I felt myself being pulled away. A thought occurred to stop it, to see if I could force it to stop, but I pushed the thought down. While my academic mind was reeling from all this new information I now had to play with, I needed to get back to my body.
It was disorientating, having my consciousness pulled from my body and pushed through the barrier between realms, then suddenly pushed back into my body. Opening my eyes had been a huge sensory overload once I was 'physical' again. I don't know how long It took me to regain my higher functions, but I was basically incoherent while the 'process' of becoming a Campione happened.
I coughed up what seemed like a liter of water, my throat and nostrils burning from all the salt I had apparently swallowed. My hands pushed into the soft sand, gentle waves brushed up to me as I took in my surroundings.
"Washing up on the beach, how cliché." I sighed, turning myself over and fell back down. "Atleast there's no one around." Though it was likely anyone nearby evacuated, with the light show/Magic/freak storms we were throwing around.
[Could have been worse.]
"Yeah, could have died." I snorted.
[I meant being sealed away into a gauntlet and having to watch you have sex.]
"Fuck you." I couldn't help but chuckle and I heard Ddraig laugh inside my soul.
[You good?]
Damn, my clothes are a right mess.
"Yeah, yeah." I let out a deep breath. "Just give me a moment to reorientate myself." I muttered, holding me hands up above me. "Fully healed….I guess I should thank….mom?" I questioned it even as the word left my mouth.
It didn't feel bad to say. And for it to be 'only' a motherly feel to it.
As much as Raikou brings me joy, she has a much different relationship than that with me.
[You were adopted again.]
"Yup." I didn't even argue that point. With a thought, I let my Aura flare up. It hadn't been recharged like my body had been healed, but a noticeable amount had been returned. However there was something completely overshadowing that.
[Damn, that's much stronger now.]
"You're telling me." I waved my hand through the air, watching the multitude of colors flow around my skin. "Just at a glance I can tell it's so much denser...has more 'weight' to it."
[Well, it is a manifestation of your soul, and your soul just got an upgrade from munching on some God bits.]
"Divinity." I let my head fall back down into the sand. "I have Divinity now. I'm a Half-devil, Half-Human, with a Dragon in my Soul, and a Dragon heart, giving me a potent Dragon factor. And now I have Divinity added in." I just laughed at the absurdity of it. "What even is my life?"
[You regret it?]
"Not for a single second." I grinned. "Aura seems fine after everything, but more tests will be necessary." I began speaking out loud. "Magic Circuits are operable, no issue there. But my body seems to be producing Magical Energy beyond what my Magic Circuits were initially capable of."
[From your memories, you would call this a 'Divine Core', yes?]
"Maybe." I pursed my lips. "It's not a 100% transferable explanation for what happened, different worlds and all that. However, it's not entirely off the mark either."
Yeah, I could feel the Magical Energy so densely packed inside my body that I felt almost bloated at the constant pressure.
"My Magic Resistance is absurd now." I mused, remembering what I read about this phenomenon as I glanced at the back of my hand where I still retained the Command Seals.
[I'm surprised those are still there. Wouldn't the contract break after the Ritual?]
"Before, I'd give it a coin flip. So obviously they still persist. But, if I had to guess, I'd say that since my Soul also was strengthened, and the Contract is supported by my Magical Energy which is linked to my soul, the Command Seals weathered the storm, so to speak."
[Wonder if that lass got a bit of a surprise when the transformation happened.]
"Hope I didn't worry her too much." I muttered.
Hmm, the Seed that I would call my Power of Destruction had gotten noticeably larger and I feel like it's going to grow much faster now.
Interesting.
[So you discovered your Semblance?]
"Yeah, at the most opportune moment." I snorted. "I can apparently burn my Aura to turn my body into Lightning and – " I held my hand up and abruptly shot to my feet. Summoning my lightning, it was so similar except something was different. My mouth hung open as I shifted my hand back and let my Lightning dance across my hand.
[….I'm calling bullshit.]
I began to cackle as the Lightning enveloped me. "Divine Lightning!" I let it discharge randomly off into the sand.
[You got Divinity welded on. And it intertwined with the Lightning you added in Skyrim, turning it into Divine Lightning.]
"Unlimited Power!" I declared.
[And it's already gone to your head.] Ddraig sighed. [With everything that changed, you might be highly resistant to Holy Power now.]
I paused in my self-indulgence. "That's an interesting thought." I rubbed my chin. "Difficult to test unless a certain spear wants to be useful." I waited a moment to see if the True Longinus would react.
It didn't.
And no way was I going to test myself on that, especially now that I am part Divine.
That spear, funnily enough, just got more dangerous if used against me.
"My physical abilities are much higher as well." I flexed my fingers. "But it comes at a cost."
[What do you mean?]
"Spells like Ebony Skin won't work on my any longer." I was a little sad about that. "My Magical Resistance affects beneficial things, unlike Artoria's which is more conceptual in nature."
