"More than three hundred…?" Tara gasped. "I've never met anyone even close to a hundred layers. Are you sure?"
"Yes, I am. I just counted it again. It is extraordinary. In my many lifetimes, I only gathered forty-one layers. But because it gets exponentially more difficult the more layers you have; I didn't have the means to continue." Anubis answered her. "However, there is a block on yours, and can only use fifty of them now."
"That makes sense. Yesterday I overloaded it, and I made a breakthrough, so until then it was even less." I wondered out loud. "So, can you help me control it?"
"I really hope you have some interesting things to say about the ancient world." she said as she stood up again and disappeared into another staircase that led downstairs.
I looked at Tara. She was still in a bit of shock. Since I didn't have much of a reference point, it didn't hit me hard what these numbers mean. But one thing was clear: I still had much potential to grow. But it worried me, if at 50 layers I leaked this bad, what would happen at say, 300? Anubis came back up after a short while, carrying a small leather pouch in her mouth. She dropped it in my hands.
"Here's my part of the bargain. Put it on and we can start with your payment." I opened it, and inside I found a ring. It was made of black metal with thin silver Celtic style triangles and other shapes etched into it. I put it on my right index finger hesitantly, and immediately felt a tight pressure around my crystal in my chest. I almost fell over, but it soon faded, and the uncomfortable feeling disappeared. I pulled on my xin mentally and was surprised to find almost all of it blocked.
"This is awesome! Thank you!" I thanked her quickly. I couldn't use much xin, because it was locked away, so I would need to take it off when I'm fighting, but it was a fantastic solution until I could get my powers under control myself. She looked satisfied with my reaction. The leftover trickle of xin I could still use, for example, for augmenting my body or creating enough heat for a fire but blocking that much was nothing compared to even before my crystal transformation.
"It blocks I'd say around 90% of your xin output, so your power level like this is now comparable to someone who has 5 layers. A normal person would've collapsed from blocking off the crystal, and it was used for dangerous prisoners to block their magic. I had no idea it'd come in handy again." The giant cat explained. It had runic etching in it, which is a technique allowing ordinary objects to hold and create simple magic.
Anubis then led me next to the open window-wall, where a few chairs were set up for her human-sized guests. I sat down in one of the comfortable chairs. Tara sat down next to me, looking a bit more relieved now, and less stressed seeing as my xin leak stopped altogether. "So, lady Anubis, what would you like to know?" I asked her.
"Let's start with history. Not much data is available for me to look at from before the asteroid."
"I have surface level knowledge of history, but I could tell it to you since the formation of our solar system." I told her nervously. Her eyes lit up. "Or would it be easier from the Big Bang… I'm more comfortable with space subjects anyways. So, around 13.7 billion years ago, from a single point of almost infinite energy, the universe started expanding." I started to explain. I told her all I knew about the formation of the first galaxies, our solar system and Earth.
Anubis' eyes were practically glowing. I guess this was all new and precious information to her. I continued to the best of my ability to explain everything I knew. Surface level information seemed to be enough, and she looked satisfied. I was at the industrial revolution when a sudden message from Neo snapped me out of my train of thought.
"Lady Anubis, I have a proposition for you. My friend Neo here could prepare a mental link between us, and I could just send the information gathered up by him to you. It would be faster and easier, and he could tell it better than I ever would be able to." I told her Neo's idea nervously. If she didn't accept, that would be fine as well, I could just continue my storytelling, but my mind was getting tired, digging up all these ancient snippets of information and formulating them into sentences. She thought it over.
"Fine then, I can see you're getting tired, and this would take several more hours like this." She reluctantly agreed. I hoped she didn't catch on to our little scheme of scanning her brain in the process, but if she did, she didn't let any sign of that show. She was so hungry for my knowledge she didn't even consider any side effects. "Make the connection."
Neo raised up one of its tentacles and touched her forehead. She shuddered a bit from the sudden shock, but the connection was made successfully. I also felt my brain getting scanned, and I could practically hear the gears in Neo's head turning as he organized all my memories into chunks that could be sent to Anubis. As it started, her eyes widened, and her eyes were making small movements as if she was reading something in the air.
"This is… all this knowledge… And you said you have more?" She asked me suddenly.
"Yes, history and geography weren't my strong suit, it's science. I have an in-depth knowledge of our universe, at least I had, before the xin asteroids fell. Most of it seems useless now." She looked at me with a hungry, probing gaze. She really wanted to know everything.
"I understand. I'd like to buy it from you. You see, I'm a businesswoman, but first and foremost, I'm a collector. I collect all kinds of things here, you see. Ancient artifacts, xin crystals that have skills in them, rare or extinct animals, plants, and most importantly, knowledge. What you have is quite a rarity, and insanely valuable. So, I'm willing to give you my most prized possession in exchange for all the knowledge you hold. Are you interested?" She looked very eager. I don't think I can refuse an offer like this. And also, why would I? I won't be able to do anything useful with this much info anyway, and it's not like I'll lose it once I give it to her.
