Passive Points Generation - The QCA’s point generation systems will go toward points generated by The Wanderer, and the QCA’s former functions will become free to use.
7. More abilities not yet accounted for!

The new abilities The Wanderer promised were very tempting, but one in particular caught my eye.

“This Ability Conveyance thing. Does that mean I’ll be able to give my matriarchs any spell or technique in the library?”

[Hmm. Seems so, but I will ask for clarification.] Mac got back to me a moment later. [Yes, the ever-lovely Wanderer confirms that it’s exactly what it sounds like. It will indeed allow you to gift your women new abilities. Your children, too. She figured one might catch your eye. In fact, she says she might expand the tips and diagnostic information to cover everyone you allow. It should make every member of your family cultivate significantly further than their talent should allow! And that’s before taking into effect any other abilities or bonuses The Wanderer might bestow.]

I let out a long breath. “Alright. If it was just for me, I’d refuse. But I can’t say no to something that would help my family. What do I do?”

Adding the QCA to The Wanderer only took a short visit to the Control Center. It had been some time since I’d paid the Hearth of the Wanderer a visit.

When I arrived, there was already a small impression on one of the consoles that I hadn’t noticed before. It was perfectly shaped to insert the phone into, and it even had a little plug on the bottom that inserted into the phone itself.

“Cables. How nostalgic.” I chuckled as I plugged the device in and laid it to rest in the impression. It was a bit of a relief to see that all integrating it with The Wanderer entailed was plugging it into a console. I feared I’d need to chuck it into the Mana Generator.

Integration in progress!

You have been awarded 100,000 points!

“Not bad,” I muttered. “I’ll leave this one in your capable hands, Mac. I don’t have anything I need from The Wanderer, but I suspect my growing batch of kids will need more stuff. Plus, Castle Mac needs to be rebuilt and repaired. And more defenses, too.

[Consider it done. You have a considerable quantity of points. Enough to ensure that when the Hearthwood is rebuilt, it will be bigger and grander than ever! The Training Grounds, in particular, could do with being scaled up. At its current size, we would have had to ban everyone except members of your family from using it for enough room for your new kids.]

I left Mac to his devices, knowing full well he would slip in a cleaning drone here or there. But with the number of points I had these days, and the increased number of points thanks to adding the QCA to The Wanderer, I had plenty of points to spare.

“Oh, and only buy one cleaning drone, please!” I waved while Mac sputtered. I knew he’d allocate a bit more resources to sanitation facilities than was strictly necessary.

***

Sam and Dean finally arrived then, long after the battle concluded. They’d gotten my second round of messages. Both were dirty and battle-worn.

“We came as fast as we could!” Dean panted, hands on his knees. For him to be this tired and exhausted, they really must have come fast. “The Teleportation Array in the Capital was destroyed, so we had to run.”

“Don’t worry. I pulled through in the end. Now, tell me what happened.” I held out a hand and pulled Dean to his feet before guiding them into one of the few intact sitting rooms in the castle.

“Theo, did you get taller?” Sam asked curiously. Dean glanced at my hand as well.

I smiled, waiting for them to realize it.

“You’re a Demigod! No way! At least with Body Cultivation,” Dean exclaimed.

I grinned back at them. “That I am. And don't worry. The Spirit Cultivation is coming soon, too. No more counting me out of big fights! I’m on your level now, both of you. But come, tell me what happened in the capital that got the two of you looking so ragged. Then I’ll tell you why most of my city lies in ruins.”

“We got hit by another attack,” Sam began, waving his hand back in the direction they’d come from.

“The Planetary Defense Array?” I asked.

Sam nodded. “First that. Then, as soon as we’d chased the golems off, a bunch of Satyrs showed up. Three Demigods. They had a temper tantrum and destroyed a few of the settlements in the nearby mountains. We tried to talk sense into them, but they kept going on about insults to their king.”

“In the end, we had to pound sense into the big bastards the fun way,” Dean slammed his fist into his open palm. "We've got three new prisoners to trade in if the Satyr King ever causes trouble for you again!"

I sighed. “I suspect that was a distraction meant to keep my message from getting through to you. And I appreciate the thought with securing more bargaining chips, but I'm afraid the Satyr King just can't be bargained with.”

Sam grimaced. “Seems so. I’m sorry we weren’t here to save your city, Theo.”

I shrugged. “I survived. Most of my people did as well. If there’s still time, I wouldn’t mind you using a little bit of that Fate zeal. But come, let me tell you the full story of what happened.”

I began my tale from the beginning, leaving nothing out as I told my friends about my recent struggles.

“The fighting was hard. Honestly, I don’t know how I took out so many Demigods through cheap tricks. I didn’t even actually fight them until the end.” I ran my fingers through my hair.

“Pretty damn impressive, dude. Did you loot the bodies, by any chance? I doubt they’ll have anything good, but you never know.” Dean rubbed his hands together. "I know a guy who buys even budget-brand Demigod weapons. We might be able to flip them for the funds to rebuild your city."

I figured then was as good a time as any to check the bodies over, but as Dean feared, none of them had anything particularly good. I gave what we found to Dean to resell through his connections, but all in all it wasn't much.

“These bastards were poorer than me!” Dean grumbled.

“A tall feat for any Demigod,” Sam chuckled. “Though the Satyrs are a special case. They’re more akin to soldiers than true cultivators. Others can inherit their Sacred Groves after their death because their cultivation is purely external. By having powerful fighters who are highly replaceable, the Satyrs maintain a hefty amount of influence despite generally being weaker than their equivalents with any other cultivation art.”

“A quantity over quality faction, hm?” I stroked my chin. Sooner or later, I’d get a Sacred Grove of my own set up again. However, the idea didn’t appeal quite as much to me as before. It wasn’t like I could make a Demigod-level Sacred Grove. And if it wasn’t a Demigod-level Sacred Grove, it wouldn’t be much use to me.

No, perhaps instead of building something for myself, I should make something for my women and children. They might be better suited to the cultivation technique than I ever was.

But that was all for later. I had something important to discuss with Sam and Dean. My plan and my promise to my doppelganger.

“So you think the Planetary Defense Array attacks are going to keep getting worse and keep coming for the capital?” I asked.

“Yeah. I’m afraid so.” Sam sighed. “It’s one of the dangers of helping all the clans in our realm survive. Everybody’s buttoning up tight, and the array won’t stop until it has the souls it needs. Which means it’s going to keep pounding on everybody’s bunkers until enough of them crack that they can feast.”

I turned to him, expression serious. “What if I told you I had a way to deal with our issues simultaneously? I have an idea to deal with the array and permanently solve my Satyr King issue. I might pull it off alone, but I’d feel a lot better if I had help from the two of you.”

Dean clapped me on the shoulder. “Ask, and you shall receive, buddy. Let’s hear your wild idea, and I’ll tell you if it has a snowball’s chance between my first wife’s thighs. She was a fire cultivator, by the way.”

As I shared my plan, I watched them go from patiently listening to shock to nervous and finally to excitement.

Dean shook his head in wonder. “You know, that’s a crazy plan. But it just might just be crazy enough to work!”

Sam grimaced. “You’re taking a big risk here. What if something goes wrong?”

I shrugged. “That’s where the two of you come in. I could use backup. And if everything works as planned, I’ll still need some extra sets of hands at the end. So let me hear it. Are the two of you in?”

Sam licked his lips and nodded. “I’m in.”

“Hell yeah. I wouldn’t miss something like this for the world!” Dean bumped his fist against my own. “I’ve never been part of something quite this big before.”

I shook hands with both of them, and for the first time in a long time I stood side by side with my old friends as an equal.