Of course we all understand from the previous statement there's only one decision available. So of course I had told Alex to pick that one. Then of course I stopped the evolution from happening telling her to put it on hold for awhile whilst we conversed. Mostly with a hour or so of awkward silence. Well not entirely awkward it was kinda a comfortable silence. I could brief her on what's been happening but she's already aware of that despite being only a part of her conciousness that is the little window that follows me around she still can read back all those scenes so I can't just share about what's been happening whilst she slept.
We hung out in the void for awhile staring out into the blackness at least I was. Alex as always just hovered next to me like a floating empty picture frame. Hey Alex what's with the health stats was that ever really explained?
"It's a estimate shown to represent your overall health based on your body. The higher number could be considered a higher defense." Huh... Then why not just show it as a percentage and throw in a defense stat? Or a body stat.
"Your body still technically hasn't reached what would be 1 in body stats. Which is a cap level of 100. You are also technically still a rouge species." What's a rogue species?
"Most common animals that don't have a clear path of strength and must mutate and find their path." Huh. K.
With no clue how long passed eventually I decided it was probably time to get going and told her to start the evolution. At which point I found myself back in my body with some slight difference first... I feel hungry. Yet I still have no stomach. Feeling inwardly I discover that nothing real major has occured. My original dog like genitalia appear slightly larger. I mean nothing changed particularly but lipstick container is thicker and apparently longer. However seeing as it's still in the regular state that means almost nothing cause... dog like. My body size has increased slightly though. Now I'm a bit closer to the size of a pony or a very large dog. I can also feel what seems like a wisp of fire inside my gem like heart.
Seeing as I've got no apparent internal or external changes I glance over to Alex whilst mentally requesting the status screen.
*Unnamed Race- MCloudWymling - Tyrant
Level: 1/69 Status: Bound
Exp: 0%
Evolution: 4
Hp: 6778/6778
Mp: 5789/5789
Skills: [Mist Art] [Soul Art] [Draconic] [Light-1/10] [Healthy-5/10] [Sight-4/10] [Detect-5/10][Regeneration-5/10] [Weakest-10/10] [Binding- 5/10]*
Huh, Alex could you give me the details to Draconic.
*[Draconic] Skills associated with the talent [Tyrant's Supremacy] tainted by the tyrant dragons will becoming draconic in nature.*
Wait... is that it? No skills under it yet? K... I guess... Can I get a bite/claw/fly skill?
*Technically yes. You just need to find an understanding of those skills and the talent will allow you to create them ignoring the normal energy requirement.* Wait so it's not actually a skill that ignores the rules or anything it just ignores the requirement of creating the skill? Hmm well that's fine too I guess. With my weird mist maw that doesn't really have any teeth and unguarded squishy flesh I don't think any close combat skills are necessary anyways. Also I can technically fly with my cloud wings.
So my main reason for getting this evolution is my goal right now. Spacial pockets. I really liked the idea before but now I just need to figure that out myself. It was explained as a form of mist manipulation to create a seemingly infinite space forcefully. So I just probably need to do that. First, the where. I don't want a bunch of bubbles all over my body. Also it shouldn't be mana based. Maybe use a point on my body as the container and then gather mist inside of that until it creates a similar situation. However, would I not just blow up? Maybe this could be another form of body tempering. A more passive form at that. Something like a spatial pocket that is formed in the body and the force of the pocket is constantly putting force on the body and then putting out extra mist to be used in healing the damage done? Placing it beneath my tongue sounds like a fun idea then finding a way to passively turn mist creation and mist healing into a constant form of gathering mist into that bobble. It would work as a mist storage for emergency healing and attack however at first it'd probably weaken by body tempering progress immensely. So... Since I'm going down the dragon route and not the car insurance route scales? I need scales. This squishy flesh of a semilizard is a bit weird for a dragon. So those are my first two projects. Looking around the room I notice a few changes. One the little ghost copy of me is just hanging out there next to me. She appears to be asleep. Then comes the largest change. Something new inside the room, A door. Well not a door. More of a giant stone monolith that's clearly covering up the entrance to a tomb. How was this thing hidden before? Hmm... Looking around I notice a suspicious increase in floor space. Oh... A wall is gone.
Ignoring the changes in the room that don't really matter I focus back on my mist and begin once again gathering exp in mass by attacking all the little none produce monsters while also meditating and filling up the entirety of the "dungeon" with mist, gonna need a lot of mist for my two projects.
As I'm filling up the produce floors I notice that the space above all the short jumps is strange. These short jumps between produce and non produce appear to be about a mile in reality... Such a dickish move... Some adventurer might get to this level and think rest area, ooo and they provide food then try to leap over the small gap only to make almost no progress and fall to their death. Luckily for me, that foot wide gap that's actually about 5000times wider then it actually is makes for a great place to store mist. Also... Something to study? I mean it's kinda what I'm going for with my storage box. The question is do I need to figure out how to reverse the procedure with mist or copy it but with mist.
"Those spatial barriers are increasing the space rather then decreasing it's how spatial mages usually do barriers as it's easier to compress or stretch space then it is to just put a stop gap in it." Hmm thanks dude. So I need to figure out how to do that but with mist. Maybe just maybe I should also figure out this telepathy thing and figure out how to make my thoughts more private.
"Sorry..." Oh we cool dude. Just a possible issue for other people. It's not an issue now, it helped me. I'm assuming the higher level spatial barriers probably also don't just put a stop gap in space but just connect the space around the protected area so that everything just gets teleported around it as if the space inside doesn't even exist. Why would anyone try to put a stop gap in space? It sounds dumb... Also like you are attempting to destroy space itself... Space doesn't stop it's space. Hmm focusing in on the flow of mana within the first barrier that I am slowly filling with mist, as it's pushing my mist around with it. I can't actually sense the mana itself it just feels like the breeze in my hair.
Following the pattern with my mist I spent many hours carefully studying it before I decide it was entirely a waste of time... Mana isn't mist. I can't copy mana usage with mist at all. However, I have discovered exactly how the mana is stretching space. It's a bit like a giant high speed mana whirlpool that is somehow pushing rather then pooling to place a force that doesn't interact with anything in the space but the space itself stretching it. Which is a bit like trying to stretch a banana peel without squashing the banana, messy. Hmm, but if the banana meat, yep referring to that as meat now... or flesh. Delicious, delicious banana flesh. Fruit zombies!!! Isn't in the peel when you stretch it out you can put the banana flesh back in and it... won't fit. Ha.
So setting aside the fruit concept I gotta figure out how to exclude the objects in the space as I am trying to expand space inside my body not blow myself up... So the first idea I got would be attempting to make a spatial whirl with mist outside my body to expand space like this barrier with something in that space like a rock. Come forth, rock!!! Anyways, as I gather rock with my mist, use the force!!! Or whatever. I start studying the scales of some lizards on one of the higher floors. More accurately it's a floor of sneaky snakes. Literally they are quite stealthy. They appear to have the ability to shift size and color to hide anywhere. The boss of these sneaky snakes is a very large horned snake called aspiring dragon. Supposedly it's a half breed of some drake that banged a snake. Which... Looking at my own genitals... Is just wrong... Keep your mammal genitals out of these cloaca. Anyways, it's dragon blood makes it's scales the perfect option for a fellow pseudo-dragon to make their scales from. Not to mention maybe figuring out this size changing ability will help with the space thing?