"What is this item you mentioned?" I asked her, my curiosity peaked. A weapon maybe? A seed of a rare plant, or an animal? Her eyes sparkled as she hurried down the stairs once more and disappeared. After not even a minute, she came back with a small crystal ball in her paw. It was weird how it stayed there, but her dexterity was outstanding. She put it down on the table in front of us. I looked at Tara with a question in my eyes that I didn't even need to say to her. She just nodded reassuringly.
"It's a core. It came from a species that went extinct long ago. It was a true monster. It turned everything in its path into ice, while the beast itself glowed from its immense heat. I'm certain that this crystal holds a skill which could be extremely useful to you. It may be the solution to your problem of needing a massive power source to fill up your crystal. With this, you could do it much more easily. So, what do you say?" I got a bit confused, but she was talking so fast and enthusiastically that it was hard to resist.
"But what does it do?" My interest had already peaked, but this sounded even more amazing now.
"It has the ability to turn heat and energy… into xin." I heard the reply. This had almost infinite potential. I could go sunbathing and fill up my core? Sign me up.
"Why didn't you use it for yourself?" It seemed like such a precious and valuable skill, that one has to wonder.
"Unfortunately, I'm not compatible with it. Now human, do you accept?" she asked impatiently.
"Yes, I do. I hope you'll be satisfied with what I have to offer." Her eyes lit up once again and gave me the relatively small crystal. As soon as I touched it, a buzzing feeling met my fingers. My skin greedily clinged onto the smooth glassy material, as if it were glued to me. I guess compatibility won't be a problem.
I tugged on it with my mind, and as soon as I opened the gate, knowledge flowed into my head like a tsunami. Then it hit me, if I didn't get this skill, I would've figured it out sooner or later. Because converting energy into xin… I was already capable of the opposite. But it saved me a bunch of time and headache, so I was grateful, I also didn't even think of this idea before. I believed only xin in the atmosphere could be used or recollected from crystals. But xin seemed much more flexible now.
I tried it out, and suddenly the temperature around me dropped by several degrees, while I could feel strands of xin marching into my body in streams, filling up my crystal. It felt so good somehow, like having a feast after a day of starving. I had to stop before I accidentally froze everything in the room. But this could also be used as a weapon. What an amazing ability.
I suddenly felt very exhausted again. After hours of running, having to explain the entire history of the world, I was fatigued. My muscles still ached, I needed to rest and stretch. Also, some food would be nice. I asked our host for a space to rest and some food, and she helped gladly. After all, I could be asleep, and Neo would still be able to transmit all the data needed. She showed me to a simple room with sandstone walls, with a single bed neatly made. On the nightstand there was a bowl full of fruits and various veggies.
I had no idea what any of these were, but I ate all of it. Fruits that looked like spiky oranges, miniature sweet melons, some kind of bright red berries and so on. Probably all grown somewhere on this boulder that seemed like an island in the middle of this small desert. They were all tasty, some of them were a bit bitter, some sour, but most had a smooth and pleasant texture. I didn't eat much fruit since I woke up, so this was something my belly was very grateful for.
After asking for permission, I hopped in the small creek that was still churning from the waterfall on top of Anubis' home. I washed all my clothes, which after all these fights looked worse than ever. They survived for a thousand years, and were ancient relics at this point, but I didn't have any other clothes. I washed up in the comfortably lukewarm water, and almost fell asleep. This was the first time in a long time I felt at peace and complete ease. The quiet chirping of birds, rustling of small critters and the gentle ripples on the water all soothed my soul. The only discomfort was the everlasting prickling and soft throbbing in my head as Neo went through all my memories.
When I felt ready and clean, and my clothes dried up with a bit of help from my heat magic, I got dressed and set off for my room. I was at the stairs when I almost bumped into Tara who was climbing up to the surface.
"Hey! Did you wash up?" She asked.
"Yep, the water is incredible. I almost fell asleep." I admitted.
"That sounds nice. Listen, I don't want to be rude, but before we get to the city, we need to get you new clothes. A hair cut wouldn't hurt as well."
"Believe it or not, it's hard making your own clothes. Can I even call these that? These are rags at best." I wasn't too confident in my appearance right now. It was surprising Anubis even considered me as a normal person. But since she's a cat, maybe clothes don't really matter to her? My hair wasn't as bad, I tied it up with a bit of cloth I ripped from my shirt into a bun, but it was reaching the bottom of my shoulders.
"Great. You know, I don't want to pick on you, but right now you look like a hobo." She chuckled.
"Yeah yeah, princess. I'm sorry I don't meet your standards." I rolled my eyes. It felt good talking with her this lightly again, leaving all the heavy stuff aside. It came up more and more frequently though. Will every other person I meet bring it up?
