Fabricator v2 - Chapter 16 (Patreon)

A few minutes after Azazel left to collect the soul sucking yokai that had a copy of Sword Birth, Junichiro entered the dining room and found Mittelt sitting at the table munching on her lunch. He gave her a grin and waved with his freshly replaced arm, “How goes it?”

Mittelt snorted but then her eyes narrowed as she looked at the replacement limb, “Wow, that one actually looks realistic and not like some medieval movie prop.”

Junichiro snorted and flexed his fingers. He was still marveling at the amount of feeling he was getting from the limb. It was far from perfect, but it was infinitely more impressive than his last few versions. Only the previous version had any feedback to it and even then it was only a sense of pressure. With the new arm he was closing in on the same level of feeling a living limb would have. He was certain that his next version would be even more realistic and have complete feeling throughout the limb. He just needed to find the missing bits, knowledge, materials, or something to bridge the gap.

He moved closer to her and let her have a closer look at his new limb. Though Mittelt didn't show anywhere near as much interest in his work as Azazel, she did acknowledge what he made and showed at least some curiosity in his creations. With that being the case he showed his projects off to her whenever he could. As he got close and held his hand out toward her, her bright blue eyes looked over the construct for a bit. She began to lift her hand to touch it before stopping and looking a little embarrassed as she asked, “Can I touch it?”

He snorted a little and nodded, “Yeah, go ahead.”

Tentatively, Mittelt reached out and lightly touched the doppelganger flesh coating his prosthetic. Both of them grinned in that moment. Junichiro because he could feel Mittelt's touch, though he noted a lack of warmth in her touch. Mittelt smiled because the arm felt real to her, though it wasn't quite as warm to the touch as it should have been. Still, it wasn't ice cold like the previous all metal arms had been.

After a few awkward moments, Mittelt stopped touching him and looked up into his eyes, “Impressive. I definitely like it more than the last one. It really looked like a renaissance fair reject.”

Junichiro snorted at that. He might have modeled it a little too much after fantasy style plate armor. Like something out of a Tolkien movie. He was in a mood when designing it. Still, looking normal and not needing to use a magical item to hide his strange arm was a nice change of pace. With his arm freed from Mittelt's touch, he went to the kitchen to make himself some lunch. It was also his turn to make dinner tonight so he checked for what he had to work with in case he needed to hit the grocery store.

He grimaced a little at the thought of shopping. He hadn't gone shopping alone ever since the first time after he moved. He wasn't agoraphobic or anything but... well he really didn't feel comfortable to go out into the city alone. Mittelt had started making fun of him over it and while part of him wanted to be mad at her for it, he just couldn't be. Every time he tried to leave the house alone he would start to panic. He'd been trying to overcome it for a while now but his fear continued to get the best of him. Despite how odd it might seem, Mittelt's teasing was helping him a bit.

Well... that and the plethora of deadly weapons and magic items he'd made over the last year. If he ran into a stray he'd likely be able to blow it away with minimal effort. He never left the house without a bunch of stuff hidden on his body. He was even more prepared now thanks to his newest replacement arm. He had several little surprises hidden in that limb that even Mittelt didn't know about. He guessed he would at least be able to surprise someone around the strength of a High-Class Devil. Might even win the fight due to surprise. At the very least he'd be able to escape.

After putting together a sandwich, he rejoined Mittelt at the dining room table. When they weren't watching TV, playing games, or doing anything on their own, they tended to spend their time chatting at the dining room table. It took a few bites of his sandwich for Junichiro to build up enough courage to  speak, “Mittelt...” When she looked up at him and their eyes locked, he swallowed loudly, “I was wondering...”

“What?”

He coughed to clear his throat, “I was wondering if you'd like to go on a date with me this weekend.”

Mittelt gave a casual shrug of her shoulders while looking away from him and back to what was left of her lunch, “Sure.”

It might have been his imagination, but Junichiro thought her cheeks might be slightly pinker than normal. That thought fled quickly though as the excitement of her saying yes filtered through his mind. He couldn't wipe the dopey smile off of his face when he returned to eating his lunch. He'd have to plan out a proper date for them. He hadn't planned on asking her today, but his talk with Azazel kind of pushed him forward.

He was going to be looking forward to the weekend for the next few days for sure.

-----Line Break-----

It was another couple of hours before Azazel returned with the promised yokai. The yokai appeared as a rather normal looking human woman, though her beauty was definitely supernatural. The only honest way to describe her was as a hourglass bombshell beauty with classical Nadeshiko looks. She sported long black hair in a 'hime' cut, and even had a beauty mark next to her lips that seemed to be in a permanent little knowing smile. The only thing instantly inhuman about her looks were her bright red colored eyes, a color no human sported despite all the supernatural races running around mixing with human genetics. And... yes, Azazel had been rather accurate about the size of the woman's bust, her breasts easily being larger than not only his head, but Azazel's as well. She might have even been bordering on Yasaka sized.

