Late evening, June 29th
Alto Mare
Inside a room, Kai, Meg, and Petyr were sitting on the floor around a small round table.
This room was in a building that had been abandoned by the locals for maintenance because of the flood. Even when they were confined by the musty walls around them, they could feel the heavy gloom of the town.
But none of them cared for anything other than the fist-sized jewel placed on the table. The jewel was glowing with a light yellow color as if there were millions of stars within it, forming a yellow river of death.
It was the Rare graded Item.
Eon Soul Dew!
Despite its obvious sickly, perverted color, there was an unearthly charm to this jewel that had caused the occupants of the room to lapse into an astounding silence.
Yes, all occupants. Other than the low hissing Selene on Kai's side.
-More, master,- she hissed, almost panting. -I want more!-
Without taking his eyes off the Item, Kai used Telekinesis to scoop up the last chunk of minced meat from a bowl on his right. Selene smelled the food and opened her fanged mouth wide, venom dripping off her fangs like saliva. With a gentle force, Kai thrust the magical flesh of the adult Latias down Selene's throat.
This was the first thing Kai had done after rendezvousing with Meg.
Selene's state was worse than he had thought. He could tell with one fleeting look that if she had feet, then they would have already crossed the doors of death. What had been keeping her alive before Kai hastily chopped Latias' wings and fed them to her, he couldn't say.
The second thing Kai had done was to tell Meg about his new Stat, hoping that she could shine some light on the twisted reward, strange Lore, and incomprehensible third epithet.
I have never heard of it, master, Meg had told him, without taking her eyes off Kai's face as if she wasn't looking at a human anymore, but some ancient demon. It seems to be related to your actions that have irreversibly changed the foundations of an entire timeline. I wonder if I can pray to you now, using those three minor epithets rewarded by the Cosmic Authority.
Kai had refused her blatantly.
The horror and helplessness of falling into the inescapable grip of a Time Paradox still lingered like a wraith in his mind. Without knowing what the result would be, Kai would never let Meg chant those words as a prayer. Who knew just what kind of Eldritch Entity would invade his mind this time?
Kai never feared taking risks, but even his deadliest of the risks had some substance backing them up. This was a risk that had neither a beginning nor an end. He just hoped he would get to know what it was before the time came when he would have to use the Stat, anyway.
-/Touch it,/- Kai told Meg.
Meg lifted her head and looked at Kai with the utmost reverence.
Her hand trembled as she went for the Item. As if holding something precious that could break with the slightest pressure, she caressed the jewel with her long, slender fingers.
-/Anything?/- Kai asked expectantly.
Meg shook her head. "I can't even see the Stats."
Kai frowned. A red shine covered the Eon Soul Dew, making the Item fly towards him.
He snatched it out of the air and looked at the Stats once more.
…
[
Item: Eon Soul Dew (Corrupt)
Grade: Rare (Growth)
Sub-Grade: Top-level
Specification: A Soul Seed formed because of the sacrifice of three Eon Pokemon and using the Primal Chaos as the source. Because of the Legendary Pokemon' resentment, the Item has diverted from its pure form, getting corrupted
Requirements: The Blue-skinned Demon
Attributes:
1. Devour the souls of the Legendary Pokemon to upgrade itself
2. The Legendary Pokemon must be of different species
3. The Legendary Pokemon grade must be C or C+
4. Current Status: 2/10
Skill: Corrupt Summoning
Skill Requirements:
1. Correspondence >15
2. Breath >15
3. Stamina >15
4. Perception >18
Skill Effects:
1. Summon the soul of a devoured Legendary Pokemon for 30 seconds
2. Summon's grade will be lower than the devoured Pokemon
3. Consumption per Summon: 150 MP, 150 SP, 50 HP
4. Cooldown: 2 minutes
Note:
1. Further Skills will be revealed with upgradation
2. Skills will upgrade themselves with upgradation
Warning: As a Soul Seed, the Item may corrupt/consume the Contestant's soul unless taken precautionary measures
Quality: 100%
]
…
If only Meg could use it, then Kai could have ignored the warning. She was not the Blue-skinned Demon, though. Moreover, if he hadn't got the new Stat, then he would have never known who the fuck this Blue-skinned Demon was and where had he come from, either.
Now that he knew, it angered him even more.
-/Why not all Items mention Sub-Grades in their Stats?/-
"Lack of info is also info, master," Meg commented. "No sub-grade means the Item is of the lowest level, unless, of course, the Item's level is upgraded later. Like your Fangs. For the rest of them, Sub-Grade is generally mentioned."
Meg's eyes reflected the Eon Soul Dew as if it had taken over her senses. She sighed.
"Even among Contestants of the 3rd set," Meg said, her eyes down, "a Rare grade Item is something that can only be desired and not obtained. One can't just have them on a wish. Power and Status mean nothing for Items of Rare grade and beyond, master. It's their uniqueness that makes them special. A Top-level Rare grade Item of Growth type…"
She just shook her head, lacking words.
-/And why are you so happy?/- Kai asked, feeling the bubbling happiness in her heart. -/Is my helplessness in using my own rewards arousing you, Meg?/-
The red-haired beauty fell to her knees, her voice shaking. "Never, master," she croaked. "I would never…"
From Kai's side, Petyr chuckled. He had been silent for the entire time, but it seemed he couldn't hold himself back any longer. "My lady," he addressed Meg, "our master is just messing with you."
Kai snorted out a laugh along with him. Meg snapped her head up and realizing it was indeed a jest, her face became red with shame. Her flustered expression caught Kai's attention, as he bounced the Eon Soul Dew up and down.
-/It's just an Item like you,/- he told her, sending it to his Inventory. -/So what if I can't use it now? I will figure it out, eventually. We just need to figure out what these precautionary measures are, no? It's not a big deal. Moreover, the fact that I can use Corrupt Summoning, given I meet its Stats requirements later, means that it is the Item's most basic Skill. It has yet to show its true capabilities, no? Hmm… Very well. Let's see the two Legendary Pokemon…/-
Just as Kai was about to finish his words, Selene hissed maniacally by his side.
Inside her, unseen, but not entirely unknown to Kai, the black tendrils and the patterned yellow rings seemed to tremble and pulse. A thick blue-red substance approached and got sucked by them. Suddenly, their efforts to break into Selene's gene structure shot through the roof.
With an ethereal cracking noise, they merged into the genes.
But in the middle of this gene structure, where the black tendrils and the yellow rings came into contact with each other, a dull grayish new substance took form. Not only did this substance keep the black tendrils and the yellow rings on either side, preventing them from coming into contact further, but it also spread throughout Selene's genome, becoming a part of her gene structure.
The spiral gene structure, which once had looked blue and white, now glowed with three colors. The leftmost part was covered with black tendrils, which flailed about like millions of live gluttonous tentacles. The rightmost part had patterned yellow rings. They made it impossible to look at them without losing one's mind to the ever-changing, hideous patterns and the convoluted geometrical shapes.
In the middle of these two parts ran a dull river of gray color across the entire length of the gene structure.
Outside, Selene's hisses had caused a deathly alarm. Kai's ears buzzed from her shouts, as he saw her eyes bleeding, and her dragon-like scales rattling like the call of a billion bugs.
Then she burst out with a blinding flash.
**********************
Bonus Chapter Deal:
1. 60 Power Stones per day: +1 Bonus Chapter
2. 85 Power Stones per day: +2 Bonus Chapters
3. 500+ Powers Stones (at the end of the week): +3 Bonus Chapters