After chatting a bit more, I had to excuse myself to my room and catch up on some much-needed sleep. The bed was heavenly, my head didn't even reach the soft pillow and I was already asleep.
~
I slept for more than half a day. This was my first rest since I woke up where I didn't need to look out and be on my guard the whole time. When I woke up though, my brain felt like soft jelly, probably from scanning it and snatching all my memories. My muscles still ached, but I knew my restoring skill worked all night trying to repair me. It took so long, because it uses massive amounts of xin, which I had, however, the flow of it is so small compared to before, it takes ten times as long to heal me. I have a rocket tank's worth of fuel, and a scooter to use it. Well, at least I won't ever run out.
After getting out of bed and stretching my tired joints, I went up to the garden. I found Tara sitting below a tree in the grass, looking at a metallic object. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was a phone. She looked troubled.
"Morning! What's that?" I asked her as I sat down not too far from her, beneath a different tree. As soon as she noticed me, she put the device away and looked at me.
"Hey! You slept for a while. And it's a monitoring device. Sort of. Anyway, are you feeling better?" She really wanted to change the subject. Well, I don't care that much anyway.
"Yeah, but I'm still sore all over. This ring is great, but my legs got destroyed and they heal slowly."
"Well, it's better than to run from giants all the time anyway, but we won't have to rush anymore at least," she said with a wry smile.
"That's a relief. Also, my brain is all mush, so I suppose they're finished?"
"No, they're still in the living room we were in yesterday. Neo said it would only take a few more minutes."
"Yeah, they're almost done. So, what's our plan after this?" I asked her.
"Well, we'll go back to my city. I think you should enroll in the academy to learn all the basics of xin control, they can explain it better than I ever could," she told me with a regretful tone. "But the new semester won't start for a while yet, so I think we'll need to find something to occupy ourselves with. I'm an explorer so I'll be sent on missions probably, but since you have no education, you'll have to stay."
"Hey, I finished high school, okay? I was planning on going to university soon," I protested.
"Right, but that hardly matters now, does it. I don't know what a high school is. We only have the academy, and you can enroll as soon as you have awakened your first layer on your crystal, so there will be a few kids, but most of them wait a bit and mature until they reach their second layer, so there will be people the same age as you," she reassured me. I don't know about having to go to school again, but if we learn magic, sign me up.
"Alright. Until then, can I find somewhere to work or something?" I asked. I wanted to reenter society if that was a possibility, but I had no idea what the state of it was currently. I was an outsider, an alien who knew nothing of the customs, traditions or culture. But I hoped the academy would provide some answers to that as well as helping me master my magic capabilities.
"There are some jobs you don't need an education for, like fishing and stuff."
"Sounds super exciting." I said with a bland tone. Whatever, if I can make a living somehow, I'll manage.
"Uhm. Hello, I heard you guys finished up?" I broke the increasingly awkward silence.
"Ah, yes. Thank you for all this knowledge, it will be a nice addition to my collection." Anubis finally looked up and greeted us.
"Great, I'm glad. Well, I think our business is finished here, so we'll take our leave. Thank you for the hospitality."
"Of course. You're welcome to come back and trade with me anytime, son," she said with a happy glint in her eyes. She seemed really satisfied. We all said goodbye to the helpful cat and set off once again on our journey.
We weren't running as fast as before, but this time we weren't in a hurry. We also got some souvenirs from Anubis, a bit of food and water for the travel, and a shirt to cover me since I lost mine a while ago. Unfortunately, Tara lost all her stuff on her way when she was looking for me, so we had to sleep on the floor, which was a bit uncomfortable but that aside the journey went smoothly. She said it'd take about a week to reach Nia, the city she was born in.
We ran during the day, rested and ate at noon, set up camp at night, and slept in turns. We weren't attacked by large monsters, there was a close call, but we were running so we just ignored it and ran a bit faster to lose it.
On the eighth day, we saw the first signs of humans: a large field with lush crops grown in it. When we reached it, we slowed down and continued on the dirt road that ran along the field. It was some kind of grainy crop planted in it, probably close to wheat. The field looked like a golden ocean, lazily waving in the soft breeze.
"We're close. First we'll go to my house, clean up, and I'll get you some proper clothes," she declared.
"Wow, you have a house?" I asked curiously.
"Well, it's an apartment in a large building, with lots of small houses stacked on top of each other," she explained.
"I know what a flat is, but thanks." I let out a sigh. "I'm a bit nervous if I'm honest. Won't the people be suspicious of me?"
"I don't know, but it'd be best if we made up some story about you, like you were raised by beasts or something."
"A much simpler and believable story, thanks," I replied. Do I look like a caveman or something?
"Anytime," she smiled at me reassuringly. "Don't worry, it'll be fine. Just do as I say."
"Yes, ma'am."
After a much more relaxing hour of walking later we saw the first building. Tara stopped in front of me and declared ceremoniously: "Welcome to Nia!"