As the pair approached him, Junichiro climbed out of his seat to greet them properly. Unlike what one might expect from visitors, Azazel skipped the knock on the door and just used a teleportation circle to let himself and the yokai inside. If he owned the house, Junichiro would have found it rude. Hell, a part of himself still did but he swallowed it down so he could have the best chance to get his hands on the woman's copy of Sword Birth.

“Is this really him?”

The woman's voice was like velvet, but there was a hint of steel behind it that let everyone know what would happen to Azazel if he was messing with her. Well, that and the narrowed eyes and clenched fists. Azazel, in response, lifted his hands up and made calming gestures, “I swear, this young man is The Artificer!”

She continued to stare down Azazel for a few moments before her sharp gaze turned back to Junichiro. She studied him for a few more moments before crossing her arms under her bust. The move only served to further accentuate her bust size. Despite that, Junichiro firmly kept his eyes on hers no matter how much he wanted, and his hormones demanded, to let them wander. Mittelt was nearby and the last thing he wanted to do was piss her off by eyeing up another woman just after asking her out.

Finally, the woman huffed, “Fine. I want to speak to you alone Artificer.” She uncrossed her arms and reached into her deep cleavage, an action that nearly had Azazel drooling as he blatantly stared, and retrieved a small sword shaped amulet, “If you can fulfill my request, I will trade this for what I want you to make. I heard you wished for it?”

Junichiro looked at the small item and then to Azazel, “Is that really Sword Birth?”

Azazel nodded, “Yes, I checked it myself.”

Giving the fallen a nod, he turned back to the yokai, “Follow me.”

The pair of them left the general and his soldier. Junichiro led the woman to his office where he touched a few runes carved into the desk. There was a small thrum followed by a pulse of magic that sealed the room and cut it off from any kind of  surveillance. After that, he took his seat behind the desk and gestured toward an empty seat in front of him.

As the yokai took a seat, he pulled out his cigarette case and plucked one out. Only after it was lit and he took his first drag did he look at her, “So, what can I make for you?”

The woman arched her eyebrows at the sight of a young teen smoking, but when she caught the scent coming from the cigarette, her smile grew, “Interesting mix.” She took a breath, seeming to settle her nerves, “I need you to make something to help me with my hunger. Despite what many might think, finding people that fit the strict rules I need to follow in order to eat without pissing off one faction or another is extremely difficult. It's getting harder and harder each year and if something doesn't change, I will end up eating a soul I shouldn't have.”

The very first thought Junichiro had was a Ring of Sustenance, though he immediately dismissed it. While, on the surface, it seemed perfect, it was designed for beings that ate normal mortal food. He'd need to make something along the same line but specifically for the woman in front of him. With that in mind, “What kind of jewelry would you like it to be? For what I have in mind it needs to be something you never take off. I'll also need to do an in depth magical scan to make the item so it can attune to you and your specific diet.”

The woman looked at him closely in silence before simply nodding her head, “I would prefer an elegant bracelet.” She tilted her head and tapped her chin with one ruby red painted nail, “Silver should go with enough of my outfits.”

Junichiro shook his head, “That's not how it works, but lucky for you most metals have a silver color to them. At least you didn't ask for gold.”

He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. Arrays of runes, enchantment methods, and the materials he'd come to know over the last year or so. Regardless of her scans, the materials he would need were limited to a certain selection. Once he had a preliminary idea and plan, he opened his eyes and climbed to his feet, “Alright, we need to head to my workshop so I can get those scans to make sure I can properly help with your condition.”

The walk to the workshop was short and he ignored the look of intrigue on the woman's face. He honestly hadn't even thought to ask her name yet. Once they were inside, he made his way over to a wall littered with fully crafted wands. Over the last year he'd made a wand every few days, give or take. At the moment there were over one hundred wands with only a few that performed the same spell. Having so many was a show of why he loved wands over casting spells himself. The sheer amount of magical power the wands represented was at least the full reserves of a Satan class individual, if not more. Something his own reserves couldn't even compare to.

Junichiro snuffed out the stub of his cigarette and pulled out another to light up. He took a moment to find the wand he wanted, he had several different ones for all kinds of magical scanning. A standard scan didn't feel like it would be enough. He needed to understand how her body functioned on a deeper level to know how to feed her properly with the bracelet he would be making.

After selecting an appropriate wand, he turned to face the woman, “Alright, you wont feel a thing but this should tell me what I need to know to make the item in question. If it doesn't, I've got more options for checking.”

After he received and acknowledging nod, he held the wand up and activated it with a miniscule pulse of his magic. The tip of the wand glowed as he gently waved it around like a security guard with a hand held metal detector. There was nothing visible but the glow to signify anything was happening. Rather than displaying anything, the information was directed directly into Junichiro's mind. He hummed to himself as he gathered the information and stored it in his memory.