I attempted to cast Ebony Skin over myself and it puttered out before I could even get it solidified.
[Does Reinforcement still work?]
"It should." I nodded, feeling my body and slowly reinforcing it to the level I was accustomed. Yet, I felt like there was more I could do with it now. "Since I'm casting it 'within' myself, my new Magic Resistance doesn't block the effects."
Yeah, my Magic Resistance was literally skin deep.
I paused again, and couldn't help but feel melancholic. "My Ring doesn't work anymore either." I held up my hand that still had the Ring of the Khajiit on it. "It's not able to penetrate my Magic Resistance to give me the effects." Not that I'm at a net negative here. With my new boosts, I was still far above than if I had both my Ebony Skin and the Ring active.
[It's lesser than the Sword she gave you, so it's not that surprising.]
"I'll have to reevaluate some of my spells and discard what's no longer usable." Still, the benefits far outweighed the detriments of this little change.
[So, what was that with your final blow against Susanoo?]
The corners of my lips curled up. "Instead of letting a single swing become a thousand Phantoms, I kept them all contained on the same slash. I gave my swing an uncountable number of possibilities." I began to explain.
[It went right through his sword, and didn't even leave a mark on him.]
"Who knows how many he actually blocked, how many failed to leave a mark on his body, or how many I just failed to utilize. But there was an equally unknowable number that slipped past his guard, that cleaved right through him, that severed his heart. I was so focused on finishing it in that moment, that once my attack was completed, I made sure all the lethal possibilities became 'true'."
[Meaning, you basically sliced him all up inside.] Ddraig replied with an understanding in his tone.
"Mmm, it was a good application. I'll refine it more in the future. While it's not absolute, I do believe it's not something one can block normally. I think it's possible that Susanoo may have been able to do something in response if he had know about the ability before hand." I mused out loud. "Regardless, it's a powerful technique that I'll be looking to better."
[What are you going to call it?]
"It needs something elegant, and sufficiently provocative."
[How about –]
"Infinite Origins Boundless Possibility Kaleidoblade."
[....]
"I know, I even startle myself at my own genius sometimes."
[No. I refuse. Come up with something else.]
"Fine. How about – True Dragon Omni Emperor Slash?"
[Dear God…. deliver me from this cringe.]
"Didn't he seal you inside the Gauntlet in the first place?"
[Yes, that should tell you something!]
"Eternal Darkness Infinite Parallel Sword."
[AHHHHHH It physically hurts….]
"Limitless Heaven Vast Sundering Sword."
[Just kill me, stop this torment.]
"Oh, quit your whining, I'll be serious." I rolled my eyes. "Besides, where the hell did you learn a word like 'cringe'"
[Did you forget I watch your memories when I'm bored?]
"Honestly, I do forget that." I hummed. "For real though."
[Alright, hit me with something good.]
"I was thinking – Myriad Sword"
[Huh….I like it.] Ddraig seemed to give his approval. [Well, now that we've finished messing around. Ready to talk about your new Authority?]
"It's strange." I muttered. "I can feel it inside me, ready to be called upon. Almost like it's been a part of me since birth. I even know its general use and abilities after 'absorbing' it from Susanoo." I couldn't help but chuckle. "Funnily enough, had I been a Campione already, or a Divine being, Susanoo would have been much harder to defeat. The Sword apparently can temporarily take over Authorities used nearby."
[Sounds powerful, what else can it do?]
"Mostly what you'd think. It allows me to control the Storms and what-not. And I was right before, it can cut through most Magics. I was lucky that my Nine Realms was so wrapped up in the Norse Cosmology, so intertwined with the symbols and concepts that it could survive even a few exchanges with this thing."
It was there, inside of me. This Authority, this sword that I could call upon with the correct words of power.
"And it can also dispel curses." I added on lastly. "It's not 10 fucking Incarnations that are Authorities in of themselves that Godou got, but it's damn well impressive."
I was only a little bit jealous.
[You think if you complained to your new mom, she'd give you something else?]
"….it couldn't hurt." I pursed my lips. "But I'll wait to drop back in later. I have a couple girls probably waiting for me, and I've made them worry enough."
[Despite her own status, your Teacher is probably going to kick your ass for doing this.]
"…..shit you're right."
Honestly, I could deal with that. I was more worried about how upset either of them actually were. "I shouldn't waste any more time."
[Well, gotta face the music at some point.] Ddraig sounded amused by the thought of me getting beat up. [Look at the bright side.]
"There's a bright side?"
[I'll be able to shout out the shitty attack names you spouted every time you get your face kicked in by your teacher.]
"I hate you."
[Oh, I know, and it fuels my existence.]
With a sigh, I flicked open a new portal. And I could see on the other side, two very displeased women staring back at me.
***
Late chapter since I took a nap after work.
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