Once he finished, he replaced the wand where he'd gotten it from and faced the woman, “Your eating method is rather interesting. It's not so much the soul that you eat.” Seeing her beginning to open her mouth, he plowed on, “Rather it's the memories that are stored within the soul.”

Unable to keep to herself anymore she interrupted, “Preposterous! I've never once seen the memories of any soul I've ingested. If you're just going to waste my time...”

She trailed off as Junichiro narrowed his eyes at her and caused them to glow, “Do not question my professionalism. While you do ingest souls, you do not digest them. Once you ingest them you strip them of their memories and feed off of the emotions inherent in them. The soul, once stripped of all emotions, is then released back into they cycle of reincarnation. You do not retain or view the memories themselves because they are irrelevant to your needs. Technically, you are an emotivore.”

Junichiro was actually slightly scared of the woman's ability. Not for any fear of his life or anything, but of what it could mean for the souls going into the afterlife after their encounter with her. Given his experience with the afterlife he feared what would happen if he were to lose his memories in such a way before his death. It was honestly a rather terrifying thought that threatened to send him down a dark spiral of conjecture and pointless worry.

She stood in surprised silence for a moment before she scoffed, “Bullshit! If you can't help me just say so!”

Snapped out of his thoughts before they could truly spiral, he looked into her eyes and smirked, “Of course I can help you. Honestly? It's even easier than I expected. I just need to give you something to make you weakly empathic. A diet consisting of a steady trickle of other people's broadcast emotions should be more than enough to keep you well fed by living a normal life around people.”

The yokai froze at that. For the majority of her very long life she'd been shunned by the supernatural community due to her diet requirements. It was torture to always have to hold back her hunger and wait until she could find a proper meal that wouldn't ruffle any feathers. It got harder and harder every year and was only getting worse as human technology progressed. She was all but certain that in just a couple of decades there would be digital cameras everywhere and it would become just that much harder to find a meal. She didn't believe the boy in front of her very much but he seemed confident and she had nothing to lose. After all, she wouldn't pass over the Sacred Gear until she was certain the item he was going to make for her worked, “Fine. How long will this take?”

After taking a deep drag on his cigarette to calculate the time, he exhaled the herbal smoke and smiled,  “About four hours. Making this will be significantly easier than the item I first thought I would be required to make.” He looked around his shop mentally calculating the materials he would need and the work he needed to do and nodded, “Yeah, four hours should be enough. You're welcome to wait inside if you want. I don't like people watching me work.”

The woman gave Junichiro one final look over, sniffed, turned on her heels, and left his workshop. Once she stepped back into the house, she quickly located Azazel and Mittelt, “I don't know how you could trust that little boy to help me. The things he said...” She sniffed in derision, “I highly doubt he knows what he is talking about.”

That caught Azazel's attention. With a bright smile he faced the busty woman with a bright grin, “Oh? What makes you say that?”

After a huff of annoyance, she quickly explained what Junichiro had said to her within the workshop. Azazel was dying to get more details about how Junichiro worked ever since his eyes and ears within the workshop had been neutralized. He didn't make a big deal about losing the influx of information. If the kid had never found and disabled the surveillance then that was the kids fault. It was the kids job  to protect his workshop from spies, not Azazel's. He was actually a little proud, if annoyed, that he could no longer spy on the kids work.

Once the explanation was done, Azazel stroked his beard as he hummed to himself a bit, “Interesting. If I were you, I wouldn't doubt his word. Father always said that the soul was one of the most enduring things within all of creation. It's why he used so many in the creation of his Sacred Gears as actually destroying them would have actually taken far more effort.” He looked directly into her eyes, “Strong as you are, you're nowhere near the strength of Father so, thinking along that line, it seems likely that you aren't capable of digesting the souls you ingest.”

Azazel gave her a broad grin, “Wiping a soul of memories though? That would be significantly easier to accomplish. After all, we have simple magic capable of erasing memories, even on a massive scale. Erasing memories to feed off of the emotions they contain would be significantly easier and you would not be the first emotivore I've ever met. Just the one with the most unique feeding method.”

The soul eater, carefully lowered herself into a free seat and ruminated on Azazel's words. Hearing it from a pubescent teenager was one thing and could be easily dismissed. Hearing it from the leader of the Grigori, and Angel nearly as old as she was, was an entirely different matter. Feeling a spark of hope in her chest, she refocused on Azazel, “Then you really believe that child can help me out?”

Azazel nodded and produced a bottle of sake and two small cups to drink it from, “I do. I even believe his solution is an exceedingly simple and effective one. Gaining even just a bit of empathic ability should allow you to walk down the street and harmlessly feed off of human emotions at your leisure. It seems unlikely that you will ever go hungry again.”

After taking the offer sake cup from Azazel, the yokai smiled for the first time since she had arrived. It seemed like things in her life just might change for the better in a few short hours. She'd lived millenia but the next four hours were going to drag out like decades to her.